by Ella Hart
He watched as the flame ran up the wall, and as quickly as it had come, it died. Scorch marks already lined the walls. The newest ones were hardly noticeable.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a throat clearing. He didn’t want to look, but society had programmed him too well. Maybe he’d been spending too much time around the humans, after all. His eyes looked towards the sound, despite his best attempts to seem asleep.
“Cobalt?” The pretty female voice surprised him even more. His eyes widened to get a clear view of the person in his cave. Paulina had come to see him? How had she gotten his address?
“Cobalt? Is that you?”
He tried not to respond. Instead, he lowered his head, and looked away. As if to say go away. He hoped she got the message. It didn’t seem like she did. The next thing he heard was footsteps echoing through the cave. Then suddenly, a soft hand on his shoulder.
“Cobalt?” She said his name again, and this time, societal norms took over. He looked up. “Wow... you’re beautiful.” She seemed unable to understand what had happened, yet the genuine admiration and curiosity shone in her voice and her eyes. Was she okay? Did she understand that he was a dragon? That he wasn’t human?
He nuzzled his head into her hand, purring. She giggled, and sat beside him.
“Can you talk?” She seemed interested. He shook his head. “But you can nod and shake your head?” He nodded. “Wow. Do you do this every night?” She continued to ask questions.
He didn’t respond this time. He wasn’t sure if he could trust her. It wasn’t anything personal, but he had been betrayed enough times to be distrustful. This wasn’t going to be easy to portray. He couldn’t speak, and communication was difficult. Strangely, that didn’t seem to matter to Paulina.
“Oh. Do you not trust me enough to tell me yet?” She seemed upset and sighed softly. “I guess you’ve had a long life. You have the eyes of someone wise beyond their years. Of someone who has seen betrayal and felt its sting. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to earn your trust after what you have been through, but I’m okay with not knowing the story.” She began to pet his head softly as she spoke.
He purred softly as she rested her hand on his head. He hadn’t felt this in a while. No one knew he was here. No one had ever cared to see his house, or to come see if he was all right. He was honestly surprised that no one had thought to come see what went on after he bought all that food each month. “Do you like that?” She changed the topic with a smile, and continued to run her hand up and down his head and neck. He continued to purr softly. Her smile widened. “Ooh. You do. Okay.”
His stomach grumbled again, and he moved just far enough to grab some food. She watched and understood what he was doing.
“Ah, so this is what all that food was for?” She smiled a little. “Here, let me.” She got up and walked towards the ice box. It didn’t take her long to grab a few items and return. She set them in front of him, and watched him with quiet fascination. He stuck his claw through the items, shish-ka-bob style, and slid them one by one into his mouth. She giggled a little more, and moved back to where she had been sitting beside him.
Her hand accidentally brushed over a scar, and he growled without thinking. She moved away quickly, seeming a little frightened by his response.
“I’m sorry, Cobalt. I didn’t mean to upset you.” Her apology seemed sincere, but as a dragon, he couldn’t be too careful. He nodded his forgiveness and continued to eat. Paulina turned and looked in wonder at his scales and body. In the partial light of the moon, his scales glistened with a deep midnight blue.
She gently ran a hand over his spine, and he let her. At least she ran her hand with his scales, not against. She wanted to be safe. To keep him safe. He didn’t know how he knew that, but he could tell that was what she wanted.
“It’s okay, Cobalt. I won’t tell anyone.” She smiled softly at him. However much he wanted to believe her, he couldn’t do so until she had proven that she would be true to her word. How could he believe her? He was no longer able to trust as easily as he once could as a young dragon. Still, she had a calming effect on him, and he relaxed in the feeling of safety that she created.
Cobalt nuzzled his head into her lap before closing his eyes. This time around, he felt calmer. Maybe it was because he wasn’t alone this time. After hiding for so long, to know he wouldn’t have to hide from one person was good. Comforting, even.
