middaeg | (open)

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Who: a draconic thief and you!
When: i'm flexible with the days as long as it's after the full moon! diy!
Where: a dragon's underground den.
What: an open log for those signing up for the city-wide wanted quest!
Warnings: will add as they come! a note that eren will not attack anyone unless they steal from him— which, if you want to go that route, by all means hmu for plot!

ᴏᴏᴏ ʜᴇ's sᴛᴇᴀʟɪɴ!!!!!
[ past the constraints of the bright wall and just before the wilde creeps into fresh plains, slums and farmlands with its frosty winter nip, lays a hole; a hole that seems too large to have been dug by a rabbit and can easily fit man or monster. if one has followed the incredible amount of scattered shedding (black scales with a scarlet-plum sheen, perhaps orange or gold depending on how light bounces from it), it leads them further down. many elders are sure to give tips if you ask: flattery will help you if you talk of liberty, bring something else that's sharp, that'll do it, i would bribe him with one of those fair-folk, haha, and perhaps oh, send him my cookies. whether either of those work or not, it needs to be tested!

the tunnels are identical to those made by miners, twisting and turning into different, multiple paths, some leading into scorched dead ends while others may only seem to take you lower . . . and lower, into more intricate corkscrew bends. some spots aren't all that dark, lit by runes carefully carved and enchanted to glow a deep orange, but those with less of a knack for seeing in dark places might do well with an extra source of light, no harm done. if successfully navigated, intruders will find an opening that spans into a large, large den, one expected to be the interior of a mountainside. the cavern is impressive in size and sculpted entirely by claw, molded by spine and reinforced with dragon flame. the ceilings are high and the floors— that might be a problem.

the floors harbor an ocean of sharp objects that create mountains, piling up to nearly half the wall of the entire dome— heaps of any kind of knife, long blade, spear, needle, gardening and construction tools, broken glass, ceramic and . . . that's a piece of paper, yes. anything that has a fine, dangerous cutting or stabbing point is hoarded here, the product of a monster's growth of over a year (and counting). the dragon, though, the dragon may not be instantly seen unless one looks so very hard for two pairs of glistening, crystal-blue horns protruding out of the mass— or, perhaps, you'll want to play it safe and look for the obsidian knives in a literal haystack of knives. ]

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[ She'd heard from the very distressed merchant about his missing blades and had set out in an effort to help him. Not that she's sure she can remedy the situation, but there seemed little harm in trying. Or so she hopes?

The trip through the winding caverns had been a little disorienting, but it's not hard to tell she's found a lair of some sort once the cave walls open up into a mountainous chamber. For a moment, she just stares around her in awe, taking in the massive scope and amount of effort it would have taken to create such a space.

And then she starts categorizing all the weapons hoarded within. Finding a set of obsidian blades among this treasure trove suddenly seems a much more daunting task. So she decides to try a different approach. perhaps the thief could be reasoned with?

Which is why she takes a step deeper into the chamber and calls out, in case anyone is hidden within. ]

Hello?

[ no human soul will be found dwelling within the cavern as yona's voice echoes out and bounces off both iron and dirt walls. it's silent, even weighing into lonely— what had fallen asleep beneath the sea of pointed weaponry had already been awake with the scent of a familiar intruder walking along his tunnels and into his domain. it was hard, very hard to snooze in peace when people barge in uninvited into your home— even if they were friends.
.
it didn't mean he would act with hostility, yet, at least. the iron and copper blades clatter and clink against one another as a dragon, with nightsky black & sunset hued scales and twisting pairs of crystalline blue horns rise from his resting spot, the heat of his maw causing smoke to rise through his fangs. he's rather large, nearly the size of a house and accurately towering over a bush elephant. his serpentine eyes might as well be the size of her head, hovering to her height to blink with his third eyelid and growl out something, a word, drumming low and inquiring: ]

Yona.

[ She knows that voice. But it doesn't all match the figure that emerges out of the depths of the chamber, hidden beneath his treasure. She stares, completely caught off guard as she takes in his changed form. Was this new? Or could he always do this? She's only seen him on two legs, not a full transformation like this. ]

...Eren?! Is that you? You're so... big!

[ honey . . . he's always been big. eren's hands— only front limbs at most with four working "fingers" move to a space underneath his chin while the rest of his digits curl back to fold his wings as they sail high from his hoard pile. ]

I have a lot of energy. [ it's why he's chosen to be quite large in the first place— summer, and all, and not enough magic consumed. his eyes, oddly enough, are still the same: great big orbs of blue and slit like a cat's. a third eyelid swipes across them and words, deep and messy, slur past front lips and spew out of his cheekless maw. ] How'd you find this place?

[ She gives him a skeptical look at that answer - and then gives a pointed look at his horde, scattered over the entire floor of the cave. Hands propped on her hips, she gives him an even stare. ]

There's a very distressed merchant aboveground missing a very special black blade of some sort. I was looking for that, actually. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?

[ Eren, what did you do? ]

[ if he were petty enough to roll his eyes . . . ]

Looks like you’re talking about something that belongs to me.

[ human eren can’t come to the phone right now. why? because he’s dead!! ]

[ Eren, you're not allowed to be dead, stop that!

