/////OOC: Sorry, I have to say what's going on so Kiyu isn't left in the dark. First off, I'll have to know what type of creature Yuna is to make this work. because weredragon X unknown creature just won't work out in case they are nowhere -near- the same as the other's species. In other words: Human (or Dragon) X weredragon = Acceptable, however other werecreatures are OK as well. But anything without the slightest werecreature, or dragon, or human characteristics X weredragon = No go. So, something like a dragon X weredragon = a mostly dragon-like creature.
Weredragon X human = Draco-sapien
Other werecreature X weredragon = Cross-bred werecreature. Get it? Got it? Good. ^^ I'll just start this little pairing and see if it would work out. ^^ //////
In Character:
Ziggy panted, stumbling through the dense foilage. He knew that scent, though he couldn't -quite- place it. All he knew was that he felt compelled to investigate, something about the scent was exciting. He felt a strong urge, and it grew stronger the closer he got to unveiling the scent. Finally, he broke through the foilage, his panting heavier than before, he looked around, seeing virtually nothing. Where was that sweet scent coming from?
That's right, he smelled a female in heat somewhere, and whatever the source was, he was certain it was -possibly- something like him. Fellow werecreature, human, dragon, it mattered not, he felt compelled to rid the scent of heat from his already numbed mind. This was the place, he knew it, even if she wasn't here now, he knew the female would be returning at any time. Might as well use every trick he knew. He gathered some materials, drawing some shapes in the dirt to calculate where everything would go. Hmmm... some rocks surrounding the nest, warming sand, some cashmere, goose feathers, and some sticks and as soft of leaves as I can find to build the nest, and some jewels and my most prized possessions to decorate it with... Those would be the best options. I see I will have to go questing... he thought, emptying the knapsack he always carried with him. and ran off, he came back about 4 or 5 hours later with the materials he needed, and some extra things as well.
After about 2 hours, the nest was completed. Rocks lined the outside of the nest, warming sand was at the very bottom of a shallow hole he had dug for the base of the nest, filled to the top with the sand, followed by the cashmere, goose feathers, and the structure of the nest itself was made of sticks and twigs for the skeleton of the nest, and soft leaves lined all around the nest to keep the nest from hurting his soon-to-be mate. A couple more things and every trivck he knew of would be completed. He quickly flew off into the town, bought the most rich and intoxicating bottle of wine he could find, and on the way back (which he walked) he hunted and killed an elk, which he flew these things back to the nest. He lay the gifts beside the nest, then, from his knapsack, took a few very large gems, a ruby, two sapphires, a diamond, some amethysts, and a few emeralds, all about the size of his head in human form, which was considerably smaller than his dragon head, and scattered the jewels around the nest. He looked around, making sure she wasn't here yet, then nuzzled against a few trees around the area, leaving his scent for her. Then he walked out of the clearing, and sat atop a large boulder, drawing his knees up to his chest and held them close to him, and he waited, silently, to hear the whistling shriek, almost musical call of the female he was trying to impress.... Yuna.
(OoC_ well.. Yuna is sort of a breed of elf. A high elf, but her ears are normal. Cause her dad wasn't an elf, he was just a human, She appears pretty much normal, but there is a small point to her ears, she just thinks thats how they are. She's not going to get pregnant though, you know that right?)
She had followed him, but lost him somewhere through the forest. Damn him for being so much faster than she was!
Still she ran, the trees whipping past her. Every now and ten the pinwheel would catch and leave a chunk of the tree trunk missing.
Eventually, Yuna stopped. She really was tired now. She let her hands fall onto her knees as she panted.
Goddess, what was he doing?
She gave up, and let her legs cave in, once again, falling asleep. She was going to ache when she woke, the pinwheel was pressing a lot of weight onto her back. One of her arms was at an odd angle too.
_________________________________
She woke a while later, standing up slowly. Yep, her muscles hurt like hell. She stretched. For the first time in a while, cursing the pinwheel. His scent was coming closer, she could smell it, and she followed it, coat flying out behind her, long dark hair with it, arms pumping as she ran. Crystal blue eyes ablaze.
Eventually she broke clear of the trees, and stopped. Blinking.
She stared, open mouth staring, "Oh my g--" she broke off, clapping a hand to her mouth, realizing what Ziggy had meant with this action.
She, lowered her hand slowly, "But... Ziggy... I'm not a dragon!" she murmured to herself.
