A Good Person
Warning: The following contains consensual male dragon cub/human (see argument made in Convicts Part 6 disclaimer) anal and oral sex. BUT(T*)! It's different this time**! This time, the human is the dominate one. WHA~!?
* By adding an extra "T", the word becomes a pun based on the mention of anal sex in the sentence previous.
** compared to previous dragon/human sex scenes of my own design***
*** The statement is a footnote
"Well boys, look who it is!" the Neanderthal at the end of the hallway called. "It's that little ass wipe who beat down Darrin last week. Why don't we get some revenge for him?"
The overconfident beast lumbered towards him, flanked on either side by two much smaller subordinates. All three of them had just left a grade nine basic math class, which was still a stretch of their combined intelligences, even when they were currently dragging a grade twelve standard. He didn't how they managed to move up the grade ladder each year, but he supposed that some congratulations were in order. It would be slightly sarcastic and condescending, of course, but if those apes down the hall could prove that they were, in fact, not apes, than they deserved praise.
"You going to say something?" It asked, coming within a meter of his intended target. A target that was well above his ability, but there was no harm done in trying. No harm done, yet.
He said nothing.
It closed the distance further, it's flat, roundish face coming unbearably close to his. It towered over him at six and a half feet to his five foot nine, and probably had at least twenty pounds over him, too. That may have been a cause for concern if it had any dexterity, speed, or intelligence. And because it didn't, victory was unattainable for it.
"Darren got a two week suspension because of you," it growled. "I should put you in the hospital for twice that."
"Might I remind you that Darren threw the first punch," he replied calmly, watching with well-masked amusement as its jugular vein bumped out a half-inch further than it should have.
"Like hell he did!" It shouted, drawing the attention of any remaining students who hadn't already sensed the impending slaughter. Its right hand balled into a thick fist and came back over its shoulder before plowing forward in the general direction of his face. He saw it coming a mile away, and as the fist came in front of his face, his body reacted. His left hand came into the path of the hand and centered itself, and as the fist impacted it, it closed and drop a bit, the force dissipating smoothly through his arm. By the end of the second, he stood with the creature's fist in his own, much smaller hand, and a look of shock occupying the faces of most of the spectators.
"Care to try again?" he asked.
The second fist came, and it was caught in the same manner as the first. He now had it entirely restrained in his grip, and it was time for his counterattack. It was massively top-heavy, that was for certain, so his hands dropped and came to rest in front of its chest. With a single step forward, his arms powered his open palms straight at his attacker, the impact causing it to lose balance and begin to stumble backward. And as its leg came up, he dropped, getting his own foot caught behind it and pulling forward. The beast gave a surprised yelp as it was suddenly turned horizontal to the floor, and dropped to it with a dull thud. He also heard the most miniscule of cracks above the ensuing grunt and gasp, and hoped beyond hope that it was its coccyx shattering into thousands of fragments.
"What's going on out here?" A voice suddenly called from a doorway just down the hall from where he stood. It was one of the teachers, the grade eleven history teacher, to be exact. He took one look out the doorway, saw the large, brutish student lying on the ground, his two goons backing away slowly, and that was all he needed. "For god's sake, Matt. Not again."
"I assume the vice principal will be prepared for my arrival," Matt said, turning away and heading down the hallway towards the stairs.
****
"So, Matt, how are you feeling today?" The vice principal asked as he sat down in the chair across from him. Matt was sure that the chair was beginning to mold to his shape, and would probably have to buy it whenever the school got closed down. It was a ratty place, with old lockers, old desks, and old chairs. It was pretty old across the board.
"Tolerant," Matt replied simply.
"Is that even an emotion?" he asked.
"You asked me how I felt. I feel that I can tolerate what you are about tell me, therefore, I feel tolerant."
The middle-aged man eyed him for a moment before sighing in resignation. "Matt, why did you beat up Mr. Yurrick?"
"If you would care to reference the security tape from camera six, located in that hallway, you will see that 'Mr. Yurrick' was the instigator. I was merely acting in self-defense."
"That's what you say every time this happens," he said.
"And, despite this being the sixth incident, my record is still spotless. Zero suspensions."
There was a pause as the vice principal eyed him again. Matt could see it in his eyes, the man was going to do something that was unjust. There was a look of intensity, as if he had been planning this, and you don't plan justice with that kind of intensity.
"Spotless, until now, Matt," the man replied. "I'm placing you on three months suspension, the standard two weeks for all six incidents. Or-"
"Let me get this straight," Matt began, "You'd rather ruin the record of your best student, the only person left bringing funding to this school, than deal with the rampant gang-mentalities running through this school? Is that what you're telling me?"
"Let me finish, Matt," the vice principal replied. "I will place you on suspension, or, you could visit a psychologist for that same three month period. Three times a week, at the clinic downtown."
"I've been to a psychologist before, he didn't tell me anything I didn't already know," Matt replied.
"Then don't go see her," the vive principal replied with a shrug. "But if you don't, you'll be suspended. And it would take more than your intellect to finish three months' worth of work in the half-month of school left in June."
Matt set his jaw a little more firmly, but other than that, showed no signs of irritation. On the outside, he was as calm as always, but on the inside, it was a different story. The metaphorical teeth in his brain were grinding themselves down to nothing. He had been outmaneuvered this time. He knew that the man before him was firm on his decision, and no amount of cleverly used logic and manipulation could get him out of it.
"Very well then," Matt replied. "If you would give me the address to her office, I'll be sure to attend."
"Good, the appointments have already been arranged for Saturday afternoons, at one o'clock. Don't be late."
"Of course," Matt said. "Will that be all?"
"Yes, Matt, you may go," the man said, and spun his back to Matt with some finality. Matt didn't add anything of his own as he stood up and left the office with a brisk pace. For the first time in a while, he truly felt irritated. He put a bit of a stomp into his step as he turned into the hall and headed towards his psychology class.
****
"Ah, Matt. I'm glad you could join me," a woman sitting on a high-backed black leather chair said as he entered. She was facing towards him, her eyes peering over the rims of her square-framed glasses at him. She had thick, shoulder-length red hair, though the color was fake. It was clearly a ploy to make her seem more professional, but she would need to do a better job hiding the blonde root of her hair if she wanted it to work. All it did was make her look uninterested.
"Listen, I don't mean to sound terse, but I know that you've already read my file, so why don't we skip that oh-so useless first step and start throwing me diagnoses so I can shoot them down." Matt lied. He had meant to be terse.
"You're right about something, I have already read your file. But, this is my office, and you're my patient. Therefore, why don't you sit down and let me do my job, you son of a bitch."
Matt felt his jaw drop at least a half inch, but managed to pick it up again in time to disguise his look of shock as a deep breath. Instead, he merely raised his eyebrows in mock surprise, a small smile twitching across his mouth as he took a seat on the standard-issue burgundy recliner.
"So, Matt," she began, an innocent smile gracing her complexion. It would have fitted her normally, but not after what she'd just said to him. "Can I call you Matthew?"
"You may not," Matt replied sternly, suddenly feeling the urge to take advantage of the recliner's reclining ability. "Not anymore,"
"Explain that," she said, though it was more a command than anything else.
"My parents called me that," Matt replied flatly.
"Ah, the rich and powerful Matthew's parents," she said. "Quite a company they founded, isn't it? A multi-billion dollar corporation, the leader in medical science. It's funds, trickling up the ladder of success, landing in the pocket of some stuck-up little troublemaker."
"I never made trouble," Matt asserted. "I never fought anyone unless they attacked me first. And, I only allow the incidents to occur where there is a security camera watching, so the evidence is on my side."
