I meant to post this a few days ago but RL got in the way.

[whitescalesbigmouth]

"It doesn't seem right having a GIRL dragon!"

...Uh Mun, are we going to have to have a talk with your Mom about how the birds and the bees works? Seriously, where the heck does she think baby dragons come from?

Seriously though? Ignore her. There are plenty of fictional female dragons out there who are just as awesome... if not maybe *awesomer* (It's totally a word. Shush.) than me. Doesn't she remember that Eragon movie? Ooh or what about that book you started to read! And I'm sure there are some female dragons in those video game things you sometime play.

Comments

[vagabondhero]

Where I'm from most Dragons are female, so I am doubly confused.

[When your gender is the bigger and stronger of the two, you tend to be the more dominant one in terms of population.]

No seriously though does she think they just pop into existence? I know magic is powerful but it's not that powerful.

[whitescalesbigmouth]

I swear if I wasn't entirely bound to my mun's headspace I'd show her Mom a thing or two.

Though I gotta ask, if the dragons from your world are mostly female, then why is that? Are the breeding cycles different?

[vagabondhero]

Well...I don't know much about them other than what Ardent and my brother have told me. If I'm remembering right...it's because they're the dominant gender between the two; they function in a matriarchal cycle, and the female dragons are bigger, stronger, faster, and just all around better at survival. So that's probably why.

[When you're the biggest thing on a chain of big things...you tend to stay on top.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Wow, sounds like the dragons in your world are pretty tough. Too bad I can't meet them, I'm sure I'd be able to learn alot.

Oh uh, I never introduced myself. I'm Saft.

[vagabondhero]

Nice to meetcha Saft, just call me Zac.

[And that sure is a hand being put out for you to shake. He's a rustic kind of kid.]

I suppose you could learn a lot from them, they've got the longest lifespan of anything I know of. Pretty nice too, I probably wouldn't be standing here without their help!

[whitescalesbigmouth]

[That's cool with her. Consider Zac's hand shaked.]

Too bad we can't convince everyone else back in Dragonsbayne that Dragons are totally peaceful, Everyone seems convinced that all we want to do is all the stupid stereotypical dragon stuff when all we want is to live perfectly normal peaceful lives like them.

[vagabondhero]

We?

[Give him a second. He's a little slow on the uptake...and then...]

You're a dragon?

[There it is.]

Oh! You're like Ardent, like a Dragon Knight!!

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Well, Half-dragon.

[Rubbing the back of her neck.] In Dragonsbayne we can take either shape, it's just easier for us to blend into society when we're not around our own kind. That way we're not being hunted down or whatever.

And me? A Knight? Hah... I'm sure I'm not as amazing as this Ardent person is, I take it you guys are good friends.

[vagabondhero]

Wow...

[That sounded even more amazing to him, to be honest. Not so much the being hunted down part, he wanted to hit the people responsible for that...whether it was to put them down or knock some sense into them was up for debate...but on to other questions!]

Ardent? Oh, we just shared a body for a little bit, he's one of the ancient hero's of my world! He gained the power to become a dragon through an ancient ritual and used it to defeat a terrible blight. Dragons are very important in our history I'll have you know.

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Your world definitely sounds like somewhere me and my Uncle should come and visit. If dragons are that important to you then maybe spending time with you and the other dragons in your world would maybe help me find a way to convince everyone else that we don't want to bring any harm!

[Maybe she hasn't thought this through properly, but as the self-proclaimed ambassador of peace in Dragonsbayne. Then it has to be worth a shot.]

[vagabondhero]

Grand Meridia is a big place, I'm sure you'd be welcome there! You have to come during one of the Solstice Festivals though, the wholeeeeeee capital city just becomes one GIANT party!

[It was undoubtedly the two best times of the year...and you can talk to all sorts of people and learn all about how to teach people how to not be jerks towards dragons. After all, nothing brings people or dragon-people together better than a festival. Scientific fact right there.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

[Okay, this is a thing. THIS IS DEFINITELY A THING SHE WANTS TO DO.]

