[Kallile]

It had been possibly her worst idea yet to try and travel in this weather.

Storms were nothing new to the Fairy Paragon—despite her fragile looks Hani had been born and raised by the ocean to a fishing clan of Paragon. They came and went as often as the sun in fact, or so it had seemed growing up. She and her siblings had survived a hurricane after all when they had been sent on their rite of passage. So a little thunderstorm was nothing to at an eye at, or so she had so boastfully thought.

The winds weren’t what had caught her off guard, it had been the lightening. She was doing her best to dodge the bolts and find a safe landing spot through the pouring rains. It proved harder than it had appeared; the rains swirled beneath her and obscured any hope of a landing view she might have gained. But she couldn’t stay aloft and hope for the best; to stay in the air in the midst of lightening would be certain death.

Carefully she began coasting downwards, trying to pick her path by watching the lightning bolt connect from sky to earth and flew by blind faith of lightening never striking the same place twice. As it turned out, she was mistaken.  As she flew though the dark skies she heard the air around her crackle moments before a deafening crack and a sharp pain at her side. Her wing was badly burned, the current still travelling through it paralyzing her left side. She flapped her right wing furiously to try and cushion the fall that she knew was unavoidable.

The spiral as she fell and the searing pain in her wing and her entire body made her feel sick and dizzy, the altitude she was quickly losing did not help that feeling. Blacking out for seconds at a time, Hani felt her body start to go limp just before the world went black entirely.

The crumpled form of a Paragon lay motionless on the Vast Plains, teal scales dulled and deeply cut along her sides and belly; her wings looking tattered. Her chest rose and fell gently in shallow breathes but the Fairy still did not move. For the time being she was at the mercy of the predators roaming the Plains.

[Jaykobell]

As the bulkiest Paragon of the Hive, it wasn't hard to imagine why he was flying through a violent thunderstorm. The others were tucked carefully in their dens back in the mountain, but his task was something only he could do: search the surrounding territory for missing dragons, if any. Since the weather could be unpredictable, some Paragon could get caught up in something like this thunderstorm, and lightning wasn't always kind to the roaming creatures underneath it. Being the biggest, the Frost Paragon could carry anyone from the Hive back home before they caught injured or fatally wounded.

Not only was he the biggest Paragon in the entire clan — even bigger than the leader himself — but the Frost Paragon also had a special talent that none of the others had: he could survive lightning, including direct hits to his body. He could fly through any violent weather and still manage to come back home only minimally injured — his body had been seemingly born with a natural defense against the elements.

He'd been scouring the area for a long time and hadn't noticed any Paragon that needed to be brought back home. Sometimes the hunters were the ones caught up in the weather, but that didn't mean that they couldn't get back home on their own. Since he hadn't seen anyone all this time, he figured everyone had to had gone back home. He scoffed a little and took a turn, making his way back home as well.

As he flew back the way he'd come, he narrowed his eyes at something in the distance: a blue-looking creature that seemed to be flying downward abnormally. Considering he could see it from this distance, he figured it couldn't be a bird. Spreading his wings some more, he flew towards the shape quickly, and the closer he got, the more he noticed the injured wing of what was, in fact, a Paragon. The only thing is that he couldn't recognize her from the Hive; he'd never seen that Paragon before. Since he rescued everyone and anyone, obviously he knew every Paragon in the clan. Still, the detail wasn't important at this point in time, since the stranger was just plummeting to the ground and there was no time for him to hesitate.

He reached the spot where the blue Paragon had fallen and nose-dove right towards her. If lightning found it interesting to strike towards her, then the Frost Paragon would be there to absorb the hit for her; it was a safety procedure he used with all injured Paragon to make sure they didn't get injured further.

Upon reaching the blue Paragon, he was able to identify her as a Fairy, the left side of her body damaged by the lightning, her wing being the most unfortunate. "Can you hear me?" he called out to the Fairy, but she seemed to be blacking out every now and then, most likely from the fall and the lightning. He could see her sides raising and falling, so clearly she was still alive. No time to waste.

