Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon

Believe it or not, the inspiration for getting my behind in gear and working on this addition came from Dragon's World: A Legend Made Real. Look it up. I believe you can find it on Youtube.

Also, there's a little question I want to ask of my reviewers. Can I do a sort of behind the scenes companion to this [as in not really related to the story, more controlled playing-with-characters sort of thing], featuring some of my own draconian creations in companion to the little green hellion, I mean, adorable creature contrived here? After all, with my stretches of inactivity, someone has to keep an eye on the little guy. [There may also be some cameos, as I do have a few ideas of what can be done with this.] I will also continue updating this as often as time allows, as it's the actual work and I've gotten so much great feedback. Course, if it doesn't sound good, I'll drop it for the moment. Just leave your answer with your review, please.

And now, our story.

Soaring:

He was watching the loud, feathery creatures again, but this time, a game wasn't quite the only thing on his mind. The dragon had been thinking about their wings, all feathery and flappy, as they were, and his own. His were devoid of feathers, but certainly they could hold up his weight in the air, right?

Granted, he hadn't quite been able to achieve the same lift that he had had before he had grown, but surely it was still doable. Taking a preparative breath, the reptile settled himself at the end of one of the many clearings in this forest [though, for the sake of practice, this one was larger than the last few he had tried]. Crouching down, he glared at the taunting blue sky as though it had done him a personal wrong. With a great running start and a leap, the reptile jumped into the air, wings flapping furiously as they tried to hold up his weight.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem that the wind was on his side, and he came down in a heap. Grunting and rolling over so that he was on his back, the child stared up at the sky, that elusive thing that seemed so close, and yet so far beyond his reach. He remembered that feeling, that swooping, soaring, top-of-the-world sort of feeling that he had experienced back when he was smaller. The feathery things were mocking him now with it, circling above his head and well out of his reach. Almost snarling his own frustration, the demi-dragon rolled to his feet to try the stunt again before-.

A low noise from his midsection interrupted. A plaintive calling for food that he had managed to ignore up until this moment. Sparing the maddening creatures above one more glare, the reptile turned to the bountiful growth of the nearby bushes. He had come to like these particular plants, but had only been able to track some down in the wetter parts of the forest. They were tasty, and filling, the dragon falling asleep in the shade with a full stomach within moments of finishing.

The sun had ascended to its midpoint in the sky before he awoke from his nap, smelling the new creature before he saw it. A two-legged. Here, in his part of the forest. While he had remembered the two-leggeds, and retained most of what he had learned on the ship [like the fact that he still hated parrots with a passion], he had figured that he had left them behind when he left the 'ship'. But when the burly, and very surprised two-legged suddenly crashed through the bushes, peering at him with no small amount of shock, he had to silently acknowledge the fact that what he thought had been quite wrong.

Though both were stunned, the reptile recovered first, quickly rising and darting off the other way, catching only the tail end of the creature's frightened cry at the sudden movement. Heart pounding, he crashed through the undergrowth, not bothering with stealth now. However, instead of growing faint, the smell of the two-legged followed him, practically licking at his heels. He didn't turn his head, too focused on taking a left there, and then trying to lose him around that tree there. But this one must have been nimbler than he looked, as he cleared most of the obstacles in moments.

In fact, he and his tag-along made it all the way to the clearing that the dragon had left not hours ago, but this time, there was a change. With the young lizard's heart pumping wildly, muscles tensed, and instinct firing in his brain, unlike the brazen impudence that had been driving before. He felt lighter, feet ready to lift off the ground. His wings, uncoordinated and flimsy, now felt strong enough to take him to the very stars he had watched as a hatchling. Ignoring the blundering of the two-legged behind him, the young dragon snapped his wings out, allowing them to catch the air before starting to beat, quickly, but with careful rhythm.

Nature taking hold, his wings eventually carried his feet two, no, now over the branches of the trees! His grunts and small growls burst out into one long, joyous call, sending the few feathery beings in the sky a-quake with fear; there was a dragon loose in the air.

But for him, all it was was the pleasant sensation of flight, the feeling of regaining a skill that had been thought lost.

And with that, he took to the east, leaving his pursuer on the ground behind.

Why am I suddenly hearing the opening lyrics to Heart of a Dragon by Dragonforce?

Oh, well. Got other plot bunnies to get moving on, before they start piling up again. [shudders] Hardly need a repeat of last time...

That's all for now, folks!