Jason's tongue gladly met with Ash's,his taste sweet but rich,somehow not overwhelming in any way. "Mmmm~" Rose pink and hot pink swirled with a bright yellow on his freckles and underwings,the colors bursting and bubbling happily as Jason's wings hung soon at his sides.

It ended much too soon. Ash pulled away, eyes bright, shaking with desire and passion. His heart was thudding wildly, and his fingers were untangling themselves from his hair. He stepped away and walked through the door. A goblin waited for them at the foot of the stairs, his mouth pulled into a toothy grin that showed missing fangs and gold teeth. He was decked out in jewelry: rings, ear studs, necklaces, even a gold nose ring. A milky glass eye sparkled as he turned to Jason, rubbing his claws and grinning like a gleeful shark.

Jason had to stay a moment right there to compose himself,folding his wings in tightly and swallowing multiple times. He followed closely to Ash,though he flinched a bit as the goblins eye landed on him.

"Ah, this is dragon that turned prince traitor," he hissed, eyeing Jason up and down. "And now they need goblin tunnels out of city, good, good." He gestured with a ring-encrusted hand. "No time to speak. We leave now, before guards show up, ask too many questions. Need anything before we go, traitor prince?"

Ash looked pained but shook his head. The goblin cackled, gold teeth flashing in the dim light. "Yes, good! Follow me, then."

Sweetfinger led them out a back door of the tavern and along the edge of the lake. Past the docks, the ground dropped away sharply to a narrow coastline of jagged rock and stone. Hugging the breaker wall, they followed Sweetfinger to the water's edge, where two burlier goblins waited inside a small wooden boat.

"Quickly, quickly," Sweetfinger said, urging them inside.

Jason felt guilty again all the way,knowing it was his fault that Ash had done what he had done. Gray clouded his freckles and underwings as they had moved. He seemed nervous about the little boat.

Ash took a cautious seat between the two hench-goblins, who picked up the oars once both were in as Sweetfinger shoved the boat into the water and leaped in. As they rowed farther from shore, he turned to them with an apologetic smile.

"Goblin tunnels aren't far from here," he said, fingering one of his rings. "Only goblins know where they are, and only goblins are allowed to see them and live. Used to be, payment would be your lovely eyes, but times change. Point is, you not goblin, you cannot see our secret tunnels. Rules, you know. So sorry."

"Understood," Ash muttered as a goblin slid behind him and pulled a blindfold over his eyes. A black cloth also covered Jason's eyes

Jason flinched,shuttering faintly due to the action triggering memories,but he didn't fight. He stayed silent and,for good measure,closed his eyes behind the fabric. He kept fiddling a bit with little Shade's tail,but the two little creatures didn't wake thankfully.

Ash reached out to take Jason's hand into his. They drifted for a long while, the only sounds being the rhythmic sloshing of the oars in the water and Sweetfingers occasional comment to his thugs. Ash's body was tense against Jason's, muscles coiled bands under his skin. The air grew colder, and there was the squeaking of bats somewhere above them. The boat bumped and scraped against rocks, and a foul stench crept into the air, smelling of dung and rotten meat. Snickers and cackling laughter echoed in the darkness, and clawed feet skittered over the rocks. Then, the noises and smells faded, and they floated in silence for a time. Sweetfinger and his guards were muttering among themselves. Finally, the boat bumped against solid ground, and someone pulled it ashore. Ash pulled off the blindfold and blinked in the dim light. They were in a small cave with a pebbly floor, bones, and trash scattered about the room. In the distance, a circle of light glimmered invitingly. Ash breathed a sigh of relief. They'd made it. Sweetfinger leered at them as Ash held out a hand to help Jason out of the boat. "As promised," Sweetfinger said, gesturing to the exit at the back of the room. "Safe passage out of city. Now, I believe traitor prince owes me something, yes?" He held out a jewel-encrusted claw, and Ash dropped a small leather pouch into his waiting hand.

"Tell no one you've seen us," Ash said as the two hench-goblins shoved the boat back into the water.

"I'm afraid its too late for that, Your Highness," came a harsh, gravelly voice at the other end of the cave. Ash spun, his hand on his sword, as four Thornguards stepped into view, their boots crunching over the stones.

Jason ,still blinking a little in the change of light, saw the guards and bared his fangs. He didn't make one sound but he clenched his fists and spread his wings a bit. He hissed a bit,pupils dead slits and tail twitching.

"Very intelligent, not going through the regular trods, Ash," said one guard. His armor was thornier than the others, the barbs on his shoulders bristling like giant porcupine quills. "Mab has them all well guarded, but you knew that, didn't you? Unfortunately, Rowan already bribed every smuggler in the city by the time you found this one. Goblins are such disgusting opportunists, arent they?"

Furious, Ash glared back at Sweetfinger, but the boat was already well out of reach, Sweetfinger grinning at them from the bow.

"Sorry," the goblin cackled. "Prince's offer was good. Other prince's offer was better. Nothing personal, yes?" He waved, and the boat drifted away into the dark. Ash turned back to the guards. As one, the Thornguards drew their weapons. Their swords were spiky and black, with long thorns running the length of the blade, looking as sharp as razors.