FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

It was the rainiest day the desert city had seen in a long while. Giant pillars of dark-gray clouds came from over the sea and swept the sand in the air with some powerful gales that ripped through the streets, followed by torrents of heavy rain. Blade, a dragon hatchling not even a year old, cowered beneath an abandoned cart, trembling and whimpering. His feathers were soaked, he was cold, and he was starving.

His parents had abandoned him not long after he was born--a death sentence for a feral hatchling in this city. If natural causes didn't kill him, the two-legs would. For months, Blade had clung to life by dodging the two-legs that he could and scrounging by on the barest necessities, but his luck was soon coming to an end.

Blade curled up in the tightest little ball he could to keep warm, but with it being the middle of the night, the desert's air was almost frigid. The city's sandstone walls and buildings hardly provided any protection for the strong gusts of wind that battered him beneath the cart.

His black and gold feathers were unkempt, matted, and strewn about every direction. What were once bright, golden eyes were now dull, yellow spheres with little to no life left in them. His gaunt body looked grotesque, especially now that his fluffy feathers were wetted down.

Blade weakly looked around from under the cart. There were still some legs quickly ambling about up and down the street, seeming to be looking for shelter. He sighed meekly and closed his eyes. His heart beat faintly in his chest, and his head swam with a dull, icy pain. His limbs were numb, and he wasn't able to feel anything. Even he knew he was about to die.

He heard footsteps approaching close to his cart, so he glanced at them. He saw four small, blue, dragon legs walking past, seeming to be struggling against the wind. One paw was different from the rest; it was painted purple instead of blue. Those legs belonged to a male dragonet not much older than him. Blade immediately recognized that as a friendly dragon that could help him, but his squeak died in his throat and he quietly wheezed.

The paws stopped. Blade tried to squeak again, but he couldn't get it out. Then a blue head peeked down below the cart to his side. Bright, blue eyes that seemed to glow in the darkness studied him curiously. Blade turned his head and tried to reach out to the young dragonet, but he turned and quickly padded away.

Fear gripped Blade and he felt tears streaming down his cheeks. That was his last chance to survive... He shivered and sobbed until he couldn't anymore. He didn't want to die. His eyes felt heavier and heavier. He tried to fight it. He tried to fight death.

But Blade lost.

Blade wasn't sure how much time had truly passed, but when he opened his eyes again, he was wrapped in scraps and rags stitched together to make a blanket. Behind him was that blue and purple dragonet holding him closely against his warm body, his delicate, purple wings lain over his flanks. Blade didn't understand why he came back, but he couldn't have been more elated. His eyes languidly drifted closed again.

This time when he woke, the dragonet was gone, but he left the blanket for Blade. The rain had stopped, and the bright sun was rising over the eastern horizon, bringing warmth back to the land. Blade's stomach ached and growled painfully as the scent of raw meat wafted into his nostrils. He winced and groaned, clutching his stomach until the pain subsided.

Then he saw a hunk of meat just a few inches away from him. He didn't even question it. He scrambled for it and ravenously devoured every bit of it, even the sand stuck to the flesh. It was the best meal he had ever had! When Blade had finished, he flopped onto his back and sighed with satisfaction. Already, he could feel the life flowing back into him. He became more alert, and his eyes started to search for the dragonet that had saved his life. He wanted to thank him somehow. Even though he couldn't even speak properly, he knew that it was the proper thing to do. He was grateful.

But to his dismay, that mysterious dragonet was nowhere to be seen. Blade sighed and stayed there for another hour or two, hoping that he would show up again. It wasn't long before Blade realized how thirsty he was. His mouth was as dry as the sand. He finally stood up, his limbs shaking a bit before he regained his balance, and started walking.

"Not gonna thank me?" a small voice said behind him.

Blade whirled around and saw that blue and purple dragonet peering at him from inside the cart. He leaned over the edge as he stood up on his hind legs.

A giant, toothy grin spread Blade's lips, and his golden-feathered crest between his nubby horns flared awkwardly--he didn't have very good control over it yet. He squeaked happily and immediately climbed up into the cart with him. He struggled to find latches for his claws, but he ascended it in no time.

"H- Hey... I no say you come up here," the dragonet protested, but Blade didn't care. He hugged the him tightly, wrapping his wings around him. The dragonet squeaked, but he didn't fight the embrace. Instead, he lightly hugged Blade back, seeming to be glad that Blade was still alive.

That was how Blade met Akir.

---

Blade ran as fast as his little legs could carry him through the crowded streets, carrying a large fish almost as big as his body between his teeth. He ducked beneath stalls, weaved around people's knees as they ambled about, and took as many turns around corners as he could to escape the evil fishmonger. For the fat, tub of lard he was, he sure could run fast!

Blade swerved around another corner and nearly dropped his prized fish, but he managed to hold to it on until his white claws sunk into the ground and caught his balance. He huffed and squeaked to himself as encouragement to propel his tiny, feathered body forward until he was at full-sprint again, bounding down the next dusty street. He heard the fat man yelling at him to stop, but that was the last thing he would do! His paws padded quickly against the sandy street, kicking up the loose sand as he scrambled.

After another turn into an alley, Blade was sure that he lost the persistent cart-owner. He glanced behind him to see if he was still being followed and quickly confirmed that he wasn't. Thump!

Blade meeped as he crashed into a sandstone wall. He grumbled and rubbed his snout; his nose ached painfully. He shook his head and blinked to get rid of the tears before grabbing his fish. He was about to eagerly dig into his meal, but then he heard someone coming up behind him.

He squeaked again. It was the fat man! He stroked his long, straggly beard with a menacing grin curling his stupid, human lips. Blade's head and eyes darted back and forth, looking for an escape, but the man blocked his path completely. The little dragonet back up against the wall while hugging his fish protectively.

