Sitting on the grass, Puss, Fiona, and Vivianne were staring at the blonde girl in front of them without blinking.
Aurora, embarrassed under such intense gazes, blushed slightly and wrapped herself more tightly in the blanket Puss kept in Tornado's saddle and had offered her after the ritual, so she could stay warmer and soften the shock of it.
Seeing her so quiet, which in turn left everyone else unsure of what to say, ended up making Puss scratch his neck awkwardly, then smile lightly when he thought of something.
Then, without hesitation, he broke the silence.
"Aurora, why are you so quiet? Don't tell me the cat got your tongue," he joked to ease the awkward silence, showing his fangs and sharp teeth, then playfully swiping at the air with his paw, teasing her.
Caught off guard by the sudden remark, she looked at him, flustered by the insinuation—especially when she saw him wink at her charmingly.
"Puss!!" Aurora let out a small squeak, blushing even harder, and lifted the blanket, covering her face even more, leaving only her beautiful slit green eyes staring at him softly, and her little blonde head with the golden crown peeking out.
The orange cat found her embarrassment amusing.
"You can't just say my name, can you?" he teased her even more, since she had only said two things since returning to human form, and both times it had been his name.
Even more shy, she shook her head frantically.
Puss laughed at her cuteness but grew a little confused.
"Aurora, as cute as you are… are you alright? Why are you suddenly so shy?" he asked, beginning to frown a little, worried.
She used to get shy when he teased her back when she was still a dragon, but she was still active in showing affection toward him. Though quieter and more reserved, she wasn't so timid with everyone—it was just her nature, probably after so many years in isolation. That's why he found this sudden, intense shyness strange, and it worried him a little.
The girl, who grew even more embarrassed at being called cute, snapped out of it when she noticed his concern.
"I-I just… it's been so long since I've felt so… normal?" she rushed to explain, but as she spoke, her voice dropped and she ended up murmuring in perplexity.
Raising her hand from beneath the brown blanket, her delicate fingers, wrapped in a red-scaled glove reaching up to her elbow, appeared, and she gently touched her rosy cheek.
It was only when she had stood up earlier after the ritual ended that Puss noticed she was wearing a princess's dress—except it was made of dragon scales, extremely resilient.
According to Vivianne, it was a type of artifact born from fusing dragon blood into a human lineage.
She also explained that Aurora could take it off normally, which made Puss internally sigh in relief. But if she lost it, a new one wouldn't be created the next time she transformed and returned. It was unique.
Puss didn't find it too strange and reflected on how Fiona's clothes also underwent a magical transformation due to the spell. Otherwise, when she transformed into her ogress form—with a waist two to three times wider than her human form—her clothes would at least stretch, if not tear completely. Yet that never happened; they simply reshaped perfectly to her slim waist when she returned to her human form.
In any case, Aurora looked beautiful, exotic, and sexy with her red dragon wings and slit-pupiled green eyes, and Puss had to admit he was drooling.
He thought she might also have horns and a dragon tail, but neither appeared—showing that the dominant side of the fused lineage was human. That was good, too, since in her dragon form her horns were on her jaw, and it would have been strange to have that in human form.
Besides, her strength was many times greater than that of a human—even greater than Puss's, probably on par with an ogre, or even more. So she wasn't just a fragile girl in human form. She could even fly with her wings, which was incredible.
The little fairy, sitting on the brim of Puss's hat and swinging her charming legs in the air, nodded as if she understood the girl's words—and the reason for her shyness.
"Don't worry. It's normal to feel a bit disoriented after spending so many years as a dragon, maybe even a sense of weakness, since your power is much lower than before, which leads to a little shyness when facing such overwhelming changes. Girl, just remember that although now you are weaker, your strength is still much greater than that of an ordinary human—so be careful not to crush someone by accident."
Vivianne spoke with a small smile as she looked at the girl.
In particular, the fairy felt very satisfied and proud. This was probably the greatest magical act she had ever accomplished in her life, and she felt really good about herself seeing it succeed.
Aurora nodded obediently to her, but her eyes seemed to gravitate constantly toward Puss, like the love-struck young woman she was.
'At least that doesn't seem to have changed, whether in human or dragon form,' Puss thought with amusement, winking at the shy girl.
Fiona, who had been sitting with them, legs to the side, listening silently until this moment, suddenly stood up and approached Aurora, extending her hand with a friendly smile as she crouched in front of her.
"Hello, Aurora, I think now we can reintroduce ourselves. I am Fiona Pendragon," she greeted gently.
Since both suffered from the curse of losing their human forms, the two were very kind and friendly toward each other.
The only problem before was communication, which was a bit difficult due to Aurora being unable to speak in her dragon form. But now, with that barrier removed, everyone's communication and friendship would surely grow much stronger.
"Hello… Fiona. I am Aurora… Pendragon as well…" Aurora replied a little nervously, seeming to have some difficulty putting phrases together after not speaking for so many years, along with a bit of shyness.