The jewels he'd placed around the nest were beautiful. But the carcass of the elk that sat in the middle somewhat spoiling the mood. She caught sigh of him there, sitting huddled by himself, "Z.. Ziggy..." she said, disbelief evident in her voice.
((Aww, but Ziggy's always wanted children.... besides, the elk you can't really blame him for, it's just an instinct of his... and humanoids, I believe, I had said would work, or did I just say humans? Well, either way, she has human in her, doesn't she? Think of what a great dad he'd be... oh well, I understand and I'm sure he will too... oh well....))
He turned his head, just enough to see her. He smiled gently at her. But he sighed, realizing he must've done something wrong, or something to upset her. He sighed softly, turning his head a bit the other way now, so he was looking in any direction but hers. He shook his head, muttering "Shoulda known you wouldn't like the gifts... it's hopeless..." he muttered softly.
((OoC_ well if its completely hypothetical and not at all in the actual RP.. and totally 'What If' then... alright fine! xD ))
She realized she had said the wrong thing then. Yuna paused, and shook her head. Before taking the leap, running up, leaping over the side of the nest and jumping over beside him, she placed a hand on his knee, and leaned in to kiss him.
When she pulled away, she met his gaze squarely, "Why would you do this for me?"
((^^))
Ziggy looked at her and was greeted with a kiss. He kissed her back gently. When she pulled away he looked at her, when she asked her question he sighed and said "I just want you to be happy... whatever you decide to do..." he said, glancing down at his feet.
Yuna sighed as well, before lifting a hand beneath his chin and pushing his face up so she could see him better.
"Hey, I can only be happy if I know you are too!" she said, before she grinned, "Lighten up, Ziggy~" she laughed. He was probably sick of hearing her say that, but she couldn't help it.
She leaned down and touched one of the diamonds closest to her, and gasped when she realized it was real.. and... solid.
She gave him a disbelieving look, "But... I don't understand why you would do this... for me"
He smiled at her first two sentences, then, at her third, he sighed gently and said "Because.... I...... I....." finally he just blurted it out "Iloveyou......" If you could understand what he just said, you'd realize: he was just as human as he was sweet.
Yuna was.. yet again... taken by surprise.
She blinked, re-playing what he had just said over nad over in her mind. Yeah, there was no doubt about it, he'd said those three words.
Yuna's answer was...
She leaned up again, and kissed him. Pushing him onto his back, figuring that was answer enough.
She pulled away then, and looked down at him, "Thankyou"
Ziggy smiled, kissing her back. He, gently, ran his finger tips down her spine, what little bit that wasn't hidden by the pinwheel, anyway. "Then I...... have your permission.....?" he asked softly, almost nervously as his eyes turned a somewhat darker shade of silver.
(OoC_ asdafsds, I think it's best if we followed Draco's words and wait before we bring in the smex. I don't want to get her angryyy D: )
Yuna shuddered slightly at his touch, swallowing hard.
She wasn't sure, but she didn't want to throw him off completely. She cared for him, she really did. Looking up into his now deep silver eyes, she blinked, "Ziggy, I love you.. but.." she broke off, unsure of what to say..
((Aww, but then, I'd have no idea what to do after this....))
He stared at her, then sighed, realizing that she didn't want him like that. He then sighed once again, wondering what he had done that was so wrong, why didn't she want him anymore? Did she ever want him in the first place?
((okay, we'll fade to black then, hopefully that's okay.. ))
Noticing that she'd said the wrong thing again. Yuna smiled, aw, what the hell. It couldn't hurt, it wasn't like anything bad could come from it. So she bit her lip, and nodded, looking back at him.
"Forget it." she stated flatly, leaning in to kiss him again.
Yeah, it wasn't like anything bad could come from it. She hadn't been able to just not worry about anything, and feel the way she felt for a long time. Plus, Ziggy made her feel different. She found she liked it.
Nothing bad could come from this.
Right?
((Yeh, it's fine... :P))
After fulfilling both their desires for each other, Ziggy awoke the following morning, looking over at Yuna and smiled, remembering the night before. He wrapped his arm, which was around her waist, tighter to keep her warm and safe right there in his arms.
His arm had woken Yuna.
She mumbled something incoherent, before she sat up, and resisted the action almost instantly. Ziggy had worked her pretty hard, almost every bone in her body ached. She looked down at his bare chest, and poked him experimently, to see if her hurt as much. But she doubted it.