Well if my Uncle Gladinus lets me, then I'll totally take you up on your offer! I'd love to spend some time around somewhere that sounds exactly like what I'm trying to achieve!

[vagabondhero]

He should come too! There's food stalls for miles, and more games than you can count, and displays of magical prowess, and storytelling and crafts and artworks and all sorts of things as far as the eye can see! There's one bakery that makes the best chocolate ever, they add butterscotch to it and some other stuff they won't tell me, but you can't beat it, no way no how.

[He did beat it though. He beat an entire 26 by 18 inch sheet pan of the stuff. That sure sounds like a win to him.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

I'd drag him along but I know all he'd do is complain about the noise and how he wouldn't be able to continue his magic research. Though I'm sure if we found him a nice quiet library away from the festivities that should keep him happy.

[vagabondhero]

Wellllll, I do know a guy with access to the most expansive library in the whole of Grand Meridia. And it just so happens to be in in the capital! Sure would be a fun coincidence if you brought him to see it and then just so happened to run outside for a second only to get stuck in the festival foot traffic. ...For a couple of hours. Or a day...or two.

[Master. Of. Subtlety.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

[Sounds like her kinda plan. Note the smirk she's wearing.]

Soooooooo, it's do-able then?

[vagabondhero]

It's so do-able you could call it already done!

[It was the best idea ever!]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Where do I sign up?

[She knew she liked you for a reason, You other other than the mass respect you have towards others like herself.]

[vagabondhero]

Oh, you don't sign up, it's a festival! Just show up, have fun, and let me handle the rest!

[He took a short pause, long enough to ponder an idea that had struck him at the very least. Two chin taps and a nod later, he seemed satisfied with his conclusion.]

It'll cost you though. Approximately one...story! I wanna hear about some of your adventures!!

[That was a fair price for free entry to a festival and the Grand Meridian Royal Library, right?]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

You want to hear something about what I've done?

[Oh gosh, where would she even start, she's had quite a few adventures now, but most of them are pretty long. They could be here for hours just trying to pick one.]

I'm not sure where to start.

[vagabondhero]

Well...anywhere is fine! It doesn't have to be a long story, I just like to add to the stories I can fire weave!

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Okay well...

Oh! I know! How about the time I ventured to the Fae kingdom to rescue the children in the villages near where I live?

[vagabondhero]

No idea what a Fae is, but that sounds like a great story!

[It certainly sounded like an adventure, so he was all ears for this one.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Well the Fae are fairies, They've been enemies with the dragons for as long as anyone remembers. But they're not like the cute tiny fairies people seem to think they are. The Fae are super vain and live to outdo each other as much as they can. They live in extremely warm temperatures and they have entire buildings made from nothing but gold.

But what humans don't know... you know whenever someone goes missing, presumed lost at sea or just never returned home? It's all the work of the Fae, they seek slaves or companions and the easiest way to do it? Well they spirit people away by appearing as something or someone the person desires.

Once they're in the Fae Kingdom they lose sight of everything they are.

[vagabondhero]

...I have never met a fairy like that before. The one's I've seen just like to grow flowers and preserve nature. Sometimes violently. But I've never heard of any kidnappings before.

[Being a man who absolutely abhorred any form of mental altering...the thought of this place being able to make you lose sight of who you were scared him.]

And you went to this place?

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Well yeah.

[You forget, she's a dragon. And a stupidly stubborn one at that, it'll take more than a few fae to mess her up.]

So anyway, despite everything I'd been warned about I decided to go ahead and rescue all the people who had gone missing.

[vagabondhero]

[He is thoroughly impressed, you have no idea.]

How'd it go? I'm guessing not smoothly, no adventure ever goes smoothly. Otherwise it would just be a trip!

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Well no, as soon as they found out I was there then I was in serious trouble and brought before their queen; Vanille.

[This is such a loooong story though, she's trying to keep it as short as possible, Maybe one day she'll actually sart writing all her exploits down somewhere. Like a journal or something.]