He began to wonder why she had come up here. He’d simply have to wait to know, he guessed.
Chapter Five: Previous Betrayals
Paulina continued to sit with him, and petted him slowly until she fell asleep. He fell asleep not long after, his tail curled around her. Protecting her, with his wings acting as a blanket.
As he drifted off, he thought he heard her say that she would never betray him.
It didn’t matter much. As a dragon, his dreams were often of the past betrayals. He slept as peacefully as he could, having dealt with this so often in his past. He’d had such a long life already that sometimes he wondered why dragons lived so long. True, he’d not had children yet, but that didn’t matter to him. He wouldn’t wish this on anyone else without a loving community to take his children in if something were to happen to him.
If he were to be caught by the hunters. If he were to be taken by the government. There were many things that could happen to him, and that had happened before. He’d been taken by the government. Hunters had found him before. He didn’t like to remember them, but his mind didn’t seem to give him a choice, no matter how painful the memories were.
When he woke the next morning, he found Paulina still tucked under his wings. He knew from experience that he should be able to speak again. The full moon was waning. It wouldn’t be as strong tonight.
“Paulina?” His voice came out scratchy. He didn’t know what to say now, but he didn’t have to worry about that. She woke easily enough. At first, she didn’t seem to remember what had happened. As the realization hit her, her eyes widened. She calmed down as she felt his protective wings around her.
“Morning, Cobalt.” She smiled at him and rested her hand on his arm. “Are you okay?”
“How did you know where I live?” His voice got stronger as he spoke to her more. There wasn’t much to do but talk now, especially as his transformation wouldn’t be done until tonight.
“I asked around. It’s a small town.” She laughed a little. “I wanted to see if you wanted company last night. I never expected to find a dragon.” She blushed a little.
“You can’t tell anyone.” He gave her a grave look, trying to appear menacing. He wasn’t sure if it would work, but it was worth a shot. It didn’t seem to worry her much, as she simply nodded.
“I won’t. I promise.” She sat up, gently brushing his wing to the side. He didn’t resist. “I understand that it’s not always something you can tell people. Please, let me be one of the few that know your secret.” She stood up and brushed herself off.
“Sometimes it isn’t my choice, Paulina,” he said softly, unfurling his tail. “I do want to trust you, but I have to know that you are going to keep this a secret. You have one chance. Do you understand what could happen if you tell the wrong person about my secret?”
“I think I have an idea of what would happen.” She didn’t ask him to elaborate. “I’ll try my best to keep my word. I know there are still dragon hunters out there, despite the rumors that dragons are extinct. I’m sorry they want to hurt you.” She seemed genuinely concerned about him.
“Thank you.” He nuzzled her softly. She giggled.
“Do you nuzzle everyone that keeps your secret?” He shook his head.
“Only those I trust.” He smiled. “You didn’t freak out last night. Is there a reason?” Now his curiosity shone through. There had to be something else up her sleeve. He was just too afraid that this was some kind of ploy by a government agency or by the townspeople to find out where the last few of his kind were.
To hurt
him.
“I was more curious than afraid.” She scratched behind her ear softly as she spoke. “Besides, in the moonlight, you looked absolutely breathtaking. You look absolutely breathtaking now too, by the way.” She admitted shyly. “I see why you’re named Cobalt now. That blue is simply amazing on you.”
“Thank you.” He laid his head on the ground. Some of his scales were a dark cobalt blue, while others were a mix of cobalt and royal blue. The darker ones had been pulled before, and the patterns created served as a reminder of the past hardships he’d faced. Hunters loved deeper colors. The deeper the color, the more a set of scales would sell for.
“You don’t look too excited about that compliment. Did I say something wrong?” She frowned, furrowing her brows.
“No. Most people who compliment my scales mean it in different way. They are typically talking about how they’ll sell.” He sighed. “It’s through no fault of your own that I’m not too excited to be complimented on my scales.”
