"Dart"
Summary: Dart the Night Light Dragon and her two humans are the stars of a popular action adventure show on television. There's just one problem, though: Dart believes that all the danger she faces in the show are real. One day while filming, things go wrong, and Dart ends up in the biggest adventure of her life: Reality. With some help from new friends, a reluctant feline and her two biggest fans, Dart finds a way back to her humans and learns how to live in the real world.
(Disclaimers and notes will be down at the end of the chapter! Thank you!)
Chapter 1: "Our Good Girl, Our Dart"
This is the Domino City Animal Rescue Center. It's a place where people can come to adopt a variety of animals- Anything from the usual suspects of cats and dogs to a more unusual selection of Pokémon or even dragons. Everyone who works or volunteer at the center does their absolute best to ensure that these critters under their care are adopted by people and families that will see them as the loving creatures that they are.
Every animal in the rescue center is capable of giving love and receiving love in return. All it takes is a warm home, plenty of pets and pats, a firm but gentle hand, and some patience. Of course, having lots of food and treats always helps. When an animal gets adopted by the right person or the right family, a lifelong friendship is formed.
Today is a day when such a bond like that begins.
In the main area of the center was a large, raised pen, which had a few critters inside. This was to mostly help draw in potential owners to adopt. As most people should know, adopting a pet is a huge life change and should NOT be done on a whim. Just because a creature LOOKS cute and cuddly, that doesn't mean it's the right fit for someone's home.
More often than not, it just attracted curious children and window shoppers. That was fine, though, as it still brought attention to the center and its operations.
One of the critters in the pen was a dragon. A baby dragon, to be more specific, of roughly a month and a half or two months old. Sometimes it was hard to guess the age on certain dragon breeds. It had a rounded face, two large flaps on top of its head almost like rabbit ears, two sets of spikes running down its spine, little wings slightly tucked on its back, and rounded tailfins. It had mostly black scales, but it had white scales on some parts of its body- On its paws, on its chin and belly, a white spot on its nose, white on its tailfins and some white right on the tips of its ear-like flaps. It was currently curled up in a ball, sleeping.
As the center opened up for the day, the baby dragon woke up, blinking its lovely blue eyes open. It let out a yawn as it stretched its body like a cat.
The dragon moved into a sitting position, licking at its chops as it looked around. The other critters in the pen ran up to one of the volunteers wanting attention or food.
Suddenly, the baby dragon locked eyes with something. It started to growl and snarl. Then, it pounced right onto a toy that resembled a sheep-like Pokémon called Wooloo.
The Wooloo toy made a rather loud squeak, which spooked the baby dragon and made it back off.
The dragon pawed at the toy a few times, making it squeak. Seeing that the toy wasn't going to attack, the dragon pounced on the Wooloo toy again. It grabbed the toy in its mouth and shook it around. It was teething with the Wooloo toy.
Another volunteer walked past the pen. The other critters ran to follow the person and ran over the baby dragon, interrupting its playtime.
The dragon quickly recovered and resumed chewing on its toy. It rolled over onto its back as it did. Then it stopped. It was staring at something straight ahead. Maybe it saw its reflection in the pen's glass?
Actually, it was someONE.
Standing there on the other side of the pen, right in front of the dragon, was a young girl of about fourteen years old. She had long brown hair reaching down to the middle of her back and glasses over her hazel brown eyes. She wore a plain red t-shirt under a black vest with tan pants and sneakers. She even wore a bell on a white ribbon around her neck. The expression on her face showed that she was looking a bit down but started to perk up upon seeing this dragon.
The baby dragon rolled off its back and onto its feet. It readjusted itself back into a sitting position and stared back at the girl with an adorable dragon-y smile, all while holding the Wooloo toy in its mouth. It started to wag its tail like crazy. The feeling of wagging must have surprised the baby dragon, because it growled at its own tail and chased it around, getting very dizzy in the process.
