Loyal to the Motherland [M]

[DragonSong]

Bane crooned happily for the stroking and let his eyes slide almost completely closed, nudging Dane's shoulder again companionably.

Catching what the younger man said, Verik spoke up. "He's just learning your scent-- I doubt he was commenting on your hygiene, but there's a stream not far from here if you want to wash up."

He pointed toward the trees in indication.

[Juno]

Dane startled slightly at the sound of Verik's voice not having realized they were being watched until he'd spoken up. He followed his directions with his eyes, nodding in understanding and giving Bane a parting pat and a few more scratches before he moved to stand. "I'd like that... Thank you," he murmured quietly, eager to take the suggestion as permission without hesitation.

Wandering back towards his own tent first he retrieved a small comb and a vial of oil for his hair that had been a gift from a generous master of his past. He carefully rolled the items into a change of clothes before setting off with a small wave to signal he was leaving, if only briefly.

Blessedly, it was not difficult to follow the sound of running water in the quiet of evening. When he found himself at the bank he wasted no time getting his things arranged and stripping to step into the knee-high waters. He scrubbed at his skin all over until he saw wide streaks of red, so eager to be free of the grime and dirt that had settled upon him. Marks would fade, though, and once he'd settled from his frenzy Dane set to leisurely washing and combing his hair before treating his roots to the oil he knew would make his locks soft as silk and shining like amber once they were dry.

He trudged his way back to camp in clean clothes and damp hair that he kept pushing back from his face every time the ends curled to tickle against his cheek.

[DragonSong]

Verik looked up as he heard Dane approaching— then quickly dropped his eyes again.

Gods. Inappropriate, don’t think about, don’t think about that, no no no.

As if sending his train of thought, Bane shot his rider a droll look and breathed a short puff of smoke toward him. Verik coughed and glowered at him. “You, uh, feel better?” he sputtered our, waving smoke out of his face as he glanced sidelong at Dane again.

[Juno]

His eyes crinkled slightly at the sight of the dragon puffing at him, though he was oblivious as to the why and stepped closer to cautiously pet at the scales upon his shoulder.

"Much better, thank you," he sighed, a relieved and slightly tired smile tugged at his lips. "Was there...anything I could help you with tonight? Or just resting up for tomorrow?"

[DragonSong]

"Traitor," Verik grumbled under his breath as Bane crooned happily and settled himself in for a proper petting, arching his neck slightly to expose the patch of leafy green scales on his chest that he particularly liked scratched.

Louder, he added, "No, you're fine. Rest up, or...play with Bane, or whatever. I'm gonna check the perimeter again."

[Juno]

Dane nodded, watching the soldier go before he set his things down and got settled next to the dragon. He shot him an indulgent little smile, reaching out with both hands to pet against the scales of his chest in a slow, circular pattern. "Poor thing, must not get enough attention," he murmured, already convincing himself a military dragon must not have had many comforts in life.

[DragonSong]

Bane warbled plaintively and gave Dane a soulful look— to which his rider straightened up and demanded, "Excuse me?"

He was glaring, but not at Dane, amrather at his dragon partner. "You are spoiled rotten and you know it," he huffed as he stalked out toward the perimeter of their camp. "Ungrateful lizard..."

[Juno]

The slave chuckled softly under his breath, continuing to give Bane all the pettings he could ask for. He only hesitated for a moment when Verik had hissed at the beast and wandered further away. Tilting his head he looked up into the dragon's eyes with a sheepish smile.

"Sorry, am I going to cause trouble for you?" he asked quietly.

[DragonSong]

The dragon rumbled a chuckle and shook his head. Verik was just...like that.

Evidently unconcerned by his rider's fit of pique, he rolled into his side and curled slightly more around Dane, shielding the human from a gust of wind that rocked the tops of the trees. His eyes fell half closed and he gave another rumbling sound that was more a purr than anything else.

[Juno]

Dane smiled up at him, eyes crinkling slightly for the way he'd just moved his head like a person might. It seemed so funny, he'd never thought in all his life he might start befriending a dragon, especially one as large as Bane.

He wasn't scared at all when the giant creature settled in closer to him, the faint rumbling actually rather soothing now that he knew the dragon to be friendly. He'd relaxed his hold on his legs to curl them beneath himself instead, leaning back to rest his head against his scales.

The slave yawned tiredly, the tension coiled in his body finally starting to relax. Before he knew it he was dozing off right there in the grass with him.

[DragonSong]

Bane rumbled again, pleased the little human seemed to be relaxing more around him.

By the time Verik returned to their post, both Dane and the dragon seemed to be napping contentedly. Catching sight of them, he smiled a bit almost despite himself and shook his head. Quietly, he set about building a small fire, then moved toward his pack, hunting until he found what he was looking for.

