Colder Than Stone [Gunnar]

[Ravager]

Time and Date:: January 17th - Midday
Weather:: Clear skies, bitter wind & frigid temperature
Previous Threads?:: Self-Destructive Habits

The cold was bitter, and even the large dragon could not find enough food to sustain himself through the sub-zero temperatures. He had found a decent cave, large enough to curl up in, but it was dangerously close to the disgusting human village. If they came out and found him resting, he could easily be killed in his deep sleep. But it was large, decently warm, and dry and thus he decided it was the best he could manage. Curled into a tight ball, legs gripping onto back plates, wings folded tightly against his sides to prevent any unwanted movement should wind find it's way in.

His eyes were open, though that mattered little for the dark of the cave was naught but a blur to him anyways. Every so often, his nostrils would twitch, head tilting and turning ever so slightly until a reluctant sleep took him. It was restless at first, limbs twitching and shifting as he attempted to pull himself into a deeper sleep. But it wasn't long before his breathing slowed and the twitching stopped.

After hours of this hardly even his breathing remained. The great beast was cold to the touch, no signs of life left except the occasional warm puff from his nostrils.

Outside the cave, there were few signs of the beasts presence. A few snapped twigs around the entrance, but only just enough it could be passed off as a the weight of the snow. But in the snow lay the most clear sign of his presence. His legs had grown lethargic and the hind few had given up entirely, leaving his belly to slide along the ground as he dragged it down into the cave. Left behind from the dragging was a trench in the snow, with a few two clawed prints on either side of it. Even to one not trained in tracking, it was a fairly obvious sign of the beast that slept within the cave.

[Gunnar the Gullible]

It had been quite a few weeks since the last time Gunnar had seen the beast. The village had been unusually quiet, with few dragon attacks and fewer words about the whole ordeal. It was deathly cold outside, and food was scarce. Even vikings were rationing their food; some even had to slaughter their own yak to survive. Gunnar, however, had found a way to survive without killing a yak, or anything on land. Rather, he had found that by throwing rocks on the ice water, it broke and he was able to fish from land. He had caught several small fish this way, and had been storing them in his room, hoping he would hear news of the dragon. For this was his very reason for gathering so many fish; not for himself, but for the beast whom he was growing ever fond of. Yet as days turned to weeks, and winter wore on, he heard no news of the beast, nor saw any trace of him.

It nearly drove him mad thinking about what could have happened to him; had he been injured? Was he out there somewhere, just waiting for death to open its doors? This inner insanity drove him out of the house one day, taking a large napsack full of fish over his shoulder and more stuffed in his pocks and belt- as many as he could fit really- and made him head straight into the forest where he had last seen the beast.

Yet to his dismay, he was not there. Gunnar sighed, his hopes shattered, when suddenly he happened to look over to see a small broken branch. Next to it was an imprint, a very familiar one. "Aha!" Gunnar breathed, and followed the tracks as they led closer and closer to the village once more. To his surprise he found a cave just outside the village borders, and that's where the tracks disappeared.

Standing there for a moment, he hesitated a long moment, before slowly walking towards the entrance of the cave; what he saw broke his heart, if only for a moment. For when he first saw the beast he believed him to be dead. That is, until, a very small puff of steam came from his nostrils. Trying to be as quiet as possible, Gunnar took out the fish and started piling them in a corner. Little did he know the trouble he was getting himself into.

[Ravager]

The deep sleep the dragon was in wasn't often plagued by dreams, but this time is brain saw images dancing through his mind. Nostrils twitching he could swear he could smell something ... familiar. But he dismissed it as senseless dreaming. But as his body slumbered, ideas of food and fighting danced through his head behind closed eyelids. But as his nostrils flared again, his mouth parting every so slightly the smell was undeniable. Fish! But... he was in a cave in the middle of a forest? But then behind the fish another smell. A deep rumble began to grow in his throat. «A sleeping dragon is not a thing to be messed with.» He groggily lifted his head, barely able to speak coherently. Not that the human filth could understand him anyways. His jaws split open into a yawn, displaying his arrays of teeth to whatever human beast dared entered his cave.

