Work Text:
"Ten years already," Evrae thought as he sat against the tree, looking over the town. "Humans have a saying, 'The days are long but the years are short.' I never would have thought I agreed with them on how we perceive the passage of time, but they're right." He had to smile slightly from all the memories that were bubbling up, but his smile was tempered from remembering why he was out here. The farewell party he had attended had wound down an hour ago and he had said his goodbyes to the people he had lived with for the last decade, but there was one last loose end to tie up, one that had to be taken care of in private.
He perked up slightly as he saw someone coming to the hill on which he was waiting, and as the figure approached, he felt a combination of eagerness and anxiety once the moonlight lit her up enough for him to be certain who she was. Before he left the party, he had whispered to one person to meet him out by the tree on the hill overlooking the town of Riverwatch after dark so they could take care of something...alone. He knew she would never refuse such an offer, not if he phrased it like that. As she approached, he took a deep breath while he stood up.
"Good evening, Holly," he greeted her.
She grinned and nodded back. "Evenin', Ari," she replied.
Even though she was treating him no differently than normal, Evrae felt a pang of guilt in his heart. She did not know him for who and what he really was; just like almost everyone else in Riverwatch, she knew him as Ari'ik Graysky the elf. Still, he kept his composure, since that guilt was exactly what he had come out here to ease. "I'm glad you could come," he said, smiling a bit wider once she reached him.
"Heheh...don't you play with me...you knew I'd come. Now...what's this all about?" she asked, wrapping an arm around his shoulder and pulling him to stand beside her.
"Rough as always...I may actually miss that," Evrae thought as he was suddenly standing beside the slightly taller young woman. Gesturing with his head to point away from the town, he said, "How about we go take a walk, so we can be sure we'll be alone? I don't want any...intrusions."
Holly nodded, her grin widening enough to show a few teeth. "Sure thing...but don't keep me waitin' for nothin'."
As they walked away from Riverwatch, Evrae took the time to look her over and think back on how she had changed over the years. Brown hair cut boyishly short to be easier to care for, fit and muscular (for a human female, anyway), an uneven tan from a life of long hours outside...she was the image of the strong-backed, hardworking farmer. Her attitude had changed as well, having first met him as a curious, sprightly eight-year-old girl, and now she was a more confident and mature young woman...a bit crude, but still good-natured. It still amazed him how quickly humans could change from only one year to the next, let alone ten years and especially during the transition from child to adult.
In fact, one of those changes was the root cause of why he wanted to be alone with her tonight. He was quick to make friends with her when he first came to Riverwatch, and for much of his time here, that was all they were: friends. Starting a couple of years ago, he had noticed a gradual but undeniable change in their relationship. At first Holly seemed both more and less confident around him, which confused him greatly, but it quickly became clear why once he discussed it with his foster family: she was starting to like him as more than a friend. In the time since then, as she became more sure of herself and more direct in her flirtations, he kept politely deflecting offers without hurting her feelings, which he actually enjoyed as an exercise in understanding humanity. Fortunately, her feelings were as solid (and as stubborn) as her work ethic.
Her suddenly heightened interest in him had not gone unnoticed, not with the human love of gossiping, and Evrae could not help but chuckle in his head at remembering the time her parents warned him that if he ever slept with her, it had better be because he planned to marry her because their oldest was not having an out-of-wedlock baby. Now more than most times, he could see the signs so clearly. Not that she was ever one for subtlety, but humanoids around the world shared certain habits around the objects of their affection, voluntarily or not. Her breathing was accelerated, she held him a little closer than normal, she kept giving him sideways glances, and her cheeks were slightly flushed, not to mention she was showing a little more-
"What, wanna stop now?" she asked him, breaking him out of his musings. "You're starin'...like what ya see?"
"Hmhm, sorry. I was just lost in my memories," he apologized. "Just a little further. I'd like to go to the pond."
Holly shook her head, looking around. "C'mon, we're far enough. Let's just get it over with here."
"Why rush it? We've both waited plenty of time for this. If we're going to have a memorable night, let's make sure it's the best memory possible," he replied with a smile.
