Sitting With the Dragon|~Open~

[ARADIA PETERSON]

Aradia sat with the dragon that guarded the Golden Fleece. It didn't think she was a threat to the fleece after she'd bribed it with a program to make it immune to poison, i.e. giving it tiny doses to build up immunity. Aradia still had to keep Alamo, her rooster, a safe distance from the dragon, though.
At the moment the little demigod was mixing poisons and evaluating them. Finally, she had created a replacement for that old Compound 1080 she'd lost. Compound 1080, or 10-80. Water Soluble, Tasteless, Scentless, and without an antidote. Plus, chemically stable so it would stay in the environment for tops of two hundred years, everything it infected would die a slow painful death. And only a tiny bit, an eight hundredth of a gram, could kill an adult human. A truly gruesome poison which she only kept a tiny bit of. She wasn't a murderer, she just collected and loved poison. Aradia petted her rooster, looked fondly at the dragon, and continued mixing poison in vials.

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

Dustin walked towards the boundary of camp-half blood, he didn't want to be here, and he was so angry about the many things that was going on, and he knew that he had to leave, or well at least find somewhere he was comfortable and this was where he felt the most comfortable, but this time there was someone there. Someone he had barely thought would be there.'Oh great another person...this is all I need right now... ' He didn't want to be friends with anyone and the fact that there was someone where he usually came to cool off was something he had not expected.

He wanted to approach her but right now he didn't know if that was such a good idea. She seemed to be doing something and he wasn't quite sure he wanted to interfer with it, and plus that dragon was a bit harsh to him when other people were around. When it was just him and the dragon, there was no problems but with others around he just didn't seem to get along with the dragon and he was also way to nervous about meeting other people, but he shook his head to get rid of that feeling and walked over to her.

"What are you doing?" he didn't look right over her shoulder, but he knew she was making something, but what was she making, and why was she out here doing this. Not many kids came out here, at least not to do that. Most of them were out here for patrols which was what he had come out here for the first time, and he was so sure that he was always the only one out there, and he knew that this was going to be a bit wierd but he had to at least talk to her. His swords were at his side as they always were, even though he probably wouldn't need them in this camp talking to this girl who was hiding in his area and was making things a bit wierd. "Um...can I sit down?"

[ARADIA PETERSON]

Aradia jumped when she noticed the newcomer, Alamo ran and hid behind her, burying his head under her arm. She capped the vial she held, with a weak right hand. The stupid hand, stupid old wound, stupid old life. She was fooling herself, she'd loved the old life. But it was different now, however, she could find blessings even in a bleak situation like hers.
Aradia was even more shocked when he asked her what she was doing, most people at camp knew all too well that she was a 'Poison Master' and tended to stay away.
"I'm uhh... mixing poisons. That's all. Please don't run away, and yes, sit down. I really won't hurt you with it, I promise," Aradia muttered. She hadn't expected anyone to be around here, it was where she came to escape to a quiet place without snickers and rumors of the 'murderess,' a place to sit and be herself. She'd only ever seen people here on patrol, maybe she and the boy were the same but were on opposite schedules, after all, she was usually here at night. Still, it was shocking. The dragon lifted its head, as if welcoming the boy. Then he must have been a commoner here. Aradia calmed her rooster and herself, it was alright if the dragon thought it was alright.

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

Dustin watched with a foreign curiosity, he had never watched someone make potions before but well he has many things he liked to do. He sighed and sat down looking at her wondering why she was out here by herself. He had never seen her before, and they had managed to avoid each other since the came at different times, because they barely know anything about it. He came out here a lot when he was angry but now that there was someone else out here, he didn't know if he wanted to stay here, and why he had to deal with it. "So you come out here often?" He wasn't good at starting conversations but he was going to do his best, since it was all he really could do. He was blushing slightly but he shook his head looking away for a moment trying to understand and not let her see his face.