Hovering over her, the Frost Paragon grabbed her carefully and picked the Fairy Paragon off the ground. "Hang on," he said as he spread his wings wide and gave himself a strong push to fly off the ground and up in the air. Regardless of his bulk, carrying a fully-grown Paragon wasn't easy. With the injured Paragon in his arms, he made his way back home, checking on her periodically and asking her questions now and again to make sure she was staying with him. As long as her heart beat, however, that's all her really needed.

~*~

Fortunately, the next day sported better weather than the night before. While still cloudy, the sun could squeeze through some clouds and cracks and made the day relatively warm.

Hani had been left in a cave-like den, down on a small leafy bedding that was soft and comfortable. The den smelled of herbs and berries, some of them sour and strong; together with those herbs and berries were multiple tools such as bandages and even human-looking tools used for medicine. This clearly looked like a medical den, but where? Wherever it was and whoever lived here, they had patched Hani's wing and even healed the smaller cuts and burns. The bigger wounds remained, but the small ones had been taken care of.

A small leafy curtain covered the entrance to the den, and it also gave the injured some little privacy. Wherever it was, the den seemed to lead to a small woods just outside it.

Through said curtain, a head eventually peeked out. A male Frost Paragon slipped his head in slowly, just to make sure he wasn't waking up or disturbing the Fairy Paragon he'd brought back from the night before. "Anybody home?" he called out quietly, but just enough for an awake Paragon to hear. If he got no answer, he would simply turn back and come back later.

[Kallile]

The first thing that came to mind was the fact that she ached all over, so she was obviously not dead or eaten. Well, that was at least a promising start. Prying her eyes open, Hani glanced around her surroundings to find she was no longer out in the plains…or wherever she had crashed. Lifting her head delicately and accompanied by a few faces as she worked the kinks out of her neck, Hani tried to take in all that was around her. The storm had made all the scents that might have given mild cues as to her new whereabouts muddled and mixed together in an after rain haze. The one thing that stood out against all others, however, were the natural remedies lingering within the den.

Gingerly trying to push herself up, Hani quickly allowed herself to simply readjust on the leaf bed she currently lay on. No, that wasn’t going to work—she needed a minute to gather her bearing and summon up some strength to get past the wall of aches and pains that currently held her down. When something as big as her hit the ground it was hard not to ache for several days after—though she was lucky that nothing seemed to have been broken in her fall. As she took in the odd sights around her and wondered who might live here, she became aware that her wing felt rather odd. Well, doubly odd considering it still burnt and tingled from the lightning strike.  It wasn’t fully wrapped, but it was patched along the origin burn with salve that smelled as strongly as the den did.

A rustle from the leaf curtain gave her a small start as she looked towards the big Frost muzzle that slipped through it. As the masculine voice called out, Hani gave a small chuckle (which her ribcage instantly despised her for) and called back. “If you’re meaning are the lights back on upstairs, yes. And if you’re meaning physically home…well I’m here but it’s not home.” Perhaps this was her rescuer and healer? The Fairy shifted her weight around to try and make herself look a little more presentable and a little less sprawled out.

“Where is home, if you don’t mind my asking. I don’t remember crashing into a cozy den.” Despite her happy tone the Fairy was very nervous and it would surely show in her lavender eyes should one look closely. Frosts were out of her league as far as knowledge—she knew enough about them to be able to recognize one but they weren’t exactly a species that fit in with her old clan. This one’s temperament, she hoped, was as gentle as his voice.

[Jaykobell]

The Frost Paragon noticed Hani shuffling about and moving in the bedding, and he could tell that she was awake. "Ah, so you're awake," he noted passively, mostly just talking to himself. It seemed like she'd been awake before him peeking through the curtain, so he wasn't the one who had woken her up.

He slipped into the den further, just so the Fairy Paragon didn't have to strain herself further by yelling or shifting around too much. Despite his huge bulk — and the fact that he could barely fit into the den itself — his footsteps were quiet and his demeanor gentle; he looked far from being an aggressive or even short-tempered Paragon. "My name is Dunstan. I'm the Dragon Hive's official area scouter. I'm the one who brought you back here," he explained as he tried to sit down and himself more comfortable in this small den.

