Hi! I'm updating a little something just to let you know I'm still alive. It's a twoshot inspired by a drawing od DA by the amazing -syb. I hope you'll enjoy it ;) Oh, and the dragons in this are supposed to be Chinese ones, if it makes any sense...
Don't forget to rewview!
One Piece and characters (c) Eiichiro Oda
Usopp quietly ran up the hill to see the sun rise. Up on his hill the view was the best in all the forest.
Hesitantly at first the horizon became a little brighter, then the arriving sun coloured the sky purple, the east, pink and gold. When the sun peeked over the distant treetops the sky's colour paled into an innocent blue, deeper than the sea. The forest sparkled in greeting of the morning.
"So once again the dawn has come to the Greenwoods," Usopp contently sighed to himself and turned his head. "And to the Silver Mountains."
A stag beetle buzzed up from a tree.
"Good morning, Usoppn," it said and landed on the boy's butt, only to be swatted away by said boy's hairy tail.
"Good morning, Hercules. You never seem to learn."
The beetle landed on his friend's shoulder instead, rubbing his head. "But a centaur's butt is a better seat than his shoulder," he whined.
"Makes no difference. Having a Hercules on the butt is uncomfortable," Usopp said and scrapped with his hoofs. Today he felt so good his brown skin and curly black hair and tail almost sparkled.
Since the morning had now arrived, everybody else in the forest would be awake too. So Usopp ran down the hill and back to his mother.
"Good morning, Usopp. Out for another adventure?"
"Yup. I'll practice my aim with the dragon today."
His mother scraped with her hoof in agreement and so her young son smiled at her, took his arrows and bow from where they hung on a branch and were off.
Usopp was just a colt. Seventeen years old he was, and the forest's lookout. Not officially. He simply had the sharpest sight in the forest, and a tendency to be quite loud whenever danger came around. Truth to be told, he was more a nervous horse than a brave centaur.
"Usoppn! Breakfast!" Hercules called from his shoulder and pointed at a tree seeping sweet resin. The centaur stopped and with an annoyed expression watched his friend fly straight into a sticky drop of resin.
"Beetle breakfast," he muttered and looked around.
Not waiting for his friend, Usopp galloped through the forest towards the Silver Mountains where the dragons lived. Not that many of them. Only Luffy, the only young dragon, his father and three others. Humans relentlessly hunted dragons. The Silver Mountains though were protected not only by a vicious griffin, one that by the way had tried to eat Usopp more than once, but also by a mysterious figure commonly known as Sun. Only the dragons had ever really seen this creature, and Luffy familiarly called her Robin the few times Usopp brought it up.
Reaching the end of the forest's soft moss and entering the rocky area of the mountain, Usopp skilfully climbed up, as quietly as he could with his clicking hoofs, passed a narrow passage and entered the dragons nest.
Luffy shared lair with his father just a little bit from the entrance.
"Good morning Luffy and Dragon," the young centaur called happily into the den. He wasn't allowed to go inside, just like the dragons weren't allowed to hunt in the part of the forest the centaurs resided in.
A deep growl answered Usopp's greeting. Anybody else would have run from the sound of a growling monster, but Usopp found no reason to run because of Luffy's loud yawns.
"Usopp? How can it be morning already? I just fell asleep."
"I'm ready for hunting down some breakfast."
The young dragon dashed out of the den. "Breakfast! What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
"Not so fast, Luffy!"
The centaur colt immediately stepped out of the way for Luffy's father. He was never afraid of Luffy, but the other dragons were scary. Luffy was a small, golden coloured dragon with a dark brown mane of hair trailing along the spine of his long body. His father Dragon (for some reason that was the only name Usopp knew him by) was thoroughly black with angry red scars crossing each other on the left half of his face.
"Don't go too far," the older dragon ordered softly.
The younger dragon smiled a toothy grin. "I won't. I'll bring something back for you."
The black dragon smiled back and bent down to place a kiss on top of his son's head.
"Let's go, Usopp!" Luffy called and spread his wings, his father helping him into the air.
"I'm right behind you!"