He was unsure of anything here, he was a demi-god, but yet he barely had any signs of that fact, or even of who his father was, and he knew that no one would tell him, so he had to find it out. That was always one of the questions he asked, and that was becuase his father was the one who mattered to him, and he wanted to find out who he was. 'I need to find things out...why am I out here?' He couldn't believe he had just thought that after all the time of wanting friends, it was hard to believe he was shoving them away just because of research. "So um...you have a rooster?" he looked at the rooster putting out his hand not trying to scare him, he just wanted him to get closer so he could touch him, since he really loved animals.

[ARADIA PETERSON]

Aradia slid her vial into her utility belt as they boy sat down. She'd seen him in passing at random times, but had never spoken to him. As he questioned her, one of the vials containing her poison began to bubble, she calmed the glass with a splash of water from the larger vial full she always kept around. She hadn't noticed the chemical compounds going haywire in that one... she really was getting rusty.
"Yeah, I'm out here a lot, usually at night, though. It's cooler, better for the poisons, and not as many people are out to tease me or be scared." She looked at the boy, then her pet, and the dragon.
"Uhh... yes, his name's Alamo. I'm Aradia by the way." Alamo raised his hackles, and was about to peck the male demigod but Aradia stopped him. She picked the black rooster up and calmed him, rubbing him underneath his feathers. She offered the bulky chicken to the boy. He clucked broodily, but was non-aggressive.

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

Dustin laughed slightly reaching out to the bird again, running his hands over the birds feathers. "Wow that's cool I like animals a lot, but well wasn't allowed to have them...." he didn't think he would have liked this as much as he did now, but then again he was just getting into this life. "So how long have you been at this camp?" He didn't want to call this camp his home yet because he had to deal with a lot of stuff and this place might not be his home, at least that was what his parents had said the last time he had talked to them. He cracked his neck slightly a nervous look was on his face, but then it began to fade, and he was waiting for a lot of things.

"Why would people tease you? You are so cool, I don't see why they would tease you..." he knew the words had come out of his mouth, but that was not something he could believe he had actually said as usual with him. He said something that he didn't think he had said or couldn't believe he had said, but that was just the way he was and there was nothing he could really do about it because of who he was and why he was here and what not, that was just the way he was, and there was just going to have to be people who got used to that. "I still don't see why they would tease you...they should look at the positive stuff not the negative..." [/color]

[ARADIA PETERSON]

Oh... he was being friendly. Good sign. Maybe she could become friends with this boy. Yay! She was meeting more and more people. But he was refusing to introduce himself... still, he complimented her chicken. So he had to be nice.
"I wasn't really supposed to raise animals either, because I lived on fair grounds and moved a lot. Though some of the rennies did keep dogs and cats. I got Alamo when he was a chick, from the petting zoo at the fair just before Dad and I settled down." Aradia sighed and laid down on the soft grass to watch the clouds. The dragon snorted a puff of smoke and Alamo came and nestled in the crook of her arm.
"I've been at camp... not long, a few months. Dad and I settled down after... well after I had an accident and I stopped being able to work. After that I just kinda... got here."

Shock crossed Aradia's features as she got the compliment.
"Th-thank you. I don't know why they tease me. Yeah, positive instead of negative. My dad always said 'you create your own reality, so make it a good one.' Positive stuff just makes you happier and life go by easier! Every mushroom cloud has a silver lining."

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

"people like to tease someone for being different, but you know what who cares what they think...be who you want to be.." his father had told him that, when he was younger and had come back from school crying because the other kids were teasing him. Looking at himself know he couldn't believe he had been a crybaby when he was little, but it was also funny. "Really? Well he seems to like you...and it's always good to have friends who can be there for you...when you can't be there for yourself." he was speaking from personal experience and well just because he felt like it was advice that this girl seemed like she needed to hear.

He had been teased alot as a kid and he was still teased now, so he knew for the most part what she was talking about, but he didn't want her to think that he was just someone who was going to use her for what she was worth and then ditch her. "Well we should hang out more...you are a really cool person...and don't listen to what those others say." he smiled and laughed again, as he laid down looking up at the sky, the clouds always made shapes for him and he really loved looking at them and talking about the shapes. "Do you ever take the time to just look at the clouds? They are always the things you can turn to, and just watch..." he hoped he didn't sound cheesy but it was something he had always said, because that was true and he wasnt' hiding it at all. But part of him wanted to hide it, but he had to be strong because he could help them, well all the others who needed it like the girl who was sitting next to him.