At her questions, he tilted his head. "Where's home? Oh, no, you crashed on the plains outside the Dragon Hive," he explained as he shuffled some and sat down to hopefully fit in better. He was clearly bigger than the intended height for this medical den. "The Dragon Hive is where you are; we're a colony of Paragons living in a mountain in the Vast Plains. I was scouting the area during the thunderstorm when I saw you crashing down. You looked pretty beat-up, so I brought you back here for medical attention."

Despite his ability to scout areas under any weather thanks to his special characteristic, he was far from being a healer. He knew very basic first aid, but that was about all he knew, so bad injuries like burns and deep lacerations had to be healed by their official healer. "Our healer, Nyala, patched you up after I brought you over here. She was able to heal the small cuts and burns, but the bigger injuries will have to heal naturally." He tilted his head and frowned a little. "I have no idea when your wing will be in flying form again, either; but that's the gist of it."

[Kallile]

She mustered a bit of a larger smile for the big male and his intimidating size as he squeezed his way inside.  She wanted to tell him he was fine, he really didn’t have to do that but before she could will her voice to spring to life he was already inside with her. He seemed friendly enough, and had he not the fact that he had willingly placed himself in a very confided space put her mind at ease. It did leave much to her imagination as to how he managed to both get her in here and placed onto a cozy bed to rest. There was hardly elbow room for him to work in here…

“I’m Hani, I can’t thank you enough for being out there in that storm as well last night Dunstan.” She weighed his words carefully. A Hive? Hmm, well that sounded familiar enough; her clan had had hunters and scouts after all. A hive certainly couldn’t be too much different. “I’m afraid I don’t have an affiliation to give you—I lost my clan years ago when my siblings and I took our rite of passage into adulthood.” It only seemed right to share her lack of a family name if he was sharing his, though hopefully that wouldn’t be off putting. She had met several lone Paragon in her travels—perhaps it was her old way of life and this fellows that were becoming rare.

Ah, so there was apparently another Paragon who might not be far off. It did explain how she had gotten into this den if another was involved. “I would like to thank her as well, if she is not too busy or if there’s another way to get word to her that I am grateful.” Hani was now more content to look around the den, though she did mind to move just her eyes rather than her entire neck. “I don’t remember a day when I haven’t been able to fly; it will be a challenge for sure.”

She paused thoughtfully as she weighed her options. It would be rude to flat out ask if there was anything she could do to help the members of this “hive” out until she was well enough to carry on her own way. She certainly couldn’t just impose and eat their food they worked hard for. And to cross the Plains on foot didn’t sound like a picnic either. Her size was intimidating to normal predators, yes, but her body was built for the sky not for the ground. She would take twice the time and resources as usual if she tried to walk it and how would that effect the time it would take for her wing to heal? “I ah…this is very bold I know, but…now that I am here what is it that you want from me? This hospitality can’t be easy on your supplies…there must be something I can do to repay it once I am more capable.”

[Jaykobell]

The Frost Paragon smiled sheepishly when Hani thanked him for rescuing her. Even though it was his job and a lot of Paragon did often thank him for rescuing them from bad weather, it always brought a warm fuzzy feeling to be recognized and thanked for your good actions. "It's just my job, really; don't worry about it too much, but I'm glad you're okay." At the mention of her clan, Dunstan tilted his head. "I was curious about that. We don't have any alliances with any other dragon tribes — if there are any out there." He knew all the dragons from the Hive, so when he saw a Paragon he didn't know, he'd been curious to know who she was and where she came from.

