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“That'll do for today Max." Dr. Froitte's voice called out behind him.

“Oh, I didn't know you were still here professor, I was just preparing for tomorrow's lab."

Max could hear him begin to tap his foot in annoyance, a common tick from the middle-aged professor. “You know well that's the teaching assistants' jobs. You sticking around like this is making them complacent." He scoffed. “Next thing you know, they won't remember how to set it up for the students who don't spend two-thirds of their lives in the lab manuals."

“There's nothing wrong with a little extra-" He turned to address the professor's concerns, but only met an intent stare from his practicum supervisor, “preparation?" Max gave a sheepish smile.

“No." He wagged a finger in the young man's face. “You being here means I can't go back home to my poor wife who has no other option than to think I'm out drinking and ignoring her."

“You, drinking? Now that'd be a sight to see." Max shot back playfully.

Dr. Froitte was the forefront of research on human medicine at Krall-Andersson Tech. The man was only in his forties but had made incredible progress within several medical fields. His research group has made advances in everything from surgical techniques to nuclear medicine, and most recently in inter-species fertility.

His research potential was one of the reasons that Dr. Froitte was scouted to work at the most prominent joint-species university in North America. He also had an unwavering and controlled approach to teaching, which led to his lab being one of the most competitive for students of all species to get in. But in the five years that Krall-Andersson Tech has operated, he had only ever taken a single student a year, with Max being the most junior.

“When did you get in the habit of speaking to me so informally? I should file a complaint with the Dean." He touted with a humph.

Max knew well that his supervisor enjoyed this brand of humour, but didn't want to push his luck further since he was staying well beyond the afternoon hours allotted for his work.

“No need to express such virtuous contempt on the matter, professor. I shall deign to vacate the premises immediately!" Max emoted, packing his things into his bag.

“Ah, the pompous ass is revealed!" Dr. Froitte chuckled. “And now it shall leave me to my evening."

Max was already partway to the door. “Thanks again for letting me stay late professor. I can finish the rest of my prep in the readings."

“The last thing you need is to study more Mr. Hein, your results speak for themselves. If you'll take a suggestion from this old man, the best research is done in groups for a reason. Why don't you spend your evening fraternizing with your fellow Wingdrakes? It might help you come up with your research topic."

He paused at the door. “Eh? I'll think about it. I'll see you tomorrow, Dr. F!"

The students and alumni of Krall-Andersson Tech were given the name of Wingdrakes. The university had a small but impactful alumni network and an unstoppable volleyball team that represented the name.

Max hadn't really been involved with campus activities beyond his studies. As far as he was concerned, the Froitte Group was more than enough 'fraternizing' for him and he was unsure how more social time would help him choose a research topic. He was a Wingdrake in name only.

However, Max knew better than to pass off the wisdom his supervisor had given him. He just had no idea where to start even if he wanted to get to know more Wingdrakes.

As the heavy door closed behind the youngest member of his research group, Dr. Froitte sighed deeply. His junior pupil was beyond talented, but he was spinning his wheels learning what has already been done. He needed to experience the world, explore new topics, and grow as a person if he was to become the researcher that Dr. Froitte could see in him.

The university was founded as a place for the different sapient species to learn more about themselves and each other. Dr. Froitte thought back to his time studying under Kai Andersson, one of the founders of the university where he now worked. At the time, he was very much like Max, studying day and night, spending hours in the lab with little regard of with his peers, thinking that knowledge alone would make him successful. The knowledge helped, but he wouldn't be nearly the scientist he is today if he didn't heed Dr. Andersson's advice to explore other frontiers, in the world and his own studies.

The professor didn't dwell on it much longer. He had to get moving or else his wife would fly over herself to carry him home. Dr. Froitte smiled at the thought as he ticked items off his checklist to close the lab. His research only found a true purpose when he found a reason to dedicate his life to it.

He just hoped that Max doesn't take as long as he did to realize that.

---

Max paced slowly down the large stone hallways of the medical sciences building, mind adrift with thoughts brought forth by the last words his supervisor had said to him.

As per usual when he stayed at the lab late, the campus was mostly empty. The majority of classes had already wrapped up for the day and the students had either returned home or were buried deep in the library studying for the next day's challenges.

The solitude usually gave him a tranquil peace, but today Max was feeling isolated with his thoughts.

Dr. Froitte wasn't outwardly disappointed with him, but he knew through the joking demeanour that the professor was concerned. He just couldn't figure out what to do about it. Max knew that he wasn't the most social of the campus' inhabitants, but that suited him just fine. Was it so bad to just want to relax and learn on his own?

Max walked several meters over to a large window overlooking a courtyard where a dozen tables sat empty. He wasn't the only one who didn't seek out social interaction it seemed. Or, more likely, he had missed anything going on while he was in the lab and was just the last one here.

He cursed his brain for disallowing the comforting lie.

Pulling himself up to sit on the wide window sill, he took a moment to take a deep breath and look around. Unable to find a good answer to his troubles, his mind drifted to the scenery. The building where he spent most of his waking hours was absurd by any standard he had before enrolling at KA Tech. The main hallway was twenty feet tall and thirty wide, built to accommodate the larger species that enrolled here.

Max had grown up in a small suburb near Toronto, where the concept of interspecies co-habitation was theoretical at best. The world was much smaller for him back then, now he studied in a building clearly not designed with him in sole mind.

He had taken up interest in human medicine since a young age. His parents were both artists, but had encouraged him to explore the topics he enjoyed. Max's father passed away when he was thirteen. An aggressive cancer had torn the man from Max's life without thought for his feelings and with little time to say goodbye. A year later he read that the type of cancer that had taken his father away had found a cure through a novel radiotherapy technique.