[ARADIA PETERSON]

Aradia smiled as she took the boy's advice. She'd heard it all before, but not worded quite the poetic way he'd made it sound.
"Yes, a true knight will never leave their friends. It's part of the code, number four. Loyalty. Oh my, I'm such a weirdo, aren't I? Most people don't recite the Knights' Code, do they? I'm sorry. I hope I'm not bothering you with my weirdness." Aradia blushed, embarrassed, and looked away.

She smiled lightly at the compliment, "Yeah, you seem like the nicest person I've met here so far. You haven't once laughed at me." Aradia cast her gaze again to the clouds. They were turning gold, pink, and purple in the setting sun's rays.
"I love watching the clouds, especially at this time of day. Oh, look, a rabbit!" Aradia giggled, pointing.

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

He looked at the rabbit smiling, he didn't see animals very much, but he was so happy looking at the bunny. He didn't know why she was saying what she did, but then she was good and nice to him. "Well you know life happens and you are not a wierdo, you are just being you, and that is how life is..." He was always one for realizing that he had to be himself, and he hoped she would listen to. 'She is such a cute girl...and maybe just maybe I can be her friend....' He smiled and looked up at the clouds reaching out as if he wanted to touch the cloud. "You know we could be a good team if we tried..." he was opening up part of his heart to her, the part he had hidden for many years.

He was going to deal with the few things and he cared and he hoped that she was strong and she was well the one who had talked to him."I will only laugh if the person laughs too...It is not my philosphy to laugh at someone unless they are laughing to..." He had so many people laughing at him, and he knew that she was just like him, and he could barely think right now. " The knight's code? Where did you learn that?" He knew the code of the martial artists, but he knew none of the other codes because no one ever bothered to teach him. "I think we have a lot to teach to each other..."

[ARADIA PETERSON]

"Oh, the Knights' Code... I worked at Renaissance fairs until my hand stopped working a while ago." Aradia paused her speech just long enough to remember everything he'd said, "Really? You'll teach me things? How about you're name? And I'm not a very good team person, I tend to drag people's popularity and reputation." He seemed interested in being friends. Score. She couldn't contain the happiness. It was amazing. A true, natural smile touched her face. It lit her amber eyes, the eyes she was hiding for the sake of seeming more normal, behind brown color-contacts. If they were going to be friends, she wouldn't hide things, she decided.
"This will seem random, but my eyes aren't really brown. I don't wanna hide stuff from you if we can be friends... That is if being friends is okay with you." Aradia turned away and removed the contacts, then turned back with an apologetic red gaze.
"I know, they're kind of ugly... but they're the real color."

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

"Wow....That's so cool I walked past the fairs all the time but my mom would never let me go..." He liked how she was, and who she was. He laughed slightly looking at his hands, then back up at the clouds. "We can work together I like teaching people...and well then again haha..." He laughed again at how he was making a fool of himself. "My name is Dustin Leon Meyers..." He had never bothered to say his full name to anyone, but he felt comfortable with her. He looked at her as she spoke wondering why she seemed to be fidgeting.

But he wasn't going to ask, he was going to let her tell him on her own, and it suprised him when she told him now, becuase he had not expected it. "Your eyes aren't...wow...but you know what they are pretty if you showed them off more, it would be really nice..." He shivered a bit. "You know..your eyes make you look really pretty...." He looked into her eyes, his eyes glittering with an unknown excitement and curiosity. This was one of the parts of him he never showed to anyone and he was going to show it to her. "This is going to be a great friendship..." he smiled, he was a bit afraid of showing her anything, but then again she would find eventually anyway.

His mind was so confused and he was so unsure of anything at all. He wanted to stay with her forever, even if it was just as friends... She was the one who actually talked to him. "So do you have anyone here at camp? or is it just you?" He sighed and wondered what was going on...but his heart felt very confused and he was very happy, and what not, but he was going to do his best. He had never had friends with her and he could not live with it, and plus he wanted to have friends, and he wanted to have her hang around with him forever, and he would like to meet her family, if she had any."So wait why did you come here?"

