December 2 HERE BE DRAGONS

[rthstewart]

Dragons for xahra99 or xahra99

I think my first experience with dragons would have been the Hobbit – which I read too young and didn’t understand. Also, of course Eustace turned into a dragon in Voyage of the Dawn Treader. However, Dawn Treader was never my favorite book and so I can’t say it moved me much.

Dragons took on special meaning once I discovered Dragonriders of Pern. I stumbled on the White Dragon, the third in the series, and so fell right into all of the Pern story of Ruth and Jaxom without having any idea what I was getting into, at all. I then went back and read the first two, Dragonflight and Dragonquest, and was in love. I mean, how could you not be, especially the whole psychic link with a huge powerful companion, advocate, and soulmate. I’m not sure how old I was when I read them, but still young enough to be really, really moved by them and to be very romantic about it all. Also from Pern came the idea that dragons are foreign thinking beasts – that they live in the here and now, that they are draconic and not human. Novik has developed that idea some as well.

For anyone who has read my fic over the years, you can see the powerful influence of the Pern books. When I ended up writing Stuff, the idea of the mind linking with another came directly from Pern. It wasn't in SW fiction much at the time, as I recall. Writing beasts as truly foreign beings has been a persistent theme in my Narnia fic. Also, the soulmate, advocate, protector role and life-bond of the dragon with handler is embedded in the relationships between Monarchs and guards.


My spawn went through a serious dragon phase and our home filled with drgaon books and dragon stories. There was this whole dragonology series – fake non-fiction. We have shelves crammed with books on magical creatures with a special focus on dragons. It’s a thing and closely related to dinosaurs. I was really sad when the spawn outgrew this all. I wasn’t ready to let go of it all and I still haven’t.
I have really, really want to develop more of the Temeraire cross-over. So, here's a little bit, picking up after the end of Unquenchable Fire.

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“Uncommonly good of you, Volkan, to share your beef ration with us,” Edmund said, turning his skewer over carefully in the fire.

The bean poles from Alberta’s (former) Victory Garden were the perfect length for roasting meat over a fire. In a tussle between an 18 tonnes fire-breather of the RAF, and vegetables, the dragon would always be the winner. They were fortunate Harold and Alberta’s house was still standing after Volkan made good on his promise to visit, every single day, until the Scrubbs signed the consent that would allow Eustace to join up.

Against his back, Eustace felt the telltale rumble in Volkan’s innards. “Clear!” He called out the warning to his cousins and scrambled away just as Volkan lifted his head from the gutted cow carcass and belched, mostly gas, and a little flame.

“Volkan, that’s the third time you’ve burnt mine!” Lucy cried, holding up her now black and smoldering chunk of beef.

“I’ve never understood why you wanted it cooked,” Volkan replied, running his long tongue over his bloodied muzzle.

“Cooked yes!” Lucy retorted. “Burnt to a crisp, no!”

She flicked her bean pole skewer toward the dragon who expertly caught it and swallowed it with a gulp.

Eating with dragons was a messy business, Eustace knew.

“Scrubb likes his meat practically raw,” Volkan said. “Just like a dragon, that one.” He buried his nose in the carcass of the hefty cow he’d dropped into the Scrubbs’ backyard for an al fresco supper. With a chomp, his snout came back up and with a twist of his head, a lump of gooey organ meat, Eustace thought it was probably cow heart, was flung across the yard and landed with a squelch against the back stoop of the house.

The back door flew open. “Volkan! Stop that!” Captain Ramsey shouted at the dragon. The young Captain was completely undone. He’d finally brought in the Brigadier for the Dover covert to plead the case to Harold and Alberta for them to sign the consent to Eustace’s enlistment in the RAF, dragon corps.  Eustace really thought he had a future as a dragon surgeon.   Patriotism would never move Harold and Alberta. Eustace figured another day of flung cow bits about the yard and Harold and Alberta would pack his bag for him.

“A little more flame, if you would, Volkan,” Edmund said, prodding their dying campfire with the tongs.

“But not the hedge!” Lucy said, spearing another chunk of beef on her bean pole. “We really should not be bothering the fire brigade again over a simple domestic matter.”

Eustace looked up as the back door swung open again. Alberta was chasing Captain Ramsey and the Brigadier out of the house with a broom.

“You got want you wanted, you horrible murderers!” Alberta shrieked. “Get out!”

“You will be hearing from my solicitor!” Harold bellowed. “This is extortion!”

“Lot of good that will do,” Volkan muttered. “Lawyers never stop a dragon. Remind me to show you which claw marks are mine on the walls of the Old Bailey.”