"Oh, Nyala? She'll probably come check on you soon. She went out to check on some of the other injured Paragon. When you're good enough to at least move, you get to go back to your own den. She just checks on you there," the Frost explained, seemingly just as knowledgeable about all this as the healer Paragon herself. He was their version of a paramedic, sort of, so he did know about some of the ins and outs — more so than the other dragons. "She'll probably be happy to see you're awake, too. Those burns were pretty bad on your wing." Sometimes he had to give kudos to the healer Paragon. Nyala, in fact, was blind, and she relied solely on her instincts and the teachings of her father to heal the others. He had to wonder if the Sandshark would ever feel like giving up if she could see just how bad some injuries were.

At the mention of their hospitality, Dunstan blinked. "Well..." He looked a little perplexed, unsure as to what he should say. "This is something I don't know anything about. I think this is really the first time in ages that a Paragon that we don't know about came across the Hive. I've never heard of you and you're not with any clan or anything, so I don't know how our leader will treat your case," he explained honestly, though he wasn't sure was going to answer much for her. "But he is a benevolent leader. I'm sure he'll be fair in his decision. I honestly don't think he'll send you out on your own with a wing still out of commission. How he'll go about it, though... Well, that's what I don't know."

[Kallile]

“Oh, there are many other tribes…though I haven’t met many of the others. My clan only allowed those who had passed their journey rite to communicate with the other clans. Arranged pairings to sustain peace among the clans and things of that nature, mostly. Things hatchlings didn’t need to be involved in to begin with.” She didn’t press the topic of her gratefulness; there was grateful and then there was annoying after all. “Though I’m not surprised if there aren’t more clans here—I am a long way from home. I come from a clan which makes it’s living off the sea’s bounty.”

As if to prove her point she wiggled her fish finned tail feebly to draw his eye to the very aquatic appendage. “The oceans are much easier to hunt in peacefully it seems—there is a lack of the foliage in most cases that hides the prey to help make it scarce. It is purely based on the skill of the hunter and their swiftness—not a competition of wits and claiming land. We do have dens and homes on islands that we defend but that is purely in defense of our hatchlings and eggs. We don’t defend the ocean.” She really hoped it made sense; it was hard to explain the relaxed ocean-clan life to one who had hunted for prey on land his whole life.

One thing did strike her though—the words ‘your own den’.  She sincerely hoped that didn’t mean they had prepared a den for her here or else the need to be useful would double. “I will still look forward to meeting her when she should return.” She said passively and tried to let the new worries slip from her mind. It appeared they were only going to keep cropping up.

“I would very much like to meet your leader, when I am healed enough to do so. If he is truly what you say he is then I’m sure some agreement can be made that will benefit us both.” She tried not to sound too diplomatic but it was hard not to when she was trying to push her anxiety back. The leaders of her family clan had never been ‘benevolent’, they had been more ‘sadistic’. The one downfall of the life at sea was the fact that young ones had to face the trials to prove themselves as adults. You could either keep up with the hunters and make a contribution or your body would feed the fish your family would one day feed on. Such was life…and Hani deeply hoped Dunstan was right.  “I assume he knows I’m here, then? Has he made any comments on the subject yet?”

[Jaykobell]

Dunstan listened carefully as the Fairy Paragon told him of her own clan and where she'd come from. The Hive knew nothing about the clans that were outside their territory; to them, alliances or clan fights were not a problem, since nobody was around to cause any fights. This territory was entirely theirs, and there was no one around to make it otherwise. "Interesting. We don't have any clans anywhere close to us, so worrying about shortage of food or territory fights isn't a problem here." They did have one opposing force, but that wasn't something for an outsider like Hani to know about. "I don't think we're really familiar with the sea, either. We're air- and land-dwellers, entirely. Very few Paragon in the Hive actually fish or get close to water at all." The nearest lake was a few flying-hours away, so not a lot of dragons actually bothered with the task.

At the mention of their leader, Dunstan blinked. "Oh, he's very benevolent. He can be strict, but he's not a tyrant by far. We used to have a tyrannic leader before him, so trust me when I say that he's not anywhere close to even being merciless or unfair." The Frost Paragon had seen and lived through the tyrannic rule of their previous leader, and he couldn't be thankful enough for their current leader. "Oh, and of course he knows you're here — I had to report to him that I'd found you on the plains so he can keep track of everything. I don't—"

He had no time to reply before a hissing sound came from the curtain at the entrance of the den. "Dunstan, you're going to break the den!"



