Since katchan00 posted her boys with dragon babies WIP I decided to jump on the bandwagon. Here's a bit of the story. Enjoy!
Fili accepted the glass of wine with a polite smile. He reminded himself that he was there as a representative of the line of Durin, and it would be rude to yawn. He forced a look of interest and nodded at the elderly woman who was talking. He’d already forgotten her name.
When he and Kili were sent to witness the hatching, he didn’t know what to expect. Never in his wildest dreams did he think it would be this dull, though. Cocktail party chatter with everyone who fancied themselves involved in the political scene, mingling with minor nobility eager to climb the social ladder, fending off offers to meet someone’s eligible daughter while sipping mediocre wine. Now he knew why Thorin avoided the whole affair.
Kili caught his eye from across the room. The brat was hiding behind a pillar, waving a flask at him. Once he knew Fili had seen him, he grinned and ducked back out of sight.
After politely excusing himself, Fili made his way through the crowd, smiling and nodding at people who greeted him. At least he hadn’t alienated anyone too badly yet. Maybe those lessons in diplomacy were paying off. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching before he slipped behind the pillar.
Kili smiled and handed him the flask. “Took you long enough.”
“Yeah, well, I was trying to be social. You know, like we are supposed to be?” He nudged Kili with his elbow before he took a drink.
“It’s so boring, Fee,” Kili whined. “I thought we’d get to see dragons. Do you think they’d let us go see the big ones?”
“We have to wait for the eggs to hatch first. Then there is going to be some sort of feast, so don’t go wandering off.” Fili peeked around the pillar and took another quick sip before passing the flask back. “Have you noticed how blasé everyone is about it, though? They act like it’s no big deal.”
“No one is talking to the contenders, either.” Kili slid the flask back into his pocket. “I wonder what they do with the shells afterwards.”
“Kili. Do not ask for a shell.”
“Just a little piece! A souvenir! We’ll probably never get to see another hatching, much less be so close to a dragon, even if they are little. Wouldn’t you like something to remember it by?” Kili wheedled.
“If they offer, fine,” Fili relented. “Don’t pester anyone about it, though.”
Before Kili could say anything else, there was a loud crack followed by an excited murmur. They smiled at each other, and Kili took Fili’s hand, leading him out and through the crowd. They were able to find a spot right at the edge of the hatching ground, close to where the contenders were waiting.
Everyone’s attention was on one egg that had a crack in it. It wobbled a bit and another crack appeared. Kili squeezed Fili’s hand and shot him an excited smile before turning back to watch. The egg cracked again, and a small bit fell off to create a hole where a nose appeared. The dragon inside rested for a moment.
“Why don’t they help it?” Fili murmured.
The man next to him replied, “They don’t want anyone to influence the dragon’s bond. And if a dragon is too weak to hatch by itself, there is probably something wrong with it.”
Nothing was wrong with this one. More cracks appeared until the shell broke open, and a small dragon spilled to the ground. It was a brilliant green, with a darker forest green stripe along its spine, fading to a dark yellow on its belly. It struggled upright while everyone watched silently. Once it got on its feet, the little dragon looked around with a plaintive whine.
Fili could sense the nervous anxiety of the contenders as the dragon looked from face to face. It flapped its wings and waddled over to a young woman. She reached out, and the dragon nuzzled her hand. She fell to her knees, and the dragon craned its neck so they could press their foreheads together.
When she pulled back, the woman announced with a wide smile, “His name is Gron!”
There was a muted sigh of relief. The tension in the crowd broke, and people began to circulate and talk once more.
The man standing next to Fili told him, “It’s a good sign when the first hatchling bonds right away. Usually means the rest of the clutch will bond too.”
“What happens if they don’t bond?” Kili asked.
“They usually don’t survive,” the man shrugged and gestured to the eggs. “The others are starting already. Good, maybe we won’t be here all night.”
Indeed, almost all of the other eggs started cracking and rocking back and forth. One of them had a hole in it already, and another had a break all the way around. Only one egg off to the side was motionless.
The egg with the hole broke open to reveal a dragon so red it was almost the color of blood. As soon as it was able to get to its feet, it wasted no time in choosing a contender. It curled around the legs of an elf maid who announced the dragon’s name was Maifred.