Why couldn't the cure have been found a year earlier? It simply wasn't fair! He recalled his anger, sadness, and apathy that followed. But through those dark emotions he found a light.

It was too late for his own father, but it was then that Max decided to pursue medicine with fervour. If he dedicated his life to solving the mysteries of human wellbeing, maybe he might save a future person from having to experience the grief that he did.

Ever since then, he had done nothing but work towards his goal of becoming a doctor. Well, barring the (early)-mid-life crisis where he spontaneously decided to become an actor. Max smiled at the memory before his mind drifted back to the present. The professor was right. He really had done nothing but eat, sleep, and study since he arrived at KA Tech.

“Damn it!" He slapped his hand on the wall in frustration. What could he do to branch out? Maybe a book club?

Over the next half hour, Max's mind mulled over several unhelpful solutions. When he begun considering another set of acting lessons, his thoughts were interrupted by the scraping of claws against the stone floor coming from around the corner from where he sat.

His curiosity pulled him out of his dilemma to figure out who or what was running down the hall at this hour. He could make out more than one set of clacks reverberating off the polished stone floors. It was clearly not a fellow human approaching at great speed. Deciding to check it out, Max pushed himself off the window sill, landing on his feet just as a flash of black came burning around the corner.

An onyx-scaled dragon was running so fast that it skidded turning the corner, claws digging gouges into the polished floor. The dragon was small, smaller by a good deal than any he'd seen at the university. It paid him no mind as its tail whipped against the ground to push it off and regained speed to run further down the hall.

It was in that moment that Max's curiosity turned cold. The small dragon hadn't made eye contact with him, but he saw fear in its eyes.

The Mystery of the Late-Night RunningTM was quickly solved as Max realized that the black dragon was being chased. By the loud, resonating clacks and grunts quickly approaching, it seemed like by larger dragons. Their deep voices echoed down the hall; frustration heavy in their tone.

“Cut your tail Scurr, he's getting away!" The dragon's voice was coarse, as if he was out of breath.

“Seetni Jehk. Watch your words, Eassic, it's your fault the whelp escaped us in the first place." A smoother voice snapped back. “We are already reaching beyond our wingspan following him here."

Max's mind flashed back to the many years that he found himself bullied for his academic pursuits. He knew the fear he saw in the small dragon's eyes; it was the same that had threatened to take his dreams away years ago.

He wouldn't stand for it.

Max had to think fast, he wanted to help the smaller dragon but couldn't do much against beasts many times his weight. With a quick thought, Max flipped his bag over to his front to act as a cushion and decided to use the university's rules to his advantage.

Without a second thought, he stepped around the corner and braced for impact.

“I didn't know the coward's claw rested among your paws. There is nobody here at this hour, and we will have caught him before the night cleaners arrive. So quit your excuses and –."

He didn't have time to finish the thought as Max walked directly in front of the pair of sprinting dragons.

Max winced as the dragons tried to 'brake,' but the waxed floor wouldn't allow for such a maneuver. The frontmost of the pair let out a despaired “Grahk!" before impacting with the human, hard.

Max only got a quick glance at two dragons before a veritable ton of yellow scales slammed into him at speed.

His eyes flashed white as he was sent flying back, sliding over a dozen feet before slamming into the cold stone wall.

Max remained prone against the wall as the pain from the impact flooded his system. His ears rang, his sight was blurry, and a deep pain resonated in bones he didn't even knew existed. It took almost a minute for his vision to clear and for air to return back to his lungs as his body came to terms with the hit it had just taken.

He was thankful he braced himself as his body throbbed with deep-set pain. Max could tell that he wasn't seriously injured (luckily), but he was certain there'd be some nasty bruises (not so lucky). He groaned as he regained his bearings and squinted his eyes, trying to see who the culprits were.

The two dragons had stopped, looking between the human sprawled on the ground and the hallway where the smaller dragon had run off, nowhere to be seen.

A red-scaled dragon slammed its tail on the ground. “Grahk indeed, Eassic. I knew this was a poor decision." Seeing that the other dragon was seemingly stunned, the red dragon roughly pushed him forward with his front paw. “This is your doing, go check on him lest we sink deeper into this foley."

The yellow-scaled dragon, Eassic as Max noted, shuffled forward awkwardly. There were consequential punishments for any larger species at the university caught injuring smaller students purposefully or through recklessness. Depending on the severity, it may be resolved with a letter of warning, but it could escalate to expulsion or worse. That was the premise behind Max's plan, and it seemed to be a big enough threat to end the chase.

Eassic carefully padded to where the human was lying on the ground. He was moving, which was a good sign, but the dragon had no baseline of human durability. He had been told that they were rather fragile.

Craning his neck over the winded man, Eassic quietly eyed and sniffed around Max's body but struggled to discern anything through the many layers of clothing covering him. He doubted the pained groans a sign of good health.

“Say something, you fool!" His companion hissed.

“Shut your maw!" He turned back to face the red-scaled dragon. “This was equally your idea, why do I have to be the one to bear the responsibility of the first word?"

“I was not the one to send our fellow Wingdrake flying several wingspans into a wall."

“It would've been you if you weren't so damn slow, you've been putting on too much weight."

“You foul the air with insults? Kekin Durhoo, I certainly wouldn't mind giving you…"

Max had already gotten past the worst of the shock from his impact with the yellow dragon, but decided to keep playing the part of the injured schoolboy. He wanted them to make the first move in the conversation, but certainly wasn't expecting them to forget about him entirely for their own argument.

