lazybox | [Dragon AU] Once more into the breach

[Dragon AU] Once more into the breach

Military work. An obligation to any dragon who wanted to live peacefully - to have even a chance of living to old age. Most humans regarded it as a way for adolescent dragons to burn off their hormonal urges relatively safely, especially the males.

The dragons themselves knew that the reality was a bit more complicated. Young dragons had a need to claim territory, but with their own populations dwindling and human populations surging, there was very little territory left they could claim. And with most matings chosen by genetic matches, there wasn't a need to impress potential mates anyway.

So they sent their young to defend human territory instead. It had the side benefit of making the humans think they were tamed, safely under control, and so it protected their kind as a whole. Human technology, quick to develop, could easily spell the end of dragons entirely if their kind was seen as a threat, instead of allies.

By the time they hit puberty, most dragons knew this. It didn't mean they didn't chafe under it, especially those with more stubborn and independent personalities. The dragon seated in a human chair, trying to ignore how his shoulders itched under the shape-changing magic, was a particularly magnificent example of that.

The flight commander's office was small, especially for a facility designed to accommodate dragons, and even though his human shape fit inside perfectly well, Asch couldn't help but feel caged in. Part of it, he knew, was the lack of windows, which itched at him more than it would even most other dragons. Claustrophobia and large creatures didn't get along well.

Military dragons were appointed flight partners for their term of service; sometimes it was more than one, depending on how lucky the human was. Dragons could restore themselves with magic and recover from injury much better than their human counterparts - a benefit to shapeshifting, certainly - but sharing that healing outside of a pair bond was difficult. And true bonds were rare these days.

All the better, as far as Asch was concerned. He wanted this section of his life over with as quickly as possible. Not that he hated humans - just the opposite. He found them endlessly entertaining and innovative... Outside of the rigid structure of the military.

Inside of it, well, he'd already had a face-off with the commander about the length of his human form's hair. The bright crimson, at least, had gone un-commented-on, as many humans knew that bold colorations were critical points of pride, but being forced to keep it short as well...

Well, it simply wasn't happening. He was already going without his ornaments and usual loose clothes, not to mention going along with the polite cultural requirement of maintaining an entirely human form. For this, the first meeting with his assigned partner, he could manage polite, even if it chafed.

And did it ever chafe. Asch flicked his eyes up at the commander before returning his attention to his dull human-shape nails. He'd at least made a good impression by being early. And he was good at most of the actual tasks the military required of their dragons - a fast, strong flier who could easily bear a rider, skilled at magic, not afraid of violence. For his skill, they were willing to let some things slide.

But not everything. And one of the things they weren't going to slide on was 'no solo operations.'

He really hoped that whoever came through that door was tolerable, or the next couple of years were going to be hell.

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And to make it worse... Soma might not have realized before, with the size difference and everything, but Asch?

Chronic sleep cuddler. Eventually, he'll let go of the pillow in his sleep, roll over, and awkwardly bury his face into Soma's back, one hand grabbing the back of Soma's shirt.

At least he's as warm as ever, even curled up like this.

If Soma was awake before, he's definitely not sleeping now. He actually squeaks very softly as Asch cuddles him, his eyes round and alarmed in the dark. The scent and warmth against his back are familiar, but it's a human body snuggled up to him.

A very attractive human body.

The poor teen shudders, trying to recite technical schematics in his brain to distract himself. It doesn't help much.

Stupid hormones!

Asch, in contrast, sleeps through the night perfectly fine, even contentedly. Come morning - he's awake a bit before the bells, as usual - there's a sleepy groan from behind Soma as he starts to shift. He sits up and stretches with a yawn that shows way sharper teeth than a human should have, and three's a few feathers scattered in his hair - trying to keep PERFECTLY human while asleep is a lost cause.

