The merits of coming out kept stacking. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad? People loved dragons. Look how the watchers of a certain HBO drama reacted when a blonde queen took to the skies on the back of a winged avenger. Yes, she would admit to a certain guilty pleasure in watching Game of Thrones.

But the infamous GoT series never had to deal with the reality of how an egg was created. Certain conditions had to be met. None of them in human form.

"I still can't believe they, um, did the"-she wiggled her brows, unable to think of a delicate way to say fucking without getting in trouble-"you know, as dragons."

"Don't be such a prude. It's a natural part of dragon life."

"Used to be, Mom. When was the last time we had an egg hatch? I don't know of any cases. Do you?"

Her mother's lips pursed. "That is an indelicate thing to ask. What I will say is, yes, it does still happen. There is nothing obscene or wrong with fornicating in our true form."

"And," Xylia interjected, "there are benefits."

True. Instead of having a nine-month pregnancy, when a dragoness went into her reproduction phase, she could produce a few eggs. Once fertilized, the eggs could be stored, and wouldn't hatch until the right conditions were met. A lack of heir being the most common condition.

"So the queen supposedly plopped an egg centuries ago. Do we know if it hatched?" Aimi asked.

"No one knows. The rumors only say the queen hid an egg. A fertilized gold, and it's never been found."

It sounded like something out of a fable. "I call bullshit."

"Language!"

"Forget the language. I am a little pissed that I'm only finding out about this legend of a gold egg now."

"It's not a legend."

"It's like the difference between potato and potahto." Aimi looked between her aunt and mother. "Which makes me wonder. You've known of this rumor for a long time obviously. Do you believe it?" Aimi wasn't sure she did. None of the histories ever spoke of an egg. In all of them, the golds had been decimated after leading a last-ditch attack against the humans. It failed.

"It doesn't matter if I believe it. It only takes a few to fuel a religion."

"This is the second time you've mentioned a religion. Dragons don't follow gods or doctrine. We have the Sept laws." The dumping of information began to grate. How many secrets did her mother hide?

"It's not a very big religion, not anymore, but it has existed since the purge. The believers worship the last golden mother and the last egg she birthed. Their story tells how she hid it, and that when the golden heir returns, he shall lead the dragons into the sun again."

"And now there's a hero to go with the fable." She rolled her eyes. "Do I even know who I am anymore? Why am I suddenly finding out about all this weird shit now?"

"Because, as you so eloquently put it, shit is happening now. Until recently, it was easy to mock and ignore the unwavering belief of a hidden religious sect. Like I said, they're small in number, and even more insane than those Templars. I mocked them when my mother finally revealed their presence to me. However, we seem to live in interesting times, and that belief is now stronger than ever."

"Why, though?" Aimi struggled to understand why people would cling to a vague rumor of an egg. Really, an egg? Even if it hatched after all this time, what could one dragon do? "Why believe in something so silly?"

"Is it silly?" Her mother fixed her with a stare and sighed. "Do you really have to ask why they want to believe? Use your head for something other than a perch for a crown."

"Give the child a break. She's had less time with the other Septs than we have. A lot of them are closing ranks, and we're not any different. We haven't taken in a foster dragonling in over a decade now. The advancement of technology has made all the Septs more careful."

"You mean more paranoid. As the dark times creep again, they look for the gold to save them," her mother muttered.

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"The quote refers to a tenet of their belief. Now, like then, it was a dark time for dragons. No flying, no being who we are. Always hiding. We tried fighting back at first, but there were too many humans, and they had bows and spears, not to mention numbers. We started to die and quickly realized we wouldn't survive, not when we reproduced so slowly. We didn't have help from science back then. It left only one option."

Dragonkind had to hide, and the golden king, the last king, ordered his people to go and covered their retreat. But the goldens couldn't hide. As the most prized of the dragons, they were hunted hardest. They were decimated, especially since the golds, in their pride, refused to hide. Golds were fighters to the end, and it led to the end of their line.

Humans found and struck down the once proud ruling family, to the very last one. So many lost hope.

Her aunt was the one recounting the history, but giving it a twist Aimi never imagined. "Dragons had lost all hope. We wanted to fight, and yet we cowered in our caves. Lamenting our glory, mourning those fallen. It seemed like all was lost, and then the rumor emerged of a single egg, hidden away from the hunters, waiting for a time when it could be born and lead us into the dawn of dragon, where we would rule not just the skies but also the land."

"You do realize that sounds like a manifesto for world domination?" For some reason, this made her grin. "Cool."

Her mother arched a brow. "More than cool. It is what should be, given we are, after all, the more evolved species." Long-lived, as well. Not immortal as some human legends would claim, but most of dragonkind lived well into their hundreds, some even made it to two. Although, her great-grandmother Liandra had to be put in a secured chalet-a heavily reinforced one-given she'd gone senile and refused to move from her spot over her hoard of treasure and blasted silver darts at anyone who tried to approach.

