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Ixen sighed and put away the little items. He leane back I his hands and sat cross crossed wit his tail swishing slightly behind him. He looked at her a moment, a sort of inspection before speaking. "Ignoring your presence is no use. I cannot ignore the fact that I am sheltering a being who's race I last, and first, encountered raided my village and killed my friend." There was a beat between 'my' and 'friend' as if he had trouble deciding what to call the dragon. "How do I know you are different?" He inquired.

Jonquil paused, pondering his question as if it were a challenge, a riddle. How would he know that she wasn't there to hurt him? She thought about it for a few moments, before deciding on an answer.

"You don't know," she said finally. "I could very well be lying about being chased. But if you do believe me, then you realize that they don't think of me as human, but as a dangerous enemy. Your people are their enemy... The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Isn't that how the saying goes?"

"Never heard of the saying. Where do you plan on doing next?" Ixen pressed on with his questions, trying to figure out this human. He ha lost his formal tone after a bit. He had alot of things in his mind at the moment. Does she know what they do? How did the fire not burn her? Were humans more fire resistant than a dragon was? How could he know if he could trust her? Ixen shoved aside the thoughts and focused on the conversation at hand.

"I... I honestly don't know." Jonquil shifted a bit where she sat. "Perhaps to one of the countries to the north... I can't return to my village, so I'll have to find a way to get around the borders in order to get somewhere I can live in peace." She was unaware of how troubled he was; his exterior seemed calm, but curious.

The dragon nodded at the fleshling's words. He thought for a moment. "If I trust you enough in the morning I will take you to the village and, should the elders permit it, help you gather supplies for your journey." Ixen scooted back from the fire a bit and leaned his back against the wall. "But that is tomorrow." His wings shifted and found comfortable spots.

Jonquil watched him, astounded for a few moments, before nodding. "Oh. Yes, thank you very much..." She didn't know what to call him. Was "Mr." a proper title for him, as a dragon? She wasn't sure. She didn't feel comfortable just calling him "Ixen"... that was much too familiar. They were only strangers.

After a few moments, Jonquil allowed herself to shift so that she half-lie down, her legs still tucked under her skirt. Instead of covering herself up with the blanket, she bundled it up and used it to support her head as a pillow. She watched the fire for a bit, eyes trying to close, but her mind still finding danger in letting herself sleep in the presence of the dragon.

Ixen never actually closed his eyes. Instead he sat there watching the human, deciding what to really do with her. Did he really trust her? Could he? His eyes flicked to his dagger for a moment. It would be that easy. He shook his head quietly and looked back to this magic user before him. That was not the way.

He sat there, contemplating what to do. Get rid of her? Take her to the village? He weight the pros and cons inside his head. The diminishing fire was the only thing that was able to show the passage of time, and as Ixen thought his gaze became fixed on it until it's dancing light distracted his eyes and his heavy eye lids slowly shut.

When Ixen awoke in the morning the flames had died with the night's darkness and soft rays of sun penetrated the green wall at the caves mouth that sheltered them the previous night. Ixen picked his head out of his arms but did not get up. He scanned the cave and looked at the fleshling to see where she was.

Jonquil fell asleep long after the dragon. In the morning when she awoke, she didn't see him stirring. Now that she was dry, she began on the mess that was her hair, running her fingers through the auburn locks in order to straighten them as best she could before braiding her hair to keep it out of the way. While she was doing so, she saw Ixen begin to awake, but she just continued what she was doing. She remained seated where she had fallen asleep the night previous, and so not too many new developments had occurred since Ixen had fallen asleep, save the storm stopping.

With a sigh Ixen rose to his feet and collected his things into his bag. He kicked the embers with his bare feet and stomped out whatever was still smoldering from the fire the night before. The dragon did this rather quickly and put the pack on his back, adjusting his wings so it wasn't too uncomfortable. "Get ready," he said, more to her dealing with the blanket than anything else, "we're leaving."

Jonquil glanced up to him as he stood and began putting out the embers. She nodded slightly, folding up the blanket he had offered her and draping it over her arm. "Shall I carry this, or...?" She honestly didn't know what he wanted her to do, and she didn't want to risk him getting angry. Who knew what he would do to her if she wasn't in his good graces? However, she moved a bit closer to him so that she could follow him.

Ixen turned and took the blanket out of her arms and worked it into his pack once he took it off. After a minute he put the pack back on and headed out of the cave. He passed through the wall of vines and into the dense forest. The gap between the trees and the cave was flooded with mid morning light. Ixen's nostrils flared slightly as he breathed in the air. He liked the scent of the forest after rain. After a pause to allow the fleshling to catch up he moved on into the forest and began walking south, the direction Jonquil had come previously.

After a time he realized something and halted his progress through the forest. He turned to the girl and said, "you brought those men into the forest. If any of my people were hurt by them I will hold you personally responsible. I will bury you in a field with or without the consent or the elders. Is that clear?"

Jonquil followed after Ixen silently, moving as quickly as she could as to not be a hindrance to him. When he stopped and turned to her, she looked cautiously up at him, listening. His words made her stomach ill. Hold her personally responsible? She understood his protectiveness over his people, but to kill her for something her enemies did? She felt faint for a few moments, but nodded, albeit reluctantly.

"...yes, of course."

