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"I'll be back by tomorrow. You're dead if you fuck up the shop, Subedar!" Norton yells from the front door, patting himself down to make sure he has his coin pouch and wand.
It's going to be dangerous, and he can't help the harsh tone due to his stress. They're running low on dragon scales of all things, something Norton is not happy about but, well, when it brings in the cash there's nothing he can do about it.
Dragons are notoriously strong, and nothing comes near to rivaling their strength. The only ways to get dragon scales are to slay one or to barter with treasure; treasure being very nondescript – it could be anything the dragons decided to hoard. Some prefer gold, others antiques or stuffed toys and seashells. Each dragon differs, so Norton usually prefers to go the more… lucrative route.
Killing them isn't exactly humane, but it brings in the money and the customers are satisfied. That's what's important to Norton. Despite having the strength to defeat a dragon, something no ordinary magic user would be able to do, Norton manages. After all, he is no ordinary magic user.
"Oh come on!" Naib groans exaggeratedly, popping out of nowhere next to Norton. His blue ears flick irritatedly. "I've never done anything wrong before, ever." Norton gives him a look. Naib rolls his eyes. "I've never done anything catastrophically wrong before. Besides, we're bonded. You wouldn't dare kill me because that'd kill you too."
Norton smiles, thin-lipped. He caresses the scar on his arm with one hand and scoffs. "Yeah. I wouldn't. I could handle it, though."
Breaking a bond with a familiar is something that should kill both parties; that includes either dying. But, in return for the bond, both can draw from a combined pool of magic. It strengthens at the cost of linking two souls together.
So, what happens when the bond breaks, but only one dies?
It should never happen – Norton is one of a kind, though. He can control far greater magic due to the other party no longer having to tap into their pool of magic. To Norton, it's a web of scars he's trying to keep in the past. To Naib, it's a reminder he was never the first.
Naib looks on helplessly at Norton's reaction, but shakes his head and grabs Norton's hands. It's uncharacteristically soft; Norton's face goes red and shakes one of Naib's hands off to tip his hat over his face. Naib looks like he's about to laugh. It's a little cute. "I'll be good...prommy."
"Ugh, dude, stop saying that." Norton swats him away, and Naib poofs into thin air, leaving with a cackle. "Remember, Servais is coming over for his fixed wand and Tracy is going to stop by for new dwarven gears. Any other customers are up to you."
"Yeah, yeah. Go get whatever it is you need to leave me for." Naib's voice echoes clearly, bouncing off the space inside of Norton's head. It's a weird, intimate feeling Norton will never be able to shake off – the bond allowing them to communicate with each other whenever is definitely a hit or miss(Norton will use it to complain about people directly in front of him and Naib will use it to ask Norton to get him things while he floats around in liminal space, like the lazy cat he is), but the connection itself always leaves Norton feeling warm, not like he'd ever tell Naib that, though.
Norton frowns. "It's dangerous, Subedar, you don't run the shop so I–"
"'Don't want to put that responsibility on you.' Okay, white knight, go on. I know." Naib appears again, pushing Norton out of the doorway. Norton attempts to protest, but it's firmly shut in his face.
Soon, Norton is alone, but he hears a small whisper in the back of his head before he truly starts his journey.
"...be safe, okay?"
If only he had taken Naib's words to heart.
"You have messed with the wrong dragon, mortal."
Norton scrambles backwards, falling on the ground. It never goes this poorly – as he falls, his wand tumbling to the ground with him and clattering on the cave's floor paces away from him. He looks wide-eyed at the dragon who, with speed unknown, crushes the wand underneath its foot, rendering it unusable.
Well fuck.
Before the dragon can step any closer to Norton, there's a loud bang.
In an instant, someone is flinging themself onto the back of the dragon. "Get away from him." The figure snarls. Their cloak's hood blows off with their movement, revealing none other than a head of messy blue hair and two ears pressed flat against their head.
"Naib?!" Norton gasps, attempting to back up closer to the wall as the dragon rears its head.
Jumping into action, Naib doesn't deign him with a response. He wastes no time digging claws into the dragon's back, slicing one wing deep enough that Norton thinks it might fall straight off. The dragon roars in an attempt to throw him off, but with the use of his claws unsheathed into the dragon's back, there's no way to flail Naib off. Norton watches with wide-eyed wonder, captivated by the way his familiar fights.
"I don't care what kind of shit Campbell's gotten himself into, he probably deserves it." Naib mutters, claws sinking into the dragon's neck, "But you do not mess with a familiar or their master. Stupid fool of a dragon."
Norton's eyes are fixated on Naib as the dragon slumps down and doesn't get back up. Naib sheathes his claws and slides off the dragon's back, plucking a scale from its hide once his feet are on the ground and holding it up in the light.
"Why're these things so sought after, anyways?" Naib asks, sauntering toward Norton and taking a seat next to him on the ground.
"They can be ground into a dust or infused into an oil to be used in potions." Norton recites, slumping against his familiar. "Nair buys them a lot, think she turns 'em into magical perfume. Lots of different properties depending on what it's combined with."
They go quiet for what seems like ages, before Norton breaks it. "Were you following me?"
Naib's silence is his answer. He scratches the back of his head.
"I asked Emma to watch the shop. I was just worried about what your dumb ass would get into without me."
Wide-eyed, Norton peers at Naib in disbelief. "I'm the one who would get into something? Do I have to remind you about the time you – mmph!"
Faster than light, Naib cuts Norton off by boldly pressing their lips together. It's chaste, unlike how Naib usually is, Norton thinks as he rolls his eyes and leans in to kiss back. Naib pulls back, face red, and mumbles, "I was worried about you , stupid." before leaning back in and licking at Norton's lips like flame to a candle wick. Norton attempts to pull back to respond, but the purring in Naib's chest makes him sigh internally. He decides against speaking, opening his mouth to let Naib do as he pleases, arms resting over the other's shoulders. Once he has trouble breathing he pushes Naib away from him, heaving from his chest.
"Dude, you are so weird." Norton says lamely, face flushed to hell and back. Naib grins and flops over Norton's shoulder, pressing his face in Norton's neck.
"But you love me." Naib says cheekily, breath against his neck tickling him.
Norton barks out a short laugh, and wraps an arm around Naib.
"Yeah. I do."