Requested by MCookieM

Dragon Russia

x

Human Lithuania

Dragon AU

Narrator's POV

Huff...  Huff...  Huff...

A young man hurried through a forest, stumbling on unseen roots underfoot, forcing him to catch himself on the trunk of a tree.

He was quick to gulp down large quantities of air, his body trembling as he felt himself burning from the inside with exhaustion and disgust, his malnourished and hurt body aching for rest.  Toris wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, the wound that was there had thankfully stopped bleeding.

'No,'  He thought to himself.  'I can't afford to rest now.'  He thought, pushing himself forward.  'I have to get away... far away... away from that monster.'

And with that, Toris the slave, sacrificed to a monster, continued on through the forest, even if the most gruesome torture imaginable had happened only a few hours before.

------------- Time Skip To 5 Years Later --------------

Ivan sighed as the spell he used took hold, causing him to shrink in form and change into the shape of a human with some modest clothing.  He made sure he had his sack of money carefully tied around his waist before entering the festival grounds where villagers paraded around and enjoyed themselves.

'At least these noisy humans make good food,'  Ivan thought, a bit tempted to burn this dragon festival down.  But with a large feast set before him, he didn't feel the need to just yet.

So Ivan sat down at the far end of the feasting table, beginning to eat the savory roasted mutton, earthy stews, fluffy breads, sweet jams, and anything else he could get his hands on as he watched, amused as the humans danced about, preaching nonsense about both themselves and dragons.

'Fools,'  Ivan thought to himself as he ate.  'You know nothing about us dragons, da?  If you did, you would be in constant fear, like he was...'  Ivan thought, remembering back a few years before...

------------- Flashback to 5 Years Ago --------------

Ivan stared at the trembling slave who was tied up tightly before him, having been left on the altar at the bottom of the mountain for Ivan.

'What a pathetic slave,'  Ivan thought.  'I doubt he could even lift a hunk of meat.'

"You are new sacrifice, da?"  Ivan asked, flames coming from the corners of his mouth, making the other shiver in fear.

"Y-yes y-your g-greatness,"  He stuttered, doing his best to bow and grovel before Ivan.

'At least he knows what he needs to do,'  Ivan thought.

"Da, from now on you are my slave,"  Ivan said, the slave's trembling increasing.  "You do what I say and do not talk back and do not escape.  Or I will get you da?"

"Y-yes y-your l-lordship,"  The slave said, pleasing Ivan.

'Da, this will be fun.'  

------------- Back To Present --------------

Ivan huffed as he tore off a hunk of meat with his teeth.

'He was useless slave,'  Ivan thought to himself.  'So weak, so annoying.'

Ivan grabbed another leg of mutton and roll of bread.

'Da, the only good thing about him was his screams... His delicious screams,'  Ivan thought to himself, a sadistic grin coming to his face.

------------- Flashback to 5 Years Ago --------------

"You spilled water, da?"  Ivan said, staring down at his slave's trembling form.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry y-your l-lordship."  His slave squeaked in fear, getting down on all fours.  Ivan stared down at his tiny form.

"It punishment time now, da?"  Ivan said, a sadistic look coming to his face as his slave's trembling increased.  Ivan grinned more, his tail moving about from side to side.

"Da 20 lashes and you count them or we start over."  Ivan said.  Toris gulped and turned his back to Ivan, giving no fight as Ivan began to lash his back with his spiked tail as Toris screamed out number after number, till his throat and back were raw.

Ivan brought his tail to his mouth and licked it clean of the blood, enjoying the warm coppery taste of his slave's blood.

"Da, now clean this mess up."  Ivan said with a smile as his slave nodded and weakly grabbed the brush and cloth for mopping.

------------- Back To Present --------------

'If there is one thing I miss about that slave was his blood,'  Ivan thought to himself, licking his lips.  In fact, he could almost smell a sweet, sweet blood of that slave.

'Wait a minute,'  Ivan thought with a frown.  'I do smell blood, very sweet blood.'

Ivan began looking around, following his nose to a more crowded part of the festival where he observed from a distance a shrouded man standing next to a child who was probably four or less in human years.  The shrouded man was holding out his finger, which he had pricked on something sharp.

"Tėtis [dad],"  The child said as Ivan used his dragon hearing to listen in.  "You okay?"

"Yes,"  His father said, his voice soft.  "I am fine my sweet sūnus [son]."