She turned away, "Unfair.." she mumbled.
He chuckled, "What's unfair?" he asked, gently nuzzling her neck. The poking didn't hurt, just felt weird. He smiled over at her. "Tell me what's wrong, love?"
She turned to look back at him, shaking her head with a bemused smile, "Here I am, hurting like the goddess's own walking stick.. and you're completely fine!" she growled slightly. Poking him a second time, "Does anything at all hurt?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow at him.
He chuckled, "Does my dick throbbing like a love-struck heart count? No wait, that doesn't feel -that- bad actually..." he said, smiling when she poked him again.
Yuna laughed, smiling at him. She opened her mouth to speak again, but she was overcome with a wave of nausea.
She scrambled to her feet and ran out behind a nearby tree, emptying her stomach violently.
She flopped back onto the grass, panting heavily.
What... what the fuck?!
She hadn't eaten anything in a while, so most of what she had thrown up had been bile. She wrinkled her nose, and coughed loudly. Standing again, her stomach still felt off.. but she didn't quite know why. Not trusting herself to move back to where Ziggy was, she stayed put, one hand firmly on the tree, the other, over her forehead.
Ziggy watched her, his eyes turned silver for he was nervous about what all that was about. He smiled reassuringly over at her and asked "You alright?" softly.
Holding a hand up over her mouth, Yuna nodded, "I-- I think.." she broke off again as another wave washed over her. Once she was done, she shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut and wrinkling her nose.
That hurt as well. It had torn at her throat, she was surprised at how violently that had happened.
Her stomach still felt light. She lowered her hand to her stomach, blinking down at it.
She hadn't eated anything that would have caused the upheval. So... what was it?
She turned back to look at Ziggy, and smiled slightly, "I think thats all..." she said, shaking her head and returning to his side, "Sorry about that."
Ziggy smiled back at her. He had a feeling he knew what had happened. But he did not show it, let alone tell her. She had said how smart she was, so, he'd let her figure it out. And, he didn't know what she was so he couldn't predict when it would happen, but, whenever it did, when she started really showing signs (like her stomach got bigger or something.) then he'd tell her if she hadn't figured it out by then.
It was strange that Ziggy didn't seem worried. So Yuna let it drop, dismissing it as just food poisoning.
___
Time jump. two months. Yuna's stomach is bigger.
___
She woke again, it was late at night. This seemed to be happening far more often than was natural. She'd wake up in the middle of the night, in a cold sweat, feeling like she could throw up for the rest of her life and still feel sick.
Only this time when she stood, her stomach seemed to have gotten visibly bigger. The veils of denial she had so perfectly weaved around her seemed to lift then, and sense dawned on her.
She'd had sex with Ziggy.
Unprotected too.
...
She was pregnant.
...
Then, she bursted into tears, falling to her knees, what the hell was she supposed to do now? Did Ziggy know?
Ziggy was rather unusual with his own sleeping habits, he did get ready to sleep as humans -usually- would, but what was really strange was that he slept in the most unusual of places: Tonight he was sleeping on the roof of some random house, in the same town as Yuna, so he wasn't too far away, he'd always remain somewhere near to make sure she was safe and everything.
With that, she stood again, once the majority of her tears had passed. She was in her home, the one she frequently returned to. The one she had been brought up in. The one that made her feel the most comfortable.
She moved over to the window and opened it, wanting some fresh air. she looked out at the night, it had been almost two full weeks since she had seen Ziggy. She missed him. A lot.
"Ziggy.. where are you.. ?"
His eyes snapped open, super-sensitive ears picking up the voice of Yuna, calling to him. He stood, wings sprouting and spreading from his back, then he jumped from the roof, flying towards Yuna's house, following her scent. Finally, he landed on the balcony, wings folding and crossingin front of his chest, hooking together with the 'thumbs' of his wings, so thgat his wings looked like a cape around him. He then kneeled down on the balcony edge, smiling gently. "Something wrong, love?" he asked gently.
Yuna almost jumped a foot as the sound of wingbeats met her ears. She blinked as Ziggy landed, before a smile broke across her face. She hugged him tightly, without thinking about it. Letting the tears fall. What would he say if he didn't already know?
She moved her lips closer to his ear, "I... I'm pregnant..." she admitted, breaking off with a sob.
Ziggy blinked, then smiled slightly. "But, isn't that a good thing, though?" He asked, gently wiping away her tears. He then kissed her gently on the cheek. "It will only strengthen our love more, wouldn't it?" He asked gently, wrapping his arms around her gently.