"Even if there were an egg, Brand obviously didn't hatch from it." Adi had dug deep enough, as had her Aunts Vanna and Valda, to know that Brandon James Mercer had been born of an actual mother and father. Brand truly did descend from a very long line of gators-and a few snakes-and most certainly wasn't fathered by a dragon. It also wasn't as if he'd suddenly appeared out of nowhere either. His birth, and that of his whole family, was public record. Searches of restricted databases-which were no match for their family's hacking skills-found pictures, school report cards, misdemeanor files, arrest files, even a few warrants for the Mercers, although none were for Brandon.

Interestingly enough, Theodore Parker had filed a missing persons report for Brand. She could almost admire the way his uncle manipulated the humans into working for him to find his nephew.

"The man in my bed might not have been born a dragon, but we shouldn't forget Parker did something to his genes." The information gleaned from rumors stated that Parker made monsters, and most of them went mad.

"You're thinking he spliced dragon genetic matter to Brand's helix," Xylia said with a nod.

"Actually, I was going to say he did a milkshake with his blood and stuff, but your explanation sounds way more science-y."

Her mother shook her head. "A DNA graft or a milkshake, as Aimi-with five years of prep school-calls it, are both unlikely. I cannot see how it would work."

"Science is a scary thing. It can do many things thought impossible. Even merging two species. Look at the hybrid plants the farmers use now. Doing it to a biological entity is not so farfetched, especially since the gator genome sequence and the dragon one are not that dissimilar."

Her mother made a moue of displeasure. "Don't even say it. We are nothing like those filthy mud creatures."

Aimi couldn't help but poke at her mother's disgust. "It's not that bad, Mother. Think of it as the way chimpanzees and humans are alike. We are the more evolved version of both." Just to be a brat, Aimi scratched her armpit.

The first time she did it, her mother froze. The second scratch managed to have her mother utter a loud sigh and turn away.

Score!

"I cannot believe you would think of bringing a swamp creature into the family. What will I tell people?"

"Don't explain. Just stare them down with haughty disdain." Kind of like her mother was doing right now. Aimi grinned. "Just think of the fun we'll have turning him into a snob like us. And you seem to be forgetting something, Mother. Let's say he is a gold. Even if he emerged from perhaps dubious origin, haven't you figured out what that means?"

"He might be the foretold one that those religious fanatics are looking for," her aunt replied with a sage nod of her head.

What? Actually, that wasn't the direction her mind had gone in at all. Damn. One more thing to worry about. But, apparently, her mother still missed the obvious. "I wouldn't be so sure Brand is the one in legend because, in order for Parker to have spliced gold DNA onto Brand, they would have to-"

"-have access to a gold dragon. Or its egg," Xylia said, finishing her thought.

Her mother whirled from the window. "Whichever the case, we need to find it."

And her mother neatly fell into the trap. Aimi slapped her hands on the armrest of the club chair. "I think it's time we paid my fiance's uncle a visit." Yes, fiance, because now that her mother was distracted by the possibility of another gold, she would have less time to worry about Aimi's plans, and Aimi's plans included winning a certain challenge with Brand and then claiming him for her hoard. Ahem, she meant claiming him as her husband.

"A visit with Parker?" Her mother mused the idea aloud. "Yes, I think it's past time we paid him a social call. He dares much in his experiments, and even more if he holds our kind hostage. The world needs to know you should never f-"

"-uck."

"-ool around with our kind. Young lady, what is wrong with your mouth today?"

It is dirty, so dirty. It probably deserved that vile spoonful of castor oil that made her stomach rebel in heaving waves, but the gagging was worth it. Aimi had neatly maneuvered her mother into acting against Parker, and it took all she had to hold on to her smirk of triumph as she exited her matriarch's office and did silent fist pumps in the hall. She was still dancing when she got to her sister in the library.

"Judging by your seriously lacking in rhythm moves, I take it Mother is now giving us the resources to go after Speedy's sister."

"Actually, she thinks we're going after a gold egg. But since that egg is probably wherever Parker is, and Brand's sister is with Parker"-a little jig of happiness- "then, yes, the mission is a go."

"The things you do to manipulate family." Adi shook her head. "Good job, sis. Mom would be so proud if she knew."

"Which she won't because we're not going to tell her." Because Mother Dear probably wouldn't approve of Aimi saving another of those "dirty swamp gators."

Aimi and her sister didn't high-five their win; they swished their hands dragontail-style against each other. Don't judge. They'd been doing it a long time.