"Explain to me, why you moved out of your parent's mansion at the age of sixteen, move into an upper-middle class downtown apartment complex, and insist on living on your own."
"I couldn't live in there anymore. Not after what happened," Matt replied.
"Ah, yes, the tragic murder of Mr. and Mrs. Greystroke. Gunned down by a drugged-up psychopath, right in their own living room. I believe he was even high on one of your parent's medicines. We are all truly sorry about their death."
"Don't act like you knew them," Matt said.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Matthew. Am I upsetting you?" she asked.
"I don't get upset," he replied, simply and firmly.
"And that's the problem, isn't it?" she asked. "You don't feel anything yourself, therefore empathy is impossible for you. Nothing you say could possibly upset them, because nothing they say could possibly upset you."
For the first time in a long time, Matt had no response. Every time he went anywhere, he had a dozen different ways out of a dozen different variable situations. But not this one. He couldn't read her. She jumped everywhere, from seemingly compassionate, to analytical, to downright crass. He hated to admit it, but he respected her for this.
"Well, based on your response, or lack thereof, I think we've found the head of the problem. And now that we've cut it off, we can start rooting around inside, and see what kind of guts we can tear up out of that hole. I'll see you next week."
Matt continued to say nothing as he stood up and left the office.
****
As soon as Matt got home, he rushed into the kitchen and grabbed a bag of chocolate-covered almonds that he kept on the counter. It was stocked at all times, just in case of situations when he felt emotionally compromised. He tore the twist-tie that held it away, and began popping them into his mouth, one right after the other. He could immediately feel the endorphins begin to flow through his brain.
"Oh, that's the stuff," he said to himself, and carried the one pound bag with him as he sat down in front of his large, expensive television. As he flipped idly through the roughly four hundred channels, one by one, he thought he heard a thud against his back door.
"It was probably just some stupid bird," he thought, and flipped down to the next channel.
But about a minute later, a very deliberate, rhythmic thumping sound could be heard from the same place. It was sort of like a cat, pawing against a door until someone opened it for them. Matt remembered that there was a cat about five apartments down the hall from him, and deduced that the cat from that unit must have jumped across the balconies without killing itself, and was now trying to get back inside. Well, it would get no sympathy from him. But the thumping continued for a good ten minutes. In fact, it seemed to get louder and harder.
"Please let me in!" A voice suddenly called. Matt jumped up suddenly, nearly ramming his shin straight into the glass coffee table in front of his sofa. The voice was so close, and it definitely wasn't coming from another unit, or from the hallway. It was coming from the balcony.
Matt's head turned slowly towards the balcony door, and what he saw almost gave him a heart attack. Standing there, less than ten feet away from him, was something unreal. Well, it must have been real, because Matt hadn't taken any hallucinogens, but it was something that wasn't supposed to be real. It stood there, covered in sky blue scales and no larger than a beagle. It had an elongated snout, and a long tail which swished back and forth behind it as it stared at him. Its maw was slightly agape, and Matt could see a set of sharp, carnivorous teeth. It had one of its pawed feet up against the glass, and he could see three clawed toes, and what even looked to be thumb-like appendage jutting out the side.
"Please, let me it," it repeated, eyeing Matt pathetically. It wasn't hard for anyone, especially someone as keen as Matt, to know what it was feeling. It looked primarily sad, which lead him to believe that it was also quite scared. And from the looks of it, pretty lonely, too.
"Wh...what are you doing on my balcony?" Matt asked, startled that he had stuttered.
"We were flying, and a gust of wind blew up. I lost control, and landed here," it replied.
"Who's we?" Matt asked.
"My family," it replied.
"Can't you go back to them?" he asked.
It shook its head heavily. "The clouds were getting thicker, and I was spinning as I fell. I have no idea which way they went."
"Didn't you know where you were going in the first place?"
"It was my first migration. I don't know where the grounds are," it replied. "Please, it's getting cold out, and it'll start raining any minute."
Matt continued staring, not moving from where he stood in front of his couch. A minute passed, and when the creature realized that he wouldn't move, tears began to roll down its eyes as droplets of rainwater began to patter against the glass.
"Please," it pleaded. "please,"
As Matt watched the small creature begin to weep, he felt a pang of an unfamiliar emotion inside him. It wasn't hard to identify, as there were only a few things that could be a result of this situation. It was sympathy. He hadn't ever felt it before, and was glad. He didn't like it.
"Do you promise not to eat me?" Matt asked. "I can tell that you eat meat,"
The creature nodded quickly.
Matt sighed, and made his way on quivering legs towards the door. He suddenly wished that it had only been the neighbor's cat, and not some new species suddenly appearing. And as much as he'd love to examine it for scientific purposes, he knew that it wouldn't work. This creature was clearly sentient, and if he'd learned anything from science-fiction movies, you don't experiment on sentient species. He suddenly found himself in front of the door, and grabbed the handle with a shaky hand. His thumb kicked up the lock, and he slowly pulled the glass door open, followed by the outer screen. As soon as the path was clear, the small creature shot forward into the room and was suddenly around his ankle, nuzzling affectionately at his leg.
"Thank you so much," it said, an odd but still identifiable smile crossing its snout. "I don't want to be alone."
"Well, listen. You can stay here until it clears up outside, and you can get your bearings, and then you have to leave, okay?" Jack asked, kneeling down to look it in the eye.
The creature seemed to be a little less affectionate now, and merely fixed him with a disappointed frown. "But, I don't know where they went," it said.
"I'm sure you do know, and you just don't realize it," Matt replied. "But, it's getting late, and you won't be able to find anyone in the dark. You can sleep on the couch tonight, but by morning, you should go. Okay?"
"Okay..." it replied, looking quite disappointed now. "What's a couch?"
"Oh, right," Matt replied. "It's this thing, over here."
He stood up and led the way towards the sofa. It was long enough and wide enough to fit the creature comfortably if it stretches out, though he had the sinking feeling that it wouldn't be in good condition by morning. As he motioned to the cushion, the creature leapt up onto it and curled up, keeping its small wings held tight to its body.
"What's your name?" it asked as it rested its head on its thigh.
"Umm...Matt," he replied.
The creature blinked in an understanding fashion. "I'm Pobe."
"Pobe," Matt repeated. "What are you, Pobe?"
"I'm a dragon," it replied calmly. "What're you?"
"A human," Matt replied, a little surprised that it hadn't seen one before. They were the most abundant species on the planet. Then again, if no one had seen a dragon before, it was fair to assume that he'd never seen a human before. Especially due to how young he looked.
"Good night, Matt," Pobe said quietly.
"Yeah, good night," Matt replied absently, and left for his own bedroom.
****
"What the hell is sleeping on my couch right now?" Matt thought, staring up at his ceiling as sleep continued to evade him. He had been keenly listening for sounds of the creature, specifically ones that sounded like it coming closer, but after an hour of numbing silence, he'd simply fallen into unrest.
It had said that it was a dragon. That was crazy. Dragons were made-up fairy-tale make-believe crazy person things. But, it was right there, on his couch, and he was certain that he wasn't crazy. Then again, clinically insane people didn't think that they were insane. No, he was not insane. But, there was still a dragon lying on his couch. He'd Google it tomorrow. Someone must have seen one of those things flying around before. He couldn't possibly be the first, not with so many people and planes and satellites everywhere.
A scream suddenly rang out through the apartment, nearly sending Matt out of his bed as he jumped in surprise. Within minutes, thump after thump echoed through his room as the dragon pounded on his door, threatening to bash it down completely.
