Let this be our little secrets, no one needs to know we're feeling...

[lastdragonlord]

Characters: Merlin (lastdragonlord ) and James Potter (chaserprongs )
When: Sunday, twilight
Where: The wastes
Rating: Pg
Summary: Sooner or later, everything about these boy's friendship comes down to flying.

Comments

[chaserprongs]

Lily, take Harry and run!

It was a stupid thing to say, especially with the Dark Lord right there. What had he possibly hoped to achieve? It was suicide, he knew that, he knew that he was going to die. It was a special type of finality that came with the thought. He knew he was going to die. And somehow, that was okay. Dying for people you love, well. That's not so bad

[lastdragonlord]

No dragon was going to eat James whenever Merlin was around, that was for sure, even if the young blue dragon that he'd managed to convince that pleasing a dragonlord was only ever going to be a good thing for it gave a slightly dubious snort upon James appearing in their view, echoed faintly by Bran a moment later; egos, Merlin quietly despaired, he was destined to forever be surrounded by egos.

Still, he wasn't out here for his health - really wasn't out here for his health, and he closed his eyes and took a deep breath to try and keep the world from spinning and plastered on a smile for James as he approached. James, who looked older and sadder and wiser, who Merlin would save if he could, but that was impossible, wasn't it? So instead Merlin would give him what he could. Merlin always gave what he could

[chaserprongs]

James grinned a little while nodding, politely, to the dragon. He had met a dragon or two in his world... or, he had now, and they looked something like the dragons Merlin had managed to round up.

"Sure," he said, a little airily, crossing to stand in front of the creature who would allow him a quick ride. "So long as he's okay with it."

This was the perfect distraction. He loved flying. It was the best feeling in the whole world.

[lastdragonlord]

"Of course he's alright with it." Merlin said, reaching forward to rub the dragon's snout and whisper some nonsense sounds that Bran sometimes like to croon at him when he was still half asleep. He was much fonder of dragons, now that he wasn't being constantly lectured by one, and this one in particular hadn't laughed at him for very long for what he supposed might be considered a strange accent in this world.

"I'm hardly the sort of person to use my abilities to force him to do anything that he doesn't want to - that stuff is for emergencies only."

[chaserprongs]

"Of course, my mistake."

He approached the dragon slowly -- James, despite the terrible information he inherited, also inherited a certain sense of caution that was lacking in his seventeen year old self. When he reached the dragon's side, he eyed the beast before his eyes moved back up to meet Merlin's.

"So I just get on and let him do the work?"

Like hell he was falling off anything again.

[lastdragonlord]

"Pretty much!" Merlin chirped, leaning down to scoop Bran up into his arms before eventually nudging the small dragon to rest comfortably on his shoulder. You smell too sweet, Bran hissed in mild displeasure, turning his little snout away from Merlin face and huffing out a small spout of fire no bigger than a struck flint.

Merlin ignored him, except to stroke him once between his wings all the way down to his tail. "It'll be a bit like riding a horse, I imagine, if you've ever ridden one before - he's not as big as the dragon I rode, but he guarantees me that he's lifted heavier weights than you or I before."

Mooch havier. The blue dragon scoffed in a strangely thick tone.

"Much heavier." Merlin repeated, grinning.

[chaserprongs]

James grinned a little and placed his hands on the back of the dragon. It only took one firm 'hmph!' to boost himself onto the creature, straddling it carefully, uncertain of where, exactly, to hold on. This was absolutely nothing like riding a broomstick and, much like his son in the distant future, James instantly knew which one he preferred.

And he wasn't even off the ground yet.

"I'm pretty skinny, or so Padfoot tells me," James said absently, balancing himself expertly on the dragon. "So luckily, I don't think I'm going to break any backs."

[lastdragonlord]

"The neck is fine." Merlin told him, almost as if reading his mind, though really, it was mostly common sense anyway. He'd hardly bothered to hold on himself when he had flown, but Killgarah was far too invested in Merlin's supposed destiny to let him fall. "Provided you don't try and choke him or anything."

The dragon laughed at Merlin and stamped his feet, though not enough to dismount James any. He didn't believe that James was strong enough to choke him; he was still relatively young, in the grand scope of things, and had yet to learn just how strange and varied some of the residents skills were. Merlin decided not to correct him on the matter.

[chaserprongs]

James carefully looped an arm around the dragon's neck, but not tight enough to cause any disturbance. His faith in the sky was far greater than it should be and James wasn't concerned with falling... or dying, for that matter. He felt safest in the sky; that was his element, his area of expertise. Nobody could touch him there.

"Ready," James said, the familiar excitement building in his stomach, dying for that swoop of adrenaline the moment you hit the clouds. "And as high as you can go," he added in an undertone to the dragon. "I want to dive."

[lastdragonlord]

Merlin winced as the blue dragon blundered through repeating what James had said to him in a poor showing of subterfuge. James, it seemed, had an intense love for adrenaline that simply wasn't going to go away just because it gave Merlin a heart attack. And flying on the back of a dragon would always be safer than flying on a little bit of wood, so he nodded begrudgingly.

"Go on then." He said, rolling his eyes. "You heard the man."

[chaserprongs]

Adrenaline was James' middle name and right about now, hurtling through the sky was exactly what he wanted to do. He had never flown a dragon before... and in his world, going near a dragon was an instant recipe for suicide, if you didn't know exactly what you were doing. He wasn't ever going to get the chance once he went back home, so what the hell? He might as well do something dangerous and reckless.

"Let's do it," James grinned, the tiniest inkling of his younger self in his expression. This was the perfect distraction. For the barest instant, there was no Voldemort, no Lily dying, no sobbing Harry -- no, there was the sky and a giant dragon and possibly hurtling to your death.