Roleplay

Jorn looked up from the fire he was tending at Aeira’s warble, spotting the wood that she had pulled out. He smiled at her and shook his head. The fire was going fairly strong and the water had begun to steam.

“Thank you, but I think there’s enough here for now,” he said. “If you like, you can catch a little bit more sleep. I’ll keep watch.”

Happy to see Jorn was doing alright, she laid her head back on the ground, watching him with half closed eyes. She murmured and stretched out, careful not to disturb Ren, still sleeping against her side, then settled down. The Imperial appeared to be watching the tendrils of steam, her eyes following the swirls as her tail flicked idly.

After a little while, her gaze shifted to the bandaged arm. Tilting her head, the Imperial hoped the salves were working their magic.

Jorn sighed, still a bit tired. He moved his right arm a little, wiggling his fingers as a test. He found that it didn't hurt as much anymore, nor did moving his elbow. The wound only throbbed when he tried to move his shoulder.

"Whatever that was that your rider used, it's quite potent," he remarked, noticing that Aeira had been watching him. He glanced at the water, satisfied to see that it had reached a rolling boil. He waited a few minutes before going back to the saddlebags, finding a thick glove. Putting it on, he pulled the pot away from the fire to let it cool.

The Imperial took an interest in her human as he began to stir, shifting as he slowly transitioned back to consciousness. "Mmmrph," Ren managed as he rubbed his eyes. "Mornin' y'all..." he muttered, then yawned. Seeing Aeira's snout in his face, he gently pushed it away as he slipped out to stretch.

"What's quite potent?" He wondered out loud, having missed the first half of the statement. "Oh, the salve? Yeah... It's a dragon recipe, and one that works wonders." He plopped down, sitting crosslegged by the neck of his dragon. While he pet her rhythmically, he asked, "so how are you feeling today?"

"Good morning. Much better than yesterday, thanks to you two," Jorn answered. "And, a dragon recipe? Interesting, I didn't know they had their own recipes. Though, it does make sense."

He glanced at Ciar, noticing that the dragon was still asleep. He sighed, then said, "he really was tired. Ciar usually rises before even I do."

"That's good, that's good," he said affirmatively, and Aeira cooed as well, "I found a dragon tome that had various potions, elixirs, and other medicines. It and a few copies I've kept with us. As you've seen already, they are very powerful."

"I wouldn't be too shocked, especially since he flew for so long. Mighty impressive, he is, with that kind of endurance." He knew that Guardians were not long distance fliers - Ciar really was well trained indeed.

"Interesting," Jorn muttered. "I suppose these are the things one misses when all the dragons you know are trained to ride."

"I suppose so. He did land once or twice for short rests, but other than that..." he explained, shaking his head. "He'll probably be up soon enough. If there's one thing he doesn't like, it's missing a meal."

"Anyway, I finished boiling the water from last night. Help yourself to it," Jorn said.

"Well, as the saying goes, let sleeping dragons lie, eh?" Ren said, amused, "and thanks for your offer, but there's plenty to go around - I'm sure Ciar's going to want some once he wakes. I didn't see any wounds on him, so I'm sure it's just the exhaustion from his past exertions."

He instead pulled out the pouch of preserved meat, not unlike what Jorn had offered him the night before, and retrieved a handful of strips to pass the time. "Hey," he said to Aeira, "who knows? You might've found that hunting partner you always wanted." To which the Imperial smiled and giggled, her whiskers rising with glee.

“I was always told not to poke a sleeping bear,” Jorn laughed. “It’s similar enough, I suppose. And I doubt he’s injured. His hide is quite tough and he was never very good at hiding wounds. I imagine he might be upset, though.”

“Well, Aeira, if you could get him to open up I’ll be forever grateful,” Jorn said, chuckling. “Ciar never has interacted much with other dragons. At least, not as much as I thought he should.” He pulled several empty water skins out of the saddlebags, carefully filling them to the brim with the water he had collected. There was still about a third of the original amount left in the pot when the water skins were filled. Setting them down on the ground, Jorn picked up the pouch of his own supplies, pulling out a strip or two to chew on as they waited.

Ciar didn’t keep them waiting for too long. He began to stir just as Jorn finished his snack, eyes slowly slipping open. He let out a long breath, blinking the sleep away. Accustomed to waking up with only Jorn for company, he started and jerked halfway to his feet at the sight of Aeira. He settled a moment later as the events from the night before came to him.

“Ciar, it’s alright,” Jorn said soothingly, reaching out to stroke him. Ciar grumbled something unintelligible, pulling back from his rider’s touch after a moment. He stood, shaking himself and stretching as much as he could in the cramped cave before opening his jaws in a massive yawn. His nose twitched at the scent of water, bringing his attention to the pot.

“Go ahead, you can finish that,” Jorn stayed, gesturing to the pot. Ciar snorted, leaning down to eagerly lap up the remaining water.

"That's good news," Ren replied, "though why do you say he might be upset?" He continued to comb his hand through the Imperial's mane, curious, "well, from what I've heard, at least, Guardians tend to be rather solitary, not unlike Imperials. He could very well just prefer to be by your side, unless you think otherwise?"

Aeira turned to face Ciar as he woke, flinching back as the other jumped. Her greeting died in her throat as she huffed, turning back to look at the humans. Seeing the Guardian drink, however, made her thirsty, and she nosed Ren gently for some water.

"Wha? Oh, you thirsty, too? Very well," her rider said, reaching up for a previous water skin. Unlike Jorn, the water he had collected from last night had not been boiled, and so he was unwilling to risk giving his dragon something of unknown quality. "Here," he said, pouring it out into a pot, letting the dragoness sate her thirst.

"You ready to go and hunt?" He asked, once there was little water remaining, and the Imperial nodded while she licked her chops, then looked at Ciar. "Will you come with?