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There are few traditions that have kept up with the times. One of the older ones, one could say, ancient ones, was the rule that inspired ‘trust’.
A dragon’s hoard was filled with valuable and interesting objects and in a world filled with creatures curious, bright and quick, those hoards always brought about a lot of… annoyances. Those who wanted to study, see, experience. Some tried diplomacy, others didn’t even bother before taking up a sword and diving into battle.
But a dragon is not a simple beast that is easy to defeat. A dragon is not a mindless center of destruction. A dragon is sentient being that most and foremost wants .
You can speak to the dragon. You can strike a deal, if you offer something equally valuable but those deals never last forever. Dragons are greedy, after all.
But there is something dragons like to accept for time being, enough to not chase after foolish adventurers later on to steal it for themselves in the end. And that thing is experience, fun, curiosity.
And so a tradition was born and it prevailed.
Philza agreed to the terms and lended the magic item for the set price and didn’t think about it as much. The humans took the magic staff and left a hostage in its place. Usually, Phil would be a lot more picky about who is left, he wanted fun after all but this time he just agreed to take the young brunet under his wing.
He didn’t have much time to prod and enjoy the human this time, since he just had an egg hatch. His little nightmare needed a lot of attention, lots of food and care.
So Philza left the human to his own devices, as long as he didn’t wander off. The young man was well behaved, he set up his meager belongings near the entrance of the cave and just… sat there. Looking out. Occasionally he played on his little guitar or went close by and caught himself something to eat. Overall, pretty good boy.
Which just made Philza pity him harder when several moons passed and there was still no sight of the adventurers coming back.
Philza landed at the entrance and customarily he sniffed the human. Nothing really changed, the man just awkwardly smiled and looked away. Phil let himself observe the man- the boy, really- a little longer. He had spent a long time waiting after all and… well.
He didn’t look too good. He seemed considerably thinner, his skin paled and his hair was messy. Phil didn’t even try to think about the clothes and hygiene. The brunet was just really roughing it out as best as he could, which… wasn’t really the best.
“Uhm. Hello. Still here, heh.”
Philza snorted. This was really pitiful. Even more, when the stomach of the poor one started grumbling and Phil had to fight his own instincts to not grab the little scrap. The cold months were about to start, game was thinning out in the woods, as well as wild crops. The little human would suffer.
The great emerald dragon looked back into the valley, where the adventurers left moons ago. Nothing suggested they were coming back and, ha, if they thought he wasn’t coming back for that staff, they had another thing coming, but also… Well.
‘Wilbur’ was here in place of his hoard. And since the bastards actually stole his thing, Wilbur was now fully his hoard. And Philza didn’t neglect his hoard.
He leaned down and nudged at the human.
“H-hey, I didn’t do anything! I didn’t touch the coins, my things are close but I didn’t take- hey!”
PHilza puffed a warm smoke at the human. “Go inside.”
The human shuddered and tried to round Philza, to get back outside. Phil just put his claws in the way and again, gently nudged the boy inside.
“I really didn’t do anything!”
“I know, little one. This is not punishment.”
“It’s… not?”
“It’s not. Come inside, it’s getting too cold out.”
The human finally relented but he kept glancing back, unsure of what was truly happening. And good, he needed some of that to survive. It would do him good if he was so wary with his own kind from the start but eh, not really Philza’s problem. Phil will just accept the extra nearly-hatchling.
At least the songs from this one can try to calm Tommy down.
Phil barely resisted the urge to scruff the young fool when he tripped over some coins. He only sighed and shoved a few more things out of his way. They went all the way inside the cave, deep enough to see the nest. Normally, no human would be allowed this close, and coming inside? Ha!
But Wilbur was his now and he was frail and smelly. Philza needed to keep a close eye on him for the time being. So he nudged him again and basically pushed him towards the layers of silks, moss and pelts.
Wilbur resisted this time, his eyes darting wildly this way and that. He quickly tried to step out of the nest and Philza growled unhappily. The boy yelped and backed into the softness before freezing and looking at the dragon with big eyes.
“Good. Stay here, I’ll be back shortly.”