Stretching his front limbs, he shook his head. Knocking a few stray stones from the ceiling in the process. «You're offerings are welcome, but they wont save you.» Forked tongue lolling out to the side, dragging over his teeth as saliva began to drip from it. «You have done well. For a fleshy sack of meat.» His neck stretched out as he used minimal effort to grab the first of the fish. While his head was clearly up and moving, most of his body still lay on the ground in a deep sleep. Tossing his head back he swallowed it whole, licking his lips as it slid down. «It's old, but not poisoned.» But should the boy get too close, he would find the dragons jaws snapping at him instead of the fish. But right now, he was too cold and too tired to care. Each fish calmed his raging stomach a tiny bit more. He even shifted to allow himself better access to the fish. That however didn't last long, as instead he just moved the pile closer and lay down once more.

The dragons movements were slow, clearly still tired from his brumation. His eyes weren't even open, sight wouldn't help him any in this cave even if they were open. Scent alone was his guide, and all his nose cared about now was the ever dwindling pile of fish.

[Gunnar the Gullible]

The boy watched the dragon from the corner of his eye; he seemed to be sleeping, which Gunnar could only assume was a good thing. Yet as he finished dumping the fish he heard a loud grumble, which made him look up abruptly in surprise. There, he saw the dragon yawning, rising to his many legs, stretching before starting to wander over to the fish. Gunnar instinctively stepped back, not only for his own safety but to give the beast space. After all, every creature needed their own sort of bubble, otherwise known as personal space, and although Gunnar couldn't be sure dragons had a similar notion of this he thought it only respectful to step back and let the dragon eat in peace.

The boy looked at the beast as he let out rumbles and growls, "Don't worry, I'm not a fan of raw meat. It's all yours." Gunnar said to the dragon, his tones cautious yet kind. He watched as the dragon salivated, and seemed to rumble in almost... Hunger? No... Maybe... approval? Gunnar watched the beast swallow the fish whole and shifted a little, searching his pockets. He found a spare fish that had been stuck in his clothing and held it in his hand a moment, for as he was doing so he noticed it was very cold, even in the cave...

Then, slowly, he took off his fur coat, holding it out to the dragon. "H-H-Here... Th-This will k-k-keep you w-warm. You can have this..." He held out the fish, "If you l-l-le-et me p-p-ut t-t-his on y-y-you.."He managed through now rapidly chattering teeth. He shivered violently in the cold, but if it meant keeping the dragon warm, in his mind it was somehow worth it. At the moment, he didn't take into account the risk he was posing to himself simply by taking off his coat in the dead of winter, despite wearing several layers underneath.

[Ravager]

The dragon flared his nostrils, making sure the boy didn't try anything. He did seem to produce another fish however, and instead of dropping it he held it out. Snarling he pulled his head back. «What is this trickery?» He knocked the fish from the boys hand with a bump of his nose before snapping it up. Tilting his head to the side he snorted when no more fish scents reached his nose. «Now begone.» The dragon rumbled as he went to return to his slumber. But the human did something strange, removing a layer of skin. «What are you doing? Don't shed in front of me!»

Warm? How could this pitiful thing keep him warm? It smelt of long dead animals and humans. «This won't help me.» But apparently it helped the boy quite a lot, he could smell the humans blood growing colder with each passing second. Putting his nose closer he took a deeper sniff, sure enough that pitiful pelt had been the source of warmth for the human. «Keep it for yourself. I don't need your pity.» Freezing to death was no way to die, and at least he had a way to sleep through it. The humans, as far as he knew, did not and simply suffered through the cold.

