Chapter 25 FINALE: Dovahkiin Got Your Tongue

"Now that I think about it, I'd say we've finally got the third thjizzrini down pat. Fusozay var var," Serana hummed with an alluring smirk tugging the corner of her mouth. She was so proud, so cocky, and he loved every second of it. It was confidence well deserved - confidence that was irresistible. Ja'kal didn't get much practice out of the more passionate adjectives he made a point to learn back when he was first taught Tamrielic, and now he finally got the chance.

"Yes, we have. And you are fascinating," he tested on his tongue, though the word came somewhat clunky; it didn't deter him. "Captivating. Ravishing. Bewitching."

Serana propped her hands on either side of his head and leaned down, amusement dancing in her eyes. "Those all mean the same thing, Ja'kal."

"I do not get to use them often. Let me have my fun, you erotic succubus."

Laughter engulfed him and she shook her head. Her chuckles skipped against his lips when she lowered to kiss him, whispering. "Erotic succubus? Really, Ja'kal?"

"You will get used to hearing them soon enough, like zaji."

"Okay, but just... Not erotic. Please? Sexy - that's still so strange to say - was already pushing it for me. And I'm not entirely sure about succubus."

"Are they not zaji women that seduce men?"

"Well, yes, but they're demons."

"Oh." Ja'kal stared blankly. And then his eyes widened, stumbling over his words as he blurted with a sense of urgency. "Oh, arina, Ja'kal is very sorry, this one did not mean-"

"It's alright," Serana laughed, kissing him again. "I understand. You'll have to work a lot harder than that to offend me; and I know you always have nothing but good intentions." Bless this patient goddess with the power of the moons. She trailed off the side of his mouth and along the curve of his jaw, coming up to nibble the tip of his ear. Her breasts brushed the underside of his chin and his hands wandered with minds of their own, praying she'd forgotten how she aimed to torture him.

Ja'kal angled his head down to take a breast in his mouth, mindful of his fangs the way she was not - but he suspected that was deliberate. Every part of his body still buzzed and ached and screamed for release; impatient as he was, he begun to stroke himself in a desperate bid to reach the peak.

He was caught off guard when she grabbed his wrists and pinned them above his head.

"Mm-mm," she husked, her wicked smirk flooding his world. "You might always have good intentions, Ja'kal, but I don't." Her pelvis pressed to him and she glided along his cock, and his hips instinctively jerked for more as a low purr rumbled deep in his chest. Then she sat and did nothing.

"Mor kha'jay, Ja'kal was praying that you would forget..." He looked up at the tiny fingers that couldn't even wrap around his broad wrists, marveling at how such a lithe woman could be hiding this much power. One look at their bodies - his muscular and hers lean - would have tricked anyone to guess that he could easily overwhelm her, if he wanted to. He tested her strength as he tried to lift his wrists, and was almost terrified that she showed absolutely no struggle in holding him down. His wrist was easily the size of her shoulder.

"Very zaji," he whispered, grinning as he looked back down at her. Her eyes had lost their innocent brightness, burning and consumed instead by carnal sin. There was a sort of bashfulness, though, and her hands slid down to hold him by his elbows as she lowered to kiss his chest; the thick fur got in the way of feeling much.

A problem that must be remedied immediately.

"Serarina, I will borrow your knife for a minute, yes?"

"W-what?" Caught off guard, she leaned back to sit on him with a concerned look. "For what?"

"I must cut something off. It will not take me long, I promise." Ja'kal sat up and gently encouraged her to get off of him, rushing over to their things to collect her dagger from it's scabbard. He walked a safe distance away so that he wouldn't get his fur all over their clothes and tugged fistfuls, crudely shaving as much as he could until unruly and untamed turned to smooth. He glanced over his shoulder when Serana burst out laughing, the infectious and rich sounds bringing a swift grin to his face, even though he hadn't known what was the cause.

"All that work to impress me with your shiny fur, and you're getting rid of it?" Her voice danced with poorly repressed amusement, and she rose, sauntering over to him. He froze at that incredibly important point and whirled to her, not putting up a fight whatsoever when she nimbly extracted the dagger from him.