'That voice...'  Ivan thought, slowly walking closer to the pair.  'Sounds so familiar... But why?'

Ivan never interacted or payed enough attention to humans to really ever hear their voices.  The most of one human he ever heard was his old slave's voice.  And that was mostly when he was apologizing or screaming.

"Tėtis,"  The child said.  "I want more food."  He said, making his father laugh softly, making Ivan's chest feel strange.

"Very well, sūnus,"  The father said, bending down to his son's height.  "What would you like to try next?"  The child thought hard, looking around before pointing at a man holding some mutton.

"That,"  He said, getting a chuckle from his father.

"Okay then, you can try some mutton next, and then for dessert we can try some sweets, alright?"

"Yeah!"  His son said, jumping up and down with excitement, making his father chuckle as he extended his hand out to the boy, leading him to a stall where he purchased some mutton for the two to share.  Ivan followed them back to the feasting table, taking his seat on the far end as he watched the pair sit in a quiet spot, eating, the father having his back to Ivan as he helped his child to eat.

Ivan watched, fascinated as the child ate most of the mutton, more than an adult could.  The child then began moving onto the items on the table, such as the rolls of bread, offering some to his father.  Though the father didn't eat much, much to Ivan's surprise.

'Don't adults usually eat more than children?'  Ivan mentally questioned.  'Or rather, shouldn't children eat less than this child?'  He wondered, seeing as the child had already consumed enough food for two people and was still eating away.

'Something strange is going on,'  Ivan thought to himself, feeling the scales on the back of his neck rise a bit, though his own cloak covered it.

'First the sweet smelling blood coming from that man, the father.  Then his voice, and now this bizarre child.'  Ivan thought to himself.  Just then he saw the child sneeze, only for something a bit odd to happen; a small puff of smoke left the child's mouth, making Ivan's eyes widen.  The father was quick to cover his child to prevent others from seeing what had happened.

'That is no child!'  Ivan mentally yelled, standing from his seat.  'That is a dragon!'

'How dare they encroach upon my land!'  Ivan mentally yelled, heading over to the pair before putting his hand on both of their shoulders.

"What are you doing on my land?"  He asked in a low, threatening voice, a bit of fire escaping his mouth.  The father clung to his child as he bowed his head.

"I-I apologize e-elder d-dragon,"  He stuttered.  "W-we have n-no home s-so we t-travel and s-saw the f-festival h-hoping to r-rest and e-eat our f-fill."  He pleaded, making Ivan huff as he took in the father's sweet scent.

"You are human."  Ivan stated.

"Y-yes."  The man said.

"Yet your child is dragon.  Did you take him from his parents?"  Ivan asked, making the man shake his head desperately from side-to-side.

"N-no!  The c-child is a h-half-ling."  The man said, peeking Ivan's interest.

'Half-lings are rare,'  Ivan thought to himself.  'Only very special and rare humans are capable of mating with dragons...  Ones said to have sweet scents like this man,'  Ivan thought, things starting to make a bit of sense.

"Was your sister pregnant then?"  Ivan asked.  The man paused before slowly shaking his head.

"N-no..."  He said softly, his voice quivering.  Ivan tilted his head.

"Then you got a female dragon pregnant?"  Ivan asked.  The man only trembled more.

"N-no..."  He now whispered.  His hands moved to cover the child's ears.  "I... I w-was the o-one i-impregnated."  He whispered, his voice only audible to a person with dragon hearing.

'A man?  Impregnated?'  Ivan thought to himself.

"By?  What dragon sired this child?"  Ivan asked, knowing a human could never take care of a dragon child.  The man trembled more.

"A monster."  He whispered out.

"Monster?"

"T-that m-monster...  He... he..."  The man struggled to say as his child stared innocently up at him.  The man hung his head forward before whispering out what happened to Ivan.

"He raped me." 

Ivan gulped quietly as he thought back to that day years ago.  A day that made him both angry and sad to remember.

------------- Flashback to 5 Years Ago --------------

'I am feeling bored,'  Ivan thought, noting that it was just barely spring outside his cave.  'Soon it will be a year since I've had this slave... and he's the first one to last this long.'

Ivan looked lazily around his cave, spotting the slave in the corner of the room, his bony body working hard at scrubbing the floors of the large cave as the scent of spring evening hit Ivan hard.

