bakerstreet | the mythical creatures meme

"Is that right? I'll have to get a new one and add it..." She didn't think they would change candy wrappers, but if they developed new technologies, why not something cheaper to wrap around their candy? Sad, in a way. Some people may have used that gold to help their families.

Feeling eyes on her, she turned towards him and noticed him staring. She didn't understand why...

Letting her eyes close, she mulled over the question, but then shook her head. "No... I've gotten use to it. It's what my cave is meant for. I didn't know them personally. All I did was make sure they didn't steal anything and saw them on their way. By now, they're already dead."

The moment she turned to look at him, he glanced away quickly. But her answer made sense, even if it didn't sit well with him. She was a historian, and with her years of experience, of course scholars would roll up and ask her what they wanted to know, then be done with it.

Kanji didn't quite believe she was used to it. Like him, maybe she just tried to deal with it even though deep down it still bothered her. Wouldn't she want some way of knowing the knowledge she shared was actually being shared? Maybe have someone come back for tea or something and discuss whatever happened to be on their minds?

He sighed through his nose. Maybe he shouldn't wait until tomorrow or some other day.

"...Ya saved my life. Or, y'know, bailed me out when I was dumb n' dragged a group of assassins here, maybe even the whole guild. When ya deal with this guild and lemme go... w-would it be okay if I still visited? Y'know, just shoot the shit, or maybe bring some stuff to add to the archive or somethin'."

Of course she was just saying that. Dragons were to be alone by nature until the time came to reproduce. Even then, she would sit with her clutch of eggs while whomever she'd taken flew off. They didn't have to come back either.

The record of dragons was actually stored on a shelf deep inside the bowels of the cavern. Nothing that humans needed to see.

"... What? Visit?" Her eyes had widened at the foreign idea of someone coming back to actually speak to her and have tea. She wasn't sure if she heard correctly, but... that was. She flushed slightly as she considered. "I... well, if it's you, I suppose there would be no harm. The assassins weren't your fault."

He figured dragons were kinda like birds, taking turns or something. But once he worked out that he wasn't annoying her with the four million questions, maybe he'd ask more about them since the books he'd read were nothing compared to what he was learning today alone.

She repeated the question and he nodded quickly. Dragons may be alone by nature, but humans were a social sort. Kanji was fairly used to marching to the beat of his own drum, but even he had moments where he just wanted to sit down and talk to somebody. He sucked at making friends, but he felt a small pinpoint of hope in making just one. One's just fine, right?

Kanji swallowed a bit with the reply, looking down. The way she said that... How was it that he spent his entire life in ridicule, but in just one day he happened upon somebody who didn't think he was a thief or some kinda thug? Ironic - or maybe not, he didn't know exactly how the word 'irony' worked - that he'd been sent to kill that very person, and now they wanted him dead for not going through with it on top of everything else.

He shook his head. "Uh- Thanks, but I still feel responsible for those pricks comin' in right after me. Damn it- took me over a week to get here, a day and a half to climb the mountain, and they followed me the whole time...!"

He frowned, balling a fist. "They keep comin' here, and I'm gonna keep fighting back. They outclass the hell outta me, but that don't mean I'm gonna back down from a fight!"

Outward appearances never mattered to the species. As they could choose their own human, they could appearance just as noble or as thuggish as they wanted to. No, no, it all came down to the personality and heart over all. If Kanji had been anything otherwise, he wouldn't have cut her hair as he did and she would've immediately removed him from the cave.

"In time... they'll come. But first, they'll have to realize that their assassins are not coming back." As Kanji said, it took him a week to get here. They had that long until they noticed and who said Naoto wouldn't act first. One evening was all she needed. Her dark blue scales would camouflage her and the bolts she released could be mistaken for falling stars. "I could probably strike now... they'd be none the wiser..."

She was more mumbling to herself. Kanji wouldn't have to remain feeling hostage, but... he'd leave once all was said and done. Now that he was here, she wouldn't mind him staying just a little longer, but that was a selfish desire.

With a nod, he seemed to be on the same page. Without horses or anything of the sort, it'd be over another week before they'd realize the assassins didn't make it. He had to wonder how fast it would be for her to get there flying. Couldn't be more than a few hours by wings.

"...Huh?" He didn't quite catch that. If she'd been following the guilds since their beginnings, then no doubt she knew something he didn't and was mulling something over.

Ah, maybe he shouldn't pry. He sat up straighter. "Well, in the meantime, I don't wanna be a lump. I always hate sittin' idle when I could be sharpening a blade or workin' a needlph- --C-can I dust some shelves or somethin'?"

She shook her head, "It's nothing..." When Kanji went to bed, she'd make the first strike. Naoto looked up in confusion at Kanji's stumble, but rose none the less.

"I'll show you around actually. Come... oh." She walked over to the shelf with lamps and picked one up. Opening the hatch, she lit a fireball inside. It was a small white thing, but it would do. Returning back to Kanji, she handed it over. "Hold onto this and follow me."