"You thought you could get away with stealing my fish, you little rat?"

"I not rat!" Blade growled viciously... or so he thought, but the man found his retort rather humorous. Blade flashed him his sharp, tiny teeth threateningly and flared his golden-feathered crest at the top of his head between his two stubby horns. "I dragon!"

The man laughed and stepped toward Blade intimidatingly, like a monster looking to prey on the weak. The black-feathered dragonet was only about as tall as the man's thighs... maybe if he aimed well, he could strike a very sensitive spot...

But then a scarier roar sounded from above Blade. A young, blue and purple scaled dragon hopped down from the rooftop and landed between the dragonet and the man. He elicited a vicious, bloodcurdling growl. His tail flicked side to side as he stared the man down and soon scared him away. The young dragon was twice Blade's size, so he was twice as terrifying! The man turned and ran like a scared mutt with its tail tucked between its legs.

"Akir!" Blade shouted happily and ran up to his life-long friend.

But Akir whipped around and snapped his teeth at Blade. "What are you doing!?"

Blade meeped and shrunk back with a guilty expression. "N- Nothin'..."

Akir growled at him and plucked the fish from his claws. "Nothing? Then why was the fishmonger chasing after you?" he hissed and dangled the fish in front of Blade, waving it back and forth.

Blade squeaked and reached for his fish, but a terse growl made him retract his arms. "I- Is that a ray...tor...ical qu- question?" he asked, trying to use the new word Akir taught him.

Akir sighed and nodded. "I told you not to be stealing!"

Blade pawed at the ground and felt like crying, but he didn't want to in front of Akir. He wanted to be strong, so he had to act strong! He sniffled and shrugged his wings. "I hungry... and you hungry... I- I just wanna help."

Akir sighed again and shook his head disapprovingly. "You let me take care of that..." His stern expression softened as he saw Blade wipe away some of his tears. He gave the fish back to the little dragonet along with a kind nuzzle.

"Besides, if you're out here, then who's the big, strong dragon guarding our home?"

Blade wiggled happily and hugged the large fish against his body again, smiling toothily at Akir with large, golden eyes. "I hurry back!"

Akir smiled at Blade and licked his nose. "I'll take us back. Hold on to your fish! After all that, it'd be a terrible shame if you dropped it."

Blade squeaked excitedly and nodded, holding as tightly as he could to his prize. Akir picked him up and tucked him to his chest with one paw while he used the other three to sprint out of the alley and leap into the sky. After all that excitement, he could feel his tiny heart fluttering in his chest. He felt much safer with Akir, even if they were hundreds of feet in the air!

* * *

Blade had always been the smaller dragon out of the two since he was about a year or two younger than Akir. When they had first met, Akir had already been living on the streets for almost a full year. He, too, had been orphaned at a young age before he had met Blade, though he'd never told Blade what happened to his parents. Anytime Blade would ask, Akir would get depressed and shy him away, so he decided it wasn't worth knowing.

Akir took Blade in and took as good of care of him as he could in the given conditions. Since that fateful, stormy night, Akir was Blade's older brother. Blade wanted nothing more than to be like his purple and blue scaled friend, but Akir didn't want Blade to follow in his pawsteps. Akir was a thief and moreso a bandit as he grew older. He stole to take care of himself and Blade, supplying them with what he could. As Blade grew up with him, he picked up a few things he wasn't supposed to.

It wasn't until many years later that Akir finally accepted Blade's role. Blade was old enough and mature enough to understand what it meant to steal. He knew what the consequences were, especially for a feral dragon living in a two-leg city--death. So, Akir decided to teach him so he wouldn't get caught.

Blade sat on his haunches next to Akir. They were across from a similar fish stall that Blade had stolen from when he was younger, but the man selling the fish was skinnier and had a darker skin-tone. He stood in front of his cart of silver fish, looking for a customer. Crowds of mixed races and species walked between them and their target. It was the busiest time of day in the market district; everyone was out either selling or buying. It was also the hottest time of day when the hot sun beamed down from directly overhead.

"Stealing is a lot harder now that we're older and bigger," Akir said. "But it's still a lot easier with two of us. Remember the plan?"

Blade nodded affirmatively and bared a small smile. "You distract him and I steal some fish?"

"As much as you can fit into that satchel of yours," Akir finished.

Blade patted his ragged leather satchel at his left flank as if to make sure it was still there. Akir had one similar, but his was much nicer. Instead of finding it in the trash like Blade had, he had stolen it from a rather wealthy two-leg.

Akir looked back at Blade as he stepped forward to see if he was ready. Blade nodded and they split apart; Akir stepped up to the fishmonger while Blade circled around behind him. Blade waited until the trader turned his back to him and then quickly padded up behind the cart. There were other merchants around, but they were too busy with their own products to notice a thieving pair of dragons. That, and the crowd was a good cover. Even they were too busy to notice them!

"Hello there," the man said to Akir. "Would you like to purchase one of my fine fish?"

Akir nodded and kept his attention focused on the fishmonger so he wouldn't reveal Blade's position. Blade stood up on his hind legs and quickly started plucking fish from the cart and putting them in his satchel while keeping a close eye on the man. The man turned around to gesture to his cart, so Blade instantly ducked behind it. He pulled his tail in too, realizing that it was poking out.

"How much do your fish cost?" Akir asked, drawing away the trader's attention. Blade immediately sprung back up to grab some more. He slipped them into his satchel, grimacing a bit because they felt very slimy. He'd have to clean his satchel really well after this!

"Five silvers apiece," the merchant replied. "But I know how you dragons love your fish, so I'll give you a deal: three fish for ten silvers!"