He listened as they went back and forth for several minutes, both clearly short on attention span but rich with insults and excuses for each other. They got closer together and even exchanged some light headbutts and locked claws. While he took note of several draconic phrases to look up later, he wanted to move this along so he could lie down on his bed after that impact.

Deciding to help remind them of their plight, Max flipped over onto his butt, placing a hand on his forehead with a slight sway for dramatic effect. “Oh man, what just hit me?"

Both dragons immediately halted their argument and snapped their attention to the man sitting on the ground. Max had to stifle a laugh at the image of the dragons with their foreclaws locked together, frozen with their heads turned to him.

The yellow-scaled dragon took the initiative, quickly removing himself from the scuffle. He whipped his tail against the red dragon's side as he turned to approach Max. “Ah, hello there, Ves Ven. How are you doing this evening?"

Max's jaw dropped at the audacity of the question; the incredulity shared on the red-scaled dragon's face. He couldn't let it show, however, his plan required that he lay on the guilt as much as possible, “I feel like I've been hit by a truck. What just happened?"

“Ah. Well, you see…" The dragon's tail was swishing erratically behind him. There was no hiding that dragon's feelings, he wore his heart on his sleeve, or on his paw? The analogy didn't work as well with unclothed species. “We may have been travelling in these halls faster than is strictly allowed… And you may have stepped into my path before I could slow down." He paused, contemplating his words. “Which may have caused you to go flying into the wall here."

The red dragon slapped his tail against the far wall. “Have your brains leaked completely out of your oversized earholes? Policy dictates you must take responsibility and apologize!"

The yellow dragon huffed in frustration. “The Wingdrake didn't ask who was responsible, he asked what had happened, which is exactly what I said."

“It's now clear to me why your performance in Human Civics is so poor."

“Why would you bring that up now?" The dragon turned back to its companion again. “My grades in Human Civics were only bad because I tried to use your scratchings to study. How was I supposed to know you were busy drawing rather than taking notes?"

Max was once again left in disappointed shock as, for the second time in less than five minutes, the pair of dragons were bickering about who knows what when his injured body remained on the ground less than a meter away. Just how oblivious were these dragons? He felt vindicated in his assumptions against them.

Realizing that they'd probably continue arguing for hours or until he cut them off again, Max used the time to examine the two dragons more closely.

Max's gaze shifted to the farther dragon first; Scurr, was it? He was thankful his memory pre-impact remained intact. The dragon was a bit shorter than its yellow companion and much more lithe. Two large, twisted horns sprouted from the crown of the dragon's head. What stood out the most to Max, however, was the brilliant ruby scales covering the dragon's back. Even in the low light of the hallway, Max could see their shine, almost radiant. He couldn't find a single scratch or smudge on those polished scales. Between that and the dragon's firm posture, Max concluded that this was clearly a dragon that cared deeply about its appearance, likely part of an important Slate. Scurr had large, leathery wings tucked onto his sides and a long tail with a tapered end that rhythmically thumped against the ground as he argued with his companion.

Eassic, the larger of the two dragons and the one who had sent him flying, had dull yellow scales covering his large body. Many scratches and skewed scutes decorated his hide, more than he'd expect to see. Even his wings seemed 'bent' in some places under their considerable muscle. A set of six stout symmetrical horn stumps lined the sides of his head while a line of narrower spikes followed his spine down to the tail. The dragon was still shorter than Max was, he guessed the dragon would be a few inches under six foot, but as with all dragons, was much longer. The dragon's tail was oddly short, seeming to come to an abrupt stub rather than the usual pointed end. Eassic was bulkier than the average dragon Max sees around campus, clearly putting more of his time into fitness than his classes.

The pair continued their argument as Max observed with a perverse curiosity. He really should get things moving, but also wanted to know how long they'd go on for before they remembered he existed.

However, his annoyance quashed the idea when Eassic's tail began to slap his bruised side in time with his arguments. His inclination to sit and watch would only go so far, and enough was enough. He clapped his hand on the ground.

“I have half a mind to report the both of you to the dean!"

The reaction was immediate. Both dragons quieted immediately and scrambled forward into seated postures with their attentions hard focused on Max. They looked like oversized dogs, he thought.

“First," He pointed at Eassic, “you tackle me hard enough to send me flying into a wall for some reason you can't explain." He squinted as antagonistically as he could and pointed at Scurr, “Then the two of you get lost in argument not once, but twice! And you still haven't even checked to see if I'm okay!" Max took a deep breath, both dragons looked fearful, finally realizing how deep of a hole they'd dug themselves into.

“You're lucky I'm not permanently hurt." He could see the muscles in their limbs relax slightly. “But it's going to be difficult for me to teach my lab in the morning with all these bruises."

Eassic blurted out “You're not a freshy? It's so hard to tell with your kind." The red dragon's eyes widened, ignoring his companion's words. “You're a professor?" His voice was panicked.

“No, I am a graduate student assisting a professor. I run the labs on Thursdays for first-year students learning human medicine." He could see the relief spread across Scurr's features; he was clearly one who put great weight in titles.

“Don't think for a moment that I don't pull weight just because I'm not on tenure, I will escalate this if I don't get some answers soon. What the hell were the two of you thinking?"

Scurr spoke quickly, seemingly to prevent Eassic from saying something stupid. He spoke with a smooth, almost posh voice. “It is clear that we weren't thinking. In our haste, we have wronged you greatly Ves Ven. For that, you have my deepest apologies." The dragon bowed his head deeply with his eyes closed, chin resting on the floor.

After a short moment, he cracked his eye open to look at Eassic, then slapped him roughly with his tail before returning to his bowed position. “You have our deepest apologies."

Eassic got the message, “Ah, yeah. You have my apologies High-Wingdrake. As much as I don't want to, I will take full responsibility for our actions." He bowed in a similar prostration to Scurr.

