Horrible images flooded my brain as I woke, and along with that came the memory of rage mingled with glee as some strange magic exploded from my hands. Screams had filled the air, a terror that had made something in me twinge with satisfaction. I’d lost my shit and, maybe, I’d killed people? Had I killed people?

No, you hurt a few, but you didn’t kill anyone.

I heard Henry’s tired voice in my head and turned to find him beside me. We had landed on a soft green oasis of lush grass, tall unfamiliar trees, and a stream bordered by large boulders. I had no idea where we were, but the fact that I was still alive was all that was on my mind. Did I deserve to be alive?

Of course you deserve to be alive, Willow, don’t be silly. Your dragon slayer took over, that’s all. You did what you were born to do. I should have known better.

“So, I’m like an untamed animal, is that what you’re saying?” I sat up and looked down at him. His eyes were a light green and strained around the edges. He was tired after a long night, my little episode, and then flying us to wherever we were.

“It’s a land of fairies, Willow. Only fairies live here, but we others can sometimes come in to take a break. Nice place isn’t it?” He closed his eyes and didn’t bother to look around.

“It is nice, but Henry, about what happened…?” It plagued me, the knowledge that I could have killed without a second thought. I might have even killed Henry I was in such a rage.

“I know, Willow. We’ll sort it, darling, I just need to rest for a little while. Only a little while.” He pulled me close to his chest. His voice faded until it was little more than a whisper, and his breath became even. I settled my head onto my arm and looked around.

It was a beautiful place, but it couldn’t hold my attention. I’d had a good long while to get used to the idea of magic, dragons, and fairies, even if I hadn’t seen the magical worlds until recently. The place would be remarkable if I hadn’t recently tried to destroy everything around me. Perhaps Arista would know what I needed to do.

I tried out my other new power, this psychic talent that had popped into life. I found her son first and saw the baby was focused on the yellow and white stripes of an umbrella. He seemed happy enough and I moved around his mind until I found his mother.

Arista… it’s me, Willow. That should get her attention.

What? How did you get in my head, Willow? Stop that! She didn’t sound overly pleased about my newfound ability, but then, I hadn’t been too happy about it when I’d first found out Henry had been able to do the same since we met. I felt my eyes roll and sighed.

I need your help, Arista, don’t make me go away just yet. Would that calm her down?

What’s wrong, honey? How can I help? She sounded like she had a million questions but asked the right ones instead of the others.

I took another deep breath and thought about how to word it.

Henry took me to his world, and I sort of had a meltdown. I wasn’t sure what else to say, so I went for bare minimum facts.

Oh no! Did you hurt anyone?

A little, but Henry said it wasn’t bad. His father’s banished me, and I’m afraid of being around any other dragons now. We kind of… I was generally a private person and not one to brag, so I didn’t know how to tell her Henry had rocked my world then took me to his home, and now the world was completely different, yet again. I could barely keep up myself.

Did the deed? I could almost feel Arista’s eyebrows wriggle on her face. There was even a deep chuckle of amused knowing that accompanied her question.

The connection was kind of like being on a phone, except you had your eyes closed and you heard the voice inside of your head. It was so weird to have Arista chuckle in my head, but I didn’t have my phone, and even if I did, I doubted there were cell phone towers in this land of fairies.

Yeah, did the deed. That seems to have unlocked this hunting-slaying aspect of my personality. I was like Lara Croft on PCP or something. And this psychic thing of course. Henry says there’s more, but I haven’t had time to discover what that is yet.

Cool! And what happened with the meltdown, exactly? I could tell she’d taken a sip of a tropical flavored drink and she loved how cold and fruity it was. For a second, I could have sworn I’d even tasted the drink.

Light, lots of noisy, bangy, dangerous pink light. It was kind of awesome, but really scary too. I don’t know how else to explain it other than as light. Bright, pink, and powerful.

So you can control light. Wow, that’s pretty badass, cousin. Arista sounded impressed, but all I could think about was how dangerous I was.

I suppose it could be, but I need to know how to control it all, Arista. This is dangerous, me being out in public. What if it happens again and I kill somebody? I didn’t like the idea of killing anyone, dragon or not. That was something else that had changed since Henry and I had mated, I still had an instinctual hatred of the dragons, but the logical part of my brain could now see past that. As long as I wasn’t surrounded by dragons, that is.

Hang on, let me talk to Malcolm and find out where that place he took me is. I’m sure they can help you there. Arista disappeared from the link with my mind and it took a while, but she eventually came back with an answer.

Instead of words, or directions, she sent me a mental picture of a continent. It was large and shaped kind of like South America, but as if someone had stuck the pointy part of Africa onto the right side of it as well. Then she started to speak in my head.

Tell Henry to take you here. He won’t be able to go directly to the village, but once you’re in the land let me know and I’ll guide you to the village where I stayed for a little while. They are a clan of dragon hunters. You can get help there.

How long will I have to be there? Now that I’d tasted what Henry had to offer me, I didn’t want to be without it. The thought of being away from the anchor he was for me now was intimidating. I’d only just found what made the world make sense, now I had to let it go?

I don’t know, however long it takes, Willow. Do you want to run the risk of hurting him?

That was the only question that really needed an answer, and that answer was no. I’d do whatever it took to get my powers under control and get back to Henry. I let my body relax as the sound of birds filled the air and a warm, gentle breeze played over our skin. This really was a magical land, and for a few more moments, I wanted to enjoy it with my dragon.