She blinked, confused.
"You.. don't mind it.. ?" she smiled, kissing him back, "Then stay. Stay with me." she moved away from the door, gesturing for him to come in. "It would be.. I want you here." she said, looking down, and folding her hands over her stomach.
He smiled at her. He jumped down from the balcony's railing that he'd been kneeling on, onto the balcony's floor itself, and walked in with her, his arm around her waist gently. "Then I will stay..." he said gently, kissing the top of her head gently.
((OoC_ umm, about the kid. What the heck is it going to be? Some sort of dragon/elf hybrid? LOL ))
___
Three month skip? Yuna's almost ready to give birth~
___
It was beginning to annoy her now. She missed training with her pinwheel. She sat on her bed now, looking at the weapon with longing. She wanted to be able to swing it like she used to, be able to glide and jump and even run as fast and high as she used to. But now her back hurt, her arms were weak, and she kept getting fevers.
All the while, she was grateful for Ziggy, she didn't know where she'd be without him. He'd helped her along the way. She found herself wondering if he ever got sleep for himself.
With a sigh, Yuna placed a hand on her swollen stomach, "Whoever you are in there, you're the last one I'm gonna keep in here." she said, poking it fondly. Getting an answering kick, that made her wince.
((Usually, weredragons are the more dominant gene, but elves are also a semi-dominant gene, so, Possibly a weredragon with an elf form rather than human... ^^))
About a week ago, Ziggy decided since they would need -something- to watch the child in case they were gone for an extended period of time. He decided to get the best type of nanny he knew of, a wolf. They sold them at an exotic petshop, and Ziggy had asked the man who owned the shop several important questions, the man answered them and even gave him a scroll with the wolf's information on it, the scroll even had a seal on it that proved that it was all true. The wolf was an arctic wolf, the best type of wolf for a nanny-figure. It was a female, so it was nowhere near as aggressive as a male, and it was quite a sweetheart, so, undoubtedly, it had been trained to be a nanny-type of figure. So, more than likely, it would make a good nanny either way.
Ziggy walked into Yuna's bedroom, the wolf following close behind, the wolf's name was Aniu, a beautiful white arctic wolf with blue eyes and a pink nose. What a cutie. The wolf was dragging behind it, hooked to it's waist by a crudely-made harness, a type of plank of wood with a tray with food on it. After the wolf stopped beisde the bed, Ziggy picked up the tray and handed it to Yuna. "here you go, some breakfast." he said, smiling at her.
((Alright, makes sense then ^^))
Ziggy had said something about finding a guardian for their child, Yuna remembered that. But when he entered her room with a beautiful wolf, she blinked in surprise. She looked from her weredragon to the wolf and back again, "What's with the wolf?" she asked, grinning at Ziggy.
She took the tray from him and began to eat, surprised at how hungry she was all of a sudden. She reached down with a hand and stroked the back of the wolf's head, smiling at it. Heh, maybe the wolf was to guard their child?
Well, it did make sense, if it was going to be a weredragon, like it's father...
"This," he said, gently stroking the wolf after kneeling beside it. "Is Aniu. She'll be our child's guardian when it's born..." He said, smiling at her. He gently scratched the side of the wolf's head and the wolf leaned into his touch, enjoying the attention she was getting.
She nodded in understanding, exactly as she'd thought.
Yuna cleared her throat nervously, "Ziggy.. I don't know if you've ever... y'know.. had a kid before.." she paused, placing a hand on her stomach, "But... is the birth normal? Like... the same as a human would give birth?" she was nervous about the whole 'giving birth' idea, always had been since she was little.
It was one of those things that... scared her.
"Hmmm...." Ziggy thought for a moment before saying "It would all depend, I suppose, on what the child would be, if it were.... whatever you are, it would be the same as how you would be born, if it were a weredragon, it would be born inside an egg, but if it were a hybrid, it may be a little more difficult to predict..." He said softly.
Yuna blinked again in surprise.
She was fairy sure that... whatever she was, she had been born normally. But goddess help her, she didn't want to give birth to an egg!
__
Nother skiip~ umm, three hours before birth? (last skip ahead~)
__
It was just past midnight when Yuna woke from her restless sleep. Aniu beside her. She sat up, her stomach hurting.
She gasped. It was time, she'd noticed a few days ago.