Max sighed. He wasn't sure what to do next. He had finally gotten an apology out of the dragons. Frankly, it was a much more honest and powerful apology than he was expecting from the pair. He assumed they would start to give excuses like they did in their arguments, but instead he was given an apology like none he'd experienced.

“I don't know what the two of you were up to," he lied, “but this is the place where I spend most of my day learning. I don't want to feel like I need to check every corner so I don't get tackled because a couple of dragons want to use the medical sciences building hallways as a derby track." He emphasized the name, hoping the irony wouldn't be lost on them. “Now, could you get your heads off the ground so we can talk normally?"

The dragons paused before raising their heads with uncertain looks, clearly this wasn't procedure for a dragon's apology.

“Good. I want to let you know that I won't be reporting this, it's your lucky day. BUT you're going to have to explain to me why you were in such a rush and promise not to let such a thing happen here again."

Eassic spoke first. “Oh, that's a relief, I knew you were a good Wingdrake!"

Max shook his head, no longer surprised by the yellow dragon's outbursts. “Don't push your luck."

The dragon looked embarrassed, “Sorry. Well, we were in a bit a chase, err… a race!" Eassic seemed proud of that correction, still unaware that Max had pieced together the story already. “Scurr here is just too slow, and I didn't want to leave him behind, so we decided to take a shortcut through this building. We just, uh, maybe didn't think it through enough."

Scurr narrowed his eyes at his companion, “Not nearly enough." He hissed. “It is both of our first years at the Krall-Andersson Technical Institute, but that is no excuse for ignoring the regulations required of us."

Ah, so they were freshmen, or maybe freshdrakes would be more fitting? He thought idly. Max knew they were still pulling his leg, but the details of their chase mattered less to him than the fact that it was over. The two dragons still didn't know that he orchestrated the collision from the get-go, so he considered them even.

“Well, I'm happy you see what you did wrong. You're really going to have to be more careful, if I got seriously hurt, the consequences could've been pretty bad. But, let's consider the matter with me resolved, eh? I'll just have to suffer a limp for the next few days." He saw Scurr cringe at that. Max could see he had a core of integrity, even through all this. “I'll manage just fine, but there's still the matter of the gashes on the tile here. The two of you are going to need to come clean to the admin about that and pay for repairs."

The two dragons looked confused.

Max tapped his foot against the deep scratches in the floor. Four sets of three scrapes were deeply etched into the tiled floor. Clearly made by a set of claws, but also clearly much too small for the large paws of either of the two dragons he wanted to pin the repairs on. He hoped that at least one of them would accept this as an out to their main transgression.

“When you attempted to slow down, it seems that your claws tore up the floor. Another good reason not to go running indoors."

“But we weren't the ones who –"

Scurr slapped the yellow dragon with his tail, “What my Wingdrake here meant to say is that we will most certainly take responsibility, but we do not know who to speak to regarding this matter to make the proper amends."

“You'll have to come back in the morning, but you can go to the office in room 104A just down the hall where you came from. The secretary can tell you what to do, but you'll have to come up with some excuse for how it happened if you don't want them to know it involved a human getting tackled into a wall." They nodded their heads eagerly, both drinking up the wisdom from their upperclassman as if it were ambrosia. “I'll be checking in with them in the evening to make sure you two have dealt with it."

He focused on the two of their faces to see if there was any sign of defiance, but they were both seemingly relived that the floor was the only problem they had to be responsible for. He did want to push just a little bit more guilt their way for good measure. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to limp my way back to my bed and try to sleep this pain away."

Max turned to begin his long trek back to his apartment but underestimated just how badly he was hurting. His knees buckled as he got used to the soreness in his limbs but caught himself before he fell completely over. He questioned why he decided to go through with this in the first place. Max couldn't let the weakness show too obviously and with a grunt began walking once again.

Scurr quickly offered to walk him back to his apartment, but Max waved the offer away saying he'd rather walk alone, a “human thing" he said. Without a farewell, Max left the pair to their silence.

Or it would have been silence if they didn't start up another argument about who'd be footing the bill as he pushed the exit doors open. First-years, huh.

The cold fall air greeted Max with a sharp grasp, a cool breeze sending pins into already throbbing bruises. As much as he was proud that he was able to help that smaller dragon out, with his adrenaline gone, he was doubly regretting the way in which he did so.

As Max shuffled himself across campus, he wondered what exactly had come over him. Sure, he had suffered years of bullying and knew the challenges that brough him. But he persisted and followed his ambitions through trial after painstaking trial, finally making it into one of the most prestigious labs at one of the most prestigious universities in the world. If he could do it, so could others.

But if he believed that, why did he feel differently today?

Max had always stuck to himself and a large catalogue of books for company, never really finding strong connections with his peers. He didn't have anyone looking out for him and he wasn't looking out for anyone else, which was fine in his books. Maybe it was the conversation that he had with Dr. Froitte that left him unsettled. His mind's absence of an answer to the professor's challenge must have pushed him outside of his usual behaviour, lucky day for that little dragon.

Speaking of, Max wondered if the black dragon was alright, they sure didn't have much time to exchange pleasantries when it was sprinting past him. He just couldn't shake the feeling he got seeing it in that state. The wide pupils, the open mouth panting through clumsily panicked steps. He was half-sure the small dragon hadn't even noticed him. It was terrified.

And he was hurting, bad.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice his body slowing down. It was trying its best to keep him moving as his mind drifted, but his muscles were at their limits. Max was halfway back home, but he'd already been trudging along campus for half an hour. It usually took him a crisp twenty minutes to get back.