The girl let out a chuckle and wiped off her eyes. "Ohh, how cute." She said.
"Seeing the animals here always puts you in a good mood." With the girl was a boy about the same age as her. He had insanely spikey hair with some spikes of blonde hair hanging in front of his face and his violet eyes. He wore a white shirt under a blue jacket with matching pants, sneakers and he had a gold pendant shaped like a pyramid on a silver chain around his neck.
"Thank you. I really needed this after the week I've had." The girl said. "I do feel better, but it always breaks my heart when I have to leave these little sweeties."
The baby dragon looked up at them with twinkling eyes and smiling.
"Yeah, I understand." The boy said.
"... So... I guess we should go." The girl said.
The boy could tell that having to leave this dragon was difficult for his friend. Even he was getting attached. Well, there was only one solution for that. "... We could split the adoption fees."
"Huh?"
"I know we've been talking about it for a while. Don't you think... NOW would be a good time?"
The girl looked at him disbelievingly. "A-Are... Are you serious?"
"I am. We've done all the research on this breed. You've said how much you always wanted to have a Fury dragon."
"W-Well, y-yeah. I've said that, but..."
"I think you'll be a great dragon mama, and I'll be there to help you train it." The boy said.
"I... I-I don't know." The girl said, nervously. "I-I think my family would be okay with it, but if... I-If those guys at school found out I had a dragon at my place... Well, I'm sure I don't think I need to remind you of the damage they did last time."
"So, we'll keep the dragon at my place."
"H-Huh?"
"My place. My grandpa and my brother won't mind. They'll help us out too." The boy said.
"Still... It would be OUR dragon, yet it's living at YOUR place." The girl said. "Wouldn't that make me a bad dragon parent?"
"Like I said, I think you'll be a great dragon mama. Trust me. Besides, think of it as us co-parenting."
"Now we sound like we're discussing a custody arrangement."
"Maybe if we were breaking up. I can always bring the dragon over to your place for a weekend sleepover. Also, let's face, my place is practically your second home." The boy said.
"Mmm... I guess I can't argue."
As the two teenagers were discussing this matter, the baby dragon looked back and forth between then. Eventually, it got bored and went back to its squeaky toy.
"So? What do you say? Let's give this little dragon a home together." The boy said.
"..." The girl looked at her friend. She was blushing a little. "... Okay. Let's do it."
"Oh? You two are adopting today?" One of the volunteers said, walking up to them. They recognized the teens from their previous visits.
"We are, yes." The boy said.
"Well, before we draw up the paperwork, the boss will need to speak with a parent or a guardian."
"Sure, I'll call up my grandpa."
"Right then. So, which one of our fine critters here will you kids be taking home with you today?" The volunteer asked.
The girl turned to the baby dragon. "That one. Definitely that one."
"C'mere, girl." The volunteer picked up the dragon and handed her to the girl. "I'll go tell my boss and we'll continue this in his office."
The girl hugged the dragon in her arms. "You're kinda heavy there." She said with a small chuckle.
The baby dragon lifted her head and started to lick the girl's face.
"Ahh! Ahahahahaha! Dragon kisses! Yuck!"
"And slobbery too!" The boy said, giving the dragon a pat on the head.
The dragon then reached her head to the boy's hand and started licking it, making him laugh.
The girl sat down on the floor, placing the dragon in front of her. She pulled something out of her pocket. It was a dog tag- Or in this case, a dragon tag- hanging on a chain. She put it around the dragon's neck. "There."
The tag read 'DART.'
"Wait, you already picked out a name for her?" The boy said. "Don't you think I should get a say in this?"
"I'M not the one who put the name on the tag!" The girl said. "I told you this, haven't I? I found the tag years ago. I've been holding onto it ever since. I don't know why, though. I never did find the person who dropped it."
"I think that tag's license might be expired."
"So we'll get her NEW tags then!"
