Chapter 83: Tahr

PART FOUR
Hera's Curse
One hundred thousand years I curse your kind
Each century you will find
One human woman, not your mate
This curse is now your fate

Alone.
This should be easier after losing so many brides, but it's not. Each memory presses harder into my soul and I drown a bit deeper with each one. I can't even walk through the halls of my castle without remembering Meagan's sweet giggles. Meagan never lost her sense of humor even at her advanced age when death finally claimed her. I miss her laughter, her smile, her sense of humor and ability to brighten my life. It's only been six months but each wretched day feels like a lifetime of loneliness.
A noise to my right has me turning my head. I catch a glimpse of just the top of a human head. Pepper. I'd recognize that crazy gold headpiece anywhere. Meagan gifted it to her when Pepper was a young child. She's a strange girl, or I guess a strange young woman now. She lost her hair as a child before she left the earth realm, but that's not what makes her strange. I avoid her whenever possible because she unsettles me. I first noticed it when I took her to see her parents. Every ten years, the humans from the earth realm are returned for a short visit with their families. Most never return to their home realm after that first time. Pepper will be one of those. In my mind, I picture her large pain-filled eyes after only three days. No, she will not return.
A slight smile curves my lips. I swear Pepper is part wood-nymph. Now that Meagan's gone, I catch only a flash of Pepper's headpiece or cloth from her simple gown whenever she's around. I sense her though. And that's what unnerved me at the crossing. There's something different about Pepper and I'm a dragon. Dragons like a neat and orderly life without... strange.
Meagan spoiled the humans terribly, especially Pepper. Meagan always loved the children and spent entirely too much time in their section of the castle. No matter how long and loud I complained, she refused to give into me. She was determined to educate the young ones and make their lives better.
She would roll her eyes when I explained for the hundredth time that the humans wanted only to serve me and they had no reason to be educated. Making me happy is the only joyous fulfillment they need. The good fortune in their lives was being saved by a dragon and they knew it.
What I didn't say to Meagan because I'm dragon and bury my heart so it's practically untouchable is that humans live a normal lifespan unlike the eternal life of a dragon. Losing a bride each century is nearly impossible to bear. Forming friendships with humans would only add needless suffering. I have never gone there. I can't.
The small smile on my lips broadens with thoughts of the petty arguments I had with Meagan. Her selectively deaf ears ignored my complaints and she did what she pleased. Her biggest accomplishment regarding the humans was inventing silly hand signals that allowed them to communicate with her. It was all beyond my comprehension. After their hand language became seamless, Meagan had no problem telling me all about the internal workings of the human side of my castle. I could have done without knowing their day to day habits.
Insufferable. And maybe that's what I miss most about Meagan-she challenged me to be a better man. She had trouble understanding that I'm all dragon with only the occasional outer shell of a man.
I gave into most of her demands, though I grumbled incessantly. I liked to call the humans her pets. She hated that. Tempting her wrath was always challenging, but so much fun when her face went pink with anger and her small fists clenched. When Meagan was younger, making up was the best part after one of her fits of temper. She could never stay angry with me for long; a stolen kiss and small caress had her back in my arms.
I sigh heavily and my smile disappears. These thoughts have my mood darkening again. I would give anything to cuddle in bed with my bride once more and listen to her demands for the humans. A painful ache swells low in my gut and my head throbs. I can't sleep for more than a few hours without waking up after dreams of Meagan. I reach out for her and she's gone; her place beside me cold. I've been here before. Meagan held on longer than any previous bride. She knew I'd suffer without her. I have twenty-three years before the next claiming and it all starts over again. I run my hands through my hair and decide to fly myself into exhaustion. I must sleep tonight.

***

My muscles are sore even after drinking a bottle of wine. I lie down in bed and resolve to keep Meagan from my dreams and sleep through until daylight. My mind fades quickly and sleep steals my lonely thoughts.
I have no idea how long I've slept when Meagan's soft hand travels lightly across my chest. The fluttery softness is so real. I turn toward her warmth to pull her into my arms. The edge of the bed gives way to air. Meagan's not there and I nearly fall to the floor. My eyes snap open and after rubbing them, I gaze around the dark room. I was dreaming again, though her touch felt so real. Why would I roll toward the door and away from Meagan's side of the bed?
From the glow of the moons shining through my window, I know it's somewhere around three in the morning. I close my eyes, but sleep evades me. I step from the bed and open the double doors that lead out to the large perch that overlooks my territory. My room is located at the top of one of four castle towers and high enough to see for miles. Each tower has a perch for me to fly to. I rarely use the one atop the human tower, but for some reason it's what draws me now.
I call the magic and feel the thrill as the power runs through my blood. My dragon bursts from my flesh and the silver in my wings casts colorful light as it reflects off the two moons. There is no one here to praise my beauty, but it matters not. I am the last of the silver dragons and that is the reason I am forever damned. My anger at this unfairness sparks, so I pull it in and bury it with all the other heartbreak I carry.
Everything is more alive in my natural form-colors, smell, touch. My scales stay soft and sensitive to the world around me unless I'm in danger. Then they turn harder than steel. I gaze out over my kingdom-the human tower calling to me again. I launch from the perch with a flap of my wings and fly around my lair trying to deny the odd summons. I circle several times before deciding to appease my curiosity and land on the humans' tower perch. I shift forms with the same burst of energy it takes to call my dragon and walk through an unlocked door to enter the darkened hallway. My human eyes are but an extension of my dragon and I can see clearly throughout the shadowed tower. I also know the layout-the top floor is the single men's ward, the women are a floor below, and couples live on the next floor down. Children are housed on the ground floor so there are no falling accidents. The children are assigned caretakers until they are old enough to sleep in the adult wards.
All my humans came here to escape terminal illness. The crossing into the dragon realm saves them. It usually takes several weeks after they arrive to fully recover. Then, to their delight, they are able to grow up and serve me. Only two drawbacks mar their life here-they can't procreate and they lose the ability to speak. Serving me is their life.
I glance inside the first room and see a man sleeping in his bed. I continue walking past other rooms as I head to the winding stairs that lead to the women's quarters. I think it's catching sight of Pepper earlier that's given me this compulsion. I'm surprised when the fourth room in the women's quarters is empty. Or at least I am until I inhale a mixture of sweet earthy spice that awakens my memory. This is Pepper's chamber and only a short while ago, she was in mine. Touching me.
Why?