Dangers of Dragons (Sigrid and Kheluz)
“He’s not handling his anger problems very well.” The friend said, folding his arms. Khe slowly stood up, watching the two carefully. His movements were unsure. Part of him, most of him actually, was ready to remove the man’s vocal chords….make sure he kept quiet. But Sigrid’s firm tone kept him moving upright. Where Tilda he could easily give puppy eyes to, Sigrid he feared like an older sibling. She was tough.
The man beneath him stayed on the floor, fearful any movement would awaken that beast again. His tail twitched and unfurled with agitation.
“I don’t think I’ve ever…half shifted before? Been between forms.” He examined his hands; the knuckles thick and boney, his thumb appearing dislocated but nothing hurt. It just felt right.
“Sigrid I’m……terribly sorry you had to see this.” A glare shot towards his friend who simply held their hands up innocently. “I was just…..upset?” The man behind him began shifting on the floor. Kheluz snarled loudly at him, commanding in a throaty snarl to keep down. Instantly his face flushed. He seemed embarrassed to look back at her, swallowing hard.
“I…I’ll pay for the damage?”
Sigrid crossed her arms over her chest, gaze never softening. She did not say anything for a long moment, no matter how many explanations Kheluz offered. Just as she opened her mouth to reply, he snarled at the man on the floor, and she shut it. It would not help anything if he kept acting this way.
"Kheluz," she said again, a bit harsher. "Outside. Now." One or two men had the gall to snicker or chuckle, but they silenced as soon as she gave them a hard glare. She waited until he had stepped out of the tavern to follow, not offering a hand to the man on the floor. She had a suspicion what Kheluz had attacked him for.
She joined him just a few feet away from the door, slightly back in an alley to have privacy. “So this is what Tilda speaks of. Shifting.” She studied him for a long moment, swallowing hard. “But…not completely. Why?”
Sigrid would be a good mother one day. Her harsh tone quickly put him in place. He marched out to the sound of soft chuckled behind his back, his face darkened with blush. This was unfair and unjust. He was only defending her name! Tail curling behind him, he was careful to avoid her gaze for some time.
“I’ve never done this before.” He finally admitted, still keeping his eyes down like a child.
“Tilda’s told you….of my true self. But I’ve never stopped between forms.”
The awkward silence between them was painful. Trying to recollect the past half hour was hard; there were so many blacked out moments filled with nothing but rage and fire. He ran his claws over the shiny scales of his tail, shuttering at the feeling.
“Look it’s not….it’s not as bad as it looks. I just lost myself for a moment.” Kheluz nervously laughed, daring to catch her gaze. “It won’t happen again?” He couldn’t promise that though. As long as the people of Dale knew how to press his buttons he could not promise that. And she probably knew that.
“I’m sorry.”
