Author's Notes: I had planned to put a bit more Canard in this story, but that stubborn duck decided he needed his own. So, I'm sorry, but Canard won't be returning until the end. Since what's happening with Canard and Emily would give away a major plot point in this story, I won't be posting that story until this one is, if not completely done, mostly done. Also, I'm writing both stories at the same time and because of that, updates may take a bit more time. Sorry. At any rate, enjoy and reviews are always appreciated.
Wildwing lead Ruby through a maze of hallways, not that she was really paying attention to where they were going. She was enjoying the view and it had nothing to do with the architectural wonder that they were walking through. He had a really nice backside and she couldn't stop staring at it.
His back was nearly as nice as his chest, but the posterior, well, that was in a totally different class of WOW! The sleep pants he was wearing were doing a great job highlighting all of his well shaped lower half. By the first egg, he was a good looking duck. Canard wasn't bad looking, but she didn't find him as interesting as the drake in front of her.
What was wrong with her? She felt bad enough about having to take The Mask before she started to get to know Wildwing, but now she really wanted to give it back. She wished that she could, but now that she had reclaimed The Mask, it couldn't be worn again until someone earned the right.
Wildwing looked back over his shoulder to make sure Ruby was still following him and noticed her staring at his backside. He knew he should have been freaked out by it, but instead, it put a little swagger in his step. He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't help it.
What was wrong with him? She was the enemy. She took the mask and wouldn't give it back and here he was strutting around like peacock for her. He must have taken a few too many pucks to the head at last practice. The helmet he'd been wearing in place of the mask just didn't seem to do the job as well.
They finally made it to the kitchen with a disgruntled fire Elemental sulking behind the ducks. Wildwing indicated for Ruby to take a seat at the table while he looked into the fridge. As soon as she sat down, the salamander laid its head in her lap. Ruby gave the Elemental a questioning look and he sighed.
I absorbed the fire of the Phoenix so that she couldn't take over, the salamander started to explain.
"But that only made you bigger," Wildwing pointed out, his head still in the icebox. "The change to your appearance didn't happen until after you ate the harpy feathers."
"Harpy?" Ruby rasped and immediately regretted it, as she winced and grabbed her throat.
"You had passed out on the ride here," Wildwing explained as he finally gave up finding anything in the fridge and shut the door. "Shortly after we got here, a harpy showed up and tried to take you. Between all of us, we were able to drive her away. Sparky here ate the feathers she left behind."
I'll give you a sparking, the salamander growled, his body tensing up.
Ruby started to scratch the salamander just behind his jaw hinge and the Elemental all but melted into a puddle as she found just the right spot. Wildwing turned to start looking in the cupboards to hide his jealousy. He blamed his exhaustion for his desire to be the one with his head in Ruby's lap.
"Either Nosedive went on a massive eating binge or someone went through and cleaned almost everything out," Wildwing stated as he pulled a can out cabinet. "All I can find is canned soup. Is that alright?"
She nodded as she continued to make the fire Elemental deliriously happy. Wildwing went to get out a bowl and found the cupboards had been completely rearranged. She watched him with slight amusement as the drake went through several cabinets before finding what he wanted.
"Seems whoever cleaned out the fridge decided to rearrange the cupboards too," he grumbled as he dumped the can of soup into the bowl.
Brownies, the salamander purred.
"I don't think we have any brownies," Wildwing replied. "If we did, Nosedive would have eaten them all by now."
Not the food, you bird brain, the large red lizard rumbled. The earth Elementals. They love to clean.
Ruby looked at Wildwing questioningly and was tempted to ask her question despite the pain.
"I thought you got rid of all of the earth and air Elementals," Wildwing said as he pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge.
I tried to, the salamander nearly moaned as Ruby found another good spot. We're not of the same element, so they don't have to do as I tell them. They just wanted to hang out near Ruby to feel her magic. This world has gone much too long without a magic user.
"So there might be more hiding around here someplace?" Wildwing asked as he opened the bottle and then handed it to Ruby.
There could be, the Elemental groaned while Ruby took the bottle with her free hand and gave the drake a smile of thanks. Oh yes, right there. The air Elementals probably didn't stick around as they and earth don't exactly get along and this place is underground.
"So, what type of earth Elementals could still be hanging around?" Wildwing inquired as he took the bowl of soup and stuck it in the microwave.
Brownies are the most logical, but most earth Elementals don't care to be inside a building, even if it is under ground, the salamander sighed with contentment. But I wouldn't rule out the occasional air Elemental hanging out. This place has enough space for them to move around in.
"You know, for someone who's less than a week old, you're pretty knowledgeable," Wildwing observed as he started to heat Ruby's food.
For an Elemental, time is meaningless, the fire Elemental replied. Power gives us the knowledge we need. Between the Phoenix's fire and the harpy's feathers, I've acquired a lot of power in a very short period of time.
But not wisdom, a new voice stated, full of disdain. That takes time.