She also raised her hand covered by the dragon princess glove and gently shook Fiona's hand, taking care not to hurt her with her new strength, as Vivianne had warned.
"Hehe, then we're family, even if separated by a few generations. We can even treat each other like sisters, I always wanted one." She smiled softly, helping the girl to get used to and free herself from the shackles that accompanied her entire story.
Fiona was very kind and wanted to help the cute girl turn a new page and find family and friends, since she had lost all those she once had.
"I… would really like that… Fiona." Aurora smiled happily at her, and her eyes became a little misty, and she wiped the tears that formed with her arm.
It was unknown whether they were tears of joy for the new chance and friendships, or of sadness for those she left behind.
Fiona hugged and gently comforted her, and the two talked for a while before she stepped aside with a smile, leaving room for others to speak as well.
Puss, who saw all of that, smiled softly and happily with the interaction, which warmed his heart. He couldn't help but look at Fiona with gentleness and gratitude for the kindness that gentle princess kept in her heart.
The next to introduce herself was the little fairy who jumped from the brim of Puss's hat and flew in front of the blonde draconic girl, who had calmed down after crying and talking, extending her hand in a friendly manner.
"Well, we didn't properly introduce ourselves earlier. So let's start over too. I'm Vivianne! It's a pleasure to meet you, Aurora!" Vivianne smiled with friendly and silly eyes.
Puss was amused to see how freely she acted and how unlike she seemed from the serious mother she was when it came to her children.
"H-Hi… and thank you, for helping me…" Aurora stammered a little, but managed to thank her, and extended her index finger to greet the fairy.
Lightly shaking the finger up and down, they greeted each other with smiles.
"You're welcome! I'm glad everything worked out in the end, and you look beautiful!" Vivianne smiled gently, putting her tiny hands on her waist proudly, while flapping her dragonfly wings even faster, seeming happy with the gratitude.
"T-Thank you! Y-You're beautiful too!" Aurora felt happy, and also complimented the fairy, who truly was a beauty.
"Oh, but of course!" Vivianne laughed, puffing out her chest proudly, which made Puss roll his eyes in amusement and everyone smile.
And finally, it was Puss who stood before Aurora, who, due to sitting all this time, wasn't much taller than him.
When she saw him in front of her, her green eyes shone with joy and softness.
"Puss!" she shouted, and stretched out both red-gloved hands from under the brown blanket that covered her, but froze, not continuing.
She was afraid of hurting him with her strength, which she hadn't yet learned to control.
Puss approached her and caressed her soft and beautiful face with gentleness and trust.
"Don't be afraid, I'm not fragile at all," he spoke softly to her, with confidence and a warm smile.
Hearing that, her eyes blurred with emotion, and she didn't hesitate anymore and pulled him into a loving hug.
"Puss! Thank you so much, for everything!" she said with love, burying her head in his neck and breathing in his scent, while her heart overflowed with emotion.
He hugged her neck and kissed her soft cheek.
"It's all right, I'm here, and I'll never leave you," Puss spoke firmly.
There was no longer any doubt that he loved her, and that he would never let another man win her over. And now that she had broken the chains that bound her—her dragon form—she could also return his feelings without any more insecurities.
With his words he felt his shoulder grow wet, and small sobs came from the girl in his arms.
Gently caressing her hair, he whispered words of comfort and affection into her ear.
"Everything will be fine from now on, ok?"
"Hmm…"
"Whether before or now, you are beautiful, and that will never change in my heart, so be confident, ok?"
"Hmm…"
"Aurora, I also want you to be patient. I could give you a true love's kiss right now, and I know it would work, because I know I love you, without any doubt. But I still want us to get to know each other better, besides having some ideas I want to try, so please be patient, ok?"
"Hmm… I-I will… I love you too!"
Puss found her answer amusing—she seemed to have trouble or shyness when speaking about anything else, but when it came to saying or showing love for him, she didn't hesitate or stammer, and her tone was very firm. That warmed his heart greatly, and he ended up showering her ear with words of love, making her shyness increase many times over.
Her delicate white face against his neck was already steaming, and she rubbed her nose even more against his fur, full of affection, tightening the hug.
Fiona's eye, watching the scene while seated a few meters away, began to twitch.
At first, she smiled warmly at seeing the two hugging, but soon, for some reason, her mood fell.
Normally, she would find the scene funny and cute—seeing a beautiful princess hugging a little orange cat, full of gear, struggling on the tips of his paws on her lap to reach her neck. But for some reason, she suddenly felt a bit of irritation.
But as that feeling grew, seeing Puss whispering lovingly and kissing Aurora's face, that small irritation turned into a little bitterness.
Then, the desire to be in Aurora's place, being hugged, kissed, and receiving Puss's gentle words, surged, which made Fiona startle when she realized what she was feeling.
Discreetly placing her hand over her heart and feeling the fast beats, her eyes widened slightly.
A thought grew and took root in her chest, making her breath quicken.
'Could it be that I'm… in love with him?!'