"Ja'kal just wanted... To feel your lips..." He looked down and ran a sullen hand down his torso, his tail flickering in frustration - at himself - and uncertainty. How could he have been so foolish and rash? But then her fingers coaxed through his back, and weight disappeared as more fur dropped at his feet. "Serana? Do you not hate this?"

"No, of course not. But just so we're clear, don't cut off your tail next," she chuckled, peppering freshly shaved spots on his back with kisses. Tingles buzzed and he felt the warmth of her breaths seep through more easily, sinking into his skin. He winced when she caught a place that stung though, and she clicked her tongue off the roof of her mouth as she tenderly ran her thumb along a linear path, burning along the way. "Oh, Ja'kal... I'm really sorry about this. Does this hurt at all?"

"A little." He tried to look over his shoulder, rushing to the rescue when her brow furrowed with worry. "It is okay. What is wrong? Have ma'jota burrowed in my fur again?"

"Again?" At least her brow arched with amusement now, as it always should. "Am I about to see some sort of flea infestation, Ja'kal?"

"N-no, Ja'kal always takes baths to make sure they drown."

Serana smiled to herself as she continued to trim away his fur, her fingers running through a lot more gently. He noticed most of the stings were along his upper back, and he searched his memories for what could have been the cause - or why Serana was apologizing for it. He did not remember her attacking him. She always ran a tender finger along the paths, and there were many of them, kissing each one. He could have sworn he heard her mumble something about healing, and he smiled at a distant memory.

"Mother taught this one as a cub that wounds heal faster if you kiss them."

He still remembered her nervous laughter over the notion, and how it had been one of the first moments where she willingly embraced him without that stench of fear tainting the air. All because of her instinct to comfort him over the painful revelation about his brother - now his enemy. He would never forget that day, no matter how much it hurt.

For it marked the beginning and the first time they exchanged saying: "Ja'kal ari jer."

Her breath hitched, and her tone danced with the words that were beginning to roll off her tongue as if she'd been speaking in Ta'agra all her life. "Serana ari jer zath."

"You still make the good thoughts louder," Ja'kal murmured, listening to the swipe of the blade cutting away his fur. He tried not to shiver when she'd gotten to his lower back, close to his tail - the area far more sensitive than anywhere else. "Boats disappeared." She hummed, and planted another kiss between his shoulder blades. He melted, contented with the feeling of her lips, and he turned around to cup her small jaw, leaning down to rest his forehead against hers. "Thank you for this beautiful night, Serana. You have given Ja'kal the greatest gift of them all."

Serana angled her head so that her curved nose could still conform to his snout. There was a smile in her voice, even if he couldn't see it, being this close. "Trust?"

"Not just that."

"Pleasure?"

Ja'kal huffed before he could think to stop it. "Not when you tortured me." Her sweet, sweet laugh brushed his lips, and was soon replaced by hers. She hooked her arms around his shoulders; stings diffused across, but he ignored it as best as he could. Truly: what happened there? If only he had a mirror to see.

"That could change, if you stopped stalling."

"You are just going to continue torturing me."

"I promise I won't," she chuckled, her hands worming into the back of his mane to hold his head closer to her. "I want to say thank you for sharing your gift with me, the one you've given me since the very beginning." That piqued his curiosity, but even when he searched her eyes, he could not magically pluck an answer from them. The way they had softened and glowed now was a riveting sight he committed to memory - a sense of serenity he had not seen since the time he had encouraged her to reach a state of clarity as she became one with the river creek, to catch fish. She rose on her toes and pulled on his head as she pressed her lips against his firmly, whispering ever so tenderly. "Your heart."

"That is your gif-"

Thunder clapped suddenly, and splitting cracks alarmed them as trees thrashed, bending to a wind harsh enough to penetrate the forest. Serana looked up, though Ja'kal rushed for his blindfold. He just barely caught glimpse of her wrestling her clothes on before he tied it around his eyes, and smirked when he felt something thrown at him, catching it in his hands to decipher what it was before he immediately threw it over his shoulder.

"We are in mortal danger, Serana-"

"Not a thing for immortals!"

"-and there is no time for me to put on pants!"

"I will freeze you where you stand if you don't," she warned with a most menacing tone, enough to elicit a more fearful shiver than the powerful roar that ripped through the air. "What manner of creature is that?" That she still seemed to sound more curious than terrified was a mystery to him. "I've never heard of anything like this!"