A small female Sandshark made her way into the den, and despite her lack of eyes, it was easy to hear that she wasn't very happy as she managed to barely squeeze her way into the den, what with an injured adult Paragon and a huge, bulky male all together in the same small den. "Did you wake her up? I told you to not bother the injured Paragon!"

At the Sandshark's remarks, Dunstan blinked, looking taken aback by her sharp tone and character. "Don't be like that, Nyala; I won't break the den," he replied first as he tried to curl and squeeze himself in a position that would take less space, so the medicine Paragon could work. "And I didn't wake her up. You know I don't come in if they're not awake."

There was a short pause from the Sandshark before she sighed irritably. "I know," she finally replied with a tone that was slightly apologetic, but not entirely. "Just move aside so I can work," Nyala added as she made her way towards Hani first. "Sorry. I'm Nyala. I'm the healer of the Hive, and I'm the one who patched you up when Dunstan brought you over," she introduced herself while apologizing for being snappy just now. "If everything goes well, the pain should be tolerable in a few days where you can walk and go about your daily activities without it bothering you," she explained to Hani as she slowly made her way further into the den. Relying solely on scents and her knowledge of her own environment, the blind Paragon shuffled through her herbs and remedies to find whatever it is that she was looking for.

"Oh, Nyala, you would know," Dunstan piped up when the Sandshark was done talking and started rummaging. "Did Izotz tell you anything about finding Hani and keeping her here?" The Fairy Paragon had wanted to know, but Dunstan himself hadn't heard anything specific. However, Nyala, being the healer, had probably heard something about it.

Coming back with a gel-looking substance from her supplies, the Sandshark started spreading the gel on Hani's injured wing before answering. "He didn't say much," she replied as she rubbed the gel on Hani's wing entirely, spreading it to an even, thin layer. It was cold to the touch and a little unsettling when first applied, but it was soothing and gradually became hotter as the Sandshark spread it about, easing the pain of the burns and scratches. "Honestly, he's preoccupied by other things. All he told me is that I should relocate her to a den once her wing is healed enough that she won't be bothered by it. He said to relocate her to Teofila's den." Despite the fact that they did have a handful of empty, free dens — with more always popping up — their leader had asked for the stranger to be relocated to the den of a very unusual Paragon. However, that was a detail unbeknownst to Hani, and nothing she needed to concern herself with; just ridiculous, childish superstitions from the other Paragon. "After she's relocated and can move about, he said that we would take it from there."

[Kallile]

Hani only nodded at first; it was an entirely different way of life that she had lived but she was thankful that Dunstan was at least trying to understand. Many thought it silly—huge creatures like themselves living off fish and kelp—but he didn’t seem put off by the implications that came with one living off the ocean. “The clans at sea are spread out, though we do every so often end up on one another’s islands if we are blown off course by a storm or simply lose our way underwater. Territory disputes are rare but they do happen; sometimes young males who stumble onto other islands enjoy trying their claws for control. Females too occasionally…though females where I am from are more docile. The sea’s diet is much kinder to our needs than to the needs of males.” It was, after all, hard to bulk up and look ferocious with little to no red meat in one’s diet. “It was always more a show than a true threat. Another way to satisfy egos I suppose…I never did understand it.” She said with a chuckle and a quickly accompanying grimace.

Further news of their leaders kinder nature was promising, though before Hani had a proper chance to reply there was a new voice scolding her rescuer. The delicate frill on top of her head sprang up completely in both alarm and curiosity as a Sandshark made her way into the den. This was a species Hani was completely unfamiliar with and it was apparent in the way she watched the eyeless Paragon move about. Her own eyes moved with every step the healer took until the other female was upon her.

