The most interesting thing about Jera, besides his flame colored hair and egg speckled skin, was his curious fearlessness. Every elf Ursalo had come by had reeked of it the second they caught sight of Ursalo, staring, horrified at his scaled skin and many writhing snakes. Jera was different. He had seen Ursalo and had only been fascinated.<br/><br/>Even now, after the adrenaline of being yanked into a dark corridor had faded away, Jera was not afraid. Ursalo could feel his heart beat ease back into a steady rhythm against his palm. Slightly elevated yes, but Ursalo suspected that could be excitement or maybe even the beginnings of arousal.<br/><br/>Now that was curious.<br/><br/>It was amazing how far Ursalo's smile could grow without showing his teeth, but eventually his amusement was too great and he lifted his free hand to cover his mouth, a coquettish look to hide the monstrous rows and rows of needle like teeth.<br/><br/>Jera said that he had scared him.<i>Not hardly</i>, he thought with wicked amusement, half tempted to take that as some sort of challenge.<br/><br/>Then Jera began to apologize again though Ursalo hardly cared until tongues were mentioned. His gaze dropped down to Jera's mouth, to his plump lips and blunt teeth and the flat, pink tongue that hid behind it.<br/><br/>Ursalo removed his hand from his face and let it settle on the stone wall beside Jera's head as he leaned in closer, looming once more.<br/><br/>"As doessss mine," Ursalo said, letting the 's' hiss out of him before his tongue followed. It was exactly as a snake's, forked at the end, long and thin and colored a shiny black. The appendage extended far longer than humanely possible and flicked in the small space between them.<br/><br/>Ursalo could taste him now. The apple that he had eaten perfuming his breath, the soap he used on his clothes and skin and hair, the hint of masculine sweat muffled beneath layers of fabric fragrant with grass and soil from the garden. But mostly Ursalo could taste his heat, blood warmth tinged with sun light, radiating waves of beautiful gold and orange. It was as heady as mead, syrupy with honey and airy with foam.<br/><br/>Ursalo felt drunk on it, the bubbly taste sizzling in the back of his throat an addictive sensation. He wanted more.