“Uhm, should I be here? Isn’t it your nest?!”
Philza just flicked his tail and went back to the entrance. He didn’t expect feeding time to come so soon but it wasn’t a problem. He just snagged the closest foolish deer and came back. The game around his cave grew lazy, confident in Phil scaring the predators and not hunting them himself. But that was just for the past years.
Now that Tommy hatched, the animals will quickly learn to fear a dragon again.
Hm. Phil assessed the deer carefully. For Tommy, he would just rip the meat into chunks and feed the hatchling carefully but human fledgling, as starved as he was, would have problems to stomach it. No helping it, he needed to prepare it more.
When he went back inside, he heard some chirps and playful hisses coming from the nest. Tommy must have found the human and recognised it as a playmate. Good.
“Playing nicely?” he asked, still not coming in. Cutting and preparing meals shouldn’t be done where hatchlings can see the food, otherwise they would start crying immediately.
Though his new one seemed more sensitive than the usual one, since even an innocent question made him panic. There was a quick yelp and a sound of frantic shuffling.
“I didn’t know, he- they- he just popped up and started chasing my hands!”
Phil sighed. “I wasn’t admonishing you mate. You can play with Tommy, it’s more than fine. At least someone keeps an eye on him for me.” He hoped it would calm Wilbur down.
Phil morphed down into a more accessible shape, something more or less human. Something with hands at least, as he needed them to season the meat. The sounds of play fight came back and Philza smiled, when a few laughs intertwined with growls and chirps. Good, very good.
He smoked the meat with his breath and waited for it to cool, before he grabbed a big bowl. He had some mushrooms, so he added those and a big slice of golden apple. Wilbur needed to build up his strength but Philza couldn’t force it. Too fast and he will have to deal with not only a frail hatchling but a sick one too.
So with a bowl and the rest of the carcass in hands he came back to the nest.
Wilbur looked up and visibly startled at the sight of a humanoid with emerald scales and horns. Fortunately he didn’t scream and Philza purred and puffed some warm smoke at him as a praise. Wil scrunched his nose but didn’t offer any complaints.
“Here, this should be fine for you, yes?” Phil put the bowl into Wilbur’s hands and then turned back to Tommy who already was chirping his little head off. “I know, I didn’t forget about you. You have more food than him, see? Little jelly bean.”
Tommy ripped into the first bits of meat with vigor. Philza thanked the stars that even in this form his fingers were sturdy enough to withstand the little nips he got from his hatchling. Seven bites later, he spared a glance to Wilbur. Who didn’t touch his food at all and just awkwardly huddled over it.
Philza cocked his head to the side. “Do you need me to feed you too?”
“What? No! No, you don’t need to do that! I just…”
“Good,” Phil smiled, “I thought you were big enough to eat by yourself. If it’s too big bites still I can make them smaller for you.”
“I just… it’s for me?”
“I wouldn’t give it to you to just hold, mate.”
“Oh,” Wilbur blinked and then looked down to his bowl. Gingerly, he picked the first morsel of meat and started chewing. Philza purred, delighted to see the hatchling finally eat.
He focused again on feeding Tommy, much to the delight of the golden hatchling.
By the time Tommy finished eating Phil more or less planned on how to care for his fragile fledgling. He turned around and to his slight dismay he saw that Wil´s bowl wasn't empty. He still had some meat and mushrooms left. But he kept nibbling on one and the apple was gone. Small steps, small improvements.
Tommy rolled on his back, fully stretching and purring. Nap time was in order, Philza thought. And even if Wilbur was smelly, he should nap too, if his drooping eyelids and very lazy nibbling indicated anything. Philza shook off his humanoid skin and stretched out his dragon body in one move. Wilbur blinked up at him with sleepy amazement. Phil puffed some more smoke at his hatchlings and then nudged them further inside the nest. Wilbur tried protesting but he had no chance against a dragon. His heart fluttered anxiously when Phil curled around them but merely an hour later his breathing leveled out.
Phil sighed. He never expected to have to care for two hatchlings at once, especially not one as rambunctious as Tommy nor one as timid as Wilbur. But Phil wasn't an amateur himself. No, once he helped brooding mothers and other dragons with their littlest ones, he would do just fine with his own. And when his babies get better, he will go hunting for a particular group of adventurers.
