[SkyWolf11]

In all honesty, Ruben hadn't actually met a dragon either.  It was just the typical textbook stuff.  Dragons, imps, sirens, nearly all of the classic mythological creatures were learned of.  And so were the most common stereotypes and basic knowledge that followed them.  Like for dragons:  Most were able to breath fire, it seemed.  Thus, they had a fire sack.  There in lies his comparison.  Made perfect sense to him.  Now the possibly idea that she was of some sort of relation to dragon kind found itself into his imaginative mind...
 
And per her question, he wanted to say that he didn't know a lot of things ... cause you know ... he really didn't.  But he quickly decided against it as he thought that would make him sound even more idiotic than he probably already did to her.  By the end of her further explanation, he had a fairy blank look about him, but his eyes were bright and expressive in their own right; bright with interest and question at what all she had told him.  

"Okay..."  A pause as he tried to absorb the information.  It all still wasn't getting in up there, but he felt a bit more understanding... if only about how she technically breathed fire, what with her fire sack and all.  "A gene in your DNA?"  That part was curious.  He resisted the urge to blurt out the words 'blood talent' again, even though that's what came to mind first off.  "What ... gene?  Why is it so special?", he mewed, tails flicking anxiously.  Malka just might have to draw him out an actually picture before the end of it...

[Lvl. 2 -- 8]

[Jaykobell]

Even though Ruben's expression was completely blank — she refrained from rolling her eyes with much difficulty — it seemed like her explanation had finally gone through his thick head. Still, when his question about her gene came around, there was very little she could explain. Admittedly, she was the only one of her siblings who had an actual organ for her power. Miroslav could use the water within his own body — leading to a life-threatening state if he abused that reserve too much — and Malte could just... summon lightning. How was she supposed to explain how they were different?

She sighed and sat down on her haunches. She brought a paw to her nose and rubbed it; an attempt to rub the bridge of her nose in exasperation. How could she explain all this? Ruben would go right back to screaming "magic" at the top of his lungs. "Okay. Listen up," she started with, sighing as she wondered how that particular explanation would go through. "Where I come from... having any kind of special elemental ability is unheard of. To... have any ability of any sort, you need a special coin. Er... literally. They're small coins with crests etched into them. Unless you have a coin like that, you can't have any sort of special power. Er... they come in a whole range of variety. Some of them have animals on them, and others have abstract ones, like a moon or a sun." It made sense to her, this whole coin thing; but she had no clue how Ruben would react to that. "Our gene is special because we can use a special power without having one of those coins. Finding the gene we inherited would allow scientists to implant it within people's DNA." And by doing that, people wouldn't need those coins anymore. Everyone could, somehow, use an ability of their own.

And with that explanation done, Malka just waited for Ruben to answer. Although, she could already predict his answer: "Are you messing with me?"

[ -barfs plot vomit in dem RP- ]

[SkyWolf11]

[ Sorry for such a wait.  D:  Been distracted lately.  Weird-sucky post coming up.  P: ]

"Coins?", the male mused curiously.  So now there were genes and coins?!  This was confusing...  "So that's where the magic is from!  The coins!"  That was his translation of what she'd said.  After all, in his world, there were magical items one could come across and use.  However, the particular one's that Malka had just described to him didn't really ring a bell of recognition.  But perhaps different areas had different items or something to that effect...?  If so, he would love to go travelling more just to see it so!

He stood quickly and took a somewhat playful stance towards the female, crouching slightly and butt wiggling in the air.  "See, you do use magic!  It just must be different from region to region!"  Yep, hadn't gotten across; mixed translations, you could say.  Then, recalling a few previous thoughts, he tilted his head questioningly and stared at her strangely.  "I think you're part dragon or something...  I mean, you can breathe fire without the use of a coin.  This gene of yours, it could be that you're part dragon or something!"  His tone was a bit high with his confidence in his understanding.  His tails wagged and flicked happily at the thought of actually meeting someone with dragon blood... though that more than likely wasn't the case here, sadly...

[Lvl. 2 -- 9]

[Jaykobell]

[ If he wants to meet someone with dragon-blood... he's welcome to my Gons. XD; Most, if not all, are from that same plot. Pfft. ]

Malka's ears dropped against the back of her head when Ruben mentioned magic again. All she could display on her face was a frown filled with annoyance and exasperation. She mentally sighed, wondering what she was supposed to do with this guy. And, to begin with, why was she bothering to explain everything to him? However, she had to give him credit for not thinking she was bonkers. A lot of people had never seen coins like that, so mentioning them was like telling people to call her insane.

