Work Text:
Everything We Wanted
They had done it; they had achieved everything they wanted. The Old God, N’zoth, was finally dead. His vial corruption would no longer poison Azeroth or her people.
The celebration was a humble one but no less welcomed. Stormwind keep was full of people from both Horde and Alliance. There were servants bringing out trays laden with a myriad of dishes while others brought out various drinks.
Stepping out into the courtyard, Wrathion looked out at the crowd of nobles and commoners mixing with the champions of Azeroth. The low hum of a hundred conversations filling the air.
One in particular caught his attention, though, and he turned to see a group of human nobles, all sipping from tall wine flutes, listened to a man dressed in a sharp maroon coat with gold trim worn over a pure white ruffled shirt. The man had clearly said something amusing as those gathered were laughing gently.
“Ridiculous!” The nobleman continued with a scoffing laugh. “A dragon? Pah! More like a glorified lizard.” He smirked cruelly.
Wrathion felt his hackles rise but pushed the feeling aside and turned to continue his search for Anduin. The young king was around here somewhere-
“Besides, how do we know he actually did what he said, hm?” The human’s words gave him pause and he turned, ready to say something, and froze; the man’s face was pale, sickly almost. And his eyes – what?!
Panic gripped his chest as the nobleman looked directly at him, slitted orange eyes unblinking. “He’s a black dragon, after all. We all know they can’t be trusted.” His smirk stretched unnaturally wide and Wrathion felt sick.
He took a step back, the man’s laughter growing louder and more twisted with every passing second.
Anduin, he needed to find Anduin. Turning from the man, he stepped quickly through the crowd searching for that familiar blonde ponytail. He heard more warped laughter behind him and instinctively looked over his shoulder. He had expected the nobleman to be following him but instead, he saw the man stood with his companions sharing a joke, his grey eyes filled with mirth.
Wrathion stopped, his panic subsiding to be replaced with confusion. Had that been a hallucination? He shook the thought from his head; he must have been far more tired than he initially thought. The sooner he found Anduin, the sooner he could make his excuses and retire to bed.
Turning once more from the man, Wrathion made his way through the throng towards a large buffet table set up by the stone arches that surrounded the courtyard. Picking up a glass of wine, he took a sip as his red eyes scanned the crowd.
He was beginning to relax, the image of the corrupted nobleman fading quickly. Glancing to his left, a smile broke out on his face when he caught sight of Anduin stood talking with Genn. Both were smiling, Genn nodding politely as Anduin spoke.
Placing his now empty glass on the table, Wrathion began moving towards them only to pause when the edges of his vision began to darken. He blinked several times and the shadows receded. He looked about; no one seemed to have noticed him falter. He took a breath to steady himself and focused on the two royals.
Heh, pathetic.
It was if he had plunged into a frozen lake. That voice… It couldn’t be..!
Laughter echoed in his head, and he spun around, panic rising again. Where? How?! Had the Old God somehow survived their assault on Ny’alotha? Was someone channelling him? A cultist or-
Then he saw it; a Faceless One, huge and wreathed in shadows that seemed to cling to it like smoke. It was stalking across the grass, the flora below its feet turning brown and dead in its wake.
Wrathion searched the crowd for any signs the other partygoers were seeing this monstrosity. To his absolute horror, no one was reacting to its presence. Was he hallucinating again?
He watched as the hulking creature marched straight past him, heading towards-
“Anduin!” he shouted. His feet moving of their own accord, desperate to reach the king.
Suddenly, the monster swung its tentacled arm towards him. He barely had time to brace himself before it connected with his torso with such force it winded him and sent him flying backwards through the oblivious crowd. He hit a stone pillar hard, pain exploding in his back and chest as he struggled to draw breath.
He groaned as his body landed headily on the dead grass, stars dancing across his vision. And when he looked up, time slowed; the N’raqi had reach Anduin. Its arm was raised, ready to strike.
Wrathion reached helplessly for the king as his gilded armour folded and blood covered the front of Genn’s jacket.
“Anduin!” He struggled to get to his feet but before he could find purchase, the ground opened up below him. No. He began to shift to his drake form, only, nothing happened. No!
Then he was falling. He scrambled for something – anything – to grasp, to stop his descent, but there was nothing. He could only watch as Anduin’s body crumpled to the stone floor before the keep disappeared and he was plummeting through dark, void polluted skies.
Giant writhing tentacles burst from the ground, and the Old Gods minions swarmed the poisoned earth like void rats.
As he was spun about by the viscous air currents, he saw a great lake that stretched out as far as he could see. Its waves swirled and shifted like oil, seconds before his body hit the surface and he sank into its depths.
