[IC] [Ebonfort] A Common Flame

[Drache]

The red hybrid had edged very close to the precipice, the wind sweeping upwards from where it had struck the hillside and was now toying with the golden membranes of her wings. The tingling buzz of the spicy drinks had faded long ago, leaving her hot with anger rather than smoldering with lazy glee. Clearly she was a heartbeat or two away from launching out into the night sky, heavy bag or no, and leaving this conflicting creature far behind. For the most part, it was only because she genuinely believed what she had said about their kind, that being on the same side was important.

She listened to him silently, the wind making her long black hair billow around her shoulders in tendrils, her tail undulating slowly behind her as her eyes smoldered at him in the dark. Twin plumes of black smoke, tattered signals of her frustration, blew away towards the greater depths of the garden.

Aussir's long diatribe was difficult to follow. He seemed embarrassed but desperate to be understood, yet she resented his trying to puzzle out her private thoughts, and his woeful pessimism was exhausting. In spite of his tall, attractive frame, he seemed almost child-like, and she was starting to wonder if all of this discomfort was simply due to a more isolated upbringing than she had experienced.

Her wings folded behind her one at a time and with an exasperated sigh Drache moved to join him on the bench, her hips swaying with a natural swagger until she sat down. It was hard to keep her hands to herself so she settled on picking at the flap to her bag.

"Aussir, you may not want my advice, but I'm going to give it to you anyways. I think you need to relax. In my experience, people don't like it when you play guessing games about their past, their feelings. It's suspicious. You can enjoy someone's company without..." She waggled her wing joints, struggling for the word that would describe what she wanted without seeming insulting, "...the theatrics."

Her eyes trailed along the line of his snout, his horns. He was yummy enough to nibble on! Why did he have to be so dramatic?

"Just because you've been a little irritating doesn't mean I would never want to talk to you again, Aussir. Our kind live too long to put those kind of absolutes on each other. And I'm sure I've acting more like a fireball more than I needed to, but I'd hope you wouldn't hold that against me." In spite of the wind off the sea, the female was very warm, much warmer than Aussir himself.

"Perhaps if you're ever interested you can hold something else against me." She winked at him then, but she knew by now that he wouldn't take her up on it and turned her attention to the bag, lifting the flap to pull out a glossy black orb. It looked like glass, or possibly obsidian. There were many obsidian quarries in the area due to the presence of the volcanic activity.

She held it up in her hand. It was almost big enough to need two hands to hold, but wasn't quite as heavy as it looked. "I found him in the Heartchamber of an abandoned temple," she explained, letting her claws click glassily against it.

"Wake up, Cinder," the dragoness crooned, her voice almost sensually low as she raised the orb to her snout, letting her hot breath wash over it. In an instant, the surface of the orb erupted in flickering orange flames. Not only that, but it lifted out of her hand, hovering of it's own accord as little plumes of fire coalesced into the vague shape of a tiny bipedal creature. White-hot pinpoints of light turned, the semblance of sleepy blinking as the creature stood on Drache's forearm.

The warmth rolling from the torchlike sprite was tangible, and the flickering tongues that came up from his head were buffeted by the wind around the orb that had become his head, but somehow Drache's clothing seemed unaffected.

"This is Cinder. He's a fire sprite (link). I think he chose to stick with me because I'm...well...I'm a Firespinner."

Cinder glanced around to see who Drache was talking to and upon seeing Aussir so near, jumped up to Drache's shoulder and hid partly behind her head, his fiery little hand clinging to one of her spiral horns as he peered around at the other dragonkin. Drache's ear-frill gave a flick, as though listening to someone talk that Aussir couldn't hear.