At least, the male had calmed down, and the playfulness of the Ancient was enough to make Malka relax. That is, relax enough so she didn't feel like biting his head... too much. "I am not part dragon," she grumbled as she narrowed her eyes. "You shouldn't talk about them as if they were mere creatures. In our..." She paused there, frowning to nothing in particular, as she tried to find a fitting word. "... Culture," she started again, with a word that would hopefully work well enough, "dragons are seen as demi-Gods. It is a blessing to see something as gracious and awe-inspiring as a dragon." And then another pause. "My siblings also don't share my ability. My brother manipulates water, and my twin brother manipulates thunder. Even we don't know where it comes from or why we have it..." The last part of that sentence gradually turned into a whisper. That was why they'd opened them up and done those tests on them, right? To understand where it all came from, why it was there, how it had evolved, why they were the only ones with it. It was a big puzzle that no one had an answer to.

[SkyWolf11]

[ Pfft.  xD  He just might want to.  P8  Ruben:  Draggooonnnsss~ <3  D8; ]

The male's playfulness withered a bit as her look sent off a hint of scolding to him.  His ears fell slowly in disappointment as she refused his claim of her being of dragon blood.  Though they quickly perked back up curiously as she went on.  Dragons were amazing creatures, yes, but ... demi-Gods?  Were they really so important?  Perhaps they were to her culture, as she had put it.

"Are they really so highly thought of where you're from?  I know they're pretty rare but I'd never thought of them as high of a title as godly..." he mewed quietly.  In a way, he supposed he could see them as such figures, but on the other hand, there were stories of dragon tamers he'd heard.  Dragon tamers being those who basically trained dragons as pets in a sense...  Thinking of how Malka percieved them, that would probably be an insult to the creatures.  So he decided against bringing it up though it'd be interesting to him to be able to discuss and compare opinions.  So many things were different with this girl.  He'd have to watch what he says, if only to avoid an unneccesary scuffle.  

He quickly picked up on her talk of her siblings so to keep from unintentionally insulting her in some way.  "Oh you have brothers and sisters?"  An exuberant smile appeared on his face and his tails began to flick happily.  "Oh wow!  You're so lucky!  And you're a twin as well?!  It must be great to have siblings you can talk and play with~"  His voice was soft and wishful.  He'd taken on a childlike attitude at her mention of her siblings.  Being an only child as he was, he'd always wanted a brother or a sister he could grow up with...  It would have been such a better experience growing up for him.  

What was even more exciting, she'd said they each could control an element it seemed.  Though it only fueled his thoughts of magical blood.  Elemental magical blood - if that was even possible.  In his mind it was.  And he was beginning to think that perhaps they'd been brought up without the whole truth of their magical abilities; hidden truths of their talents that were purposely left out of their upbringing.  Master Orestes had sometimes talked of such instances where magic was frowned upon and often kept quiet about to those children possessing the talent so they wouldn't pursue it further.  In fact, Master Orestes had said that was why he had taken him in, so he wouldn't forget about his roots...  Maybe they'd forgotten about theirs and were just lost and confused about it all now?

[Lvl. 3 -- 10]

[Jaykobell]

Malka frowned at Ruben's reply concerning the dragons. Clearly, they were almost from two entirely different worlds. "They're rare creatures who stay out of humans' business," she clarified, her frown not so much showing irritation, but thoughtfulness. "They live in a rocky mountain... It's gigantic. It's filled with caves, and that's where they live. The mountain is called the Dragon Hive." There were so many caves and holes and tunnels in that mountain that the first thing that had come to mind was a hive, at the time. The name had stuck since, even though the dragons didn't quite care for a name to begin with; it was but a reference marker for maps. "The area isn't restricted, so of course, you know how to reach it if you can read a map," she added, tails wagging slow. "But out of respect, humans don't approach it." But knowing Ruben... That crazy kid might just want to go there. She wanted to bite her tongue for admitting she knew where it was, but it was already too late.

And if it wasn't the dragons, it was her mention of siblings. Malka raised an eyebrow in pure confusion at his words. While it wasn't something she'd never heard of — people thinking she was, "so lucky to have siblings" — she couldn't agree with their thought-process. "I guess," she replied apathetically before her eyes darkened. "But now that you know what we've gone through, I don't think you could use the word 'lucky.' The more siblings we have, the more experiments those scientists get." She frowned some more, going from confusion to torment. "I don't care what that gene is. What I do care about is that they purposefully get my father to father more children to get more experiments. We're just a few of the countless children he's had with countless women." In that sense, having siblings was actually a curse, and far from being a blessing.

