"So this is your prosthesis?"
Runt had come to Star's place to get his prosthesis when the boy pointed at something laying on a table.
/One of/ He said /One of Stars' strange little projects/
It was something he didn't really understand, a prosthesis that would require a Rider to work.
"In case you find someone to rely on" She'd say.
He couldn't help but wonder what she meant by that.
The boy stared at the prosthesis, with curiosity, but it was his cousin who spoke.
"Oh! That's the prosthesis that Stella showed us before!" He said excitedly "She said it's like a test, to see if the dragon trusts the Rider and if the Rider support the dragon, sounds really interesting"
In theory? Yeah, it really did.
But in practice? Not as much.
He tried with Star, she was good, hauntingly good, with her he did some turns he never had the courage to do with his normal prosthesis.
But it never felt right, her in his back he meant.
She was his aunt, not his Rider, of course it wouldn't feel right.
A gleam of curiosity flashed into his eyes as an idea crossed his mind.
/Hey kid/ He called /Wanna test it out? Just for the funnsies?/
The look of joy he got in response was so dragon-like he had to doble take to make sure he didn't see a tail wagging behind the kid.
And that's, my friends, was how he, Runt, got a kid in his saddle.
—
'I'm starting to think that this is a bad idea'
They were now on a cliff, prosthesis in place and boy on his back.
They had been revising the manual all the way to here, trying to make sure the boy knew all the positions needed to control the tail properly, but it did little to ease up his anxiety.
"I'm gonna confess" The boy said from his back "I'm nervous"
Runt wanted to say that he, too, was nervous, but he didn't want to make the boy more nervous.
/Don't be/ He said, voice surprisingly steady /You're a Dragon Tamer, aren't you? You'll get it right"
"It's actually my first time riding a dragon" The boy said shyly "Well, if we don't count the time with Gargoyle.
That caught him by surprise, after all, he imagined a Dragon Tamer at his age would have at least ridden one dragon.
But then he remembered the kid's 'father', and yeah, the guy looked petty enough to forbid his Dragon Tamer son from coming even close to a dragon.
Just thinking of the guy gave him the urge to burn something, but he pushed this thought aside.
/Then let's make this a flight worth remembering/ He said.
The boy didn't respond, but Runt felt him relax on his back.
Good, at least one of them had to be calm right now, and it couldn't be him.
With a deep breath, he went to the edge of the cliff, the kid's cousin close by with Gargoyle to make sure they wouldn't fall to their doom, and some Seashokers were swimming close by just in case anything went wrong.
/Are you ready?/ He asked.
"Not, really" The boy admitted "But I can't avoid this forever"
/Well said kid, now count/
The boy took a deep breath, just like he did before.
"Alright"
He crouched on the edge.
"3"
The boy lowered his body over him.
"2"
He opened his wings and spread his good side of the tail fin.
"1"
A low sound by this side indicated that the kid had made the prosthesis change position as Runt prepared his body.
"Now!"
Runt jumped.
Then he was in the sky.
He didn't even noticed at first, always used to gliding, so when he went up instead of down like usual, he was a bit stunned.
It was pretty smooth too, he took a turn to the side and it was only a little late, probably because the kid wasn't used to it.
Speaking of the kid.
/How's things up there?/ He asked, concerned about the sudden silence.
"Just fine" The boy answered quickly "It's just…"
There was a pause, not one full of nervousness or awkwardness, just serenity.
"It's so pretty up here" He finally said with a weak voice "I just didn't know what to say"
Oh.
Oh.
It was the Call of the Sky.
Winged dragons had a thing called Call of the Sky, a strong desire to touch the vast blue above.
Most couldn't silence this desire, but Runt was pretty immune to it.
Yet, this kid, perfectly capable in every way that matters, was deprived of this vastness, all thanks to a petty adult.
Like a bird raised in a cage, he never had the chance to spread his wings.
With that in mind, he got bold.
/What about some rough playing?/
"Can we?"
The eagerness in the boy's voice was so strong he couldn't hold a grin from forming.