“Dunstan has been a gentleman, I promise.” She said, trying to smooth over the situation. She hoped she hadn’t gotten him into too much trouble by keeping him in here to chat. “It is nice to meet you, Nyala. I’m Hani…I cannot thank you enough for your care. I would be in a much more dire situation if not for you and Dunstan, I’m sure.” She nodded as the healer explained about the pain, then thought better of the silent action. Eyes, Hani, she has no eyes! She scolded herself internally. “Again, thank you. I hope I am not a burden until then.”

As she listened to them talk Hani tried to keep the number of faces her body naturally tried making at the application of the cold and tingling gel to a bare minimum. What she ended up with was a little less than a grimace but a little too much for a simple look of shock. She was eternally relieved when the gel began working—the tingling sensations in her wing subsided and the feeling of warmth and comfort quickly replaced it. She cast Dunstan an apologetic glance and hoped that the healer hadn’t felt her tense up too much. But her relief was doubled at the knowledge she was rooming with someone—perhaps it would be a working partnership until she was well enough to go about her own business again. Perhaps this Teofila was a hunter or gatherer or egg sitter…hopefully anything that she could assist with and return the favor through contribution. She wouldn’t leave until she felt her debt was settled…or they forced her to of course. A few days—that’s what Nyala had just said.

"I guess then I will have more new faces to look forward to then. I hope I don’t start mixing up names.”

[Jaykobell]

Dunstan grinned sheepishly at Hani's confirmation that he hadn't been disturbing the Fairy Paragon, despite the action being entirely missed by the blind Sandshark that was tending to Hani's injuries. "See? I'm better than that," he teased as he poked Nyala with a finger, since she could only really understand sounds and touch, and not physical displays, such as grinning or twiddling with one's fingers.

Nyala growled lightly at Dunstan's touch and words, not wanting to go back to that discussion. She was already sore from something that had happened earlier and she honestly didn't want to dwell on things that were making her mood even worse. At Hani's gratefulness, the Sandshark eased a bit, despite feeling the Fairy's stare on her constantly. Nyala figured Hani wasn't used to blind Paragon, or perhaps to the Sandshark species itself. She didn't care for staring, as long as the Fairy didn't say something she would regret, such as asking how a blind Paragon could do her job. No comments on the blindness, and the Fairy would keep both wings on her back.

Despite that, Hani's gratefulness was why Nyala did what she did and what did make everything worth the hassle. "You're welcome. I like nothing more than to heal those who are injured." There was a pause and, if she had eyes, she would've definitely narrowed them. "I'm glad you appreciate it, unlike another stupid Paragon I know. I've never wanted to let a dragon cringe in pain more than him," she spat out afterwards, her words sharp and clearly irritated.

At the mention of that, Dunstan understood exactly why the healer Sandshark was as irritated as she was. Nyala usually wasn't this short-tempered and even harsh; she was quiet and extremely sharp and keen, despite her natural handicap. Her tantrums weren't necessarily rare, but Dunstan didn't remember experiencing them all that often. At least, not enough that he would be put off by the female Sandshark. She was hard to set off, in truth, but there was one thing that did upset the Sandshark beyond words, and that was when a Paragon would comment on her blindness. Perhaps he would be able to give that advice to Hani once Nyala was out of the den; if he mentioned how she was blind and how she was sore to criticism concerning said blindness, the Sandshark would end up ripping his eyes out faster than lightning.

"There's a lot of Paragon living here," the Sandshark eventually piped up as she finished spreading the gel on the entirety of Hani's wing. "You'll probably just end up meeting the ones that make trouble or the social ones that just know everybody, along with the important ones like our leader and our vice-commander. Of course, unless you want to be social, yourself."

[Kallile]

Given a few moments to get the admiration and wonderment out of her system, Hani’s gaze finally shifted away from the Sandshark and moved more freely around the room as she tried to act natural. It was…a rather hard act to perform when someone had your wing in their grasp. “There are some who just can’t let their pride go—I have a brother with that problem. Though I have no qualms with casting pride aside when needed.” She offered in hopes the Sandshark would return to a relaxed state again. She certainly couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to remain in pain when there was help around.

