A few minutes later, Connor finally returned home. As he approached the stables, he noticed that Kitt, Lance and Fracshun were leaning by the side of the stable's doorway where he remembered they left Geeld the prior night. Wondering what was going on, he quietly approached the group of onlookers, which all promptly gasped and jumped as he cleared his throat to gain their attention.
"May I know what's going on?" Connor asked, only for Kitt and Lance promptly gesturing him to lower his voice and look inside.
Curious of their reasons, he stepped towards the stable, only to stop in his track as he saw Wyldfyr curled around a small patch of hay, purring softly as Geeld peacefully slumbered, snuggling against the large Magma-class's side.
Having seen a similar picture before several times in his life, Connor knew that it was better to leave them alone for a bit. Slowly leaving the stables, Connor motioned the others to come with him, although Fracshun was a bit reluctant, as he was more curious to just stay and watch.
"I see that things aren't going too badly." Connor said, once he deemed they were a sufficient distance away from the sleeping dragons as to not disturb them. "Although I would've expected Beau to be the one taking care of the whelp like that, not Wyldfyr."
"Well, Beau's still acting very aggressively towards Geeld, and Artha doesn't seem to be able to reason with him." Kitt said, crossing her arms in thought. "We still don't know what's with him and the whelp."
"This is not good. Beau's behavior cannot continue like this." Connor muttered, a bit of anger making way in his statement's tone. "Where's Artha and Beau, anyway? They were the ones I expressively assigned to take care of Geeld."
Just as if on cue, Artha, Parmon, Beau and Cyrano appeared, coming from the entry way of the circuit that ran around the stables. Noticing Connor, Artha cringed in preparation for the lecture he knew he was going to get about Beau's recent behavior.
"Artha, we need to talk." Connor growled, sounding more like when he was Mortis, than Connor. "I thought I had been clear that you and Beau should look after the hatchling."
"Dad, listen..." Artha started, although his father cut him by raising his hand.
"I know what you're gonna say, Artha, and I understand." Connor said, almost softly, causing everyone to stare at him in shock. That was until Beau was forced to step back as Connor approached him with a very angry look. "In fact, I'm more disappointed by Beau."
"Me? Why?" Beau growled, shaking his head in confusion, until it occurred to him why, causing him to roll his large golden eyes.
"Don't give me that look, Beau." Connor snarled, now sounding like a dragon in the process. "I expected you to take pity in someone who could very well be your similar."
"She's not my similar, and she'll never be." Beau growled as he looked away.
"Beau! Look at me while I'm talking to you!" Connor thundered, shocking everyone as he kept scolding the red and blue dragon. "Whether you like it or not, Geeld will have to stay here. I don't know for how long, but for her sake it might just be forever."
"And why's that, if I may?" Parmon stepped in, voicing everyone's interest.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Connor made a recap of his visit with Arcturus at the hospital.
"For all we know, Geeld's mother might have been already turned into a wraith by Word, meaning that there will be no way to know where she ended up for sure." Connor concluded, letting out a sigh, as he knew he left out an important detailed that pained him deeply.
"But what about that Pack-class that was brought to the hospital with Arcturus, isn't he Geeld's father?" Parmon asked, rubbing his chin in thought.
"He's dead. Eventually his condition worsened during the night and the doctors couldn't save him." Connor answered, giving a glance towards the stable where Geeld was sleeping.
"So, she's practically an orphan..." Kitt breathed.
"Yes. She is." Connor admitted.
Kitt looked back at the stable, thinking at how Geeld would react at the news. It wouldn't be easy, Kitt realized, being an orphan herself. Meanwhile Beau was looking away, unwilling to accept that perhaps his attitude was indeed wrong. Yet, something is not right about her, Beau kept thinking.
"Fine." Beau sighed, catching everyone by surprise as he slowly made his way towards the stable. As he peaked inside, he saw Wyldfyr apparently grooming Geeld, his large tongue moving up the whelp's back, which was less than enthusiastic at the treatment.