Soma hasn't slept a wink, his hair disheveled and bags under his eyes as dark as bruises. At least his hormones have cooled off, but he still stumbles out of the hammock to the private washroom to scrub the sweat from his skin. He does his best to make himself presentable, but there's no hiding how he looks even with all the time he takes.

By the time he emerges from his room in his flight gear, he's ready to go back to bed. If they didn't have their last maneuvers today, he'd consider going to the infirmary and claiming illness just to get rest.

Asch notices, but opts not to comment - instead, he's gotten them together something like breakfast. Though, looking at Soma, all he can think is that it's a pity energy charms and potions don't work all that well in humans.

"Last day of this, at least," he says instead. "Too bad home's too far to go on leave."

"Mm."

Soma doesn't have much of an appetite, but he does cram some food in his face, along with two large cups of coffee. The first thing he's going to do on leave is sleep for a full day. After that, they can make plans to do something fun.

If Asch is going to stay in human form, they'll need separate beds.

Luckily for his sleep-deprived partner, Asch doesn't feel the need to talk constantly. He dresses and settles the saddle harness on his back, then steers the sleepy human out towards the field.

At least they're far enough ahead of the curve that having one of them not firing on all cylinders won't screw them up too terribly. Only about two thirds of the unit is even cleared to proceed to the next stage of their training after the break of a few days' leave, even so.

It's bad enough that Soma nods off a few times, but Asch keeps him from getting disciplined by their TIs. Even the chill air and the thrill of flying can't keep the poor boy awake the whole time. By the time they land and they're dismissed, Soma can hardly balance on his own two feet.

"Need... coffee...." Though what he really needs is a bed. He staggers into their quarters, almost tripping over his own feet and bumping into a few things on the way to his bedroom door.

"Was it that terrible?" Asch mutters at his back, before shrugging to himself and packing up the handful of things he's taking with him on leave. From the looks of it, he's going to have a day or so to kill.

Which is fine. It gives him the chance to go to town and make a few arrangements, not to mention the chance to fly saddle-free for the first time in a while. Soma will likely wake up while he's still out, but there's a note floating in front of the bathroom door that's enchanted to chase the human down if he misses reading it -

If you don't have plans for leave already, I have a surprise for you. Stick around, I'll be back tomorrow morning.

Soma sleeps for a good long while, close to fourteen hours, and he only wakes up to the call of nature. He sees the note and grabs it, but wait until he's finished before reading it.

And then he feels bad. Asch should be back soon, judging by what time it is. Soma owes him an apology. No, it wasn't bad, not at all. But he can't stop the shame he feels for lusting after his partner. They're not supposed to fraternize, they can't be anything except friends.

He lingers in the shower, dresses in casual clothes and packs for a few days of leave. Whatever Asch has planned, Soma will behave himself no matter what.

Asch doesn't return until well after the base is done serving breakfast - and he's dressed in civvies to boot, a robe of purplish red gradients over his shoulders making him incredibly obvious as he crosses over from the landing field.

He heads back to the room, first. "I'm back. Sleep a little better?"

Soma meets his eyes just for a moment before he has to look away, blushing faintly. “Y— yeah. Sorry about the other night. Sometimes I get insomnia. It wasn’t your fault.”

Which is only partially true, Asch hasn’t done it on purpose. But the consequences still came home to roost.

“Your note said you made plans?”

"Yeah, I had to run around town a bit vouching for you, but things should be good." He stretches slightly and smiles. "Given that it's you, I thought you might want to see some of our part of town."

Or rather, the next town over, but closer enough. Soma has no chance of getting into the dragon parts of the city without company.

Now Soma’s staring at Asch with wide eyes and a slowly growing, disbelieving grin.

“You’re actually bringing me to a dragon district? That’s... Asch, that’s amazing! You’re sure it’s okay, right? I don’t want you to get any crap for bringing a human in....”

"That's why I went beforehand to arrange things." Otherwise it very well could have gotten messy. "As long as you're with me, it shouldn't be a problem. Just don't go roaming off on your own."