She sighed, but maintained her smile. "Always with you and patience and all that talk."
Passing through the fields surrounding Riverwatch to the nearby forest, they soon reached their destination, a small but scenic pond, made all the more atmospheric by the moonlight bathing everything in its pale glow and the sound of nighttime insects buzzing. As they stood nearby, Evrae let out a contented sigh. "One more thing I'll miss...the simple beauty."
She nodded, looking slightly more anxious than before. "...You'll miss me too, right?" she asked.
The combination of nervousness and excitement Evrae was sure she was feeling was even obvious in her voice now. "So curious, some humans...they look so forward to such important life events, and yet when they come, they're completely unprepared." He looked up at her with a smile. "You're part of what I'll miss most of all. We've been such good friends all these years, and I knew the day would come when this chapter of my life came to an end...but it still feels as if it only just began."
Holly smiled back at him. "Then...why don't we end it with a good part?" She tightened her grip around his shoulders slightly.
Evrae nodded, his smile fading a bit. "That's actually why I wanted to be alone with you. I want this to be between-"
"Enough with the talk, Ari," she interrupted. "You know why I came. 'Cause I want..." she trailed off, her brow furrowing as she stumbled over how to say it.
He nodded again. "You want me to, as you once put it, 'make you a woman.' But you don't need me for that. I've seen you grow from a girl to a woman," he replied. "If a bit young...but remember, Evrae, by human standards she's of age," he reminded himself.
She half-sighed, half-growled at him. "Are you gonna take me or not?" she asked flatly.
He looked at her with a bit of disappointment. "Holly, is that all you can think, that I would only bring you all the way out here the night before I left just to waste your time? No, to both questions. I wanted us to be alone so I could tell you that it can't work between us, and to show you why."
Holly rolled her eyes and shook her head. "And...you couldn't tell me sooner 'cause why?"
"Because the time wasn't right, and because it would make things too awkward between us. It's not because of you...it's because of me," he said, knowing she would not understand.
Releasing him from her hold and standing back so they could face each other, she crossed her arms as she squinted in thought. "...Oh, I get it. You like other guys, don'tcha?"
Barely suppressing a laugh that that was her first suggestion, Evrae shook his head. "As I said, I want to show you, not just tell you. Would you please turn around?" When she did not move, he continued, "Just for a few seconds?"
"Tch...all right, whatever," she sighed as she turned away from him. "Don't know how you can show me if I'm not lookin'."
"Thank you." Taking a deep breath, Evrae closed his eyes and concentrated on the shape of his true form. Swiftly and silently, the visage of the elf Ari'ik changed to that of Evrae as he really was. He let out a pleased grunt at taking a moment to stretch out all the extra muscles he now had. "Ahh...okay, you can turn back now," he said in his real (and slightly deeper but still smooth) voice.
She turned her head slightly. "Mm? What's with your voice? Eh, whatever. Look, I don't know much about elves, but if you think I'll laugh at you 'cause you're small," she said just before turning around, "it's not just about the si-yi-yiiii!" Her statement went from normal speech to a stuttering, frightened yelp upon seeing what was now standing before her.
Where her longtime friend Ari once stood, there was now a creature everyone had heard of in stories and seen in every form of art, but few had actually met. Silvery, reptilian scales, leathery wings, a pair of small horns crowning his head and and a frill running from the top of his head to the tip of his tail, an almost bone-like face plate, and a neck, body, and tail each nearly as long as she was tall...standing before her was a dragon. She was so taken aback that she could not move, even to speak, and just stood there, panting.
Evrae sat down, lowering his head to be more level with hers. "This is why. This the real me: Evraentanijaled'dar the silver dragon." As he expected, she was still unable to react, so he smiled a little and said, "Just call me Evrae if you'd like."
"...Ah...what..." Holly stammered. Blinking, she shook her head. "No, this isn't you. It's magic. It's a trick. It has to be."
"Well then...ask me whatever you please. What's something neither of us would tell anyone else?"
Holly looked away in thought, and then asked, "When and where did I first try to kiss you?"
