When Ace recovered from his fit, he found himself lying against something warm, and he was mostly dry. He blearily sat up, realising that he'd been propped up against Locks. He absentmindedly stroked the soft scales of her dragon form in the darkness. Was it night already?
Growr!
The sky roared with thunder. Ace heard a whimpering, his little brother awakened by the storm. He carefully made his way around Locks (she didn't take kindly to being tripped over) to Luffy. With a mighty heave, he pulled Luffy out of the shelves, stumbling back against Locks as his brother came free. She grunted, shifting with a faint rustle as she raised her head around to look at him. He gave her a sheepish smile, pulling Luffy into his lap. The younger boy clung to his shirt, whimpering as the sky roared again, burying his head into Ace's chest.
"Sshh . . ." Ace whispered. Locks' head came down, and she sniffed at the frightened boy in his arms. Her rainbow-swirling eyes peered at the pair of them, and she seemed to snort, not that Ace could tell since the rain was so loud.
oOo
Ace continued to comfort Luffy. Locks had changed into her half-form, and was sitting in the doorway eyeing the raging elements with her wings half open. Ace could see the edge of her smile each time lightning split the skies, her tail swishing in excitement. So, she liked storms. Ace found that oddly . . . fitting.
Ace used to love storms, the way the wind tossed the sea and rain drummed into the earth, the way lightning lit everything up in brilliance for a single moment. He and Sabo used to sit watching the sky wreak its fury, while teasing Luffy for hiding behind them. But now that Sabo was gone, Ace found that storms didn't quite have the same appeal as they used to. He held his shivering little brother tight, watching as Locks held out her hand to the wild rain.
oOo
The knowledge of dragons is passed down genetically, though no one knows how. Hatchlings come into the world with the history of their species locked in their minds. As they grow older, more and more of this knowledge is fed to them from this hidden trove. But while they are young, the hatchling knows next to nothing, so the elder dragons are free to tell their tales without being interrupted. One such tale was the legend of the Queen of Thunder.
The mighty leader of the Lightning tribe before the Great Split, the Queen of Thunder was said to be able to control and create the very storms whose thunder named her. Her lightning was so powerful that it was said to able to destroy kingdoms in an instant. She led her tribe well so they were able to take victory from the Spectre tribe. No matter that the Tribe of Spells had orchestrated thw war for their amusement. The Queen of Thunder was still a great leader, and had been given the honour of being the tribe's celestial being.
The dragons say that to revel in the fury of the storm is to be one step closer to the Queen of Thunder and all her glory. Locks hummed, smiling in delight as the skies brought their havoc. Softly, she sang to the storm. Whether or not the Queen of Thunder had ever been as great as her people made her out to be was debateable. But that didn't stop one young dragon from enjoying her legacy.
oOo
Ace blinked, wondering if he was hearing things, but the sound continued.
One step clo-ser . . .
Luffy stilled slightly, listening.
I have died every day, waiting for you
Darling don't be afraid, I have loved you
Luffy's death grip on Ace's shirt loosened slightly.
For a thou-sand years, I'll love you for a thou-sand more . . .
As Locks sang to the storm for whatever odd reason, Ace felt Luffy go to sleep on his lap. He smiled, ruffling the younger boy's hair, listening to Locks' soft voice. She wasn't half-bad.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Locks has a Christmas special! It's called 'Locks Christmas', and will have twelve chapters when finished, so go to my profile and check it out!
I'm going on hiatus (when the special is finished) for Christmas and because I'm going to be on holiday for most of January. So Locks, and my other stories, aren't going to be updated until late Jan/early February.
Merry Christmas to all my readers, and a Happy New Year too. Have a good holiday season.
-Albertastein