He tried to kick to the surface, but his body wouldn’t obey him as the foul liquid filled his mouth and nostrils making him gag. His eyes stung, his lungs burning as his heart shattered in his chest; Anduin was dead. His first friend and love of his life was gone.
Pathetic
He could do nothing but watch as the void-filled light refracting through the polluted waters faded further and further away as he was swallowed by the pitch nothingness.
Weak…
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Wrathion’s eyes snapped open with a gasp, his heart pounding against his ribs. As the blue of the canvas above him came into focus, and the nightly sounds of the Alliance capital filled his ears, he sat up and slowly hugged his knees to his chest. A ragged breath escaped him, and he buried his face in his arms.
Beside him, Andiun stirred, rolling onto his back. His blue eyes opened, and he felt a tightness in his chest upon seeing his dragon in the sadly familiar position. Sitting up, he reached out to brush his fingers against Wrathion’s arm, mindful not to startle him.
“Hey,” Anduin whispered, voice still thick with sleep but eyes alert.
He shifted a little closer and gently wrapped his arm around Wrathion’s bare shoulders. “You’re ok.” He soothed, slipping into their routine with ease. “You’re safe. It was just a dream.”
Wrathion didn’t make a sound, but Anduin knew he had heard him as the tension in his shoulders eased a fraction.
“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked, moving his hand comfortingly along the prince’s arm.
Wrathion turned his head to peer at him, and Anduin was saddened - but not surprised - to see unshed tears in his red eyes.
“It felt so real.” Wrathion whispered, voice shaking slightly. Anduin waiting patiently for him to continue, he didn’t want to rush him.
Turning his head away from Anduin, Wrathion fixed his gaze on the shadows across the room that danced with the moonlight.
“It was N’zoth.” He said after a long pause.
The Old God appearing in Wrathion’s dreams was nothing new, but there was something about the way he had said His name that put Anduin on edge.
“We were here, in the keep.” Wrathion continued. “Everyone was celebrating his defeat but-” he faltered as the memory of the corrupt nobleman’s face and twisted laughter forced its way to the forefront of his mind. He closed his eyes tightly.
“It’s ok,” Anduin repeated, desperately wanting to reassure his dragon. “You’re safe.”
Wrathion slowly opened his eyes but kept his gaze on anything but his human’s face as he began to retell his nightmare.
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Anduin listened with patience and compassion as Wrathion relived the horrors his sleeping mind had conjured.
“You were… gone.” Wrathion finished, voice cracking as he squeezed his eyes shut and buried his face in his arms again. Anduin felt the prince’s shoulders begin to shake, and his heart broke.
Wrapping both arms around his dragon, the king gently pulled him close. “It’s ok, I’m right here.” He whispered, running his fingers through thick curls. “You’re safe – we’re both safe.”
Feeling Wrathion nod against his chest, Anduin brought his hand up to cup the dragon’s cheek, gently tilting his head up so red eyes met blue. “So long as I am here,” he said, brushing a stray tear away with his thumb. “No one will ever hurt you.”
Wrathion lowered his gaze and pulled away, returning to hugging his knees. Anduin didn’t follow, but was glad the dragon didn’t push his hand away from his shoulder.
“If only it were that simple, my dear.” Wrathion whispered as another tear made its way slowly down his cheek. He made no move to brush it away.
“Wrath-”
“You can’t protect me from everything.” Wrathion interrupted, offering a mirthless smile that sent a chill up Anduin’s spine before his red eyes returned to the middle-distance. “I know what people think of me.” He added quietly. “I may have helped defeat the very being responsible for corrupting my flight, but I am still a black dragon.”
Anduin felt a surge of anger but not at the dragon curled in on himself before him; he knew people didn’t like Wrathion for the colour of his scales, and for what they reminded them of, but he had hoped that N’Zoth’s downfall would help endear him to his detractors. Clearly, Anduin had been wrong. He opened his mouth to speak again but found he honestly didn’t know what to say.
“I will never be good enough.”
The words had been so quiet, Anduin wasn’t sure he had heard them at all. Without a word, he pulled Wrathion bodily to him, embracing him tightly.
At first, Wrathion didn’t respond, but before long, Anduin felt warm arms wrap around his middle as his dragon hid his face in his shoulder.
Anduin’s heart broke all over again as he tangled his fingers in Wrathion’s hair.
“I wish…” he began, unsure how to – or even if he should – voice his thoughts. He took a deep breath, “I wish you could see yourself how I see you.”
Wrathion became very still, but Anduin was not perturbed. “Then you would see just how wonderful you are.”