A new beginning (Private with Rii)

Walking. Not caring about the hunger. Not caring about the exhaustion. Rhune walked forward, with the only thing he had left : determination. Walking, one step after the other. His legs felt like they were burning, but he was used to that kind of exhaustion. It was like when he was working. Except this time, his life was depending on it. Rhune was too tired to hunt, exhausted by his previous attempts at doing so. When he was with the others they could at least cooperate, and manage to catch something.
But now he was alone, walking alone, walking. He couldn't stop. If he paused he felt like he would collapse. If he collapsed he felt like he wouldn't wake up. He had been told a Tribe was living nearby, and it was his only hope - as well as his ultimate goal. If he succeeded, a new life would open for him. No more pain, no more suffering, no more prisoner, no more exhaustion, no more hunger. Everything he had dreamt of would come true. And this was what allowed him to still walk.
A noise. Did something move? Was it a prey? Could he try to catch it? More steps. Noise didn't happen again. Rhune continued, not like he had a choice. Suddenly, two dragons appeared in front of him. Out of surprise, Rhune stopped. Dragons! He had done it! They could help him out! One of the two dragons said something, but Rhune didn't understand. He was too tired for that. He opened his mouth, about to say something. But nothing came out. The ground suddenly moved up. Rhune realized his knees had in fact given up. His vision then grew blurry. He vaguely spotted green forms getting closer from him, and then his vision went black.


"Rii? Sorry to intrude. We found someone that needs your help. Baldy, should I say."
One of the guards had entered Rii's workplace, politely bowing as he did so. He didn't want to offend her after all. The second guard entered, carrying Rhune on his back. Hopefully the unconscious dragon wasn't that big for an Earthwing, making him rather easy to move.
"We found him near the border of the territory, and he just collapsed before he could say anything. He is in a really bad shape. I... I don't know what happened to him, but it seems like he had it rough..." the guard finished.
And indeed Rhune was in an horrible shape. He visibly had been starving, but not just for a while - his ribs were almost visible though the scales, clear sign that he had been malnourished for months, maybe even years. His scales even were terribly thin, probably not protecting him much. But these weren't the only worrying signs that Rhune's body was showing. His horns had visibly been cut clean, and they seem to have only started to grow back a few centimeters. His flanks were heavily marked, numerous scars being clearly visible on the scales. His wings were also scarred like this, numerous cut marks being visible. On top of that, the muscles at the base of the wing were completely atrophied, probably not having been used at all. The dragon's claws were also cut short, too dull to cut anything effectively. Whatever had happened to him, it seemed indeed extremely serious.
The guard with Rhune on the back stepped forward, awaiting instructions on what to do with the unconscious dragon.
"Shall we go and bring some meat for when he will wake up?" one of the guards suggested.

Rii looked up from the herbal stores she had been cleaning up and rearranging to her own taste. The herbs she knew the best stayed on the left where she could reach them the easiest, and the herbs and plants that various earthwings brought her saying they were useful she put to the right. There were still many strange and unknown herbs in this land that she had no idea did what. Rii wouldn't touch them until a more experienced healer taught her their uses.

After replacing a whole batch of arnica to the right, Rii listened intently to the guards words. As long as the king is allowing him here without a problem I have no problem looking at him. Though I'll have to leave Au here for now. Rii thought quietly looking over to where Au should have been. She had made various pits in the work places where she often could be found. In these pits Au could stay if she had to go out unexpectedly. Usually she let Au sit on a stone counter or a shelf and watch her. Maybe she would even try to answer questions and teach him things if he was interested in what she was doing. For some reason, even if there was a nursery in the tribe, Rii would rather keep Au to herself. Maybe it was because she had not met any of the nursery caretakers and did not trust them. At least he's got his toys a something to do. Rii thought quietly before gazing to the guard. Why they bowed to her in the first place she was unsure of. She wasn't a high rank, rather just a worker, but the simple act of bowing pleased her somewhat.

Au stay in the play area there. She ordered the little dragon to stay in the pit, which she so fondly called play area, and then looked at the dragon on the guards back.