Spotting a nearby bench, he made his way over and basically melted into the wooden boards, dropping his bag onto the cold ground. “Adrenaline is a bitch to lose." He thought aloud, cursing that the panic power couldn't have lasted him a few minutes longer. Not once in his life had he felt more drained.

Max let his head fall back against the bench and stared up at the early night sky. Thousands of bright stars stared back, glowing in appreciation for his good deeds, or so he liked to think. He had never taken the time to really appreciate the campus he got to call home. Having grown up in a suburb near a major city center, there was enough light pollution to drown the sun out.

But here he was, laying exhausted on a bench, seeing the true night sky for the first time in his life. It was beautiful. He huffed a laugh to himself, coughing from the soreness it brought. It was ironic, after resisting for so long, the first step he took outside of his comfort zone had already rewarded him with this.

Just what else was he missing out on?

A more comfortable bed was the only response he could think of for now. His mind didn't have enough energy left to contemplate anything else.

He had to get moving again, his body wanted to start its healing process and he was delaying that every second he laid on this bench. Max could barely force himself to right himself, he knew that the latter half of his trip home wouldn't be happening without some support.

“Ah!" He exclaimed, realizing he could use his retractable umbrella as a makeshift cane to help push himself the rest of the way. Bending over with a grunt, he unzipped his backpack and blindly reached around for the familiar shape of his cane-to-be. Finding the soft plastic cover, he grabbed hold and pulled it out.

When he flicked the switch to open it up, instead of extending out to its usual length, the umbrella simply fell apart and the top flew off a few feet from the release of the springs.

“Shit."

He realized that his trusty umbrella had suffered a worse fate than he did since he used the contents of his bag as an impact cushion. Oh no.

“Nononononononono! Damn it!" He reached back into his bag to find most of his things bent or broken. In particular, his laptop (with his lesson plans) had a new and distinct bend right down the middle where his umbrella had been sitting. The only thing on him that remained untouched was his phone which somehow escaped the carnage.

The realization set the pain in his body off again and Max groaned. His joints were throbbing, his muscles were strained beyond anything he'd felt before, his possessions smashed, and his mind still in strife over why the hell he did this in the first place. The only thing he could do was to lie down across the bench again. Max pressed his hands against his eyes and rubbed away the moisture that began to gather there.

His body noticed before his mind did, but he was stranded. Not only physically, but he had nobody he could call on for help. The only contacts on his phone outside his family (who lived over a thousand kilometers away) were Dr. Froitte and the local Chinese delivery joint, and neither of those seemed like prime candidates to help him home late at night.

For the first time in years, Max felt alone and it scared him.

Through the brutal soreness and far-running thoughts, he didn't notice the pair of sharp red eyes approaching the bench where he lay.

Minutes passed in silence as they examined him from the shadows beyond the streetlight before their owner stepped closer.

“Excuse me, are you Max Hein?"

Max shot up, regretting it immediately as he held his back with a pained gasp. “W-who's there?" He asked through shaky breath. He didn't register the black-scaled dragon sitting a few feet back from the light. The darkness washed over its scales, making it near invisible.

Getting no response, Max began to panic and tried to stand up only to painfully fall to his knees on the concrete path. He grunted tried to twist himself as his momentum carried his down onto his side. With his head now at ground level, he flinched as he finally saw the dragon who lurched forward into the light.

He was dazed, delirious, and unsure if he was going to be attacked again.

Max shut his eyes, preparing for another tackle or worse, but only silence came, which was only broken by his own pained breaths.

Slowly reopening his eyes, Max was met with a pair of wide, slitted, red eyes flushed with… worry?

“I'm sorry, I- I'm not supposed to… Are you hurt?"

Oh boy, was he ever. But Max held his words. He realized that this dragon was none other than the victim from the earlier chase; it had apparently sought him out. His curiosity burned his adrenaline drives back into working order as he spoke with a steady tone.

“You could say that. But forget about me, are you okay? I'm pretty sure I saw you being chased by some big brutes back in the med-sci building."

Max finally caught enough of his breath to sit on the concrete ground and got a good look at the dragon. It was certainly smaller than any dragon he'd seen. Its head rested at the same height as his while he sat, and the thing was barely longer than Max was tall. The dragon was covered in midnight black scales that glimmered under the street light.

Max awaited a response from the dragon which just stared back at him, mouth open slightly, seemingly unable to find its words. A long row of serrated, dangerous-looking teeth lined its gums. It swallowed and closed its mouth. The dragon's large red eyes kept snapping between his own and the visible bruises on his arms.

He realized that this creature might just be less social than he was and he probably needed to ease into that conversation.

“Maybe we need to take a step back." He pushed himself into a criss-cross position with strength he didn't have. “My name is Max, but you apparently knew that already." He chuckled. “What can I call you?"

“Um…Pleased to meet you… Uh… Max. You may call me-" His voice was nervous, and he stopped himself short of introducing himself. Max simply gave the dragon time, trying his best to hold a warm smile through his soreness. He watched the dragon steel himself before meeting his own eyes. It spoke quietly, almost at a whisper, “Please call me Kal."

The dragon flinched as he spoke his own name, which confused Max greatly, there was something off about it, but he wouldn't pry.

“Nice to meet you." Max avoided the dragon's name, fearing it might be a sore spot for him. “Now that we're properly introduced, I hope you see I don't bite." He smiled in a toothy grin, but winced as he found that his jaw wasn't safe from his early beating. Oddly enough, Kal winced with him.

“I knew it, you are hurt much worse than you have let on. Grahk, it is all my fault! I apologize for causing you such harm. I- I will come forward and accept any punishment from the University to atone." Kal sighed and his head dropped to look at the ground.