They headed for the west side of the forest where preys like wild boars and elks could be found. Luffy soared silently over the treetops as Usopp ran over the roots and stones in the soil, easily keeping up with his hunting partner. After all, Usopp was the fastest runner known for miles around.
The centaur looked up at the flying creature. Admitted, Luffy wasn't the most graceful of all, but he was definitely beautiful when he flew, his golden scales flashing in the sunlight. He was even more beautiful at night when his scales paled and glowed like silver. Usopp figured it had something to do with the dragons' strong connection to the moon. The only dragon who didn't glow in the moonlight was Dragon.
Usopp's pointed ears picked up the sound of rustling and grumblings. Wild boars. Never slowing his pace he grinned and prepared his bow. Jumping over a fallen tree he spotted the prey and fired his arrow while still mid-air. It hit the eye and came out though the other side of the head and the boar fell, dead before he hit the ground.
Chuckling in victory, Usopp lifted up the dead animal on his back and entered a clearing, waiting for Luffy.
"Usoppn!"
"Huh? Oh hi Hercules."
"You left without me!" the beetle screamed and threw a fit.
"Couldn't help it. I don't eat resin."
A shadow fell over them. Hercules immediately hid in Usopp's curly hair. Usopp looked up to see his dragon friend. Luffy clumsily landed in the clearing with its load; two boars in one claw, two elks, one in his mouth and one on his back, and an old log in his other claw. Luffy smiled brightly with the biggest elk in his mouth. Well, Usopp already knew he could never beat Luffy in a hunting game. But still!
"You want me to carry one for you?"
Luffy nodded happily and handed over the two boars so that he had all talons free to carry the log. Usopp sighed and lifted up one boar on his back with his own prey and hoisted the other up on his shoulder.
"Let's head back," he said and the dragon agreed, curled into a sort of spring and jumped, frantically flapping with his wings trying to catch some wind under them. He crashed into a tree, used it as a spring board and managed to get into the air.
"As elegant as always, that dragon," Hercules muttered.
"Yeah, but I guess it isn't that easy with the extra load," Usopp sighed and started moving.
"Why is he carrying a log?"
"Insects and scratchboard."
The black beetle turned green.
"You're the one who asked, Hercules. Don't vomit in my hair."
When Usopp finally returned to the dragons' nest Luffy had already started a fire and had all the dragons gathered. Ivankov, a bright pink gender swapping dragon with a deep purple mane, was tightly wrapped around Dragon's body like a… well… a dragon in heat. It was their mating time after all. Dragon however completely ignored the attention and concentrated on Luffy's catch. Ivankov would go un-laid this season too.
The other two dragons Usopp knew little about. One was black spotted with gold and a red mane that was growing white at the tops. All about him was sharp; eyes, nose, tail, legs… except for the graceful curve of his long body. Usopp wasn't sure if his name was Mihawk or Hawkeye. Both fitted.
The other was completely a white, save for his blue eyes, whereof one was blind from a cut once upon a time. He was old. Much older than the rest together, but not as gloomy as Dragon. His name was Ray, Usopp thought, because Luffy called him "Old Ray".
"There you are, Usopp. I thought you lost yourself."
"Of course not," Usopp scoffed and unloaded himself. "I'm not like that wolf that ran eight laps around the mountains looking for a way out of the forest."
Luffy, Ivankov and Old Ray broke down laughing at that memory. The poor wolf would probably still be chasing his own tail if Luffy hadn't stopped him and turned his nose pointing away from the mountain. The wolf had grumbled, but said thanks and walked away with as much pride as he could, refusing to turn around and glare at the hysterically laughing dragon.
The six of them were just about to start eating when something heavy landed a short way from Usopp. Said centaur threw his hands into the air, raised to his hind legs and screamed. Because it was a dead horse that had landed beside him.
"Good morning, Nami," Old Ray greeted the griffin landing on top of her prey.
"Good morning, all of you."
Usopp hid in the safest place found in the nest; underneath Luffy's wing. Ending up as Nami the griffon's breakfast was not on his list.
"Oi, Nami. Isn't that thing kind of bad?" Luffy asked.