"Under the tree back there," Evrae pointed with a wing, keeping his attention on her, "after your seventeenth birthday."
She shook her head, but Evrae could see a slight flinch at his correct answer. "That's good, but you...I mean Ari, he could've told someone."
"No I wouldn't. I promised you so, if you would also agree to not do that again without asking...and when have I broken a promise?" he replied calmly, raising an eyeridge. "Remember?"
She sighed and nodded slowly. "Yes...I remember. So you really are him...after all this time, I never..." she trailed off.
"That was the point." Evrae gestured with a foreleg for her to sit down if she wished. After she lowered herself to sit on a nearby log, he cleared his throat. "Ten years ago, my parents needed somewhere for me to stay while they tended to...well, dragon business. I was not old enough to secure my own territory, so my father called in a favor a certain family owed him. The arrangement was simple: I was to live with them for ten years, during which time I was also to study human behavior and society. There are some other details, but they aren't important now. My foster family always knew I was a dragon, but no one else needed to know...actually, only my foster parents know; even their son does not."
Holly stared at him blankly as he spoke, giving a single nod when he finished. "Uh huh...so what, you've just been trying to live like a-" she began, stopping with a gasp as she pointed at him with once-again-wide eyes.
Evrae cocked his head, looking over his shoulder. Seeing nothing behind him, he looked back at her, asking, "What?"
"It was you...that was you, wasn't it?" she half-whispered.
"...What was me?" Evrae's mind raced. His foster parents allowed him to return to his true form once in a while, almost always at night and away from the town, where no one could see him and he could savor the pleasure of flying again. He was always so careful...it did not really matter now, but when could she have seen him?
She lowered her hand. "Four years ago, when our families went to Fairholt. The attack."
That instantly jogged Evrae's memory. "Yes...the Dead-Eye orc horde. The army broke them up, but it took a while to hunt them all down...and some of them came to Fairholt before the army did."
"We were on the far end of town. We tried to get away. But..." she said, shivering a little.
Having a feeling he knew what was coming, Evrae slowly approached her and sat beside her, draping a wing around her shoulders in a hug. "But some of them got through. Two ogres."
He frowned in thought as he remembered what happened. His foster parents, both retired adventurers with some experience under their belts, had gone to help the town guard while he and his foster brother ran. They had almost escaped the town when disaster struck. As they hurried through an alley, lumbering into view was a pair of ogres looking eager to smash anything that moved. A five-year-old boy would be easy pickings and Evrae knew he could not fight them in his assumed form, so Evrae told his foster brother to stay hidden while he dealt with the monsters ahead (and so he could take his true form without anyone knowing what he really was). The fight was one of the most difficult of Evrae's life up to that point, but the dragon prevailed.
"I fought them off, but...you were there?"
"Uh huh. Everyone was so scared and running all over, and I got split from my family. I was running for the back gate, but I saw those ogres coming. I knew if they saw me, I'd be dead...so I ran into an open shop and just stayed down and hoped they'd leave." She leaned into the hug and looked up at him. "Then I heard this roar, and I was scared to look, but it sounded like something was fighting 'em. So I looked out the window...and saw a dragon fighting 'em." She slowly reached up to rest her hand on his face as if to confirm again this was not some trick. "And...the whole time, it was you."
Evrae smiled slightly as she stroked his cheek. "Yes...that was me. I knew someone else was nearby...but by the time I could look, that person was gone. I wondered who it was...I just hoped that person made it out alive."
She nodded, smiling back. "Yeah. I was still too scared, so once I could tell you were gonna win, I went out the shop's back and found my way outta there. I didn't wanna tell anyone what happened, cause...who'd believe me?"
The dragon laughed softly. "Hahaha...so, that was me...and that was you."
"Sure looks like it," she agreed with a laugh of her own.
Now that they were both relaxed enough to speak openly, Evrae looked at her hand still on his cheek. "So...I take it you don't think dragons spend their time eating young women," he joked.
"Oh...sorry, still kind of out of it," she said, pulling her hand away.
