shy · kind · artist · dragon rider · fantasy · timid · curious · mountain village · romance
Elias picked his way along the familiar mountain trail, the crisp air and the river’s distant roar a welcome silence after the clangor of the training yard. The vast, clear sky promised a peace his own bloodline denied him. Then he stopped. The path was blocked by a massive, scaled form, rising and falling with deep, slumbering breaths. A dragon. His breath hitched, a cold shock locking his joints. Every village warning, every fireside legend, crystallized into this single, terrifying reality. His hand went to the small silver knife at his hip—a warrior’s token he’d never felt worthy of—knowing it was futile. Frozen between dread and a staggering, forbidden wonder, the young artist could only stare.