Royal Suite
The rooms of the royal family in Castle Draco take up an entire floor of the edifice, although only half of the space is given over to living areas. There is a library, dining hall and kitchens, although the latter are almost never used. The royal bedrooms are all linked together as a group, although the master bedroom alone has a sweeping view of the countryside from atop the castle.

For someone without wings, the climb up the many, many stairs would be arduous. Alptraum gets around this by using the flyer's landing on the balcony above the suite, where the guards recognize him and let him through into the castle without a word. Somewhere in here there is a room given over to the Eeee, if he can remember where it is. It seems he never actually spends any time in his own room. He can also hear the familiar voice of Phlagaea lightly singing some sort of Babelite ballad (you can tell it's Babelite the amount of horrific acts that can be sung jauntily).

Alptraum runs his hands through his hair and curls his wings in tight so as to not bump into anything here; most of it costs more than any amount of money he's held in his entire life. "Hello Phlagaea!" he calls out to the singing priestess somewhere in the myriad of rooms. He's also making a concerted effort to not translate that song. Not after the first few lines were enough to chill the blood.

"… out come the toenails, one by one… Oh! Alptraum!" Phlagaea says, cutting off her song. A recently-turned-brown Eeee face pops out of a doorway, and smiles! "I didn't know you were back from your Reaper stuff! How did it go?"

"Bizarrely. I'm not sure if Reapers are just odd or if I attract weirdness. And to make matters worse Mortimer demanded I find him a date with a normal woman," Alptraum complains as he heads towards Phlagaea. "I don't know any normal women … so I set him up with the closest thing I could find, an old gypsy dancer friend of mine."

"I'm normal… now," Phlagaea points out. She's even dressed normally, wearing a flying vest and shorts – although they are dyed green. "Don't I look normal?" she asks, spinning around for inspection.

"He didn't just want appearance, he wanted complete normalcy. And besides that, you still belong to me," Alptraum teases with a grin as he slips in behind her and wraps his arms around her in a light hug. "And oh, I let the scaling on my right hand fade and it's reverted to 'normal'. Sort of. I guess it's normal for it," he adds with a grin as he rolls his hand so the leathery underside is exposed and waggles his fingers at her.

The Yodhgorphat can't resist pinching and pulling on what looks like loose folds. "It's like leather!" she proclaims. "Are you going to keep it like this?"

"Well, other than looking odd, can you tell if there is anything wrong with it?" Alptraum asks, "I'm considering leaving it that way if it's not dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Phlagaea asks, letting go of the skin now. "It's… skin… How can it be dangerous?"

"Well, that's the question, isn't it? It doesn't seem diseased or anything, right? Perfectly fine skin, just leathery?" Alptraum asks.

"Well, it's not oozing or squishy or sticky," Phlagaea notes. "Does it hurt or feel funny?"

"I don't feel much of anything other than some pressure when you pinch or pull," Alptraum answers, "And there is one thing, it's slightly cooler than my other hand."

"Well, it's thicker, so probably less blood vessels near the surface," Phlagaea notes. "It's mostly dead skin cells, I'd think. That could make it seem cooler."

"Oh, right, you said skin was mostly dead to begin with," Alptraum says after remembering. "So … I'll ask your opinion. Do you like it like this, or scaled?"

"Well, the scales gave some… interesting texture… " Phlagaea notes, and winks at Alptraum. "You know, when you touch me with it… "

"Oh, like when I gently caressed your tender areas?" Alptraum teases as his hands slip down so that he can tickle her stomach lightly. "Want to watch me grow scales, then?" he murmurs in her ear.

"Okay!" the priestess giggles, twitching her ears.

Alptraum lightly nips Phlagaea's shoulder and then pulls his right hand from her stomach. He holds it out for her to watch while the his own eyes close and his thoughts flow back to how the scales looked and felt. His thoughts then linger on that mostly numb appendage as he visualizes the thick skin spouting a layer of smooth black scaling along it, all the way from fingertip to where his normal fur grows.

It's a little easier this time than the first, since the forearm seems to remember the form, somehow. The skin puckers, then folds itself into dimples and scales. It seems to thin a bit in the process as the skin contracts to create the smoother surface of the scales, and the gray hair simply falls free.

Alptraum flexes and rolls the newly scaled fingers … and then in an act of deviousness, he slips them lightly into Phlagaea's flying vest and once there, the scaled fingertips play. "How have you been feeling lately," he asks her as if nothing at all was going on.