S'rendarr willing, hopefully they would not see it either.

Whatever it was, Ja'kal was not the least bit ashamed to tuck his tail between his legs when a malicious aura tainted the air. He wrinkled his nose in disgust and covered his snout, whining pitifully as it's power grew, sucking the strength from his knees. A sharp headache split down the middle of his head and he kept wiping and rubbing his nose, for what little good it did.

"It is furious," he hissed, "it is consumed with a need to destroy."

Distant cries cut through the air - rallies and shrieks alike. The earth shook beneath his feet and he panicked, his tail swinging feverishly in the air to keep his balance as a deafening explosion rocked the world. He slapped his hands over his ears and growled, barely registering Serana's hands on him. He pulled his blindfold down his neck, knowing it was no thunderstorm, and donned his clothes at her insistent behest. Another explosion had him reeling to protect his ears, and then his eyes burned as a fire burst to life at a group of trees, eating them away at a frightening rate.

"Go, go, we have to go!" Serana grabbed his wrist and guided him as he haphazardly tugged the blindfold back up over his eyes. He stumbled and tripped over his feet, disoriented by the loud bangs and roars, but the intense heat licking his nape spurred him on, his heart pounding at his throat. He may not have been afraid of fire, but he was afraid of dying, and a part of him was selfishly grateful to be protected by the blindfold as Serana lead them to safety. He knew they were in the clear when she stopped abruptly, her hand tightening around his wrist - painfully so.

"By the Void..." Her voice trembled. "I don't believe it..."

"What? What is it?" He still wasn't foolish enough to remove his blindfold, but he was forced to pull it up and tighten it around his ears when the creature's guttural roar pierced clearly, without the forest's protection. He reluctantly opened his eyes and Serana and him gaped in disbelief, both dumbfounded and mesmerized by the majestic creature flying in the sky. It's wings beat down and created powerful gusts of wind, knocking an entire battalion of soldiers - stormcloaks, by the looks of their uniforms - to the ground. The forest beside them was razed to the ground and turned into mere soot within minutes.

"A dragon. An actual dragon," Serana muttered, gripped by horror and awe and respect. And then she laughed - laughed! Sometimes Ja'kal truly worried about what was going on in her mind. "I can't believe it. It's not enough for vampires to threaten Skyrim; now it's dragons? What's next? Crazy cultists and daedra running amok?"

"Do not jinx it," Ja'kal murmured, shielding his eyes with his hand whenever he saw the dragon's jaw open, and a thunderous crack split the air. "What do we do, Serana?"

"We... Have to do something, don't we?"

"Yes."

A beat. And then both of them replied in perfect synchrony.

"Like running."

"Like fighting."

It was no mystery what belonged to whom.

Ja'kal shot her his best pleading eyes. "Serana, afa, let us think very carefully about this. Ja'kal made for a poor vampire hunter. What do you want this one to do? Seduce a dragon?"

"Hm. A charm tactic, I would've never thought of that." Serana smirked when his face fell flat. "What? It worked well on me, didn't it?"

There was something horribly wrong with where this was going, when it should have been going in reverse. She was the serious one, the thinker, the planner - and now they have swapped roles. Ja'kal was sure this marked the end of the world because of it. He tried to root his tail into the soil when she tugged on his hand, walking backwards as her playful gaze stayed glued to his the entire time. There was also something incredibly wrong with this picture she was painting for him.

"See right there, behind you? Yes. That would be a dragon eating a soldier." Ja'kal deadpanned, however morbid, even as the soldier's nightmarish screams carried across the plains. It only drove the point home that there was a very real and fatal danger - to mortals and immortals alike. How she had been this brave and brazen to this degree had completely mystified him; but now that he thought of it, she was never afraid of battle.

"Exactly my point: we can't just stand here and watch, Ja'kal. Who do you think is going to stop that dragon, if we don't?"

That she had, likewise, been confident to even be able to defeat a dragon bewildered him entirely. He shot an exasperated look. "You mean you? Ja'kal cannot fight."

"You once told me you weren't always like this." Serana tugged on his hand more insistently. Curse her flawless memory. "I know you can fight; you just choose not to."