“Woah, hold your horses there." The dragon's eyes shot up to meet his, confusion plastered across his bony eye ridges. “We've just barely met. You can't go blaming yourself for something that happened to me."

“But Eassic and Scurr were on my tail. I made the decision to run through that building. I put you in danger and you were hurt because of it." He spoke strongly.

Max tapped Kal on the nose, causing the dragon to recoil in shock. “I noticed. But you might have been too busy running with your tail between your legs to notice that I also made a decision to step in to stop that chase. I've been in your shoes before."

“Shoes?" The dragon looked between Max's shoes and his own bare paws.

“Ah, that's maybe more of a human saying… What I meant is that I know what it feels like to be in a situation like that. I know what can happen if you don't get help, so I decided to help."

“Your logic is not sound, why would you? Not a moment ago, you said I shouldn't blame myself because we had just met, but you nearly killed yourself for my safety before we exchanged names!"

“I guess I'm a hypocrite then." Max sighed, he couldn't even answer that question in his own mind, why did he risk his neck for this dragon in the first place. No matter his mental turmoil, he couldn't bring himself to answer any other way. “But I think I can live with that if it means stopping shit like that from happening. I'll just have to figure out how to do it in a less painful way next time."

Max laughed, and coughed, and let himself fall onto his back when the pain from both overcame his power to sit straight. He felt grounded with his weight settling into the pavement. He surely wouldn't be moving from this spot on his own, but he was happy to let his words ruminate in his and Kal's minds.

“That's idiotic." Kal said quietly.

“Huh? You'll have to talk a bit louder, my ears are still ringing a bit from the whole deal."

“I said, you're an idiot." The dragon spoke louder as he walked over next to Max's head. It leaned over, maw hovering a foot above his own face. “But I would be remiss if I did not thank you properly. It was… nice to have someone see my situation that way, even if it was a coincidence."

“Well, if you really want to thank me, I would love some help getting home. As much as I wanted to hide it, I'm in really bad shape here."

Kal tapped Max on the nose with the back of a claw. “I noticed."

Cheeky. Max was happy that the dragon had a good sense of humour once he got past his earlier nerves.

Kal turned and spoke what Max assumed was the draconic language off into the distance. He couldn't understand a word of it, but flinched as a strong wingbeat suddenly pushed dust into his eyes. He couldn't see as he tried his best to clear his eyes, but could tell a larger dragon had just landed nearby.

“If that is all, I will have one of my Slate's assistants carry you to your destination, I will bring your bag." The humour was gone from his voice, the dragon had returned to a more serious, almost posh tone.

Max's eyes finally regained their sight as a large paw easily lifted him from the ground. He yelped as he came face-to-face with a gruff green dragon who didn't look too pleased.

“Umm, hi?"

The dragon simply huffed hot air onto his face before pulling Max behind him with a massive forepaw. The ground lost contact with his feet as he was unceremoniously lifted onto the dragon's back. The treatment made his soreness pulse, but he was thankful to get help. The large dragon spoke in draconic to Kal who replied in kind for short conversation before looking back to Max.

“Where exactly would do you require transport to Max Hein?" The sudden formality definitely bugged him. He wanted to ask about it, but his desire to get home was stronger; it would be a question for another time.

“Just a few more blocks down the way I was headed, 266 West Andersson Lane."

The words had barely left his mouth before the large dragon he rested upon stretched its wings, jostling him slightly. Max could only stare as the dragon's massive wings stretched into a wingspan many times his height. The heavily-muscled limb stretched the leathery membranes, Max watched with curiosity as the street light illuminated the many veins hidden within.

Kal quickly snapped a rude-sounding burst a draconic its way and the dragon fit its expansive wings back onto its sides. The larger dragon hissed in annoyance and Max felt the same, not having enough time to really examine the wings. Without further argument, the dragon began the trip to Max's home on the ground.

The journey continued in silence as his 'ride' stiffly walked with Max on his back, claws clicking rhythmically on the sidewalk. Max tried his best to sit still, but could only really find balance by laying flat on his stomach staring out back the way they came. He watched as Kal looked through his bag as he walked behind the larger dragon. He allowed the small dragon to have his curiosity, everything in there was ruined anyways.

It only took a few minutes before they reached the townhouse where Max got to stay.

Max's not-so-humble abode was larger than he really needed. Two floors, a full kitchen, three bathrooms, and even a guest bedroom. A perk of his scholarship that he didn't have to live in a shoebox apartment or have to share some space with a roommate.

“Hm, I thought humans lived in smaller hovels." Kal exclaimed.

“You can thank the university for that." He was too tired to rise to the jab. Max tapped his ride on the back. “And I can thank you for carrying me back, I was really in a pickle."

The larger dragon huffed and lowered his shoulder, allowing him to slide off. It spoke in broken English as Max gently stepped onto the ground. “Only pickles I like… Belong in stomach." Max chuckled, appreciating the dragon's attempt at humour. At least he hoped it was humour since in different circumstances, he was probably small enough to be prey to the creature.

Max regretting thinking about it as the dragon flashed him a toothy grin. Kal quickly dismissed his assistant before Max could ponder the thought more.

“I apologize, he has a particularly dry sense of humour and isn't very fond of your kind."

“So, he was joking about eating me, huh?"

“Joking… Perhaps it would be best if we said so."

“I'm choosing to ignore that." Max fished his keys from his pant pocket and cracked the lock on his door, eager to be at home after the events of the day.

“Well, thanks for getting me back, I'll consider us equal, eh?" Max said as he pushed open his front door open, cringing as he realized his place needed to be cleaned rather badly.