Ivan gulped as he felt his own heat hit him suddenly, his body aching to procreate, Ivan himself beginning to lose all sense and reason, his instincts telling him to do one thing and one thing only;

Mate.

------------- End of  Flashback --------------

"I see..."  Ivan said, letting the man go.  The man nodded, his head still hung as he sat down, whispering to his child to go back to eating while he talked with Ivan.  The child hesitated but nodded, going a bit further away to continue eating but still stealing a few glances at Ivan and his father.

"I assume the dragon sent you away then."  Ivan said awkwardly as he sat beside the man.  The man just gave a tired shake.

"No,"  He whispered, his voice soft.  "After he... d-did it... I... I ran away... far away..."

"And then discovered your own pregnancy,"  Ivan said.  The man nodded.

"Yes,"  He said, turning to look at his child who ate happily.  "It was... hard, so hard to just take in."  He said slowly.  "And no human wanted anything to do with us so..."

"You kept travelling."  Ivan finished, getting a nod from the stranger.

"Yes... and please let me apologize again for coming here,"  The stranger said, turning to Ivan, bowing his head.  Ivan gave him a dismissive wave.

"You are not dragon, you do not know territories."  Ivan said.  The stranger nodded, pausing before speaking again.

"Pardon me for asking but... do you perhaps know of a place I can settle down and raise my child?"  He asked, surprising Ivan, making his brows furrow.

"No where near here."  Ivan said aloud.  "To the west are many more rich lands, but many more dragons who have claimed them...  Though, if you go east you may find land..."  Ivan said.

"Really?"  The man asked, his voice sounding hopeful.  Ivan gave a slow nod.

"Da, there is much land, and few dragons, but they are all ancient ones who control much of the land."  Ivan said, making the man hang his head.

"I-I see..."  He whispered out, glancing at his child who hummed happily upon trying some sweet jam.  He sighed.  "I g-guess we'll have t-to keep travelling."  He whispered more to himself than to Ivan.  Ivan nodded.

"Da,"  He said simply, having no interest in the child being on his lands.  "If you go east, seek out the ancient of the ancient dragons, Red-Fang Yao."

"Red-Fang Yao?"  The man questioned.  Ivan nodded absentmindedly.

"Da, he is an ancient dragon who has sired many dragons and raised many dragons not of his blood himself."  Ivan said.  The stranger glanced at Ivan nervously.

"You... you are not suggesting-"

"I am."  Ivan said simply, his tone showing he had nothing to hide.  "A human cannot raise a dragon, even one of mixed lines.  You are best leaving him with Red-Fang Yao, who will likely take the child in."  Ivan said absentmindedly as he looked over a tasty piece of mutton nearby.  The man's body shook as he stood up, facing Ivan.

"N-no.  I-I can't."  He said as Ivan took the leg of mutton into his hands.  "T-this child i-is mine.  H-he's the light o-of my d-dark life."  He said, his stutter betraying his emotions.  Ivan just glanced at him boredly.

"That may be, but when the child starts to change, then what?"  Ivan asked, silencing the other.  "Who will teach him to fly?  To hunt?  To use his fire breath?  You?"  Ivan asked.

"..."

"Exactly,"  Ivan said, leaning back against the table as he stared at the quivering form of the man before him.  "If you truly love the child as you preach you do, then I see only two options; either give him to a dragon to raise, whether it is Red-Fang Yao or the one who sired-"

"Never,"  The man said.  "I-I could n-never put m-my child in t-the hands o-of that monster."  He said, making Ivan nod nonchalantly.

"Then if you refuse to give your child up, there is only one other option."  Ivan said, tearing off a hunk of meat to eat.  He swallowed as he stared at the man with cold, glowing eyes.  "Kill your child yourself."

"What?!"  The man cried in despair, but no one other than Ivan heard him due to the festival noise.

"Da, you heard me."  Ivan said.  He then pointed the bone at the man.  "You will raise this child, who will be unable to control his abilities, and then get into trouble with either humans or other dragons, or both, and he will be hunted down and killed."  Ivan said, no remorse or sadness in his voice as he stated this fact.

"Why else do you think that there are no other half-ling dragons?"  Ivan continued.  "Because they die, da?  Unless their sire helps them find land, they cannot fight off other dragons, and they can't live amongst humans without causing trouble.  Either way, they die."  Ivan said.

The man shook, his child hurrying over to him, hugging his leg and grasping his hand.