The girl eeps, and says, "Well, those have been getting a little tender and, I think, bigger. And… oh… there was something I was supposed to tell you… " The bat looks ceiling ward as she tries to remember…

Of course Alptraum can't help but feel to see if Phlagaea is indeed getting bigger in that area. "Ooo, I may have to give you a thorough inspection later," he teases her. "But alas it will have to wait until I speak with the Countess about something important."

"Oh, that was it!" Phlagaea says, snapping her fingers. "The Countess wanted to see you down in Melusine's lair if you showed up today… "

Alptraum stops mid-cupping of Phlagaea's … anyway. "She did? Why did she need to see me down in Melusine's lair?" he asks with a hint of worry in his voice. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh… I don't know," Phlagaea notes. "She was bringing a lot of stuff with her though. Witchcraft supplies, I think."

"That worries me," Alptraum admits as he lightly releases Phlagaea from the hug, then spins her around so that she faces him. "You look beautiful and I would love to spend time exploring your … beauty, but I should see what she needs while I still have energy. I know if I stay with you, well, I won't have enough to walk. You bring out the demon in me," the Eeee murmurs, then leans in and kisses her gently. Before he lets go, he even whispers, "Rowr." into one of her ears.

"I'll be waiting!" Phlagaea warns, and squeezes Alptraum's rear before letting him escape.

"Take care! And whatever you do, don't think about what a little creative fur trimming and scales on bare skin could feel like," Alptraum says with an oh-so-innocent voice just before his head disappears out the door and it closes behind him.

---

The Lair of Melusine
Deep in the base of a mountain, this dark cavern is of unknowable size. The only light comes from a circle of crystal embedded in the cavern floor, and the silence is oppressive – even echoes are somehow muted out.

The lair is filled with strange, glowing symbols and geometric shapes painted on the ground around the central glowing ring. At one nexus of these symbols sits Rosalind, naked and covered in glowing symbols as well. Melusine seems to be contracted in on herself, looking almost motionless near the middle of it all.

Alptraum raps his chitinous knuckles on the cold stone. It's one of those moments having a mostly numb hand is helpful, as he can hit hard and it doesn't hurt. "Milady Rosalind?" he calls out into the chamber, "Melusine?" There's also this pause where he has to calm himself a bit before walking in further. His body has certain reactions when he scents Melusine, all thanks to her creative 'way' of feeding. So, once he's calmed himself down enough as to not embarrass himself, he steps further into the chamber. "I was told you desired my presence?"

"Ah, Alptraum!" Rose calls out, turning to smile at him – which looks like shiny teeth beneath two glowing coals. "Just in time. Take your clothes off and come over here."

Alptraum almost comments, but actually thinks better of it. He doesn't hesitate; the clothing he wears is quickly shed and folded up, then placed just outside the ritual chamber. "Forgive me for asking," he says to the Countess as he approaches her and then kneels down before her in an act of respect. "But what do you need my help with? I do not have much knowledge of these symbols and their meaning… "

"You don't need to worry about them," Rose says, gesturing for Alptraum to kneel down before her. "It's just that your current solution to feeding Melusine is… well, it goes through a lot of hogs and only lasts for a few days. I think I have a way to keep fed for at least ten or twenty days at a time."

"Ah, yes, it does at that," Alptraum admits as he bows his head before her. There's a pause, then he asks, "Forgive me for presuming … but are you going to use me as a conduit for the land spirit to keep her fed? I know she cannot link to you to obtain it as she normally would … so my guess is you wish to use me as she would normally use you?"

"

"Well, a temporary conduit," Rose says, and picks up a paintbrush and a cup of glowing liquid. She dips the brush, and starts painting symbols on Alptraum's chest. "It won't hurt. In fact, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!"

"Right, I could never be a permanent once since Muriavan is bound completely to me," Alptraum says in an attempt to sound like he understands it. "This is … this buys us more time in repairing the heart. This is good, since I have a way to find someone who may know how, but have been told he will require much from me." At the touch of the brush, the Eeee sits further upright and presents his star burst-scarred chest to Rosalind.

Some of the symbols actually connect to the star burst – which also glows after awhile all on its own! "That's good to know, so long as you don't get yourself killed," Rose notes. She moves from Alptraum's chest to his belly, and then further south. It's a little reminiscent of the decorations Phlagaea put on him when he was a Bargorphat-For-A-Day.

