Work Text:
If you asked anyone in the village about recent news, they’d tell you about the strange travelers that lived in a cave nearby.
It’d been an interesting day for the village, to say the least. It wasn’t far from the great city- really, just a day’s trip away. For a millennia, any monsters had been cast out, forced into the cruel, unforgiving wilderness.
Well, not quite.
They had, well, congregated. There were already people living outside the walls, living peaceful lives, and unlike their ancestors from long, long ago, accepted those who were different. This town had gained a fair population of magic users, fantastical beings, those warped and distinctly not human.
It didn’t matter if they were monsters. They were family. They were friends. They were people .
It was a very close-knit community, of course. Everyone who had been rejected sought out others who shared their experience, who could sympathize. They were all close, and very protective of each other.
But, unfortunately, another city had learned of this place. While there are many who don’t have fear of those who are different, some are really of just the same hatred and fear of the unknown that had driven these villagers out , then together in the first place. This other city had lashed out and tried to destroy this humble town, despite it not really posing any threat to them.
In the midst of the attack, of all the chaos, a fire had been started in the middle of the town, leaving their town square in burning shambles. It was devastating.
The village didn’t even know how to deal with what had happened. They were unsure and afraid it would happen again, after they had just fixed their town. They started efforts to rebuild the town, but were terrified every step of the way.
But the next day, two mysterious strangers showed up. The villagers were very hesitant- they had just been attacked, and there had arrived new, strange, and possibly dangerous people.
But the first thing these two did was pitch in and start helping them rebuild the town, shocking everyone.
“This is awful. Why would anyone do this?” Bal frowned as they arrived in the middle of town. The fire had burned out after a couple-buildings radius, leaving ash and rubble all around. They could both see townsfolk milling about, panicked, trying desperately to recover anything from the wrecks.
“I dunno, it could be a lot of things. Maybe they like setting cat’s tails on fire?” Nimona suggested sarcastically. Ballister shot her a deadpan look and she cackled.
They watched the efforts to rebuild for a little bit before Nimona noticed something. Flying blue sparks, and a bit of rubble floating up and clearing away onto a pile.
Nimona’s eyes grew to the size of saucers and she bounded over to where the blue sparks were emanating.
“Hey- Nimona! Wait!” Bal ran after her, tripping on debris from the fire. “Shit! Nimona, wait!” He yelled again. He caught up with Nimona, joining her where she was peeking around a corner. He followed her gaze and admittedly gasped.
A girl, looking to be about Nimona’s physical age, maybe a little younger, focused with her tongue stuck out of her mouth in concentration. White hot and electric blue sparks shot out from around her hands, where they were raised in the air as though she was carrying something. That something being most of a destroyed building.
She glanced at them and did a double take, dropping nearly a ton of rubble next to them.
They all flinched at the loud, echoing boom it made, and waited for the dust to clear. The little girl looked at them in trepidation, lowering her hands and holding them in front of her, threatening.
“What? Are you going to set me on fire too?” She said, trying to force confidence into her tone, but failing. Fear is what they heard, and Bal backed up.
“It’s okay.” Nimona whispered. Hesitantly, she morphed into a little girl, then a bird, then cycling through a couple forms before settling on a cat. The little girl immediately relaxed and a grin spread across her face.
“You’re just like Alcanzar!” The girl’s voice bubbled out, joyful. She crouched down. Nimona, in the best way she could as a cat, looked shocked, to say the least.
“What do you mean?” She asked, a chirp following the words. The girl smiled and reached towards her, scratching her under the chin. “There’s… others like me?” Nimona morphed back into a girl, turning to Bal.
He offered an awkward, hopefully supportive smile. Not knowing how to react, he says, “yay? Is that good? That’s good, right?” Nimona spreads her hands out in a “duh” gesture at him and giggles at his stupid expression.
“Of course that’s good! That’s amazing!” She turns back around. “You’re amazing!” Nimona says the last part to the girl in front of her, diving forward and pulling her into a big hug. She looks surprised, but ends up returning the hug and squeezing Nimona.
“I’m Ophelia. What’re your names?” The girl asks curiously.
“I’m Nimona,”
“And I’m Ballister.”
The villagers had been overjoyed to learn that another “monster” (for they used the term affectionately) had joined the town. Nimona had been welcomed with open arms, and introduced to many people like her .