Blade was surprised. That was actually a very fair deal, and this man seemed to be rather friendly to Akir. He stopped as his claws twitched uncertainly. An unsettling feeling filled his stomach, so he backed off, deciding that he had taken enough. He felt bad for stealing from this man, seeing how he was one of the few people who at least pretended to be nice to a feral dragon.

He slipped away back to the other side of the street. He weaved through the crowd and made sure that his tail didn't get stepped on. He watched as Akir took the deal and bought three fish. He bared a friendly smile at the man and handed him some silver coins from his satchel. With the fish in his paw, he walked away and rejoined Blade.

"Here," he said and dropped the fish in Blade's bag. "Since you didn't fill your satchel."

Blade frowned. He knew he disappointed Akir, and he felt rather bad about it, but he already felt bad for stealing so many fish from someone who didn't deserve to be stolen from. "S- Sorry, Akir..." His head drooped along with his wings.

Akir sighed and nudged Blade with his purple snout. "It's okay, Blade. We have enough to last us several days."

Blade nodded. Akir turned and started to walk along the side of the street with Blade following behind him.

"Why didn't you take as many as I told you? He was probably the easiest merchant I've ever distracted."

Blade shrugged his wings. "He seemed nice. I felt... bad for stealing from him. It's a lot easier when they're mean."

Akir glanced back at Blade and flashed him a smile. He shook his head with disbelief. "He's a human, Blade. He'll be fine missing a few fish."

They turned into a large street that didn't have very many people walking in it. It was much easier to take to the skies here, where they wouldn't accidentally hit someone or buffet a crowd with their wings. They leapt into the air and unfurled their wings as they flapped them to gain altitude until they were high enough to level off and partially glide.

"I know," Blade continued, "But what if that was the fish he was going to feed his family?"

Akir scowled. "They can go hungry for a day then. We've been through worse."

Blade sighed and nodded, deciding to drop the subject. Instead, he peered down at the city below while they flew home.

The desert city was settled in along the coast of a great sea. Blade had no idea what was on the other side of the horizon, but he fantasized about it sometimes. He heard rumors and such about forests, mountains, grass, and all sorts of plants and flowers that he rarely saw. There was little to no green in the city; the only place he could think to find it was the palace district where they had actual gardens that could survive the desert heat and dust.

There were many districts to the city that divided it up to keep everyone happy. The main issues were the housing districts. Segregation was enforced strongly; the poor were to be housed away from the rich. And all of the ferals lived together in one district, which was known to be the poorest district. There weren't nearly as many four-legs as there were two-legs--they were almost outnumbered ten to one!

Blade and Akir never really had a home anyway. They often found themselves finding new places to sleep at each night, but sometimes they would come across a place they could stay for a few months until someone caught them and forced them out.

This time around, they were staying in the sewers just outside of town that used to drain into the sea. It wasn't used anymore--that or it was clogged up enough that nothing would drain out of it! It was probably the safest home they had had in a long while, since no one could find them. But it was also the smelliest home they ever had. Blade could hardly stand it, and he would sometimes sleep outside just to clear his head. Even though Akir always made fun of him for it, Blade would often wake up to find Akir's comfortable warmth against him.

For the next several years, they had a weekly routine. They would steal together, and it would be a different stall each week. Akir was smart; he devised a rotation they could follow that would keep them from getting caught. One day every week or two they would slice away a few coinbags from people who looked like they could spend less money. That way they had some money to honestly buy stuff too, though they still had to steal enough to sustain them off that meager amount of coin.

So, they used the money to buy a thing or two from the stall they were stealing. That way they would be customers and not thieves--as far as the merchant would know, anyway! Food was easy to come by that way, but water was a bit riskier.

Water was hard to come by without a home. Most homes had a place to store drinking water for weeks, but since they didn't live in a home, they had to steal some nearly every day. Lucky for them, Akir had found where a lot of the richer houses store their water. They kept a large container of sorts in their backyards. All they had to do was drop by, fill up a few of their flasks and canisters, and fly off.

Blade and Akir worked together really well. Their bond was strong like real siblings, so they rarely went off on their own. They were both very experienced with the city, knowing its familiar layout from the sky and from the ground.

Even so, Akir always felt uneasy letting Blade go off on his own. He thought Blade would end up in the prisons or worse--dead. He was over-protective at times, as Blade had told him, so they split up one night in search of food. Blade was excited to go off on his own, but at the same time he felt rather nervous.

Blade wandered around through the dusty backstreets, looking for a bit of food anywhere to satisfy his complaining stomach. He and Akir didn't have much luck today in stealing their food. The merchant had caught them, so they flew off before they could be arrested or beaten.

The sun was hanging in the western horizon, casting an orange glow over the desert city. The smell of the salty sea was strong in Blade's nostrils since he was just a few blocks away from the harbor district. He sifted through some collected trash, but he couldn't find anything edible. Being the young dragon that he was, he wasn't aware that he was walking into dangerous territory.

Any other day, he would have recognized the signs sooner. He was walking through the slums of the east housing district, a district that housed two-legs of all sorts, but of the poor variety. Akir had always warned him to stay away from this area, as the racial tension between those who walked on two legs and those who walked on four legs was intense. Although they were sentient, the four-legged beasts were no greater than animals in their eyes.

Blade's hunger had distracted him from his surroundings, and he hadn't realized that there were a few malicious individuals following him amongst the dappled crowds. With the hot sun about to set, Blade was about to call it a day and go see if Akir had found any food for them, but a two-legged dragon stepped out of the shadows and in front of Blade, carrying a large club-like weapon.

