The Beginning of a New (Private Aero/Acer)

I flew over the forest, wings barely touching their tops. My black figure was like a shadow, but was still noticeable in the daylight sun. Spotting an open clearing ahead I flew into it, seeing as it was a small lake and landing on the shore by it. Sniffing at the water I dipped my head in it, lapping up a bit of water before taking it back out. Watching the water a bit for any visible movement before I walked off into a sunny spot. Feeling the warm sun on my scales I let off a low purr and circled before laying down on the soft grass, not really caring about how visible I was.

Acer was sitting on the sand by the shore, his sparkling scales camoflauging him against the sand. He ate a fish off of his claw, enjoying the delicate white meat. He always ate here after and sometimes before a long day - he seemed to have acquired a taste for the strange slimy creatures, and spearing them on his claws in the evening. As he finished the last fish, he licked his lips and looked back, to the lake. Then he noticed the large black shape sunning on the grass. It was larger than him! He got up and padded over to the lump, and flinched as it let out a loud noise. But now that he was closer, he realised what 'it' looked like. A dragon with black scales and a greenish belly was laying in front of him.
"Er... Hi?"

My eyes snapped open when I heard something speak. Lifting my head I saw a small creature in front of me. With wings and a tail, it seemed like finding new dragons would never stop. I wondered how long he'd been here. Thinking back I wondered if seeing me was like when I met Ami, a small dragon and a bigger dragon. I blinked at him before replying, "Hello." I didn't want to seem hostile to him, even if the dragons I met used intimidation as their strategy. "Who are you?"

Now that she was looking at him, he could see it was female. With the dragon laying by the lake seemingly without care, he wondered why he hadn't met any dragons earlier. "Well, my name is Acer. Who are you and what... Are you doing around these parts?" He hadn't performed this routine in a long time, and it was obvious he was out of practice. "This part of my territory, after all." Being honest with himself, the dragon was quite small compared to some dragons who'd crossed his path many years ago.

I glanced around before looking back at him. My territory was rather small, but then again I didn't have any competition for it. Maybe it was bigger than I account for. "My name is Aero Dynamic. Most people just call me Aero though." I replied, "And I was just flying around and wanted to land someplace."

Acer thought about getting her to leave, but since he hadn't seen a dragon in such a long time, maybe he could make an exception. She was quite pretty, too- He blushed lightly and snapped out of it. "Well, I guess you can stay, just as long as you don't hunt anything. Hey... are there other dragons out there, by chance?" He didn't normally seek the compan of other dragons, at least not in his younger years, but considering the hostility of the humans, he didn't have much else. Shrugging to himself, he got up and started back towards the shore. Looking back at Aero, he asked "Say, do you like seafoood?"

I flicked my tail, listing to him talk. I guess it was a good thing I wasn't too hungry. "There are a couple other dragons. One's Lead, a furry white ice dragon. He's a bit mean when you first meet him, but he 'thaws' out later." She chuckled a bit at her own joke. "Ami's the same way. A parent lyrics meeting new dragons is something you need to be hostile about. But I can see it, acting like a dream or illusion seeing a dragon again for the first time in years." She sighed, looking at the dragon as he wandered down to the shore. "I don't eat much seafood, but what I've had I have liked. But that brings me to the last dragon. Well, I guess he's a wyvern but he's like us no less. His name is Crossfire and he lives in the water and he's nice." I pondered for a second before asking, "Do you know any other dragons? "

Acer listened to Aero describe the other dragons. He perked up at the mention of the Wyvern. He had presumed the wyverns died out before he had even been born. At the question, though, he shook his head "I have not seen one in a long time, and of the dragons I did know, I have no idea of their whereabouts. I'm surprised you have encountered so many others." He shook his head again. "Then again, I don't travel often.".

I let out an amused sigh. "I'm surprised too. The first time I step outside my territory and I meet every last dragon left on this world." I paused before whispering, "I wish I had done it earlier..." I thought about all of the lonely nights, always thinking that I was the last one and had to suffer through this world's hate alone. Humans are an interesting species, and they surprise me every time. From their stupidity to how smart they are. "What's your relationship with the humans?"

At the question, Acer went silent for a few moments. He cast his mind back to his youth, and remembered the day he left his homeland. He could still see it as clear as the day had been. He looked away from Aero and said "...I... was raised by them. I spent many years fighting for them and caring for them." He made it clear in his tone he didn't want to keep talking about it. "Why do you ask?"

I blinked as he answered. He was raised by them and fought for them? "I uh... Well, humans don't really like dragons anymore... I've gotten attacked by them for many years, and so has Lead." I considered my first meeting with Lead. 'Many have tried to fool me...' have they used dragons against him before? It would make sense, for we were strong and had the capability of flight. I looked back at him. "Did they at least treat you well?" I wondered if maybe the humans could have dragon slaves. Maybe there was more out there than we think. I winced at the thought, if he was here now that obviously couldn't have happened to him.

