Layne

Layne has always lived in the moment, never staying in one place longer than it takes for her to get bored. She made this very clear from the start; as such, everyone - most of all herself - is surprised that she's stayed at the Lair as long as she has.

Just as Layne is a rover from home to home, so too is she from lover to lover. Afraid of containment and stagnancy, she always considered mating to be a sort of entrapment to keep an individual from truly living.

Eventually, as was common, another dragon approached Layne with romance on his mind. Layne told him flat out that she would be unlikely to stay long - to which he replied, "That's fine." - and that she never planned on settling down no matter who wanted her to - "That's fine." Zazi was completely unfazed by her declarations. While this took Layne slightly out of her comfort zone, Zazi was attractive and attracted to her, so why shouldn't she have a little fun?

So she stayed.

Days turned to weeks, and weeks to months, until it became all too apparent that Layne was suddenly in a position of implied commitment. Terrified, she tried to push Zazi away; the dragon told her that she could have as much or as little space as she wanted and backed off immediately. However, even as he did so, Zazi told her bluntly that he cared for her, and that if she changed her mind he'd be waiting.

Layne had a choice: to take Zazi as her mate, or to permanently refuse his affection. She'd never expected this question to ever be one she'd have to think about rather than immediately rejecting the permanent option. Zazi, as promised, let her distance herself, though Layne often caught him looking at her with a smile.

That smile and Zazi's acceptance of her need for space was eventually what brought her back to him. His presence had told her he wanted her, but his respect for her fear, even if it meant losing her, told her he loved her.

Being in a position to potentially take a mate, for Layne, was a scary thing. She trusted Zazi, but all of this was new and frightening. Zazi, however, was very patient with her; he took things one step at a time - for instance, after a while, he asked to stay a night with her. That night turned into several, but it wasn't until she was comfortable having him in her bed that he asked her to sleep in his.

His slow pace and careful attention to detail was successful. Layne finally agreed to mate with him.

Shortly after that, they found themselves with a pair of eggs. Layne initially panicked - "I can't be a mom. I'll mess up any hatchlings I try to take care of!" - but Zazi coaxed her back into the realm of manageable concern. "You'll do fine," he told her firmly. "And I'll be here with you, and with the hatchlings."

The eggs hatched into a pair of little girls. For a few days, Layne was terrified to even be left alone with the hatchlings until Zazi reassured her and helped her learn how to care for them. It took a bit, but Layne grew to trust herself with them and once that happened she was rarely away from their sides.

Her babies, and her mate - her family! - would never be without love, Layne promised.