“I didn’t realize... I’m sorry.” She didn’t know what to say next and a silence washed over them. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she really meant good. He wanted to trust her. He really did, but for some reason it wouldn’t come that easily.
She sat down beside him, and rested her back on his large belly. The feeling of someone suddenly against his belly startled him, but it was in a good way. She smiled and pressed her hand lightly against him.
“Wow. That’s warm.” She thought aloud. “Are all dragon bellies this warm?”
“It’s typically a male dragon that keeps the eggs warm after the female lays them.” He smiled at her softly. “I sometimes wish I had found a mate earlier in life, but I guess there’s a reason I’ve not found her yet.”
“A mate? Like a wife?” She raised her eyebrow. There wasn’t a lot that he could hide now, so he told her everything he could think of, including what he could of mating.
“Yes. A mate would be my wife.” He smiled and gradually opened up to her. He spoke about how he missed his family, his hoard. A dragon hoard was often large and tightly knit. Everyone knew each other, and there wasn’t much that they didn’t do together.
She listened intently. Paulina didn’t interrupt him once. Whenever he took a breath, she’d ask a question to keep the conversation going. There was no stopping her wish to learn. “So, what did you mean when you said you’ve had others betray you?” Paulina somehow sensed that she had earned his trust.
“Exactly what I said. In the past, friends and those I’ve trusted with this secret have betrayed me. They’ve turned me into the government or to hunters.” He sighed. “I don’t like to talk about it, Paulina. Please. Don’t ask me about that again.” By now, Cobalt was ready to tell her to get out of the cave, and not to come back. Dealing with the past was not one of his strong suits, and his natural reaction was to put distance between himself and whoever asked.
However, he could tell that – unlike some of the people he had known in the past – she genuinely meant no harm. She didn’t want to upset him. That much had been made clear to him when she quickly moved away from his scar. The growl had been accidental, a reflex reaction on his part.
“I didn’t mean to make you mad, Cobalt. I was just curious.” She backed off quickly, afraid that she had gone too far. There didn’t seem to be a reason that he should kick her out now. He needed another reason. There had to be a way to ask her to leave without making it seem like he was mad at her. He wasn’t really sure if he was mad at her or not. Mainly, he just didn’t want to risk hurting her.
“Maybe it would be best if you left. I don’t want to hurt you.” He somehow managed to tell her what he thought. He could see the disappointment in her eyes.
“Maybe so.” She stood up. “I’ll see you around town, though? In human form, I’m guessing?” She made no attempts to persuade him otherwise. Maybe she really did mean well.
As she left, he couldn’t help but think of the one betrayal that had stung more than any other he’d faced.
It had been shortly after he turned two thousand. He’d been in England at the time. One of his friends had found him digging in the refuse bin. With his tail. His wings had been out too. He’d been homeless at the time, and lived with a small group of other men that were homeless. For a couple of nights each month, he would leave the group to change.
Then, Henry caught him that night. He could still so clearly remember that conversation.
“Cobalt? Are you o- What in the world?” Henry’s voice startled him. He turned slowly, aware that his wings and tail were cramped. The tail was already in the trashcan. If he saw his wings, there was no going back. At least with his tail he could pretend it wasn’t there. If it’d stay in the can, anyway.
“Hello, Henry.” He managed a smile. “Is there going to be a fire tonight, after all?” He remembered how to speak like a human. However, his voice had become raspier, deeper. It always did when it was closer to his time to change.
“What is going on here?” Henry wasn’t buying it. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. There wasn’t much chance to stop him blocking his way out. Cobalt gulped. There had to be something he could do.
“I’m just looking for food. Like we all do, Henry.” This was at the beginning of human society, when human sounds were all grunts and hoots. Somehow, he understood them without having to speak them. Most of the time. Today was one of the few times that he had to speak their language. It still sounded like Dragonese to him.
