Page 13 of Secondhand Garagyre

Iam unsure ifPaisleyknows what she possesses or if she would be uncomfortable with me touching her crystals.Longago one did not meddle with another’s crystals for fear of magickal backlash, either from the owner or the crystal itself.

FurtherintriguedIperuse the shelves, once upon a timeIgreatly enjoyed the written work.Thosebooks, however, were written in my native tongue.These…are not.Thecolor covers are dazzling, though, and some of them even have color images within them!Lookingcloser,Isee that many of them have human men of various coloring and build on the covers, most of them without any garments upon their upper body.

Howincredibly fascinating!

Sucha thing did not exist when lastIwalked this plane.

Iwonder ifPaisleywould be willing to teach me the language these tombs are written in.Itwould be a boon to rekindle my love of reading.Alove that my female obviously shares, if the contents of this room are to be believed.Thesound of a door creaking open signalsPaisleyexiting her sleeping chamber.

“Laithog?”

Ismile at the question in her voice.Mylittle female is seeking me out and it brings me joy.

“Iam in your…what do you call this room of books?Ah, yes.Alibrary.Iam in your library,”Igradually respond.Myattention still very much arrested by all the wondrous things about me.Aseries of images catch my eye, andIstep closer to inspect them.They’retucked into a corner between two shelves, as if they’re not to be seen by just anyone.

Oncemy eyes register whatIam seeing, shock holds me immobile.Thereare males, males that arenot humanin appearance in a series of sexually explicit positionswith human females!

Surely, if she has things of this nature in her home…she would not be opposed to eventually doing some of these things with me.Peeringaround, the spine of one of the books on the back wall, just below the explicit images, catches my attention.Squinting,Ilean closer to get a better look, and jerk back in astonishment at whatIfind.Thereis an image similar to the one on the wall, just smaller!

Gently,Iuse the tip of one of my claws to slide the book out from its slot and turn it over in my hands.Thecover shows a winged male holding a beautiful human female in an impassioned embrace.

Ismirk.

Myfemale doesn’t just enjoy looking at images of multi-specie couples, shereadsabout them as well!Thesound ofPaisleywalking through the door announces her arrival.Whenshe see’s whatIam holding she emits a soft shriek and moves as fast as her sore body will allow, snatching the book from me and shoving it back into its place on the shelf.

Neverone to pass up an opportunity such as this,Ilean down and seductively whisper in her ear. “You’veno need to read about males of my ilk whenIam here.Iam most willing to get to know you better…in every way a male can know a female.”

Usingthe tip of one finger,Iclose her mouth that fell open in shock at my words. “Worrynot little one.Iwill not move with haste.Youdo not know me, asIknow you.Youhave questions, andIam still quite famished for a real meal.Ido, however, have a request.”

Herbrows crease at that.

“Ihave not had the pleasure of reading in far longer thanIcare to admit.Wouldyou be willing to teach me the language of your people, so thatImay read again?Ihave no care to seek out any of my people at this time, nor anytime soon.And, ifImay be so bold,Iwould like to ask a second favor of you…” my words trail off slowly since she still hasn’t says a word.

Asmall nod of encouragement from her makes me smile beforeIcontinue.

“Wouldyou pick a favorite story of yours, and read it to me after our evening meal?Inoticed a fire place in your communal room.Iwill be happy to fetch firewood and start a fire while you begin prepping our meal.NotthatIexpect you to do all the cooking.Iam willing to assist in that as well,”Ifinish warmly.

Thesmile that comes overPaisley’sface is a thing of beauty, and makes my heart swell with warmth. “Laithog, you have just described my ultimate stay at home dream date.Idon’t think there is anythingIwould enjoy more right now, than what you’ve just described.”

Herpleasure at my suggestion makes me almost giddy.Weboth turn to leave the library when both of her tiny terrors sound the alarm, and lights make their appearance, the beams bouncing around the house through the windows.

“Whoin the world could that be this late?” she queries.

Irritationfills me.

Whoeverit is needs to leave.

With.

Haste.

Ihave food to consume, a story to be had, and a female to seduce.

Smirking,Irecall the image of a human maleIsaw on one of the books inPaisley’slibrary and allow the façade to shimmer across my body.

Chapter Sixteen

PAISLEY

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