“How do they pick the names?” Fili asked his neighbor.
“The dragons are born with them. Once they bond with someone, they can talk with them. Some dragons can talk to others besides their bond-mate, too,” the man explained.
Fili thanked him and watched an egg rock wildly. There was a hollow knocking sound coming from it. Now all three remaining eggs were moving and cracking.
The egg with the break around it fell to one side. It split open and a gold dragon fell out. It was a little smaller than the others had been, but Fili thought it was prettier, the way its scales shone in the light. The dragon lay on its back panting for a moment, then struggled to right itself. One of the contenders stepped forward to try and help, but the dragon gave a warning grumble. It made it to its feet and looked around. The man who had tried to help it reached out a hand, only to quickly jerk it back when the dragon snapped at him. It may be newly hatched, but it already had sharp teeth and claws.
The little dragon lumbered past the man without giving him another glance. It looked at the group of contenders in front of it and they fell back when it snarled. Turning, it craned its neck, looking around at the other contenders. It walked a few steps towards them before sitting down and whimpering.
“Looks like that one isn’t bonding,” a woman said from behind Fili. “That’s too bad, it’s a pretty little thing.”
The dragon looked around and whined. One of the contenders approached it, and it stood up and backed away.
One of the other eggs cracked open, and a brown dragon emerged. Fili watched as it bonded with one of the contenders.
“Fili?” Kili’s voice was strained.
He looked over, but Kili wasn’t looking at him. Fili followed the direction of Kili’s gaze to the ground in front of him. The gold dragon was sitting there staring up. Looking at it this closely, Fili could see the subtle different shadings of its scales. From a light buttery yellow on its stomach, to a deep rose gold along its spine, it gleamed in the light. Even its eyes were gold, with striations of brown and blue. They were beautiful, and Fili was mesmerized, watching the pupils contract against the light.
“What does it want?” Kili asked.
“Gyllen,” Fili told him absently, not looking away from the dragon.
“Her name’s Gyllen,” Fili repeated.
The dragon stepped forward and leaned against Fili’s leg. Mine.
“Oh shit,” Fili breathed. He exchanged a wide eyed look with Kili. “Please tell me you heard that too?”
I was talking to you, not him. Gyllen nosed at his hand, and Fili scratched the top of her head. She made a humming noise and closed her eyes.
“Did you… Fili, did you just bond with a dragon?” Kili asked.
“No!” Fili stopped scratching her and nudged the little dragon with his knee, trying to scoot it away.
Mine. The dragon refused to budge.
“Stop saying that!” Fili told her, and looked around. Everyone was staring at him and the little dragon at his feet. He leaned down and told her, “I can’t take care of you. I don’t know anything about dragons!”
You’ll learn. She closed her eyes again and sat down on his foot, claws digging into the dirt.
Fili saw Thranduil and Elrond striding his way across the hatching grounds. Elrond’s face was as impassive as ever, but Thranduil was frowning. With a sigh, Fili walked out to meet them, followed closely by Kili and Gyllen.
“So this is how you repay our hospitality, dwarf? By stealing our dragon?” Thranduil spat. “Do you know what we do to thieves?”
“My brother is no thief,” Kili exclaimed.
Gyllen stepped in front of Fili. Stretching out her wings, she hissed and bared her teeth. I am not yours to keep or give away, elf. I am a dragon and I bond with whom I wish!
Thranduil looked taken aback before he schooled his face. With a small nod of his head, he said, “Apologies, Gyllen. I mean no disrespect.”
Accepted. Gyllen relaxed and leaned back against Fili.
“I didn’t do anything on purpose,” Fili said, but stopped when he saw neither elf was paying attention to him. They were frowning at something behind him.
He turned to see Kili sitting on the ground, a navy blue dragon in his lap. He and the dragon lightly bumped foreheads.
Looking up with a huge grin, Kili announced, “His name is Svart!”
I’m hungry, Gyllen told him, and nosed at his hand.
Fili looked from Gyllen to Kili and Svart, back to the two frowning elves. A headache was starting behind his right eye. This diplomatic visit was turning into a disaster.
