Blue - 6

For a moment. He stood still, remembrance within his eyes. Of moments long passed. When wealth meant nothing. Held within pockets of change, where the only worry was what would next be served.

For he stood upright. Eyes golden, filled with a certain greed. Grown through years of pathetic pencil pushing. He placed a hand over that fox. Over the fur that held so much value. The enormous ears that meant nothing, yet so much.

He served wealth. And wealth alone, a picture of that next gold within his mind. Why he was reminded of such a dream? Whence he had never felt that voracious greed. Only knowing the warmth of a mother.

He could not say, for that golden glint of wealth had consumed his being. Could he ever go back to that simple life. No, he was too far gone. Too filled with favors and placements that spoke of eternally grateful beings.

Beholden by a mouth that spat words he didn't even believe in.

"Please leave me." He raised his hand. Gaze cast to the ceiling of this once great architecture. Where the only reason it still stood; because of the grand will of the people. Who thought him not a greedy merchant.

But another member of their village.

A memory of a girl - he would never know of her name and she too would forget him in time - but that small rose, grown from her own backyard. Given as a gift. And discarded so cruelly upon his arrival.

For weakness was not tolerated. For the will of the people outweighed the will of his own. Cruelly he crushed any dream of happiness. Replaced by golden opulence.

Knowing - tricking - that this wealth would bring happiness. Maybe a marriage with some noble who would bring a dowry of more value than his own personal wealth.

But as he gazed at the dilapidated roof. Of disrepair. He remembered her smile as she stood among the crowd of children. Gazing proudly at the manners she had taught them. Was such a life worth the sacrifice of such happiness?

He sighed once more.

"I- be happy that I am in such a mood, young one, for otherwise you would be butchered and sold."

He knew, within his heart of hearts, that such words were wasted on such unintelligible life. But still, it eased that rotten conscience of his. Knowing that maybe his kindness would not go unheeded.

For as punished as good was, maybe… maybe just this once, the world would pander to his delusions.

"Sir." 

"Yes, you may enter."

A knock. Then a slight creaking of a dilapidated door. A gaze around that ended, ultimately ended, upon the open window. Letting in the blazing heat.

"Was that truly wise. We-"

He was cut off. By a voice that seemed so… so done with the world.

"I was merely repaying a debt. No matter how overdue it was."

…

I stood upon the opulent stone. Carved. Of such make that prized collectors would pay double, triple the price of a village. Just to have one such piece within their collections.

Though, I knew… that such a thought and such logic was outdated. No, to be certain it was not outdated. More that such collectors could not exist. For the world ran by money, and what use was some dilapidated structure when another could equal its value. Could grow with time.

It was not that such thoughts were outdated. More that such thoughts had not yet been conceived.

I perched, the blazing sun cooling the warmth within my chest. Violence, swift and token vengeance against the being that dared to capture me. Who had slaked his greed upon my body. 

Telling of the butchering that would come upon me, for the sole reason that I was highly valued among their kind. I growled, draconic instincts warring with the same human logic. Logic. Logic who told of kindness being repaid with kindness.

Not some swift destruction that would reign lightning and fire among their bodies.

I leaped, bound from the top of the tower that was this relic. Glaring at the shadowed bodies, veiled behind curtains that blotted out the sun.

For the heat had taken to them. Given them its all. Warming those hearts of them.

And when my body hit the ground. Paw against paw. I found myself once again in the sight of that woman. Her body sparkling in new outfits, with silk and food within that bag of hers.

A shopping trip unsupervised by Erryn.

"Oh." She spoke. Grabbing the underbelly of my body. Turning me towards my back. 

This insig-

I took a breath. Letting the rage cool within me once more. A hand burrowed deeper within my belly. Trailing finger after finger. Cooing about how cute I was.

Of course I was.

I am a noble and majestic dragon. Even my disguise is above ordinary. Extraordinary. For I am the greatest regardless of form. It was prudent of her to recognize as such. For to do otherwise would be blasphemy of the highest order.

Heresy that I would punish swiftly and with righteous vengeance.

Bounce after bounce. A hold that carried me swiftly towards some carriage of theirs. Made with the intent to traverse the desert.

Of course, the animal that I veiled myself with was one known for their animalistic intelligence. So the reason and make of why we did such a thing. Rather than to traverse ourself. It was up for debate.

There was the most obvious reason, being that it was the most comfortable. But with our… actually Irene knew not of my strength, and what I had seen of Erryn told me that she was not of much greater strength either way.

Mm~

Then it truly was for protection.

The utter fools. Why pay for protection when you had a dragon to protect you. It was the height of foolishness.

No, that was my dragon side speaking again. Caring not for the conventions of man, caring not for the fact that we must continue to hide.|

He may have conceded the fact that we must hide our grand selves within cities. But in the wilderness? That was still up for debate.