Alptraum looks down at his chest. "Ah, why is my scar glowing?" he has to ask a bit nervously. "And yes, I'll be careful. I want to return to you intact, after all. I pledged to be your consort and more, and I intend to keep it. And never hesitate in asking me to help your county either. Your concerns are mine, so I do not mind being part of rituals to help." That last bit goes a little higher pitched in tone as the brushes start to … tickle tender areas. "Careful or you're going to excite something… " he murmurs.

"That'll be necessary anyway," Rose notes with a wink. After the symbols are laid down, she starts circling groups and connecting things with lines. "Your scar is glowing because this is spirit magic," she explains, as she adds more symbols to his right shoulder, and begins connecting points between his scar and his right hand.

Alptraum flexes his right hand instinctively anytime something touches it, perhaps to remind him that yes his hand is still there. "It just better not require Melusine removing it for a bit afterward," Alptraum jokes nervously. He reaches up with his left hand to feel the glowing scar, curious to if it feels warm to go along with the light. "Do you need me to do anything with my hand?" he asks absently.

"Not just yet," Rose says. "I still don't know if this will work as planned." His chest feels warm… but then, it always does. The scar itself doesn't seem to be giving off any extra heat, just light.

"What can I do to help make it work?" Alptraum asks, "I want Melusine to survive so that you and I can have a long life together. And the more we can keep her fed, the more likely it will come to pass that she will be able to relink to you in time."

"Just relax and let things come naturally," Rose urges, as she puts the finishing touches on Alptraum's gauntlet and blows on the paint to dry it faster. "Did you miss me while on your mission with the Reaper?" she asks, trying to make small talk.

"I always miss you," Alptraum replies with a smile, "It feels strange when I cannot smell your scent or hear your heartbeat." He pauses for a sigh as he adds, "But the trip was educational. I learned I am … vulnerable to magic used to lure, well, monsters. I had not expected it to affect me so intensely … which makes me question what exactly I am."

"You are my consort," Rose says, standing up and offering her hand to Alptraum. "And a Dracul. I might succumb to such a lure myself, who knows?"

Alptraum takes the offered hand and then stands as well. "I never tire of hearing you call me your consort," he says with a brief and playful smile. "And forgive me, but do we have time? I have a favor to ask of you?"

"What sort of favor?" Rose asks, as she leads Alptraum towards Melusine, who has flattened out into a sort of thick, round puck.

"Mortimer demanded I find him a date in trade for showing me to his old mentor," Alptraum says, then has to quickly add, "No, not you! I found him one … but I fear what he may do if left unattended. I was wondering if you would join me on a date so that we may observe them? It would also offer you a chance to meet one of the members of the gypsies I grew up with. I am afraid, though, that she will interrogate you."

"Oh, she will, will she?" Rose asks with an arched eyebrow, as she climbs onto Melusine and lies down. "We'll see about that!" she notes, as she pats the spot beside her.

"She won't eat us will she?" Alptraum asks as he slides on top of Melusine, using his right hand against her inky 'flesh' to stabilize himself.

That inky flesh seems to cling to Alptraum's right hand, forming a cuff of sorts around it. "No… I'm pretty sure she won't," Rose says, and kisses Alptraum. "We're just going to use her as a bed while we make love, and if all goes well the energy I've been gathering all day will flow through your, to your hand, and into Mel via your shadow… "

The kiss distracts Alptraum long enough that he can't even consider pulling away as the 'cuff' forms. When he realizes its there, he lifts up his cuffed hand. "Hm, should I intermingle my own shadow with hers to increase the contact?" he asks as he 'tests' this odd attachment.

Almost as soon as he thinks it, Alptraum's shadow cloak exudes from the gaps in the chitin and mingles with the cuff. He feels that same surge as before, as Melusine links with him.

Alptraum hisses softly in shock. "Avralie, something like that," the Eeee murmurs as his hand goes from looking chitony, to a bit more amorphous and more like one of Melusine's own appendages as the shadow links. It's hard to tell where his fingers are in that mass, though he does assume they are still there. He licks his lips and grins deviously at Rosalind. His free left hand comes up to caress her cheek as he says, "Well, it'll be interesting sharing with you with one arm … occupied. A challenge. I like it."

"Oh, I was just going to have Mel hold you down while I had my way with you," Rose says with a slight pout. "But if you want to move around, I suppose I can allow it," she says wickedly.

"I like that idea even better," Alptraum murmurs as he lies back and spreads a bit so Melusine can maximize her linking with him. "After all, you need to make sure your consort knows his place," he adds with a playful wink.