"Matt! Matt! Matt!" it cried.
"You've got to be kidding me," he groaned, and pulled himself up out of bed to open the door. As soon as the latch was open, the door suddenly flew open, causing him to stumble back, and fall soon after, as the tiny creature was suddenly around his leg. He narrowly missed his bedside table as his head came down, banging against the carpeted floor with a thud and giving him and instant headache. "Uh, what do you want now?"
"I had a bad dream," Pobe whimpered. "Can I sleep with you?"
"Oh, for god's sake," he groaned. He slowly rose to his feet, steading himself on the table as he hauled the dragon up with him. "Will you be quiet if I say 'yes'?"
Pobe nodded, almost pathetically.
"Then, fine," he replied. "Just stay on the right half of the bed,"
He went in first, throwing the blanket down as he crawled to the left side of the bed. Pobe was right behind him, and when they were both settled on the queen-sized mattress, Matt pulled the blanket up to his shoulder. There was a brief moment of struggling and Pobe tried to worm his way free of the blanket that now covered him, but soon enough he simply stopped squirming and finally pressed his belly flat against Matt's turned back.
"What did I just say?" Matt asked quietly.
"Please, I don't want to feel alone," Pobe replied.
"Fine," Matt growled, and gritted his teeth as he felt the dragon nuzzle up against his shoulder. The scales felt warm, almost comforting against his back, but he liked his space, and wasn't very cuddly.
"Thank you, Matt," Pobe said quietly in his ear.
"Go to sleep," Matt replied.
****
Matt awoke groggily. He was always groggy on Sunday mornings, but this one was especially groggy. He guessed that it was the uncomfortable feeling of having someone else in your bed, and having that person wrapped tightly around you as they still slept.
At some point during the night, Matt had rolled over, and Pobe was now grappling tightly to him. His head was draped over his neck, and he could feel his sharp claws pointed into his bare back in four main locations. He should've thought to put some protective clothing on before he got back into bed last night, but he hadn't. And what was probably the most concerning part of the whole situation, Pobe was sporting an erect phallus. Matt has idly wondered what gender someone with the name 'Pobe' would be, but he knew now. It must have been the dragon rubbing against him last night, but regardless, the small dragon was sporting a proportionally large member for one so small and seemingly young. It was currently resting against his own, somewhat flaccid member, but as the weak smell of musk began to rise from beneath the sheets, Matt's body began to betray him, and his own phallus began to fill with blood.
"Mmm, good morning, Matt," Pobe said suddenly, his eyes blinking in the low light of the room. "How are you feeling?"
"A little uncomfortable," he replied uneasily. "You're pretty close right now."
"Are you afraid of me, Matt?" Pobe asked, lifting his head off Matt's shoulder in order to look at him in the eye. "You seem pretty grouchy."
"I'm...just not used to having people here with me," Matt replied. He was surprised, he was opening up to the small creature. Dozens of people of his own species had failed at that, and they had offered him more in terms of material gain. "Especially in my bed, with me."
"When I'm with my family, we all sleep together in the same bed," Pobe replied. "And then in the morning, we help soften each other."
"Soften each other?" Matt repeated. "What do you mean?"
"Here, I'll show you on myself first," Pobe replied enthusiastically. He backed up a half-foot from Matt and ducked his head under the covers, causing Matt to peel them up to reveal him. When he was completely uncovered, Matt stared in shock at what he saw. The little, young dragon was coiled around himself, with his own erect member in its mouth, and was softly sucking.
"Wow, wow, wow. You have sex with each other?" Matt asked, dumbfounded.
"Sex? What's that?" Pobe asked, his member slipping from his mouth with a wet slurp. It landed with a thud against the white slipcover, and Matt cringed and saliva and pre leaked onto it.
"Like...mating" Matt replied, searching for a better term for and animal.
"No, we don't do that," Pobe replied. "We just help each other soften up. It's especially important if you're going flying in the morning, because you don't want to have it dangling under you when you fly."
"And, who told you to do that?" Matt asked.
"Father did," Pobe replied simply.
"And...do you like to do it," Matt asked. Wait, why did he ask that? Did he think that this child shouldn't be having sexual stimulation yet? He was clearly developed enough for it. He guessed that he wanted to know whether this child was being raped or not, at this point.
"Oh, it's great," Pobe replied. "It feels so good when someone does it to you, and it feels nice to do it to them, too. It's especially fun when we all get to help father with his."
"You all help him?" Matt asked. "How many of you are there?"
"I have six brothers and two sisters," Pobe replied. "Only my brother's and I help father."
"You all help him at once?"
"Yep, father is very big,"
"Apparently," Matt replied quietly. So, they have sex for pleasure, and incest is a societal norm? He supposed he shouldn't really be surprised. He always figured that if they discovered another culture, that it would have weird sort of things. And that was certainly weird by his standards.
"Do you want to help me?" Pobe asked suddenly, drawing him from his thoughts.
"Umm, why don't you go ahead," Matt replied.
"Okay, but don't leave," Pobe replied, moving his head back down towards his crotch. "I want to help you, too."
"Oh, um," Matt stumbled.
"Father said that it's good to get close to people that you like." Pobe said finally, and then slipped his member back between his lips.
"Did...did he really mean it like that?" Matt asked, in turmoil as he watched the young dragon pleasure itself.
No response came, the dragon was too deep into its own ministration. Matt could see his small hips buck instinctively upward as he thrust into his own maw, until he finally settled into a mild shake. Matt could see his tongue working against his cheeks as he collected his own sperm, and cleared it with one swallow. After he cleaned himself with a few tender licks, he looked up from shaft and grinned toothily at Matt, showing off the trails of semen still clinging to his lips.
"That's...really something," Matt said, adopting a nervous chuckle he'd never used before. This seemed to be the perfect occasion for it, though.
"Okay, now it's your turn!" Pobe exclaimed excitedly, and stepped right up to where Matt lay on the bed, still frozen in shock from when he had begun. The small dragon stepped between his legs, with his head down by his naked crotch, and took a few experimental inhales of his scent. "You smell funny. Kinda like fish."
"Fish?" Matt asked.
"Yeah," Pobe replied with an innocent nod. "I wonder if it tastes like fish, too,"
Matt didn't have a chance to respond or protest before the dragon's jaws parted and its tongue darted around the middle of his shaft. The dexterous appendage stroked gently up and down the entire length of his semi-erect length twice before retreating back into its owners confines. Pobe cocked his head slightly then, as if contemplating what he thought of Matt's flavor.
"Well, you don't taste like fish," Pobe replied. "A little salty, like the fish, but not really fishy in any other way."
"Is...that a good thing?" Matt asked.
The dragon took a moment to consider the question before responding with a nod. "I like it!"
"I guess that's go-oh!" Matt yelped, as the dragon's head had pounced onto his member, completely engulfing it in its slimy, humid warmth. The tongue was around him again, moving up and down like an elegant dancer, while Pobe's lips sucked gently at the base of his shaft. Now, Matt was no stranger to the world of masturbation, but the feeling of this tongue and mouth were far beyond anything his clumsy, lust-fueled hands could muster. Plus, he hadn't done it in at least four days, so he was feeling a little pent up. It didn't take him long for the ministration of the small, young reptile to bring him to his peak. In the last second before orgasm, a sudden, uncharacteristically dominant sensation overtook him, and his hand jumped out onto the dragon's head, holding him flush with his crotch as his first spray of semen came forth. There were five spurts in total, two more than he usually got on his own. And whether that was due to being pent up, or due the skill of the young dragon, he didn't really care. That orgasm had shown him a new level of ecstasy, and he felt a twinge of regret for losing it. He removed his hand from Pobe's head and flopped back against the bed, gasping for breath.