He grudgingly abandons the robe in order to start pulling the saddle harness back on. It's going to be faster than trying you borrow a car from the base, not to mention that the dragon district has nowhere they could leave one. "There's a pretty good mix of populations, so I can't imagine that all of them will be happy with it, but you're not actually the first human to go in there."

For once, the thought of riding on Asch is a bit daunting. Soma steels himself into a more professional mindset, though that means his posture is closer to parade rest than actual off-duty relaxed mode. He picks up his backpack and secures it over his shoulders, silently hoping he has everything he needs for the next few days. It's doubtful he'll find human-appropriate things where they're going.

"Trust me, I won't wander off. Dragon district or not, I'm not the type to go exploring an unfamiliar place on my own."

Asch shakes his head as the straps settle down, then pulls his robe back on over the top. It's still chilly out, as far as he's concerned.

"Good. I'm not actually that familiar with it myself, so if you got lost, I don't know if I could find you." With a gesture, most of the magic in the room stills, and he turns the regular thermostat down as well. No reason to heat the place when no one's in it. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

Soma settles his flight goggles around his head, ready to be pulled down into place when needed. With a deep breath, he offers Asch a nervous little smile and exits their quarters. The cool breeze gives him an excuse to huddle into his coat, ignoring the commotion of other riders headed out on leave.

At least it's not as much commotion as it could be; since they don't have any need to wait for transportation to take them to their destinations, almost all of the other dragons are already gone. The one that remains gives Asch a weird look that the redhead shrugs off before leading the way to the launch strip and assuming his true form.

A stretch - he's already done a lot of flying and is just getting ready to do more, it'll be his turn to sleep hard tonight - and then he settles down so that Soma has an easy climb into the saddle.

Soma's gotten so good at getting into the saddle that his weight barely shifts the rig on Asch's back. A cool hand strokes the dragon's scales and feathers in the same place it always does after a successful mount, but there's something almost distracted in the way Soma does it this time.

He doesn't speak until they're airborne, the same distracted hint in his voice. It's a heavy conversation to have while they're flying, but it reduces the chance that Soma will have to deal with his partner fixing him with an uncomfortable stare. "Asch, have you ever... been disappointed with yourself?"

As long as he's securely on, Asch doesn't mind much either way. There's a few sounds of surprise as he takes off, but after one brief loop of the base to gain altitude, they're securely on their way.

He's perfectly content to fly in silence until Soma speaks up. [Mmm? A few times, I suppose. Why?]

Again, it takes time for Soma to speak up, as if every word he says is thought out to the point of being over-analyzed and agonizing. Asch can't see or feel it, but the human's grip on the reins is white-knuckled beneath his flight gloves.

"How do you deal with it, if you can't change what's disappointing you?"

[If I can't change it?]

There haven't been that many times where that was true, if he's being honest. Asch is the sort to race self-improvement to the finish line. [Learn to live with it, I guess.]

Learn to live with it? Soma guesses that's what he's been doing, at least since he realized the nature of his mental deviation. But it hasn't been that long, and the thought of hiding like this for the rest of his life is awful.

So he says nothing more, keeping his white-knuckled grip on the flight straps and trying to lose himself in the scenery far below them.

It's better than the constant base scenery, at least. Asch beats his wings steadily but doesn't bother going any higher than usual; it's not that long of a flight.

At a little part the hour mark, he begins to descend, landing directly into the dragon district. The streets are wider here, but the buildings still give off a cramped feeling, with bright banners hanging off or between most of them. Asch settles to the ground with a sigh, drawing weird looks from a handful of brightly colored pedestrians.

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[Dragon AU] Once more into the breach

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that icon is ungodly moe

Nope. Read the keywords. Not moe.

I'm stuck on mobile I can't read keywords! also yes moe

"I am not a moe Dracula!"

keep telling yourself that buddy

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