Of course. Acer shook his head at the question. No no, they treated me like royalty, to be honest. I was quite fond of them." He looked at her. It was easy to tell what she was coming from. The humans here weren't quite so kind towards dragons as the ones he'd known. Then again, most of them had likely been using him for his political influence. Human politics, it had plagued him for so long... "Bunch of nonsense, it is." He muttered.

I nodded, wondering how he felt about humans now. He didn't seem to want to talk more about it right now, so I didn't ask. I felt a cool breeze wash over my scales and looked up at the fading sky. "I should probably head home now, get off your territory before nightfall." I said, standing up. It was actually kind of nice to meet a dragon that wasn't bigger than me.

Acer smiled at her. "Sure. Maybe you should come back sometime, too. It's nice to have someone around." He looked at the horizon, watching the sun. "Suppose I should get going too."

I smiled, "Until next time." I then took off, flying off in the ever-darkening sky.
~Le short cause timeskip~

I don't know how long it had been since I met Acer, but I felt like it was time to visit him again. The day was nice, the crisp air light under my wings. The only hard part was remembering exactly where it was. I had landed at a few other lakes and looked around a bit before knowing it wasn't the right one. But I knew I was close. Diving down and pulling up to gently land I looked around. "Hello?" I called out. What if I had lost the location of his territory? I shook my head, it smelled like him around here so he had to be living here.

Acer, at this time, had almost decided the she-dragon he'd met would never return. He flew over the treetops, heading towards the rim of his territory in search of prey. That is, until he saw the familiar black figure by the lake. He dropped down in front of Aero. "Oh, hey. You returned!". He beamed at her, tucking in his wings. "To be honest I wasn't sure if you'd have come back.". He blushed lightly, but it noticeable if she had looked closer.

I watched as he dived down from the sky, my tail giving a little happy wave. I chuckled, "I didn't want to come back too soon, this is your territory after all and I don't want to seem as if I'm invading it." I was glad he was happy to see me, and not all like 'why are you here' like Lead would be. I'm sure he was always glad to see me too under his thick furry coat. "How have you been the last few weeks?" I asked, hoping to start up a nice conversation. I still wondered how far his territory stretched, maybe I'd be able to explore it with him later.

Acer shrugged. "You know, I really don't mind, I've got too much space here for my own good." He looked around. "Well... things have been pretty normal, I suppose. No more dragons either, I'm afraid." He replied, "You?".

I replied, "I haven't met any new dragons other than the ones I told you about." I looked around before directing my gaze back at Acer. "It is nice to know that you're not the only one left though. I spent years alone, only ever wondering if there was someone else..." I sighed. Then I smiled, "Let's not think of the bad stuff, we should be happy." I looked over at the lake and back around the area before asking, "Have any plans?"

(Such le crap post I'm sorry ;-;)

Acer nodded his head in agreement. "Let us not." tyen he opened his mouth to speak, but pondered his reply. "Well... No, not really. I was thinking of going to the village, but that's not important. Is there anything you'd like to do here?". He looked around, and wagged his tail sideways in the sand.
(Nah, better than mine)

I glanced around again when he asked me that question. "Sure... Maybe you could take me on a little tour of your land?" I suggested. After all, it would help me make sure I knew where his territory was, and I wasn't considered a threat anymore, was I? Maybe if not we could do something else fun together.

Acer nodded at her. "Why not, I suppose? We can visit my den last."
He unfurled his wings."Would you like to fly with me, now? We can check out some of my territories." He tilted his head in a train of thought. "Say, maybe you can show around your territory some time." He jumped up and took off, waiting for her.

I was glad that he liked my suggestion. I wasn't expecting to see his den, but I smiled when he said it. Maybe it just showed how comfortable I was to him. I nodded and unfolded my wings, "Sometime, but I'll make sure to remember." Saying that reminded me that he'd be the first one to see my territory with permission, and the first dragon other than myself. Not even Lead has been in my territory before. I took off, flying besides the other dragon as my tail flicked excitedly.

As the two flew over the forest, he remembered something. There was a nice place he used to hunt back when the prey was rich. There might not be any more prey, but it was still an interesting place.
"Hey, there's a place below us that I know He gestured to the rocky stream below them. "I haven't been there in a while." He couldn't remember much about the place, but he should visit again. He dropped down slowly .

As we flew I pondered about how this tour would go and how mine would go. I'd probably start by flying along a river then branching out to the different spots around it. That brought me up to another question, when should I introduce him to the others. It'd be better to do it soon, and I'd bet they'd be excited to meet another dragon. The only thing that slightly worried me was Lead. How would he be when Acer told of his interactions with humans? Good thing is he seemed over his humans... but he probably still cared.

I barely heard what he said until Acer started to slowly decline. Realizing his decent I followed also, glancing around at the area below. There was a rocky stream below. I guessed it was probably running with fish. It made me wonder if there was any bears around, for they'd probably like this spot. Bears were no trouble for a dragon at all. I made sure I was with Acer as he was probably close to landing, but I was excited to explore this area.