“No, with that... that thing.” He pointed to the trash can. “You’re hiding something, Cobalt.” He took a step closer. Cobalt stepped back, allowing the trash can to knock over. His tail quickly stuffed up into his shirt. There had to be something he could do to keep his secret. “Wait... is that a tail?” Henry exclaimed.
“Why would you think I have a tail?” By now, he was honestly just curious to see what Henry thought. Was there something he’d forgotten to hide? Or was he just throwing out speculations? He didn’t care either way. He just wanted to know what was going on.
“Because there’s one sticking out from the bottom of your shirt.” Henry pointed towards the bottom of his shirt. His eyes followed. Sure enough, his tail was peeking out. He sighed.
“Okay, I have a tail. What of it?” He tried not to make it a big deal. At least Henry hadn’t seen him in full dragon mode. That would’ve been so much harder to live down.
Eventually, he managed to convince his friend not to tell anyone. In these times, anything that had sharp teeth was considered a threat to society and had to be destroyed. To be honest, Cobalt sometimes wondered how the humans had lived past the earlier days when they couldn’t even communicate.
Henry came to see him the next day. Others came with him. He gulped. This was not good. Not good at all.
The last thing he remembered of that year was being knocked unconscious and not waking up for years on end. He’d been so malnourished after he woke up that he was surprised to find himself alive.
Chapter Six: Sting of New Betrayal
Shivering in his sleep, Cobalt managed to wake. He didn’t like to think back to that time in his life.
“Cobalt?” Paulina’s voice came again.
“Paulina...” He stood up on two legs. He was back to normal. Though he didn’t remember drifting off, he was glad he had managed to sleep. She walked into the cave, and he watched to make sure that she was alone. She was, thankfully.
“I know you said not to come here,” she frowned, “but I thought you’d want to know what’s going on in town.”
“What do you mean by that?” He furrowed his brows, walking over to her. Then he looked down, and realized that he still had his claws. He placed his hands behind his back. He couldn’t bear the thought of hurting her, accidentally or otherwise.
“The townspeople, they know what you are, Cobalt. You need to leave. I’m sorry, but you need to get out of here.” He raised his eyebrow as she spoke. Was this really happening? Had
his worst nightmare come true again? He thought he’d finally found somewhere he would be able to live in peace, nothing bothering or being bothered by anybody.
“Are you sure they know what I am?” He needed to be sure. He needed to know.
“Yes. I’m sure. I heard them talking about what they were going to do to you. You have to leave, Cobalt. I’ll come with you, if you allow me to...” She walked towards him. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that.
“You realize that life with me would be a continuous cycle of becoming comfortable, getting found out, and leaving again, right?” He had to put it out there. Maybe there was something he was missing about her. It just didn’t seem right that she would drop everything and leave with him.
“I know.” Her two words came out like roses dipped in liquid nitrogen, shattering on his heart. She knew? She knew and still offered to come with him? That meant giving up everything she held near and dear. It meant leaving her family, her grandparents. Everyone and everything.
“And yet you still want to come with me?” He raised an eyebrow. “Are you joking around with me?” He wanted to believe her, but he hoped she understood why it was so hard for him to understand.
“Yes. I do. I know you may not believe me yet, but just let me come with you. Please.” She took his hand. The last person that had done that had tried to handcuff him. Instead of trying to coerce him to follow her, she simply held his hand in hers. She had no intentions of doing wrong by him.
“Okay, but you have to know something else about life with me. It means living in ever enlarging caves until I am of age.” He smiled a little at her. “We’ll have to find a large cave in our new village.” He held her hand softly in his.
“I think I can cope with that.” She smiled. “Let’s go.”
With that, he grabbed what little he cared about. It wasn’t much. He only really cared about a small picture that his mother had given him. It was of his family, his brothers and sisters. It was the last thing that he had of them all, before they had been killed by the hunters that had ruled that area of the world for years. They’d actually been really happy together.