In an instant, Blade turned and darted away and tried to leap for the skies, but a large net suddenly descended over him. He yelped and thrashed as it caught him, overthrowing the two attackers that tried to hold him down. But before he could escape the net, a club bashed his right wing, and a blade sliced his thigh open. Blade cried out and felt a very sharp and painful jolt course through his body, and his wing went numb soon after. Warm blood oozed down his hind leg, trickling crimson drops onto the ground. He lunged and swiped at another attacker, but the net caught him and he tripped and fell to the sandy ground.

Blade groaned meekly. He had little to no energy left already, and the pain was even more of a deterrent, but he climbed to his paws only to be bashed on the head. His head swam with stars, and he fell again.

"Stay down, beast!" the leader shouted. Blade winced and tried to stand again, so he was put right back in his place after the club most likely broke his forearm as it swept him off of his feet. His satchel--emptier than his stomach--was ripped from him, and the assailants took off, leaving the feathered dragon moaning his pain in the dirt.

Around him were onlookers who didn't care to help a feral. They were only interested in what happened. Blade even saw a human guard, a protector of the city, pass without giving him a second thought.

Blade struggled to get the net off and tried to climb to his paws, but he yelped as an intense pain shot through his right forearm and his left hind leg. He caught himself with his other legs and began to limp. He couldn't walk on his one forearm, and he had to gingerly step with his bleeding hind leg. He could feel the blood caked on his soiled feathers already. Blade hissed and winced, trying to see through tear-soaked eyes. Each step was just as excruciating as the last.

Then, from the midst of the waning crowd, a kind soul came to help Blade. She was a green-scaled dragonkin wearing rags for clothing, but she had worried, yellow eyes. She made him stop so she could inspect his injuries.

"What do you want?" Blade grumbled harshly. He recoiled as she touched his limp forearm.

"To help you, stupid." She had a bit of a raspy voice, a sign that she was much older than him.

Blade wanted to shove her away, but he gave her a chance. "Come with me," she said. He shook his head.

"I need to get back to my brother."

"You'll die if--"

"I need my brother!" he shouted.

She whapped him harshly on the snout, making his tears return in an instant. "You need to come with me!"

Blade glared at her and made no indication whether or not he would agree. Still, she yanked him by the horns against his will and pulled him all the way to her home, which wasn't all that far. After a turn or two, delving even deeper into the backstreets of the east housing district, they had arrived.

By then, Blade's legs were wobbly, his mind was hazy, and he felt about ready to pass out. She had him climb up onto a large, wooden table that she cleared completely off before he could lie down and rest.

"Wha- ... What are y- you gonna do to me?" He watched her open a drawer and pull out all sorts of menacing looking tools.

"I'm going to fix you."

"Why?"

She never replied. He probably wouldn't have understood her, anyway. His vision began to blur before he suddenly slipped away. He heard her shout at him, but his last thoughts were of Akir.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw Akir's terrified and worried face. At first, Blade thought he had been dreaming, but the pain in his body made him think otherwise. He groaned, and Akir immediately nosed at him and licked his face.

Blade was still lying on his side on top of the table, but his body was all bandaged up. His feathers were terribly dirty, dusty, mangled, and bloodied, but he was alive... for now.

"Blade..."

Blade looked up at Akir, seeing his soft, sapphire eyes staring back. He bared a weak, toothy grin and tried to chuckle, but he ended up coughing instead, which immediately sparked more worry from Akir. Blade had never seen him so anxious before.

"I- I'm fine," he croaked.

"You are not fine!" Akir hissed. "You nearly died!"

Blade sighed and tried to move around a bit. Pain immediately urged him otherwise, sending daggers through his body. Still, he managed to roll over, and with Akir's help, he stepped off of the table... only to collapse onto his belly with a pained yelp. His limbs were almost completely numb and they were trembling violently.

"I told you not to let him move," the old dragonkin mumbled from across the room. "He lost a lot of blood." She sat back in a wooden chair, dressed worn, linen clothing. Her green scales were dull with age, but Blade thought she still looked pretty.

Blade struggled to his paws, and with Akir's help he was soon able to stand while leaning against the blue and purple dragon. They turned together to face the green-scaled two-leg as she was mixing something in a bowl. Whatever it was, Blade could smell it from several steps away, and it was foul!

He looked around, noticing a lot of knick-knacks, tools, decorations, and more furniture than necessary around the house. The house would have been a lot larger if it wasn't for all of the stuff strewn about across cabinets, tables, dressers, shelves, and whatever else she had in the other rooms. Aside from the smelly mixture, the house didn't smell bad... just old. It was constructed out of wood--a somewhat rare resource in the desert city since the only supply came from across the sea. But the wood looked rather rotted, and he noticed a few holes where it had crumbled away.

"Who a- are you?" Blade asked weakly, returning his attention to her.

"Tsk. Not even a thank you for saving your life?" she responded without even glancing up.

Akir growled in his throat. "He asked a question."

"He certainly did," she tersely replied.

Silence.

"Are you going to answer him?" Akir hissed. Blade shot him an uneasy look. She did save his life after all... Why would Akir be so rude to her?

The lady added in some spices without giving them a second thought. Blade had to nip at Akir before he got too angry.

"Hey!" he snarled.

Then she finally looked up at him heedlessly and flicked an ear at him. "Sorry?"

"Th- Thank you for saving me," Blade hastily added before Akir could say anything more.

"Ah, that's better." She acted as if she was relieved to hear it, but she continued stirring the contents of the bowl anyway without regarding Akir. Blade could tell Akir was fuming. His claws were clacking threateningly across the musty, wooden floor. He tried to calm him by licking his cheeks, and it worked... for a short while.

"You'd think that having saved your brother's life would entitle me to some respect," she mocked coldly.

If Blade hadn't been leaning against Akir, he probably would have bolted after her.

