Aylmar came home in the late afternoon. Usually he liked to be home much earlier, but this day he had needed to travel much further than normal. Kimiryo, his lifelong companion, had not yet returned. Aylmar looked around his abode, reveling in the quiet and solitude. The trees moved slightly in the breeze, but the air was still hot, the weather he liked best. The large rock to his left looked warm and inviting. He walked over and stretched out on it. It had an indentation that seemed like it had been made just to accommodate him. He squirmed around a bit until he was comfortably situated in it. He lay there soaking up the heat.
He hoped Kimiryo would like what he had brought for her today. The rubies in the necklace were that rare, deep red that is so hard to find, and there were a lot of them. She always liked the colored stones. He preferred gold: gold coins, rings, anything really. If he saw something gold, he just had to have it.
Kimiryo had a different opinion. “More clutter,” she would say. “Really, Aylmar, where are you going to keep it all? There’s barely room to move around as it is.” He would just smile whenever she said things like this, and then be sure to bring home a gem for her. Those she never called clutter.
Just thinking of his collection made him smile. He ought to pull out that lovely gold statue of the cat. It came from some exotic land to the south, which one he was not quite sure. It was one of his favorite pieces. Yes, tonight he would pull it out again. Even Kimiryo seemed to admire that one. Of course, she had a fondness for cats, and the kids, of course. Aylmar wondered how they were doing. Emeric was kept very busy with his own family, Aylmar knew. Still, he usually stopped by every couple of weeks, or so. And it had been almost a month since his last visit. Maybe he and Kimiryo should visit tomorrow. Yes, that would be nice.
And then there was Tamaki, his and Kimiryo’s beautiful daughter. She had always wanted to see the world. And that is exactly what she had been doing the last several years, thoroughly enjoying herself. And finding all sorts of intriguing souvenirs. The cat had come from her. Aylmar hoped she would eventually settle down and learn the joys of rasing a family of her own. Of course, she was young yet. Let her have her wild time.
Aylmar sat up, no longer enjoying the afternoon as much. Thoughts of the children had made him a bit lonely. Definitely he would have to visit Emeric. There were no complaints in his son’s home about clutter. The entire family enjoyed the same passion for carvings: wood or stone, it made no difference. It made for a very interesting household. But then, what could be expected. Naturally Emeric, and Tamaki too in her own way, would take after their parents. After all, dragons will be dragons.
Aylmar crawled down off the rock, idly scratched his back scales against a low branch and gathered his latest finds. He then went inside the cave to add a gold plate to his hoard, and to wait for Kimiryo, his mate with her lovely green eyes and golden scales. He would give her the ruby necklace when she came home, to add to her own hoard.
© 1996