Disclaimer: See first chapter.
(divider)
Hikari art was a menace to society. Rain hissed off the boiling scales, pouring over them like miniature waterfalls. A DANGEROUS menace, he revised, shifting the now-lizardlike form of his body. An uncomfortable, dangerous menace.
And it was a physical impossibility for dragons to fly.
He'd just been trying to move it from that precarious position the sculpture had been holding anyway.
Why would the Hikaris ever want to make a sculpture of a dragon, that forced you to adopt it's form every time you touched it anyway? It seemed like a thoughtless, silly action, the product of one of his sadist ancestors' crazy ideas, and yet here he was, with the short end of the deal again. He'd been at his 'father's house, since the man asked him to move it--Hiwataris were cowards, he mused disdainfully-- but the moment he came in and discovered Satoshi had accidentally touched the artwork and he now had a twelve-foot-long, seven-foot high dragon in his study, Satoshi had been booted out of the house.
He WOULD have toasted the man then and there, but rain did unpleasant things to the fire that raged inside him.
He was shifting, stretching his useless wings out to try and shield himself a bit more from the pounding rain when he saw her.
Simple and bright against the backdrop of rain and darkness, was a figure. A figure with a white umbrella, therefore more than likely a female. He was possessed by the innate urge to find a dark hole and climb into it, or slither, as befitted his current situation.
But her path was already turning.
"Hiwatari-san?"
Why isn't she screaming? Running? How can she identify me? Why is she heading this way?
The girl neared him, coming up in his blind spot where he couldn't see her. His long neck twisted as he tried to catch a glimpse of her face, but the girl skillfully avoided being seen, driving the dragon to frustration. Her voice was so familiar! Somehow familiar, something that resonated with his mind, someone he knew...
Relief from the rain was abruptly shoved over his head in the form of an umbrella, his eyes darting upwards with surprise to the small canopy of shelter.
"They stay blue, even in this form. That's interesting." The girl beside him commented but he couldn't turn to look at her without nudging her aside. Dragons were very limited when it came to eyesight. He slowly spread his useless but still large wings to cover her head; feeling the girl move to walk beneath them while still holding the umbrella over his head.
"I saw Dark the other day." She commented suddenly, as if this was nothing at all out of the ordinary for her and she always walked dragons home in the rain. He made a non-committal 'chuff'' of acknowledgement and she continued.
"He... took me out."
So I did... now I now who this is.
Another gentle chuff, scales clinking gently as he moved.
"It was nice to see him again, after such a long time. Just, as a visit, you know... don't you?"
No, he really didn't, but he was awfully good at pretending. They walked in silence for a few moments, each with their own thoughts. He could feel the form fading, knowing he'd return to himself soon, and consequently backed away from the girl, claws clicking lightly on the cobblestones under his weight. Searching his mind, he attempted the usual dragon form of communication.
'This... never happened. Between you and me.'
There was no reaction on the girl's face, merely calm acceptance, like a princess. Unsure if she had even 'heard' him, his only concern was the scales that would soon dissipate in favor of skin, flattening onto one another. He doubted his clothes would return with his skin.
He turned, gliding down the street quietly on two legs, looking innocently like a strange sort of ryuu-jin-- at least until an umbrella came flying after him, skittering as it whacked him from behind then fell to the wet street. He glanced down at it, then up at the girl. She smirked at him, crossing her arms.
"You're not escaping your escapades this time. I want that back on Monday. I won't ask about your form. Ladies' honor." She held up two fingers in a mock salute.
He lifted the umbrella, unfolding the vanes delicately, and started down the street again, until finally she couldn't see him anymore. She sighed, pushing her red-brown hair back over her shoulder, then turned and went inside.
Hiwatari-kun was almost... attractive without his glasses on. Dismissing the thought, Risa shook her head, reminding herself verbally.
"I miss Dark-sama. Dark-sama took me out... Dark-sama gave me his jacket and kissed me..." She smiled as she got ready for bed, snuggling happily beneath the covers.
But she still dreamed of blue-eyed dragons.