Exhaling deeply, blowing a puff of warm air into the boys shed fur in hopes of knocking it back to the boy. «You need it more than I.» His eyes opened slightly, fixed on the boy. While he relied on scent he wanted to try and build an image of the boy in his head. Another puff of air escaped him as he turned his head. «Waste not your time on me, I have survived this long alone.» He rested his head on the ground, one eye fixed on the boy. He hadn't realized it, but a sad croon escaped him as he thought of death in this frozen nightmare. He didn't want either of them to have to face that. It only mattered if they died at his jaws, not he fangs of winter.

[Gunnar the Gullible]

Gunnar held out the fish, and for a moment wondered if it was a mistake. As the dragon lurched back, he soothed softly, "It's okay, it's okay! It's just a fish-" At this the dragon gave a ferocious sound and knocked his hands, the fish falling from them. Gunnar stumbled at the impact, but regained his composure shortly, and instead of lashing out he stared at the dragon, as he slowly regained his confidence. Then, he offered his fur coat to the dragon, the cold quickly starting to overcome him.

At his shedding of the coat, the dragon seemed rather... What was the word... Shocked? Gunnar wondered for a moment if the dragon would kill him on the spot, but instead he came forward, sniffing the fur coat. The dragon being so close to him sent a shiver down Gunnar's spine, but surprisingly it wasn't the bad shiver he had come to know. No, instead of it being from fear it was more from awe that he was that close to the beast. He heard the beast grumble at him, and Gunnar shifted the coat closer to him, the life draining out of him by the minute, "H-H-Here..." Gunnar offered, and although he realized it had been a mistake to take off his coat he refused to go back on his word. He just wouldn't let this dragon die, he wouldn't, he just couldn't-

A warm burst of air sent the coat flying back against him, warming Gunnar and pressing the fur coat against him at the same time. Gunnar's face was utter shock; he looked down at the coat, then back to the dragon. The dragon blew warm air against him again, and seemed to try to speak to him.... And though he could not understand him, Gunnar needed no words of dragonese to know what the dragon was thinking. Gunnar slowly slid the coat back over himself, but kept half of it open, leaning closer to the dragon and extending the coat open for the dragon to come closer, if he so chose. He heard a sad croon from the beast, and said softly, "If you won't let me die, then I won't let you die, either, dragon."

[Ravager]

Letting out a satisfied rumble, he stretched out his front limbs and bumped the boys arm back towards his chest to close the vest. «Foolish creature.» He was quite rough, but he knocked the human closer to the rest of his body. «So ready to through your life away.» He yawned and flexed his wings, leaving one to shelter the human. «Pathetic.» He gave his teeth a final satisfied lick and curled his neck around the standing human. Eyes sliding shut again he adjusted his legs and lowered his wing, hoping the human would catch on. «It is warmer closer to the stone.» He lazily opened one eye to stare the boy down. «Standing you will catch a chill.»

He wasn't sure where this was coming from, perhaps he didn't want to see a creature die at the fangs of winter, or perhaps it was because he wished to face the human again in battle once more. But either way, he actually seemed to care. As his head lay on the ground, one near blind eye fixed on the boy, and nostrils flaring with each deep breath. «Do not mistake this for kindness, boy.» His low rumble was slower in an attempt to conserve energy. «I do not like you, nor your kind.» A slow blink followed. «Should you survive the winter, I shan't forget this.» Tongue flicking out for a moment before his jaws closed tighter to keep the taste of food lingering longer. «I will keep you alive longer than the rest.» The wing not extended over the boys head folded tightly against him, pressing against his plating.

But sleep did not overcome him, his own actions left the dragon confused. What trickery was this boy using on him?

[Gunnar the Gullible]

Gunnar watched the dragon, his coat extended to him, yet to his surprise the beast bumped his arm, causing his coat to shut against his chest with the impact as Gunnar stumbled a bit. His foot hit something, and he realized it was the back of the dragon... Had he just... bumped him closer? Maybe Gunnar was imagining things, but maybe, just maybe... the dragon was actually getting used to him. As the beast yawned and flexed his wings, Gunnar took a moment to marvel at him before the beast folded them... Or at least, one of them, as the other held over Gunnar's head while the dragon rumbled at him.