"Z.. Ziggy!" she called, breathlessly. Breathing heavily. Aniu sitting up beside her.
She fell back onto her pillows, chest heaving, as sweat formed on her brow and chest. Oh, it already hurt...
((OK, but I suggest not going into too much detail of the birth. I'm in the middle of eating right now... :P))
Ziggy hadn't slept the past three days, he knew it would be anytime. And now, his suspiscion was confirmed, it was time. He ran into Yuna's bedroom, kneeling beside her, he didn't know anything about bringing in youngsters, so, all he really could do was offer comfort and encourage her.
((Lool, sure, I wasn't going to anyway xDD ))
He came almost instantly to her side.
Both her hands snatched at fistfuls of the bed-sheets, pulling them away from her legs.
She arched her back, and pushed. Biting her lip hard, so she didn't cry out. Even with all her attempts at muffling it, the pain was too much. She reached out blindly with one hand, gripping at Ziggy's own. Holding tightly, as if his hand were a lifeline.
After a lot, of pain, and pushing. It was done.
She fell back onto the bed, her brow damp with sweat, limbs shaky and weak, she could barely hold herself up anymore, barely move.
She had to fight to keep her eyes open, she moved the crystal blue eyes to look at her lover, "Well?" she asked, panting heavily, her eyes half lidded, and lips cracked and bleeding in several places, "Is it a boy or a girl?" Once she found that out, she'd sleep.
For a very, very long time.
Ziggy had bought some cashmere blankets a few days before, one blue, one pink, in case it were a boy or a girl, and a white one in case it was an egg. Now though, he smiled as he wrapped the newborn in the blue blanket. It remained quiet, as most weredragons would when they're born. After a few seconds, the small boy, not much bigger than a loaf of bread, opened his eyes, big and a pretty shade of sapphire blue. Darker than his mother's but not ebony like his father's were. Ziggy smiled, he had already cleaned him off, and smiled over at her. "I love you, it's a boy..." he said, smiling at her. If she did fall asleep, he'd name him himself. He already had a great name picked out in case it were a boy: Zero. For a weredragon, it was indeed, a great name. Zero in weredragon language meant 'Holy Star' so, a great name it was indeed. Zero was also the name of the weredragon god of ice.
A boy.
She had a son.
She wasn't even surprised when Ziggy lifted the boy in a blue blanket. He surprised her a lot nowadays, she'd begun to get used to it.
She was surprised though, when the baby didn't make a sound. It was silent. But, by the look on Ziggy's face, she knew it was fine.
She smiled, half of what her normal smile was. "I... love you too... " she sighed, she'd never really felt this drained before. With that, she resigned herself to sleep. Her limp body becoming even limper.
((Feel free to have Ziggy do something here or just skip ahead, she'll be out for two days or so xDD))
-One month later. Zero is now a month old, which is the same as 5 years for a baby weredragon.-
Ziggy was relaxing in the den. Aniu was playing, gently, mind you, with Zero. Letting the small boy ride on her back occasionally, or pawing at the boy as he did the same, as though playing a medieval version of pattycake, It was cute actually, or just running around the room, like they were playing tag or something. The wolf was also very protective of the boy, whenever a stranger entered the house and Aniu was near Zero, she'd lay her ears back and growl at the stranger until he left the room, never attacking anyone once, however, just warning them off. She would however, allow Ziggy or Yuna near Zero, only because they were his parents, after all.
Yuna returned home again after yet another round with her pinwheel. Thankfully, her time in labour hadn't affected her fitness or strength. But Zero hadn't given her any insight as to what she was, she suspected it was an elf, for his ears had a slight point to them.
She closed the door behind her, and placed the pinwheel behind the bookshelf, still wary that Zero might get his hands on it. The blades were sharp, and Yuna was not about to risk it.
She strode over to her son and Aniu. Placing a kiss on Zero's forehead, and stroking Aniu fondly.
She had noticed in Zero, whilst he had his mothers eyes, his nose and chin were already beginning to look much like his fathers. His hair seemed to have parts of both of them, what there was, was dark and with streaks of bronze shot through it.
She stood, and moved to Ziggy's side, sitting beside him, she smiled slightly, "have you had any time for yourself? OR have you been in here with Zero and Aniu all day?" she asked, she was always telling him to go out more, she did, as she had today.
