The Dragon Warriors

There weren't always dragons in the Valley. It seemed that they only came when there were monsters to kill or when something had broken down and needed repair. That is why it was such an odd coincidence when the entire valley turned up to see two dragon warriors, with a girl named Evelina as their guide.

There were a few, but never that many to call a full pack of their dragons. The only ones who lived there belonged to the humans, not the dragon kind. It wasn't uncommon for one of those to find its way into the valley if one lived in the area long enough. But it had never happened before.

This made the group of humans nervous, knowing that the dragon warriors meant trouble. They had to know the name of the girl leading them, as well as her intentions. If she didn't intend anything good, then they could expect her to kill them or turn them over to another group. Or both.

They kept an eye out for any signs of danger while they walked further into the village.

The village leader knew what to do, though. He had dealt with this type of situation before and he knew just how to handle this situation just like back during his time as a knight without causing too much panic. So, he led them through the village towards the central plaza where all the houses were built. When they reached the center of the town the man stopped and addressed the crowd that had gathered. “I believe I’ve told you once about our visitor, yes?

So when he heard footsteps approaching from behind him, he calmly turned around, expecting to greet his new guests. What he didn't expect, however, was a giant beast standing between himself and the young lady's party. It's a dragon.

A real, live, living dragon! This was certainly going to be interesting. "Welcome to our humble village," the man said, trying to keep his voice calm. He'd learned over the years of dealing with such matters that keeping a cool head helped. "Please, allow me to introduce myself." He held out a hand in front of him, waiting to make sure he was being greeted correctly. The rest of the villagers did the same until he nodded. "My name is Demian Vans." The name was not exactly a common one among humans. “You can call me Sir Vans.”

“Sir Vans,” he repeated slowly. “Well met.” As he spoke, the dragon moved aside enough that he could look at the rest of the people in the clearing.

Upon noticing this, the man stepped forward until he was facing the dragon directly, looking the creature right in the eyes.

It blinked slowly and then bowed its head respectfully, bowing so low that its horns grazed against the ground. "At your service."

That took Demian by surprise. Usually, a dragon would bow to someone when greeting them. However, since Sir Vans wasn't one of the knights that usually traveled in the area, he figured it must mean something more than mere manners.

The man chuckled under his breath and raised his hand to stroke the side of the dragon's face. His hand stopped as soon as he realized what he was doing. He stared at it for a moment longer before returning the gesture. "Your presence here makes my job easier. No need for formality here, Dragonborn. Call me by my given name if you must, but I would prefer it if we could simply be called by our names" he replied gently. Turning away slightly to address everyone present, he continued, "These are my guests. I hope that you will treat them kindly and show them kindness." The man looked at each person in the group before saying, "

I'll leave you to make yourselves at home, as usual. Please, help yourself to whatever food you want. Don't worry, though; I won't take any from you, even though that may seem strange."

With that, Demian began walking away, heading back towards their house. As he ascended the hillside, he glanced behind him at his guest and smiled. She still hadn't left. With a laugh, he called out to her, "Are you coming?" He watched as the human woman followed after him, glancing at everything she saw as she went.

When she caught up to him, Demian stopped walking and waited for her to catch up. He looked at her, smiling softly. "I guess you haven't seen the inside of a real inn before."

He started to walk again, leaving her to catch up. "I have." Her expression shifted ever so slightly.

The two continued on their journey towards the house, talking quietly to each other. They were silent most of the time, enjoying their surroundings. At one point, however, Demian asked, "So what brings you to our village today?"

She shrugged. "We just moved here, we found the place, and decided to explore."

On the top of the hill, she stood next to him, watching the people below. "It looks like something out of a fairytale," she stated, awe clear in her voice.

Demian nodded in agreement. "Indeed it does," he said as he gestured towards some other houses along the wall. "Would you like to go and check them out? There are plenty of rooms available in the village."

To his surprise, instead of accepting the offer, she asked, "Why aren't the others interested in going to the other houses? Is it because there are no dragons before now?"