After she'd replied to everything, something clicked in her head. So she'd been regurgitating all this information about her and what she knew, including some tidbits about her "culture;" but what had Ruben told her? "What about you?" she suddenly asked him, with an ear twitching. "I've told you more about me than I've ever told anyone. How about you tell me about your 'culture'?"

[SkyWolf11]

[ You can kill me for the wait now.  Dx; ]

Ruben's eyes lit up as Malka told him of this curious cave of the dragons.  "Oh really?!  You know where they are?"  He thought about what she had said.  The way she had said it suggested she had seen this cave before.  Well, hopefully.  Now he really wanted to go there!  A chance to meet real dragons!  How cool was that!?  

A smile, one of a fairly sly nature, spread across his maw as his tails flicked slowly.  "You know ... we're not humans... not technically.~", he purred suggestively.  In his mind, since they were Kuhna, perhaps it wouldn't be seen as disrespectful if they so happened to pay the dragons a visit.  The thought was just too inticing; he had to try!  Though whether or not the female would even consider taking him there was million dollar question here.

And as he listened to her tell of her situation with her siblings, Ruben began to feel sad for the female.  Her expression as she spoke said it all.  But in a strange, possibly twisted way, he still counted her as lucky to have them.  Even if they were there because horrible means, at least they were still there... right?  Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, Ruben would never be able to relate to her in that sense.  So he was at a loss for further words on the subject for the moment.

At the sudden change in topic, Ruben snapped to attention with a start.  "My culture?", he mewed thoughtfully, mowing the question over in his head slowly.  Master Orestes would certainly protest against telling random strangers of their 'culture', but it was only fair since she'd told him so much of hers, yes?  Yes.  With a warm smile Ruben stood and stretched his muscles.  "Mmm ... alright.  What would you like to know?~"  What Master Orestes didn't know wouldn't hurt him...

[Lvl. 3 -- 11]

[Jaykobell]

Malka's face became convoluted when Ruben started commenting about the dragons again, this time literally harassing her to bring him there. Pretty much. A soft growl started rumbling in her throat as Ruben purred and tried to coax her into leading him to the dragons' home. "Pets, humans, Spiders, nobody has any business with the dragons," she repeated again, hoping something would end up sticking in Ruben's thick head. "And why should I show you there? I just told you you can find the Hive if you can read a map." Hey, it's not like he was the only one who knew, right? If anything, the dragons would tell him to get lost and they would chew him up a bit. But she'd warned him, so whatever would happen to him wouldn't be her fault.

Thankfully, he didn't reply about the siblings. The less they would talk about it, the better. "Just tell me whatever," she replied to his question concerning that she wanted to know. "Like what your magic thing is, for one. I explained to you how our powers work, so how about you tell me about how yours work." It was only fair. Not to mention, maybe Ruben's magic thing would be interesting or even helpful to them.

[ If Ruben wants to meet the Dragons... Feel free to plan stuff. 8U; I don't mind. Heehee. He so funny. ]

[SkyWolf11]

This time, the male fluffed up and twisted his expression into a pout as he shot the female a stubborn look.  "Oh come on!  Please?  We don't even have to stay long!", he begged, now hoping his big ol' puppydog eyes that he was batting at her would win her over.  "And I don't want to go by myself!  It's more fun when you have someone else with you!  Don't you want to see a dragon too?  Even if you've already seen one, they're just awesome I bet!"  Cleary, Ruben wasn't going to let this chance slip away easily.  As Orestes had often told him, he had enough stubborness to kill a mule.  

Tell her whatever?  Well alright - he could do that.  There was lots to tell!  So where should he begin?  Perhaps with what she most curious about.  His magic.  Hmm ... that would be a tough one.  How did one explain magic to someone else?  But, regardless, he would try his best to put it in understandable terms.  "Well...", he started, looking up as if waiting for the answer to come to him, "Magic is ... well, sort of like what you can do!  In a way."  He smiled.  "I guess you can call it a kind of power that not many have.  It can be good or dangerous, depending on how one chooses to use it.  I was always taught that magic was in the blood and soul.  Only the strong and determined could harness it and bend it to their will."  He looked at her with a hopeful expression.  He had tried to word it best he could.  "So, in order to use magic, one must first have it in their blood.  Hence where the term 'blood talent' comes from.  Almost all magic-using folk have the blood in them but I think I remember Master telling me that there are other means of obtaining magic.  Some but not many I'm sure.  Or at least I haven't heard of any yet.  But anyways, just having the blood for it is not enough.  You have to train lots and learn all sorts of things in order to use it right!  Like me!  Master Orestes is giving me special training and teaching me all sorts of new spells and potions for all kinds of things.~"  That was a good explanation, right?

