Kaylie
I picked up the little rock carefully, watching the blue on it shine desperately, like the rock was going to explode. It was extremely warm on my fingers, already so badly burnt, and Iheld it up to show the stranger, Ryan, making sure I didn't touch one side for too long.
“Set that down right now!” Ryan yelled, springing across the room to my side. He snatched the rock from my hand and flung it at the couch, his attention finally turning back to me.
“What's going on?” I screamed as he dragged me to the floor. He covered my head, his hands going to protect me. I needed to see his eyes. The swirl.. somehow I could read the expression in them. They would tell me what was going on, but I couldn't see anything with him covering me.
I heard a huge crack then a bird-like cry. But the sound almost made me feel at home. Like the bird outcry was more a peace sound then it was hurt. It almost felt like the cry was one of freedom. All my drowsiness from earlier left me that instant and I tried to get free from Ryan's hold. After he stared into my eyes, he hesitantly let me go.
I shot up from our position on the floor, Ryan still straddling my lap, and glanced at the couch. I felt my jaw drop. A little beast-creature stared in my eyes from across the room, tilting it's head, a curious smile seeming to form on it's face. The beast was reptilian in nature, scales that reminded me of a lizard. The eyes glowed a bright green, the body black as night. The only color were the sea blue stripes down the sides. I could do nothing but stare at it, like if maybe I moved, it would attack.
“Are you ok?” Ryan stepped up from my lap, though I didn't take my eyes off the creature on my couch. “You know she won't hurt you, right?” I thought he was talking to the beast, because he said 'she' and I couldn't see where he was looking, but I realized he was talking to me.
“She?” I whispered to him, still not moving my gaze. The little beast lifted one wing that I'd only just seen and tried to move from the couch. I watched as it, she I thought to myself, took a step forward and tumbled off the couch. It's little head cracked on the floor with a loud plop and it laid unmoving, a surge in my emotions whispering to me that it, she, was helpless.
I tried to think of it as a baby who was hurt, though it wasn't really hard. I felt a bone-deep connection to the she beast laying on the floor. Though I hadn't glanced at him, I could sense Ryan just as shell-shocked as I was.
Almost as quick as Ryan had made a decision to move, I crawled around the other side of the room to the little beast, trying to place the species of the animal. I'd never seen anything like it before. So beautiful and gentle, with an air of confidence and agility that could kill. Ryan had stopped moving when I finally started moving, so he just watched helpless while I knelt down and picked up her little head. As soon as I touched her, the burning sensation from grabbing the rock came back full force, a scream ripping it's way out of my throat. A blindingly bright white light escaped from between us and filled the room, forcing me to close my eyes.
When the light faded from my eye lids, and the burning in my hands stopped, I opened my eyes slowly. “What happened?” I whispered, hoping Ryan would hear me, but really only saying it outloud, confused. When the light completely faded and I felt confident enough to look back at the creature in my arms, I wondered belatedly why I hadn't noticed sooner. It grew when the light went off. The size it was before could describe a chihuahua but now the size was larger than a Great Dane. I went stiff from shock.
“The egg hatched. Your connected now.” Ryan's voice was full of wonder. I didn't see Ryan step up next to me, not with all that had happened within the few seconds, but he was there. He knelt by my side, his hand touching my shoulder reassuringly.
“What's wrong with... it? It's not moving.” I knew, in my heart, that it definitely was a girl and what I was looking at was a miracle, along with a myth. Pieces were flying together in my head (heh, flying, I thought with a hysterical giggle). I stared at the head of the beast, where I could see a small shiny patch of what I'd only assume was blood. Only seeing the rise and fall of it's chest from the corner of my eye reassured me that she was still alive. I would be lying if I said this wasn't scaring me, a chill running down my spine when I realized I could feel a throb in the same place on my head. I was still imagining the little beast as a baby, trying to keep myself from freaking out with what I'd already guessed. And, well, she was hurt.
“Impact trauma. She should be up and moving soon. Grace did it too when she hatched.” The smooth, calming whisper of his voice confirmed what I kept telling myself couldn't happen, wasn't real.
“Grace? Did you say she hatched?” I finally looked up from where I watched the creature cradled in my arms, the tone of my voice on the edge of hysteria.
“Grace.. she's my.. uh, dragon.” Ryan looked away after he answered me, my mind racing. Dragon, dragon, dragon, dragon I kept thinking, looking back down. In my periphial vision, I could see my chest rising and falling rapidly.
“Ryan..” He looked back at me, his eyes back to normal, “Please tell me you're joking.” I focused all my attention on the beast laying in my lap, knowing full well the meaning of Ryan's words. It must be a dream. Dragons aren't real. This isn't happening. I'll wake up in the morning with an awful headache and a pretty terrible nightmare. While I was still here, I stroked the head of the dream in my lap. Maybe I'll wake up soon.
Ryan's cool hand found my chin, forcing me to look back at him, “What would you do if I said this was all real and that you can't escape this reality?” Our faces were really close and his breath smelled like cinnamon. A wonderful smell. It was distracting me, melting the pound in my head slightly. I had an urge to lean in and kiss him. I've like never really kissed a guy before and I know I'd mess it up, plus there's a dream dragon in my lap and he just told me it was real.
“Uh..” I watched his eyes swirl, I almost panicked from the knowledge of that doesn't happen to other people, but he seemed to notice the same thing I had earlier. His lips look really kissable.
Ryan jolted backward, shaken from whatever he was thinking on top of the desire in his eyes, and whispered under his breath. I'd missed my chance to kiss him. Damn.
“Grace is coming to explain things that I can't.” Ryan stood slowly and motioned for me to stay down. I gaped up at him from my seat on the floor.
“Wait.. Your dragon's coming here?” I stood, even though he told me to stay down, with my gaze focused on his face. I had gently laid the little girl's head on a pillow I snatched from the couch. I looked at her and thought, Well Grace can't be that bad. I mean, this one isn't that big. Then I just about went into hysterics when I realized, I was almost okay with a dragon coming to my house in the middle of the night, on top of the other dragon laying on my floor. Even if this was all just a dream, that's incredibly insane.
Yes. A wise female voice filled my head. I whipped around, trying to find where the voice came from. I looked around the living room, not a soul in sight, then whipped around to look at Ryan. I felt my eyes bug out slightly, my heart rate kicking up. I opened my mouth to ask him if he heard that, or knew who it was when I was interupted again.
Calm, young one. I bear information you might like. A huge head peered in through an open window in my kitchen window, visible through my living room. I screamed. Taking quick steps backward, I ran right into the coffee table. I felt myself tripping and hitting my head on the floor. I groaned and laid still, hoping the exploding pain in my head, with the other headache I still had, didn't mean anything.
“Kaylie!” Ryan slid to my side, his eyes and face full of worry. He gently pushed a hand under my head, me wincing at the touch, and pulled me on his lap. He closed his eyes, with a look of pure concentration on his face, and I slid my eyes closed too. I felt so sleepy. All I wanted to do was take a quick nap. Whatever Ryan was concentrating on could wait. Just a few minutes.
My thoughts jumbled into a heap I didn't want to deal with, so, I took a deep breath and fell to sleep.
