Charlotte sighed and relaxed once she was buried under a mound of treasure. The metal was cool on her scales, but quickly warming up, and it was a fantastic place to nap. She trusted Bree to be in the cavern on her own, so she felt comfortable relaxing enough to nap.

Bree got her area set up how she liked and had a snack before working on some actual dinner. She would just have the fireplace to work with while she was there, which was ok, because it was only for a few days. But she knew Charlotte had needed this trip, so she didn't mind at all.

Charlotte stayed under the coins for a while, but did eventually lift her head from the pile.

"You are comfortable?" she asked Bree.

"I'm good," Bree said with a little grin. "Go back to relaxing, I'm fie. I'll let you know if I need anything." She stretched out a bit and finished fixing her dinner, settling in to eat.

Charlotte nodded and settled back in, curling up in her hoard. The weight of the precious metal felt good, and it made a pleasant ringing cascade every time she moved.

Bree just settled in to enjoy the makeshift vacation. As long as Charlotte was happy, Bree didn't need to do anything else. They'd stay for a few days, Charlotte would get to go hunting and pick her own food, and Bree would spend a lot of time lounging.

Charlotte napped for a little while. When she woke up, she stretched out and shook the last of the gold off of herself.

"I am going out hunting," she told Bree as she headed for the exit. "I will return soon."

"Okay, have fun," Bree said, waving briefly before going back to her book. She knew Charlotte would return in her own good time.

Charlotte nodded and left. It felt good to be out on her own without any sort of human supervision, and she took her time about it a bit. She returned a while later satisfied and relaxed and more than willing to settle in with Bree for the evening.

Bree had found a good place to stretch out and had the fireplace ready in case Charlotte wanted to light it for her. She did shuffle a bit out of the way to make it easier for the dragon to settle in again though.

Charlotte noticed the dark fireplace immediately when she got back, and lit it as she went to settle in again. Rather than burying herself again, though, she draped herself over her piles of treasure and let the glitter of light playing off of gold and jewels distract her.

Bree yawned a bit and settled in to read for a little while longer before all the glittering and shinies distracted her.

This was why she didn't let Charlotte bring home extra shinies too often.

Charlotte yawned widely, letting out a cloud of steam, and curled up on her treasure. It had been a while since she had been allowed to just enjoy her hoard like this.

Bree didn't disturb her until sometime the next day, when she decided she wanted to go for a walk.

"Charlotte, can you give me a lift down?"

Charlotte opened one eye to look at Bree.

"Down the cliff leads straight to the ocean," she pointed out.

"And I can never find the path on my own, and I am not equipped to go rock climbing," Bree said with a shrug.

Charlotte blew some steam at Bree affectionately and got up, shaking some coins out from between her scales.

"Come," she said, leaning down for her partner.

Bree snorted at the steam but headed over and climbed up quickly, grinning. This was definitely the best way to get around.

Once Bree was sitting securely, Charlotte got up and made her way out to the entrance of the cave again. From there, it was barely a few seconds before she was setting down where Bree wanted to be.

Bree slid down easily, patting Charlotte's side. "Thanks," she said with a grin.

"My pleasure," Charlotte said, settling down again. Sunning herself for a while sounded nice.

Bree started walking, taking her time meandering along the beach and taking off her shoes after a while. She hadn't realized how much she missed the quiet and the sound of the surf.

Charlotte just basked on the sand, occasionally keeping an eye on Bree. This trip was turning out to be very relaxing, indeed.

A few months later, Bree was getting ready for dinner again. She'd been out several times with John, and Sherlock and Charlotte got along decently well, so that was a relief. Plus it meant she didn't have to worry about going on dates, since the dragons behaved themselves at dinner.

Charlotte was also dressing a little more nicely than usual. Even though Bree was going out with John alone, Sherlock had recently taken to keeping Charlotte company in the interim. They kept each other from getting bored, at least. Without thinking, she pulled on a necklace she'd picked out of her hoard.