#meme thread;

          Red was laid on her back, cool earth beneath her and Liam snuggled up close beside her, his head resting on her shoulder and her cloak wrapped around the both of them to stave off the slight chill in the night air ( her additional body heat, born of the wolf, was surely more than enough to keep the boy from succumbing to the cold ).  ❝ It doesn’t hurt, ❞ she replied, answering his question regarding the shift brought on by the full moon. After she’d told him her secret, Liam had become increasingly more interested in the wolf -- how the transformation worked, why it happened ( for which, unfortunately, Red had no real answer ).  ❝ I don’t know how to describe it, really. More like ... like a wave crashing over me. A little disorienting initially, but there’s something ... calming in the ebb that follows. ❞

           ❝ Surprise, surprise, ❞ she muttered, her griping seemingly canceled out by the accompanying gesture -- an arm slipping around his middle, bearing the brunt of Killian’s weight in an effort to steady him. Why Ruby had been called to the Rabbit Hole to contend with the drunken pirate was a mystery -- perhaps the proprietor didn’t wish to alert the authorities and earn his ire -- but she did as she was asked without question, half dragging, half carrying him towards the bar’s exit.  ❝ Come on, I’m taking you to the inn so I can keep an eye on you, troublemaker. ❞

          Lithe digit tapped the underside of his chin, tilting his head upward so she might get a better look at his healing wounds. ❝ Doubt hell would have tended so carefully to your injuries. ❞ Whether he’d deserved that attention was another matter entirely, but in spite of herself, the she-wolf had become fond of Killian Jones ... even if the rapscallion did have a knack for grating on her nerves. ❝ I have a feeling Hades wouldn’t appreciate your dashing good looks. ❞

          ❝ Yeah, I can -- oof! ❞ The she-wolf grunted, catching Zelena as she stumbled, footing obviously unsteady in her alcohol-induced stupor. Just how much the redhead had imbibed was a mystery, and Ruby couldn’t say with any certainty how well the other woman could hold her liquor, but she could hazard a guess regarding the severity of tomorrow’s hangover. ❝ I can tell! Let’s just -- ❞ Another grunt as she wrapped an arm around the woman’s waist and took on the brunt of her weight. ❝ -- sit you down over here and get you some water, okay? ❞ With minimal effort -- aside from the occasional squirming from the uninvited guest ( she’d just been getting ready to close the diner, too ) -- the brunette managed to settle Zelena into a booth, disappearing for several moments before returning with a glass of water and some aspirin. ❝ Did Leroy happen to challenge you to a drinking contest? Because those never end well, ❞ she mused, clearly speaking from personal experience.

          ❝ Well, I’m pretty sure you thought the lamp was Smee. You were barking orders and ... y’know, ❞ she waved a hand, ❝ talking ship stuff. You tried to hoist the blinds like they were sails. ❞

          ❝ I don’t -- ❞  I don’t expect you to love me. Not because she believed Smaug was incapable, rather that she was undeserving. Eyes shifted, dropping to the ground, though the brunette managed a small smile. ❝ It’s okay. Trust me, I -- I understand. ❞ His past was as much a roadblock for Smaug as Red’s, and the she-wolf would never fault the drake for how he felt -- or didn’t feel. ❝ Forget I said anything. ❞

          Mirth flickered across the she-wolf’s features, an amused chuckle spilling from her lips as she reached out, lightly dragging a nail across the dragon’s jaw, giving his chin an affectionate scratch. ❝ I am a queen, ❞ she cooed. ❝ And you, my dragon, are my king. ❞ If the pack had questioned her decision to accept the drake as an ally -- as a mate -- they had wisely kept their opinions to themselves; though she cared for her underlings, Red wouldn’t hesitate to make an example of anyone who questioned her authority. There had been murmurings towards the beginning of their union, but when Smaug had proved his metal -- easily decimating a village on the outskirts of a nearby kingdom -- whatever dissent had existed among the wolves dissipated entirely. ❝ And together, my king, we will conquer these lands. ❞

          ❝ N--no, ❞ she admitted sheepishly, head ducked low so long locks might conceal the embarrassment written plainly across delicate features. ❝ Was it obvious? ❞ Was it bad? Did I do it wrong? -- those were the questions she wanted to ask, but didn’t dare voice. Living under her strict grandmother’s roof for so long had kept her blind and deaf to matter of the heart and especially matters of the flesh, to the point she’d never experienced pleasure -- in any form -- until that very night.