Place him gently here and then you can go tell the king that I'll look after him until he's well. She gestured to one of the nests that patients would rest and sleep on. She had only sent one of the two guards away to give the message to Baldirak, while the other she kept there for a moment in case she needed him.

By her initial examination of the male dragon she had made many notes on his life. He'd lived a hard one, and she could surmise that he was either very rash and bold to get so many scars, or very stupid to get caught and have to fight so often. Her time as a rogue had left her with a few scars in random places, but every once in a while her scales would peel off and show new clean bright scales beneath. So her scars would vanish after a couple of years. Still, this male had so many more than she ever had gotten as a rogue, and she had gotten into fights occasionally over food.

Other things she noted were that all of his scars were just that, scars. Old wounds that were already healed. Things she could no longer help him with. His lean body could be brought back slowly with ample food and drink. Though she would have to start him out with a number of very small meals at first to bring his digestion and body back. If she fed him too much too fast he could die with how far gone he already was.

The other problem she would have to help with was with his weak legs and wings. When he woke she would have to ask if he could even move at all. Then once she could see what movement he could do she could make an exercise plan for him to bring back all of the lost muscle. Food first then.

You go and bring some meat and two bowls. Make sure one of them is big enough for him to drink from. She ordered the second guard along then looked to her herb stores. she could give him something for bone and muscle pain. With his body being so weak, his shriveled muscles and weakened bones might be very painful. She kept an eye on him in case Rhune woke up, but moved to the alcoves in the stone wall that held all of the herbs she had been arranging. She knew of two herbs for muscle and bone pain that would help. However just like with the food, she would have to give it to him in small amounts at a time to avoid damaging his digestive system. She pulled out burdock, devils claw, and ginger then brought them over to the sickly male and waited for the guard to come back with her supplies.

The first guard acknowledged the order and left the room. Delivering the news to the King was what he was about to do anyway, as he has to notify him an Earthwing like dragon had entered the territory.
The second guard remained there, waiting for orders from the healer. He was feeling a bit uneasy at the sight of the unconscious dragon. Something was just not right. Okay, the wounds and muscles were a thing, but what on Pyrria had happened for his horns and claws to be cut like that? They weren't even broken, they were cleanly cut!
As he was ordered to bring some food and bowls, he simply nodded and went to search for them. It took only a few minutes for him to come back with the needed supplies.
"Here are the supplies you requested. If you do not need me anymore, I should get back to my post." the guard said, disposing the bowls and meat nearby before leaving.

Tiredness. Did he fell asleep? It sounded like so. His eyes were closed, and he barely managed to open them. His vision was still blurry. The green dragon weakly attempted to stand up, at the moment only rising the top half of his body. His legs were so tired. And painful, after all this walking. But that was a feeling he was used to.
His vision started to get clearer, now he could see where he was. And he had no idea what that was. He wasn't in the forest anymore, he seemed to be in a cave. Looking around, Rhune noticed there was another dragon here, a dragon like he never saw before - long, and without wings. Was that actually a dragon?
"Where... Where am I?" he weakly asked.
So weak... His voice sounded so low compared to what he wanted to... His legs were almost giving up. Rhune lowered his body, only keeping his head up.
What didn't occur to him though was that he didn't ask this in the good language. There was no chance Rii could understand anything asked in human language, or for that matter even know it was human language. At best it would sound like a gibberish caused by his weak state.

(She gots wings silly )

Have a good evening then, and thank you for getting the bowls and meat. She offered the quick farewell to the guard as he left then concentrated on mixing a small amount of meat with equally small amounts of the herbs she had brought out. Then the herbs, meat, and a bit of the water were mixed together to make the meal mushy, softer to eat, and easier to digest.

She yanked her head to one side as she heard the dragon begin to move. Apparently he had woken up, and as she watched he began to try and stand up. He only got his top half off of the ground, and even then it looked like his legs would give out at any minute. Rii nodded to herself knowing that she'll have to work with him somehow to get those muscles back into shape. However first she had to give him some food.

Rii tipped her head to one side as strange noises came from the dragons mouth. She had no idea what language he was speaking, though a few of the sounds were a bit familiar. Rii had avoided many dragons and humans in her day as a rogue, but sometimes found herself in close proximity to them while she hid. Still, she didn't know enough to even realize that he was speaking human.