"It is," the griffon sighed and patted the dead beast with her sharp talons. "Stupid humans are careful to lock up their best pets and I'm left to hunt the sick ones just because I'm not allowed to hunt in the forest." At that she sent an accursing glare at the centaur hiding under Luffy's wing.
"Save your anger," Dragon said calmly. "It is not the centaurs' fault humans are greedy."
"I know that! I wish humans were edible but they taste worse than rat meat."
"Here, Usopp," Luffy suddenly offered a stick with grilled meat to his hiding friend.
"Oh, thanks."
They ate under much silence, and Usopp distracted himself from Nami and her breakfast by trying to keep Luffy from tying a knot on his neck. It happened once in a while they had to help him sort out that long body of his. Old Ray voiced how he hoped Luffy would learn some body coordination before finding a mate.
"About mates," Usopp asked once done eating. "Is Ivankov the last… eh… female dragon?"
"Who knows," Old Ray answered as he chewed on a bone. "We're all widowers, not Ivankov though, so we haven't gone to look for any."
"Widower? Then Luffy's mother too?"
"What's a widower?" Luffy asked, looking at his father questioningly.
"A male that has lost his mate," Dragon explained.
"Oh. So dad is a widower because mom died?"
The black dragon nodded his head. Luffy seemed to notice the sudden grief in his father's eyes and immediately brought the log to him.
"There're beetles in it!"
That was Usopp's cue to leave. Hercules was still hiding in his hair, and watching dragons feed on other beetles would not end well.
"I'll see you later," he called and exited the nest to run back to the forest and his home.
Hercules wobbly left his hairy hiding place. "See you, Usoppn," he said and made a beeline towards the nearest bush. The centaur trotted away, pointedly ignoring the sound of vomiting from the bush.
While heading for his favourite shooting place, Usopp thought about the stories Luffy had told him about his mother. Apparently she had been a crimson red dragon named Shanks. Strong and beautiful. Usopp had asked how Luffy could be so bright coloured when his parents were dark. Dragon had explained that dark parents had pale children and the other way around. Why that was Dragon didn't know. Now Usopp also knew why he had never gotten to meet Luffy's mother; she had died. Figuring out how she had lost her life wasn't even hard, because there was a story Luffy never told. He had started, saying that his mother was braver than anyone. After that he always stopped talking and changed subject.
Dragon slayers. Usopp hoped Greenwood forest would never see any of those detested humans.
"Hey Usopp. Where are you going?"
"Huh? Oh. Hi Sanji." Usopp looked up to find he had been so deep in thought he had almost passed the clearing where he practiced archery.
"Did you go to see the dragons again?"
"Luffy's alright, and Dragon isn't interested in me."
"Then what about gorgeous Lady Gryphon that came to the Silver Mountains last year? Horse is their favourite food."
"Dad convinced the dragons to not hunt us centaurs as long as we left them alone; Nami has to follow those rules too. Unlike you, we're not immortal and there are few enough of us as there is without us killing each other."
"True," Sanji said quietly and stepped out from the shadows, his gold coloured skin gleaming in the sunlight. He was a golden deer man, like a centaur but with a deer bottom instead, and horns on his head. He was definitely one of the very last of his race, if he wasn't the last already. There weren't many of them to begin with.
"Did you make new arrows for me?" Usopp asked excitedly.
"I have them right here. I already delivered a share to your father and his friends. Here, try them out."
Yup, that was Sanji for you. His magic was strongly connected to the earth. Even though the centaurs could make their own arrows and bows, Sanji did it many times better.
"How have you been, by the way?" Usopp asked as he strained the bow and aimed for the target tablet a few yards away. "You found anything around the forest edges?"
"I did actually. A stupid couple of men entered the north part of the forest, planning to settle down and build a village for their families."
Usopp chuckled and sent the arrow flying. "How did you chase them away?"
"I pretended to be an old man cursed by the forest," Sanji told him proudly, crossing his arms over his boosted chest with one leg lifted to mark just how brilliant he was.
Usopp laughed out loud. Because Sanji's race had the ability of illusion magic, he could easily fool a human into believing he was anything he wanted them to see.
"What kind of curse?" the centaur asked giggling.
