A Wild Forest

The thing about humans is that they smell horrible. Sure dragons sweat, and ogres have that thing about dirt. But humans are by far the worst. They smell of things worse than manure and death.

They smell of war, and malice. They smell of greed and envy. They smell of heartbreak and betrayal, and their habit of needing to be validated? Putrid. That's probably reason number one why we dragons left their world. The stench. We just couldn't take it anymore.

There's a rumor about the wildest animals, that they can smell fear. We can sense so much more. Like the mother who abandoned her child, in MY forest. It's not that I don't feel sympathy for the poor lady. The fragrance of abuse, and fear stretched it's way to my nostrils, causing me to almost lose my breakfast.

The second worst thing about humans is their ability to get you to care about them.

I would've chased the mother down and made her take her child back except... well, she was quick, and I was trying my hardest not to hurl. Unsuccessfully I might add. Deer doesn't come up nearly as gracefully as it goes down so you know.

The babe was so fragile, and honest. That's the thing too, about the destroyer race. When they're young, they smell of innocence. A sweeter smell than blossoms and groves of fresh citrus. It's when they grow up and learn how to become rotten that their smell turns. Everyone has an expiration date I suppose.

I made my way carefully over to a space beside the clearing, scaring off a few birds and wolves who thought they had found a decent little snack. They should know better. The bounty of this forest is mine. The little creature didn't know enough to be afraid. It didn't know enough to scream, and to my surprise it didn't even cry.

A wild frenzy of red hair blazed across it's small head and a smile danced on it's lips. It's little eyes caught me by surprise too. Gray. That's why it wasn't afraid. It also made the perfect name for the small one. I picked it gingerly with my claws, pinching the cloth in such a way as not to drop the precious contents over the forest floor.

Most will say that a dragon can't know how to cook, or take care of a human, but they never knew my uncle Darius. He took care of three humans in his day, and quite famous ones too. Two of them turned out pretty well, and the third. Well, we don't talk about him anymore. Black sheep of the family, and not the tasty kind.

Once a child learns to be acquainted with human food, and practices, of course it's too late. They could never be raised in the wild. But one who is given over to my forest, is an official resident, and over my dead body would this child come to starve or be, gods-forbid, unwashed here.

The mother came back once. Although as a mother I could empathize with her, I could not go near her for the hideous odor of shame that protruded from every pore on her frail and bruised body. I wished I could go to her, and comfort her. I wished that I could wash her of that shame, and show her daughter, a plump and healthy babe, raised on deer milk and mashed blackberries, and wild summer squash. I wished that I could show her that Gray's eyes were not at all a detriment to her beauty or scent of wildflowers and precious kindness. Alas, my stomach was too weak.

There are some among my kind that can stomach humans. Some can be around them for days, weeks, and years at a time. There's a few of us that even disguise themselves as humans, for 'fun' they say. I'll never understand them. Why would one want to surround themselves with the civil and foul society and streets of man, when the unkempt and sweet wild unknown is at our claw tips?

---

It didn't take long for the little one to start walking and forming little wordlets. I taught her what I could of course, but dragon speech is tricky for the squishy human tongue. Gray was quick though, and her sight didn't seem to hinder her movement. If anything she was able to perhaps smell things as a dragon might. Moving in this way and that as my tail gently toyed with her.

Of course with all good things must come bureaucracy. A tiny ball of glowing light hovered in front of my great tree on the 1000th day of my retrieval of Gray.

"Archalea, the great dragon forest, it is I-"

"I know who you are Vei. Cut to the chase would you?"

I came out of my mighty oak dwelling, stretched my wings and slumped so as to be comfortable before the fairy princess. Veilasyn was as prim and proper as ever. She had been the forests diplomat for only the last few decades or so, but that didn't stop her from acting like the mayor of this forest.

"It has come to the attention of the elder council that you harbor a member of the destroyer race." She read from a green tea leaf, unfurled. "As you know this breaks great tradition number three of the tenants of fantastical protections."

At this she stopped and looked at me. I huffed some smoke out of my nostrils, and rolled my eyes, which she took as a signal to continue.

"We therefore kindly ask that you, either return the member to it's given race within three days, or dispose of it altogether." She placed the scroll back into the who-knows-where of her little leafy toga.

"Vei, there is no child of the destroyer race here. Look around if you like, you won't find one."

Vei crossed her arms and cracked her neck, making the sound of an acorn being stepped on.

"Lea, you and I both know that you have a child here. I can literally see her poking out between your scales there!" She pointed a dainty finger somewhere behind me, and Gray popped back into the spaces between my spine scales where she had been hiding. I'd have to teach her the finer points of hide-and-stay-lost later.

"What are you going on about? This is no child of the industrious race. She is a proud citizen of the Archa forest. I have her papers if you like, I can go get them," I gestured my thumbclaw back into the tree where no such papers existed, Faefolk always take themselves so seriously, which is ridiculous. They're so small.

It was Vei's turn to roll her eyes, "That is a human child and you know it. The fact that she was abandoned matters not. Do you know what will happen if you keep her here?" On that note I decided to stand to my full height. I stretched my body around Vei, and in the clearing I was enough to nearly fully surround her.

"No. Please tell me Veilasyn child of light. What will happen if I choose to keep my prize?" I put some special emphasis on the possessive.

"Your prize?" Vei asked.

I nodded.

"So that's how you're playing this?" She asked.

"As you know under the Tenants of Dragonkind, Dragons are entitled to their selection of bounty in their realm. I found this prize in my realm. Therefore, she is mine, and any intrusion to take that which is mine," I puffed myself up to an even greater height. I cut quite the intimidating figure with my wings stretched out blocking the sun, "will be met in kind."

I could hear the small water droplet sound of her swallowing hard. An actual battle between Faefolk and dragons hadn't happened in nearly a century. I doubt it would come to that here, but the issue of the destroyer race was always a hotly debated topic in the elder council.

"I will return to the council with your response, but know this Archalea of the wild forest. Resistance in regards to harboring a human," she said the word with such venom she started to smell a little like the thing she hated, "won't be received lightly by anyone. Especially Byron."

My claws dug into the fresh earth. "Don't you bring him into this." I gazed deep into her dew drop eyes, and made it clear that there were lines that shouldn't be crossed even in conversation.

As she started hovering her way out of the clearing she said, "I don't know why you harbor a creature of destruction, Lea. But this won't end well for you." I swear I could smell pity from her then. Looking back, I think she really meant well.