Ms Adelaide Lyons,

It is my greatest pleasure and honor to be working with you. I understand some of this may have been last minute, and may still be a surprise to you. I hope that our relationship should prove fruitful regardless of this, and that we may succeed in our endeavors. I also hope that this gift finds you well, and that the omamori serve you well.

Yours, Kenji Takahashi

The letter is formal, very formal, and yet so short. Straight to the point I guess. I assume that omamori refers to the small charms he’s included with the dog statue. The name is familiar and I try to think, searching my brain for why I remember his name. I say as much to Beth, hoping she might be of help.

“Isn’t he the guy the Council is sending?” Beth asks, a cheery tone in her voice. I make a small sound of surprise, turning to face her.

“Yes! Wait-” My pleasant surprise turns into one with a hint of suspicion. “How do you know that?” I ask, eyeing Beth with what I hope conveys my feelings the best, perhaps even improving my evil eye. Beth laughs.

“You told me the other day!” She smiles at my forgetfulness. My face heats as I recall that I had in fact told her all about it. Well, I told her enough. She was human, and while she was a trusted human she was still only just a human. I kept the majority of it to myself, keeping her on a need-to-know basis. She didn’t mind, but sometimes I felt bad not telling her the whole truth of things.

“You getting forgetful in your old age?” Beth teases, her broad smile bringing an uncanny happiness. It was hard not to be happy around her, she was usually very positive no matter the situation. Even when it was kind of annoying.

“As if,” I roll my eyes at her but can’t help smiling. “I’ve just been preoccupied.” I shake the letter over my desk as if it was any indicator of my very busy state of mind. Perhaps it was to some, but most would just see it as a stack of miscellaneous paperwork. Beth laughed again with a nod.

“I can tell.” She replied before turning on her heel to leave. “Anyway, thanks for the fun goodbye!” She shot the sentence off rapid fire, knowing I would have had a few choice words at that jab, and a few tasks for her if she had stayed any longer. I roll my eyes and shake my head before looking back at the statue. It really was nice, and the mother dog looked so stoic. Glancing around my room, I decide the best place for it is on top of my filing cabinet, the mother dog looking down on all who would come in. Yes, I think. That will do.

I run and re-run the numbers again and again before I finally send the email to both the treasury and project manager on the Council of Dragons. I have gone so far as to provide a full planing document with images, sources, and various options that could all fit in the basement of the museum. Unfortunately for me, they all involve relocating the current collection of dragon fossils and artifacts. A small part of my heart breaks at the thought of not being able to pull out and continue working on any given one, but I know it will be worth it.

It’s been three days since I started working on the project. I’m a day early in the allotted time for working on this specific project, and I hope it doesn’t look like I rushed it. It probably won’t since I took three days to put it together, but what if it does? Worry begins to prickle at the back of my mind but I force myself to cast it aside and log off the computer for the day. I sent it in, that was it. The band-aid was off.

I stand up from my desk chair, pushing it back with my legs as I pull up into a long stretch. I’ve spent three days sitting here and at home, just working. It’s beginning to take a toll on my body, the muscles sore and aching. With a big yawn and one last stretch, I slump back into a regular standing position, rubbing my face with my hands. I absentmindedly grab my things to go, my brain feeling so fried it could taste like crispy fried chicken. Then I hear the small ring as the front door opens.

“Sorry!” I call as I head down the small hallway from my office to the front door. “We’re closing real soon so-” I cut off when I see who came in. I see him standing there, the front door closing with a small clink behind him. It had to be Kenji, there was no doubt about it.

The man before me is almost a head taller than I am - and I am very wonderfully average height at five feet four inches - with not-too-wide shoulders and dark hair. His dark almond-shaped eyes find me the moment I step out of the hallway, holding me in place with his piercing gaze. His face is both hard angles and soft edges, blending into something that was striking, mysterious, attractive, and off putting all at once. He’s dressed in a dark suit in tie, his hair styled tastefully short and off to the side.

By all means he could have been a wealthy business man for all I knew. Except there was a tell to dragons who were hiding as humans. It was hard to distinguish but there, in the depths of his eyes, was a certain spark I never could put my finger on. Kenji quickly put on a polite but all business smile as he stepped forward to greet me.

“Miss Lyons, I presume?” He asks after making a curt bow. He stiffly holds out his hand, and I take it in a shake, though I fumble to do so. Where his posture is all business and proper, mine is exhausted and ready to go home. I’m wearing casual jeans and a hoodie again, so not exactly the look of a professional or the best first impression. At least the hoodie has the museum logo on it.