"Serana. That. Is. A. Dragon. This is not a good time to remember how to fight, even if I choose to." He cringed and slapped his hands over his ears when the beast's victorious shout tore through the sky, and then it took to the air once again. His gaze glazed over the mass of dead bodies in despair, his heart crying outrage over the callous disregard for life, and the passion to destroy it.

A passion he could relate to.

Ja'kal snuffed it and resisted Serana, stepping back as he pried away with all his might. For once, frustration marred her delicate features - frustration at him, but this was better. It was safer. There was a difference to him being consumed by lust, rather than bloodlust, and vicious voices stirred deep within as the dragon's roars challenged him, taunting something inside of him. When another soldier was cut down, the beast laughed - laughed!

And Ja'kal ran.

...Towards it.

Serana's shouts fell on deaf ears - literally, when he soon cast an illusion spell to mute the blue world and shield his ears. He cloaked himself as he ran, knowing he'd be sniffed out. He just needed to buy enough time to get his hands on a weapon he felt comfortable with, and to not be attacked by the leftover band of soldiers, lest they saw the vampire instead of the khajiit. He weaved in and out of the battlefield, always watching where the dragon went. His eyes widened when he saw ice spikes flung at it, impaling a wing, and the jaw opened - probably screaming.

But then it swooped down, flying straight for Serana, and Ja'kal charged at the beast with a measly dagger, desperate to help her. He jumped on the tail, curling his own along the side for balance as he raced to climb to the head, skewering the dragon's eye with his dagger. He was flung off and yelped when he crashed into a tree, covering his ears when his spells wore off, and the world threatened to make his brain bleed from the inside out.

"Ja'kal!" Serana yelled, rushing to his side. "Ja'kal, get up! It's coming!" She dragged him by his elbow, hoisting him up enough to throw him aside, and her scream ripped through the air when the dragon took flight with her, it's talons on it's feet curled around her body.

Ja'kal crawled towards the grave of soldiers for another weapon, grabbing a bow he knew he couldn't shoot; only Dra'kul did, but he didn't know how else to get the dragon down. He looked up in the air, his jaw dropping at the sight of an entire wing slowly encased in ice, awestruck by Serana's sheer will in a fight - not to mention how far her magical prowess stretched. The beast dipped notably and released it's hold on her, and Ja'kal charged off, pounding on all hands and feet until he dove to catch her, embracing her as he turned to take the brunt of the impact when they crashed back into the ground.

More soldiers joined the fight - legionnaires, teaming up with stormcloaks. Arrows blotted the sky, and Ja'kal could only watch, the strength already drained from his body. His lungs burned, starved of air, and he gulped as much as he could, holding Serana as tightly as possible. She wriggled in his arms but he refused to release her, afraid, cringing from the overwhelming input of noise as rally cries and roars and Serana still insisting they had to fight had assaulted him.

"We can't stop, Ja'kal. Nothing is safe if that dragon stays alive. I know it hurts and I know you're tired, but-"

"No more," he hissed, squeezing her as he buried his snout in her hair. "We are running away from here. I will not see that thing take you away from me again."

"First you want to run, then you go in to fight, and now you want to run again?" She huffed. "Fine, we'll do this your way." Serana bit bitterly, and hearing the venom in her tone hurt more than anything else; but they had done enough, fighting to save a country that would sooner kill them. He did not care if the world burned, so long as Serana was safe. He let her go so they could climb up to their feet, but as soon as she did, she took off running after the dragon again.

"Dran khrassa!" Ja'kal freed himself of his robes as he took off sprinting after her, frustrated and helpless when she had even bested him in speed. His blood boiled and another voice - not Boats, or was it? - gnawed away at him, demanding he conquer not just the beast, but the one who refused to listen to him. He knelt to the side and scrambled to pick up a battleaxe, never slowing down in his pursuit of her, especially when he caught wind of a legionnaire's cry.

"Troll's blood, her eyes... She's a vampire!"

"Serana, get out of there!" He growled, but it fell on deaf ears as she continuously barraged the dragon with ice spikes until it's wings were shredded, and it could no longer take flight. He knocked down a stormcloak that took aim at her with a bow, his entire torso twisting as he swung the battleaxe across and hissed a warning to the other soldiers. "Touch her, and this khajiit will bleed your bowels dry, stupid humans. We are helping you with this dragon."