“I’m no stranger to social settings, I hope to meet some of this Hive’s members no matter their importance. Though I will do my best not to become one who gets trouble stirred up. “ Her gaze flashed to Dunstan. Trouble is what she was still afraid she might have gotten him in. Some leaders did not appreciate strangers in their midst that needed healing and food.

Shifting restlessly as the healing salve was finally set upon her wing, Hani looked it over carefully. “I must say I’ve never seen this sort of ointment—what is it? My clans’ healer would typically bind wounds up in seaweed to heal or simply toss you in the ocean to let the salts clean and heal it. Ointments are al little out of my realm of knowledge.” She felt encouraged to ask questions; feeling the more informed about the way of life she found herself in, the more useful she might be once properly on the mend.

[Jaykobell]

Nyala grumbled at the mention of pride. Hani had hit the nail on the head; that was exactly that one Paragon's problem. In some sense, the Sandshark couldn't really blame him, nor those who had a similar behavior, because she was like that too. She was too proud and independent to let anyone help her or otherwise because of her blindness. Still, when she could admit that she was having a hard time, she accepted people's help. "Maybe once he's done abusing his stay here, he can start being grateful," she growled quietly as she made her way towards a small bowl, drowning her hands in it in order to wash off the gel left on her hands.

Since Nyala was turned away and was busy washing off, Dunstan took the conversation from there. "I doubt you'll get in trouble much," the Frost assured as he shook his head. "Unless you actually try," he added with an amused chuckle. "Our lifestyle is actually pretty monotonous most of the time, so some Paragon do get bored really fast." When all you did was hunt, eat, sleep, watch duty, more hunting, and more eating, you eventually got sick of it. The more energetic or ambitious dragons often got bored of the routine fairly quickly, and that ended up with them getting into fights with some other bored Paragon, and then the cycle just kept repeating itself.

If she had eyes, Nyala probably would've rolled them. To make up for the lack of eyes, she instead humphed quietly. "You would know," she replied to Dunstan's answer.

It took a few seconds for the Frost Paragon to register the answer was for him. "What?"

"Nothing," the Sandshark replied and without giving Dunstan enough time to ask again, she turned to Hani. "The gel is a mix we do using different plants and herbs. It should help the muscles relax and help the body heal itself faster. It also soothes the burning sensation left from the injuries. Don't lick it or sniff it too much; eating it will make your stomach hurt and sniffing too much of it deliberately might make you dizzy or nauseous," the healer warned, not wanting the Fairy to go through some more health issues; a damaged wing was plenty, and that applied to all Paragon, not just outsiders to the Hive.

[Kallile]

Hani angled her head to listen to Dunstan as the healer went to tend to her own cleanliness; she didn’t want to disturb her while she scrubbed up. She was sure the dried gel couldn’t feel too fantastic on one’s hands when trying to walk. She cast a glance up to her gelled wing to give it a quick once over before chuckling in return.

“Well I certainly don’t plan on finding trouble, I just can’t stand the thought that I’m being a burden. Of course, if things are really as predictable as you say they are then I must be the talk of the Hive.” Another chuckle, though she didn’t guess she was too far off on the assumption. Who knew—maybe there were already paragon lined up outside the den wanting to get a glimpse of her—this strange newcomer. Or perhaps that was only her ego’s desire.

Turning her head when Nyala spoke once more she listened quietly to the exchange before giving Dunstan a wry grin and glance from the corner of her eye. Him? A troublemaker? Hani just couldn’t see it though the very idea of the big Frost engaging in shenanigans amused her greatly. “Ah, well luckily there was no planned indulgence on my part, though I will be certain to keep those in mind. I have heard of herbs mentioned often since being in the mainland—they sound fascinating. We didn’t have anything quite so useful available to us."


Again she shifted to try and hide her anxiety. Though her body protested she wanted greatly to be out and about—moving and mingling and making herself useful. Laying here was not quite the option. “In your expertise, how long do you think the wounds will take to heal? I have my own timeframe in mind but without any real knowledge of herbal remedies I cannot make such an accurate guess.”