[vagabondhero]

Ahhhh...so was it the kind of diplomatic meeting where you both sat down and talked...or the kind of diplomatic meeting where you beat the tar out of each other?

[He's seen and bit a part of both kinds himself, so it was more a question of curiosity.]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Actually it was more the "Hold you hostage until your uncle arrives and bails you out of trouble" meeting, but even then that didn't go as planned and we were both held as prisoners.

But it turned out they weren't actually using the children for anything, or at least we don't think they were...that detail's still a little sketchy.

[vagabondhero]

Someone held a fairy queen and a dragon prisoner?

[Holy crap.]

What kind of monster had that much power?

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Huh? Oh No no! I mean that the queen held both me and my Uncle prisoner. You know...I'm not that great at telling stories!

Just know that we eventually escaped, rescued the missing children and some adults and lived happily ever after or something! Heh.

[Come on you did say it didn't have to be a LONG story, Just enough for payment.]

[vagabondhero]

Oh! Duh, I just misheard, that was my mistake! Still, it's good to hear you got out alright.

[All's well that ends well, right?]

That was an awesome story though! Definitely something I can fire weave...though if I ever did that in public, I'd probably leave out the whole getting taken prisoner thing. If anything I heard you beat the queen single-handed.

[Totally. That's totally what happened. Right?]

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Huh? Oh yeah! That's totally what happened.

[Yup, she didn't leave her to escape or something because that'd just be sloppy. There's no way Saft would do something like that.]

Vanille's taken care of and no one has to worry about any other fairies causing a mess for them, ever!

[vagabondhero]

Ha! Now that's gonna make an excellent story. Just...gimme a second here.

[And now he's going to size you up for a few moments. A careful eye and a few up and down glances later, and he was finally satisfied; satisfied enough to form a glint of fire on the tip of his index finger and set to work. Each movement through the air left a trail of fire in it's wake, and at first, it looked like an incoherent mess. Once he was done though, it looked vaguely humanoid, and a few turning gestures of his hand helped to form and shape the figure into an almost uncanny replica of Saft herself, making use of both the fire and the shadows it cast between each line.]

Annnnnnd there! How's that look?

[whitescalesbigmouth]

...!

[When he had mentioned he was going to make a fire weaving, she thought it'd be in the form of a scroll or somekind of book, she hadn't expected any kind of magic quite like that.]

It looks great! Slightly creeped out it looks so much like me...but that's amazing. What kind of magic is that?

[vagabondhero]

It's just fire magic! It's not all about explosions and burning things to the ground you know, fire weaving is a noble art of storytelling!

[For emphasis, the creepy fire-made look alike is going to cross its arms and nod in agreement with what Zac just said.]

Stories are so much better with a visual aid, don't you think?

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Well I know! But... I've never used it like that before.

Then again, Uncle Glad doesn't really let me use magic for much of anything. He seems to think I'm not ready for anything really great. Just little things so I can protect myself if need be.

[vagabondhero]

You use fire magic too?

[Oh boy, his eyes are all lit up now.]

What can you do then? Can you show me??

[Can you tell he's easily excited by things?]

[wherenoonegoes]

Let's not forget there's Stormfly, Meatlug, and Windshear. And those are just the ones I know that have actual names.

[whitescalesbigmouth]

Not according to my Mun's Mom, uuurgh, why can't everyone have an awesome Mom? The dragons I've seen in your world are incredible!

[Your mother is clearly the most superior of all mothers, Hiccup. Saft's mun is having Mom envy right now... Saft not so much but she's never had one to grow close to sooo yeah.]

By the way, My mun kinda has a thing against Stormfly. Mostly because the one figure she has of her keeps falling off her shelf and smacking her in the face.

She woke up with a black eye one morning.

[wherenoonegoes]

Thaat...honestly sounds like your mun's fault for putting it somewhere where it could fall on her face in the first place.

[whitescalesbigmouth]

She keeps joking that Stormfly is probably a little over-zealous in her displays of affection anyway. So most of the time she just keeps her on the windowsill away from anywhere that might involve her falling straight into her face.

She's not exactly stable though, she keeps falling over.