He was shocked when Kal pushed past his legs and let himself into the townhouse. “I would bring shame to my Slate if I considered having an assistant carry you four blocks proper recompense."

“Really, I mean it. It's not a big deal."

“Is my safety worth so little to you? I understand you wish to put this matter behind you, but what you perceive as kindness would be a great insult to a dragon."

Ah shit. Max remembered learning that dragons were transactional, but he didn't know just how important it was to them. It looks like he wasn't going to be getting to sleep quickly.

Kal sat on his hindquarters, staring intently at Max as he was caught at a loss in the entryway of his own home.

Max sighed. “Alright. Fine. This seems to be more important for you to resolve than it is for me to get to sleep quickly."

The dragon nearly bounced, a happy grin curving the sides of his maw towards his horns. Kal hopped to his feet. “It is. Now that you understand, I must thank you once again Ves Ven." Kal bowed his head slightly and extended one wing behind him in a formal gesture that seemed weighty.

The formality sent Kal's wingtip right into the side of a vase on the table behind him. Max watched as a jumble of black scales tried to maneuver from a prostrated position to one capable of catching the toppling urn. In his haste, Kal only managed to get caught on his own wing and faceplant right next to where the vase shattered on the hard floor.

“Grahk. The debt grows deeper." The dragon pouted.

Max laughed, ignoring the sad look on the dragon's face. “Would it be worse if I told you that was a gift from my mom?"

The vase wasn't particularly important. It was a gift from his mom, along with all the other junk she wanted out of the house when he moved to university. It held as much sentimental value as a burned-out lightbulb, but he enjoyed that Kal didn't know that just yet.

It was a little cruel, but he was far too exhausted and sore to be politically polite.

“That would be much worse if I heard what you said, but I'm afraid your laughter made me shut my ears in shame."

“I'm happy your sense of humour has come back." Max grabbed a broom from the entry closet and began sweeping up the shards of ceramic. Kal tried to help by pushing the pieces with his claws, but backed off when that proved ineffective. He opened his mouth to speak, but Max cut him off.

“Before you mention your debt to me again, this vase was junk. I only had it here because I was too lazy to get rid of it, so in some sense, you've helped me get that process started."

Kal grunted.

“Well, if you don't buy that story, you can always stay in debt to me longer…"

“If I must endure more of your verbal teasing to pay off the debt, so be it. But I may face insanity before I'm a free dragon once again."

“I'd prefer you stay sane if I have any say in it. But before I get ahead of myself, I think we should start by talking this out since I have a lot of questions I want answered. I also need to get off my feet or my back will never recover, so let's sit down, eh?"

Max left the garbage bag with the remnants of the vase behind and shuffled over to his sofa where he flopped unceremoniously onto his back. The old springs creaked as he settled in, finally getting to relax his muscles. He watched as Kal followed silently behind. Despite the dragon's bulk, he moved silently, almost feline in his elegant motions.

Kal watched Max flop onto the couch and examined the room for a good place for himself. Max winced as he eyed a comfy looking chair. The sound was not lost to the dragon.

“I will mind my claws; I have caused enough damage for one day."

Kal gracefully hopped up onto the cushioned chair before adjusting himself into a curled sitting position. “This chair is surprisingly comfortable. I assumed by the state of your abode that it would be in poorer care."

“Ha, even if I'm a bit messy, I still need a comfy place to sit after a day of academic pursuits."

“Or tackling dragons." Kal whispered under his breath.

“Huh?"

“I am just mumbling to myself, did you not express interest in questioning me?"

“When you put it like that, it sounds kind of cruel. But yes, there have been a couple things on my mind, and it seems like you're obligated to shoot some answers my way." Kal nodded. “For starters, I noticed your demeanour changed when your 'assistant' came to help out. Your sense of humour disappeared pretty quick and it rubbed me the wrong way. Any reason for that?"

Kal shifted uncomfortably in the chair. “It was not my intention to insult, but I have expectations to act a certain way. I mentioned that he didn't think very highly of humans, but that is a more common perception among my Slate than not. I don't share those beliefs." The edge of his maw curled up into a sarcastic smile, “It just so happens to be a coincidence that dragons are superior in most cases."

Max raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? Then what's with the stick up your ass when your kind is near?"

“Well- I- Grahk." The colour washed from the dragon's expression, his eyes and avoiding contact with Max's. “It damages me to say so, but I am already disgracing my Slate enough, I must hold my appearance until I can resolve my current dilemma. Which I assume you understand already."

“Understand what? I feel like I'm missing something here."

Kal's eyes shot to Max's, searching for any sign of sarcasm. “Do you truly not understand my situation?" Kal hopped off the chair and walked closer to where Max laid down. “You do not see anything off with my appearance that might be of concern?" His voice had an increasing level of tension and he unfurled his wings to emphasize… something.

Max was taken aback by how severe this seemed to be for the dragon. “Uh… No?"

Kal broke away and paced to the kitchen and back on repeat, muttering imperceptible draconic phrases to himself.

“Hey. Um. If I'm completely honest, I don't really know much about dragons at all. I lived without seeing one most of my life and have only spoken with a few in my years here. So, I'm a little behind on knowledge about your customs, or anything really."

The dragon didn't seem to hear, or just ignored Max as he padded along the tile floor.

“Hey Kal." The dragon stopped suddenly. “It seems like I'm opening Pandora's Box here, so could you come sit down again, I can't talk to you while you're over there. If you don't want to discuss this, that's okay. I have other questions I wanted you to answer."

Kal's slitted eyes were wide, he was clearly distressed. He stared at Max, pleading almost imperceptibly. Max motioned to the chair again. Kal sighed and took a long breath before returning to the cushioned chair.