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The next morning Philza did scruff Wilbur, in which the hatchling did not appreciate and let Philza know by loud screaming. Tommy chirruped curiously and tried to follow them out of the nest but Phil snorted at him to stay put in the blankets.
Bathing wasn't as bad. Wilbur was hissy about something as silly as “privacy” and “embarrassment” but cleaned himself nicely. He truly was a good boy. He even let Phil groom his hair back up to it´s fluffy glory, before the mishap of the adventure.
Philza burned the rags that Wil wore before, feeling only a little bit mean. As shitty as they were, they were a part of his fledglings belongings, his tiny hoard. Instead of apologizing, he brought the softest clothes he could find and bullied the boy into them. Scruffing became a lot easier after that.
“Hey, stop that! I´m not some overgrown kitten, you- you!” whined and hissed Wilbur. Phil just snorted and grabbed the flailing boy in a more secure way.
“I´m Philza. You may call me Phil, little one.” Wilbur stilled for a second, just long enough for Phil to dump him into the nest.
“Oh, uh, nice to make your.. acquaintance?” Wil winced. It could be awkwardness, it could be Tommy jumping right on his guts. The human boy scratched at the scales with a little smile before he quickly looked up at Phil again. “I´m Wilbur, sir.”
“I know.” Phil said, laying down around them. “Your companions introduced you when they traded you for my hoard.”
Wilbur quieted down, visibly growing anxious at the reminder of his current perceived situation. Phil just blew some smoke his way to distract the boy. He was part of a dragon's hoard now. No reason to be so nervous. Phil flicked his tail a little.
“His name is Tommy.”
“Oh. That´s a nice name. Hello Tommy.”
Tommy growled playfully and pounced once again. The two hatchlings went right into play fighting and Philza purred, pleased.
Yeah, his boys were going to be fine.
So it went like that for a few months. Cold times came and went, Wilbur adjusted pretty well too. He had fun playing with Tommy, he ate his meals to the point where he could, and after a while he started asking for cuddles and grooming too. Wil was never meant to be an adventurer, he was too soft, too nervous. But he was a fantastic hatchling.
“I wasn't who they wanted to come with them. They wanted my brother, he is a really good fighter. But when they came to our house, Techno was out to practice his magic.” Wilbur shrugged sadly. “I know some magic, mainly inspiration, support things. So they thought ´eh, a brother's good enough´. And, uh, I wasn't what they expected.” Wilbur mumbled.
Philza purred and blew some smoke. Wilbur, who was already used to the dragon's show of affection, only waved the smoke out of his face and huddled closer. “And then they made the trade, I… I thought they would come back. I didn't peg them as such humongous assholes.”
The old dragon snorted. That was one way to call the adventurers. Philza could propose another:
Thieves.
They broke the traditions, they stole a part of his hoard and they abandoned a precious fledgeling with him, deeming him enough payment.
Philza nudged Wilbur and the human rolled his eyes but laid down obediently. Phil absolutely claimed and adored his new child but that didn't excuse the theft. A bloodthirsty grin spread on his maw when he imagined all the screams and blood that he would take when he finally hunts down those pesky adventurers.
“They missed a jewel amongst their ranks.” rumbled Philza and Wilbur scoffed with laughter. Tommy chirped urgently, showing support for his fathers words. The little nightmare wasn't speaking just yet but the prolonged exposure to speech and playing with Wilbur clearly made him understand it so much quicker than other hatchlings. Philza purred with pride.
“Thank you Phil, that's very kind.” Said Wil. There was an adorable little blush on his face, that he was trying to hide. Wilbur was so eager for praise, Philza thought to himself. He will be showered in it forever, in his hoard, in his clutch. Wilbur smiled up at the dragon, still clueless about how adored he was. Philza hid him and Tommy under a wing before gently blowing smoke at them. So precious.
The fragile peace lasted till the next fall. He allowed his hatchlings outside of the cave more often, Tommy was learning how to hunt and Wil was assisting the young dragon with his magic. It was pleasing to observe his abilities grow without the human even noticing. Philza was right about the adventurers - They were fools who didn't recognise what they mistakenly stole and then rejected.