“Ah, yes.” I try not to stumble as I recover from the mess of a hand shake. “You must be Mister Takahashi?” I ask tentatively.

“Yes, and forgive me, I find that handshakes are often awkward.” He tells me, something like a glimmer of amusement sparking in his eyes. He’s apologizing to me? Yeesh, I need to step up my game.

“It’s no problem, really.” I say with a quick wave of dismissal. I hope that my cheery tone might put him at ease but he is clearly all business.

“I hope your package arrived safely?” He asks me, again keeping that polite smile as he speaks.

“Oh, the dog?” I ask. I don’t wait for him to respond before I keep going, though I probably should have if I hope to seem even a little polite. “Yes, it came in just a few days ago. It’s beautiful!” I tell him, trying to display the right amount of affection. I don’t want to seem overzealous. I notice out of the corner of my eye that Beth is very slowly closing up the ticket booth, clearly listening in on out conversation. I can’t exactly give her a look without being noticed by Kenji, so I pretend I don’t see her.

“That’s good to hear,” Kenji starts. “At least one thing arrived safely.” Before I can ask what he means by that he begins to tell me. “Despite our best efforts to plan for the worst, the specimen as been delayed.” I don’t fail to notice the look he casts in the direction of the ticket booth as he says specimen. I nod in understanding.

“Don’t worry, Beth is fine. Although,” I say as I make an exaggerated glance over at the ticket booth. “She’s supposed to be closing up the exhibits right now.” I say pointedly, and Beth makes a small excuse and leaves. I huff a small laugh before turning back to Kenji. There’s a troubled look in his eyes, but he says nothing that would indicate as much.

“Ah, I hope I’m not overstepping?” Kenji asks in a polite tone.

“Oh no,” I say with a shake of my head. “Not at all. In fact,” I say as I look behind me real quick. I make a quick scan to be sure no one else is leaving. It would seem the place is empty, even in the far back. “Why don’t I show you around?” I ask as I turn back to face Kenji. His business smile softens ever so slightly into something almost genuine.

“I would like that very much.” He tells me. I can’t help but beam at him. This is my favorite part of the museum. Talking about dinosaurs? I could do that all day. It was easy to talk about something I enjoyed so much, something that I was full of passion for. Having been witness to the initial rise of paleontology and the ever changing landscape, I had the unique position to go through centuries of information.

The building’s floor plan guided viewers into a sort of loop through the exhibits, and the exhibits went in the process from oldest fossils to newest fossils. I walked Kenji through each exhibit, explaining each one. I practically talked his ear off at each part before I realized I had probably spoken for too long and dragged him to the next one. He never complained, never added much to the conversation, he just let me speak with a few small yet polite comments about the exhibits and my knowledge. I felt thoroughly embarrassed by the time we got to the final exhibit, yet oddly satisfied with his quiet company. He’s just being polite, entertaining you, he’s clearly bored. A little voice hissed in the back of my mind. I quickly shake it away before continuing.

“Well, that’s all of it.” I tell him with a small wave of my arm. I notice that Beth is still in the museum, ‘closing up’ the gift shop that’s placed at the exit. I again pretend I don’t see her, making a point of ignoring her.

“It was very nice.” Kenji says, though he showed no sign or change of expression. It almost felt like talking to someone at a help desk, and I wasn’t really sure how I felt about it.

“So…” I drag out as we begin to walk to the exit together. “How long do you plan on staying here?” I ask, trying to make some small talk that would actually invite his participation.

“As long as you need me to.” He replies, matching his stride to mine as I make a slow pace to the door.

“Oh, I usually work alone.” I tell him. “Not that I don’t want your help!” I quickly correct, his face pulling into an odd expression. He seems confused, though I’m not sure what he would have to be confused about. His brows knit together and there’s the slightest tug at his mouth as if he wants to frown.

“On the specimen?” He asks. I nod, ready to say something more to cover my blunder but he continues to speak. “No, I’m not here for that.” He corrects me. Now it’s my turn to be confused.

“Then what are you here for?” I ask, pausing at the doorway.

“For the pairing.” He states very matter of factually, giving me that odd look again. My confusion only deepens. “The coupling?” He asks, as if a change of the word would make much of a difference. Unfortunately it did not. He looks behind him, probably making sure Beth wasn’t still around to listen. I was sure she was but he pressed on anyway. He looks embarrassed before he speaks, his face going red. “For the breeding, our breeding.” He clarifies. And with that, my entire world goes out the window.