Page 19 of Once Upon a Rec Center Wish
“How would you help us?” Falco asked.
“I would fly you above the clouds and back to your land. I do believe you have a lovely meadow with the prettiest of flowers.”
The same meadow where I’d first met Falco. “And how do we know we can trust you?”
With a chuckle, the dragon released a puff of smoke. “If I wanted to bring you harm, I would have by now. My name is Max by the way.” Suddenly the air around him sparkled, and he shrunk, as if every part of his body was miniaturized and reshaped into a new form. I’d seen many beings shift before, but Max’s transformation seemed more extraordinary. “Is this a less scary form for you?”
I gulped at the man before me. He was definitely an exquisite example of the male form, more toned and bigger in all the right places, with shimmering skin the same color as his dragon’s scales. I worried Falco would decide to leave me for him.
But my mate leaned down and stroked my fur. “I’m sure you are nice,” he said to Max. “And many in the village would get a kick out of meeting a dragon, especially those from the outer-world like me. But it’s best if we get back now. It’s getting late.”
“Let me escort you.” He leaned over and petted my head. With Max’s touch, I felt the magic once again, and I absorbed it to shift into my human form. I saw his eyes scan me from head to toe before he nodded. “And maybe you can tell me more about your village and how I can meet an outer-worder. It sure would be nice to have some company for a change.”
Falco tucked his arm around mine. “Sure. And I can tell Ahmed exactly where to go to find someone who would love to be mated to a dragon shifter.”
Reluctantly, I walked south through the forest with my mate and Max, relieved I had found Falco and that he was safe and still wanted to be my mate. Yet, I worried about the reaction from the villagers when they learned of the existence of a real-life dragon and how he wanted a mate, too.
Chapter Fifteen
Falco
When I was really young, before I knew what it meant to be queer and my parents tried to “beat the gay out” of me, I did dream of getting married. In kindergarten, we used to have pretend wedding ceremonies, and no one argued that boys weren’t allowed to marry boys and girls weren’t allowed to marry girls. Not until a teacher or parent interfered to push their beliefs on us. I remember one time wearing a white dress and a veil and walking down the aisle between the desks to pretend marry a boy in my class named Tommy.
The day of my actual mating ceremony felt a lot like that. It started as a fun and happy morning where Lonnie, Walter, and Nelson arrived at the house with all kinds of white clothing to get me to try on. I settled for a pair of white pants and a lace button-up coat with a train that flowed behind. The kids had run to the meadow to pick a bunch of flowers for my bouquet, and after Nelson tied them all together, we left for the ceremony.
The gathering in the center of the village was bigger than I’d expected. Vern was convinced many would refuse to attend because they believed he’d somehow skipped the line in finding a mate. He didn’t accredit our meeting to Fate the way I did. Yet, it seemed the whole village had turned out, including two new outer-worlders who had arrived when I’d been lost in the woods, the Forest Council, all of Vern’s brothers, and Max. The villagers seemed to accept the dragon shifter so long as he remained in his human form while in and around the village. And Ahmed had spent much time with him, asking many questions about how the magic from his land worked.
As I reached the crowd, the beings parted to make way for me to walk toward my soon-to-be official mate. There was noone dropping flower petals in front of me or carrying a pillow with rings tied to it. Just me, stepping along the path to where Vern waited, wearing nothing other than a black top hat with a matching bow tie and cummerbund. As he smiled, I caught the glint of a tear as it fell down his cheek before he wiped it away. Definitely my fated mate.
When I reached him, we joined hands with each other, along with those who stood as our witnesses on either side of us, Nelson and Holden. Ahmed stood in front of us with a golden robe and a matching pointed hat. His white hair and beard glowed as if they had recently been washed and trimmed. Banir, the Head of the Forest Council, stood beside him wearing only a patchwork-pink stole over his shoulders, ready to officiate the ceremony. Maybe it wasn’t the wedding I’d imagined as a young child, but it felt just as magical.
Ahmed raised his hand and the crowd quieted.
Banir cleared his throat. “We are gathered today to witness the magical union of one of our own with another outer-worlder who graciously decided to stay in our world and make it his new home.” He turned to my mate. “Do you, Vern, understand that by mating with an outer-worlder, you are responsible for them and any children they may bear in the future?”
Vern tucked his thumbs into his cummerbund and nodded. “I do. And I gladly accept the responsibility.”
Then the Head of the Forest Council turned to me. “And do you, Falco of the outer-world, understand that once you are mated, the magic of the Enchanted Forest will change your body to make it possible for you to bear children? So, you are not only making a commitment to Vern but to our world.”
Reaching for Vern’s hands, I smiled up at him. “I do. I love you, Vern, and I cannot wait to have babies with you.”
Banir stepped back to address the others with us. “Do you, members of the Forest Council, promise to accept this union and bear witness to the magic that will unite them?”
“We do,” those immediately around us voiced.
With a sweep of his arms, Banir addressed everyone. “And do you, beings of the Enchanted Forest and beyond, promise to accept this union, bear witness to the magic that will unite them, and help raise any children that will be born of this coupling?”
“We do!” the crowd hollered, Vern’s brothers seeming to be loudest among everyone.
Occupying the spot directly in front of Vern and me, Ahmed raised his arms before resting his palms on each of our heads. “With the magic granted to me by the Enchanted Forest, I declare Falco of the outer-world and Vern of the Enchanted Forest to be mates. May the magic of this world keep you happy and healthy and bring us many more little ones.”
A loud cheer erupted, and Holden acted as a blocker to part the celebrating crowd for us. When we reached the edge of all the beings in attendance, he clasped Vern’s shoulder. “Go home and finish the ceremony by yourselves. Enjoy this time, because once the kids arrive, finding time for just the two of you will become much more difficult.”
With Megan as my neighbor in my old life, I understood what he meant. That was why I had babysat her kids so often. I just hoped she found someone who treated her the same way Vern treated me. For her sake, and her kids.
Holding Vern’s hand as we walked back to our home, we swung our arms gently. My heart felt huge in my chest, and I couldn’t help but smile, holding the tears of happiness that threatened to spill. I had a mate, a home, and children were very likely in our near future. Something I never believed possible only a couple weeks earlier.
Chapter Sixteen
