Work Text:
Cold white scales shifted underneath him, the wind gliding through his hair. Today was the perfect day for flying. Looking down at the towns below, Tommy could see other dragons walking alongside their riders. He had dreamed of a day like today, the sun shining behind perfectly painted clouds, the green and yellow earth far beneath him. Today was the day he got his own dragon.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Phil and Wilbur riding Corvus, a Coatl with dark black feathered wings, which when in the sun looked as if a rainbow had been painted onto a bird. Green scales lined Corvus’ neck and tail, along with silver speckles across his face. Tommy could see Wilbur holding onto Phil’s waist for dear life. Tommy never understood why Wilbur didn’t like flying, it was so freeing.
Focusing on not falling off of Steve, he held Techno’s waist tighter, with both excitement and fear. Steve’s large pearly white wings cut through the air, his cold body leaving small snowflakes in his wake. Tommy wasn’t able to see much from Techno’s braid hitting his face, but from what he could they were close. His legs shook from the excitement running through his veins. His stomach dropped as Techno steered Steve towards the earth, the wind burning his eyes, Corvus following suit.
The dragons hit the earth with a thud, Techno got off Steve first and held out a hand to help Tommy down.
“I’m not twelve anymore Techno. I am a big man now.” Tommy puffed his chest, attempting to get off the dragon, and still managing to fall.
“Yeah, the biggest man I’ve ever seen.” Techno snickered.
Tommy huffed, “I am, just because I can’t get out of a saddle does not mean I’m not a big man.” This just made Techno and Wilbur laugh harder, it appeared as though even Corvus and Steve had joined in the laughter, bobbing their heads and chortling.
“Alright, let’s just go inside,” Phil said, shaking his head with a smile.
The Dragon’s Nest was a very tall tower made from dark stones and a blue-green wood, it seemed to stretch the entirety of the horizon. It had huge holes in the side for the dragons to climb out of and fly into. Tommy could see a very large chimney with black smoke billowing out of it. From inside the building, Tommy could hear roaring from behind the building, probably from dragons in the many miles of land owned by The Dragon's Nest. Walking inside the building, the smell of dragons mixed with the haze of fire overwhelmed Tommy’s senses. Looking up at the tall ceiling in awe, dragons flying about overhead, up, through, and around the holes in the walls, and the glass roof.
“Hey Carl,” Technoblade called over to a tall man with chestnut hair and dark brown eyes.
“Hey Techno, I see you’ve brought family this time!” Carl called back cheerfully.
“Yeah, Toms is finally old enough to get his dragon,” Phil said, also looking around the shop.
“Well, you are in luck, we have a bunch of young dragons ready for a family,” Carl says, waving them further into the shop.
Tommy walked behind the others, looking at all the different kinds of dragons, wondering what kind of dragon he would get. Maybe it would be a big strong dragon, bigger than Steve and Corvus, or maybe it would be a small fast dragon so Tommy could win every race he challenged Techno and Phil to. Tommy didn’t hear the conversation in front of him until he heard his name.
“Huh?” Tommy looked up, losing his train of thought.
“We are here,” Carl says, pointing to a very long and wide room with several nests on the ground separated by small walls, hay scattered around the floor by several dragons who were currently play-fighting with each other. These dragons looked to be about a year and a half old. As Tommy looked around the room he saw at least 7 dragons playing, and one smaller one in the corner sitting and watching with wide eyes.
That one looks really boring…
As the party walked into the room, the dragons stopped and looked up at the group. Carl grabbed something shiny hanging around his neck, at closer inspection, it was a whistle, he blew into it with no sound coming out. When he did, the dragons, clearly intelligent beings, ran back to each marked-off nest, all of them getting a bit too big for their living space.
“And if you follow me,” Carl motioned, as Techno pushed Tommy further into the room.
Glaring at Techno, Tommy walked forward, in step with Carl.
“I’m only going to show you the few that I think would be best for you, some of them aren’t trained enough to be ridden.”
Tommy nodded as they stopped at the first stable.
“This, is Jupiter, he is the fastest dragon here,” Carl continued talking as Tommy Studied the dragon.
It appeared to be a dark brown and red Lung Dragon, it had fur lining its back, as well as two horns that twisted towards the middle of its head, making it look like a deformed heart.
“How can he be the fastest? He has no wings.” Tommy said bluntly, looking up at Carl.
“Tommy, be polite!” Phil chided.
“Sorry, I was just asking!” Tommy says as his face grows hot.
“It’s alright Phil, it’s a common question. Although Lung Dragons don’t have wings, they are still very fast and strong fliers, known to fly through the worst thunderstorms and come out completely unscathed. However, if you are looking for a dragon with wings, that is completely fine!” Carl explains smiling.
Feeling the states of his brothers and Phil, he ushered to move on to the next dragon. This one was a white and white dragon with purple speckles around his paws and the tip of his tail, he had curled horns like a ram, and a spike on his tail shaped like the tip of a spear, he also had what appeared to be a spiked crest game of three small spikes between his eyebrows.
“This is Eris, he is a pure-blooded dragon, he, unlike most pure dragons who breathe fire, has the ability to create electric charges, and shoot lightning out of his mouth.”
Tommy studied the dragon with obvious excitement. Eris was a beautiful dragon, he looked to be quite muscular as well.
“The only problem with this is that because Eris is pure blood, he may be a bit more expensive,” Carl said.
Tommy looked back to Phil, who gave him a weak smile.