Ziggy opened one eye, as he had been taking a short snooze, and then opened the other when he realized who was talking to him. He smiled at her, and when she asked if he had any time to himself, he shook his head. "I enjoy being with our son, it's almost as though...." he shrugged slightly, he had no idea how to word it. The thought that a weredragon and whatever Yuna was had managed to have a child was quite remarkable. Almost like a miracle. And every time Zero looked at him, he realized: he wasn't -just- a miracle, a weredragon-unknown creature mix would possibly be destined for something great. And prophets in Meristirithe, the ones who specialized in 'Births of great ones' had told him that in the close future, a child would be born of his blood, destined to be something of a savior for weredragons. But, truth was, he might have more children in the future, not that he was sleeping around or anything, but if Yuna would want anymore children, it was indeed a possibility. So, he didn't know if Zero was the one destined for greatness, or one of his -possible- future children.
Yuna nodded, and tilted her head slightly, "As do I, but.. I still get out every now and then, and so should you!" she said, tapping his arm slightly, "Zero has Aniu and me, you don't need to worry about a thing." she smiled reassuringly.
She could sense that he was thinking about something. She tilted her head int he other direction, and lifted a hand to his cheek, "Something the matter?" she asked, concern evident in her tone.
She knew he was still concerned about his uncle, Axel. She'd done her best to keep his mind off the man, with Zero, the job was much easier. But... she was still concerned for him.
Ziggy jumped, startled out of his train of thought, and smiled at her. "It's nothing.... possibly nothing very important anyway..." He said with a slight laugh. He then looked back at Zero, he sensed an aura about him, more powerful than any he had ever sensed, possibly more powerful than even himself and Axel put together. He sighed thoughtfully, remembering his father's last words to him Even in the darkest times, a light will shine through.... sometimes fear takes over, and our strength gives out, and yet, we are reminded that even the slightest amount of courage can turn the tides of war...
Ziggy seemed to jump out of his trail of thought at Yuna's voice, and the warrior frowned at her lover, confused.
Then when he turned his gaze back to their son, she knew he was thinking about something to do with Axel. Being around him for almost a year had told her much about her weredragon. She placed a hand on Ziggy's cheek and moved his head to face hers, "What do you sense about Zero?" she asked, "He's not going to be killing when he grows up." that was the last thing she wanted, a son who grew up to be a killer...
"Not a killer..." he said softly, a slightly thoughtful smile on his face. "A Savior..." He said softly. He looked over at Zero, a slight hint of pride in his eye for their son. "There's just something about him... that may be the determination of our futures, for everyone, not just weredragons or..... whatever you are." he said, with a smile. "I sense.... a powerful aura, more so than my uncle and myself put together, and I also sense bravery, strategical thinking, and more powerful skills than I've ever heard of..." he said softly.
Yuna's eyes widened, as she looked to their son, playing with Aniu, she couldn't see him becoming a saviour. Yet Zero was still a child. But if Ziggy was right... and he did become one...
Yuna would do everything she could to help teach him to fight.
She looked to her lover with wide eyes, "He's just a child... but.. you really think that?" she asked, threading her fingers through his and looking from their son back to him again.
Ziggy smiled a bit. "I know it's true..." He said softly, gently nuzzling Yuna. He smiled at her, to insure that all would turn out alright.
Yuna nodded once, smiling when he nuzzled into her. Well, if that was how it was supposed to be, she couldn't exactly hold her own son back from his destiny, could she?
Looking back at Ziggy, she nodded once, "Alright, bit I'm going to help him." she said, sternly. She knew how to fight, as did Ziggy.
What was stopping them from helping out?
Ziggy nodded, looking over at their son. He was thinking the same thing.
-Time skip, another month, Zero is now ten weredragon years of age.-
Zero had learned alot over the month. Ziggy had found that Zero was actually quite skilled with a sword. He had consulted with Yuna of having a special sword forged for Zero. Zara, a friend of Ziggy's, came over often to tell them what about Zero she had found out, one such being about the danger of being a weredragon hybrid. Zero wasn't in the room at this time, so it was safe to talk about it.
Yuna sat rigid in her chair, she hadn't known there were any such dangers to do with her son besides his destiny of corse. She was worried.
She looked to the witch who sat across from her, biting her thumb in worry. She looked at Ziggy and then back at the woman, trying to formulate words. When they did come, she lowered her thumb and laced her fingers together in her lap, looking up at Zara.
She blinked, "Of what news do you bring this time, Zara?" she asked. Looking once again at Ziggy.