"That was great," he said. "Now, you should probably leave."
"But, I don't know where to go," Pobe replied, moving up to lie beside Matt.
"Well, think about it. When you left, what time of day was it?" Matt asked.
"The afternoon," Pobe replied after a moment's hesitation.
"Hmm..." Matt thought, rubbing his chin as if it would bolster his mental ability. "Do you remember if the sun was directly above you?"
"It was," he replied.
"Okay, where was the sun when it was about to set?" Matt asked.
"In the west!" Pobe replied, as if he was a third-grader who had just been asked the question he actually knew.
"Yes, but where was it relative to where you were?" Matt tried. When Pobe cocked his head questioningly at him, Matt sighed and tried again. "Was it to your left, or your right, or ahead of you or something like that?"
"It was to my...left," Pobe replied firmly.
"Okay, so you were facing north that night," Matt thought aloud. "Did you make any turns during that day?"
"Oh yeah, lots," Pobe replied.
Matt sighed again, and placed his hand over his face. "Well then, this is pretty useless," Matt replied.
"Why? Was I getting the questions wrong?" Pobe asked.
"Uh, no," Matt replied, trying to be patient. "If you made a lot of turns in the first day, it's pretty safe to say that there will be plenty of turns on the second day, too. My method will only work if you went in a straight line the whole time, and you clearly didn't."
"So, will I ever see my family again?" Pobe asked softly.
"Now, let's not jump to conclusions," Matt replied. "If we can't find your parents, just wait from them to come back."
"Huh?"
"Well, you said you were migrating, right? That means that after the migration, they'll return to where they started. If you wait at where you live now, maybe for a few months, they'll be back."
"A few months?" Pobe asked, distraught.
"That's my guess," Matt replied with a shrug. "It could be shorter, it could be longer. They're your parents. Didn't they say anything about this?"
"I never asked," Pobe said quietly.
"Well, you're a may be young, but you are a young dragon," Matt said, grunting as he lifted himself to sit on the edge of the now stained bed. "I'm sure you'll be fine on your own for a while."
"But," Pobe started, a bit of a waiver entering his voice. "I...don't know how to hunt."
"Let me guess, you didn't ask about it?" Matt asked.
"We were going to learn to hunt when we finished migrating," Pobe replied, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. "If...If you send me away, I'll starve."
Matt simply sat and stared at the tiny, quivering coil of scales. Could he really cast him away, knowing that he might not even survive a week on his own? It was just an animal, right? "You can stay," Matt said quietly.
Pobe sniffled. "Huh?"
"You can stay until your family comes back," Matt replied.
The tiny dragon sniffled again, a second before his face lit up and he leapt at Matt's back. Matt needed to throw all of his weight backwards to prevent the heavy dragon from snapping his spine, and it caused both of them to fall back into the bed, with Pobe giggling furiously.
"Okay, okay, that's enough," Matt called, beginning to chuckle himself as he watched the giddy dragon. "It's almost noon, so let's get something to eat."
He stood up again and led the way out into the main room, and then into the kitchen. He riffled through the fridge and freezer for a few minutes before pulling out a half-finished lasagna for himself, and a frozen stick of ground beef for the carnivore. Taking a sharp chopping knife, he sliced the stick straight down the middle, put one end in a bowl, and stuck it in the microwave.
"I'll give you half of this now, and the other half later tonight, alright?" Matt said. "You probably won't be eating as much as you're used to but...you are eating meat now, right?"
"Yep," Pobe replied energetically, watching the meat spin in the tiny silver box on the marble counter.
"Okay, good," Matt replied, and placed his cold food on the counter and grabbed the television remote he had sitting nearby. With the push of a button, the screen flickered to life, and CNN flashed up onto the screen, accompanied by the booming voice of the anchor blasting out of his sound system.
"Matt! Who's there?" Pobe shrieked, startled by the sudden and loud new voice. He rushed over to where Matt stood and grappled to his leg, nearly throwing him to the ground again.
"Hey, calm down. It's just the TV," he said, attempting to shake the startled reptile from his ankle.
"What's a teevee?" Pobe asked, his grip loosening a bit, but not disappearing.
"I'll show you if you let go of my leg," Matt offered, surprised by his own patience.
Pobe nervously loosened his grip on Matt, and slowly lowered himself back onto his own feet. Once the extra weight was gone, Matt led the way around the counter and to the couch. The male anchor was sitting behind his desk, talking intensely about some economic crap that was happening. Matt already knew how to fix the economy, so he didn't bother listening to it. Pobe, on the other hand, seemed quite terrified of the large man staring daggers at the back wall. The small dragon was huddled behind Matt, peeking around him every once and a while to check if the man had noticed him yet.
"It's just a picture," Matt said simply, sidestepping away from Pobe. "He can't hurt you,"
"But he's so angry and loud," Pobe complained, retreating back behind the couch.
"Oh, sorry," Matt apologized, and turned down the volume about ten points. He also flipped through his expanded cable package and picked out something much less angry to introduce Pobe to television. If he was going to let this dragon stay here, then he was going to need a babysitter. There was a show on now, something about personified horses and unicorns and friendship and crap like that, so he turned to that and tried his best to tune it out while Pobe slowly left hiding and inched his way closer to the screen.
"Don't sit too close to it, your eyes will get damaged," Matt called, noticing how close the dragon was getting. "Just sit up on the couch. This stuff will be done thawing in a few more minutes."
"How did they get these things inside there?" Pobe asked.
"They're not real horses. They're just made-up characters made of colored dots," Matt replied.
"Oh...I still don't think I get it," Pobe said, and stopped asking question.
Suddenly, the microwave beeped loudly, causing Pobe to jump in fright again. Matt ignored him and went over to the box, opening it and pulling the steaming pile of moist beef pulp out and putting his lasagna in. After removing the leftover piece of wrapper sitting in the bowl, he set it down on the floor, and went to get a towel. He highly doubted that this would be a splatter-free meal.
"Alright, Pobe, eat up," Matt called after placing the bowl on the towel he had just placed on the floor. "Just be careful. It might still be too hot,"
The microwaved beeped again, signaling the completion of his own meal, and he turned away just as Pobe inched his way up to the steaming bowl. He reached out with his snout, tentatively sniffing at the pile before reaching out with his tongue to pick up a few pieces of the strange new meat. It was a little dry, and a little bland, too, but it wasn't too bad. It was nice and warm, too, as if it had just been alive. Without further hesitation, Pobe drove his snout straight into the bowl.
Matt hadn't turned his back for five seconds, but by the time he turned back, steaming lasagna in his hands, the ground beef was gone. Some of it was on the towel, and some of it was on the dragon's snout, but thankfully most of it had gone down the right way. Which made Matt think, what happens when the meat gets digested? He didn't have any way to deal with the dragon's waste, but he'd better do something about it quickly, before some of it showed up where it wasn't supposed to.
"Hey, uhh, if you ever have to, you know, go to the bathroom, do it in the room across from where I sleep, okay?" Matt stumbled.
"What does that mean?" Pobe asked.
"Ummm," Matt floundered. "Go poo? Make dung?" he tried.
"Oh, okay," Pobe replied innocently, then licked the excess food from his snout and stared at him.
"So...uhh..." he began. "What now?"
"I don't know?" Pobe replied, giving a tiny shrug with his front shoulders.