"I pretended to have been devoured by a tree because I tried to cut it down."
By now Usopp was jumping with laugher. "I so wish I could have seen their faces!" he laughed. "Stupid humans."
"Be careful, Usopp," Sanji warned. "Underestimating mankind has killed you before."
"Way to ruin the fun, gold deer."
"I say it because I don't want you to die before your time. I will be here when the Silver Mountains are nothing but dust. You won't."
Usopp sighed with annoyance. Sanji was right, of course. But he didn't have to be so moody because of that. It was his strange way to say he cared though, so Usopp could hardly tell him to stop.
He pulled the string of his bow and sent another arrow flying.
"You've been experimenting again," he noted with excitement. "I haven't seen an arrow fly so straight before."
"I found a weeping willow by the river in the south. The smoothest arrows are made from the wood of the weeping willow."
"So there are still willows left in the forest? Huh? I thought they all moved when the trolls left the mountains a hundred years ago."
"They did," Sanji confirmed with a nod. "It seems they are being herded back though. There are few places left for them to set their roots. Greenwoods seem to be the only free forest left in the world."
Usopp fired another three arrows, now in anger. "Damn monsters! Are they determined to kill everything alive? At the pace things are going by there will be no magic at all left in the world."
"Calm down, Usopp. Anger will be your downfall."
The centaur impatiently stomped his hooves. It was good that Sanji was around, or the centaur tribe might have been wiped out by now. Sure, they were strong and the best archers, but they were few. Humans could as well be compared to ants; endless in numbers and attacked in hordes. Very unfair.
"Anyway. Thanks for the arrows. I promise not to waste them."
"The only centaur I know who ever missed a target was that stupid braggart Higuma. I'm sure you've heard what happened to him."
"'Course I have. The song about 'Braggart Higuma whose arrow strayed' was mother's favourite song when I was a foal."
"So they're still singing songs about it? Then maybe I should visit the maidens to entertain them the story."
To that Usopp chose not to respond. For being ageless, Sanji sure liked young centaur mares.
"I'm going back to the others now," he said instead. "They should be around the bend of the river."
"Be safe," Sanji called after him.
"Sure!"
It was dusk when Usopp dropped the last stone for the day and stretched his arms. The centaurs had been working hard since the day before to dig up a wall around the river bend so that the water wouldn't start digging a new canal through the forest. The work was only temporary, since nature will always do as she pleases in the end, but it slowed the water's progress and gave the trees time to move or die. Not all trees could move, and those who could did so very slowly. Weeping willows were the most restless trees though and moved around a lot and fast.
"Thanks for today, son," Yasopp said and affectionately patted Usopp's hair with his rough hand.
"You too, pops," the younger centaur laughed.
Yasopp was Usopp's idol. An Ardennes centaur with dirty yellow skin and raw muscle. He was brave as nothing else Usopp knew of and the leader of the tribe. Usopp's highest dream was to become as great a leader as his father.
"How much longer do you think we'll have to work?" Ben asked. He was black a shire centaur with white feathering at the fetlock, scars every here and there and cool attitude. Though he was bigger and possibly stronger than Yasopp, he didn't really have what it took to lead the pack. Usopp was happy Ben was aware of this, otherwise there would have been a battle to death between his father and Ben, something he definitely didn't want to see.
"I think we'll be done sometime tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. The rain shouldn't come until another few days."
Ben nodded and scrapped his hoofs in greeting before he left.
"Well, that's that, I suppose," Yasopp said and turned towards the forest. "What do you wanna do now, Usopp? Some quality time with your old man?"
"Really? I'd love to!"
The elder centaur laughed. "Then let's see who can get to the dead oak first."
"Eat my dust, pops!" Usopp said and started running. He was definitely the forests' best runner, but Yasopp wasn't bad either, plus, he had longer legs. Usopp had to use every trick he knew of to actually keep ahead of his father.
But suddenly he stopped, and Yasopp galloped by him like the wind. Usopp just stood there, staring at something suspicious with one leg lifted in attention.
"Son, what happened?"
The younger centaur hesitantly looked towards his father. "Can you see that?"