"Good." Ixen turned and began again towards his village. Luckily he had been towards the end of his research and was heading home when the storm started, which is why he found a cave. After what could have been an hour or two the faint smell of smoke was in the air. Ixen's eyes grew wide, he knew they were close to their village and the smell of smoke worried him. He shot a deadly glare at the fleshling, "pray it's only a bonfire," he snarled in her ear before grabbing her arm and taking off. His long strides were accompanied by beating wings and made him faster than a wingless creature could be. He held his grip on the girl to keep her with him and stopped just outside of the village.

He came to a staggered halt and looked around the village, taking in the site. A large fire roared in the center of the village. Thankfully it really was a bonfire after all. Ixen closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. He loosened his grip on the fleshling's arm and then let go. A dragon with pale, dark blue scales saw Ixen and waved before hurrying over, Ixen brushed himself off before he reached them. "Ixen! You're back," he said. "A few huts had leaks over night so the elders decided there would be a bonfire to dry things out."

The blue dragon had not yet seen Jonquil so he had not said anything about the companion. Ixen began speaking the way he had when Jonquil first stumbled upon him again. "It is a delight to see nothing has happened and that no inimical effects have come from last night's storm." The other dragon gave him a look that showed he had no idea what he just said. Ixen shook his head and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's good to see you too. Do you know where any of the elders are? I have urgent things to discuss." He removed his hand and motioned towards Jonquil.

The other dragon jumped in surprise. "Is that a real fleshling?!" He exlaimed. He kept looking from Ixen to Jonquil to Ixen, and so on. A taloned finger reached out towards the girl's hair but jerked back when Ixen cleared his throat. "Now do you know why it is of great consequence that I speak with the elders?"

The blue scaled dragon nodded. "Right, yes, er, Elder Garrock is in the Elder's hut right now, I think he is the only one not busy." He eyed the fleshling as he spoke.

"Thank you, friend." Ixen started towards a large hut to their right, motioning for Jonquil to follow. The blue scaled dragon didn't move, he seemed rooted with surprise and disbelief.

On their flurried journey, Jonquil could only feel fear and confusion, stumbling as quickly as she could while Ixen dragged her incredibly quickly towards his village. She, too, sighed in relief when it was only a great bonfire. She could keep her life for a little while longer, at least.

And then, of course, there was the other dragon, the one with blue-ish scales. At his first comment about her, she raised a brow. A real fleshling? Did others disguise themselves as humans?...she shook her head slightly. No, of course not. It was just the same reaction she had when she first saw Ixen--she knew of dragons, but never thought she would see one, much less interact with one. But the blue dragon's curiosity frightened her a bit, and she quickly took a step back when he reached for her head. She was glad to leave the blue dragon and followed behind Ixen, like an obedient servant.

Ixen stopped outside the hut and took a few breaths, glancing at another on the far side of the small village. "I'd introduce you to others but time isn't always the best with the elders." He glanced one more time at the hut, dark and cold looking, and looked back to the girl for confirmation. He knew he had rushed things with his friend but he didn't feel bad about it, and he had gone back to his work with a smile on his face.

"It's alright. I... I wouldn't know what to do upon meeting your elders," Jonquil replied with a slight nod. She pushed some stray hairs behind her ear and looked around cautiously, staying close to Ixen's side. In a village full of strange people, the stranger beside her was her only comfort, and of course that meant that she was very wary of everything going on around her.

Ixen gave a small nod and entered the hut. The elder was hunched over a table on the far side, looking over a scroll. "Elder Garrock," Ixen called, but he did not look up. Ixen walked closer and repeated himself. "Elder Garrock." He still did not look up, but mumbled whatever he was reading on the scroll in a language Ixen couldn't understand. "Elder Garrock!" The elder dragon, scales hoary with age, looked up this time.

"What is it Ixen?" He said in a feeble voice.

"Elder, my excursion yieled an encounter with a fleshling, the one you see here."

"Please, Ixen, don't purposely talk with your large words to me like you do to impress the rest of the village. I see right through it."

Ixen's facial scales shined as he blushed and then coughed before talking. "Elder, I have a fleshling with me. There were others, armed ones. They passed me heading this direction. Without the Arlick here we have nothing to pick off intruders."

"The Arlick was here before you lead it off a cliff, Ixen."

Ixen shook his head, his voice raising in frusteration. "Elder, we need to send people out to check for the humans and this one," he motioned to Jonquil, "needs to get home."

Elder Garrock turned back to his book. "The other's will surly not make it if they run into a hunting party of ours or another village's. Leave them be."

"And this one?" Ixen pressed on.

"For now, she stays. Shelter her in your own hut, I will discuss the matter with the other elders when they return. Just because I am old doesn't mean I have say over the others. Now be gone with you, I must finish this scroll."

Ixen stood there dumbfounded. He had no idea how to react to what just happened. He glanced at the fleshling to see if she felt the same.

Jonquil was certainly just as surprised as Ixen. The elder wanted her to stay in their village?...the humans were most likely already gone, leaving her to die among the dragons. But now she was being told to stay in a village of dragons. She was already nervous around Ixen; how was she to survive than entire village of dragons?!

Ixen sighed. "Come," he said and left quickly. Once he was out of the building he pointed to a dark hut on the far side of the village. "That's mine," he said. "You can go there now and wait, or get some food." He didn't wait for her answer before walking off towards the fire. There was a rack next to several other dragons that had freshly cooked meat, raw meat, and a few leafy greens. He stood there, inspecting it as the raw meat was cooked by the others.

Jonquil's stomach growled, so she quietly followed Ixen. She tried her best to avoid the gazes of the other dragons, not wanting to be too oggled over... she just wanted some food in her empty stomach, was all.