It took them a moment to find the owner of the new voice. He was sitting on top of the refrigerator. He looked like a stout little man, wearing homespun pants and shirt with a conical hat. At best, he would be about a foot tall when standing up.
Gnome, the fire Elemental nearly growled, making that one word almost sound like an insult.
Dragon, the gnome shot back in the same tone.
"Wait a minute, I thought you were a salamander," Wildwing stated as he got a spoon out, a bit put out with the fiery beast.
Fire Elementals can be transformed by the power they absorb, the gnome stated. If he had come by his power by normal means, he probably would have remained a salamander with no more wit than a good dog.
I'll give you a good dog, the dragon snarled as his flames started to burn brighter and larger.
"If you two are going to have a fight, take it outside!" Wildwing demanded as he pulled the bowl out of the microwave and stirred the soup. "Tanya's already having a fit about the damage done so far by you Elementals."
"Stop, please," Ruby got out painfully and then took a drink of water in hopes that it would relieve the burning in her throat.
"Don't talk," Wildwing ordered as he put the spoon down on the counter and put the bowl back in the appliance. "That scream you let out earlier did some damage."
It wasn't her, it was the Phoenix, the dragon reminded him.
"It was still her vocal cords," Wildwing pointed out while he restarted the microwave.
How is it that you control a Phoenix? The gnome demanded, glaring at Ruby. Such a powerful being should never be imprisoned. How did you manage to capture one?
She can't talk right now, the dragon growled back as he moved away from Ruby. And she isn't the one who captured the Phoenix.
But she uses the great one's power for her own, the gnome shot back.
Not by choice, the fire Elemental hissed, stopping in front of the refrigerator.
Wildwing watched in fascinated horror as the two Elementals argued back and forth, worried that he might have to break up a fight. He barely heard the microwave go off because of their bickering. He turned to pick up the spoon he had left on the counter and found it missing.
The duck looked around for it, sure he had left it right there! There wasn't any indication that the spoon had ever even been there, just a very clean counter top. Then he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.
Wildwing turned and saw one of the small creatures that had cleaned his boot earlier sticking the suddenly clean spoon back in the silverware drawer. With a sigh, he headed over to retrieve the eating implement. He pulled the spoon back out, much to the disapproval of the brownie on the counter.
"I wasn't done with that," Wildwing grumbled at the little Elemental.
Messy, messy, messy, the brownie mumbled to itself as it disappeared behind the stove.
Wildwing ignored the bickering Elementals as they just seemed to be arguing and it didn't look like it was going to escalate. He carefully removed the bowl from the microwave and gave the soup another stir. It appeared to be hot enough and he put it on the table in front of Ruby.
She looked miserable and his heart gave that weird lurch again. Her eyes were downcast and her shoulders slumped. He wanted to touch her, to reassure her, but he didn't dare. She was still the enemy.
"I'm going to get things cleaned up in the med ward while you eat," Wildwing stated as she picked up the spoon with all of the enthusiasm of picking up a dead snake. "If those two get out of hand, there's a fire extinguisher in the corner."
Wildwing felt a bit better when he saw the corner of her beak twitch at his comment. He was more than a little tempted to sit down with her and see if he could get her to smile or, better yet, laugh. He gave himself a mental shake before he did something stupid and left the room.
Ruby wasn't sure she was relieved or not when he left as she blew on the hot soup. On the one hand, she couldn't stop staring at him and she was afraid that he was going to catch her watching him like some silly groupie. On the down side, she didn't have anyone to tell the bickering Elementals to be quiet.
She looked up at the gnome still standing on the refrigerator and studied the little creature. It looked like a miniature, stocky human. It was curious that the gnomes back on Puckworld all looked like tiny ducks. Same with the brownies, for that matter. She hadn't seen any fairies yet, but she had to wonder what they looked like.
With a sigh, Ruby went back to eating her soup, ignoring the fighting creatures. She was still trying to wrap her mind around the fact that her sweet, adventurous salamander was now a dragon. She had never seen a dragon back home, but she knew that they could get bigger than a house.
How was she supposed to take care of him if he got that big? Would he even fit through the door to their hotel room? Would he need her any more? While he had been a lot of work to take care of, he was at least company when she was lonely.
She had never been out on her own, taking care of herself. She had gone from living with her parents and sister to living with the other mages. She had no idea what to do.
Ruby realized that the soup was gone and she barely remembered what it tasted like. She tiredly got to her feet and went over to the sink to put her dishes in. No sooner where they in the basin than a brownie reappeared.
She watched him as he magically cleaned the items before returning them to their place of origin. Once they were away, he came over and stared adoringly up at her. She put her hand out and he immediately climbed up onto her shoulder. He cuddled up to the side of her neck and sighed contentedly. She wasn't sure why he was ignoring the dirt, but she didn't mind him snuggling up to her.