Zara sighed, thinking, then said "I recently found that there are a group of elves who forge magic swords... If you can get anything with magic properties that can be made into a sword, perhaps it will keep Zero's demonic dragon side locked inside him. The only problem with this, however, is that when in battle, he must never let go of said sword, otherwise, if he lets go of the sword and comes into a broken state, which is the state lingering between life and death, his dragon side will come out, and thus he will be unstoppable, and as said before, with repeated transformations to this demonic dragon side of his, he would, eventually, lose his soul to that demonic dragon that, so far, lays dormant within him." Zara said, a blank look on her face. "The sword would protect his soul, but you'd need to make something that would, considerably, protect his body, like a type of armor."
Ziggy nodded, "What do you think would be needed to forge such a sword or armor?"
"I would suggest Mithril for the armor, black mithril is best, though it is incredibly rare, more so than normal Mithril." Zara said. "As for the sword, I would suggest either a demon fang or a demon bone, and some silver as well, to give it a more more sword-like look rather than a bone-look, make it look more intimidating." She said, "That way, not many enemies would come after him as long as he keeps a hold on the sword, or keeps it close to him."
Yuna nodded with Ziggy. Still finding the entire prospect frighteningly odd. She felt it was her fault that their son had been burdened with this. But she'd never voice her thought to Ziggy. She averted her gaze to her hands, where she was stroking the fabric of her shorts over her legs. She was scared. She didn't want her first.. -and probably only-... child to die...
She looked up at Zara, "Where might we find mithril, a-and those elves?" she asked. Then when Zara suggested a demon bone or tooth. Yuna nodded.
She looked at Ziggy, "Far west of Arca... there is a place where there are plenty of demons. I could go there and bring one back... Does it matter what kind of demon it's from?" she asked. That flicker of excitement returning to her voice.
She'd lost that spark since Zero. She'd been to busy caring for him and Aniu to have much time to herself. But if she got to kill another demon? Now, that would be fun...
What she didn't understand, was just who was trying to kill them in the first place... ?
"The elves you can find in blacksmith shops in Ketra, since elves are more skilled in crafting weapons than most humans, they should be fairly easy to find in such places. Black Mithril you can find in the center of blue gold mines. There is usually at least one rock in the center of a cluster of blue gold mines that harbor a good deal of Black Mithril. And I would suggest a fairly powerful demon, teach your son, for now, to forge his own weapons, let him take lessons from blacksmiths, since he is part weredragon, he will learn quickly, and since he has what seems like elf in him, he should do fairly well crafting weapons. Take him with you when you go hunting for the demon, the demon should be close to, if not at, your level of power. Teach him how to hunt such powerful demons, and as he grows more powerful, he will forge more powerful weapons from more powerful demons. And thus, as he gets older and his weapons too light or small to protect him any further, he will have better protection from the weapons he forges." Zara said, with a slight nod.
Ziggy nodded, "I'll look for the Mithril and make the armor, weredragons can sense things others cannot, it should be fairly easy for me to find Black Mithril." He said softly.
Yuna listened to Zara, taking in each word the witch spoke. Part... elf? That was new. As if by instinct, Yuna raised a hand to her ear, tracing the shell of her ear, there had always been a slight point to it... but not enough to signify that she was an elf. Maybe it wasn't the normal breed of elf... or something along those lines...
But she looked up when Zara said to take Zero with her when she hunted the demon. Yuna nodded, she had been planning to do that.
Yuna already knew how to use a forge, she could teach Zero that...
"And I'll take him to kill the demon.." Yuna said, equally as soft as Ziggy.
Her blue eyes flicked up to where her Pinwheel sat, propped up against the wall. It was time to put it to use again.
Finally.
The next two months brought an incredible amount of good fortune to Ziggy. He had found not only Black Mithril, but also gold thread and red velvet, a large sapphire, and enough leather to make the suit of armor he had been dreaming about since that last run-in with Zara. The suit of armor ended up looking like a noble's suit of clothing but with a horned mask, with a sapphire-jewel colored face-part, leather gloves and boots, and gold designs from the gold thread and the inside of the cape for the suit was red-velvet lined for comfort.
Zero, when taken on the hunting trip to catch the demon described by Zara, watched his mother take down several fairly powerful demons, but not one that attacked them was quite as strong as Zara had described.
Finally, One day, Zero sensed a great evil approaching, which turned out to be a large, demonic true-dragon. It proved to be powerful enough, and Zero watched in amazed fascination while his mother took down the demonic dragon.