"Though I doubt you two are actually brothers, seeing how one of you has feathers. I just assumed you're the one he was murmuring about while he was passed out."

Blade nodded and bared a small smile. He hated conflict. "He's my brother! J- Just not by blood..."

"Ah, I see. You two are rather close, then? That makes sense since he came looking for you only a few hours after you had passed out. How did you find him, Blue?"

Akir gritted his teeth with a glare honed in on her. "I found black and gold feathers next to a trail of blood. It doesn't take a genius." Then Blade heard and saw his black claws gouging the wood beneath his feet. "What happened to him?"

That was when Blade realized why Akir was acting so hostile. All he knew was that Blade had been attacked, and his trail of blood led to this house, where there was even more of his blood around the table. He must have been so worried about Blade that he disregarded his rescuer entirely.

She waved her hand as if it didn't matter, which irked Akir immensely, as if he wasn't irked enough!. "Just some bandits after some coin."

"Just some bandits?" Akir growled and stamped his forepaw on the floor.

Blade nuzzled him and nodded. "I w- was looking for food, and I got beat up by three of them."

"Only three?" he asked, looking at Blade curiously. He knew Blade was a good fighter, and being beaten up so badly by only three two-legs was surprising. Even a normal four-leg would be able to take on at the very least two two-legs. They were much stronger and had sharper claws. Humans were scarier, though, as they usually carried weapons with them; and more often than not, they carried the ones that went boom.

"They took me by surprise... with a net." He touched a bruised part of his skull and winced. "And one of them had a club."

"And a very sharp blade," she added. "You nearly died from blood loss. It sliced you about an inch deep and several inches wide--just barely missed an artery." She pointed to his stitched and bandaged rear leg. "I'm going to apply this salve here soon."

Blade winced. "Th- That stinky stuff? Why?"

"So your wound heals, stupid."

Akir growled disapprovingly. "What's in it?"

"Herbs and remedies."

"What kind?"

"Nothing you would know about." He growled again, and the dragoness sighed. "Some kingsblood, bloomweed, wine, water, and a pinch of dragonroot."

Akir hissed and curled around Blade defensively. "You're trying to poison him!"

"If I wanted your friend dead, he would already be dead, numbskull. Dragonroot isn't harmful to your kind in small doses. It's to help seal the wound," she explained rather apathetically.

Akir didn't seem convinced, but he let his guard down anyway. The room went silent for a moment as she finished stirring the ingredients. After that, Akir helped Blade down to his side so he could expose his hind leg to her. The bandages were already soiled from what he could tell as she unspun them from around his leg. Deep red splotches darkened the tan fabric.

"You never did give us your name," Blade said.

"Talia," she replied.

"Thanks, Talia," Blade said with a small smile. "I appreciate what you've done for me, and--AAAAAAH!" Blade winced and cried out as an intense, stinging pain coursed through his thigh. It felt as if there was a fire burning and melting his flesh all up and down his hind leg. Akir was nearly ready to attack her before Blade held a paw out to stop him. Though he would never have been able to physically, it was enough for now.

"It's going to sting," she warned much too late.

Blade growled and clenched his teeth tightly, his tail beating the floor and stirring up some dust behind him. He rode out the pain for nearly an entire minute before the burning sensation subsided and was replaced by a dull ache. He panted rapidly, his heart hammering in his chest. Tears streamed from his eyes, and his claws had dug grooves in the wooden flooring.

"Get some rest," she said after bandaging his leg with fresh linen. "Your wing is broken and your forearm is fractured. I don't know what I'm going to do about your wing... that's something I've never dealt with before, but I'll get a splint ready for you in the morning."

Blade hadn't thought too much about the extent of his injuries. He frowned and looked at Akir, trying to find some hope. He only received a concerned expression back--and that wasn't very reassuring. It was bad enough that Blade wouldn't be able to walk right for a while, but he had lost his ability to fly! He had no idea how long it would take for his wing to heal... if it even did. What if he could never fly again?

Talia led them through her stuffy and crowded house into a spare bedroom with an actual bed. Under any other circumstance, Blade would have been overjoyed to be sleeping on an actual bed, but with the pain constantly nagging at him, he could hardly enjoy it.

He whined after Talia left them, and Akir immediately--but carefully--hugged Blade tightly. Blade felt Akir's wings and arms wrapping around him, feeling a warmth rising within him that distracted from the pain. Flashbacks to when they had first met raced through his mind; he remembered so little of it, but he would never forget what Akir did for him.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't there," Akir said, sniffling. Blade felt his heart nearly break. Akir blamed himself for his mistake. It was probably eating at him the whole time, but he would never have shown his true emotions in front of anyone other than Blade.

"It's my fault, Akir. You told me not to come here alone..."

"I'm so sorry, Blade," he mumbled and pushed his snout firmly into Blade's neck. Blade felt himself start to cry. There were only a few times in his life that he could remember Akir breaking down like this, and each of them had been a situation almost as bad as this one. Blade warbled softly and sniffled as he snuggled in against Akir. He knew that Akir cared for him deeply, and now that much was obvious. Hearing the blue and purple dragon crying over him... that set Blade's chest ablaze.

"I'll get better soon," he comforted. "Promise."

* * *

But to Blade _soon_felt like an eternity. The days rolled on by slowly. The first week wasn't nearly as bad as the next few. He was too busy dealing with the pain to realize how doing nothing all day was really taking a toll on him. When he started to feel better, he was able to walk around the dusty, old house, but that was it. And even then, he had to stumble around with a splint on his forearm. He was stuck there. And more often than not, his only company was the cranky old 'ness.