[Krinos Solstice]

He was glad to see and hear she wasn't going to leave, or that she wouldn't talk to him again, he would've been even more disappointed with himself if he had completely offended a beauty such as her. Her advice sounded almost similar to that of Mojavico's, though she was more direct about it, and deep down he knew she was right. Being so tightly wound up and closed off wasn't going to help him at all, well, not in this situation anyways; perhaps if he was trying to intimidate someone, sure. It was clear he had much to learn about the world and the people who were its inhabitants, along with learning how to be a better person than he was now. Sure, he was lucky the dragoness was forgiving, that she had patience to deal with him and his theatrics. He knew if it were a Human or a Dwarf, they'd have given up on trying to talk to him. Yes, he had much work ahead of himself if he wanted to change, especially if he wanted to get closer to the dragoness. "I wouldn't hold it against you, I probably haven't been much help in keeping you calm. If I were to hold anything against you, it would be your kindness and patience. And those are good things." he replied. Her insinuation caused a grin to form on his face, "I may take you up on that offer at some point." he said. He was starting to become a little more receptive to her flirting, whether it was because he was understanding how such things worked, or if he was putting in an effort to change was unknown. In either case, he had clearly taken her advice to heart.

He watched the orb emerge from her purse, he assumed it had to be made of obsidian, though he could be wrong. At first he thought it to be a tool of some sort, something she used when searching in ruins, a light source perhaps? Once the flames started to manifest and take on a physical form, he realized he had been wrong in his assumption. Once the fire sprite had fully manifested itself, he couldn't help but chuckle, especially when it hid itself behind the dragoness' horns. Aussir looked back at her, his smile still there, "He's adorable. Timid, but still adorable." he said, glancing at the sprite. When she mentioned she was a Firespinner, the look on his face changed. It wasn't a hard look, more like he was recalling something, "A Firespinner, huh? My father told me once that they were nothing but trouble and that I should avoid them, lest misfortune befall me." he told her. His face softened, his smile returning, "I was young at the time, and I believed his words, so I avoided certain people. However, I learned a long time ago that my father disliked many things, it seems Firespinners were top of his list. Ever since then, I haven't particularly heeded his advice from my younger years. I'm glad I decided not to; you don't seem like the type of person who would cause misfortune to another, at least, not intentionally anyways." he told her, his tail flicking a bit.

He leaned back on the bench, turning his head to the sky, "I have to admit, I'm a little envious of you; you have a companion like Cinder there to travel with, so you're not ever really alone when you're out exploring ruins or whatever else you explore. I wish I had a companion of my own, I mean, Destiny is good company, but it's not the same as you and Cinder. Destiny gets me from place to place, while a companion like Cinder would be able to do so much more. And I'm not talking about fighting or anything like that, I'm referring more to a unique bond through hardships, a companion would be like..." he paused, scrunching up his face as he tried to find the right word so she would understand the meaning he was trying to convey, instead of leading her to believe he was assuming things again. It took him a few moments, but he finally found the right word, "A companion would be like family to you. I mean, you help to care for them, to protect them, and they do the same for you. At least, that's how I view the bond between a companion and their master." he finished. He sat there, staring at the night sky, using his peripheral vision to look her over again. He had to admit how attractive she was, of course, repeating this to himself was starting to get redundant, even if it was the truth.

He remained silent for awhile, the atmosphere remaining casual and calm, even as he spoke once again. "He left me after mother died." he said to her, still looking at the sky. His voice hadn't changed, it wasn't somber or filled with sadness, it remained at the same level of calmness. "I think it was too much for him, you know? Losing the woman he loved, then having to raise me on his own; I don't think he could take the pressure." he paused for a moment to look at her. He gave her a smile to assure her he was alright talking about this, "One day he took me to the arena and introduced me to some of the officials there, as they spoke to me, he must have slipped away. I haven't seen him since that day, and I don't think I ever want to. Despite my calm tone right now, I have anger and hate for him. I know you said earlier that to hold feelings like those is pointless given our longevity, but in my case, he's the one exception to that rule. I can't forgive him, he abandoned me when I needed him most." he told her. He looked at Cinder, giving the fire sprite a soft smile, "She must take good care of you, huh? That's good; it's always good to have someone who'll be there. You do your best and become strong." he told the little sprite. He slowly stood and moved to the fountain, watching the water flow, his mind wandering to the things she said to him through the night. He finally turned his head to look at her, "I want to thank you for everything you've said to me tonight, you've opened my eyes to the fake me, the one I hide behind to keep people away." he said, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully.