"Well, what do you usually do for fun?" Matt asked. To be honest, he wasn't sure whether he wanted to know. He had already learned that these creatures performed sexual activities with their own family members, so they were clearly a sexual species. Matt could imagine that Pobe's siblings were witnessing plenty of sex wherever they were, if a springtime migration for these creatures was anything like a migration for any other species.
"Well, sometimes we need to soften each other during the day, too. So there's that," Pobe replied.
"Of course," Matt remarked under his breath.
"And the rest of the time, we explore the forest and wrestle!"
"Well, there's not really much to explore in here, and it's certainly not big enough to wrestle," Matt replied.
"Sure it is!" Pobe replied excitedly. "On that big, soft thing we slept on. We can wrestle on that!"
"Oh, Pobe I don't kn-"
"Come on!" he interrupted and darted off enthusiastically towards the bedroom.
"W-" Matt began, but he was too late. The dragon was long gone. With a sigh, he started after him. "I'd better make sure he doesn't break anything."
It was quiet when Matt entered the bedroom. Quiet and empty. Nothing had been touched, as if the young dragon hadn't set foot in the room at all. The bed covers were still thrown to one side, and the pillows were still twisted from where Matt had been squirming during their little experience early that day.
"Pobe?" Matt asked, stepping slowly towards the bed. "Are you in here?"
No response.
Matt noticed a small bump under the covers, one that was just large enough to cover a young dragon. Climbing up over the end of the bed, Matt crawled towards it, but as he did, the shaking bed caused the blanket to fall flat. He was about to turn around and go look elsewhere, but a weight suddenly and violently struck his back, and his face was sent forward into the mattress. His face was pressed up somewhere close to where Pobe has stained the white slipcover, and it still smelled strongly of his musk. It was even strong enough to make Matt's member stir a little against the mattress.
"Ha! I got you!" Pobe cheered with a grin, bouncing up and down onto top of him.
"Ow, why'd you do that?" Matt groaned, trying to push up against the dragon. He was too heavy, though, and Matt was in no position to move the weight.
"We're wrestling, remember?" Pobe replied. "Come on, it's fun!"
"Pobe, I really don't think we should do that in here," Matt repeated. "We could break something by accident."
"My brother broke a claw once, but it grew back in a few days," Pobe replied, as if it was somehow related to what they were talking about.
"That's good, Pobe, but if we break something in here, it won't just grow back," Matt replied. "A lot of the things in here aren't alive."
"Oh," Pobe said quietly, as if he was sad about it. "Did you hunt them?"
"What? No," Matt replied. "I bought them."
"Bought? What's that mean?" Pobe asked.
"I went to a store, and I gave a man some money, pieces of metal, and I got to keep them."
"That seems like a silly thing to do," Pobe replied. "I don't really understand it."
"A lot of people don't," Matt remarked under his breath. "Can you get off me now?"
"Only if you wrestle with me," Pobe replied.
"Oh, Pobe," Matt groaned. "I don't want to hurt you,"
"I beat all my brothers and sisters. I won't get hurt!" the dragon replied confidently. "And, I overheard father talking to mother, and he said humans were weaker than us!"
"Oh, did he?" Matt replied, deciding that he wasn't going to get out of this easily, and would just have to do this with as little damage as possible. "I bet you believed him."
Pobe nodded.
"Maybe I'll just prove him wrong," Matt said.
Pobe shook his head. "You couldn't beat, father. He's too big. He'd squash you flat!"
"Well, how about I wrestle you first, and if I win, then I get to wrestle your father?"
Pobe seemed to take a minute to consider the proposal. "Okay!" he replied.
"Will you let me up now?" Matt asked, and as soon as his question was out, the weight on his shoulders lifted and he was able to push himself up onto his hands and knees. Now mobile, he proceeded to the opposite corner of the bed, working out his sore shoulders as he did, until he finally stood facing Pobe. "Are you ready?"
Pobe didn't answer, but rather threw himself forward at Matt. He barely had enough time to dive forward, under Pobe's leap, to avoid being pounced on. As soon as Pobe's feet touched the mattress again, he swiveled and dove after Matt with deadly precision. As Matt rolled away to the right, he had the sudden realization that he was wrestling with an apex predator, with claws and teeth and everything. He had been worried about hurting the dragon, but it was far more likely that the dragon would hurt him.
"Got you," Pobe growled, almost menacingly, as he was suddenly rocketing towards him. Matt could feel the sharp claws jab against his left shoulder and pull him up as the impact rolled him. He finally came to rest on his back, with Pobe standing above him with his hands and feet on his shoulders and thighs. The dragon smirked down at him, as if he had been defeated, but Matt still had some tricks up his sleeve. He managed to get his arms up and pushing against Pobe's shoulders. With some of the weight taken off his torso, Matt was able to throw his weight to the side, rolling until he now held down his opponent. But Pobe was quick, and before Matt was able to get his legs down, the dragon had his hind legs up and against the human's stomach. With a massive push, Matt was forcibly thrown backwards, nearly hitting his head on the wall as he landed somewhere at the head of the bed. A split second later, the dragon was once again pinning him down, but this time, he had no room to move.
"I win!" Pobe cheered.
"Yeah, yeah, you win," Matt groaned, trying to reach up and rub his head but failing miserably.
"That was fun, Matt. We'll have to do it again soon," Pobe replied. "But I'm feeling sleepy now."
"Well, why don't you let me up, and you can take a nap," Matt suggested.
Pobe gave a slow nod, and stepped to the left. He let out a small yawn before curling up on the bed next to Matt and promptly falling asleep. After taking a moment to recover, Matt stood up slowly and quietly, so as to not disturb the sleeping dragon. The hit to his stomach made him feel sick, but he suffered through it as he stepped silently out of the room and back to the kitchen. His lasagna, now cold again, was still sitting untouched on the counter. He popped it back into the microwave for half a minute before taking it over to his computer desk. Upon sitting down, he immediately brought up Google and typed in 'dragon sightings'.
"Okay, let's see what we've got in here," he sighed. "Drawings, fake videos and pictures, and...religious crap. Let's try something more specific."
He keyed in 'dragon sightings in America'.
"More videos, the same religious crap...all useless," Matt complained and closed the window. So, no one had seen a dragon like he had. He suddenly felt the temptation to record the young dragon sleeping on his bed and post it on YouTube or something, but thought better of it. He didn't want flocks of crazy people swarming to his apartment.
Besides the desire for recognition on making the most significant scientific discovery since fried bread, Matt felt something else very new to him. He suddenly felt very lonely. It wasn't the same kind of loneliness he had felt all his life, where the populous and he mutually ignored each other. It was the kind of loneliness that made him feel like he was the only one. It was unsettling, to say the least.
With a sigh, Matt stood up and returned to the bedroom, forgetting his lasagna again. Pobe was still sleeping peacefully on the bed, and Matt simply watched him. Watched his flanks rise and fall as he breathed, watched his scaled nostrils flare. He was mesmerizing. Matt couldn't remember feeling like this about anything else he'd experienced. Was it that he actually cared about this creature? Something about him had changed, and Matt felt happy.
****
"Hello, Matthew," the doctor said with a smirk as he stepped into her office. "I must say that I'm surprised to see you again, after what happened last week."
"Hello, doctor," Matt replied plainly, ignoring her comment.
"Well now, isn't that interesting," she said, lowering her nose to look over her glasses at him. "No condescension, sarcasm, or attempt at a comeback at all, for that matter. You haven't gone soft on me, have you Matthew."
"My density hasn't changed at all," Matt said.
Her mouth twitched into a deeper smile. "Eh, at least you tried," she said with a shrug. "What happened to you this week Matthew? What changed?"
