23. How To Be Welcomed By Your Dragon’s Family

Under the cover of night,Blade flew Joey and Katie up north, into the mountains.

He'd wrapped them up in a thick quilt to keep them warm, and stopped for breaks so Joey could feed Katie. But finally, finally, they landed in a large courtyard halfway up a mountain, backed by an imposing mansion and surrounded by a pine forest.

Several lights had been lit around the place to welcome them.

"This is our flight's den," Blade rumbled as he peeled open the quilt.

Joey peeked out, cuddling Katie in his arms. When Katie saw Blade, she shifted into a tiny purple dragon, roaring at him.

Blade laughed and roared back, the sound waves ruffling Katie's wings. She snapped her jaws and leaped delightedly at Blade, and the two of them rolled around on the ground.

The mansion's doors burst open. Several people raced out, all of them shimmering as they shifted into dragons and flew over, landing around Joey and Blade and Katie in a flurry of dust.

It was kind of terrifying, to be honest. The dragons towered over Joey, majestic creatures with sharp teeth and wings and claws, and there had to be more than ten of them. Joey had never even seen this many dragons in his life.

A regal black dragon stepped forward—Blade's Papa, the leader of the flight. "Welcome to our home. I am Thomas. You must be Joey."

Joey got to his feet shakily; his belly was so round now that he didn't have the best balance. Blade wrapped a paw around him to help him stand. "It's great to meet you, Thomas. Um, this is Katie."

He lifted Katie into the air, and all the dragons cooed at her. Katie opened her mouth in a smile, her little wings flapping as she tried to fly.

"She is adorable," a yellow dragon said, coming up to stand next to Blade's Papa. "I'm Sen. Blade's Dad. We can't wait for you to join our flight."

As one, the dragons around them rumbled, "Welcome to our flight."

Joey blushed. Blade growled and nuzzled the side of Joey's head, crowding close to him. "If you'll let us through, I'm going to bond with him right now."

Joey's heart skipped. Blade hadn't introduced the rest of his flight, but that didn't seem to be his priority. In a smooth move, Blade swept Joey off his feet and flew across the courtyard, landing in front of the mansion's doors.

The dragons followed them to the very back of the first floor, where the hallway opened up into a large stone cavern—carved into the side of the mountain? It was lit with several torches along the walls, and in the middle of the floor, several concentric circles had been carved into the smooth stone: runes and animals, trees and people. The carvings were worn and simple, as though they had been around for a long, long time. Centuries?

"This is our flight's bonding circle. Our flight has existed for a thousand years," Blade murmured, setting Joey on his feet. He shifted back into a human and kissed Katie on the forehead, before handing her to his dads. "We'll walk the circle together, three times. At the end of it, we will be bonded for life."

Looking into the calm certainty of Blade's gaze, Joey knew there was only one answer that felt right. "Yes."

Blade rumbled and led him to the circles, taking off their shoes. "Keep at least one foot on your circle at all times."

He took the outermost circle and had Joey stand on the one next to him, their fingers entwined. Under the watchful gazes of Blade's family, they made a lap slowly around the circle, hand in hand. Blade's gaze constantly flicked back at him, and a smile played on his lips.

"It feels unreal, almost," Joey murmured. He had to feel for the groove of the circle with his toes; there was no way he could see anything past his round belly. Blade helped to guide him, too.

"It's real," Blade whispered back. "You're the only person I want to do this with. I wake up every day looking forward to the things you'll say to me. You make me smile, Joey, even though you've now amassed thirty-six carts in our yard."

Joey laughed, his heart warm. "Thirty-six carts is nothing!"

Blade huffed. "Oh, gods."

The moment they completed the first lap, a gentle breeze picked up in the cavern. The circles began to glow a soft blue.

"Once for luck," Blade rumbled, his voice echoing through the cavern.

They finished the second lap. A gust swirled around briefly, before gentling. Magic hummed through the circles and soaked into Joey's body.

"Twice as a promise," Blade said.

The dragons watched with bated breath. But all Joey knew was Blade's anticipation, the softness in his eyes, the way Blade lifted Joey's hand to his lips, kissing his knuckles.

As they completed the third lap, the gust returned. Blade's eyes glowed a bright red, and the circles shone blue.

"Three times for a future well-told," Blade murmured against Joey's knuckles.

A pulse of energy surged from Blade's body into Joey's, filling him with warmth like a gentle fire. Life swelled beneath his skin, at the same time a few more of Blade's hairs turned grey. Their hearts fell into sync.

Joey almost couldn't breathe; this was so important.

Blade cradled Joey's face and kissed him softly. Joey returned it to show Blade how much this meant to him, how thankful he was that Blade had chosen to accept him as his lifelong mate.

"Thank you for believing in me," Joey choked.

"Thank you for being the brightest spark in my life," Blade answered, his gaze crinkling with affection. "We're mates now. Mine forever."

Joey's heart swelled. He stepped into Blade's embrace; Blade had to hug him from the side because Joey's belly was so round. Blade rubbed his palm over Joey's abdomen, dropping kisses on Joey's head.

The dragons cheered around them. It was almost deafening, their rumbling reverberating around the cavern.

Maybe it was the sound, or maybe it was time. Joey's body clenched in a contraction, and he had to hold onto Blade to keep upright.