There were multiple magic users, like Ophelia, and a couple shapeshifters, like Nimona. There were people who weren’t quite people- for example, a woman named Sapphire, who had the ears and tail of a cat, and a body covered in tabby-like magenta fur. People with big horns, or multiple eyes. Some of the residents of this village weren’t even people .
The second day, there arrived a dragon. Bal had nearly pissed himself in terror, and had been ready to fight all up until he saw the villagers greeting and welcoming the dragon back. The dragon had not been pleased when she saw the destruction.
She was a great, majestic dragon who overlooked and protected the town, named Nimhe. With scales a gorgeous azure blue that shimmered and changed colors in the sunlight, and big obsidian horns twisted from her head. The horns were accented with spires of the same color protruding down her back. Two beautiful blue wings, and four legs.
She was the protector of the village, and did her job very well.
This, of all things, was the one that made Bal uncomfortable. When Nimhe opened her mouth, it glowed blue with the magic imbued in her throat that conjured ice. He didn’t say anything, but Nimona could tell that the fact that a big, not fire, but ice-breathing dragon looked over the town.
They had talked to her, though.
“Hello.” Nimhe had greeted them before they could even alert her of their presence. Turning around, she crouched down on four legs to face them head-on. Her mouth didn’t open when she spoke. The voice sounded out in their minds clearly, and put both of them off guard.
“Hi.” Nimona says, awe-struck. Bal, though, is not of the same mind, and looks terrified. Nimhe looks at him, and if there was a way for dragons to look sympathetic, she did.
“I apologize for frightening you, young knight. I am aware that where you come from, we are the incarnation of that which you are born to destroy.” The dragon’s voice echoed in their minds. “I hope to put you at ease. I am the sworn protector of these people, and I care very much for their safety, and yours if you choose to stay.”
Bal nodded dumbly, and Nimona somehow looked even more awed.
They had spoken with the dragon for a time, before Nimhe had dismissed them for going off to help with rebuilding the town.
“Wow.” Nimona had said when she was gone. “That was… awesome! She-she spoke, in our minds!! That’s fucking wicked!”
“Language.” Bal said, on instinct. “Sorry- I’m just a little surprised, is all. She was-“ not what he expected. He didn’t say that part, but Nimona heard it anyway.
“But you’re fine with it?”
“I think so.”
“Good.” Nimona grinned toothily at him.
Of course, the question was raised on how the village had been attacked when they had a massive dragon protecting the city.
Nimhe had been gone for the day. Mating season, and such. (Bal had been shocked, “there’s more dragons ?!”) This other city had attacked, having monitored the dragon’s presence and waited until she had left. When Nimhe had flown away from the village, visible in the distance, they had struck.
Of course, Nimona and Bal had been prepped, ready to fight. But they learned that the other city didn’t exist, not anymore. Nimhe’s anger had rendered the city raized down, a frozen, icy wasteland.
Powerful dragon she was, (the method of which not exposed by her for sake of secrecy), she had managed to single out and send a message to all those who hadn’t contributed to the hatred, that of which had led to the attack on the village. Many refugees were able to flee to other towns and cities nearby before the city was effectively destroyed.
(Nimona thinks Nimhe can read minds, Bal thinks that this is all a cosmic joke played on him for the sake of confusing the shit out of him.)
Nimhe does tell them that she doesn’t know how to fix this issue. She can’t possibly be here at the village every single moment, and wishes for a solution.
It’s not as though their village is weak without her. They are formidable together, but the fact is that unfortunately, the military force of the past tensed city had been much larger than they could handle. Their solution, though, comes in the form of the two aforementioned mysterious strangers.
Nimona, lately, had been practicing shifting into a dragon, though. She’s going to show Nimhe, who she thinks is just the best being in the entire world, in a couple days. It’s endearing to Bal, of course.
They had helped with the rebuilding of the town in the past couple weeks since they’d arrived, and in turn, they got multiple magical helpers in building their “secret” lair. It was literally a five-minutes walk from the village. Nimona had insisted, despite the both of them being offered their own house to be built.
It was so cool, it was even behind a waterfall, with a super-secret, super awesome lever-based contraption that pushed out platforms to walk on and to push the water over so they could go inside.
Despite how unconventional and entirely unnecessary the whole thing was, Bal had never felt more at home. Through all the events of the past couple weeks, he hadn’t once felt as off-kilter unwelcomed as he had back home.
It felt like the right place to stay, and Nimona agreed. The villagers had more than agreed, too, eager to have another monster join their family.
A sanctuary for misfits.
The perfect place for the two of them.
Their new home.