Mel helps by letting Alptraum sink half into her, spreading her 'link' to him over more area. And the bat isn't held entirely motionless, since the shadow dragon is no mere piece of furniture, and is able to position him according to his will (although sometimes it seems more Melusine's or Rosalind's will, given how hard it for Alptraum to think clearly). When the link with Rose finally opens up, the timing is such that every sensation of pleasure seems to collide at once, smothering the bat between the physical and metaphysical for a long, drawn out moment.

That moment seems to last an eternity as the energy flows from Rosalind, though him, and into Melusine beneath him. The sensations are beyond incredible, he feels so alive. He can even swear that for the time the link is in full flow, he can feel every inch of his body, even the normally muted right hand feels as if it were a normal part of him once more. When the link ebbs, Alptraum seems to go limp. "I'm not quire sure Melusine needed to blindfold me," he murmurs in a tired, yet amused, voice, "But … I think I liked it."

Rosalind is too busy panting on top of Alptraum, and as Melusine begins to retract away from him he can see that the glowing symbols have all vanished from both himself and Rose. "It worked," Melusine informs them.

"You don't have to unlink from me quite yet," Alptraum murmurs. The bat is obviously basking in the sensations from both. A few deep breaths and he then asks, "So … this ritual will provide you enough energy if done regularly to keep you alive?"

"It will sustain me for now," Melusine notes. "I must still conserve energy, however. But it will be another twenty days before I need to be refreshed. It is not a permanent solution though, of course."

"Of course not. I am still working on a solution that will be. I have arranged to be taken to the expert and will be leaving soon," Alptraum tells the shadow dragon. There's a pause, then he asks, "Did you also drain me completely? Do I need to recharge my hand?"

"Your charge was already a bit low," Melusine points out. "So yes, you should recharge it soon."

"How low is it now?" Alptraum asks as he lifts his his encased hand so that he can watch Melusine release it and see the state.

The orb on the back of the hand is rather dim. But Alptraum hasn't really had a chance to charge it up yet after having Kaira reshape it the other night.

Alptraum reaches up and runs his left hand along Rosalind's side. "So, will you go with me on the date so that we can keep watch on Mortimer? It will also offer you a chance to practice appearing more, ah, normal."

"Does Mortimer know not to refer to me as the Countess?" Rosalind asks, in a bit of a purr.

"I will inform him beforehand to be sure he does not," Alptraum says as his hand continues to pet along Rosalind's side.

"So, do you want to go back to the rooms and… " Rose starts to ask, then blinks and says, "Actually, you'd better feed your hand and eat something first."

"That reminds me. Melusine, may I ask you a question related to my hand?" Alptraum asks as he flexes it again. "I saw something a bit odd a day ago."

"What is your question?" the blob asks.

Alptraum takes a few minutes to explain in detail what he saw when he withdrew the dagger the other day, down to the three odd veins, what happened when they were punctured, and what each tasted like. "Do you have any idea what they are? The most worrisome was the one filled with the black goo," he asks, "Since it retracted into me."

"That one is likely simply shadow-ichor," Melusine explains. "What passes for blood among my kind."

"Ah, so I do have this shadow ichor as part of me," Alptraum says with a small nod and feeling less worried. "So I'm producing it in small amounts, then? Part of my hand is definitely shadow-flesh then."

The bed that is Melusine wobbles a bit. "Uncertain," she admits. "Your situation is new to me, since you have not only Shadow, but Steel Dragon blended together."

"Well, I hope it is shadow dragon and not steel dragon," Alptraum claims, "I feel honored to carry the blood of your kind. Vorgulremik, well, that is repulsive."

"I am of his blood in spirit, recall," Melusine notes, with a bit of a bounce.

"Eep!" Rose squeaks as she's briefly airborne from the bounce.

"Okay, okay," Alptraum says and pats Melusine placatingly. Focusing his attention to Rosalind, he says, "Now a meal sounds like a great idea! Mind if I nibble on you after I consume something to feed my shadow-dragon … bits."

"Only if I get to nibble back," Rose replies. "I'm starved after all this work!"

"Oh, I think that could be arranged. And just fair warning … if we go back to our rooms, Phlagaea will join us, I expect. I have been lax in tending to both of you and well … she will desire some time," Alptraum teases, "I hope that does not … scare you."

"After this?" Rose asks, wide eyed.

Alptraum nods! "I'm sure you'll be fine. I have heard college educated women … experimented a lot," he teases Rosalind. "We can take a break for an hour or so to eat … then see how much noise we can make."

"I'll be sure to dismiss all of the servants beforehand," Rose says with a grin. "No need to frighten them… "

"Too much," Alptraum teases. "Let's go."