"O-Okay, okay! We will, we will! But I have to admit... The name 'Dart' really suits her."
"Yeah, I think so too." The girl said. She gently flattened the newly named Dart's ear-like flaps and kissed her on the head. "You're a good girl, aren't you?"
"But more importantly..." The boy kneeled down and also kissed Dart's head. "You're OUR good girl."
Three years later...
The girl's name is Megan McMartin. She is now seventeen years old. While her brown hair remained long and still had glasses sitting on her face, she now wore a short-sleeved black blouse and switched her black vest for a navy-blue vest that had a hood attached to it with a zipper. She also still wore tan pants, sneakers and the bell around her neck, but she had a drawstring bag on her back and pink fingerless gloves. The last change to her outfit was that she added a black fedora with a skull and crossbones symbol stitched into it.
The boy's name is Yugi Muto. Like Megan, he is also seventeen years old. Although, unlike Megan, his outfit only underwent a few minor changes. He kept his blue jacket with matching pants, but he switched out the white shirt for a sleeveless black shirt, and he wore boots instead of sneakers. He still had his gold pyramid-shaped pendant on the silver chain, but he now had a simple brown backpack with him. It is also important to note that he and Megan have been dating for the past few years. They had been together for roughly two years when they adopted Dart.
Speaking of, Dart had gone through a bit of a growth spurt in the past three years. She had grown larger to the point where she could easily carry a toddler on her back. She could fly, and she could fire small plasma blast and use them to cloak herself.
Everything began on one fateful day.
Megan and Yugi had taken Dart for a playdate in the park. After an hour or so of playing with their dragon, the teens sat down at a picnic table to enjoy a box lunch Megan had whipped up for them.
As they were enjoying their lunch, Megan's cellphone started ringing and vibrating in her pocket.
"Huh?" Megan pulled out her phone. The caller ID was a familiar one, so she answered it. "Hello?"
"M-Megan! Oh, thank goodness!" The person on the line was Megan's father, Professor Tim McMartin. A brilliant scientist well known within the academic community, however, there were rumors that he was involved with some rather shifty characters in some terribly shady business.
"Dad?"
"Where are you now?!"
"I told you that Yugi-Kun and I were taking Dart to the park today." Megan said, slightly annoyed. She loved her dad, but sometimes he drove her crazy. "You KNEW this. I reminded you at least once every day this week. I even put it on the calendar on the fridge."
"The park? You're at the park right now?" Her dad said. He sounded frantic.
"Yes, Dad." Megan said. She took the phone away from her ear and put it on speaker. "Say 'Hi' to Dad, you two."
"O-Oh! H-Hello, Mr. McMartin." Yugi said. "How are you today?" He was always polite with Megan's father, even though Professor McMartin seemed to give Yugi a hard time whenever they saw each other at Megan's house. Typical father being overly protective of his baby girl.
"So, what's up, Dad? It's not like you to call me like this."
The two teens could hear her dad take in a shaky deep breath. "Listen to me, you two." He said. He sounded serious... and scared. "Megan, hun... S-Something... S-something's come up at work. D-Daddy... D-Daddy's not gonna be home for a while."
"Wh-What? I don't understand. Dad?" Megan said. She was no longer annoyed. Now she was concerned. She was used to her dad coming home late, bringing work home with him or him being away from home for days at a time because of work. Judging by her father's tone, this situation was sounding really bad.
"Sir, what's going on?" Yugi asked, equally as concerned as his girlfriend.
"You two can NOT go back to the house, Megan." Professor McMartin said.
"Dad? What are you saying? You're starting to scare me." Megan said.
"It's all right, hun. After all, you've got Yugi with you. That boy really has a good head on his shoulders, and he treats you right, just like how I treated your mom." Her dad said. Sure, it had been in a moment of crisis, but his true feelings about his daughter's boyfriend came out. "But most importantly... You have Dart."