He approached her slowly, deliberately taking his time while he spoke, "You were right earlier, I need to relax and stop making assumptions, otherwise, nobody will want to be around me. And if nobody's around me, how will I be able to form new friendships and bonds, let alone find love?" he paused here, having reached her. He lowered his snout to her level, taking the chance with his hand to lift hers to look at him, holding it gently. He wanted to ensure she understood exactly what he was trying to convey to her, "I envy your life, Drachiathoryx. You know what you want, you live a life that makes you happy. That alone is inspiration enough for me to want to change who I am. You called me out earlier, and you are absolutely right, I don't want to be alone in this world. We live too long to keep ourselves secluded from one another." he stopped and let go of her, moving his snout back and straightening up. "I apologize for that, I just wanted to make sure you understood what I was trying to say." he apologized. He sat back down, though continued, "I do want to find someone to love, I mean, who doesn't in this world? But what you said hit me hard, I can't be this asshole, otherwise I won't find love. Talking to you tonight has helped me to begin to change for the better, or, I would like to hope. That said, I do hope you find happiness and love with someone. In my opinion, you deserve it, especially for putting up with someone like me." he said, chuckling lightly. He turned serious for a moment, but nothing heavy, "I did mean what I said earlier, if you want to talk to someone, I'll listen to you. Hell, it's the least I can do for putting you through my crap tonight. But aside from that, you ever need some hired muscle for one of your expeditions, you can count on me to be there." he said, giving her a smile at the end.

[Drache]

"He slept for a long time after I found him. His sister...twin...is with a friend of mine. Or, someone who used to be my friend." The red dragonkin's face fell for a moment, her eye rolling thoughtfully towards Cinder, who turned to look into her face with an unhelpfully placid expression. But whatever troubling thing Drache was thinking about, she pushed it aside when Aussir continued talking.

"I suppose it depends on your definition of trouble, Aussee," she grinned, mispronouncing his name on purpose as a pet name. "There haven't been any mages since before three hundred years, until now. I was very excited to find that I could suddenly control my own firebreath." Something about the vehement intensity in her tone suggested that suddenly finding that she had magic at her disposal had given her a feeling of purpose. "I don't try to hurt anyone else, of course, but I learned a long time ago that I have to look after myself. No one else is going to."

Drache let out a short growly purr when Aussir admitted to envying her, grinning at the compliment. She reached up to touch Cinder, which involved letting the flames flickering from what made up his body float through her fingers. There wasn't much physical contact except for when her claws brushed the orb that made up his head, but he seemed to appreciate the gesture and leaned into it. She was still learning how to read the strange creature. "Oh, I'm not his Master," she argued, for some reason finding that comparison uncomfortable. "Cinder stays with me because he wants to, not because I own him. Calling myself Master makes it sound so much like slavery. Perhaps you could get a pet. The Merchant Square is always full of strange creatures brought in from all over the place. Or maybe," she glanced at him with a teasing sort of smile, "you could make some friends."

Falling quiet as the private details of Aussir's memory of his parents began to flow forth like water, the female watched his face with a certain amount of intensity, deciding then and there to make a sketch of his face in her journal as soon as she got a chance. "I said we should support each other. Your sire was a dragon, and as dragons will undoubtedly never fail to remind us, we are not quite the same as them. If it's in your heart to hold him accountable for his absence, I won't blame you."

She let him take her hand, though she seemed less comfortable about the quickly-shrinking distance between their snouts than her earlier flirtations and insinuations might have implied. Her fingers clasped comfortingly around his, her flesh very warm. "Don't envy my life too much, Aussir," she murmured so quietly it might have been a whisper. "Especially the last few weeks of it. But I'll take that as a compliment, even though I'd have been happier with a kiss." Her eyelashes fluttered hopefully at him, though somehow she suspected that her salacious insinuations would go un-realized.

