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→ such a frightened fawn is best far from the road,
i know, i know. overwatch gif. but my google-fu was failing.
a.
( The storm rolls in sudden and without forecast. One moment the night is clear and the next there is nothing but cloud and rain so thick it falls in sharp sheets to the ground. Anyone sensible would have retreated indoors as soon as it started, but for those daring and brave the thunder might be enough to scatter them. All night it rages, wind howling and the sky flashing brightly with dark shapes. At one point the scream of the night starts to sound more animal, something shrill and pained in the wailing of the weather.
And then, just before dawn, it stops.
The morning comes, full of mist and the smell of damp earth. It's hot, humid weight pouring down on the ground. And out in the swamp there's a new shape, larger than an alligator, reptilian green and half submerged in the water. It's definitely not one of the normal creatures that reside there, too large claws scouring marks in the bank, the large ears that twitch with every sound. Then there's the glitter of it's scales. Upon closer inspection it shines like an oil spill, blues and greens and pinks shifting as the creature breathes.
It groans, shifts, bloody foreleg exposed. And then it opens its eyes. Don't worry. It won't eat you. It's not hungry yet. )
b.
( The dragon - because that's what it is - shrinks down whenever it's inside the house. It takes up space in all the nooks and crannies, curling into empty teacups or needed shoes, winding around the couch cushions with a proprietary look on it's face. On the occasion someone almost sits on it the offender gets a bite on the backside for their their troubles. Just because it's thankful for the respite doesn't mean it has to play nice.
There's something strange about it. Sometimes it acts almost human, head cocked and listening whenever someone talks, tiny claws shredding up whatever sweet treat its stolen. Sometimes it even seeks out company - not with anyone it's bit though - curling near them with steam rising from its nose. )
c.
( It takes days. Almost a week. And then one morning when the dragon is chasing flecks of light on the floor there's a blur and a shift in the air. Between one second and the next its shape changes. No longer is it a kitten sized reptile, but now a fully formed man.
A fully formed and very naked man.
He blinks from where he's sat on the floor, too long hair falling into his eyes, jaw shadowed with scruff. He looks like he hasn't seen the light of a good bathroom in a while. Maybe he hasn't even been human. There's a scar on his arm the exact shape that had been on the dragon's foreleg and he prods at it carefully. But eventually he lifts his gaze to whoever's nearest and speaks. )
Hello.
( His voice is deep, cracked with disuse. )
Where am I?
d.
( Someone gives him pants, but he ignores the shirt in favour of letting the sun warm his skin from the window where he's taken residence. He's cross-legged, blinking down at a screen with his hair in his eyes, a furrow between his two brows.
Whatever he's reading, it isn't happy. )
How long -- ? ( A pause, a cough, Ki looking up to squint across the room. ) How long ago did the war end?
c.
Because, well...
He wasn't quite expecting that! At all! It's not what he had expected from his day. Watch tiny dragon play in the sunlight, watch tiny dragons unexpectedly transform into naked man. It's just not the typical progression of evens, if there even is such a thing as typical anything in this house. Right away, he takes the only course of action he can think of. He claps his hand over his eyes. ]
Hi! Uh.
[ Answer the man's question, Dash. ] Clothes? [ Close, but no cigar. ]
no subject
( He sounds even more confused now, but the noise he makes is still the same as he did when he was smaller and scalier. Dash misses the mist rising from his nostrils as he exhales violently. )
I don't have any.
( He doesn't even know where he is. Time feels sticky and complicated. He's lost days, he can feel it. But what happened in them is beyond him. )
I must have left them behind.
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[ He carefully parts two fingers and peeks out. ]
Maybe I can get you some...? [ His brow is furrowed a bit behind his hand. Obviously there are more serious things to be concerned about here than a little nudity, but Dash wasn't totally prepared for it!
Or the... transforming. The whole picture is sort of a lot right now, sorry. ]
You're in the swamp, in our house. [ Hm. ] In Florida.
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( Well, he's travelled a great way then. )
I would like to borrow some pants.
( Because it seems to bother Dash, and also because it's polite. )
Please.
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[ A beat. ] I'm going to get you some pants first though. Just a sec? [ He holds up his hand and then quickly dashes - haha - from the room.
It really doesn't take him that long at all before he returns with a pair of sweatpants in tow. ]
Try these? [ They are decidedly not his. They're nice and long. ]
no subject
( But pants are definitely more of an issue right now. Not that he's unused to people seeing him undressed after a transformation. They're just usually old men who have long forgotten these sort of things. So he thanks Dash quietly, pulling them on quickly. )
Have I -- have I been here long?