Ah this isn't going to work well if you don't understand my language and I yours. She spoke her thought out loud hoping that he would hear and maybe answer. Then she brought one bowl filled with water to him in case he was thirsty. She slowly approached him unsure if he would attack her or not then laid it just short of his nose. Scuttling away quickly she went and got the other bowl that had a small amount of meat, herbs, and water to start off his digestive system. Her tail was raised angled towards him this whole time. This was to ensure that she could wack the male with her tail, and the hidden spikes currently laying flat along her tail within the fur, and deliver her venom to him to slow the stranger down.

She shuffled forward dropping the second bowl of food and supplements down with a soft "plunk" before backing away again. Rii looked over his body again wondering just who or what he had come across that had beaten him so badly. Like the guards, she was transfixed on those slowly regrowing horns that had been sheared off by something. Rii shuddered at the thought and was then glad that she didn't have horns or antlers.

Rhune blinked, surprised as the other dragon started to speak in another language. Then it hit him. Of course she wasn't going to speak in human language! Which would be a problem as he only had the basics in draconian...
"Where..."
He was about to try and formulate his question again in the correct language as the dragoness put something in front of him. A bowl of water. His throat felt so dry, he had forgotten he was thirsty. Interrupting his own sentence, he dipped his muzzle in the bowl and emptied it of its content. He was still starving, but he was already feeling better.
Just as he finished the water, he heard another noise. Another bowl. But this time with food! It wasn't presented like he was used to, but it was nonetheless food! Rhune started to eat... and emptied the bowl in a record time. He took mouthful after mouthful, almost not chewing the food as it was already mixed.
A wave of tiredness washed him as he swallowed the last mouthful. With the bowl of water and the bowl of food, he was feeling full. Yet he didn't lay down to sleep. Instead he kept his head raised, looking at Rii as if waiting for something. Was he allowed to sleep yet? Did he have to do something before? Taking initiatives still was something he didn't know.

Rii watched carefully as the male gobbled up the food, vitamins, and water she set out in front of him. She would gradually bring up the amount he was fed every meal time in order to bring his weight back up. As for his muscles the woman could see that he could already get half up. That would be enough for now and she saw no need to bring him to the pools to work out those withered muscles until he could walk a little on his own. She would help him of course, unless there was another healer around who could keep an eye on him when she was needed at the forge.

After he finished up and began looking at her Rii motioned to the nest he was in then blinked. He had tried to ask a a question earlier, one that she barely heard, and now she could try to answer it for him.

You are in the earthwing tribe, and you are in no danger. Rest, sleep now and recover. Rii stepped forward tentatively ready to bite should the dragon snap at her defensively. Then she patted the nest trying to get him to lay down.

((Just a quick note, only his wing muscles are withered. His leg muscles are normal, if not well-trained))

Tired like he was, Rhune didn't quite understand everything the dragoness said. Only a few words made him understand what she had meant : Earthwing, no danger and sleep. So he had made it... He had made it to a Tribe... At last he was safe. At last he had reached his goal. And he was even allowed to sleep. He vaguely looked as the dragoness scratched the nest, inviting him to sleep. Well he had already started to lower his neck when she did so, but at least it confirmed he didn't misunderstood her. Without any valid reason to stay awake, Rhune closed his eyes with a small smile on his face. For the second time in his life he was allowed to rest as much as he needed... The green dragon briefly wondered if the others had also found their Tribes. The thought only lasted so long before he fell asleep, which he did in a rather record time.