Returning to Bane and their new companion, he knelt and carefully laid the slightly threadbare blanket over Dane's body. It wasn't too cold yet, and Bane should keep him pretty warm, but you could never be too careful with civilians.

[Juno]

The younger man rested peacefully as Verik worked, only stirring once the pleasant weight of the blanket was settled over him.

Dane sighed happily, loosely clutching his hands into the fabric with a tiny smile. He was roused enough to peek at Verik with one eye, watching him through barely-open lashes. With his mind a bit fuzzy he couldn't understand why he'd done it exactly. Had he talked in his sleep to ask for it? Was he just that thoughtful to do it on his own?

He was too tired to dwell on it, though, his tent entirely abandoned as he curled in against Bane with the blanket tucked close around his body. He breathed a quiet thank you for Verik, smiling to himself again as he settled in to sleep through the night.

[DragonSong]

Turning to head back to his tent, Verik paused and caught Bane's eye. The dragon almost seemed to be smirking, and he glanced down at the slave meaningfully. Verik scowled at him and shook his head, but didn't say anything.

With a tired sigh, he muttered, "You're on first watch. Wake me in a few hours," before making his way to his own tent and crawling inside, asleep almost before his body fully hit the bedroll.

[Juno]

Despite the lack of padding beneath him Dane had slept incredibly well huddled against the dragon. Not needing to watch his own back all night or be ready to jump at a master's orders had certainly helped, but for the first time in a long time he'd actually felt safe with them around to keep an eye out for him and no nightmares had plagued him.

He blinked his eyes open, frowning and squinting at the sunlight with a groan. For a moment he just tossed an arm over his face to block it out, but his throat was dry and his stomach growling and clenching in a demand for food that eventually got him moving.

Dane finally sat up with a huff, rubbing at his eyes for a moment and then pulling the blanket off to fold it up with care. He needed to return it to Verik, it wasn't his to keep.

[DragonSong]

Verik had already been up for several hours, and he cast a quick glance toward Dane when he heard the other man stirring. "Soup's on," he called with a small smirk when he heard the telltale growl of a hungry stomach.

He was seated cross legged in front of their campfire. Bane had somehow twisted to lay his head beside his rider while most of his body curled in a lazy crescent around their charge. Verik was stirring a shallow pot of...something. Honestly, he didn't even really bother to look at what was in the army rations anymore; it all pretty much tasted the same when you made a stew out of it.

[Juno]

The slave startled slightly, turning his head to look over the dragon and watch Verik cook. It had an indeterminable smell, but he hummed in easy agreement. He would never turn down an offer of food anyway, he had learned to not be picky long ago. Slowly climbing to his feet he gave Bane a parting rub across his shoulder and the side of his neck, grateful that he'd stayed with him and let him use him for a pillow all night without complaint.

Padding closer Dane set the blanket down next to the soldier and then moved to sit beside him instead with a yawn. "Sorry, I shouldn't have fallen asleep outside. But...thank you for this, it was warm," he offered, patting the square of fabric.

[DragonSong]

Verik shrugged as he stirred the pot. "Hey, makes no difference to me where you sleep." As long as Bane was around. It could have been significantly more dangerous if the dragon hadn't been there.

He glanced down at the blanket, then back up to Dane. "Do you have one?" he asked, gesturing to the covering. He didn't want to make assumptions, but...the slave's pack was rather small.

[Juno]

Dane eyed him sidelong, surprised that he wasn't offended by it after having given him a tent and some other supplies already. He'd been worried he would be seen as ungrateful, but that didn't seem to be the case at all.

"What?" He looked down at the blanket and hesitated but eventually decided to be honest and just shook his head. "Not, um... Not one that's just mine. I'll ask Anselm when we get back," he offered.

[DragonSong]

Verik rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Nah. Just keep that one. I have a spare." He shrugged, then shifted to pull the shallow pan off the fire. "Here. It's not much, but it'll keep you full."

[Juno]

A protest caught in his throat, his eyes falling to the worn blanket as though he was being offered a valuable gift instead of a used necessity. He eyed it skeptically for a long moment before humming his acknowledgement and tugging the neatly folded square of fabric a little closer to himself again with a murmured, "Thank you."

The offer of food was enticing, his stomach growling noisily again as he got a good whiff from the pan. Dane was certainly hungry enough to scarf the whole thing down but he hesitated again, his mouth opening to speak and accept it but a strangled little noise of protest came out instead.

"I can't ta-- I shouldn't eat before you," he finally mumbled instead, cheeks going a bit pink for having defied him at all.