Chapter 49: Bug
Thanks to his alertness, Ezekiel immediately caught Tarah’s falling body from the sky before quickly flying back to the cave they had been in before. Touching down softly, he gently put her on the ground before inwardly cursing at himself for being unable to shift back into his human form to at least make things comfortable for her.
Working with what he had, he did his best to assess her body, and he sighed in relief upon confirming that she was mostly fine.
’She’s probably just too exhausted,’ Ezekiel thought to himself as he sat in his dragon form near her. Tarah was still human, after all, so it was natural for her to easily get exhausted. She was also sleep-deprived lately due to constantly staying by his side, so it was no wonder then that this happened.
’She should be waking up soon though,’ he told himself as he stared at her sleeping form.
Soon enough, she stirred, and this made him move as he extended his head down to the ground near her.
"Oh," Tarah gasped. She then moved away, and only then did Ezekiel realize how near his face was to her at the moment.
[It’s me. I’m sorry,] he explained as he quickly moved his head back. [I just wanted to make sure you’re alright.]
Hearing his explanation, Tarah let out a soft chuckle as she stood up and approached his head. "I’m fine, just a little bit exhausted. I hadn’t been sleeping lately, so I guess I passed out," she said in her soothing voice. She then raised her hand and gently patted and caressed his head. "You did great today, Your Highness" she praised with a wide smile on her face.
Feeling Tarah’s gentle touch, Ezekiel felt like his heart would burst out from his chest with how happy he was at that moment. He let out a soft hum, and he could only wonder what he must look like at the moment as he grinned before her.
"Oh, look at you. So roguish and cheeky with that happy look on your face," Tarah told him. "How come you can smile like this in your dragon form but not in your true human form?"
He frowned at her question. ’Am I not smiling?’