He gathered up and mugs and rose, setting them aside for the time being. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious about the rest of the cavern. Better now that she was willing to show him around than trying to sneak around to cure his curiosity and risk teeth. Claws. That light stuff. But mainly those teeth and claws.

"Whoa..." She offered a lamp after lighting a bizarre white flame of sorts inside, and he took it, holding it up to his field of vision. It was like a little star in a way, and he was getting a close-up look at one.

Kanji started when he realized he was staring at it too long and nodded, feeling his face burn. "Uh- right. After you."

Naoto tilted her head and then nodded, leading him inside.

"My family reaches back for generations now. Before the first man, in that first batch of dragon eggs, my ancestor rose. They watched the creatures of old go extinct, watched the land form and grow, they viewed the first man struggle for life... Historic events, all of it. A new race that was going to survive for ages as the most ancient one predicted. Watch your step..." They crossed into the center of the mountain, revealing a sloping path inside and multiple caves down.

"We have tools from the first humans until today. I have a feeling I'll have to dig further down as time goes on, but there's still room in each cavern."

He held the lamp level and followed after her, amazed at how much light such a small flame was giving. He'd never seen any oil lamps that give off this much, and there was something about a clean white light as opposed to yellow that seemed to illuminate so much more.

Kanji listened, and pondered. The origins of man was still being speculated, but nobody'd ever thought about how something like a dragon first came to be. He'd heard tales of gods, giants, or some grand being creating the first humans and first creatures from ash and soil and giving them life, but he wasn't sure what to believe. It was no wonder still that the historians would seek the council of a dragon to fill in the gaps that man couldn't themselves work out. He'd pondered so deeply that he didn't watch his step, and stumbled forward a step or two, catching himself on a rocky outcropping rather than taking down the smaller dragon with him save for a gentle bump against her back.

He shook his head quickly and sprung back. Sorry. It was okay. He was still on his feet.

"W-was any'a this part of the cave all ready here, or was it dug out?" Didn't seem like a problem for dragon claws to dig deeper, maybe. He figured picks and shovels would take ages to get through all of this rock.

"Where we were, that was originally there. All of this had to be dug out." She didn't even glanced back at the bump; she did warn him, but it was a sight.

"Each cave is devoted to an invention, a few caves store the human's scripts and writing. We record how your language has change, how your beliefs have evolved, and the development of your societies... We see why you decide to act and what gives you reason for action..." She passed a cave filled with books. "We compare how you study the stars to our studies and so on and so forth... It's fascinating really."

She stopped before what appeared to be a bridge one-fourth of the way down. "This way... come..." She lead him across. "Oh, and don't look down. You'll give yourself vertigo."

Everything. Everything was here. If he wanted to know everything about humans from day one until now, all he had to do is spend his days here in the cave and study as this dragon had, as her ancestors had.

"Stars... you study the stars?" Long traveling days lead to calm, quiet nights once one had sound a safe place to make camp. Practically every night he'd just sit back and look up, and almost feel like he wasn't on the ground anymore. He was crap when it came to studying, but something about the sky always intrigued him from the thunderstorms that he always loved while everyone else cowered in fear right down to how people navigated by the stars.

Don't look down? Not the best warning- he could help but peek as he crossed the bridge and feel his vision spin a tiny bit in surprise, yet he managed to maintain his footing.

"Sh-shit- it ain't the heights that get me, but the thought of hittin' the ground and smashin' into paste..."

"Yes, we do. Constellations, planet orbit, paths of celestial bodies... I can show you that later." She glanced back at him, "Is there anything particular you want to look at?"

Guiding him further on, she chuckled faintly. "I did warn you. I believe the fear of falling is common among humans." Across the bridge was another alcove. What lay in it was a simple bed and a large nest that appeared to be nothing but furs and feathers. "You can sleep on the bed. You're on the tall side, but it's large for me in this form. I think it should fit you better."

"I wouldn't even know where ta start," he admitted. This was all so over his head and overwhelming, and part of him wasn't sure he even wanted to know about the darker parts of human history. He knew his ancestors had done their fair share of shifty shit. But the astronomy, maybe even the astrology was interesting to him. But they'd get to that when they got to it.

Kanji peered into the alcove and found out where he was sleeping. After camping out on the ground, something he'd been so accustomed to, being faced with a bed - even simple - was generous. His eyebrows were up when he looked at her.

"Seriously? You're just... just lettin' me have it?" He could give the bedroll a rest, and the air was so dry, he could hang it up and let it dry out completely after giving it a wash in the river at the foot of the mountain.

"Shit, I've been campin' so much I can't remember the last time I was in a real bed. S'that sad?"

"Those who come to study often have one subject in mind. Once they've had their fill, they leave. If you're going to be here for a while, may as well know." All the history and research was kept under her protection here.

Naoto blinked and nodded to him. "Yes, you may use it. Here, let me get a few furs..." She walked over to her nest and began looking through it to find a few suitable furs that he could use as blankets.

"I wouldn't say it is. When humans travel, a bedroll is their preferable device to use. The fact you can't recall using a bed just means you've been reliant on a bedroll for some time." Naoto stood up again, a few furs in her arms. They were mainly white; taken from animals whose winter coats had come in. They would keep him comfortable. "Here..."

