Stop asking Questions, you don’t like the Answers
This week I was delighted to use @showrunnerihardlyknowher ‘s OCs, Greyson and Thomas, who first appeared in this wonderful oneshot: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27108463
Summary: The drakainian prince Greyson has taken the newest addition to his horde, a terrified human named Thomas, back to his lair.
Word count: 1,297
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The moment Greyson launched into the air, Thomas felt all the air whipped from his lungs. The human choked, feeling his tears freeze against his face in the sudden whoosh of cold air.
Greyson chuckled, happy Thomas had finally decided to settle down as he felt the human stop struggling in his claws. Greyson tilted his wings, leveling out to let the currents drift him towards home, only giving a strong flex of his wings occasionally to propel them along.
Contrary to his escape attempts while back on the ground, Thomas was now desperately clinging to the claws that surrounded him as best he could, praying to every deity he knew that Greyson wouldn’t take pleasure in watching him plummet to the ground. The drakainian prince was far too dangerously playful for Thomas’ tastes, and he could see all too clearly a vision of himself becoming a splat on the ground while Greyson cackled in glee up above.
Though Thomas did not yet understand, Greyson wanted to do nothing of the sort. The giant was careful to keep the human pressed to his chest, cooing softly at the adorable view of Thomas cuddled up so nicely against him. The poor dear must be freezing at this altitude.
“Nearly there honey, don’t you fret.” Greyson reassured his human, scratching his claw gently along Thomas’ scalp. Thomas shuddered, but fought the urge to squirm away lest he fall.
After what felt like an age and a half to poor Thomas, Greyson began his descent, aiming for a mountainous range hundreds of miles away from Thomas’ home. Despite the fact Thomas was relieved to be safely approaching the ground, as Thomas found he didn’t recognize any of their surroundings the human found himself overwhelmed with another wave of fear. He still had no idea what Greyson was going to do to him; Thomas couldn’t shake the horrible notion that his life was nothing but borrowed time at this point.
“Alright, here we are.” Greyson announced, alighting on a rocky outlook adorned on the mountainside. “Home sweet home.” The drakainian held Thomas in an open palm, gesturing broadly with his spare arm as he waltzed into the cave system filled with Greyson’s many treasures. “What do you think? My horde’s quite impressive, I know.”
Impressive was certainly a fitting word for the sight before Thomas. The intricately carved cave was made of a stone that seemed to glimmer, the last rays of sunset making them shimmer and sparkle. Even more blinding was the contents of the cave- hundreds of thousands of precious metals, gemstones, and other trinkets were piled up in a system Thomas could never hope to understand. Even a handful of these riches was more than what would ever have been found in Thomas’ home, and here it all was sitting around to amuse a bloodthirsty giant.
“Wow.” Thomas blinked, trying to not be blinded as the dazzling items threatened to shine light right into his eyes. He cleared his throat, realizing Greyson expected a reaction out of him. “You, uh, you collect a lot of stuff.”
Greyson huffed, a bit peeved at his great collection being dismissed as merely ‘stuff’. “I collect pretty things- like you.” Greyson corrected, booping Thomas on the nose with his claw. He sat down near the entrance to the cave, running his hand through the contents of one of the piles. “It’s only natural for a drakainian like me to be surrounded with things as gorgeous as myself. Don’t you agree?”
Watching Greyson casually filter a kingdom’s riches through his claws, Thomas felt sick to his stomach as they clattered back into the pile. Thomas saw several items that clearly were of human origin, as they were far too small to do Greyson any good; gem-adorned goblets, golden crowns, and- most disconcertingly- what looked to be shining metal armor that could have been ripped right off a knight.
“Where … where did you get all this?” Thomas cringed, peering around at some of the nearer piles of gemstones. Several still held traces of blood, likely imperceptible to the dragon’s large eyes. Thomas shuddered at the notion, wondering what poor civilization was slaughtered just so his captor could add to his horde.
“Why, see something you like?” Greyson teased, bringing Thomas closer to his collection. “Generally, we drakainians aren’t known to share our hordes, but given that you’re part of my horde, I promise not to rip your arms off for touching my other belongings.”
Thomas shuddered, quickly backpedaling in Greyson’s palm to distance himself from the cursed gold. “N-no, I’m good, I swear, I don’t need anything-”
“Nonsense!” Greyson waved away Thomas’ concerns, leaning over to dig through another pile closer to the back of the cave. “At the very least, you’ll need a change of clothes. You’re still covered in those wretched rags.” Greyson’s hand returned, a beautiful red tunic pinched between his claws. “This ought to do nicely!”
Thomas frowned at the offering, hesitant to take advantage of Greyson’s ‘generosity’. Just like every other item in this cave, Thomas could guess how Greyson got a hold of the outfit, and the story didn’t end well for the previous owner.
“Why do you even have that?” Thomas dared to ask, looking from the tunic to Greyson’s eyes. He shifted nervously, not sure he wanted the answer but knowing he had to ask. “Are there other humans, in your collection?” He glanced at the mountains of treasure piling high above him and retreating into the cavern, wondering if another person was hidden beneath the wreckage, or trapped amongst gold so deep in a cave that no one would ever hear their cries for help.
Not exactly a pleasant fate, but one that just might be Thomas’ future.
“Why Thomas, I didn’t peg you as a jealous creature.” Greyson grinned, pressing Thomas once again against his cheek, feeling Thomas’ delightfully squirm and try to avoid his cuddles. “Don’t worry, honey, you’re my only focus for now.”
For now. That’s the part that worried him. “Have you kept humans before, then?” Thomas continued to press the issue, despite his better judgement.
Greyson hummed, a smirk coming to his features. “I have. I got bored.” Greyson brought Thomas in front of his face, showing off his sharp fangs as he snapped them together playfully. “And hungry.”
Thomas gulped, his skin turning a sickly pale at the timely grumbling of the dragon’s stomach. Oh god, he had pushed his luck too far. He shouldn’t have asked; Thomas didn’t want to know where all of this came from if it meant he’d share the same terrible fate. Thomas shook his head, unable to look away from those razor-sharp fangs that still held traces of blood from Greyson’s earlier rampage.
Thomas shook his head again, fearing he had finally crossed the line. “P-please, don’t-” Thomas begged, not wanting to be yet another victim to be torn to shreds by the ferocious beast. Just another pathetic human standing between Greyson and what he wanted.
“Oh, honey.” Greyson’s tone immediately turned sympathetic, hugging Thomas to his face once more. “I’m only teasing, I promise. You’re my first and only. I don’t plan on replacing you any time soon. And besides, you’re too cute for snacking.” Greyson said this last bit to remind himself as well, for at this close a range he could once again smell the tempting scent of Thomas’ fear.
“No, the only thing I’ll be doing with you is a bath.” Greyson decided, venturing further into the glittering caverns. “You’re positively filthy. I’m sorry you had to get caught up in all that unpleasantness.” Greyson let out a huff, his tail swishing irritably back and forth. Humans were always sticking their noses where they didn’t belong; pleasant company excluded, of course.