[Lvl. 3 -- 12]

[ xD  Oh he does.  He's stuck on it now.  hehe  Poor Malka.  He's gonna pester her until she agrees to take him.  xP]

[Jaykobell]

Malka gritted her teeth when Ruben continued to press her. "I have not seen a dragon before," she hissed through gritted teeth, her eyes narrowing to slits. How much more time would she need to waste with him? She'd already told Ruben, very clearly, that dragons weren't just huge flying lizards in her "culture;" so why was he trying to step all over it? Out of respect, the humans didn't meddle with the dragons' business. "Look. I already told you how it works. If you want to upset them and get chewed by a dragon, then be my guest, but I'm not interested. So you either get a map yourself, or you go alone."
There, maybe that would stick in his thick skull. How stubborn — or stupid? — could you be? And she thought her twin was obnoxious... Malte sure had a rival now.

Her eyes narrowed when he started explaining his magic; this time out of curiosity and not out of anger. "Hmr," was all she replied at first as she processed the information. "So your magic is within the blood..." Admittedly... now that he was explaining it... it was strangely similar to their own curse. Their elements came from their particular gene, but still. Fact remained that some of the Schatten children had the elements, but they were dormant. "So anyone can have that blood you're talking about? Or is just among certain families?" Just to compare further. If the child didn't come from Schatten himself, it wouldn't inherit the gene — and even then, sometimes the gene didn't pass on.

[SkyWolf11]

"More reason to go with me!", he quickly put in with a small stomp.  If he hadn't have found this girl so interesting then he probably would just head out alone.  But meeting people out here wasn't exactly a daily occurance.  Especially other Kuhna.  Wintery mountains weren't exactly teeming with people...  He couldn't believe that she didn't want to see one of these dragons.  Regardless of their differences, he had to believe that curiousity had no boundaries within worlds; everyone was exposed to it just the same!  Ruben was just excited about the whole possibility.  So much so that, though it really wasn't his intention, perhaps he was being disrespectful.  That daggerish look in her eyes made sure that fact was not lost and he backed off a bit.  But ... he still wanted to go.  And with her!  Why he was so stuck on it for though he wasn't really sure but he didn't want to change his mind now.

Back on the subject of his magic, his mood lightened.  He flicked an ear in thought at her question.  "Er, well, yes and no.  I mean, not everyone will have it in their blood, of course...  So I don't think just anyone could possess the ability if that's what you mean... but the history of magic goes way back.  I've seen quite a few documents of families and bloodlines listed that are known to have been exposed to it.  It could be scattered all over the place, I think."  He smiled.  Master had told him once that magic could be surpressed over many generations but could still show strong along down the line.  Hence why he said it could be everywhere.  Some people didn't even know of their bloods history.  One could live their whole life with the ability to perform magic and never know it.  It really all just depended on that person's circumstances he guessed.  "And there are certain families that are well known for their magical prowess in our culture.  Not many, but strong bloodlines they are indeed.~"

[Lvl. 3 -- 13]

[Jaykobell]

While glaring at him at finally toned Ruben's excitement down, Malka knew he still wanted to go meet the dragons. She had to be honest: she, too, was sickeningly curious about them. Everyone wanted to see, meet, talk to a dragon... they were the closest descendants to their God. Who didn't want to meet something akin to a deity? Still, one had to respect the rules, and that's what Malka was doing. She figured not replying to Ruben's excited stubbornness would save her from debating that topic any further. But just like her twin, Malka could feel Ruben wouldn't just drop it... he would start nagging again later. For now, however, she was going to give him the silent treatment.

As Ruben explained the magic concept further, Malka narrowed her eyes. Not out of dislike or frustration, but out of curiosity and wonder. She was baffled by this magic Ruben was speaking of, since nobody could use elements without those special coins, as she'd already told him. "That's really.. weird." She didn't know what else to say. People who were born with a special blood that allowed them to use that sort of power? "So... you don't think... people who can manipulate elements are freaks?" She wanted to add, "People like me?" but she thought against it. "You don't think they're 'abnormal'?"

[SkyWolf11]

Ruben pouted again when she seemed to ignore him at the mention of going again.  Instead she'd chose to focus on his talk of magic.  Okay... so it was like that, huh?  He'd let her off the hook for now...but be assured, he wouldn't forget!  No way.  He was dead set on those creatures now so he'd be sure to nag her more once it came to light once again.  

"Weird?", he echoed.  "I don't think it is."  Then again, why would he?  It had occured to him that 'normal' people might see it as such, but Malka wasn't normal.  And there wasn't anything weird about that.  Normal was boring anywho.  He'd always wondered why people wished to live normal lives - that he'd heard often.  Wouldn't life be more fulfilling if it was unpredicatable and exciting?  