I was no longer his enemy, I was no longer a hunter when it came to Henry, at least. He was my mate and all I wanted. We shared a soul in two separate bodies. An odd arrangement, but that’s how it was now. I was glad for the peace, so glad for the peace our mating had brought me, but I was far more grateful to have him as my mate. The man that he was now was the real Henry and I adored him.

I wanted to spend far more time with him, but it was like Arista said, did I want to run the risk of hurting him, or someone else? The unspoken but implied someone was her own husband or child. Galen was a halfling, half the child of a hunter and the other half the child of a dragon, which side would be the winner there? I’d kill myself if I ever harmed a hair on that baby’s head. She was right. I had to go to this place.

First, I’d have one last nap with the man who’d broken the world and put it back together for me. I curled into him. Our bodies fit together perfectly, and the soft sound of his breath lulled me to sleep.

We woke up together, still tangled in each other, and sat up to see the sun was going down. My brain immediately went to the last image Arista sent to me, that other world, and Henry stiffened beside me.

He stood up and pulled me to my feet. “Let’s find something to eat and then I’ll take you there. What do you want for your last meal before I drop you off?”

I wanted a hamburger from my favorite cafe near to the town where we lived. That was my first thought. “Is there at least running water in this place?”

He looked at me doubtfully before he shook his head. “No, and no electricity either. Just you and nature. And the Amazons of course.”

“I can deal with it, but I don’t know how long I can live without a decent burger. Do you think you can zap me in one every now and then?”

“Ha! You might have better luck with that than me.” He pulled me close for a nuzzle at my neck before I pushed him away with a laugh.

“Can we see each other while I’m there?” I pulled at the hem of my shirt, the vulnerability in my question made me feel awkward.

“Maybe. We’ll have to be very careful. They will kill me. There’s more than enough of them there to get the job done.”

“And you think they’ll take me in?”

“You’re one of them, they’re kind of honor-bound to do it.” Henry scrubbed at his face with hands that touched me in all of the right places. Did we have enough time for one more romp?

“No, if I touch you now, or even think about it too long… I won’t take you. Stop that, Willow!” He gave me a stern look but then ruined it with a grin. “Come on, let’s feed you then get rid of you.”

I laughed at the last part, I knew it was only a joke. The thought of him not being with me did hurt though, and this wasn’t a trip I looked forward to.

We landed there just as night fell, after a dash back to my world for a few things, to leave a note for my mom, and to get my food. Then Henry flew like he had jet engines strapped to his wings to get me to this land of Amazons.

We parted quietly, a last touch, a last look, a last mental promise and a kiss, and then he flew away. I was alone in a totally alien world, and I had no idea what awaited me now. I wanted to call Henry back, beg him to find another way, but I knew this was the best way. For all of us. Otherwise, I’d destroy us all.

I walked through the darkness until I came to open ground. My trainers scuffed against sand and I paused. I couldn’t see much of anything yet, so I started to walk again. Lights flared into life and I realized they were torches with real flames, none of that tiki torch shit for these ladies. Oh no, this was the real deal. The torches hung from metal braces or were held aloft by women carrying them.

A long row of women came up to meet me in a rather dramatic display, and I stared at them. Dressed in unbleached cotton, not a single woman wore pants, a bra, or underwear of any kind. Some were bare-chested, others were completely naked and didn’t care who saw them. It was a community of women and they’d obviously grown up in a society where they weren’t taught to be ashamed of their bodies or to please men.

Around 250 women came towards me, some with small groups of girl children, others on their own. There were some with dark hair and tanned skin, others were tanned with blond or red hair. Most seemed to have black hair, including the one who wore an elaborate headdress of blue and red feathers as she came to greet me.

“Welcome, sister. You are safe here.”

“Thank you. I am Willow.” I didn’t know what to do so I stood there with my hands in the pocket of my black sports jacket. Added to the jeans, I felt a little overdressed and conspicuous. It was also hot here, so I wanted to take the jacket off, but I was afraid to move around too much. I’d seen a few of the women carried rather sharp and deadly looking knives.

“Thank you, Willow. I am Yohl. Your cousin came to my sister’s village not long ago, if I’m not mistaken. Arista?”

“Yes, she did. She told me about all of you.” I didn’t want to volunteer any more information than that.

“She is mated to a dragon. As are you.” Her broad tanned face didn’t judge me, it simply stated a fact.

“I am, yes.” I wouldn’t bother to ask how she knew, maybe she was psychic too.

“It’s good you didn’t lie, we can smell him on you. Come, let me show you the village and help you settle in. I suppose you want our help to train you in your powers?”

“Yes, that would be helpful, thank you.” I walked up to her as she turned around. The entire village seemed to part to allow us to walk us to the center of a row of two-story huts. Each had a roof and sides made of some kind of grass, with the doorway left open. I looked at the houses as we passed and saw the doorway was a rolled-up canvas, the same grass woven into a fabric. All of the quarters contained something different, but each had a bedroom and a living space, enough for one woman, maybe a child or two. Other places in the homes held belongings and mats.

I didn’t see any bathrooms or a kitchen. I’d find out why later, but for now, I settled down with my “sisters” and prepared to learn. They hadn’t killed me for my dragon-taint, so maybe this would work out alright. I could only hope.

You’ll get through this, Willow. I have faith in you.

Henry’s voice filled my head and I stood a little straighter. I wouldn’t totally be without him then.