Rhune's mind felt hazy as he woke up from his slumber. He was still feeling so tired... Today would be one of those hard days of work. But maybe he could snatch a few extra minutes of sleep. Rhune didn't open his eyes, trying not to look like he was awoken. Maybe it would fool the guards, this time...
What was sure however is that it wouldn't fool a dragon. Rhune's body had tensed up a little, his breath had gotten faster and his eyes were a bit too shut close to look natural.
After a few more minutes Rhune's mind was starting to get clearer. Why didn't the guards wake him up already? Judging by the luminosity he could see from his closed eyes, the torches had already been lit up... And the rock in his cell felt way too soft. He couldn't even feel it. The green dragon slightly opened one eye, one one that was closer from the ground to avoid getting caught. He got puzzled for a few seconds before starting to remember. Yes, this wasn't his cell. He was on a soft and comfortable nest, he was safe from the guards, he was among other dragons. He was among the Earthwings.
Rhune opened his eyes, still lying on the ground. He didn't want to move... The green dragon let out a yawn, stretching his paws in the process. His wings didn't move at all during the movement though. Rhune then slightly raised his head, looking for the dragoness he had seen... whenever was the last time he was awoken. Maybe she had something else to eat? Rhune wouldn't be against a meal. And maybe some more rest.

(Sorry about that)

Rii had left the male to sleep and was pleased with the look of comfort on his face. He had had a tough life so far it seemed, and she could respect and understand that. Leaving him to his sleep she cleaned up the mess and readied another stack of herbs to put into his food for tomorrow. Since his legs were obviously strong enough to lift his weight she planned on taking Rhune to the baths tomorrow to work out his motionless wings. They seemed to need the most work where Rhune's muscles were concerned.

(The night passes)

Rii woke up early as usual to get a meal ready for AuSurath and then head to the healing den to make sure her new patient was okay. She came into the back of the room just as Rhune was yawning and looking around. With two bowls carried in her paws, and a baby dragon skull clutched in her tail; Rii brings Rhune his first meal of the day. Setting one bowl of meat mixed with the nutritional herbs in front of Rhune, Rii then places the bowl of water beside it. She had not minced the meat this time, instead leaving it in smaller pieces to see how Rhune handled it. She then sat back and smiled warmly at her patient waiting for him to eat his breakfast.

Rhune turned his head as he heard a noise coming toward him. His movement was a bit sudden and nervous, but the green dragon relaxed as he saw she same dragoness that had cared to him the previous day.
"Erm... Hello." he greeted her. The pronunciation was terrible, but nonetheless understandable. It was quite obvious he wasn't used talking in draconian.
A quick smile stretched his face as he noticed she was carrying more food. As soon as she disposed the bowls in front of him, he sniffed it. Like the previous day, it was meat mixed with... something. He didn't know what, not he exactly cared at the moment. The dragon wolfed down on the food, this time slightly chewing as there were bits and not mixed. It wasn't really bothering him though, this was way more enjoyable than the dried and hard meat he was used to. That was a pain to chew. Once he got done with the food, he began to drink, emptying almost the whole bowl in a single sip.
When he got done, the green dragon let out a contended sigh. He had eaten, drank, and nothing tiring in sight... This was the best day of his life.
He looked at Rii, seemingly trying to think about something.
"Thanks." he said after a few moments, finally finding the word again.
He probably could take a nap if he wanted to, but right now he was wanting to talk a bit with his savior.

Rii shuffled her wings and smiled as the more familiar draconian words fell from Rhune's maw. So he can speak hmmm? She thought quietly as he finished his meal and spoke once again. The words had a strange accent to them as they fumbled out of his mouth. It was strangely nice to listen to.

You're welcome. She replied just glad to see that he was friendly and obviously relieved to be fed and watered in a nice soft nest. My name is Rii. What is your name? She asked calmly and slowly hoping that he understood everything.

Rhune seemed to concentrate as Rii spoke. Visibly a few words was all he knew, and a normal sentence took him some long seconds to process. Name, she had introduced herself, and was asking for his name.
"I... am Rhune." he difficulty replied.
While the name itself wasn't a strange one for a dragon, his pronunciation of his own name was totally different from how a dragon would actually pronounce it. The sound was just too soft, compared to the more aggressive sounds a dragon would use. (Like how the English R sound just isn't a real R ^^)
The green dragon was starting to get tired, as the weight on his stomach was reminding him he needed to digest. Rhune laid down, looking up at Rii in case the dragoness would order him something. But his eyes were already closing by themselves, as he wasn't used to such a situation. Usually, either he could sleep and fell like a rock, or he couldn't and wasn't lying on the ground anyway. And also, the nest was so comfortable... yeah, so... comfortable...