“Can we look at a few more?” Tommy asked, not wanting to leave a permanent hole in Phil’s wallet. He knew this was the right choice after hearing a small sigh of relief from Phil.
“Of course! I have 2 more I want to show you!” Carl smiled walking further down the hall.
“Meet Helios, he is the strongest out of this bunch, he is very big for a Wyvern his age. However, he tends to have a temper and is very defensive around new people. It took me forever to get him used to the volunteers here.”
Tommy nodded absent-mindedly, as Techno asked Carl a question.
Helios did appear to be very big, he was way bigger than Eris and Jupiter. Golden scales lined his neck, standing out against sandy scales, perfect for camouflage. Helios had several small spines leading down his neck to his whip-thin tail. There were also spikes along his wings, leading to sharp claws at the end of them. His horns were straight, with several small spurs lining the sides.
“And you said he had a temperament?” Wilbur asked nervously.
“He’s perfect.”
“What!” Wilbur gasped.
“He’s perfect, look at him, doesn’t matter if he has a ‘temperament’” Tommy shrugged.
“Tommy, if this is just because he looks cool, or because he is strong, you should really reconsider, a dragon with a temperament can be very dangerous to ride, let alone get close to,” Phil explained gently.
“Phil, it doesn’t matter, dragon is dragon,” Tommy said, taking a step closer to Helios.
“Tommy, you need to step away from Helios, he can be very dangerous if you spook him!” Carl warned in a hushed voice.
“Tommy, listen to Carl, get away from him.” Techno warned, a flash of worry quickly leaving his eyes.
“Why? Do you think I can’t handle it? Do you think I’m not big enough?” Tommy said, raising his voice.
“No Tommy, none of us think that, please just step away from Helios,” Phil practically whispered.
Helios shifted out of the corner of his eye, a low growl filling the room. The noises of the other dragons in the background died down until Tommy’s heartbeat was the only thing he could hear.
Tommy reached his hand towards Helios’ forehead, the dragon’s eyes staring into his own. As Tommy’s hand touched the warm sandy scales, Helios closed his eyes, as a low rumble filled the room.
The next thing Tommy knew was the brute force of a dragon skull headbutting his stomach, throwing him across the narrow room into the wall, the sound of his back cracking at the force of the impact sent fear through his body as Tommy landed face-first in a pile of hay. White noise filled his head as he could hear his brothers rush over to him. The back of his head was filled with pain similar to the pain in his back and shoulder blades.
“Tommy, are you okay!” Phil said, helping Tommy sit up, “Tommy answer me!”
“Helios has a lot of personality,” Tommy smiled weakly.
“We did warn you, what hurts?” Phil said, frowning.
“Just my head, and my back, and… and everything,” Tommy winced as he tried to stand up, “I’ll be okay.”
“Maybe he isn’t ready for a dragon…” Techno mumbled.
“I am so ready for a dragon,” Tommy wheezed, his lungs deciding to join the pain party.
“Tommy, you couldn’t even listen when we told you not to touch the dragon with anger issues! You could’ve been seriously hurt, and you are lucky that all he did was throw you against the wall! Dragons like that can snap you in half!” Phil scolded.
Tommy looked at the ground, shame settling in the places where pain used to be.
“I just wanted to have a cool dragon like Corvus and Steve,” Tommy muttered.
“And that is perfectly fine Toms, but you need to keep your safety in mind!” Wilbur chimed in, “This is why I never wanted a dragon, they are beautiful, intelligent creatures, but sometimes even beauty and intelligence cannot mask that Dragons can be very dangerous if not handled properly.”
Techno just looked at Tommy with silent concern spread across his face.
“I know, I- I’m sorry.” Tommy replied disheartened, “We can just go home, it isn’t worth it.”
Phil shook his head disappointedly, “If that’s what you want.”
“Now wait a minute.” Carl said, joining the conversation, “If I may Phil, I still have one more dragon to show you. This one may just be a good match.”
Phil looked at Tommy, shaking his head, and then looked to Carl, “Alright,”
They walked over to the last stall in the room. Inside the stall stood a smaller Wyvern. This one was black with red and gray stripes circling its ankles, and the tip of its tail. Instead of having scales all over its body, it seemed to be covered in fur. Its white horns curved slightly downwards. Its eyes were like two black marbles, not the most intimidating of dragons. However, the Wyvern looked up at Tommy with a mixture of curiosity and excitement.
“This one doesn’t have a name, so if you chose him, you would be able to come up with one yourself. He is from a long line of arctic Wyverns, which explains the fur instead of scales. He may not be the strongest or fastest, however, he is a very curious creature.” Carl finished, as the wyvern bent its neck to be petted by Carl.
“Can- Can I pet him?” Tommy asked sheepishly.
“Of course, just be gentle.” Carl smiled, motioning Tommy forward.
Tommy stepped forward, carefully moving his hand towards the Wyvern, before gently placing it on his head. The Wyvern leaned into the touch, closing his eyes, before it started to purr.
This is the one.
Tommy looked to Phil and his brothers, “He’s perfect Phil.”
Phil smiled at Tommy, “We will take him home Carl if that’s alright with you.”
“Of course, there is some paperwork you need to fill out, but I can go get that for you.” Carl said before going to get the paperwork.
“So Tommy, now that you have a dragon, what are you going to name him?” Techno asked.
Tommy looked back to the Wyvern, who was now burying its massive head into his shoulder.
“Shroud.” Tommy smiled.