Each time a new demon had come their way, Yuna had made sure Zero was a good enough distance away from the monsters claws or tail, especially now, with this demon. It was big, and some type of dragon that Yuna had only heard Ziggy talk about.
But she didn't blank.
She tossed the Pinwheel with the same amount of force that one would throw a discus, leaping after it, jumping clear of the things claws, and laughing once when the wheel made contact with the dragons thick hide.
She leapt up over the dragons neck and wrenched the wheel from where she had tossed it, pulling the metal pin out, and letting it slide down her sleeve as she used the spikes to drag across the dragons back as she ran, slicing the thing open in the same movement.
She leapt down again, from the height that she'd been at, Yuna staggered and fell as her knees gave out. But was quick to stand again. She watched as the dragon flailed for a few more moments. Before stopping completely, falling still.
She grinned to herself. Turned her back on the creature and headed over to her son. She placed a hand on Zero's head, and nodded at him, "Come on, love. Lets get home to papa, hey?" she asked, wiping the blood from the dragon off the spikes.
Zero merely nodded, smiling brightly as he waited for his mother to collect whatever it was she needed from the dragon as the weird witch-lady had told him she was going to, and afterwards, they headed home.
When they got home, Ziggy had just finished the suit of armor and had it hidden, for now, in a very good hiding place that Zero would never think to look... the cellar.
But after about a week, Ziggy decided to show him the suit of armor, bringing it up from the cellar, and lay it out on the table early in the morning so that when Zero woke up, he would be greatly surprised. Zara had told Ziggy that not only was Black Mithril soft and light and tougher than dragon scales, but it also stretched to grow accustomed to his body as he grew.
When Zero woke up the next morning and saw the suit of armor, he'd remind you of a young child on Christmas morning who had gotten exactly what he wanted. "Wow!" he had exclaimed as he took the sword from it's sheath, weighing it and other such. He had watched his mother forge the sword. And he had said it was interesting how some people could make their own weapons.
Yuna watched Zero, her eyes a mix of pride and exhaustion.
She hadn't had as much time, just her and Ziggy in a while, they had all been so busy preparing Zero for... whatever was ahead.
Making the sword her son now held had taken a while. The work was hard, and she had to make sure the boy was watching her every movement. Every strike of the hammer. He'd be doing it for himself eventually.
Yuna reached out to touch the fabric of the armor. It was unlike anything she'd felt before. With her other hand, she took Ziggy's and held it tightly.
She looked to her son, watching as he tested the sword. Smiling to herself.
She looked back at Ziggy, and sighed, "Do you really think we can do it?" she asked. She didn't doubt her son, or her lover for that matter.
The prospect of failure was too frightening for her to process.
After a while, Zero was, finally, brave enough to put on the armor, Ziggy had watched as Zero tinkered with the mask a bit, and realized: he could be an inventor. The reason he thought this was: the helmet was now more futuristic. There were things he called 'buttons' on the side of the helmet that you had to press in a certain order to make the 'locks' unlock and the back 'Hatch' to lift, which would enable you to remove the mask. The rest of the armor could easily be loosened and taken off if the need wasnecessary, more easily than the mask anyway.
It was amazing to think... that Zero could contribute quite a bit to the world. Everything from inventions to safety. Ziggy watched his son with pride in his eyes, "Isn't he amazing?" He asked Yuna as they stood there, watching Zero ran back and forth, making adjustments to everything about the mask and armor he could to make it more comfortable, flashy, every word he could use to describe it... was odd, but interestingly so.
As she watched her son run back and forth, fiddling with that helmet of his every now and then. She couldn't help but smile.
He was growing up fast. Very fast.
Yuna laughed as she watched the sun catch every now and then on the boy's armor and flash into their eyes. She shook her head and smiled ruefully.
As Ziggy spoke, she nodded, and took his hand in hers, "He is." she agreed.
Then "What of us now, what are we to do?" she knew that both she and Ziggy had every intention of staying with Zero throughout his whole world-saving ordeal. She'd never be far from him, she'd make sure of that.
He'd get freedom, sure. Yuna wanter it for herself as well. But she'd at least try to be in the same city... just in case.
She bit her lip. Did Axel know of Zero yet?
It hadn't been very long since his birth... Maybe Ziggy's evil uncle still remained ignorant of the boy.
She hoped so...