Philza decided on that warm day next summer he was going to go and finally hunt them down.
He didn't manage to do so.
On the cusp of winter an echo of feet and clang of weapons rose Philza from his slumber. Wilbur and Tommy slept peacefully and Phil scented them briefly before he came outside. It was a singular human, worn down by the road or fights they picked up on their journey. Though the scent of the blood was quite strong, like they never bothered to wash it out. Philza laid down, blocking the entrance to his cave and he gazed into the distance. He was mildly curious about this one, he didn’t get a lot of visitors, after all, especially so seemingly battle proved.
He flicked his tail. The challenger finally came into view and the man was a sorry sight. Very clearly tired, exhausted even, with fumes of magic sticking to his skin and hair. There was blood- on his armor, on his hands, gluing his pink locks together.
Weak and hungry but so driven. In some way, the man reminded Phil of Wilbur, a tiny scrap on his mountain. Philza puffed out a dark cloud of smoke. The challenger better hurry, Philza wanted to go back to his nest.
The human jerked his head up and the fire in his eyes burned brighter. He hurried his steps and very soon he stood on the edge of the clearing. He didn’t breach it and Phil would raise an eyebrow if he could in this body. Why was the man polite when he carried so much weaponry on him? When he was clearly a warrior?
“I greet you Angel of Death, this day in your domain.” the man called. His voice quivered, full of barely masked distress.
Philza rumbled, neither a greeting, nor clear dismissal.
The man knew it too. He bowed his head, reached for his sword… And dropped it to the ground. Philza cocked his head to the side at the display. Interesting.
The warrior licked his lips, another signal of stress.
“I came to return your hoard!”
Really interesting. Philza stretched and yawned, slowly rising to his legs. “I don’t remember lending you anything.”
“The law of trust was used! You- an adventuring party took an artifact from you and left someone behind. I came to take him back.” the man said quickly.
“Is that so” hummed Philza.
The warrior nodded near fervently and immediately started taking off his gear. A shield, humming of unbreaking and protection. Sword sheath hissing with poison. Gloves crackling with lightning. A mask of many faces. The staff that was stolen from Phil, how lovely. Daggers carrying frost. And so much more, a mace, a belt, amulets, rings… Philza saw some pieces he would gladly steal for his hoard. He looked up at the man, at his tired, hopeful face.
“None of these are my hoard.”
The warrior paled considerably and his eyes scanned the artifacts desperately. “But it's everything they carried-!”
“Leave.” Philza ordered and turned back to his cave.
“Wait! Please, I- Can I at least see him? I’ll trade all of these with you, just… I have to check on him.”
Philza looked back, feigning disinterest. “He's sleeping.”
“So he's here?!” The man shouted, nearly jumping forward. Philza spat out some sparks in lieu of warning and the warrior backed off, politely bowing before the irritated dragon.
“Of course he is. Even if my hospitality fulfilled the law already.”
“Can you let him know that I came for him? I´ll find and bring your horde soon, I promise-”
“Human promises hardly mean anything.”
“Please, you have to- Angel, those who invoked the law of trust were not entitled to it. The one they left with you is my brother,” the warrior pleaded.
And that caught Philza’s attention. The elder dragon turned and scrutinized the man again. There was a similarity between the warrior and his hatchling. It resided in the shape of the nose and eyes, it teased in the possibility of what Wilbur could look like with some muscles. And Philza breathed in and under the ichor and sweat he found familiarity.
The fabled brother really came by.
Philza tilted his head. “Blood that ties you does not give you ownership over him. He accepted the stay.”
“He is not an adventurer! He was not equipped with knowledge or even resources to fulfill the law!” The man sounded incredibly frustrated. Phil recalled the pathetic bundle of things Wilbur kept on the entrance of the dragon's cave. What the warrior said was true but Philza didn’t feel like admitting it out loud.
“I do not need to check that mate. It's not my duty in this law.” he dismissed.
“I want to pay back for him, please, I just need to-!”