[ARADIA PETERSON]

"Really? We should get a camp pass and I'll take you sometime. It would be amazing. I can introduce you to King Henry, my father was a knight and weapon-smith so he was very influential in the jousts, even if they were all staged. Oh, and my aunt, she does henna. Oh, now I'm going to need you to come. Am I boring you? Sorry." Aradia paused as he gave her his full name and reassurance, then continued, "I like it, your name. It fits you, Dustin means 'Thor's Stone' and Thor was a strong, brave god. So stone would just enforce that, and Leon means 'lion' another brave warrior with an extreme dependency on family and friends. And the English version of Meyers means 'physician or healer.' So I'd say, judging by your name, you're a very good team person with a great deal of loyalty." Aradia grinned, maybe that had been a bit too much, but still, she loved interpreting names.

The amber eyed girl's cheeks flushed to match her hair.
Th-they don't freak you out? Aradia stuttered, she'd always thought of her eyes as her worst trait, "You really don't think they're scary or ugly or whatever?" She calmed slightly as their eyes met and he reassured her of the fact they could be friends. She nodded enthusiastically, vanishing the blush that, in her opinion, made her look just as bad as her eyes.

Her head was whirling, some mixture of happiness and excitement. Another new friend! Yay! A growing bond always made her feel warm inside. Then he asked her about people here. N-no, I'm just... It's just me and Alamo. I've got no siblings here, so... I guess I've got no one unless... Aradia looked away, ready for rejection for her boldness, "Unless you really can consider us friends. Then I suppose I could answer 'I've got you.'"

Aradia looked off, across camp, then pointed at the beach. "Well, I didn't come here on my own will, that's for sure... well the story's complicated, but I got into an accident and got a bad scar that acts up sometimes. The wound was still relatively young then, and I blacked out 'cuz I'm a wimp with pain." Here the redhead lied, but she didn't want to seem like she had that bad of an injury. Anyway, I just blacked out and woke up on the beach. Why? How'd you get here?"

[DUSTIN MEYERS]

"Um no you aren't boring me...It's just a lot to take in..." He had only seen those fairs before, he had never really learn about them, and he really wanted to learn, so he took the time to listen to her, even when it was a bit confusing. He wanted to know more about her and he was asking his questions slowly but surely even if he really felt like he would, he knew that he would. He was so interested in what she was talking about. "wow my name has a lot of meanings I wonder if mom knew that when she named me..." he laughed again thinking over what his name meant, part of it was true, but not all of it to him was actually true.

"Your eyes are pretty...they don't freak me out... I don't see how they would..." He couldn't understand why they would scare people, his eyes now that he could understand but hers, that had to be a total different, not true story at all. He liked her eyes and he wished that others could see what he did in her eyes, and in the way she acted. "well we are friends...and we will always be...this is how it is supposed to be..." he laughed again, moving over a bit, whistling slightly. He could tell she wasn't telling him the full truth about the wound but he didn't worry about it. "So you got hurt...ow....well ya know pain hurts people a lot, and you can't really say you are a wimp, even the strongest would probably pass out from it..." He wanted her to tell him the truth, but he wasn't going to push it out of her.

[ARADIA PETERSON]

"You're amazing, Dustin Leon Meyers, you really are. I can’t believe I met someone as caring as you here, everyone else is all emo. It’s sad really, that no one here finds the good stuff about their situations.” That natural grin swept Aradia away again. She exhaled happily, then started laughing. It was rare Aradia had a chance to laugh, so it was a child’s laugh that hadn’t had the chance grow yet. She didn’t know why she was laughing, she was just happy to be around him. It was a warm happiness that brought back nostalgia of the fairs, memory of when she’d sit with the knights and laugh to her heart’s content. Memories flooded her mind, of the days when her father had been so much happier, when she’d been so much happier. That was when the tears came, tears she couldn’t have held back any longer. She looked up apologetically at Dustin, not wanting to speak for the fear that her voice would die in her throat. She desperately wiped at the tears with her left hand, relying on the weak right one to keep her up. Aradia couldn’t stop the flow, the tears continued coming.