"Freak?  Oh no!", he shook his head vigorously.  He hated that word.  "Freak is just a stupid term people call others who are just a little different from them."  There was a clear hint of anger in his tone.  It was a touchy subject, actually.  Not that he'd been called one before, not having much contact with people and all, but he knew many magic users that had been.  With an accepting personality like his, he couldn't understand why people were so defensive and even cruel to others' differences.  "Being able to do things like manipulating elements and using magic are just a few things that help make us unique.  That's how I see it.  Nothing bad about it."  He shrugged matter of factly.

[Lvl. 3 -- 14]

[Jaykobell]

By the time she'd asked her question and was waiting for Ruben to answer, Malka had started scribbling with a paw, looking down at the ground. She wasn't doodling anything in particular, just lines and circles that meant nothing; that just translated into generic boredom. And admittedly... that also translated into generic anxiety.

Her ears, curled back against her skull, tweaked when Ruben answered her. She glanced at him with her head lowered, her eyes both unsure, doubtful, and relieved. She eventually looked up to stand straight. "That's true," she started, though her own tone wasn't all that cheerful either, "but that's not how the world is. Being different isn't any 'exciting.' It gets you into trouble and doesn't make your life any more exciting or wonderful." As someone who'd only seen abuse and nothing short of cruelty, she couldn't accept those technicalities. She could acknowledge them, but she couldn't accept or see them. People weren't actually that open-minded and accepting. Ruben was just... He was just...

She was frowning — thinking about a suiting adjective — until her face suddenly changed. She suddenly stared at Ruben, silent, with her eyes wide. "You said... Some people have the blood, but they can't use magic or know how to use it or that they even possess the talent..." Well, it wasn't word for word, but that was pretty much it, right? Still, an idea was starting to form in her head... A theory. "You said I was using magic... You mistook my powers for magic..." She paused for a minute, the little hamster in her head spinning the wheel faster than ever. Ruben had mistaken her powers for that so-called "magic"... She's disagreed and argued that she wasn't using magic. Of course, Malka had done her homework and studied why those scientists had experimented on her and her siblings... She knew more about those "special coins" than she let on.

She sprung on all four, almost dashing straight into Ruben. "You!" She called him out rather loudly, despite the two being right next to each other. The volume of her voice, though, seemed to be coming from... curiosity, and from an idea that had formed in her head. "Would you come with me? I'll show you where I live with my other siblings, and you can help me with something. You're the only one I've ever met that can use that magic so freely... Only you can help me." Talk about melodramatic. "It sounds out-there, but I have no other way of putting it." She sheepishly admitted, her expression changing accordingly. Still, only he could help her with that idea. And he was an okay guy, so he would be fine with it, right?

[ Oho, exciting. *^* Also Ruben, you unexpectedly got an opening to nag her some more again. >:u Don't say I don't love you. >8c ]

[SkyWolf11]

Ruben scrunched his nose up when Malka had said being different wasn't exciting.  Of course it was!  Differences crafted a person, be it through abilities and even personality!  Sure, you could get into trouble if you had made a bad decision or something, he supposed, but most of the time it made life fun!  He was beginning to wonder if she even knew the meaning of the word...  Life might not always be fun and games but there were times when you had to chill out and enjoy the good things it offered.  When was the last time she had, he wondered...  Or if she had at all.  Oh no, that just wasn't right!  He'd have to show her how fun it could be!  

His thoughts of dragging her off on some adventure were broken as her expression took a curious turn.  His own eyes growing wide at her sudden change, Ruben nodded slowly.  "Yeeeeesss...?" , he said in a slow drawn out mew, almost a hiss.  Just what was she getting at?  Though he still thought that she knew magic...  But .. he'd avoid that little argument again for now...

And he definitely wasn't expecting her to lunge at him like she did.  So it was only natural that he jumped backwards and ... fell right on his face.  Scrambling to get back up, he looked at her like she'd lost her marbles.  Why was she yelling at him?!  "What?!" , he yelled back surprised.  When she offered to take him not only to her house, but for him to help her, of course he jumped at the chance!  And the way she'd worded it.  Well, it made him feel like a super hero.  Silly as it was, it gave him more incentive to go with her!  There wasn't even a second thought.  Quickly shoving his nearly forgotten satchel full of obsidian chunks up under a nice sized rock, he turned back to Malka with a determined look on his face.  
"Of course I'll help!  And maybe later on we can go see those dragons!" , he innocently added.  Nope, still hadn't forgotten.  

[Lvl. 4 -- 15]

[ Lawlz  :U ]