"Well, uh, I'm not living alone anymore," he replied. Why he was telling her that, he didn't know, but he noticed that he had been a lot less cautious of what he said after spending the week with Pobe.
"Oh? Who's with you? Family? Friends? A woman, perhaps?" she pried.
"Nope," Matt replied.
"What? You just invited some stranger to live in your house?" she asked.
Matt thought about that for a second. "Actually, yes," he replied.
"Isn't that a little dangerous?" she asked.
"Oh, he's a little rowdy, but not too hard to satisfy," he replied.
"Sounds like you have a child on your hands," the doctor commented. "Who dumped him on you? A relative?"
"I don't know the parents," Matt replied. "He was separated from his parents, and he's staying with me until they get back."
"That's very kind of you," she said, and jotted something down in her notebook. He felt the urge, like most patients did, to try and get a glimpse of it, but knew that it would do him no good anyway. "Why are you doing it?"
"I couldn't just leave him out there, looking all pathetic and scared," Matt replied.
"Ah, so it was sympathy," she replied. "Even the hardest of people give in to it. Anyway, I'm done with you for today. You'd best be going home, now that you've got a child to take care of."
Matt nodded, then stood up and left the office without another word.
****
"Pobe, I'm home!" Matt called, hefting a heavy grocery bag up onto the kitchen counter.
"Hi Matt!" the dragon called back from somewhere near the back of the apartment.
"Where are you?" he asked.
"Outside,"
Matt followed the voice out onto the balcony, where Pobe stood staring out into the eastern sky. He didn't turn when Matt stepped out beside him, and Matt could tell that something wasn't right.
"Are you okay?" Matt asked.
"I miss my family," Pobe replied softly. "You've been gone most of this week, and I've been here all alone."
"Well, I have an extra day off school this week, so I don't have to leave the apartment for two whole days," Matt replied. "Plus, I'll only be at school three days this week, because I have the last day off, too."
"When can we go look for my family, Matt?" Pobe asked.
"Oh, I don't know," Matt replied. "We don't know what they migrated for, or how long they'll be gone. I don't even know where you live, or how I'll get there. If it took you two days by air to get here, then it could take me a week to get there on foot."
"So, what do we do then?" Pobe asked. "Do you want me to give up?"
"Oh no, never," Matt replied quickly. He sat down on the floor next to Pobe, and held his arms open for him. "Come here."
The small dragon stepped up onto his lap and watched as Matt wrapped his arms around him and held him close to his body. Matt relished in the feeling of the warm body pressing against his, but felt an even greater pleasure in holding that body there. He loved making this young dragon feel safe and loved. He loved the feeling like nothing else.
"We're going to find them, Pobe," Matt said, quietly but firmly. "Don't you worry."
"Matt," Pobe replied, nuzzling closer to his chest. "Thank you for everything. I probably wouldn't be here if it weren't for you."
"Don't talk like that," Matt said. "You don't owe me anything,"
"I want to thank you," Pobe said. "Can we go to bed?"
Matt nodded. "Whatever you want," he said, and picked both himself and Pobe up off the balcony floor. He cradled the dragon as if he were a human baby as he went back inside and down the hall to the bedroom. When they got inside, he carefully lowered Pobe down onto the bed before climbing in next to him.
"Can you get rid of these things?" Pobe asked, and tugged gently on his shirt.
"Why?" Matt asked.
"Please," Pobe pleaded. "No questions. Let me thank you properly."
Matt hesitated for a second, but something cleared his inhibitions and he began to remove his clothes. His shirt went off first, followed by his pants, socks, and underwear in one muddled mess. Once the pile of discarded clothes had sunk to the carpet, Matt was left lying completely naked on his bed, with Pobe coming up above him. The dragon's small blue head leaned down between his legs and nudged at his flaccid member and testicles. Matt simply stared down his chest as Pobe's tongue squirmed out from between his lips and ran over his sack and up his now stiffening member. The teasing didn't last long, though, because as soon as his member was fully extended, Pobe took the entire thing into his wet maw and began to suckle. Matt moaned as his tongue danced over his flesh. This had been happening frequently in the mornings, when Pobe would bring both of them to orgasm with him mouth. Matt was able to withstand much more of his lewd actions because of it. The tongue seemed to be working extra hard tonight, though, and it was wetter than usual.
About a minute, Pobe pulled away from his groin, leaving a trail of saliva to connect him with the now sticky and glistening organ. He gave one last glance at it, as if admiring his own work, before turning around and raising his tail. Matt was taken aback for a moment, watching as the dragon displayed his ass for him, and suddenly wondered what he was supposed to do.
"Please, Matt," Pobe said, turning his head around to watch him. "Let me thank you,"
"You don't have to do this, Pobe," Matt replied, still staring directly into the scaly sphincter before him.
"I want to do this for you, Matt," Pobe replied. "I want to do this with you."
"But-"
"Matt," he cut in, turning back towards the human that stared back with confusion and fear. "I may be young, and I don't know a lot about humans, but I can tell that you don't feel comfortable around me. You're always so tense, and you sound forced. You said you don't normally have people around you. Is that because you don't want them there?"
"You sound like my psychologist," Matt replied, looking down towards the bedding. "Yeah, you could say that I push them away. I'm not a very nice guy. I'm insensitive, blunt, I pick fights, and I'm usually just downright mean. I'm not a good person, Pobe."
"No, you're wrong," Pobe replied, and crawled forward until he stood over Matt, his snout an inch from his face. "You took me in, fed me, played with me, and kept me safe. You're going to help me find my family, Matt, I'm sure of it. You're a great person."
Matt simply stared at the young dragon, bewildered. First of all, very few people could get away with calling him wrong, but secondly, no one had ever called him a good person, let alone a great person. He wanted to shake his head as hard as he could and retreat into his shell, but he couldn't. Not with the little dragon still staring, and smiling, at him. The dragon's head moved forward, until it planted a kiss on his left cheek. Matt couldn't remember the last time he had been kissed like that. Not since his mother had been alive. His head swiveled, almost instinctively, and brought the scaled lips to his own. His tongue pushed out against Pobe's closed lips, but the inexperienced dragon did not open for him. Matt wished that he had a way to get Pobe to open without forcing it, but with his mouth too preoccupied to speak, was out of luck. He would have to get intimate with the dragon another way. He broke the kiss slowly, the sudden urges from his groin growing too strong to ignore, and held Pobe's head close to his chest again.
"Pobe, do you trust me?" Matt asked.
"Of course I do," he replied softly.
"Then let me accept your thanks now," he said, and gently pushed the dragon until he lay on his back. Matt wasted no time in following him down, and was soon on his hands and knees above him, with his rigid member dangling above Pobe's entrance. "Have you ever done this before?"
Pobe nodded. "My brothers and I do this for fun sometimes," he replied. "Father said it was good practice."
Matt nodded, and then dropped hips an inch to rest his shaft's head against Pobe's hole. The sphincter quivered and flexed with anticipation, a movement that seemed to mesmerize Matt as he watched it expand and contract. Finally, he pushed himself in, feeling a bit of resistance as his sensitive flesh sunk into the pulsing confines of his friend's body. He had a sudden thought of how terrible this was, having sex with a child, but it was soon washed away as another inch was engulfed. These dragons are obviously a very sexual race to begin with, and as long as Pobe found it both acceptable and enjoyable, than so would he.
