The Phoenix and The Dragon

The night was peaceful and quiet before it was shattered by a piercing wail, waking all the animals nearby with a start. As the wailing continued, one animal in particular grew annoyed and let out a roar that shook the canopy. All fell silent and just as he was about to fall back to sleep, the wailing began anew and, somehow, it got louder. With a growl of disdain, he lumbered to his feet and left to investigate what was all the ruckus. It didn’t take very long to find the source of the crying, though it was unexpected.

It was a human. No, not just a human, but a human child. It was lying in the dirt wrapped in blankets covered in blood, face a ruddy red color from the force of its crying. Human children are never far from their caretakers, but the little one seemed to be alone. Why? Concerned, he searched nearby for said caretaker and found his answer, though it wasn’t the one he wanted.

He followed the trail of blood left by the child’s fall to a small hill not far from where it landed. Atop it lay two crumpled forms of a man and woman. At least one of them was related to the child going by the similarities in their scents and features. The woman seemed to be covered in shiny stones and metals; she was also wearing many layers that seemed to be delicate and brightly colored. The man, on the other hand, was plainly clothed with simple and coarse materials, worn and frayed.

He leaned closer to them and tried to detect what happened. They had large gashes along their backs that nearly bisected them all the way through. The air was thick with the ozone scent of magic and on the ground behind them there was a scorched line of dirt. They used an unstable portal to get here which means they were in a hurry and, considering their manner of death, they were trying to escape from someone or something. They didn’t succeed, apparently.

He paused and looked back down the hill towards the crying child. Well, it wasn’t a complete failure. He turned back to the two bodies and continued to investigate, wondering what else he could find. He carefully nosed them, making sure not to damage them further, until he was satisfied with his investigation. He found two objects belonging to the pair.

A sharp metal stick covered in shiny stones and a picture on one end; and, an even larger shiny stone that hung from a vine also made of metal. It had the same picture as the stick on it as well, a pack territorial marking, maybe? He’s seen those around dens and claimed hunting grounds; though, of course, the entire forest was his domain. Satisfied, he sat the items aside to be stashed away until the child was old enough and started to ready the bodies for the final rest. With a small burst of power, the two forms were set ablaze, curled into one another’s embrace.

Once they were ash in the wind, he ended his vigil and made his way over to the whimpering child. He crept closer to the child, with the items clutched in his teeth, and took a deep breath of their scent. He snorted in disgust which caused the child’s strange fur to fall way from its face. Underneath the scent of blood was the smell of milk, flowers, and female. He leaned in to get a better look at her and met big, wet, brown eyes.

She stared at him from big, wet, brown eyes and completely without fear. She curiously reached out and touched his snout. He huffed out a breath in response and she gave a huge gummy smile that had a scattering of teeth. With an excited wiggle, she reached her arms out to him with all her might and joyously squealed, “Dwagun!”. With a moment of hesitation, he lent forward the rest of the way and allowed her to touch his snout.

Upon contact with her tiny hand, he let out a low rumbling purr and relaxed on the ground next to her. His purring had set her off on a giggling fit as she continued to pet his snout. She rolled herself closer to him to cuddle into his jaw and he sighed in contentment as she settles down into sleep next to him. ‘I guess you’re my responsibility now', he thought to himself as he curled around her and followed her into rest himself.