Their eyes met for a long moment, and Gunnar hesitated only a moment, saying softly, "Alright, just don't kill me dragon, and I'll lay with you for the night." With that, he curled up next to the dragon, moving to pull his wing around him in the form of a makeshift blanket. He found the beast radiated heat, and it was much warmer beneath his wing then it was in the cold cave. Gunnar closed his eyes, drifting off a little, before a growl met his ears. He smiled a little, "Don't worry tough guy... After today you can go back to trying to kill me, if you like." Gunnar moved to rest his head against the beasts chest just then, listening to the rhythmic breathing of the beast.

Just then, as sleep threatened to take over him, Gunnar struggled to keep awake long enough to whisper softly, "Beast..." He moved a little closer to the beast, closing his eyes, "Promise me you won't die yet." Before Gunnar could finish his thoughts, he drifted off into a deep slumber.

OOC: If you wanted to continue this after they woke up, I would be glad to do so.

[Ravager]

Watching the human settle in, he let his eye close and pulled the wing tighter around the human. It was a strange feeling, one that he wasn't sure he was quite fond of. But at least there, if the human tried to move he would notice and already have him in a tight grasp. He let out a faint rumble before even letting his one eye slide shut. «Do not make me regret this, fleshling.» His breathing was slowed, but not quite to the point of his deep sleep.

As the human spoke again he grunted. «It will take more than tough winter to kill off such a mighty hunter.» His muscles relaxed, but he did not enter the deep sleep that had held him but moments ago. Something about the human kept him ready to spring awake, and he would be damned if it tried to kill him in his sleep. Kind words were not going to fool him. But he could tell, even in his drowsy state, that the human had drifted into it's own sleep. A final huff and he let his own brief sleep consume him.

It wasn't until the slight rays of sun broke through the caves entrance did he awaken. It was still bitter cold, and the human was still wrapped in his wing. Meaning he hadn't slept through the winter. He snarled at the thought of having to face another day, and stared at his folded wing. Lifting it up he brought his head towards it and sniffed. «Still alive I see.» He tilted his head a bit, letting a faint draconic cackle.

«Good morning tiny creature!» He stood up, unfurling his wing in hopes of startling the human awake. His stomach was full enough for taunting, and he was certainly going to take what chances he had before he was forced to sleep through the winter once more.

[Gunnar the Gullible]

Gunnar had curled up beneath the dragons wing, falling into a deep slumber. Perhaps a smarter viking would have ran, or killed the beast. But no, not Gunnar. Instead, he found that his sleep was incredibly peaceful, that is, until he awoke to a sudden cold that nearly made him jump out of his skin. Gunnar jumped up, springing to his feet, hand on his dagger instinctively. His eyes were wide and his breathing heavy, before he blinked once, then twice, realizing slowly where he was. For a moment he scarcely remembered how he'd gotten here, but just then memories of the prior night slowly came back to him. Gunnar stared at the beast, before cracking a grin.

"Alright, you got me beast." He said, a short laughter forming in his lungs, "I really wasn't expecting you to wake me like that. Especially when I'd nearly forgotten where I was sleeping at. You want to play, huh? Well beast, our play fights aren't quite the same as yours.. as in, there isn't any death or injury involved. Like this..." He smirked a little, before moving to lurch forward, hoping to grab at the beasts neck, "Come on beast!" He teased enthusiastically, "Show me how you play!"