Another inch dropped inside, and Matt could begin to feel his sack brush against Pobe's scales. He knew that he was close, and decided on a whim to force the rest of himself in all at once. He let his arms relax, and let his weight fall back onto his pelvis as he fell straight down onto Pobe's body, hilting himself while trapping the small body beneath him. The dragon was just long enough so that his head could fit against Matt's neck, where he kissed and licked affectionately as Matt enjoyed himself. The feeling of being inside someone was incredible, unlike any other sexual pleasure he could ever bring to himself, and even greater that Pobe's oral play. It felt so smooth and slick, and it pulsed and grabbed at him in all the right places. He could also feel Pobe's member begin to emerge, grinding between their stomachs as it forced itself through to full height.
Matt began to pull out slowly, scrunching his face up as a massive wave of white-hot pleasure shot up through his spine and into his brain. There was little he could do to prevent himself from slamming back into his partner forcefully, but managed to limit his re-entry to a swift thrust. He still felt Pobe's body, specifically his shaft, shift upwards as he pushed into him, and then slide back down as he pulled out. This led to a wonderful sensation when his thrusts became quick and regular, as Pobe's rubbery member throbbed and flexed against his belly with every thrust.
The experience didn't last long enough, in Matt's opinion, as most sexual activities do. Time always goes so fast when it has no meaning. It was just him and Pobe and the pleasure of being so close together. But all good things have to come to an end, and for Matt, it ended spectacularly. His thrusts became even more powerful as he neared orgasm, bringing his pleasure spikes to a glorious crescendo just before his final thrust. And on that last push, he forced every last millimeter of length he had into Pobe, and proceeded to blast his seed all through his insides. Pobe reached his climax as well, and Matt felt a seeping heat against his bare skin as Pobe's semen squirted and streamed across his stomach.
As the throngs of pleasure began to fade, Matt felt whatever remained of his energy fade with it. His arms gave out, and he dropped in a heap onto top of Pobe. He didn't even have the energy to pull himself out of the dragon he lay on. Pobe didn't seem to mind, though, and continued to nuzzle and kiss his neck while Matt recovered. His breath came in ragged gasps, and his member was so sensitive that it almost hurt. Every time Pobe's anal muscles clenched, an uncomfortable jolt went up through is body.
"I told you that you were a good person," Pobe said. "That felt so good."
"Pobe," Matt said slowly, still feeling quite lethargic. "We'll go back to your cave soon. We can stay out there for as long as it takes."
"But Matt, can you hunt?" Pobe asked.
"I can get us enough food to last a month," Matt replied, and grunted as he rolled himself to the side. He wrapped his arms around Pobe, and took him with him until they lay facing each other, with Matt hugging him tightly to his body. "Just give me a day or two to sort some things out, and then we can go."
"Thank you, Matt," Pobe said, and gave him a short kiss on the lips. "For everything,"
"Anything for you," Matt replied, and they both slowly drifted off to sleep.
****
"Still nothing," Matt sighed, staring at the oscillating display of the radar monitor. It had a two hundred mile range, give or take, and Matt had had it set up to look for Pobe's parents when they arrived. It had cost him an arm, a leg, and many thousands of dollars to get it, but it would be worth it at some point.
Matt currently sat in a relatively large tent, about five hundred square feet, that he had flown in after Pobe led his own helicopter to his home cave. He figured that the dragon family wouldn't appreciate a human in their home, so decided that setting up on their doorstep would be safer. He had, however, put his radar dish on the cliff above the cave, in order to keep its line-of-sight clear of trees. He also had his laptop with him, and a month's worth of school work to keep himself occupied in case the wait stretched on that long. It had been two weeks already, and he had nearly finished all of it.
It had cost him well over twenty thousand dollars out of his personal funds to get all of the equipment, the generators, the pilots, and the helicopters to fly it all out here. It wasn't as if that was a huge hit to his savings, and he had probably made all that money back already through the money the company passed on to him. He just hoped that none of the equipment would be damaged by an angry dragon or group of dragons, because he might be able to return some of this stuff.
"How are you doing, Matt?" Pobe asked, pushing through the door flap.
"Well, I'm a little nervous, to be honest," Matt replied. "I've set up a small military outpost in your parent's front yard, and I'm not so sure they'll like my being here."
"You're scared that my parent's won't like you?" Pobe asked.
"Yeah, that's about it," Matt said, and opened up his laptop. It had been on stand-by, as he had been distracted by another small aircraft that made the radar system ping. He was in the middle of researching migration patterns of other animals, and what he found only worried him more. "If dragons are anything like other animals, than they should only stay in their migration spot for two to three weeks. It's been three weeks since you landed on my balcony, so they should be around sometime within the next week or so."
"Really? That's so great!" Pobe exclaimed.
"Yeah, well. If they show up and I'm gone, it's because I ran away into the woods to avoid getting my head bitten off."
"Matt, I'm sure my parent's will like you," Pobe replied. "I like you."
"I know you do, but adults tend to be a bit more conservative than children," Matt replied, and shut down the laptop.
"What does that mean?" Pobe asked.
"It means that your parents won't accept me so easily," Matt explained. "You're older siblings, too. It would probably be safer for me to bail as soon as possible once they arrive. Assuming I'm still in one piece once they arrive."
"Matt, you must really be scared," Pobe replied.
"I'll admit, I'm absolutely terrified," Matt replied. "I just do a good job hiding it as simple anxiety."
"Matt, do you just want to go home?" Pobe asked.
"Not until I know you're safe," Matt replied, shaking his head. "I could leave you plenty of food, but you're still young and inexperienced. A bear or something could wander into that cave and you'd be powerless to stop it."
"You sound like my mother," Pobe replied.
"And that means she's right," Matt replied. "I won't abandon you here, okay?"
Pobe nodded. "Thanks again for doing this for me, Matt."
"It's no problem, yet," Matt replied. "We'll just have to see how much of a problem it is when your family shows up."
"I think you might be over-reacting a bit," Pobe commented.
"Again, we'll see when your family shows up," Matt replied, taking a glance at the monitor. It was still blank, and the small speaker attached to it buzzed quietly in the absence of some other sound. It was cranked up to full volume, so he would hear it go off, even if he was ten feet outside the tent. "But it's getting late, so let's get you to bed."
"Okay," the dragon said, and led the way out of the tent and towards his family's cave. The young dragon had been sleeping in his own bed, or nest, since they had arrived, while Matt slept alone in his tent. It had originally been Pobe's request, but Matt knew that if he had to bail on short notice, he didn't want the dragon clinging on to him. He liked him, sure, but not if being around him would get his head bitten off.
Every time Matt entered Pobe's family's cave, he was reminded of how enormous an adult dragon really was. The ceiling was easily twenty feet high, giving a rough indication of how big the dragon occupying it was. The nest, as well, was maybe fifteen feet in diameter. It made Pobe look even smaller as he lay down, all alone, in the center of it. It also made Matt imagine the nest full of writhing, scaly limbs, and on occasion, someone being crushed beneath that mass.
"Good night, Pobe," Matt said, standing on the outskirts of the nest. "I'm right outside if you need me."
"I know, I know," Pobe replied, rolling his eyes but grinning all the same. Matt waited, and watched as he curled his small body into a coil and closed his eyes, before turning and walking back to his tent. After checking his monitor on last time that night, he crawled into his own cot, and drifted off to sleep.
****
Beep...Beep...Beep...
The loud, rhythmic beeping roused Matt slowly from his sleep. He knew that the beep meant something, but in his hazy state of thought, couldn't remember exactly what it was. The beeps began to get faster, and as the harsh sound began to spear through his brain more frequently, the fog began to clear away as well. With the next five seconds, Matt had thrown himself out of bed, thrown himself across the tent, and finally landed in front of the radar monitor, where ten small green dots had appeared, and one was moving quite quickly towards him.