"Since the mission is a go, now we just need to choose a location." Adi whirled and began tapping away. "I've actually got three possible places they could be staying. The man owns more than one place. I take it we're keeping our mission a secret and not involving any of the other Septs?"

"Fucking right, we are." Aimi dropped the f-bomb and grinned. "No use letting the other Septs know they might have a treasure in their midst."

"Any idea how we are going to explain to Mother that we're bringing back the sister?"

"I'll figure something out."

"When do you want us to leave?"

We because no way would Adi let Aimi go adventuring on her own. "Right away. Last thing we need is for Mother to change her mind. I take it the cousins are going to tag along, too," Aimi said.

"We are all raring to get out of the house. It's been a while since we enjoyed a little action."

"Awesome. Let's plan to leave within the hour. I'll just pack a bag and round up Brand." No way was she leaving him behind.

"Speaking of which...hello, what's this?" Adi leaned forward and zoomed one of the security monitors. "Better hurry if you want to hold on to that man of yours because it looks like he's trying to take off without you."

"What do you mean?"

Her sister pointed to a monitor, the one covering the massive garage. Cars of various types filled it, from giant SUVs like the Suburban and the more luxury Escalade to sleek sports cars like the Audi R8 and the newest Mustang model. It also had a wide range of crotch rockets.

The camera zoomed closer, and Aimi clenched her fists as she noted Brand straddling a motorcycle, his profile distinct and quite sexy. Somehow during her absence, he'd managed to clothe himself and had gotten out of a locked room.

The man proved wily, having navigated the mansion's many halls and actually made it undetected to the garage, where he now prepared to flee.

He's running from me.

Hell, no. He's mine.

And this time, she wouldn't lose him to the chase. She barreled out of the library through the garden doors.

It took no thought or effort, just a willing of the change. One moment, she was bound by the tight conscriptions of flesh, and the next, she burst free. The atoms of her expanded, her silvery shape lithe and her tail rapier-tipped. The crested mane flowing from her crown rustled, and strands lifted, dancing in the ghostly wind that always traveled with her.

Her wings unfurled, gossamer thin in appearance, iridescent in sheen, and yet leathery strong. With a fluting note, she sprang to the parapet of the balcony, claws digging into the thick solid stone. The last rays of the sun kissed the horizon, not quite nightfall but close enough.

Here I come, mate. She sprang into the air, a massive goliath unleashed.

In the olden days, when dragons flew, humans hid. In this century, mortals were safe, as the Sept laws prohibited hunting the two-legged. Today, even the cattle could munch without fear as they roamed the massive property. This dragon had another target in sight.

Brand. Oh, Brand.

She hummed his name and saw his head jerk, but he stayed his course, the bike speeding down the long driveway. How droll. He thought he could escape.

Not today.

One massive sweep of her wings, and she coasted over him, casting a shadow that caused him to crane his head. She saw his lips move-What the fuck?-and felt his astonishment through the link binding them.

The bike wobbled as he lost control. Addled by her magnificence more than likely. Her family did have the most striking scales of all the Septs.

A graceful dive brought her within reach just as he righted the weaving bike. His perch on the seat made it easy for her to snatch him with her claws, much like a bird of prey and its dinner. A few strokes of her wings, and she was moving higher into the sky. When she reached the right altitude, she banked and headed back toward the house then past it. She wanted a talk with her mate, in private, and she knew just the place.

The wind rushing past stole all the protests he made, and she ignored the irritation radiating from his mind. However, she couldn't ignore the earful Brand yelled at her when she dropped him in the pool of natural spring water.

She chose to land upon a large boulder before shifting shape.

He kicked to the surface, sputtering and yelling. "You're a fucking dragon."

About time he noticed.

Chapter Nine.

A dragon. Aimi was a fucking dragon. And her reply to this most momentous of news?

"Duh. I told you so."

He swam to the edge of the pool and sloshed out. "No, you can't be. You were supposed to be some crazy girl with delusions of being a fucking dragon. Not a real fucking dragon." Such a beautiful one, too. When he'd seen the shadow overhead, noticeable even with the falling twilight, he'd suspected it was Aimi, but he could have never imagined the rest.

Cartoons often portrayed dragons as sporting fat bellies and spewing flames, wearing horns with smoke curling from their nostrils. Some also sang-Puff the magic dragon anyone? The truth about dragons proved somewhere in the middle.

Aimi's beast held a lithe shape, more serpentine slender than rounded belly. While she still had two legs and two arms, they were hinged slightly different, and her toes sported sharp claws-that dangled me like a worm on a hook. His mancard sobbed in his pocket.

Her scales were incredible, appearing made of actual silver, bright and flashy. He wondered how she'd look with her skin refracting the setting rays of the sun.

I look beautiful. "Before you ask, you spoke aloud, not in your head."