"Keep still." Wyldfyr growled at Geeld, which kept wriggling, trying to pry herself free from the larger dragon's front claws.
Unsure what to do, Beau just kept watching. He barely restrained a giggle, as watching the scene reminded him of when he was himself in a similar condition, his mother trying to groom him, while he tried to wiggle away to go play with the other hatchlings. It then occurred to him, that Geeld would not have such luxury anymore, her father being dead and her mother most likely brainwashed into a wraith. Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward into the stable, Wyldfyr looking up inquisitively at him, but saying nothing. That was until Beau was about to talk.
"Spare it. You've already said enough." Wyldfyr snorted as he returned to grooming Geeld, who was trying to hide under the red dragon's clawed arms. Clearly she remembers well, Beau thought, letting a sigh to come into being as he laid down, resting his head on his front paws.
"I'm sorry." Beau snorted, in what was by all intent and purposes equivalent to human muttering.
"I don't think we've heard well. Geeld especially; care to say it again? Louder perhaps?" Wyldfyr rumbled, teasing Beau.
"I said I'm sorry." Beau repeated, this time growling.
"That's better, but I think something is still missing." Wyldfyr snorted, motioning with his head at the small wiggling black tail sticking out of the hay between his arms.
With a deep breath, Beau finally let out what he meant to say.
"Geeld, I'm sorry for yelling at you, and shooing you away." Beau hooted, apparently softly enough for the whelp to wiggle out of the hay and poke her head up to look at him with wide golden eyes. Before either of the larger dragons could do anything, Geeld hopped up and in a blink she was snuggling against Beau's chest. A bit embarrassed by the situation already as it was, it certainly didn't help him when Wyldfyr started chuckling. As he was about to say something, some more chuckling started from behind him. As he turned his head, Beau found pretty much everyone else giggling and snickering at the sight of the small black and gold whelp nuzzling and trying to hug Beau, which despite his disguise was still a black and gold dragon himself.
"See, Beau? She's not that bad." Kitt said, crossing her arms and leaning on the doorway.
"You saw WHAT?!" Word shouted as his son Moordryid gave him a complete resume of the night's events.
"A black and gold hatchling." Moordryid repeated, shrugging as his father stood fuming at his desk. "I was just about to bring it to you, but then the Dragon Booster showed up and nearly busted the entire heist. We were lucky to get away fast enough with what we already had."
"Moordryid. How many times will I have to say it before you understand the meaning of it?" Word asked rhetorically, with an apparently calm yet cold tone, before bursting. "INCOMPETENTS! Even a Mid City snatcher would do a better job than you and your crew!"
Moordryid simply crossed his arms, using all of his restrain to keep himself from retorting to his father. Word took a breath and spun around as he started thinking. It was then that he had an idea.
"Still, another black and gold dragon in the city is something that requires a more... sophisticated touch." Word hissed, apparently talking to himself, more than anything.
"What's your plan, father?" Moordryid asked, hopeful of being let in on his father's schemes.
"My plan, Moordryid, does not include you. You're dismissed, and while you're at it, why don't you tell your crew to clean up that disgraceful waste dump that you call a compound."
Fuming, Moordryid spun around and left, less than enthusiast of being ordered around like that, again. When will he stop using me as if I was one of his wraith dragons, Moordryid wondered as he hopped on Decepshun and started for his crew's compound.
As Word saw Moordryid leaving the citadel at full speed, he turned around and pressing a button he summoned a wraith dragon.
"Well, my pawn, looks like that my failure of a son won't be of any use in this matter." Word muttered as he pat it on the head, the wraith screeched, apparently acknowledging its master's words. With the press of another button and the flick of a switch, a small pillar rose from the floor. On it, floating in mid air, was a wedge-like piece of black gear. Word grabbed it, and carefully positioned it on the wraith's forehead, on top of the control gear.
"Finally, after countless restless nights and days of work, and with this new device of my invention, I shall be able to track down any source of pure gold draconium. Go, my wraith, and scour the city. Find this... whelp."
