Lightning on the Hill [Open]

Oh really? He'd assumed that the dragon blood was further back in her ancestry. To have manifested only a small patch of scales with blood that thick... it was odd. Not unheard of, but a bit odd. Oh well, nothing to be worried or concerned about. She was still young, she would likely manifest more on her own as she aged. However...

Hmmm. Well, waiting had been the plan, but it would seem that it would be better to tell her sooner rather than later, really.

"Did you know, young one; that dreams are often a way of receiving warnings, or information that otherwise would be lost? You dream of dragons, and a relative that you have no possible way of having met, yet you know his image within your dreams. Did you ever stop to wonder what that might have meant? All dreams have some sort of meaning, this strikes me as one with a very important meaning that you haven't yet deciphered."

Ai thought about his question for a moment. She used to think long and hard on what her dream might mean, when she was a lot younger. Yet, anytime she had mentioned it to one of the adults in her life – specifically her father – they would get angry and tell her to not focus on her dreams and to live in the real world. As a child it had always hurt her feelings, and in the end she had stopped allowing herself to think too much on it let alone try and ask any questions.

"I used to think about what it might mean all the time when I was younger. I even tried asking my family about it. They would get angry with me and change the subject; but it was nothing to the way my father reacted. His anger was the... worst. I never understood it. In the end I just stopped thinking about it..."

She fell silent then, thinking for a moment. There had been so much that her family had kept secret and hidden from her. At the time she had always figured it was because she was a child and they hadn't wanted her in their business. But... what if it was more? What if there was a reason she kept having these dreams; over and over again and always the same one. Suddenly, an itching started up on Ai's arm and she blinked curiously; she rubbed at the spot with her left hand, but it didn't seem to help.

After several seconds of the annoying itching she pulled up her sleeve and gasped at what she saw: lovely scales seemed to be manifesting themselves on her skin. Beautiful and wonderful. Instead of being afraid she simply gasped in amazement. "Wha...?"

His smile returned, it seemed he was right; and the blood in her veins was strong enough to be effected by his presence that quickly. Well, this would make things easier in general, as she would be able to handle being around him without any ill effects. Her dragon blood would help protect her, even more so as it awoken further.

"As I suspected. I noticed the patch on your shoulder. It seems you have dragon blood. It would explain why I noticed you so easily, and why I felt so easy in your company. Human in general tend to be repulsive beings; outside of a few exceptional members of the species; but you where... perfect. More so than any I have met in generations. You see your Great Ancestor; that would be where the dragon blood entered your family line. He must have been at least half dragon himself, if not a true dragon in a human form. It would explain the reactions your elders had; many families that do not benefit from their dragon ancestry suppress it out of fear and shame. In you, the blood has awakened enough to form a connection with your ancestor, which manifested in your dreams. I am an elder dragon, considered a deity among the dragon-kin, and my power is causing the dragon blood in your veins to awaken and strengthen more. I doubt it will cause many more effects, but you may end up with a few more patches of scales and the like before it settles down."

He should have been worried that she was going to react badly to this; but he just... knew, that she was going to be alright. She wouldn't have the same problematic reaction as most would, and he was trusting that she would want to remain with him, even if it meant she would be... changing, for lack of a better word. Hell, she might even take on characteristics of a thunder dragon if she stayed long enough, there was no telling what line of dragon her Grand Sire was, and outside of his powers awakening her own, she would have never gained any elemental abilities without special training. It was possible that she would just absorb his thunder essence and become part of the thunder dragons herself.

Very gently she trailed her fingers along these new scales: she had no idea about the patch on her shoulder he had mentioned, but it didn't surprise her since she would have had no way to see it. But these; these she could easily see and they were beautiful and mysterious all at the same time. To think something like this could be a part of her was amazing. Amazing enough to have her momentarily speechless while she searched for something to say.

"This is... amazing.", was all she could form at the moment for words. She was still staring at these beautiful new scales with a look of wonder on her face as well as a smile. She wasn't fearful or scared, in fact she was like a little child at the moment who had just found a grand secret.

"That would explain so much. Especially my parents anger and my older brother's jealousy. They must have known all along...."

Then, something occurred to her that had her looking towards Raijin. "I wonder.. if this means my great grandfather is really still alive... " She didn't doubt he was, somewhere, though she had no idea how to even find him. Raijin had made it clear he was rather old, and her family had always claimed he had died of old age – something she no longer believed to be true.

"It is very possible. There is an ability that elder dragon have; they are able to essentially create what would appear to be a human body; although it would have a few dragon-like features; usually eye color, hair color, patches of scales, etc. They basically posses the body with their essence, and until the body dies, they are trapped in that form. It is a rare instance, but dragon will sometimes fall in love with humans. Hence, humans with dragon blood. Often only the first few generations after the union of dragon and human show any dragon features."