"Wait. What about Dart, sir?" Yugi said.
"Dad, what did you do to our dragon?" Megan said. In short, her father had tried to do an experiment involving Dart, but Megan had forbidden him from doing anything of that nature to her precious dragon baby.
Professor McMartin recalled something he had done before all of this had started. One night, he had quietly entered the basement of his and Megan's house. It was where Megan had set up her various game consoles and lots of toys for Dart, but it was also where she and Yugi would hang out for their weekend sleepovers. That night, he found Megan and Yugi asleep on the large couch, curled up with each other and snuggling Dart as they slept.
"I've altered her." He said.
He had taken Dart to a secret laboratory- Possibly his own lab for his side projects- and placed her into a small chamber surrounded by lots of strange machinery.
Naturally, Dart didn't understand what exactly was going on, and could only look at all of the machines curiously.
Professor McMartin threw a switch on a panel outside of the chamber and the machinery came to life. They were doing something to Dart, with streams of energy arching around inside the chamber like a decorative plasma ball.
The strange energy coursed through Dart's body. It seemed to be charging every single cell with power and altering her genetic makeup. A symbol appeared on one of her tailfins- A sort of cross between the letter 'D' and a lightning bolt.
"She can protect you now."
Welcome, dear readers, to another tale I have decided to tell! I know it's been a while, but between not feeling my best and writer's block STILL having a massive grip on me, I had to do this. No. I really WANTED to do this.
Before we get into the nitty gritty with my notes, it's time for disclaimers! We've got a lot of them, and I'll do my best to address them in future chapters as needed. Remember, I only own any and all my OC's that show up. If I did own any properties used here- WHICH I DO NOT AND NEVER WILL- we wouldn't be here.
So first up! I'm telling MY version of the movie 'Bolt', which is owned by Walt Disney Animation. Yes, this is probably a bad move on my part, considering that Disney has been making VERY POOR choices in recent years. But 'Bolt' is one of my favorite animated movies. I've tried doing another version of this before and never finished it, so I'm gonna try my hand one more time.
"How to Train Your Dragon" is owned by Cressida Cowell and DreamWorks Animation. Dart is the main character here, but don't worry! I'll find a way to work her brothers in here, somehow.
"Pokémon" is owned by Game Freak, Nintendo and the Pokémon Company International.
"Yu-Gi-Oh!" is owned by Kazuki Takahashi. (May he rest in peace!) (The anime, not the TCG.)
Other properties I've used in this story will be addressed in future chapters. If I've forgotten anything or if I didn't place the right property to the right owner/owners, that's on me and I apologize for that.
With that out of the way, I wanted to get this out earlier, but I was having a time getting motivated due to hesitation on my part. So instead, if I've done this just right, this story is getting released to celebrate the newest season of 'Dragons: The Nine Realms'! Yes, I know, people don't like this show, but I do and I don't care! I'm gonna share my ONLY prediction for this season and that is I think that Buzzsaw is finally gonna get what's coming to him and then we'll never see him again!
But anyways! In the next chapter, there will be action, a chase scene, good guys, bad guys and some guys in between! (Oops, not my line, sorry.) And some explosions. Quick heads-up, updates here will be slow, that's all. And the notes here will be shorter in the future, I am SO sorry for it being so long.
Just a quick PSA or whatever, recall what I said at the start of the chapter? How adopting a pet isn't something you do on a whim? Yeah, not kidding there. If you're thinking of bringing an animal into your home and family, DO YOUR RESEARCH! Make sure you understand what you're getting into! Also support your local animal shelters!
All that being said, though: READER BEWARE! If you don't like the story or my style, that's perfectly fine. Not everyone will, so more power to you. For me, as long as just ONE person likes the story, that's enough. If you don't like where it's going, this is your one and only warning to get out while you still can! For those of you that choose to stick around, thank you. To all of you who clicked on this story, whoever you are, thank you so much for reading!