Rii nodded to this male named Rhune, and watched as he sank back to the nest apparently tired out just by eating and drinking. She waited there until his eyes had fully closed before moving around to look over his body again. His wing muscles were the worst, as she had already noted much earlier. The tendons were clearly visible where muscle should have been. Next time he wakes up she would have to remind herself to get him to the baths to start working out his muscles slowly.

Her plan with his wings was this. Therapy in deep warm water to keep the strain off of his muscles but also to work those muscles little bits at a time. Then when his wings were strong enough after a month or two she would move him into the open area of the caverns to work his wings against air. She wouldn't allow him to even start attempting to fly until she could see that he was lifting himself plus a little extra weight she planned to add onto him.

For now though, she would have to work slowly with him. Especially since Rii wasn't even entirely sure of whether his wings would react at all to her therapy.

The she dragon picked up the bowls and set up the herbs that she would give him for his next meal as well. Then she exited the room to clean up the bowls and check on Au. Maybe she would bring him in to help treat Rhune since the male didn't look like much of a threat to anyone. Rii disappeared into a tunnel getting things ready for the next time Rhune woke up.

Rhune slowly opened his eyes, still completely sleepy. He didn't sleep that long, about a good hour, just enough for his body to begin and assimilate the food he had eaten. More a digestive nap than real sleep. But right now, Rhune was feeling the best he ever did. He was letting his sleepiness put him in a dazed state, not quite falling asleep but not quite awoken either. It was the first time in his life there was nothing he had to hurry for. He could rest there for as long as he wanted. What a wonderful feeling.
This state broke as he heard Rii walking. Had she been out? Maybe, after all he didn't know what the dragoness was doing apart from healing him. And he was more than grateful to her for this. The green dragon fully opened his eyes, looking around without moving his body an inch. He was feeling too good to move right now.

During his hour long nap Rii had taken account of their herb stock and then moved to take a nap herself in the room adjacent to the healing area. Her quarters where Rii and Au slept were right next to the healing area for now. The woman was still asleep when Rhune woke up...

Rhune realized that Rii wasn't here yet. Maybe she went out to get some food or something like that? Well Rhune could wait. It wasn't like he had anything else to do anyway. Though he didn't quite feel like sleeping at the moment. The green dragon rolled on his side, stretching his paws and yawning. He didn't know what this nest was made of, but it was extremely comfortable. Could he have one like this later? It would be sad to have to lay on hard stone again after having discovered such a comfortable material...
The young male then stopped moving, simply relaxing like he was. Even if his body seemed to have had its fill of sleep, Rhune wasn't feeling like actually getting up. Having nothing to force him to move was a luxury he never had before. Even then, Rhune found himself surprised to want and do something anyway. He didn't know what, he just wanted something to happen. This was a rather weird feeling...
Well he could explore the cave he was in. Rhune slowly stood up, his legs protesting a bit after all the efforts he has made on them. He was feeling weak, but it was nowhere like right before he collapsed and arrived here. Walking around, Rhune saw several containers with unknown substances within, and a lot of plants scattered here and there. All this seemed to have been carefully organized, even though he had no idea how. Rhune continued to explore the room, hoping he wasn't doing anything bad while doing so.

Rii continues sleeping as Rhune checks out the herb stores.

(OOC: You should prolly wake her.. :p)

((Erm, I can't. Really, Rhune can't take any initiative. Heading outside the room already isn't something he'd do, waking up someone isn't even in the scope of the ideas he could get. Even if that means waiting for the whole afternoon))

Rhune finished inspecting the various shelves there were in the room he was. He didn't quite get what the different plants that were stored there were for, but he didn't dare touching any of them. There wasn't much more to inspect in the room, but simply walking around like that made him feel a bit tired. The green dragon headed back to the comfortable nest, letting out a satisfied sigh as he laid down in it. This was so comfortable. Since waiting was all he could do, Rhune would wait. With such a comfortable position, he could wait until the end of the day if he needed to.