He recalled the last time he slept under furs, driving out a chill that would have made him awfully sick otherwise. As he stepped forward to accept the selected furs, he couldn't help but give them a little feel. He respected animals, but he wasn't exactly a bleeding heart in a world like this; he hunted for food and leather plenty, but it was still nice to marvel how soft the fur was, whether on a living animal or a pelt. He guessed he was just a tactile guy.

"Thanks." He tread to the bed and looked it over, giving the surface a pat before lying everything out. There was something about being piled on with some kind of cover and cocooning yourself that made him sleep that much deeper. Which got him thinking...

"So ya sleep in the nest, right? Y'don't cocoon up some nights on this thing?"

"I usually go between them. It's a matter of whether I've stretched my wings enough or not... so to speak of course. This form can be constraining."

Shedding the coat revealed small vestiges of the massive appendages tucked tightly against her back beneath the shirt. Human enough, she couldn't completely deceive in this form. Something had to be out still. Naoto moved around her nest and fixed her bedding in several places, seeming to appraise it before sitting down.

All the while, he was shedding damn near everything: The backpack and lantern were set down, but next came the armor that he'd perfected over the years of his training, more spots guarded than others to suit his fighting style, but with how heavily they hit the cavern floor, it was a wonder just how much weight he bore each day in what he carried on his person. It wasn't until he was down to his undershirt and simple pants that he understood just how much he'd need those furs tonight.

Kanji rolled a shoulder at a time, pounding a fist against each as he looked back her way.

"...So what if people stop advancing? Ya just kinda sit on your hands n' hold out for the next big change?"

She removed her own shirt in time, tight bandages visible beneath her wings. She'd rid of those in a moment.

"The thing is humans don't ever really stop. Even during the worst times, they look for solutions in more ways than one." Naoto burrowed beneath some furs before tossing aside her pants and wrappings, peering out from beneath a small pile. "I may be in my other form come morning just to let you know."

He stopped mid-pound as the shirt came off, and he found his train of thought had completely stopped. She... she knew he was right here, right? Her human form wore clothes, but was that just a formality and he would embarrass himself seeing a woman in the nude by complete chance?

But before he could make note of it and offer to step out or something, she slipped beneath the furs in the nest. What followed were discarded pants and wrappings before she peeked back out.

Maybe he was weird, but, her head poked out like that was kind of ridiculously cute. But she'd probably kill him for uttering a peep, so he clammed up and nodded.

"Yeah. I, uh..."

Well, wait, hang on. She had bandages that showed up in that form.

"Wait, did somethin' clip you before, or...?" He gestured to his own chest and circled a finger. Nobody wore bandages like that unless they bore some form of wound, but he didn't see anything like that against her scales. Maybe he wasn't looking closely enough.

She wasn't called cute before and wouldn't understand why if he was speaking out loud. Her tail came to uncurl beneath the furs and she blinked. Raising her head slightly, she shook her head.

"Ah, no... it's nothing like that." Her face... actually burned red. "This form was... inconveniently large in a place I wish it hadn't been? I-I can't change it now. Forget I said anything..." She disappeared beneath the blankets entirely.

"Lar--..." He stared ahead as that processed real freakin' quick. Oh.

So maybe that was why she still had her wings, and her tail now. There were some things you couldn't change completely even as a shapeshifter, like looking for a tail on someone who was in fact a changeling.

Kanji escaped to beneath the furs on the bed, hoping they would somehow smother him for thinking too hard on this. So now they were two cocoons, avoiding sensitive topics entirely. Perhaps for good reason.

In the dark beneath, he waited for his face to stop burning. If he had to pick a subject, it wouldn't be the history... though he was interested in the astronomy, he wondered if it'd be too much of a push to ask more about dragons themselves. Maybe even her. Nothing about her added up even to the stuff he'd read. What dragons breathed lights like that? Could create something akin to stars to keep in lanterns? Her coloring was also different. Usually blues breathed ice... right? Or was it lightning? Gah, his mind was in a jumble.

Naoto was back out from under her furs before Kanji, her lower body still tucked within them of course. She had her nest made perfectly, comfortable for a small dragon like her.

"Good night, Kanji-kun." That's what most humans did before sleeping; bidding company good night. It was weird, but she somewhat enjoyed it.

The cocoon started when she spoke, then slowly relaxed. ...-kun. That was so familiar among the people from his region. He shouldn't have been surprised to hear it from a dragon who knew all there was to human history and culture among a wealth of other subjects.

But there was something so... comforting about it.

Kanji slowly peeked out from under the covers. Well, with one eye anyway. A section was lifted enough to uncover his mouth to speak.

"'Night, Naoto." And back under he goes, wondering if he'd ever stop feeling strange and awkward. Dragon, dragon, dragon, she was a dragon. Wings and claws and teeth and scales and wings and... really smart, cute and mysterious.

...

Maybe he'll feel less loopy and twisty after he got some sleep.

the mythical creatures meme

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