"I'm glad you were at least wise enough to consider what I had to say without dismissing it all out of claw. I'll remember your offer. Both of them. I should be here in the city for a little while but I may be traveling again soon with a friend of mine."

They were together on the bench again, and Drache reached for Aussir's hand, and provided that he didn't resist, she lifted it and tugged it back around her waist so that she could lean against the larger dragonkin.

Cinder had nodded at Aussir's question and then hopped down from Drache's shoulder to the bench and then the ground. His fiery feet left tiny steaming footprints in his wake, but the leaves he stepped on did not burn. He wandered around curiously, inspecting the fresh green buds of tropical plants. In another season this whole garden would be nearly overwhelming with the perfume of lurid flowers.

[Krinos Solstice]

Aussir was about to correct her on his name when he caught the grin on her face, realizing that Aussee was now her pet name for him, a grin forming in response to this as he agreed with her choice. He also came to realize that she must have had some sort of interest in him on some level, seeing as how she was relaxing a little more and giving him a pet name. He kept these observations and comments to himself though, "I see. I'm sorry you had to part on bad terms with your former friend." he commented, though said nothing more on the subject. Betrayal, he knew that feeling too well, a friend could become an enemy in a single second, all it took was that one moment to make a choice for their own benefit; or a choice to harm another. In either case, it was clear to him she had been hurt, but she also was not willing to talk to him about it. That was fine with him, she would tell him in her own time if she wanted to. When she mentioned about looking after herself, he couldn't help but make a comment, "I think we can both relate to that there. We've both had to look out for ourselves, and I think that's probably one thing we have in common with each other, we know we can't rely on anyone else but ourselves." he said, looking at her.

When she explained the relationship between her and Cinder, he realized it wasn't like he had thought it was, it was simply a relationship of understanding. He smiled at the thought, he knew such a relationship was rare in this world, especially with such rare creatures as Cinder. Her suggestion made him frown, "I would rather not 'buy' a companion; to me it seems like I'm forcing them into servitude and not giving them a choice on whether to like me or not. No, what you and Cinder have is more along the lines of what I'd like, just to befriend a creature naturally. I feel that sort of bond is the strongest kind, not that I would know from experience, of course." he replied, chuckling as the fire sprite reacted affectionately to her. He had to admit, she had a way with the sprite that made her even more alluring to him; perhaps it was the soft and gentle side of her she was showing him, instead of the hard and fiery volcano that he had seen prior. Of course, he reminded himself he was mostly the cause of her acting that way. Her comment about the dragons and his father made him think for a moment, she was right; the dragons would never let them forget they were less than them, but the other Dragonkin did need to support one another. Or at least, in her words, they should try. It was almost as if...she was trying to do just that, be supportive. He wasn't sure how to take that, but her words seemed genuine enough, "Thank you." he replied softly.

When she took his hand and lifted it, he offered her no resistance whatsoever, deciding to trust her intent. When she placed it around her waist and leaned into him, he felt a calmness wash over him. He had forgotten this feeling, such familiarity was in it; it reminded him of when he was younger, of when his mother held him as a youngling. Before he became too large to hold, she would hold him like this, though he would be where the dragoness was. He wasn't about to speak, deciding not to ruin the atmosphere that had settled between the two. He thought on what she had said minutes before, she would have prefered a kiss, compared to his words. He chuckled inwardly, he really did need to shut up sometimes, he clearly talked too much. The male watched as Cinder wandered around on the ground, Curious little thing, not a care in the world right now. Maybe...I should follow his example. I have this beauty right here, and I'm holding her but not doing anything. Am I scared? Maybe. I don't know what to expect now. Pushing people away has always been easy...but she's so close...I just...how do I express what I want? I know the night has to end...but I don't want to have her leave, I don't want her to go...at least not tonight. he thought. Without thinking about it, he took her hand with his free one and placed it on his now unfolded wing, "Stay with me tonight, Drachiathoryx, I would...rather not be alone." he said softly, letting his hand go of hers.