He had an emergency pack already put together and was resting under the table. He barely even had enough to grab it before he heard a massive blast of wind rustle the roof of the tent, and a sudden bang, followed by several snapping and crunching sound. The once beeping radar dropped to static, and the irritating beep was replaced by a constant, deafening white noise. Matt threw the pack over his shoulder and headed for the door, but before he was halfway there, the tent began to split. Massive, sharp objects pierced through both sides of the tent simultaneously, and began to pull the tent apart. It was dark enough as it was in the tent, but when the claws passed his bed, the small electric lamp was caught and shattered instantly. The mattress was also caught on the tip of a claw, and nearly completely disintegrated. Shreds of cloth and other debris were flying everywhere, and Matt turned to bolt towards the door. But he heard a loud tearing sound behind him, and was suddenly slammed straight into the ground. Anything that was still standing after the first attack was crushed into the dirt, though Matt had barely enough room to roll onto his back in order to see what had happened. He didn't really need to turn around, as he already had a pretty good idea of what, or rather who, was pinning him to the ground, and it was barely bright enough outside to make out any details anyway.
The first thing Matt saw was, of course, the dragon's face. It was massive, just like every other part of his body, with large, angry eyes, and its teeth dripping with foaming saliva. The dragon easily held its head twenty feet above him, though that distance was rapidly decreasing as he lowered his opening maw down towards him. His scales also had a healthy sheen, but that did little to reverse the dragon's negative attitude.
"What are you doing here, human?" the dragon asked in a deep, booming voice reminiscent of what television shows would make gods sound like. The huge scaled fingers that caged Matt dropped another few inches, further compressing his chest and making it hard to breathe. "Answer me!"
Matt could do nothing but hack and gasp for breath as with each passing second the dragon puts more weight onto his chest. It was a viscous cycle, which would quite quickly end in Matt being a puddle of mush if something didn't happen soon.
"How did you find this place!?" the dragon asked, squeezing hard.
Matt was too afraid to open his mouth, in case his stomach would be forced up through it.
"Father! You're back!" A voice suddenly called. Matt was too busy trying to stuff as much oxygen into his compressed lungs as he could to keep from blacking out.
"Pobe, get inside!" the dragon called forcefully. "It's dangerous?"
"Hey, are you two wrestling?" Pobe asked, appearing from behind his father's flank to stand just outside what remained of the tent. "Matt, I said you could wrestle him if you beat me first!"
"Pobe! Get inside!" the father shouted again.
"Father, it looks like you're hurting Matt," Pobe said, cocking his head questioningly.
The adult had taken to ignore the child now, and refocused his attention on the flattening human beneath him. "What do you want with my family? Where are the rest of your people?"
Matt could only attempt to squirm, an action which only led to more weight put on him.
"Answer the questions!" the dragon shouted, and Matt suddenly heard a loud crack. He managed to gasp as a massive pain shout through his abdomen, and only worsened as the dragon compressed him further. A few seconds later, another crack rang out through the night, audible over the massive creature's enraged growls.
"Father, stop!" Pobe shouted, and rushed to Matt's side. "You're hurting him."
"Look at it, Pobe," his father said. "This is what our enemy looks like. They're always trying to destroy us. That's why we need to always be on our guard, to catch and punish creatures like this one."
"But Matt is my friend! He took care of me after we got separated!" Pobe pleaded. "Please, get off him."
"You're too young to see through their lies," the father replied. "He was only trying to earn your trust, so he could use you later."
"No, you're wrong!" Pobe shouted.
"You don't understand!" his father shouted back.
Suddenly, Pobe lunged, maw open and claws extended. He latched onto the nearest of his father's fingers and dug in, burying his claws and teeth into the recesses between the large plate scales. Matt knew that something so small could never really hurt such a massive creature, but the dragon recoiled nonetheless, giving Matt as much room as he need to sputter, gasp and writhe in pain. He had crack at least two, if not more, of his ribs, and there was most likely a hell of a lot of internal bleeding. He needed to get to a hospital, fast.
"Pobe," the father said quietly, staring at the finger his own son had attacked. There were no visible signs of damage at all, but the emotional response to having your own son attack you was enough to replace physical pain. "Why did you do that?"
"Because Matt is my friend, and I don't want you to hurt him," Pobe replied. "He sheltered and fed me after I was blown away from you, and most importantly, he made me feel good. He gave me hope, even when I thought that I would never see you again. And then you hurt him..."
"Pobe," his father repeated. "I'm sorry,"
Pobe said nothing, but tears began to well up in the corners of his eyes.
"Human, are you alright?" he asked.
"No," Matt struggled. Every breath sent a stab of pain through him, and talking only made it worse. "I need to get back to the city. To a hospital."
"Try and stay still," the dragon said, and carefully slipped a claw under Matt's ridged body. The surface below him was hard, but warm, as Matt slid down into the dragon's palm. "I'll take you back to the city."
"Thanks," Matt replied shortly.
Pobe leapt up onto his father's palm and stood next to Matt, licking his face affectionately.
"I wish you didn't have to go so soon," the young dragon said.
"Me too," Matt replied, and did his best to force a smile despite his pain.
"Will I see you again soon?" Pobe asked.
Matt saved himself some pain and simply nodded slowly.
"I should go back with you," Pobe insisted. "Maybe there's something I can do to help."
Matt shook his head. "You're family's here," he said. "Stay with them,"
"But,"
Matt shook his head again, and managed to force a second smile. Pobe seemed to understand, and gave Matt's face one last lick before backing up off his father's hand. As soon as he was a few feet back, Matt could hear the dragon's massive wings unfurl from his against his back, and with a rush of wind they slowly rose into the air. The last thing Matt could make out on the ground was Pobe, staring up after him, surrounded by his family.
****
"Is there anything else I can do for you?" Pobe's father asked after he had lowered Matt gently onto his balcony.
"No, you should get out of here," Matt managed.
"I just want to you know, I'm sorry for what I did," the dragon said. "It's just that, humans have killed my family and driven us out of our home before."
"I get it," Matt replied. "Humans are dicks. But we're not all bad."
"Yes, well, I should have realized that before I hurt you," the dragon replied. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"
"I'll be fine," Matt replied. "Now get out of here. It's almost dawn."
The dragon nodded, and then backstroked in order to gain some distance from the side of the apartment building. "Matt, you're welcome to come to my home any time."
"I'll take you up on that offer sometime," Matt replied, and watched silently as the dragon wheeled around and headed up, above the dense cloud cover. He continued to stare at that spot for a good while, before turning himself and unlocking his balcony door. It was a good thing that he always kept his keys in a zippered pocket, or he probably would've lost them earlier. As soon as the door was closed behind him, grabbed his phone off the counter, dialing 911 as he headed for the couch.
"What's your emergency?" the operator's voice asked through the earpiece.
"Ambulance," Matt replied shortly. "One eighteen-year-old male with at least two cracked ribs. Possible punctured organs."
"Where are you, sir?" the operator asked.
"Fifteen-eighty-three Yard Avenue, floor fourteen, unit three," Matt rattled off.
"An ambulance is on its way, please stay on the line in case the line in case the situation changes."
Matt gave an affirmative grunt, but other than that, remained silent. He would repeat that grunt every minute or so, while the operator checked to see if he was still conscious. She might have been saying something else, but Matt wasn't really listening. He kept thinking about something Pobe had said to him a few weeks earlier, in this very apartment. Something that had caught him so off-guard at the time, but now, the more he thought about it, the more he could agree with it in a self-satisfied sort of way.
'You're a great person,'