Once upon a time there were seven dragons, born of Light, Darkness, Energy, Fire, Earth, Water, and Air. Despite their different origins, the seven dragons were the best of friends and played together all the time. One day, when they were out, they ran into a human girl frolicking in the woods.

One by one, each one of the dragons found themselves falling in love with this girl. But they had a problem; humans and dragons could not be together. So, they all committed the ultimate taboo and turned themselves human, prepared to live the rest of their once-long lives as men.

But the girl did not reciprocate their feelings, and ended up marrying another human. Heart-broken, the dragons attempted to return home, only to find their path cut off. Their punishment, for breaking the biggest rule, was that they, and their offspring, would be doomed to live mortal lives on Earth until the reincarnation of that girl returned the love of one of their descendants.

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She knew it was coming, even before she felt the fingertips press against her temples. They were ice cold with sweat and seemed to stick against her skin. The ropes that bound her hands behind her back dug deep into her wrists, keeping her from pulling away from the man as she so wished.

The man in front of her was mumbling words under his breath, but she couldn't bring herself to focus on what they were. Her ears were stretched much farther than the foot radius he was giving her, searching for the voices of her friends. But among the dozens of other people that cirlced around the two of them, not another word was being spoken.

His hands slid down the sides of her face, leaving a slightly damp trail behind. He didn't want to do this, either. But it couldn't be helped. And despite her anger, she couldn't find it in herself to be mad at him. Not after everything he had done for her.

And then, it came. A voice in the crowd, so soft, she could almost feel her ears bleed in her strain to hear it.

It wasn't the ones she had been looking for, but she could tell from the words that were being spoken that they were on the recieving end of it.

"How does it feel?" the cold voice sent shivers up her spine. "Watching the one you love go through this? Knowing that in a few seconds, every second, every murmured pretty nothings, every touch, caress, every kiss will be completely and utterly forgotten?"

Her hands balled into fists. She had to break free. She had to do something. She tugged on the bondage as hard as she could, but the knots held strong.

And then her eyes fluttered shut-

-and everything disappeared.