The Dragon Bride

A Dragon... Ride?

Lucina shook her head. Perhaps some of the volcanic ash from the Screaming Gate was still clogging her ears.

"I'm sorry, my liege." Spoke her unnaturally deep and raspy voice, courtesy of the enchanted helmet that covered her head. After all, they would have never given the quest to take down Asmodeus to a woman. "It appears I have misheard you. Would you be so kind as to repeat what you just said?"

The jolly large man let out a warm chuckle. "Certainly brave sir knight!" He responded. "This is Jade, my daughter, and your dragon bride! As a thank you for defeating the lord of the devils!" Next to him, a beautiful woman with green, slit eyes stood quietly, with a serious expression on her face.

"Dragon... ride." She said.

"No, dragon bride." The king once again clarified. "Just like in the parchment that announced the quest!"

Lucina quickly pulled out the piece of paper she had acquired many moons ago. It read *Calling to any and all adventurers, knights and capable men of the Kingdom of Helikor...* followed by the description and graphic reenactment of Admodeus which she had already read a million times over. The key information finding itself at the bottom of the announcement. *Reward: The fairest dragon _ride in the land*. It was then and there that Lucina realized that the smudge in between the oddly large space between "dragon" and "ride" resembled a "B".

"Oh..." Was all that could sneak out of her lips.

"You seem disappointed sir Luke." The king remarked. "Is Jade not up to your standards? We could certainly look for a more fitting bride for the champion of Helikor!"

She was glad her helmet did more than conceive her femininity, as it now helped mask her embarrassment at the king's words. "No, no, my liege!" She was quick to clear the air. "Lady Jade is a most beautiful damsel and I would be honored to have her by my side! But..." She had to find a way to get out of this one without insulting anyone's feelings. Under any other circumstance, the opportunity to have a gorgeous dragon princess be married to her would be too enticing to pass up, but she knew it would be a popular, perhaps the most popular bond in all the kingdom, and it would make her reveal her identity to the entire world. She would surely be executed before having the chance to walk down the aisle for deceiving the king and impersonating a knight as a woman. Lucina did not even have the chance to worry about the public scrutiny a relationship between two women, especially one of Jade's rank, would inevitably garner. She would not even get that far.

"But?" The king called out to the armored knight, who hadn't spoken for an unnatural amount of time.

"B-but you know, knights do not quest and rid the world of evil for a reward!" Her quick thinking had maybe just bought her the perfect excuse. "It wouldn't be right, my liege! And I am certain milady would like the opportunity to wed someone of her choosing! I certainly doubt a commoner like myself would be... an ideal partner."

The king stood still for a moment, before a shiny, large tear trail made its way down his face, "Such... chivalry." The king said with a shaky voice, moved by Lucina's words. "Sir Luke, you are without a doubt the most virtuous knight I have ever laid my eyes on. If that is truly your choice..." He raised his hand to bid Lucina farewell, her eyes shining with anticipation.

"Wait!" A feminine voice cut through the room. It was Jade, whose expression had softened at Lucina's show. "All my life I've been told I was to marry someone I would never meet, someone I would not love, someone who would benefit my kingdom over my own personal interests." She walked towards the knight, who stood still in the middle of the throne room. "I... Had accepted this. No matter what my heart desired, I knew I had to put my kingdom first. But your words..." At this point she was already within arm's reach of the panicked Lucina. "They have touched my heart unlike anything I have heard before. Any man would have taken me against my deepest desires and made me theirs. But not you. And for that, I believe I have found the man I want to marry... Your lack of nobility means naught sir Luke!" She knelt down and looked straight at the helmet's visor. "Would you do me the honor?"

The king's single tear had turned into a raging stream. "Such joy..." He said softly. "What has this old king done to deserve such a sight? Come now sir Luke! Should you accept, your knightly values would still hold true, and Jade, my precious daughter, will still be your bride! What say you?"

There was no way out of this one, if Lucina rejected the princess' proposition, she would surely be executed for ruining such a declaration of love, and if she accepted, she would be executed for being a woman. One who loved other women no less. At least one of the two options bought her a little more time.

"I..." She opened her mouth. "I would be honored, my liege. I will marry Lady Jade."

The room exploded into cheers and the king's hearty laughter. "It is decided then!" He exclaimed. "We will have a wedding!"

"Thank you sir Luke!" Jade burst into joyful tears. "You have made me the happiest woman alive!" She embraced the armored woman. Lucina stood there in silence, accepting her doom. To her surprise a whisper entered her hood. "Follow my lead." Spoke the princess in her ear.

"Father..." She said in her normal volume. "I am sure sir Luke is tired from his quest. May I take him to my room so that he may rest?"

The king walked toward the newly engaged couple, placing a hand on Jade's shoulders. "My daughter..." He began. "You needn't ask me for permission anymore! You are now a woman! Go and make sure our brave knight gets his rest! I'll be waiting right here." Jade flashed a bright smile at her father and gave him a quick hug, before taking Lucina's arm and guiding her to her room. The knight had gone almost completely limp, the only thing still working being her legs as she walked all through the palace to where inevitably her jig would be up.

As the final door opened, a large room, bigger than any house Lucina had ever owned was revealed. It was a dark, crimson color and there was a huge bed in the middle. A fireplace adorned one of the walls, while the others had everything from portraits of the princess, to priceless relics from a long time ago. At least she would perish after experiencing the height of luxury, she thought.

"You can remove your helmet now, Lucina." Jade called out to her as she herself unbraided her hair. "You are safe here."

Every muscle in her body tensed up at that. "L-Lucina?!" She nervously spat out, nearly breaking the voice modifying spell. "I don't know what you mean princess Jade!". The half-dragon woman laughed.

"You know, my dad is the dragon king." She began explaining. "But he's not a real dragon. He only married one. It makes sense why your disguise had him fooled, but you need much more powerful magic to fool a dragon's senses! Now take the helmet off, let's see what we're working with!"

Lucina knew it was only a matter of time until she had to remove her armor, now would be no different than later. She slowly placed both of her hands on her head and pulled up, letting her blonde hair fall on her shoulders and returning her voice back to its normal high pitch. As soon as her headpiece had been removed, she began quietly sobbing.

"I-I'm sorry... I didn't... I didn't mean to trick anyone!" She apologized as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I just wanted to help the kingdom... And-" She felt a soft finger place itself on her mouth, interrupting her. Jade's soft expression met her, there was no anger, no disappointment, nothing more than understanding and happiness.

"You don't need to apologize to me, or anyone, darling." She explained. "You did a great service to your kingdom and the world as a whole!" Jade embraced the crying knight of humble origins which was quickly reciprocated. Long minutes passed as Lucina melted into her new lover's embrace. The relief of realizing she had a chance to live washing over her like a tidal wave. She could have stayed in that position forever...

"What we do need, however, is to find a way to save your life! So until then..." Jade snapped her fingers and in a second, Lucina's face resembled that of a man, no helmet needed. "You are going to be safer if we play along with my dear father!"

Lucina broke the hug as she felt the effects of the half-dragon's magic on her face. "Right!" She said. "Sorry I lost myself for a second... I forgot we are not actually married..."

"Oh make no mistake Sir Lucina." Jade interfered. "I have every intention of marrying you once this is all over." She had a coy smile adorning her face. "That is, if you'll take me."

"YOU WHAT?!" Lucina fainted, both from the surprise that a gorgeous princess wanted to marry her and that her head was still not ensured to remain in her head. She could tell there was a long road ahead of her, but it was certainly worth a try.

"I'll take that as a maybe? Meh, I'm sure you'll tell me later! Let's go change a kingdom shall we?"