He leaned back, resting comfortably against the seat, "In fact... it is a different process than what I used. What you see is my... well, it was my human form, long ago. However, this body is more akin to a solid illusion, versus a real creation. I can maintain it as long as I wish, but I wouldn't be able to interact with humans the same way I could if I was to take on a human body properly." Oh well. He wasn't worried about it at all.

"Maybe we'll come across him one day. If he is alive, he will feel the awakening of your blood, and may come find you. It could be now, it could be decades from now. The more your blood awakens, the longer your lifespan grows, so he would have time to find you."

Ai fell silent, thinking, once more. She had no idea really anything about her grandfather, so she had no idea how exactly he had pulled off what he had. All she knew from the stories was that he loved her grandmother very much. But, that had been all she had been able to get out of her parents, and even that they had offered up begrudgingly. "I hope so... I'd love to meet my grandfather."

It was then that she fell completely silent. She had had a rather adventurous day, and a tiring one at that. Even though she tried to fight off the sleep it consumed her fairly quickly, eyelids drooping shut as her breathing slowed slightly to something more restful. Darkness consumed her mind at first, before an array of colors took over.

It took Ai several minutes to realize that what she was seeing in her dream was the beautiful colors of a setting sun. She could even smell the air in her dream; the ocean's scent filling her nostrils. It was beautiful, and much like the dreams she had had in the past, only this time around she wasn't flying. She was simply seated on the sand, fully able to see herself. Nearby her lay the largest creature she had ever seen: a dragon. Yet, she wasn't frightened: she knew even without asking who this was. "Grandfather.." Outside of her dream Ai spoke, the words whispered and yet crystal clear all the same.

"Hello, little one. I've been waiting for this day. I can feel your blood awakening; growing stronger. Soon I will be able to come visit you."

"I have so many questions..."

"I know, little one. But, for now your mind must rest. You are safe and sound, which is what matters. Rest, and I will see you soon." It was then that her dream faded in a whirl of colors, the sudden disappearance of it all rather saddening. Ai was unsure how long she slept, but when she finally awoke it was with a bit of a start and a soft gasp. "Oh..." She glanced around, having no idea how far they had traveled, nor how long she had actually been asleep. She no longer felt sluggish as she had before, and figured she had had to be asleep for at least a few hours.

He'd allowed her to sleep as she needed; he wasn't surprised she'd grown weary so quickly. Given the sheer amount of excitement and exercise she'd had, he would have been more surprised if she'd maintained consciousness. Not a problem; while she was out, he'd made sure to speed up their travel a hair. A thought had come to him, and it was one that he was going to follow through. He'd brought her deeper into his territory; he maintained a large range under his protection, and while she'd been within his sphere of influence; he wasn't comfortable leaving her so far out. Bringing her toward the areas under his strongest protection meant she was safer, and that was his intention. That, and it put her hundreds of miles away from the people chasing her. It would take them weeks, if not months, to travel this far by land.

"Welcome back to the land of the living, young one. You slept like the dead, in a good way." He smiled at her, and reached to pull back the curtains that he'd drawn to cover the windows for her. Now that it was possible to see outward, it was obvious the land had changed. No longer lowland forests; they where deep into the misty forests and lakes of the far eastern areas of the continent. There seemed to be nothing by lakes, rivers, and dense forest from horizon to horizon; however a sharp eye would notice a tendril of smoke, like what you'd see from cooking fires and a blacksmith forge, in the distance.

"We've traveled far, but to a safe place. Somewhere to rest, a place you can learn and come to understand."

"Ah.. it's been quite some time since I actually got to sleep without having to keep one eye open. Or, without having to wake up every fifteen minutes." The warmth and comfort had been more than enough to ensure she slept and slept good; so it wasn't surprising that she had slept for as long as she had nor as good.

Ai turned her attention out the window, looking at how much things had changed. Apparently flying was far faster than traveling by land, and she was sure those after her wouldn't be able to track her anymore – at least not by normal means. Ai knew magic existed that could be used to locate people, but she wasn't worried about that for now. "Wow..."

She then looked back towards Raijin and smiled a bit more. "I dreamed of my grandfather again. Only, this time he spoke to me. He told me he would see me soon; that he'd come visit me at some point but he didn't say when. He... misses me. I got the impression without him actually saying it that he hadn't been allowed to see me." She wouldn't put it past her parents to have done something like that; though how exactly they had stopped him from doing it she didn't know. He was... a dragon... and they were human. Perhaps that would be something she would be told later on.

