(Yeah, I'm ready.)
Burning Passion (OXO) (PM if you want to do one!)
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The great fire dragon Solis narrowed his eyes at the tiny village only miles away. The forest was rarely traveled to anymore as the humans knew of his kind. They were known as ruthless and fearsome creatures. That was mostly because they were there first and didn't desire to see their home destroyed bit by bit by human "need" for natural resources. A low rumble came from his throat as he settle down in a clearing to take a nap in the sun. Resting his head in the soft grass, he allowed himself a moment of rest.
Ophelia hums a popular tune softly to herself as she walks down the path leading to the forest. Most in her village refuse to step foot near it due to the dragons but she comes often. It's the best place to spot the beautiful wildlife. A pad of paper and a charcoal pencil is tucked in the basket hanging from her arm. She never takes anything from the forest, she only draws that she sees. It's her belief that if she doesn't bother the wildlife or the dragons, they won't bother her. She pauses in a small clearing, sitting down in a patch of flowers. Carefully pulling out the paper and pencil, she does her best not to make any sudden movement. She would hate to scare off the Blue jay that's currently perched on a nearby branch.
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A low rumbling in the air catches the bird's attention and it flies away in a panic. It's a tell-tale sign of a predator though humankind wouldn't know the sound of gentle snoring from such a big creature as a dragon. The large beast managed to find peace and to fall asleep. The village was far enough that they wouldn't hear. Only those in the forest would.
Ophelia sighs in disappointment when the bird flies away. Rather than leaving, she starts to sketch the general area. It truly is beautiful. The rumbling causes her to look up and set her pencil aside. She has no idea what the cause of such a sound could be. She carefully puts away her art supplies before standing and brushing the grass off of her green and white green.
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The noise continues, birds flying off in different directions. The trees rustle as they do so, wildlife wanting to avoid the clearing where the dragon slept.
Now incredibly curious as to what's going on, Ophelia follows the noise to the source. She carefully makes her way through the forest, looking around at the panicked wildlife.
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The air began to feel warmer the closer Ophelia got. There also seemed to be a light but somewhat hot breeze blowing on her as well. The deep rumbling was also a bit more clear as deep breathing. Whatever was making the noise would have to be quite large. And large Solis was. To Ophelia, he was about double her height lying down and likely about as long as two of the village homes next to one another.
Ophelia's jaw drops as she steps into the clearing. Laying right in front of her is a sleeping…..dragon. That isn't what she had been expecting. The massive creature is easily double her size and it's only laying down. She does not want to see how big it is if it stands. Not wanting to wake the creature up, she slowly steps backwards, trying not to make any noise. She would love to draw this but she would also love not to get eaten. Keeping her eyes on the dragon, she continues to back up out of sight.
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Not being able to rest long, Solis took a deep breath before opening an eye slowly. Still half asleep, it took him a moment to realize what he was seeing. After a second, his pupils narrowed as the dragon's gaze narrowed in on the human before him. She was skinny with red hair and green eyes. They sort of matched in that sense. He tilted his head to the side lightly, studying her retreating form. "You needn't leave yet. I'm not going to harm you as you have done nothing to me."
A squeak of surprise and fear escapes her lips when the dragon wakes up. This is it. Her foolish actions are actually going to be the death of her. Everyone always told her to stay in the village. She should have listened. Ophelia flinches upon hearing a low rumbling voice. The words are reassuring but the creature that they're coming from is terrifying. She's been raised to stay far away from dragons and yet she finds herself believing that it won't hurt her. "I did not mean to intrude, please forgive me." Being polite might help her keep her head.
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(I just realized that I've been typing Emberinth instead of Solis, whoops lol)
(lol I keep wanting to type Oleander instead of Ophelia so I know what you mean)
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Solis hums for a moment before giving his reply. "It is alright. I'll admit I was not expecting a human to venture out this far," the dragon mused.
"Well, I didn't mean to come this far. I saw this lovely blue jay and I wanted to draw him." Ophelia shifts her weight from one foot to the other as she watches the dragon.
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The dragon only hums again before lifting his head up to stretch it. Looking down at the woman before him, Solis gives her the best apologetic look he can before lowering his head again. "Sorry if I startled you, but I was growing a bit stiff."
The movement surprises her and causes her to stumble backwards. "Oh, it is quite alright." Ophelia relaxes once more when the dragon settles back down. "I should head back home." She wants to stay and ask questions but she's afraid of pushing her luck.
