thread here

Write a story that has a dragon, a tree, a mouse, and rice.

Yoongi was tired. He glances up at the sky, notes where the sun is, and estimates another few hours until the sun sets. He continues through the tall grass, frowning when the scent of rain hits his nose. Looking back up at the sky, his eyes dart across the horizon until they see where storm clouds suddenly seem to roll in.

His gaze shifts back over the field, dragon shifting restlessly. There’s no appropriate shelter for him, not where he’s ended up after wandering for two long weeks after having to escape from the last town he was at. He’d been careless when he last shifted, some of the townspeople discovering him in his dragon form, so he left before they could capture him.

There were rumors after all — if once successfully captured a dragon and learned his name, the last great dragon at that, all their wishes could come true.

But Yoongi would never let that happen. Never again.

A large tree finally comes into sight, the storm clouds much closer and Yoongi further into the tall grass to the base of the tree. He scans the tree for any traps, finding nothing but a field mouse that scurries away when he gets close. Taking a seat with a sigh, he rests his back against the trunk and looks around him one more time. When he finds no threats, he relaxes slightly and closes his eyes as the rain begins to fall, the gentle sounds of the water hitting the ground enough to lull him to sleep.

He almost doesn’t sense it, the mages scent masked by petrichor. Yoongi’s eyes snap open, glowing a cool icy blue as he reaches up to grab the neck of the mage that’s approached him under the tree and lifts him off the ground.

“Hyung!” Another voice comes from Yoongi’s right and Yoongi bares his teeth as two other mages run out from the tall grass towards them.

“Stay back, or I’ll kill him, and both of you,” Yoongi growls, voice rough from disuse.

“It’s okay,” the man in Yoongi’s grasp chokes out in an attempt to soothe the other two men. “Do as he says.”

Both men seem to want to protest, but make no further moves. Yoongi slowly shifts his gaze back to the mage he’s holding, still keeping the other two in his peripheral. Pretty, he can’t help but think as he looks over the man, tall and broad-shouldered, with dark hair. He quickly shakes the thought away.

“I mean you no harm,” the man whispers.

Yoongi scoffs. “I’ve heard that before.”

The man closes his eyes and manages a small nod. “I know, I’m sure,” he continues. “But I promise I only wanted to offer you shelter, out of the rain.”

Yoongi falters, something in the man’s tone causing him to loosen his grip. It’s then that he notices the air around them. They’re in a dome, protected by what’s steadily turning into a full storm. It’s not lost on him that the man’s aura is the reason for this, and not once has he used it against Yoongi when he could. The two men also have not moved from where they were told to stand.

He turns the man’s words over in his mind, hesitating for the first time in centuries.

“How did you find me,” he finally asks.