"Likely nothing outright dangerous. Dragon's that make deals and contracts are highly respectful of them, it would not surprise me if a deal was made with your bloodline that has kept him away." He thought for a moment, actually chewing on his lip gently while his mind worked. He was showing more and more signs of being anything but some omnipotent being the longer they spent together; when he was around people he trusted and liked he relaxed quiet a bit and acted like an odd mix of human and dragon.

"No matter. So long as you are with me, he will be able to come to you without problems." As he spoke, the carriage descended from the skies, toward a small village that seemed to just... appear, as if they had passed through some sort of veil that kept it hidden. It was small, maybe a few dozen buildings, houses included. The smoke from before was coming from what was obviously a set of smithies; a blacksmith, whitesmith, and another building that was a smithy, but couldn't be deciphered from this height. The rest of the trails where cooking fires, or the large bonfire at the center of the village. Everything was well made, that was obvious even from this far away; the roofs where covered with clay and copper shingles versus the thatch or wooden coverings most people where lucky to have; these looked more like the homes and buildings of the noble sections of the largest cities, versus a small mountain village. Yet, none was the large and opulent dwellings of the nobility; they where comfortable and functional, with their own yards and little gardens that spoke of people that lived well, without being rich. Not a single hovel or slum could be seen, every structure was perfectly maintained and seemed to be extremely sturdy and well built.

"This is home, as much as any place is. A special place, hidden from the world and completely safe for those that call it home. Everyone within is like you; humans with dragon blood; some more dragon than others, but all at least a little human. Or, married to a human, raising families away from the rest of the world where they can be safe. They help me maintain my little kingdom, you could say. This is the center of my sphere of control, and the area that, of their own volition, pledges allegiance to me. Humans seem to feel safer with some sort of ruling power, so I allow them to do what they wish, so long as they do not cause problems for the peoples outside of the area. To date, this land has never suffered the horrors or war, famine, strife... it is a little utopia within the mountains. A good life, they've made for themselves. Within the village is a library that you are welcome to; it contains as much information on the dragons and half-bloods as can be found across the rest of the world, as well as information on all the bloodlines we know of. You may find your family, and your grandfather within the books and scrolls."

Ai nodded to his words: the idea that her grandfather could come see her had her happiness blooming again. She had never met the man, at least not outside of her dreams, and she was quite excited at the prospect. Something told her that her grandfather would not treat her like the rest of her family had – he would... accept her, however she was.

Her attention shifted from Raijin and back out the window as the carriage began to descend. As they neared she could see a village simply appear out of nowhere. It was small, but even she could tell that it was well built and well cared for. The people likely lived comfortably: safely. It was an oddity compared to the rest of the world she had actually seen. Well built buildings, gardens, the idea of a library... so much better than the world she was leaving. She also figured she was completely safe here; there was no way those after her would find her anytime soon. Even if they could track her by some means it looked like they had covered a vast distance so it would take them weeks to get this far: if they even made it.

"Wow... this place is just.. incredible.", she would comment, her voice filled with awe and wonder. "I never dreamed someplace like this could exist.."

The idea of the library also peaked her interest: this whole thing was making her quite happy she hadn't had the normal human reactions to Raijin's sudden appearance. None of this would have been happening now had she run away like a normal person would have. She probably would have still been running for her life, trying to escape her pursuers. Instead, she was sitting rather comfortably, looking at a gorgeous little village, many many miles away from anyone who would wish to do her harm.

The carriage touched down after a few moments, landing with a barely noticeable and extremely gentle thud. Raijin merely smiled in response to Ai's reactions, he was well versed in how messed up the outside world could be; humans hated to take care of each other, and their incessant need to acquire wealth and 'status' left many of the race to wallow in sickness and despair. "I take care of my own, you could say. The land is fertile, and the people here are able to fulfill their needs without the requirements for standing armies or nobility running the show. They help each other, and work together; the knowledge that my powers keep them safe means allows them to dedicate their lives to what they truly want to; knowledge, crafts, etc."

Once he was sure they had stopped and it was safe to disembark, he reached for the door and gently pushed, causing them to swing open silently and allow them to step out. People where already making their way over to greet them; it was the first time in a few months that Raijin had been through, and he rarely came via any sort of vehicular means of transport; so this was more of reason to come investigate that normal.

It wasn't a large group, but it was definitely a varied one. Children of all ages, adults that had been going about their days, elders shuffling along carrying pieces of board games and books in their hands. Very few appeared to be wholly humans, many where very obviously dragons in some form  or another. A few where even full blooded dragons holding human forms for a time, carrying bundled babies or holding the hands of their half dragon children as they walked.

Raijin slipped out of the open doors first, turning to offer a hand to help Ai exit. "Come, meet the villagers. The children will love you almost as much as they love me."