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Solis lets out a small puff of air, similar to a sigh. "If you must," he said simply. It didn't fully matter if she stayed or not. Humans were usually eager to run from dragonkind. This one was strange however. She didn't scream and seemed to believe his promise. She was different.
"It was nice meeting you." Ophelia doesn't want to offend him but she really must be going. She has chores to attend to. The consequences for being late are severe and something she'd like to avoid. "And again, I am truly sorry for intruding."
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Solis raised his head a few inches, nodding in agreement. "Again, it is alright. Goodbye," he said. The dragon's green eyes followed the woman's retreating form, already curious about if she would return or not.
Ophelia turns and heads back through the forest, still trying to process what had just happened. Everyone always said that dragons were vicious creatures that needed to be feared. Now she's not so sure that that's a true. A few minutes later, she arrives at the village.
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Solis didn't move his focus away from where the human once was. After a few long moments he looked down at his scaled limbs. His tail. How fearsome he must appear. Inhaling, the dragon focused all of his energy on creating a less ferocious form. He was indeed very powerful, but had never done this type of transformation before. Eyes now closed, he attempted to allow his form to shrink and compress into something the woman would be familiar with.
(One more reply each before a timeskip?)
Ophelia heads to the market, figuring that she should do a little shopping before she gets home. "Hello, Mr. Thompson," She politely greets the man who sells meats. The next few minutes are spent picking out some slabs of beef and haggling a price. She pays and collects the now wrapped meats, tucking them away in her back. Less than an hour later, she's finished shopping and is heading home. She lives in an adorable little cottage. It's not much but it's big enough for herself, the few farm animals that she owns, and her garden.
(Sounds good!)
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A warm glow surrounded the dragon, gradually dimming until a human sat in the center of the field, hair as black as night, skin a light tan, but eyes still a bright emerald green. Solis stared at his human limbs curiously, and found that the clearing looked much larger than before. Tilting his head to the side, he decided to attempt a few steps around the area. After much trial and error, the dragon sat back in the center of the area and allowed himself to grow tired again. Hopefully his form would hold through the night and for some of the day. Maybe that woman would be less afraid of him this way.
After completing her chores at the house, Ophelia turns in for the night. Doing all of that work had caused the hours to go by much too quickly. She of tended wished for more time in the day.
The very next morning, after doing her chores of course, Ophelia sets out for the forest. Paper, pencil, muffins, and sandwiches are the contents of her basket today. It may be silly but she's almost hoping that she'll run into that dragon again She thought he was rather pleasant. It's not as though she had very many real friends in the village so she'll take company where she can get it. Perhaps the food will also help her earn the dragon's favor.
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Solis awoke to the sun rising, light shining on his face. Opening his eyes, he noticed his tiny appearance. He still appeared as a human man. Using an arm, he brushed his new mop of black hair backwards, enjoying how soft it felt. He stood up, looking around the tree line. He decided it would be best to wait awhile for the woman from the day before. If she never showed, he would return back deeper into the forest.
Ophelia enters the forest, smiling to herself as the birds sang and flew about. They aren't acting like they were yesterday so she's not sure if the dragon is still here. She returns to the clearing from yesterday. Instead of finding a massive dragon, she finds a young man with black hair standing there. Blinking, she takes a cautious step forward. No one ever comes to the forest besides her so she's more than surprised to see another human. "Hello?" She calls out, wondering what he's doing here.
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Turning, Solis sees her. He grins, walking toward her. He stumbles a bit, just able to keep upright. "You came back," he said, stopping a few feet away.
(sorry that this is short but I have a lot going on today)
Ophelia blinks and studies him. Came back? How does he know me? She frowns slightly before her eyes go wide. Those eyes……the dragon had the exact same eyes yesterday. "Oh, it's you!" She exclaims, walking over to him with a smile. This form is much less intimidating than his dragon form.
(It's all good! :) )
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The male was somehow able to smile wider. "I guessed my eyes would have given me away. They're a brighter shade than the average human," Solis noted. It was then that his stomach decided to let out a soft rumble. He hadn't eaten just yet. He probably should have, but it was worth waiting in case she returned.
"I can change back if this makes you uncomfortable. I thought my true form might have startled you a bit the other day," the 'dragon' added.