With a loud, high-pitched roar, the wraith dragon disappeared, the only clue of his movements the sounds of his heavy footsteps as he darted out of the citadel. Word watched, a grin spreading along his lips as nothing but malice and viciousness expressed themselves in a cold and loud laugh that echoed through the citadel's many halls and chambers.
"Now, be careful. Focus on the can." Beau rumbled, watching Geeld as she tried and use her mag energy for the first time. She was apparently taking this very seriously, as she stared intently at the small empty can that was placed on the ground in front of her. Eyes narrowing, she focused, a soft golden glow surrounding her. She felt something, and before she noticed, a bright flash of gold appeared. Startled, her focus broke, and when the flash lessened she couldn't move fast enough that the can smacked really hard and fast against her nose, making her fall on her rear.
"Geeld! Are you okay?" Beau growled as he approached to make sure she wasn't hurt.
"It hurts..." Geeld whimpered as she rubbed her nose with her small clawed arms. Then she started to sniffle, and before Beau could do anything she began crying, the air pierced by a very loud screeching as tears flowed freely from her eyes.
Beau sighed as he laid down, curling up around Geeld, nuzzling her snout with his, trying to comfort her.
Meanwhile Artha had been watching quietly from afar, amused by Beau's attempts at mentoring Geeld, and at the same time pitying the young whelp for the harsh life that she would have to live had it not been for them.
Hearing the cry, Wyldfyr darted out of the stable, leaving Kitt flabbergasted, completely unexpecting her dragon to sprint like that to the whelp's aid.
"What's going on over here?" He growled as he approached Beau, who was still trying to comfort Geeld.
"I tried to teach her a couple of things, but it didn't work out too well." Beau rumbled as he shook his head at the red dragon.
"Perhaps she's too young for certain things. Has it occurred to you how small she is?" Wyldfyr snorted at Beau, shaking his head, clearly disappointed.
"So much for trying to do the right thing." Beau snorted, turning his head away from Wyldfyr's heated glare. It proved to be a mistake as suddenly Beau found his head flung the other way around as something long and red collided with his cheek. It took him a moment to shake off the shock as he realized that Wyldfyr had smacked him with his tail.
Of course, Beau wasn't the only one shocked by Wyldfyr's behavior. Artha could only stare, jaw-dropped and wide-eyed.
A most awkward silence filled the air, only interrupted by Parmon's steps as he left the stables' gear workshop to head for the panoramic garden. Of course taking a break meant taking a meal with him, and just for that he took out of his pocket a draconee-yum bar, slowly unwrapping it.
Hearing the sound of a wrap being opened, Geeld looked up, cheeks still streaked with tears. She looked around, looking for whatever was the sound. As she hopped onto Beau's back, much to his surprise, she looked around, also sniffing the air. Eventually her eyes fell onto Parmon, who meanwhile had taken a couple of small bites from the candy bar.
Geeld focused, teary eyes narrowing on the bar. I can do it, she told herself. Once more, a soft golden glow enveloped her, and this time she didn't let herself be startled by the flash that came. She tilted her head slightly downward, her eyes finally able to focus beyond the flash onto the candy bar.
"Wha- Hey!" Parmon yelped as he bit thin air, the candy bar snatched by a golden stream of mag-energy. As he looked at the source of it, he found the candy bar flying towards Beau. At first he thought it was Beau who was stealing his candy bar, but then he saw something small, black and gold, on Beau's back.
Geeld, this time more determined although hungry, promptly let the energy go, and when the candy bar came into view she jumped and snatched it into her jaws. She sat down on her haunches, holding the bar with her short arms and bit enthusiastically into the candy.
Everyone in the courtyard was flabbergasted by how the whelp simply ate the candy bar without any care, and quick enough the empty wrap fell to the ground as she let out a rather satisfied burp.
"Were you saying?" Beau finally snorted at Wyldfyr, a dragon-sized grin on his face.
"You're unbelievable..." Wyldfyr sighed.
Meanwhile, from up high on one of the over-passing roads, an invisible shadow observed, and through that shadow's eyes, so did its master.