[Jaykobell]

"Oh, anything out of the ordinary is a big conversation starter," Dunstan confirmed when Hani mentioned how she was probably the talk of the Hive at the moment. Being that she was a stranger and that unknown dragons rarely, if ever, approached the Hive, it was always a big thing when a Paragon stumbled across them. Of course, every fifteen minutes of fame had their pros and cons; in Hani's case, many Paragon were intrigued by her being here, while others were almost upset that there was yet another mouth to feed. Being that the Hive was naturally paranoid of strangers, Hani's popularity sadly tilted more towards the cons.

Still, that wasn't something Dunstan would even say. However, Nyala, who had been listening, felt the opposite way. "I don't think you want to be this Hive's talk," the healer started, though her voice couldn't let out if she was upset or any other emotion. "Most of the Paragon here don't react well to strangers. I would be careful when I leave this den, if I were you." Though she was maybe exaggerating, some of the dragons here could be fairly cruel. Not to mention, some of them were just anti-social and could be hard to interact with.

At Nyala's words, the Frost Paragon tried to reassure Hani the moment the healer was done talking. "Don't let that scare you, though," he started with quickly, giving Nyala a glance. Although he knew the Sandshark couldn't see him, she would certainly feel his eyes on her. "It's true that some Paragons are a little wary of strangers, but it's not from bad intentions. We used to be ruled by a really tyrannic leader, you see, and—"

But as if the Frost weren't here, Nyala cut him short and answered Hani's question. "A few days, if you don't strain it. Just let it sit on your back and it should heal enough that you'll be able to move in maybe two or three days." While the remedies were fast in that aspect, that wouldn't help Hani's wing heal itself internally. It would heal the outside pain and make it feel like the wing was brand new, but if she tried to move it, the muscles and bones would immediately make her reconsider. However, it would at least allow her to go about her things. "It might take less time than that, or it might not work so well for you and leave you bedridden for days."

The interruption left Dunstan narrowing his eyes, both in confusion and a little in irritation. However, he didn't add anything and instead stayed quiet.

[ I guess after you post, I can just time skip to when Hani can walk around and do shenanigans, like meet Izotz and most of the others. 8U~ But tell me if you have any other ideas. You know where my Inbox is. >8U ]

[Kallile]

Feeling slightly shot down by the Sandshark’s response, Hani let out a soft sigh before giving another grin. “Well then, I suppose the only thing there is to do about it is to give them reason to change that talk from speculation and fear to something more friendly.” Fitting in had been something Hani had always done very naturally—she was pretty pleasant all around and her father had often been heard describing her as the waves her scales mimicked: ’If you are with her, she will lift you to heights and speeds you had only dreamed. And if you are against her she will simply roll you over and keep doing things her way. She is a wave—changing yet unyielding.’

She hoped her father was correct now…her old Clan had always accepted her. But this was a new land, with no ocean to make truly impressive displays in, and she was drastically out of her element. Nyala’s words did not give her a great amount of confidence, though the larger male seemed to have a different view of the workings of the other Hive members. He had no time to finish his reassuring speech, however, and likewise the Fairy was left with no time to respond to him before the healer leapt in with an answer.

Though Nyala could not see her, she could certainly hear the gel-covered wing slowly fold up until it was tucked closely to Hani’s body. The feeling of the still wet gel mushing around and squishing together gave Hani a little shiver down her spine but otherwise she gave into the resolve that it would have to stay there for the next few days if she wanted to be out of here faster.

“Well then, if I’m in here this long perhaps some time can be passed telling me a little about those I might meet? You have already told me much about your leader, but if the others are as closed off to newcomers as you say a few tips about who to approach and who to avoid at first might work to my benefit.” This was said openly to both, though her eyes moved to Dunstan. She wasn’t sure why the Sandshark was so quick to shut him down, but perhaps an open window to come and talk anytime within the next few days would bolster his spirits a little. “It looks as though you’ll know where to find me if you are in the chatting mood for the next couple days.”

((Go ahead and time jump it if you like, Shrewdie~ ^^ ))