“Why won’t the ones who invoked the law pay me back?”
“They can’t,” said the warrior darkly.
Philza looked at the pile of weapons and at the crusted blood on the man’s face. The dragon suddenly understood why the thieves won’t be coming back. A cruel grin spread on his maw and he chuckled darkly. The brother had a meaner bite than his new hatchling and there was also a possessive curl on his soul.
To think he slaughtered the bastards just to get back Wilbur… It was entertaining.
“How do you plan to find where they hid my hoard? Can you speak with corpses, dig for information from their remains?” Philza teased.
The human grinded his teeth. “No, but I am a good tracker! I will find whatever they took, if you only tell me what to seek for. Just… Please, I need to see my brother. I have to tell him I came for him.”
Philza sighed deeply. He was meant to have one hatchling, one! Tommy was a clawful on a good day and Wilbur helped a lot nowadays but still! Phil never suspected he would end up with three hatchlings at once! That was a lot to spring onto a dragon! Small mercies that they at least came spaced out in time. Three years between Tommy and Wilbur and then nearly a year between Wilbur and… this one.
“What’s your name?”
“I’m Technoblade, Angel.”
A year between Wilbur and Technoblade. Techno at least seemed well versed with blade, he would protect his siblings when they were out play hunting. Philza probably didn’t even need to expand the nest, beyond customary scenting. Though he may need to fly out to grab some more clothes because Techno, just as Wilbur, was absolutely filthy . What was it with his human hatchlings and needing such a deep scrubbing down?
Philza blew some smoke and stretched lazily. That sounded like a good plan. And he reclaimed the staff, plus extra enchants!
“Take these with you and come with me. You’ll get a few minutes,” said Philza.
And after those minutes, he will go take a bath. Stinky little human.
Technoblade rushed to pick up the weapons and ran up to Philza. The dragon lead the man inside and showed him the nearest pile of magical equipment. Phil would need to scrub and retune those anyway before he displayed them in the inner cave system.
“Come on then.”
Technoblade kept close, looking ahead every second, like he anticipated Wilbur to just pop his curl filled head from the nearest coin pile. Philza snorted and called for his hatchlings, taking small mercy on the anxious name. The sound was close to a booming bark, Wilbur told him once, which still slightly disgruntled Phil.
He was no dog after all.
“Coming!” came a sleepy response.
Technoblade perked up and Phil saw how he barely stopped himself from running ahead. Philza laid down, crossing his front paws, content to wait however long he needed. He knew Wilbur was no morning bird and crawling out of the nest could take him a while.
Techno seemingly knew it as well because there was a shadow of irritation and fondness dancing on his face.
Finally though his lanky hatchling came into view, yawning like he wanted to swallow a deer.
“Whatchu need Phil… Techno?”
Phil watched Wilbur blink. He observed as some of the weight slipped from Technoblade’s shoulders. And then he watched the hatchlings crash in a very violent embrace. The dragon flexed his claws and slowly got up. Wilbur was babbling, desperately clutching at his brother and Techno was whispering something into the brown hair. They seemed to collapse at the ground at any second but somehow they held strong. Philza scrunched his nose at the blood stains that started to appear on Wil’s clothes. He will have to wash Wilbur as well. Maybe he will just have a bath day for all the hatchlings.
“As you can see, Wilbur is in good health,” Philza said, before he leaned over them and snorted some smoke over the two.
Wilbur relaxed but Technoblade tensed more.
“I, yeah, I’m good, I’m- Don’t worry Tech, I’m good, Philza takes good care of me,” Wilbur hurriedly said.
Techno nodded stiffly and yet he still casted side glances at Philza. The dragon sighed inwardly. It was inevitable, he had to break the distrust just as with any new hatchling.
“Time’s up,” Philza announced.
Both humans looked like they wanted to protest but they both swallowed their words pretty quickly. Technoblade squeezed Wilbur one last time and whispered, “I’ll come back for you, I promise.”