“I apologize once again. I- I know I am in your debt already, but may I request some time to gather my thoughts before I explain these things to you?"

“Of course, I'm equally clueless about this debt thing so you can ignore how important it is for the meantime."

Kal paused. Then he exhaled. Then came the laughter. A heartily and deep sound that resonated with Max's bones and pushed the dragon onto his side. Max couldn't help but join in. It seemed ridiculous, but the energy was contagious. Max's aching muscles furthered their soreness as he tried to contain himself, but failed to stop the bubbling giggles.

After what seemed like an eternity, they were able to regather their composures.

“You are an interesting creature, Max Hein. I make a request to you at my lowest point, by all means you should have refused and punished my impudence. But you counter with a joke to lighten my spirits."

“This whole thing started because I thought you were getting bullied. Seeing how me getting involved turned out, I'm not itching to start that process over again."

The pair continued to chat about odds and ends, leaving Max's burning questions for another time. Max spoke of his childhood, from living in the city and his transition to Krall-Andersson Tech under scholarship with Dr. Froitte. Kal absorbed every word, head leaning over the gap between their seats.

Kal explained his area of study and his struggles with fitting in at the university. He eluded vaguely that it was different to his home growing up, but promised to explain in more detail next time. The dragon slowly opened up to him, with more of his witty humour coming through the more they spoke. The two continued late into the night joking and getting to know each other better, leaving the events of the day behind, before Max officially called it an end.

“It's getting pretty late. I don't mean to cut this short, but I do have classes in the morning which having no sleep for would be a problem." He stood shakily, having regained enough strength from the earlier incident. Kal nodded and hopped down to move to the door.

“Ha, for as 'superior' as you dragons are, I think you might have pissed yourself laughing."

Kal looked confused before spotting the small wet spot on the chair where he was sat. Panic overtook him. “Grahk! I am sorry, I-" He exhaled and calmed himself. “I am going to assume by your jovial nature that this is another matter you have no clue about."

“Not in the slightest."

“Somehow, it seems that you were able to lower my guard far enough that I could relax here. My body on instinct must have marked your chair. It is something only done in one's own home or as an act of war. Any dragon can smell such as mark and doing this in another's territory would be cause to have my wings removed."

“So, you felt at home here, eh?"

Kal looked around sheepishly before nodding slowly. “Yes, it would seem so. Along with the rest of your things, I will have another chair brought here so you can incinerate that one."

“Woah there, my inferior human nose can't smell a thing, and I happen to like that chair. And what's this about my things?"

“I saw your belongings were shattered in your bag, so I tasked one of my Slate's assistants to replace them by the morning. I will just have them add that chair to the list, it is not a problem."

Max knelt down to Kal's eye level. “Thank you for the offer, but you said yourself we have more to talk about, right? So that can just be your chair when you come back next time, alright?"

Kal's tail waved like a dog behind him as blood flushed his face. “Time after time, you have given me more kindness than I deserve. My debt to you is one I will repay in earnest and more. Thank you."

Max patted the dragon between his horns. “You can get started by getting the heck out of my home so I can sleep."

Kal chuckled “Very well. But I will return tomorrow with answers to all your questions."

Max opened the latch on the front door. “I'm looking forward to it. Good night, Kal."

He could feel the dragon's smooth scales rub against his legs as Kal squeezed past him to exit his home. Kal looked back and smiled one last time before trotting to a sprint and flying away without a sound. Black scales shrouded Kal, his form disappearing into the night within a few beats of his wings.

Max clicked the door closed and slid to the ground with his back up against it. He had just spent four hours talking with a dragon in his home after he got involved in a conflict well above his weight class. He ached like a demon, had no computer for the next day's classes, and was awake well past his usual sleeping hour.

And yet, he felt alive. Max's satisfied smile stuck on his face as he got prepped to sleep and stayed even as he drifted into his subconscious.

The next morning, Max slept through his first two alarms, just barely wrenching himself awake before needing to leave. He skipped a morning shower, grabbed a granola bar to-go, and nearly burst through his front door. There was a new backpack laying outside against the railing.

Max recalled Kal saying he was going to have some thing replaced, but was surprised to see newer and more powerful models of his electronics resting inside. He mumbled a quiet thankyou to the air and whipped the bag on his still-sore shoulders.

The rest of the day passed without much issue. His body still hadn't recovered, and wouldn't probably for another few days, but he powered through all of his classes and the lab he helped teach. The only person to notice anything off was Dr. Froitte, who asked if something was different with him today.

“I've been thinking a lot about what we talked about yesterday, professor."

“Is that so? You look like you got some answers beat out of you." The professor laughed.

Max rubbed the one visible bruise on his cheek. “Yeah… Well you could say that." The professor raised a curious eyebrow. “But I wanted to ask, do you still have a seat in your dragon physiology class?"

Dr. Froitte smiled warmly. “No. But you could stand at the back if you'd like to listen in."

---

Thank you all for reading this intro to a longer series I hope to continue! While this one was safe for all ages, the next entries may become more spicy as Kal and Max get to know each other better. Stay tuned, and please leave a comment to let me know if you like the pair (or where you'd like them to go next)!

Glossary of Terms

Slate – A formal term for a dragon's 'family.' Dating back to when dragon tribes would track their lineage on massive slates of obsidian.

Grahk – A simple exclamation for dragons, akin to “Shit!" or “Fuck!"

Setni Jehk – An exclamation for dragons when they believe they've been insulted, akin to “what the fuck did you just say?"

Kekin Durhoo – An insult for a dragon, roughly translated to “Fecal wyrm"

Ves Ven – The formal dragon address towards a human