Talia was stricter than any mother Blade had ever imagined. He wasn't allowed to do anything fun or even step outside. She fed him a specific diet to quicken his healing process and kept fresh bandages on his leg. His splint on his forearm was constantly being readjusted so that it would remain tight. She did figure out how to fix his wing during the first week. It wasn't as bad of a break as she had thought at first, and it was rather easy to shove into place again. The pain was excruciating for a few minutes, but it abated and felt much better as time progressed.

Since Blade couldn't go anywhere--without the risk of being attacked again--he had to find things to occupy himself. With Akir gone most of the time, he chatted with Talia. The more he got to know her, the more he liked her.

"So, you two have been on your own for over a decade?" Talia asked curiously while she prepared their meals.

Blade nodded while trying to peer over the wooden counter to see what she was doing. It was just at eye-level, making it rather difficult for him to see. Just like most of his meals, there was a mixture of herbs and very little meat. Blade had grown up eating what he could find, so he wasn't a very picky eater--but he still didn't like vegetables!

"I think I was only a couple months old when Akir found me. He was an orphan too, but he's almost two years older than I am."

"It's no wonder neither of you two is disciplined," she grumbled. "That's impressive though. I'm surprised the city didn't eat you both up."

Blade grinned. "It wasn't all that hard... Akir did most of the work anyway. He's always protected me and cared for me..." His thoughts drifted to his older brother, wondering what he was up to now and whether or not he was okay. He had been gone all day!

"You're rather fond of that brat, aren't you?"

Blade stamped his paws in protest. "He's not a brat! He's very kind and caring when you get to know him."

Talia chuckled and diced up a stalk-like vegetable that Blade hadn't seen before. "He does treat you well--better than any real siblings I know of. You should have seen him on your first night here while you were unconscious. He couldn't sit still, he wouldn't stop whining, and he ignored anything I said, which really isn't any different from now."

A soft smile curled Blade's lips as he thought about that. He felt sorry that Akir had to go through that, but it warmed his heart to know how much his brother cared for him.

"What happened to his parents?"

Blade shrugged his shoulders so he didn't hurt his wings. "I don't know... he's never told me." She sighed and nodded. Blade noticed her expression and composure change as she slumped down a bit. "Why do you ask?"

"Whatever happened must have been pretty bad... I can see it in his eyes."

Blade warbled curiously. "You can? H- How?" He felt a sense of uncertainty as he thought about what really did happen to Akir's family... He wondered if it had scarred him deeply. Unlike Akir, Blade didn't know his family. He didn't remember very much during his hatchling years. All he really remembered was that cold, rainy night when Akir saved him, and the rest was a blur up until he was a dragonet.

Blade had always wondered about his parents: who they were, what they looked like, where they were. But he mostly wondered why they had abandoned him. Surely there must have been a good reason... but Akir always told him not to think or worry about it. They were gone.

"It's something you pick up as you get older," she replied. "You see a lot of injured people when you're a healer, and sometimes you know that there are wounds you just can't heal."

Blade nodded and worried even more about Akir. "C- Can you teach me how to see that stuff?" He thought that having that sort of knowledge would be useful. He liked talking to people and understanding them, so being able to read them better would be very useful!

Talia glanced at him thoughtfully. "I don't know. You don't seem all that stupid, I suppose," she teased. "But it's something that will take years to learn, and even longer to understand what you're seeing."

"I'm really smart! I learn things quickly, according to Akir," he said and nodded as if to assure her it was true.

"We'll see where it goes."

Blade wiggled happily. "I'll do my best!"

* * *

For the next month or two, Talia taught Blade a lot about how people work: their expressions, body language, emotions, and how to read all of that. It wasn't too hard for Blade to pick up on, but he didn't have the chance to see how other species are different. Although he and Talia were anatomically different, they were both still dragons. It was very easy to read her basic expressions.

She also taught him about how the world works. Blade never realized all of the little intricacies that occurred in everyday life, and she opened his eyes to a lot of it. And listening to all of it made him very eager to get out of there!

After nearly two months had passed, Blade's wing had healed. He and Akir went to test his wing outside the city wall. Talia's house was rather close to it, so all they had to do was hop on top of the roofs and onto the wall before they could glide down on the other side of it.

Blade climbed into the air and extended his wings fully as he glided in a circle. He felt the warm sun at his back, making his outstretched wings feel like they were glowing. The wind brushed against his sleek feathers and pinned them to his body.

Blade had never missed flying so much in his life! He soared high in the air and did a few twirls and flips. It didn't hurt, but it did feel a little uncomfortable if he had to strain his healed wing. Still, Blade couldn't have been happier, and Akir seemed to share in his happiness.

Even after Blade had fully healed, the duo stayed at Talia's home. She knew they needed a place to stay, and she enjoyed the company, even if she and Akir didn't get along well. Akir was too proud and arrogant, and Talia wasn't one to respect that. Not that she really respected Blade, either, but she treated him better.

Talia continued to teach him all sorts of things while Akir was away. When he wasn't, they played together, wrestled with each other, or walked around the city, side by side. They never stole much together anymore; Akir did that on his trips. They didn't have much reason to steal, now that they had Talia's company, but Akir sometimes brought back more supplies for Talia as well as food for all of them.

For a few months, Blade begged_Akir to take him along with him when he went out during his trips. Akir always said _no and that it was too dangerous, which made Blade feel very insignificant. Ever since that incident, he was even more protective of his younger brother--Blade never thought he could get worse! Blade finally convinced him one day, and he was overjoyed to hear that it was a mission--a well-paying one. He didn't really know what that meant, but he was super excited!

Blade followed behind Akir, who confidently stepped around like he owned the place, through the market district of the city. It seemed that the older Akir got, the more arrogant he became, or as he liked to put it,confident.