It was nearly noon when Rii finally woke up. It wasn't like her to sleep past morning, and this was becoming more and more often. She considered getting herself checked out, but then just put the blame of tiredness on the fact that she was doing so much more work now. As a rogue she had to work to make tunnels to sleep in and catch food. However she had plenty of time to rest or sleep in between. Now as a tribe member she had a lot more work to do, and as a result was sleeping more. Or at least that was the way she saw it. Rii had no idea that she was actually carrying eggs right now which was causing her to sleep more.

She hustled out of the den and got Rhune's meal ready. She hoped there weren't very many dragons in the pools right now, for today Rii was hoping to take him over there to start training his muscles.

I'm sorry I slept so late. Rii dropped the bowl of food in front of him and hurried to prepare the herbs that would be put in his next meal. Then she waited for him to eat the snack she made so that she could take him to the pools.

((Second breakfast? Sure thing!))

Rhune was snoozing again when Rii arrived in the room. He didn't know how long he had been waiting, but waiting inside such a comfortable nest was far from being among the things he disliked. Just that feeling to let his sore muscles rest, it was heavenly.
"Hello, Rii." he greeted her again.
The dragoness mentioned sleeping again. Oh, so she also took a nap? It has been a long nap... But well the dragoness probably had been up earlier than he was at the beginning of the day. In any case, there was nothing wrong with sleeping a bit if you could, right?
"You... slept well?" he asked.
And then the dragoness brought another bowl of... food! Rhune gave it a quick sniff before happily attacking it. More food! That was awesome! He had thought the first bowl was for the day, but apparently there was more... Oh could this place be even better? Enough sleep and more food... Right now Rhune was in bliss, and the wide smile he was showing while eating clearly showed it.
Soon enough the bowl got empty. The green dragon drank some water, letting out a satisfied sigh.
"Thanks." he said.

(She and I both forgot about first breakfast so yesh second breakfast all the way XD   )

Hello Rhune, and yes I slept very well. Unusually so.. She said quickly before pausing to watch him eat. Once he was finished eating and drinking Rii picked up the bowls and got them ready for the next time she had to use them. Then she walked over to where Rhune lay and stood before him.

It's time to see how much we can fix those wings. Come with me. he then turned and, with a last gesture to follow given to Rhune, started walking slowly towards the entrance way. She would wait if he needed the extra time, but for the most part Rii wanted to see how fast he could walk. She was pretty sure his legs were okay, a little sore, but okay. It was his wings that needed work. The baths where they were headed would certainly help to work out and relax his muscles at the same time since they were heated.

Rhune tilted his head as the other dragon replied to him. He didn't quite understand what her second sentence was, but she seemed a bit concerned. Was sleeping like this bad ? Well she made the comment for herself, not him.
But his thoughts got interrupted as Rii asked him to come. The green dragon instantly stood up, not emitting a single question or even seeming to think about why he was asked to come. He had been given an order, he followed it. That was it. He did briefly wonder where Rii was taking him to, though. Was she talking about his wings ? So she would help him make them stronger ? This was really awesome. Everything about this place was so great he sometimes was wondering if it wasn't only a dream. But his filled belly reminded him it wasn't one.
The green dragon followed Rii, at a slightly slow pace. There didn't seem to be any particular problem with his legs, just that they were still sore and tired from all the walking he had done to arrive where he was. But Rhune walked forward, not seeming to really mind it. Being tired was a feeling he lived with, during all those days of work.

Her steps were measured and controlled in speed so that Rii could see how Rhune moved. His muscles were well defined below the wings, suggesting that he had once done much physical work. They were lean and hard, rippling fiercely beneath his dull scales while he moved forward.

Telling herself that staring at his muscles because she needed to guage how healthy they were, Rii let her stare linger over those muscles as she headed for the bath house. She only barley avoided ramming into another dragon leaving the place. Then after that Rii kept her eyes off of the green male. She led him into the bath house and around the main public bathes to the more private ones. Unfortunately all of the baths were taken, and this led to Rii's patience to thin. She had a lot to do in a little time, and taking care of RHune was one of many things she had to check on and do throughout the day. She could not sit and wait for these lazy lizards to finish bathing just to have him get a chance to swim.

