Friend

Friend is an odd dragon. Which is to say, they aren't a dragon at all. They're made of burlap and straw. They're a scarecrow, brought to life by a magical golden rock they treat as their pearl. This fact is a secret, something only they, Citrine, and Chula are aware of.

What's not a secret is the mystery of their origins. No one knows where they came from. Not even Friend themself knows, as they have no memories from before being discovered by the Parole. They possess the ability to bring inanimate objects to life by simply tapping their claws together. They don't speak, but they wear bells that jingle whenever they move.

---

Friend was a quiet one, Addie had discovered. It certainly wasn't a bad thing, and they made up for their lack of a voice with a very loud personality. No, what was interesting was their powers. With just a snap of their claws, they could bring any inanimate object to life. At first, that was all--they'd tap their claws against the ground and make some rocks dance. Then there was more. Suddenly, they could ignite life in larger objects. Then they were able to properly control their creations (or, as they had scrawled out on a notepad once, "critters") instead of just communicating with them. Their most recent realizations of their powers, however, seemed to scare themself to the point of concealing them from the rest of the Parole.

Addie wasn't one to pry, even if he knew his silent friend was hiding something. Not even Herb's quiet observations stoked his curiosity enough--amazing, really, that for once he was ignoring the possibility of a discovery. He valued Friend's trust in him too much to risk it, he thought.

So, really, he had no idea why he was now pressed against the back of a tent he'd helped pitch, watching Friend pace around the small space, their wings fluttering in agitation. Not that they had much troubling makes using of the area, considering how small they were. It seemed a little rude to think that, though.

Addie opened his mouth to say something, but drew a blank on what to actually say. It didn't matter, apparently, because in a blink of an eye Friend was perched in front of him, staring at him deeply with their blank, glowing eyes.

"Oh, howdy," said Addie on impulse.

Friend's ear flicked. Addie chose to take that as a laugh. Friend sat back on their haunches, then lowered their gaze and held up their claws. As Addie watched, golden light spilled from their hands, shimmering and reshaping into unmistakable figures.

Addie felt his breath catch in his throat.

It's always hard to recognize a specific dragon based just off silhouettes, but as he watched the little constructs of Light magic dance around, he just knew who they were meant to be. His heart sunk as the light dissolved, Friend pulling back their claws.

"Why?" he managed to ask, once he recovered his voice.

Friend stared at him blankly, then ducked their head. With a silent sigh, they stood, and walked away.

---

IKTR Count: 0
I(D)KTR Count: 0

Primary Gene: Ripple

Specialty Items

A scroll that will change the primary gene of one dragon to Ripple. This item can only be used once and will disappear after it has been applied.

25000

accent: goldcatcher

A Nomad of Nowhere fandragon? In my lore lair? It's more likely than you'd think.


by Kohatu