Blade always felt a lot safer with his older brother. The prying eyes of the two-legs could almost be felt stabbing into his soul. Blade never felt safe alone anymore, and admittedly the two-legs were a little more frightening than he once thought.

Very few times were the two-legs kind to him; Talia was the only nice one he had met. The humans were typically the worst--they were a bunch of uppity pricks--but even the dragons, gryphons, wolves, felines, rodents, and whoever else that were evolved beasts were also disrespectful to their four-legged brethren. In spite of sharing similar appearances, the ferals were outcast to the very outskirts of town to live in segregation in their own district.

Blade tried his best to greet some of the friendlier looking two-legs that watched him and Akir walk past. Despite being relatively kind to everyone he met, Blade was received with stares, glares, and even threats. It wasn't like they were the only ferals walking around, either. The market district was mixed with ferals and two-legs of all species. Despite Talia's teachings, Blade never understood why everyone couldn't get along, but Akir explained that it was just how the entire world was. Akir never seemed to mind being an outcast. Unlike Blade, he was confident in himself.

Akir was everything Blade wanted to be: strong, confident, smart, and charismatic. He was very handsome too! His brilliant, sapphire-scaled hide was speckled with splotches of dark-purple that mostly gathered close to his spine from his head to his tail. He was adorned with two pairs of black horns, the larger and longer pair atop the other. Only one forepaw of his was painted dark-purple while the rest were the same color as the rest of his hide. Just the tip of his snout was purple, too, from his nose to his chin.

Blade was a rare species as far as he could tell. There were very few dragons that shared his feathered hide, as he had only ever seen a pawful in his life, but deep down he liked feeling special!

The majority of Blade's feathered hide was a solid black, but the rest was a bright gold. After his feathered crest, a golden mane of tiny, long, delicate feathers traced down his neck to the tip of his tail. His underbelly, from the base of his neck to the tip of his tail, was covered in golden feathers. They were the fluffiest at his chest, often poofing out when he didn't mean for them to.

On each of his forearms at his wrists was a pair of golden bracelets that looked to be painted on his feathers. The bases of his forepaws were golden as well as both of his hind paws up to his thighs. His shoulders around his wing joints had a unique, swirly golden design etched into his black feathers. It was the same around his rear end and at the top of his feathered wings. Speckling his black, feathered wings was the occasional golden feather that stood out amongst the darkness of his hide.

Akir often complimented Blade on his appearance, which made him feel giddy inside. It wasn't rare for Akir to make a nice comment about Blade, but more often than not he was too busy being worried about him. Being the bigger and stronger dragon, Akir felt like he had to be the protective older brother. Even now, that much was evident.

Akir tensed up as a column of guards entered the street a few blocks ahead of them. He looked quickly back at Blade and pointed with a wing to an alleyway on their right. They quickly ducked in, walking single-file since it wasn't wide enough for the both of them.

"I told you not to bring attention to us!" Akir hissed at Blade, taking a left turn down another backstreet.

"You're the one flaunting yourself around!" Blade retorted. "I only said hello to some people..."

"This isn't the feral district, Blade. We need to keep on the down-low; people are starting to recognize us now."

Blade sighed and nodded as continued to follow Akir through a familiar path that weaved around the market district and put them closer to the palace district. It was a much longer path than walking straight through the streets, but it was most certainly safer hiding in the shadows.

After many years of living and stealing in the city, Blade and Akir had slowly accumulated an infamous reputation, though no one really knew it was them. Having followed Akir's plans, they kept their identities hidden rather well. Their disappearance for several months helped a lot to disguise their trail. The closest description they had on their wanted posters was "two feral dragons." Even so, that put most citizens at unease, but mostly because they were ferals. Ferals were always up to no good, according to any two-leg ever.

They took another left turn, and they were soon back out on the main street. Successfully, they circumvented the small column of guards and were able to continue the rest of the way to the palace district's gates unhindered.

"So, why are we getting here so early?" Blade asked a bit loudly.

Akir glanced at him and bared a small snarl to say, shut it!

Blade shrunk back and nodded. They approached the palace district's gates, where there were four guards posted on either side of it. Blade felt a little nervous, but Akir caressed his cheek reassuringly with his tail and flashed a smile at him.

"I'll go first. Wait a few minutes and then go. I'll be waiting for you."

Blade grinned back and nodded. He casually walked over to a bench to sit down on and watched Akir pass the guards alone. He sat sejant on the wooden bench with his tail curled around his paws. He looked around at the different faces, snouts, and beaks mixed in with the crowd. Mostly humans walked through the gate, but there were some well-dressed two-legs as well that could afford to live there.

The palace district was the only district to have a wall completely separating it from the rest of the districts. Blade tried to imagine what it would be like to live there, and he wondered if it was even possible for a four-leg to become rich enough to afford it. Even then, he wondered if a feral would be allowed live there, seeing how the majority of two-legs and humans despised them.

After waiting a few minutes, Blade walked through the gate and met Akir after turning around a building. Akir licked and nuzzled him, glad that nothing happened. They continued on their way down a cobblestone street.

The palace district was beautiful. There were gardens everywhere with plants that thrived on the water given to them by caretakers, bringing an explosion of color to his eyes. It was like an immediate change of environment, an oasis in the middle of a desert. The buildings were mostly constructed of solid granite and marble, and the architecture was elegant. The actual palace where the king stayed was the largest building Blade had ever seen, and it was located at the very center of the city. Even from here the feral district it could be seen, its spires towering above the other buildings.

"This place is beautiful, Akir."

Akir chuckled at Blade's amusement and nodded. "It certainly is. It would be a gold mine if it weren't for all of the guards around."

"I wish we could live here," he said wistfully.