"If you all are done cleaning yourselves and fornicating in the hot baths I need to you all to leave! I have a patient here who needs this bath. She growls darkly at the earthwings in the deepest bath with the least amount of dragons in it. There were only three dragons in this particular bath compared to the others, and two of them seemed to be either mates or lovers as they were necking in the corner of the bath while the third watched from a far. The single dragon in the corner immediately got up and left shaking off the water as he went. However the other two dragons glared up angrily at Rii. Specifically the male who must have thought that he was going to get lucky today. Rii hissed at him threatening to drop acid into the pool (which she couldn't do) then watched as the female slunk out of the water. The male followed more slowly before they made their way to another of the more private warm water pools.

Rii then got into the bath herself testing the temperature of the hot spring water and making sure of how deep it was. She was also making sure that no other dragons were hiding underwater. Resurfacing Rii then swam to the other end where the depth was not too bad.

Come over here and get in. She patted at the water then waved at Rhune to come over. She didn't know if he could swim in the first place, and that was the first thing for her to figure out.

((You can see some references I made in my post in Never Lose Hope))

Rhune continued to walk, following Rii. He was doing what he used to, following without objecting or think about why he was actually walking. But this time felt slightly different. This time he knew he wasn't led to some mindless work, since the dragoness had talked about his wings. His wings... He knew something was wrong about them. Weren't dragons supposed to fly ? That was the very first thing he did try when he saw the sky for the first time... and it didn't quite work well. So... was he going to work for himself ? That felt weird. Getting tired for something he actually wanted ? Did he want that ? He wanted to fly. He really wanted it. He wanted to soar in the sky. He wanted to achieve what his parents couldn't achieve. But on the other hand... he didn't want to work. Not again. The didn't want to work anymore. Was it going to be the same among dragons ? Would he again work and exhaust himself on something ? That was something he never wanted to do again.
Soon enough the two dragons reached the baths. Rhune blinked as he saw the vast pits of water, visibly not imagining something like this could exist. So much water... His throat was suddenly feeling dry at that sight, despite him having already drank a full bowl of water a few minutes ago. But what surprised him at most was seeing other dragons bathing in the water. What was the point in having such a huge amount of water if you weren't going to drink it ? But after Rii drove the dragons out of the water (even if he didn't understand quite a few words she had been using), she ordered him to get inside the water. Well, then, if he was ordered to...
Rhune put a paw on the first step that was leading deeper into the pool, actually surprised to feel the water was warm. It was... pretty enjoyable. Steps after steps, Rhune entered the water, enjoying the warmth of it. This... this felt nice. So nice. Rhune reached the last step, his body being inside the water except for the head that was above the water level. The green dragon let out a loud sigh, enjoying the feeling. He had no idea being inside water could be so nice... He closed his eyes, enjoying the moment.

Rii swam through the water like a snake closing her wings up fully and squishing them against her sides to let her muscular body and furry tail propel her forward. She got closer to Rhune not bothering him as he simply soaked and let the warmth relax his muscles. However soon she would have to bother him and get the guy to move those wings as much as he could. For now she allowed him the chance to enjoy the bath, since they were alone with it and the pool wasn't crowded for once.

Rhune spent what felt like an eternity letting his muscles relax in the warm water. That feeling... This was feeling like heaven. First because of the warmth. It wasn't the intense heat near the forges, or the moist heat in the working area. No, instead it was a nice warmth, one that he felt was entering his very being and relaxed him. The second reason was because of the water itself. He was standing up in the pool, but it felt almost like he was resting in something soft. He was almost floating and could let every of his muscles relax. It felt even better than the nest he had woken into, and that one already felt like heaven!
The green dragon finally opened his eyes, getting back to the reality. What had felt like an eternity lasted no more than a few minutes. A few minutes of pure bliss, pure comfort like he never experienced. Man he could see why those other dragons weren't pleased to have to get out of here!
Rhune saw a movement and noticed Rii also was inside the water now. Her serpentine body was moving in a rather strange way, and Rhune couldn't help but watch her. She seemed so at ease inside the water... Well maybe she simply came often here to relax as well? In any case the dragoness had mentioned working on his wings. So the only thing Rhune could do was waiting for her orders. It didn't even came to his tamed mind to ask what they were going to do, he just waited for orders to come. And he would obey, like always.