She doesn't look deterred, however, a firm look on her face and her hands still propped on her hips. ]

Did you leave him payment for them?

[ Because if he had, the merchant had left that part out. But still, it was up to the merchant to agree to sell in the first place.

She just wasn't sure why Eren was claiming ownership so blatantly. ]

[ oh, she's. determined. he sees this! it isn't as if the dragon isn't taking her seriously, but . . . he is taking his own perception quite seriously just by standing by it. ]

I don't leave payment for things I find on the street. [ the reptile's nostrils pull back and snort, ] Do you?

On the street? [ Her gaze narrows for a moment as her head cocks to the side. ] Do you mean that literally? I was told they were among the merchant's wares. His table was on the street, yes, but Eren, that is entirely different.

[ She did not expect her day to end up with arguing technicalities with a dragon, but here she is. ]

It was a box in the street.

[ and he will argue to no ends!!!! even curing his wing around the pile he finds himself situated in, because there, on its surface, is a group of fantastical obsidian knives. ]

[ She sighs heavily at that, her shoulders slumping a little as she takes a step closer to him. ]

Eren, those were his wares. That box wasn't abandoned, it was storing them.

He should’ve thought about that when he left them there.

[ his wings curl even tighter around the pile as she steps— like she’d want to take them back, take them away. no! no. ]

What do you want me to do, give them back?

[ At his defensive movement, she pauses where she is, before giving a long sigh. ]

If you intend to keep the blades for yourself, you should at least offer him adequate compensation for them. How would you feel if you'd poured a great deal of time and energy and skill into a masterpiece and then someone claimed it for themselves with nothing to show for it? I suspect you'd be immensely angry, would you not?

At least if you pay him for the blades, he'll have something in exchange for them. Besides, as you seem to have such a fondness for... [ she glances around his hoard with an arched eyebrow. ] ...sharp things, making a friend of this craftsman might be a boon for you. If he made such lovely blades that you couldn't walk away from them, just think what other fine masterpieces he could make.

[ oh, how. absolutely troublesome it is to hear such a scolding, and part of eren’s lizard brain truly wants to play dead. instead, the irritation rises through his voice in a escalating growl. ]

Don’t try something you use to teach kids right from wrong on me and expect a turnaround. [ a huff, so thickly that smoke and ash rattle like leaves in winds. ] Nothing works that way.

[ “how would you feel?” ah yes he’d feel devastated but what’s the point? how many people thought that way before doing something horrible and still did them? the world, or worlds, would be much better places if a switch was flipped so easy. he’s not the merchant and he’s no longer searching for hard earned recognition. especially not when he still thinks he’s a rightful owner of what he’s found. ]

I’ll give you scales, you do what you want with them. [ pay the merchant back, or keep them or, whatever. ] Sorry, Yona.

[ She shifts a bit when he huffs out smoke at her, her eyes widening a little, especially when he rebukes her own counter. Which just has her sighing and shaking her head. ]

I know you're not a child, Eren. You're far more clever than that. But it was still wrong to make off with the merchant's belongings, even if you did think you'd found something forsaken or forgotten.

[ She blinks at the mention of scales, however, her head tipping to the side in curiosity. She's still new enough here that she's unsure of the value of that, even though she knows she's heard Archer speak of his scales before - he used them to make a few weapons of his own if she recalls. ]

Are scales valuable? [ Would that be enough to perhaps appease the merchant? ]

[ it’s still wrong— in that regard, he’s glad she’s shifted her attention elsewhere and is better off leaving it that way. no amount of moral discussion here would make him change his mind, especially if he’d already made his own decision on what was right or what was worth listening to.

this, it would go in circles, and eren would lose his patience with a girl he’d rather not. ]

It’s how I‘ve been living, [ even if he hunted his own food usually, something or other, he’d have to have money to pay for. his armor. his clothes. gifts, foods. and he did, by trading these in whenever he needed to, without losing his work appeal— he still worked and would hardly take the pay for himself. they went to the children, or his friends. ] over a year now with no complaints.

[ he lives in a hole. his standards are pretty low. ]

[ She looks a little taken aback by that. ]

You mean you've... been paying for things with your scales? You don't have any other currency here?

[ But he's been here longer than she has? She's not sure how that's possible. Even she's managed to muster a little nest egg in her months here. ]

But very well. I will speak to the merchant on your behalf, see if some arrangement can be made that will satisfy him. Unless you'd like to speak to him yourself? [ ...Although she sincerely doubts that. ]

[ had that been an oversized shrug? perhaps! eren just grumbles with his words, preparing to rest again. ]

Maybe you should ask him that, too.

[ being too scared to was more than enough of a push for eren to say and keep the share he’d taken. ]

I will.

[ Her voice is firm, but she reaches out with a hand to pet against his snout lightly, an almost affectionate farewell. ]

I'll come back and let you know what he says. Will you still be here?

[ well, that. that was easy. and almost surprising, as eren’s eyes swipe open wide with a blink when her palm cups the curve of his snout. he just gnawed at her and she pets him—? ]

. . . Yeah.

[ and watch her as she walks off, he does, confound and oddly charmed, though he doesn’t seem to realize it. ]

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