"Tėtis, why are you crying?"  The child asked.

"N-no sūnus,"  The man said.  "I-I'm fine."  He said weakly, causing the child to puff his cheeks out.

"No you aren't!"  The child cried.  He then turned to Ivan in his fury.  "You made my Tėtis sad you meanie!"  The child said to Ivan, a small puff of smoke escaping his mouth.  Ivan exhaled through his nose, using his magic to make the humans nearby oblivious to what was happening.

"The facts of life made your father sad, not me."  Ivan said simply to the child.  But the child shook his head and stamped his foot.

"No, you caused it."  He said accusingly.

"Sūnus,"  He father said weakly, getting down on one knee to face the child.  He lowered his cloak, revealing his long auburn hair and green eyes, making Ivan's eyes go wide.  "Please leave this elder dragon be,"  He said  "I am sad for a different reason, that has little to do with the elder dragon."

"But..."  The child tried to speak, but his father silenced him as Ivan stared at the pair in shock as he remembered that face, now connecting the voice and the scent to the man before him.

'Wait... He said that he was impregnated by a dragon... and I was the dragon near him... I... that child is...'  Ivan's mind was in a whirl as he stared at the pair who spoke softly with one another.

"That... that child is..."  Ivan mumbled, catching the attention of the other two.

"My lord?"  The father questioned as Ivan now began to shake slightly.  The father pulled his child closer to him as they both stared at Ivan.  "El-"

Toris was cut off by Ivan immediately pushing him against a tree nearby, leaving the child behind as his eyes began to glow, him holding Toris tightly against the tree.  Tories gasped.

"Wha-?!"

"You!"  Ivan cried, his eyes changing and glowing.  "You sired my child!"  He yelled, making Toris's eyes go wide as he recognized Ivan's eyes.

"Y-You're... You're..."

"Da, I am."  Ivan said, flames coming out of his mouth.  "I thought I killed you."  Ivan said, thinking back to after he awakened from his heat, the cave was covered in blood, his slave no where to be found.

"..."  Toris just stared, terrified to the bone as Ivan seemed to grow more enraged.

"If I had known this, I would have-"

"No!"  The child yelled, grabbing onto Ivan's leg.  "Let Tėtis go!"  He yelled, his claws appearing, ripping Ivan's cloth.  Ivan just shook his leg and growled, letting Toris go to turn to the child, his tail getting ready to lash.

"Don't!"  Toris cried, using his body to cover his child's as Ivan lashed his tail, whipping Toris in the back.

"Tėtis!"  The child cried, growing angered.  His instincts kicked in and the child let out a large puff of smoke, blinding Ivan.

"That won't stop me!"  Ivan cried as smoke filled the entire festival, causing people to run in panic, thinking that there was a fire somewhere on the grounds.

Ivan growled as bodies jostled past him as he fled into the clear forest, letting his wings break free so that he could fly into the sky in hopes of seeing Toris and the child.

'Tch!  I cannot find them,'  Ivan thought to himself, the darkness and thick forest protecting the two from his sight.  With a groan of frustration, Ivan glided down to the top of a tall tree.

'I cannot believe it... He's alive... and he had a child... my child,'  Ivan thought, new and old emotions rising up inside of him.

With a sigh, Ivan flew into the sky, trying to see if he could locate them.

------------- Meanwhile --------------

"Okay sūnus, l-let's stop here f-for a moment."  Toris said, motioning his son over to a cave near a waterfall.

"Yes Tėtis,"  His child said, leading them over.  Toris gently began to clean his son's and his own wounds before sighing and sitting on a rock.

"Tėtis, what are we going to do now?"  The child asked, looking up innocently into his father's eyes.  Toris sighed, his whole body sagging as the air left him.

"We will head east."  He said.

"East?"

"Yes,"  Toris said.  "If we head east, there may be land for us to live on there, and a nice dragon there who may help."

"But Tėtis, dragons aren't nice."  The child declared.  Toris gave his son a weary look.

"It's true sūnus, not all dragons are kind, but neither are all humans.  And this dragon is a wise dragon who has a fondness for children, so he will help us,"  Toris said, calming his child who rested his head on Toris's lap.  Soon enough, Toris's son fell asleep.

"And if not me then at least you..."  Toris whispered out, picking his child up and beginning to head east, wary of the skies above where the monster of his past likely lurked.

~Fin~