"Good, your done," Wildwing said as he stepped back into the kitchen and Ruby turned to face him. "There's a brownie on your shoulder."
She smiled and nodded, amused by his attempt to hide his surprise.
"Right," he sighed before turning and waving for her to follow him. "Come on, I'll show you where you're bunking."
She followed him down another series of hallways, staring at the back of his head the entire way. At least, that was what she was trying to stare at, but somehow, her eyes kept heading south. It was so hard to ignore such a nice view.
All too soon for her, Wildwing lead her into a room that was nothing like the room she had woken up in. The room was much larger than the last one, heck, it was bigger than two hotel rooms. The brownie jumped off her shoulder and disappeared behind the couch as she looked around the room.
It looked like a combination bedroom and rec room that had been hastily straightened up. There was work out equipment, a game table, a huge entertainment system, a sofa, some chairs that looked like they came from a sports arena and what appeared to be a large bunk bed that one would have to climb up to. At the far end of the L shaped room was another door. She looked up at him questioningly.
"This is my room," he confirmed and then pointed to a door to at the end of the room. "The bathroom is through there, so you can get cleaned up. I put clean sheets on the bed."
She got a bit nervous about being in his room with just him. She didn't think she could hold off a butterfly at that moment, much less a determined male if he chose to attack her. He didn't seem to notice her apprehension as he turned and picked some clothes off of the game table.
"If you give me your dirty clothes, I'll get them washed for you," he said as he held what appeared to be shorts and a jersey out to her. "I found some clothes for you to wear. They should be loose enough to sleep in."
Why would she need those? the dragon asked as he wandered into the room. She doesn't wear clothes to bed.
The fire Elemental was completely oblivious to the shell shocked ducks in the room as he started to explore. It took several seconds for Ruby to regain enough composure to snag the clothes out of Wildwing's hand and head for the bathroom. He watched her stalk across the room and he imagined if she could have, she would have slammed the door behind her.
"Obviously, tact comes with time as well as wisdom," Wildwing grumbled while the dragon climbed the railing the bed was attached to.
What's that supposed to mean? the dragon demanded as he paused in his exploration. Is she supposed to sleep up here? How is she going to get up here? She can't fly and there's no ladder.
Wildwing didn't answer, but went over to the wall next to the railing and pushed a button. A moment later, the bed descended down the railing until it was about a foot off of the floor. The dragon rode the bed down, but didn't look satisfied.
What is the point of having the bed so high up? The hot tempered Elemental asked heatedly.
"It's so I can practice my shots," Wildwing snapped as he pointed at the basketball hoop attached to the wall across the room from the bed.
Before the dragon could ask any more questions, the bathroom door opened wide enough for Ruby's clothes to be thrown out and then shut again. Wildwing quickly gathered up the discarded clothing and stalked out of the room. He refused to think about the fact that she was standing in his bathroom without a stitch of clothing on.
The security guard yawned as he made his rounds through the mall. Everything was as it should be and the guard looked forward to getting back to the office and his TV. Once he finished checking everything out, he could go back to watching his shows.
No sooner had the human gone around the corner than three forms appeared out of the shadows. The tallest of the three was not a happy camper as he made his way to a certain door. The other two followed suit.
"I still don't know why Lord Dragaunus sent us here with you," Siege grumbled as Wraith stopped at the front door of one of the shops.
"We're his body guards," Chameleon replied after he took on the shape of Kevin Costner.
"If you start singing again, so help me, I'll shoot you," Siege snarled.
"If you two don't be quiet, you'll doom us all by bring back the human," Wraith quietly warned.
"Who cares about some measly human," Siege mumbled, though he was a bit more quiet.
Wraith ignored him as he examined the door he had stopped at. He needed to hide the 'package' in such a way that it wouldn't easily be seen and at the same time it could deliver its load. It was a subtle spell that would take time and he hoped that the Saurian overlord had the patience to wait for the spell to do its job.
He finally decided on a spot and carefully attached the dark red feather to the back of the door handle. He cast a camouflage spell to make it harder to see and feel. He then he cast the spell that would draw the duck mage to her doom.
The poison was a slow and subtle thing and would only be released when the owner of the feather touched it. Her death would be slow and painful. With planning and a bit of luck, he would be there for her death and to claim the Phoenix for himself.
Wraith started to chanting to his Dark Saurian Ancestors to draw the duck the feather came from to it. After he completed his spell, Wraith turned to the others who were just wandering around. He hoped that Dragaunus's insistence of bringing those two along hadn't just doomed his plans. He moved away from the door and that brought the other two back over to him.
"It is done," Wraith stated.
"You better hope this works or Dragaunus is going to have your scales," Siege warned. "He's still not happy that the curse didn't work to get rid of those duck mages in the first place."
Wraith just glared at the other Saurian as he activated his teleporter and returned to the Raptor. A moment later, the other two also disappeared. None of them realized that even though the human guard was nowhere around, that they hadn't been alone.