"No, it's all right. I actually find it flattering you'd take such interest in me," he reassured her, dipping his head down.
Holly chuckled a bit nervously as she stroked his frill. "Heh...sorry, it's kinda different petting a dragon from petting a horse or something. But I guess, how many people are gonna have a dragon for a friend?"
Evrae growled softly from the petting. "Mmm, and as long as I'm here...I can only imagine you're curious about us. Is there anything you want to know?"
"Hm...I've heard plenty of stories...I dunno what to believe anymore." Pausing to think, she asked, "I saw you breathed ice when you fought those ogres. I thought dragons breathed fire...can you?"
He shook his head. "No. Most dragons actually don't breathe fire...but that's definitely the most impressive, as far as you humans are concerned." He looked up at her apologetically, "No offense with the 'you humans' part."
She nodded, smiling. "'S all right. What about treasure? Do you really sleep on big piles of gold coins?"
Evrae sighed. "Ohhh, that is nice to dream about..." It took him a moment to remember she was waiting for an actual answer. "Sorry, I was lost in the fantasy for a second. We do when we can. We wouldn't even stop there...we'd take what we can get. Every dragon loves treasure. The only big difference is that some of us would rather win or earn our wealth, and some of us would rather just take it."
"And...where's yours?"
"...Somewhere." She raised an eyebrow at him, and he smiled back. "It's also true...and I'm telling you this for your own good...how angry we get when someone tries to steal from us."
"Fair 'nuff." She quirked her lips as she thought of something else to ask. "Hey...no one said dragons could turn into people. How can you do it?"
Evrae's smile turned into a knowing grin. "No one who you know, anyway. As for how I do it...magic."
"'Magic?' Pff, what kinda answer's that?" she scoffed.
"A true one and, with all due respect, all you need to know. Dragons are inherently magical creatures. Magic is part of every fiber of our being, some of us in different ways than others. My kind can change shape as well as breathe ice," he explained. "Among other things, such as turn into animals," he mentally added.
She nodded slightly, and then grinned knowingly. "Can you turn into anyone?" After he nodded, she continued with a raised eyebrow, "Can you turn into girls?"
He chuckled at that, knowing what she was implying. "I can, yes, and I have, but not for...those reasons."
"Hahaha, suuure ya haven't." Her eyes drifted towards his lower half as she asked, "So...how do I know you're even really a man?"
"Strictly speaking, I'm not a man in that I'm not a humanoid, nor am I mature...but I am male," Evrae said firmly.
"What's that mean, 'not mature?'" Holly asked. Her grin changed to a look of worry. "Are you sayin' I've been trying to get with a little kid dragon the last couple years?"
Evrae's frill drooped at what she was implying, and he pulled his head away to look her in the eye. "Holly, first of all, you could never have known me for what I really am. Second, I know you're not like that. Third, while I am older than you are in years, I'm actually only twenty-five years old, not what I've been telling everyone all this time. By dragon standards, I'm only just about to reach adolescence...that is, I won't be considered an adult for another twenty-five years." She looked both relieved and a little confused by that, so he continued, "Fourth, and lastly, one very important thing you should know about how dragons think is that we look at age and the passage of time very differently from how you humans do...and from how most other life does. We, or at least my race, respects the age standards of other races, but...the idea of maturity in dragons is simply different from how it is in humans."
She looked more relieved at that explanation, even though he could see she still did not fully understand what he was saying. "'Kay...good. Just had to make sure. But uh, what if you did sleep with me? What, would I've had a half-elf kid, or would I've...laid a huge egg or something?" she asked, chuckling.
Evrae chuckled with her at the absurdity of the thought, shaking his head. "As I said, I'm not old enough to have offspring yet. Nothing would have happened, and I'm not even interested in taking a mate." He looked up at the sky, noting the small change in the moon's position. "Now, it's getting late...I think we have time for one more question before we'd better be getting back."
Holly hummed in thought before answering, "Can you take me flying?" with a hopeful smile.