A moment later, he felt a strange wetness soaking into his clothes. Blade tilted his head, sniffing curiously.

"You smell... different," Blade said.

"I think my water broke," Joey blurted.

Everything exploded into chaos.

Joey found himself scooped off his feet and rushed out of the cavern. Blade's dads began ordering everyone around. Blade's siblings began arguing over who would get to hold the newborn first.

Blade carried Joey to a room upstairs, setting him down in the middle of a large bed. He crowded close and ran his hands all over Joey. "How are you feeling?"

Now that the contraction had passed, Joey felt... okay. "Not so bad."

Blade frowned and stared at Joey's belly. "Really?"

"Really!"

"But you're in labor." Blade looked so worried that Joey grew anxious, too.

"Am I going to be okay?" Joey breathed.

"Yes. Definitely. I'm just nervous. My dads have experience with labors." Blade huffed and glanced at the doorway, where his siblings were crowded. "They went through all those births."

"That makes sense." Joey tried to breathe out his nervousness.

"Make way!" Blade's Dad squeezed through his horde of adult offspring and came up to the bed, carrying Katie. Katie had shifted back into a human baby; at the sight of Joey and Blade, she reached out, smiling toothily. "Ba wa eh!"

"We'll watch her when you're further along in labor," Sen said. "I think she'll appreciate spending time with you now."

He made sure Joey felt comfortable in the room. Then he left and made Blade's siblings leave them alone, and Joey sagged against his mate.

"That was... a lot," Joey whispered.

"It was," Blade said apologetically. He rubbed Joey's back and dropped kisses all over Joey's face, helping Joey change into a birthing gown.

Over the next hours, Blade's family stopped by to check on them. They brought food and entertainment; they came in to play banjos and sing. By the time Joey's contractions grew frequent, he'd amassed several more of Blade's embarrassing childhood stories, and several in-laws who were now also his friends.

It felt good, being part of such a big family. Knowing that Blade's parents and siblings cared for him like one of their own.

Blade's parents came in to take Katie away soon after that. Blade's Dad, Sen, stayed with them and helped to rub soothing creams into Joey's belly; Blade curled up around Joey, massaging his back to ease his discomfort.

"Push," Sen said.

Blade puffed up his chest, his face scrunched like he was trying to hold something in.

"Don't you dare," Sen growled at Blade.

"Dare what?" Joey blurted as he panted through a contraction.

"Push," Blade blurted.

Joey groaned. "No!"

Sen growled and his eyes flashed red. "Don't interrupt Joey's rhythm!"

Blade winced. "But—"

"No buts, or I'll chase you out of here." Sen bared his teeth.

For the first time ever, Blade appeared cowed. Joey laughed tiredly, squeezing Blade's hand.

"I'll have more of Blade's childhood stories for you when you're recovering," Sen promised Joey.

Blade grimaced. "Dad—"

"Shush. Joey deserves to hear them. He's carried your dragonet for six whole months!"

"All right." Blade's expression softened into an affectionate smile, and he nuzzled Joey's temple.

Joey kept pushing, breathing through the contractions and pain. Through it all, Blade held him and whispered encouragement and praise.

Finally, after an excruciating amount of pushing, something slipped out of him. The relief was instantaneous; Joey sagged back against the pillows, closing his eyes. "Oh, gods."

"You did amazing, sweetheart," Blade growled, dropping kisses all over Joey's face. "So beautiful. I'm so proud of you."

Joey smiled. Blade trailed his scent all over Joey, cradling him gently.

Sen laid a tiny, squirming baby on Joey's chest, his face aglow. "Look at this sweet boy!"

Joey's breath caught. Their son was wailing, eyes scrunched shut, tiny hands curled into fists. "Hey, Terry," Joey murmured, cradling him gently. "It's okay. You're safe here with us. Your Papa and I are so happy to finally meet you."

Blade covered Terry's back with his large hand, rubbing him gently. "Hey, kiddo. Looks like you have a lot of growing to do."

"That's not what you say to a newborn," Joey protested.

"But it's true," Blade said. "He's tiny."

At their voices, Terry grew quiet, cracking his eyes open as though he wanted to see them, too.

Joey melted. Next to him, Blade pressed closer, surrounding Terry and Joey with his own body. "Ours," Blade rumbled. "Our second child. Just as beloved."

"Yes," Joey whispered, so grateful that Blade was here with him, that Blade was so excited to raise their children together. "We'll let you meet Katie soon. I think you'll grow up to be so close."

Blade grinned and dropped a kiss on Terry, before kissing Joey again. "Yes. Our dragonets will learn to have each other's backs, no matter what."

Just like Blade had Joey's back, come hell or high water. Joey leaned into his mate, pressing kisses to Blade's jaw and mouth.

Over the past few months, Blade had slowly acquired the things Joey had left back at his old apartment, replicas of Joey's belongings that reminded him of his parents.

In turn, Joey had grown bolder and more confident around Blade; he'd learned to ask for things, knowing that Blade loved having more reasons to provide. Joey had learned to stand with confidence, knowing that he had value, that he had strength. That he wasn't defined only by his past. And it was all thanks to Blade, and how he'd taken a chance on Joey.

"I love you," Blade rumbled, holding them close.

"Love you too," Joey whispered, his heart ever so full.