Akir shook his head along with a growl of disapproval. "I'd much rather be with my own kind than live here."

Blade sighed and watched as a little rodent darted up a lone tree.

Blade had rarely visited the palace district before. Ferals weren't very welcome here, but they surprisingly weren't outlawed, though flying was. There were too many incidents with break-ins, so if anyone was caught flying over the district, they would be shot down. This was the district where the wealthiest families lived, mostly noble lords and ladies. Neither Blade nor Akir had any money to their name--at least they didn't today!

Akir led Blade through the back of a home that looked to be abandoned, and sure enough it was. They slipped in through the back, finding a window on the third story that was missing its glass. It wasn't hard for them to climb up the building, as it had multiple levels and roofs to jump up on. And if they really needed to, they could have flown into it, if they were careful not to get spotted.

Inside, the room was left bare. Their claws clacked on the hardwood floor as they inspected the area half-mindedly. It was very dusty in here, and it tickled Blade's nose unpleasantly.

"We couldn't have waited until later?" Blade grumbled, twitching his nose.

Akir shook his head. "In about an hour, those gates will close. If we're caught in this district after that, we'll probably be killed. We'll wait in here until it's dark out; then we'll make our move."

"If we're waiting until it's dark, we could have flown down," Blade offered.

"Too risky. They have some sort of spell now that detects anything above a certain height."

Blade sighed and dusted off a spot for him to lie down. He didn't like his feathers getting all dusty or dirty. "This had better be worth it!"

Akir grinned toothily and nuzzled Blade. He flopped down beside the younger drake and nodded. "It is! The gem we're after is worth over five-hundred gold pieces, and I've already got a buyer for that much."

Blade's ears perked up. "Five-hundred!?"

Akir hissed, "Keep your voice down."

Blade meeped and gulped, his eyes wide. He lowered his voice. "That's a lot of money... What would we even do with it?"

A warm smile curled Akir's lips. "We're going to buy our first home!"

Blade grinned giddily back. They haven't had a real home since... ever! The closest they've had was an abandoned mine shaft beneath the city, but that had only lasted a year or two before it became too dangerous to live in. Now, they lived with the old dragoness Talia. Even though it was the most comfortable place they had ever stayed, it wasn't anything like having their own home!

"What's the plan?" he asked, eager to help out and begin their mission.

Akir pointed with a black claw at the floor in front of them, pretending to be drawing a map. "We're currently here, so we'll have to sneak out and make our way all the way over here," he said, scraping his claw along the wood. "We'll have to keep an eye out because there are four groups of patrolling guards for each sector of this district. We'll break in through the back again of a building similar to this one. There is a large garden behind it, so sneaking onto their property should be easy."

Blade nodded and stored the information away for later. "Do you know where the gem is?"

"That's the tricky part... It's in a lady's necklace that she wears every day. We'll probably have to break in to her bedroom, snatch the necklace, and get out before they call the guards... or worse."

Blade gulped. "Worse?"

"If they retaliate, try not to hurt them."

Blade nodded. He and Akir may have been thieves, but they were not killers.

* * *

A few hours later, the sun dropped behind the horizon and left the desert city in darkness. As Blade and Akir crouched down and prowled briskly from house to house, cover to cover, the cool night air welcomed them. They snuck passed one of the patrols and waited out the other on their way to their target.

Once they had arrived, they looked around quietly for an easy entrance. Blade found a window that could open on the first of two stories, and it was left unlocked. He picked at it with his claws, opened the latch, and he squeezed in. It was too tight of a fit for Akir, so Blade circled back and opened the back door for him.

Unlike their hideout earlier, this house was filled with furniture and decorations, many of which Blade wanted to steal. But he couldn't fit everything, and they were here for a specific objective anyway: the necklace. They carefully padded through the house, making sure not to bump into or knock anything over, since it was rather cramped inside for two feral dragons.

"Stay down here while I go up the stairs," Akir whispered, "Look for the bedroom... and grab anything else that will fit in your satchel."

Blade nodded dutifully and searched around. He opened a door slowly and peeked inside to see if there was anyone there. He could feel his heart thudding in his chest until he elicited a small sigh of relief. Blade hated to admit it, but he was nervous. He didn't want to disappoint Akir, and he didn't want to ruin the opportunity they had for a better life.

He searched the bedroom and did happen to find a few pieces of jewelry lying around, though they didn't look like anything important. He shoved them in his satchel and moved on to the next room. This time the door creaked and made Blade flinch. He peeked inside and saw a little, gryphon girl lying on her bed. He immediately pulled the door closed and latched the bar shut. He quietly stepped away and about knocked down a vase with his tail. He quickly whirled around to catch it and readjust it, but in that process his tail smacked against a wooden post and made a thud.

Blade froze for a few moments and then sighed with relief. He shook his head and tried to calm his fluttering heart. Once he did, he heard a loud thud, a clash, and then another loud thud from upstairs. Again, Blade's heart raced, but so did his legs. He rushed up the staircase and hurried after Akir. When he reached the top, he saw the purple and blue dragon sprinting toward him from down the long hall.

"Run! I got it!" he shouted.

Blade nodded. Before he turned around, he saw a very angry, gryphon father chasing after them with a sword. Blade yelped and slid down the stairs and darted for the back door with Akir close behind. They broke free from the home, bounded out into the garden, and took off into the sky. They flew right over the wall, swiftly swooping over some guards, and then climbed into the skies.

As Blade looked behind them, he saw the house fading away as they gained distance. He giggled happily and did a little twirl in the air. Akir grinned toothily at him and bellowed a magnificent roar that echoed through the darkness. Blade shivered at that. Rarely did he ever hear Akir roar, and even more rarely was it a joyful roar!