Good thing the warrior was not going to break his promise, thanks to Philza. Really, what he did for his children…
Phil led the pinkett deeper, through the hallways made of treasures. They looped towards the back, where the air got a lot warmer and humid, the trickle of water slowly getting louder. Technoblade must have heard it too because his steps slowed and eventually stopped altogether. He looked nervous again, his fingers twitched for a sword that was no longer at his side.
“It’s not the same way I was led inside,” remarked the warrior carefully.
Philza chuckled. “No, it is not.”
“Is there a reason why we come this way…?”
Philza turned and measured the man with a judgemental stare. Technoblade shifted back, seemingly ready to bolt, yet screwed in place. Probably still desperate for a chance to peacefully extract Wilbur out of Phil’s nest. Fat chance but it was admirable to witness such loyalty.
“Mate, you’re absolutely filthy. I shouldn’t let you touch Wilbur, all that blood and grime will stain the inner cave. You’re getting a bath before you can even think about going outside.”
Technoblade scrunched his nose and frowned, like it was an unreasonable idea. He was not getting out of it that easily. Wilbur made cuter big eyes and Tommy was more grumpy than him but even they didn’t get to skip bath time.
“I’m sorry but this is-”
“I’m not going to let you see Wilbur again if you do not wash this filth off.”
Technoblade flinched and then glared. Philza just looked at the warrior, completely sure in his abilities to overpower the unruly hatchling and dump him in the hot springs. He was being challenged, yes. He expected this sort of thing to happen a lot, especially with Techno. The man may have been an accomplished warrior but he didn’t need to be anymore.
Just as Wilbur, he will stay in the nest and eventually be happy.
The road will be spilled with blood, maybe Wil will join in the little rebellion, maybe Tommy will try to nip at him as well. But that’s a role of a father, to raise and endure all the hardships.
“Fine,” snapped Techno.
He marched forwards, grime determination lining his mouth. Philza just silently rolled his eyes. Hatchlings were always so dramatic about getting into water, it was not like it would bite them, really.
Philza helped Technoblade to wash up, even with another fussy fit about 'privacy or whatnot. He took the clothes away to burn them and brought new, comfy ones. Technoblade looked alarmed at that, for whatever reason and rushed through the motions even more.
"Here, I'm clean! Up to standards now?" Techno nearly growled.
Philza puffed some smoke at him and turned around to lead the man once again.
But Technoblade was attentive this time around.
"This is not the way to the exit. Angel, I promise I will bring you your horde-"
"That won't be necessary," Philza cut the warrior off.
"What?" Technoblade paled.
"You don't have to look for anything. You won't find my horde outside this cavern."
"But- But the law, Wilbur-!"
"Wilbur," interjected Phil calmly, " is my horde now. I claimed him after the law expired in place of the stolen staff. Lovely gift by the way, I was thinking of hunting it down myself."
Technoblade looked as if he saw a ghost. Or learned world shattering truth. Maybe it was a bit mean to just drop it on him like that but Philza didn't care so much. Techno will have lots of time to adapt.
"You can't just steal him- I returned your…"
"You returned what once was mine. And you met my second hatchling."
Rage sparkled in the warriors eyes and Philza sighed inwardly. There it was. Before Techno could do something stupid, like attack a dragon with no weapons, Philza bowed his head and quickly scruffed the man.
"Put me down! I'll kill you, give me my brother back!"
"Shush hatchling. We're going to your brothers."
Technoblade stiffened at that, probably too shocked to properly process everything.
When Philza dropped his third child in the nest, he observed proudly how Wilbur fussed over the addition and how curious and gentle Tommy tried to be. At last, his nest was full.
He curled around all of them and pinned Technoblade to the bedding with one paw. Just in case. The man will learn how to behave but before that, Phil couldn't trust him. He blew some smoke over all of them.
Technoblade and Wilbur curled around each other, desperately whispering between each other. Tommy wiggled his way in the middle of his brothers and snuffled happily. Techno was tense, hesitant around the baby but Wilbur whispered something again. The humans gripped each other’s arms, something fierce and sweet in their faces and souls.
Hm. Maybe Phil should invest into some extra wards against escape attempts, for no reason at all. He closed his eyes and sighed, all his worries shelved for a moment, deciding to just enjoy his moment with hatchlings.
It was gonna be fine.