/Then hold tight and try not to fall!/
Who cares that if the boy fell he'd fall too? The kid needed some Sky Time and he wasn't the one who would deny it to him.
So he sped up, he sped up like he never did before, he twisted, he stopped mid air just to make a sudden turn, he went up just to fall again, all actions followed by a toothless grin.
And the boy?
He was laughed, it was a laugh full of glee and contempt as he masterfully changed the prosthesis positions like had done this his whole life.
And Runt?
He never felt better, his body felt right for once while flying, the kid had just the right weight, then right energy, the right brightness.
Perfect in every way that mattered.
A small snort escaped him.
He was getting attached.
But, for once, it felt right.
Seems like Star was right in the end.
/Hey kid/
They had snow slowed down into a sober flight to stop scaring the kid's cousin and Gargoyle (So overprotective), the kid was laying with his back against Runt's, completely relaxed when Runt called out.
"What's up?" Asked the boy.
/You?/
There was a pause, then the kid snickered at the simple joke, but, as he did so, Runt dropped the bomb.
/I've been think on going with you kid/ He said /In being your dragon/
The snickers stopped and he felt the kid freez in his back.
"Really?" He said a bit too quietly.
/Really/ He said in a tone so soft he nearly didn't recognize himself.
The boy slowly set down as they flew closer to Gargoyle.
"Thanks"
He now had a Rider…
That didn't sound half bad.
***
"I wasn't expecting you to agreed so fast"
It was already night, Yuna and her guild members were of the few groups who chose to stay at the archipelago to see more and discuss future transactions.
She did have a discussion with the owner and it was agreed that her guild would take care mainly of the Razorwhip cubs, but since they didn't want to let the male members out, as the Razorwhip cubs weren't fond of men, they'de also keep cubs of a few other species, mainly runts and those whose parents couldn't take care, be it due to some deficiency or because the parent was not responsible enough.
They would take care of the cubs and, in exchange, would get a 50% discount on anything they might buy in the future, even dragons, so yeah, she was very invested.
They were now eating in the great hall, a communal room like place dug in a mountain base, many others were there too, some with their newly acquired dragons.
She only chuckled at her dragon's statement as she put a hand on her new dragon's head, who was now resting on her lap.
She couldn't help it, the moment she heard about the situation, she had to help.
And the little boy was such a sweetheart, how could she not choose him?
"Do you think the others in the guild will like the idea?" She asked.
"With how everyone reacted to this little guy?" He retorted playfully "Oh they'll love it"
She glanced at her guild members, who were cooing and taking pictures of her new addiction, along with the dragons of the other guilds, who seemed to be furiously posting in their dragon social media.
Speaking of social media…
"How has the situation been on the Net?" She asked "Are the other dragons accepting these guys well?"
She suggested her dragon to introduce the new dragons through the Net since he was considered reliable, being a teacher in the Academy and all.
Aleen immediately became shy at that.
"Oh they did" He said "Honestly, they did too much"
Oh, she knew that look.
It was how he looked after he ate the sage fruit and started to think strainght after nearly pouncing on that Stormcutter.
It was a face of pure embarrassment.
"They did react better to the cubs and others thought" He quickly added "Some communities contacted me to say they are willing to help with them too"
That got her attention.
There was more then just Razorwhip cubs around here that needed help, her guild even volutiered to accept a few seniors and cripled too after meeting with a few of them.
"We should tell the owner about it" She said "You can ask for their representatives to come if she agreed"
He nodded, now looking calmer.
She, too, relaxed, letting herself be entertained by the chaos of the great hall, where people and dragons were chasing each other for the most silly reasons and laughed carelessly.
This looked good.
This looked great.
That is, until a pair composed of a dragon and a boy passed through the doors of the great hall like they both were high on some really strong drug, behind them was Gargoyle and Duncan, both looking tired
"Best day of my fucking life!" The boy cheered.
/Hell yeah!/ The dragon cheered too.
Somewhere in the great hall, she heard Melchior choking on his food and Noir wheezing her lungs out.