"Fine," one of the stormcloaks barked, "but you better leave us alone after we take it down!"

"This one should be telling you that, jetwijijri," Ja'kal seethed, then charged to join Serana and a band of others as they continued to poke and dodge the beast's attempts to slash them with it's feet, or eat them. It's jaw opened and he tackled Serana to the ground, between the dragon's feet, as it unleashed a flurry of fire from it's mouth. "We do this your way," he yelled to be heard above the roar. "But after: we run before these soldiers try to take your life again!" He twisted when the dragon began to dip it's head to them and he blindly swung his axe, catching and slicing the beast's tongue.

Serana only grunted, or he thought she did, and bumped her hips up as she rolled to be the one on top, tirelessly reaching out to the dragon's foot. Ice expanded from her fingertips, and Ja'kal reeled the battleaxe across his torso before he slammed the shaft into the ice, making it crack. Agony howled - both the dragon and the khajiit, and he shimmied out from underneath Serana as he gauged to strike the beast's tail. He hoisted the battleaxe above his shoulder and used all his weight to drive it down; the blade buried halfway in, before ripping it out and climbing up on the tail again.

Laughter erupted from Ja'kal, as he took great pleasure out of dominating this majestic beast and making it bow to him. He gleefully took a running leap as he aimed to sink the axe into the skull, though he was flailed off in a last feverish bid before the dragon finally tumbled down to it's death.

Ja'kal cried out when he slammed down on his shoulder, and excruciating pain soared up to his neck. He cradled his arm by the elbow and rolled on his back, whimpering at the sharp throbbing, barely registering Serana's face hovering over him. His world was engulfed by the sounds of gale squalls, and he screamed when his blood boiled ever hotter - as if he was set on fire.

Something filled his belly, unnaturally, sating his soul. The anger and bloodlust that had so easily and blindly consumed him had calmed and flushed out of his system, instilling the sense of serenity he had struggled for so many years to achieve; and with it, a sense of great shame for how he behaved and thought of Serana. He closed his eyes when they burned, his voice drenched with guilt. "Ja'kal is sorry, Serana."

"For what?" She carefully slid a hand under his neck, cradling under his head.

"For everything. Ja'kal is deeply ashamed. This is why he does not want to fight; something worse than Boats comes out, consumed with a need to destroy - like the dragon."

Serana hummed, and her cryptic answer left him confused for eras to come.

"Ja'kal... I think it's because you are a dragon."

TO BE CONTINUED IN: TICKLE THE DRAGON'S TAIL (NOW PUBLISHED)

Author's Note

That's a wrap for this arc! I know this finale came out of nowhere, but I still hope you enjoyed this chapter. I will be continuing Serana and Ja'kal's story in the sequel Tickle the Dragon's Tail, where there will finally be a larger focus on plot now that the dragonborn arc will be integrated with the drama of Harkon and the Dawnguard. Of course there will still be (naughty) goodies in the sequel, now that Ja'kal and Serana are securely established, so don't worry. There will be plenty more chances for them to 'explore' each other - I mean, Skyrim. ;)

Thank you to everyone who has been following along on this journey! When I first started Ja'kal's story, I did not at all expect the reception that it got. Thank you to both reviewers and those who PM'd me personally, you lit a fire under my wrists and encouraged me to not just keep writing, but to figure out ways on how to improve it too. Of course, if there is anything I can improve on, feel free to let me know! Writing is a pleasurable hobby but writing crappy stories isn't a pleasure for anyone :P

Cheers, have a lovely day, and hope to see you next time in the sequel!

Translation

Thjizzrini - foolish concept(s)

Fusozay var var - enjoy life (the third concept from the Renrijra Krin's "Ahzirr Traajijazeri" book, showcased in chapter 5 and 11)

Zaji - sexy

Arina - love (noun)

Mor kha'jay - dark moons (general curse)

Ma'jota - insects

Ari jer (zath) - love you (too)

Dran khrassa - dull claws (general curse)

Jetwijijri - shave-skin/cut-skin (insult to non-khajiit)