Yasopp followed his son's gaze and his eyes narrowed. Without a word he took out his bow and put an arrow in place. The sharp projectile whistled and a snap of wire echoed in Usopp's ears.
Yasopp spat on the ground and carefully moved towards the disarmed trap, eyes spying the ground for more of them. He let another two arrows fly.
"They are set up for us," Yasopp figured with a snarl. "Somebody is taking us way too lightly."
"Humans?" Usopp squeaked fearfully.
"Humans. I have to warn the tribe. Go back to your mother."
Usopp did not have to be pressed. He ran screaming his head off. Ever heard a lighthouse mist horn before? Usopp was louder. The only reason he stopped screaming was because he ran straight into Ben's massive body.
"Usopp! What happened?" the larger centaur demanded, holding a firm grip of the hair of the colt's neck.
"I found a trap in the forest and pops said it was meant for us! Now humans have begun to hunt us down too!"
Ben's grip only hardened until Usopp cried more from the pain of that than from fear.
"Ben! You're hurting me!"
"Oh. Forgive me, boy. I will be more careful to control my…"
"Anger."
The two turned to find Sanji standing there, a few drops of sweat glistening on his chest.
"Don't act rashly, boys. Even if the humans are in fact setting up traps to catch you, you're smarter than to get caught in them. Isn't Usopp proof enough to that. He saw the trap after all."
Ben stomped with his hoofs and gripped his bow, but then gave in to the golden deer man's words. Sanji had saved them numerous times in the past, and would keep saving them as long as they listened to him.
"USOPP!"
The three quadrupeds jumped aside as something long and glistening crashed loudly right beside them and tore up a long line in the soil. Luffy lifted his head, shook it free from dirt and looked around, jumping when he found the one he had been looking for.
"Usopp! I head you scream! What happened?"
"Oh… right. I found traps in the forest set up for centaurs! Pops said they were made by humans! The humans are trying to catch us too now! What are we going to do! Sanjiiii!"
"Oi. Calm down, Usopp," the golden deer man said and patted the colt's butt. "Nobody has been caught."
Luffy growled, his long body trembling and his scales stood out slightly from his body. If anybody tried to grab him now they would end up torn to pieces by the scales.
"Fucking humans! I'm gonna…"
"NOT YOU!" Sanji screamed enraged and with his hind legs kicked the hot-headed dragon's head into a beech.
The young dragon looked back with a teary expression and holding a swollen cheek. The deer man sighed and walked up to him. He lay down and took Luffy's head into his arms, gently stroking the harm he had done.
"Not you, Luffy," he said gently. "You're a dragon. What do you think the humans will do if they ever figure out there are dragons left in the Silver Mountains?"
Luffy's bottom lip trembled. Usopp felt for him and went to unknot Luffy's tail and fold his disarrayed wings. Once done he lay down beside the dragon's neck and patted the soft mane of hair on his back.
"Sanji's right you know, Luffy," he said, attempting to comfort his friend. "Besides, Dragon would be devastated if anything happened to you."
Luffy made an unhappy sound. "That's what mom said before she attacked the dragon hunters to buy me enough time to escape," he mumbled.
"Your mother was one of the bravest," Sanji stated with slight awe. "I wish I could have seen her."
A shadow fell over them and Ben, who had been watching from a safe distance instantly prepared his bow.
"It's dad," Luffy said.
Usopp looked up. The sky was dark, but the black silhouette of Dragon's body could still be made out where he covered the stars. Another dragon passed by over them, this one glowing purely white in the faint moonlight.
"Bet you got them worried," Sanji said and stood. "Come on, Luffy. I'll help you back into the air."
The young dragon sighed and stood. Usopp stood too and moved out of the way. Luffy jumped and flapped with his wings, failing to gain height and instead landed on Sanji's hind legs that kicked him high into the air. Hit by the moonlight, Luffy glowed and sparkled like silver. He partly disappeared from sight when Dragon flew around him, and then all three dragons made it back to the Silver Mountains.
"It's late now," Sanji said. "You should go back to your tribe. Ben. I'll check the outer part of the forest tonight and come back to you around noon tomorrow."
"I'll inform Yasopp," the shire centaur nodded.