[Ravager]

If the dragon could smile, his face would be a massive grin. He cackled again, the rest of his legs uncurling and planting firmly on the ground. «I will always emerge victorious!» He held his head proud. But he snorted a bit at the next part. «Play... fight? Fighting is no game!» He was caught off guard as the human grabbed his neck. A low deep rumble rippled through him, his wings lowering to the ground, the thumb claws beginning to support his weight. If the boy had been paying attention, it was quite clear what was coming next. His front legs lifted off the ground as his wings supported him, rearing up higher so the boy would no longer have been on the ground.

A cackle escaped him once more as his nostrils flared. «You think you can win this game?» He threw his head back and roared before his two sets of feet no longer on the ground to grab the boy. «I am the master of every challenge!» With a sudden shift of weight, he wrapped his wings around as well, and dropped to the ground. With a massive thud, snow flying everywhere from the impact and the boy safely in his grasp, he rolled onto his side. «Still think you can win?» He unfurled his wings and loosened his grip, letting his head rest down in the snow. «What now? Hmm, you cannot hope to beat me! Even at your silly games.» He seemed proud of himself, even though he hadn't really accomplished anything.

[Gunnar the Gullible]

The boy heard what could only be described as reptilian laughter, as the beast rose and seemed to roar with pride. Yet as Gunnar challenged him to a fight he snorted in return, before Gunnar lept on his neck, clinging to him. As he was there Gunnar moved to put the beasts neck in a gentle head lock, in an attempt to hang on and keep him from moving as much. Just then the beast lowered his wings, yet Gunnar wasn't able to see this; before he knew it he was well off the ground, peering down at the cave floor with a yelp.

However the yelp soon turned to a playful battle cry, "Alright, beast, show me what you've got!" Yet the boy was surprised when the beasts claws wrapped around him, and as Gunnar clung to the beast he felt his wings wrap around him as well; and, despite knowing what came next, Gunnar felt oddly safe, even as the beast dropped to the ground and rolled. And, rather then screaming, Gunnar was laughing; yes, laughing, as he moved to take the beasts horns in his hands, before moving to wrap his arms around the beast once more, still laughing uncontrollably.

"Again, beast, again!" He cried with laughter. He had to admit, when not fighting to the death, playing with beast was the most fun he had had... well... lets just say it was the most fun he had had in a long, long time. And, as he caught a glimpse of the proud stance the beast had taken, his might roars coming from him even as his wings loosened and he lay his head in the snow, the boy got the distinct feeling that maybe, just maybe, the feeling was mutual.

[Ravager]

«One defeat was not enough for you?» He straightened up once more, shaking the snow from his side. «Fine then! I shall overpower you a second time!» He shook his head and ran up the side of the cave until he as upside down. He snarled and pressed himself as tight against the stone, tongue flicking out briefly as he made sure of the boys location around his neck. «How will you fare now?» Wings still pulled in tight he charged along the ceiling. «Fine then!» The mouth of the cave was growing close, his wings slowly pulling open.

The dragon had an idea in his head, and he would not be stopped. And soon enough, there was no more cave. But as his wings snapped fully open he twirled into the air gliding on the momentum of his charge. Once again right side up, he glided for a moment before his back most legs began to dance along the edges of the snow. It wasn't long before his other legs now met the ground. Folding his wings a bit he shook his head, and glanced back. «That is how a real warrior deals with things.» Almost ignoring the boy now though, he turned his head and gnawed a bit at his wings. They were tense, and he hadn't flown in a very long time, he didn't normally need too. He flexed them again before folding them tight against his body again.

Shaking his head again, he took a deep inhale. The blanket of snow still lay all over the ground. Pawing some aside he huffed and turned back to the cave. «I don't have time for this foolishness.» He made a slow shuffle back, licking aimlessly at his teeth. «I don't have the energy to spend on this.» He gave a thorough shake, to remove any remaining grip the boy may still have. Glancing back he snorted. «Return to your people.» Lumbering back into the cave, he acted as if nothing had happened. «They need you more than I.» He assumed anyways. A faint clicking of his jaws as he cleaned the remaining scales out of his teeth. The boy was already growing too comfortable.