He took a second to think, but shook his head. "I can lift you and stay airborne...but it would be too unsafe. I don't know if I could keep my grip on you, or you on me, especially with how fast I might go." She slumped a little in disappointment, so he added, "But how about this...I'll come back to this town to see how it's doing someday. Someday, I'll take you flying."
She nodded slightly. "You sure? How long's 'someday?' We talking a year, ten years, a hundred?"
"I...really don't know. But I can promise you it won't be in a century," he replied.
She held up her open hand as she always did when they promised each other anything. "Then promise me you'll do it."
Reaching up with a forepaw and grasping her hand, he gave it a gentle shake. They both looked down with a grin; her hands had been almost as large as his were and her grip tended to be firmer, but now his paw completely enveloped her hand.
"Promise."
"All right. Now...might as well go home," she said a bit resignedly as she stood up and started to leave.
"Wait," Evrae said, causing her to turn back. "I have a question for you. Are there any hard feelings?"
"Huh?"
"For the last ten years, your elf friend has really been a dragon, not to mention you had been trying to bed that same man. I didn't tell even you this whole time because I thought everyone would live happier not knowing what I am, but I brought you out here because now that it's over, I thought you deserved to know the truth...and could be trusted not to tell." He stood and walked up to her, adding, "But what do you think about me now?"
She crossed her arms with a deep breath, looking down at the ground while Evrae waited patiently for her answer. With a shake of her head and a shrug, she said, "I dunno. It's kinda a lot to think about, y'know. I never even thought I'd meet a dragon, let alone be friends with one."
"You said you couldn't believe you had already been friends with one. But you still can be, if you want to," Evrae offered.
Tapping a finger on her arm, a smile slowly crossed Holly's face. "Yeah...I think we can still be friends. But uh, that's all we are. Don't get me wrong or nothin', you look nice 'n all, but when you were an elf, you were just different. I think I'll just...stick to humans for a while."
The dragon nodded understandingly. "That's fine with me. I'm just glad to keep being your friend, and don't worry. You're quite a catch...I'm sure you'll find someone who you'll want to be with." He leaned in with a raised eyeridge. "Someone who is human."
"Heheh, least you know that much," she chuckled. "So, what...I might not wanna sleep with dragons, but...you would with humans?"
Evrae grinned, shrugging slightly. "As I said, I'm too young to really think about that, but...you certainly have your merits, some of which dragons lack. Let's see if I still think so in twenty-five years."
"Don't expect me to change my mind and wait up for you. By then I'm prolly gonna be married with a string of kids."
"Then I can look forward to meeting your family," Evrae replied with a satisfied nod. "Now...let's get going," he said before his form rippled like waves in water, and in a few seconds, Ari'ik was standing before her again. Smiling, he teased, "So, you're sure you don't prefer a dragon to this?"
With a laugh, Holly shoved his shoulder. "Don't forget, I'm a grown-up in my race, kiddo," she teased back.
"Yes, yes. Now, there is one other reason I wanted to bring you out here. Now that you know the truth...I'd like to give you something."
Holding up a hand to tell her to wait, he walked to a nearby rock and rolled it out of the way, exposing something rectangular wrapped in leather underneath it. Picking it up, he returned to her and held it out for her to take. She unwrapped it to reveal a large, thick book covered and bound with unadorned but sturdy metal.
When she looked up at him questioningly, he explained, "Since I began living here, I found it helpful to keep a diary. Dragons have excellent memories, but writing down important events as well as my thoughts about those events has helped me better understand them." Pointing at the book, he continued, "That's a copy of my diary. I hid it out here earlier to give it to you, because I think you should have it. I know you're not much of a reader, but...I thought you might enjoy reading it."
She nodded, smiling and tucking it under her arm. "You're always tellin' me I need to read more anyway. But...what are you gonna write about tonight?"
Looking at the book, he said, "Don't know. Maybe I'll show you when I next come back to visit. That's one more thing we can both look forward to." With another shared nod and smile, they both started heading back to town. As they walked, Evrae thought, "I'm not sure whether to feel relieved or disappointed that she isn't interested in dragons. Maybe both are true. So delightfully confusing, humans are...my parents and I will have much to talk about for the next few months."