Title: Fire Signs: One Dragon's Musings on HSU
Author: Julia
Archive: Sure
Rating: DAFT (dragon approved for thou)
Notes: Julia has been Very Much Owned by a dragon named Asbestos for most of her life. Dor bringing Draco to HSU was a delightful event...and one that Asby was not going to miss out on (he's the most nosy of all muses!). Hope you don't mind, Dor.

Fire Signs I: Puffs of Smoke

~*~

It was a good day for Draco.

So far.

Dark Man with the long black hair and broken circle on his cheek hadn't yelled, threatened to torture him or chased him around the Library. Too bad, Draco liked playing with him. The Other Man, the one who dressed in the odd off-pink colour and said 'shoo' all the time, was busy showing strangers around their territory. His Human, the one who dressed in black all the time and avoided sunlight like he avoided the cold, was no where to be found either.

Well, he appreciated her widening his entry way into the Library. It was so much easier now that the roof wasn't in his way. Not that Draco hadn't considered doing just that -- blasting the hole wider with his fire or simply folding his wings and breaking through, but The Man wouldn't like it.

Neither would the Loud Lady. The one who let his friend, Lasher, play with him.

Lasher enjoyed a game of Chase Dark Man as much as he, Draco, did! Lasher called it Gitemboy for some strange reason, but it was still a very fun game.

He liked chewing on fine leather too. On or off the foot, it really made little difference...except to the humans.

These were Good and Important Things for a dragon to consider when choosing friends.

The Man wasn't around much, but Draco sensed he was important. He dressed in black, much like His Human did, but the effect on the other humans of the territory was very different. For some reason when The Man wore black and walked around, the other humans noticed. They watched. They smiled predatory smiles that he, Draco, could very much understand.

What the dragon didn't get was...if they all looked at him like that, and they definitely did, why he was still around?

Shouldn't he be gone by now? Eaten by the predatory humans?

Draco had heard Dark Man often taunt His Human to eat him. His Human always responded with the same phrase of, "Bite me". Draco assumed it must be some odd human courting ritual. They certainly mated enough after a round of these tauntings.

It confused the dragon that there were no eggs as the result of all the matings. Then again, these humans were very confusing for him, Draco. Flying around, he often saw the various people His Human knew mating with The Man.

Still, no eggs.

Very confusing.

How could a whole territory of humans be infertile? Was that why they tried so hard and so often to mate?

It must be very frustrating for The Man. He, Draco, did not envy him. No, having so many mates would be a Wonderful Thing....except The Man's mates were always getting into trouble. Draco had watched as The Elder and She Who Made Treats often left in the dark hours in the strange vehicles that stunk and made growling noises. Usually before light they would be back, one of The Man's mates with them, if not more than one. Elder would be talking a mile a minute in the tone of voice that made him, Draco, want to cringe to his smallest size and curl into a corner. Elder had a way of making one, even a dragon like himself, feel rather small and not bright at times. But Elder's mate, She Who Made Treats, was good at distracting him. Little One Of Smells and Loud Voice was good at distracting Elder away too.

Odd. Those two mates had offspring. Perhaps it was just The Man who did not?

It was all more than one dragon could really be called upon to keep straight.

Oh, he, Draco, knew them all.

Loud Voice owned Lasher. She owned some very tasty shoes too, though she had threatened to pluck his, Draco's, scales if he ever ate any of her footwear.

Some of the humans were Very Irritable.

The Lady Rarely Seen was one he tried to avoid. Not that it was hard. She and her mate, Sevant, hardly ever came out of their den. He, Draco, had once seen Lady Rarely Seen sending purlple light out of the tips of her fingers.

It had frightened him. Even dragons knew not to mess with Sith.

The Swinging Lady was usually found in She Who Swings A Bat's den. It confused him, Draco, a bit as to who the Man With Weeds In His Hair was. Swinging Lady was often in his company, but Draco wasn't sure if he was a mate or something Dark Man called a Damned Fool.

Dark Man's terms often confused Draco. Humans had an odd way of expressing affection. Sometimes what Draco would have thought was anger was passion.

It made him think about flying off into the mountains sometimes.

Then he remembered that His Human had often said something about turning him, Draco, into an old goat.

Whatever a goat was.

~*~

TBC....