Fate

Deft claws sought to preparing a tincture, learned by the dragon currently seeing to one of the patients under their care. Oolong’s own claws were carefully stroking the top of the weeping dragon’s head, soothing the other clan member down from their episode. The pearlcatcher watched on, the tincture finished and procured as she dropped several droplets into a hot drink and placed it down in front of her master. Oolong nodded his thanks, then straightened the dragon slowly but with strong, comforting movements.

“There, drink this.” he offered up the tea his assistant had prepared, to which the dragon took a few sips from before taking a breath. It worked quickly, calming the dragon soon after.

“Thank you.” he murmured. The pearlcatcher herself smiled politely at him, nodding.

“That’s what we are here for, is it not?” she teased, gaining a look from Oolong that she pointedly ignored.

The day went in similar fashion, though the morning’s visit had been the height of it. Fate eventually left Oolong’s corner of the clan, heading through the rest of her home with unknown certainty on where she would be going. She had a few ideas of course, but it didn’t always mean that would be where she ended up. True to her name, she’d lived her life similar to how she did within the Gemini Clan. Fate would send her where fate wanted, and while one might think her actions were what propelled her, the pearlcatcher would counter that those were just the strings of fate tugging her where she was expected to go.

Fate had chosen her name for that reason alone. Yes, chosen. The name she had been called at birth was lost to her, as she was no longer within her own clan for very long. Swept up before she was given a chance to know her family, the dragonling was left in fate’s hand at a young age. As cruel as it could be however, fate delivered the hatchling unto another clan. Giving her a chance at life that up until that moment seemed a fairytale, the pearlcatcher donned her new and true name in homage of what had given her this: Fate.

It seemed her unseen deity had greater plans for the pearlcatcher. Her time within the first clan was limited, just long enough for her to grow into an adolescent. She took to heading to another clan, desiring to see what life would play out for her. It was through this that fate looked at her again and steered her towards another path. Fate often knew the feeling of surprise when it seemed things had fallen into place a certain way for better or worse, but she always looked at them the same way in the end. She knew better to truly question what the road to life had in store for her. It wasn’t up to her to ask ‘why’, because there sometimes was no answer to that question. So when fate steered her towards another pearlcatcher, she didn’t question it.

His name was Coincidence, and she had thought nothing of him except the peculiar name he had. That was her first encounter with the other pearlcatcher. A chance meeting that had them smiling at each other briefly in a moment of cordial greeting, and then it was gone. Fate had many of these encounters, thanking fate or understanding it was necessary for her to meet them only in passing. Then she was gone, flitting through as the strings pulled her down another road. She thought that this ‘coincidence’ was just a blip on her road, a passing memory that would spell out a reminder of a trek.

However, Coincidence would run into her again. It was at a new clan that Fate found herself running into the male pearlcatcher for the second time, and it was during this encounter that the two finally spoke to one another.


“Well, look who I ran into.” crowed Coincidence.

“Please,” flirted Fate, “this was meant to be.”

She had always been good with her words. Her flirtatious attitude and way of speaking had kept her safe over the years since she had first begun her travels. Even now she still had that edge with the words she spoke, but the smile that spread over Coincidence’s face was enough to let a twill of butterflies shake slightly against her ribs.

It had been Coincidence that begun their courtship. His quiet demeanor paired with his well thought out gestures wooed Fate in a way she never thought possible. She had flirted with many dragons over her time, but despite any reciprocation it seemed that Coincidence himself topped her previous lovers’ attempts with little words uttered. Fate felt comfort around him, delight when he showered her with affections. He too traveled alongside her, and soon they became married when they finally reached Gemini Clan.

The two settled into their current home in a quick amount of time. Fate had never thought she’d find a place to call a permanent home, known for her wanderlust and letting the winds carry her. But Gemini Clan had called out to her, just as Coincidence had, and so for the time being she decided to stay and live for however long fate willed her to. The two pearlcatchers had no true occupation within the clan, but Fate found herself drawn to aiding the imperial Oolong in his work. The art of tea and using it as a calming agent seemed intriguing, and under his guidance she learned how to help in her own way. It wasn’t necessarily her permanent job, but she enjoyed it, and it surprisingly worked to calm some down when she reminded them that it’s best to leave some things to fate.

“What brings you in today, love?” a dragon across from the counter asked as the pearlcatcher walked in. She looked at him, then to her husband from where he had settled himself into a corner of the tavern. A glass of wine had been poured out for him, deep red and savored while he flipped through the pages of a book. Fate smiled.

“Coincidence, it seems.” she answered. The other pearlcatcher looked up her, cocking his head gently as she approached.

“Or perhaps it was fate?” he crooned back. Fate let out a sweet laugh before she settled next to him.

“Perhaps both.”

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