( Why can't he remember anything. )
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[ He hands over the pants, averting his eyes a little until the other is dressed. ] I'm sorry again, um, this might be shocking, but I think it's been about a week since you first came here?
[ If he is indeed correct that his companion here actually transformed and there wasn't some kind of other something happening there. ]
I'm Dash, by the way!
b.
There's a flamingo.
And there's also a bunch of weird arms and some tentacles. They're kind of flopped all over.
That is, flopped all over Ten, who is flopped all over his nest, which is just getting bigger and bigger every time he can find new pillows and blankets.
He's making snuffling sounds into said pillow. Maybe asleep? Possibly? ]
no subject
He scales the wall to get to near the open space, wriggling through with a noisy huff. At first he doesn't see anything, too busy freezing at the sound of breathing, but when he's not swiftly kicked back out he takes the moment to look around. It's beautiful. There's so many things and he immediately creeps forward to bat at a ball of tin with his claw, ears low and eyes interested as it rattles along the floor.
This is a good nest. He wants to know who owns it.
And so he creeps closer in the shadows. )
no subject
Some have roads on them. Who knows what it means!
There's some clothing piled up in a corner, all of it very large. By the door, a solitary pair of flip flops. They are pink and they have ponies on them.
Because he's scaled the wall, the little dragon will not have to deal with the monstrosity that is the giant dresser, but if he can get into some of the drawers, a few of which are partly open, there's a host of dust bunnies, slightly moth-eaten clothes, and other knickknacks in there, too.
On the bed, Ten flops about a little, almost rolling onto his back, but then stopping himself. He blinks bleary eyes. ] Sleepy...
no subject
Has Ten ever heard a dragon sneeze? Because the dragon is sneezing. And he keeps sneezing. The sound of a murmured word makes him freeze though, nose tickling as he backs up into the dark of the dresser, the fluff on his spine and tail fluffing up in warning.
He's fearsome, okay? )
no subject
Ten blinks a few more times and forces himself into an upright position. ]
Who'sazr? [ he asks, nigh incoherently. He runs his hands through his hair and slaps his cheeks a few times. ] 'lo?
[ Someone is very much not awake. But how to sleep through dragon sneezes, right? ]
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Dragons 100% don't laugh. )
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Nest. Thing.
He squints. ]
Are you laughing at me?
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That is until he hurls himself at the item and falls over his own feet. Then he remembers and looks up and around, almost as if embarrassed. )
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He scoots closer to the edge of the bed. ]
I've got other interesting stuff here, [ he says, cocking his head to the side as if to indicate any one of several piles or stacks of...
Things. ]
d
He sits straighter, biting the inside of his lip before answering. ]
A little over a year ago. Do you not remember?
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( A year he's been in dragon form, a year his brother has been dead and the empire his father built has burnt to the ground. Ki has to fight the urge to shift then, not sure he could temper his rage and sadness in his other skin. These people have been kind to him, he won't throw that back at them. )
The non-magic won. ( He knows enough having seen this house and the people inside it to have put that together. But something prickles at the back of his neck, thought half formed even as he speaks it. ) Yoon Geun, he failed?
no subject
Have you been in your other skin the whole time?
[ What did he want to hide from? Kwang puts his book off to his side, standing to go lean against the window closer to Ki. He recognizes the name, he nods, solemnly. He looks out at the swamp. ]
He was executed, as one of the major players from the magic side.
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He knows why.
Looking up at Kwang, Ki is still frowning, and when he speaks it sounds hesitant. ) I think I was stuck. Shifting requires clear thoughts. This house helped somehow. I don't know. I can't remember very much.
( So his father is dead. That's good. His expression twitches, darkens for a moment before it evens out again. )
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[ It might be a bit of a blunt question, but if Ki is having a problem with his memories, actually uprooting the cause is pretty essential. If he wants to, that is - Kwang has no problems backing off, if it's asked of him. ]
Have you ever meditated?
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( He runs a hand through his hair, disordering his fringe. Meditation hadn't been his favourite part of the day, but he'd done it just to please his family. What would they think of him now, knowing he had lost so much control. )
It might not happen again.
( He hasn't actually tried to shift back. )
no subject
[ Kwang is not feigning his interest, it's clear all over his face, even as he leans against the wall by the window, relaxed and open. He tilts his head up to the ceiling for a moment, just contemplating. ]
Do you want to get this lost time back? Or are you happy just... letting it go?