OPEN | Revealing the dragon

[dragonrising]

⌛ Who: Runyu and YOU
⌛ What: Runyu as experienced his first kizuna traits and he's doing his best to deal with them.
⌛ When: Following his first time with Mingye and the days that follow
⌛ Where: Various locations
⌛ Warnings: Runyu has some childhood trauma surrounding being a dragon/having dragon traits. There may be mentions of this in threads.

Runyu was sure that if he didn't have Mingye then he likely would have panicked completely over his sudden new traits. Delicate silver white scales that trailed along the edges of his face before blending into his hair was the start along with pale white dragon horns that were delicately tipped a silver blue. A perfect match to the blue dragon eyes he had now too. There were also scales on his shoulders, back, and hips but at least these were hidden under his robes. Even then he still felt discomfort over the change after all the negative associations he'd had all his life with simply being a dragon.

Waking up to having Mingye there to reassure him had helped him a great deal though. Enough so that he actually dared to step out of his rooms to go and do things beyond them. At first to just have tea in the gardens of the Four Seasons Manor. But soon he branched out to the park and the markets in order to try to get back to his normal life.

These traits weren't going away, he knew that. Yet it never stopped him from lowering his gaze when he realized someone was looking his way. It was simply too ingrained him to be ashamed of these traits and some habits were very hard to break.

Comments

Four Seasons Manor

[reliesondirtytricks]

Is he up in the trees in the gardens? Sure. That's where he's normally at if he isn't down by his dragon's side. Or off visiting Xingchen. However, this time it's a bit different. Especially when he hadn't realized that full transformations were a thing. He'd had the feathers and the tri-colored eyes already. Now? He's a bit of an annoyed bird.

One that is up in the tree in the garden, talons keeping a firm grip on his xiao so as not to lose it. In this form? He isn't entirely sure how in the world someone is meant to keep a hold of anything. At least his dragon is fairing a bit better than he is at the moment.

[dragonrising]

Mingye had been sulking up in that tree for a bit now. Runyu could just feel his irritation from where he was sitting. Honestly he imagined that it would last until his lover could return to his actual body. How long would that be? He really couldn't say but he let himself rise up from where he was seated to float up to the tree and settle on the branch next to Mingye.

Gently, he stroked his feathers and offered him a smile. "Would you like me to hold it until you can return to your body?"

[reliesondirtytricks]

Sulking was definitely a way to put it. He was irritated and annoyed, but amused at the same time. Having a full raven form meant that he could go flying with his dragon any time that he wanted to. Not that he couldn't already do that anyway, he could. Except as a raven he had an actual wing span. If he was thinking about it, that would probably look weird. A raven perched on the back of a dragon as it flew around.

This place needs more of a warning label.

Whether Runyu could hear his thoughts or not was a whole other story. Though, a part of him was also curious on what being an actual raven meant for his abilities. How easy could it be to use the crescent moon scimitar? If it got thrown would he be able to fly on it?

He does, however, fluff up slightly when his feathers are stroked and that smile is offered. There's a bit of a hesitation at releasing the xiao before it gets dropped into Runyu's hand. He trusted the other with it, after all.

[dragonrising]

The thought caught his attention because he hadn't realized he'd be able to hear anything. Certainly not an ability he could control at least. Tilting his head, he listened to see if he could hear more but realized it was just the one thought floating through.

Smiling gently, he caught the xiao and made sure it was carefully stored in his robes while his other hand continued to stroke the feathers.

"I know this was painful for you at first. Does it still hurt?"

[reliesondirtytricks]

The stroking of his feathers made him very content. Though, that was possibly due to who was stroking his feathers and not the sensation itself. Or, perhaps it was a bit of both. He should be careful leaning into that stroking hand.

It's a bit more dull now.

Though, it occurs to him to actually ask since it hadn't occurred to him before. Even if it seemed like Runyu could actually hear him. He could be wrong.

Can you actually hear me? Or are you just that attuned to me?

Markets

[fierceprotector]

This place, despite some of its faults, had still given her a bit more than she had. Even if it had taken from her too. However, her brothers and son were still there. For how long? She wasn't entirely sure. Nor did she want to think about that.

Even though she tended to her own garden she needed a few things from the market. This wasn't really like home but that didn't mean she couldn't still cook for her brothers and son. Something that she loved doing.

Runyu is seen and given a warm smile. Did it matter that he had scales and a horn? No. One of her brothers was a sect leader and the other was a demonic cultivator. The only way Runyu's features would bother him, more than likely, is if he was a fierce corpse. Well, one that wasn't as with it as Wen Ning anyway.

"Forgive me for saying, but your scales and horns are beautiful."

[dragonrising]

Runyu was surprised to have her smile at him and even compliment him. Turning to her, he found himself at a loss for words for a moment. Beautiful. He knew that Mingye found them that way but it had always been so hard for him to think of them that way. He was struggling with it and that was why he'd come out like this. To try to prove to himself that everything would be alright.

"Ah. I apologize. I was surprised." Politely, he offered her a small bow. "Thank you for your kind words."

Even if it was hard to see it for himself it was still nice to hear regardless.

[fierceprotector]

Even before Yanli became the wife of a Sect leader, she had been all smiles and happiness. Even though her husband wasn't there she wasn't going to change how she was around others. The only way that would happen is if someone tried to harm one of her brothers or her son. The three of them were her whole world and they were there with her.

She gives him a bow of her own, that smile never leaving her," There is no need to apologize."

[dragonrising]

With the way she bowed, he could tell she was a lady of some nobility at least. It explained her polite aura as well. Runyu lowered his arms and glanced away, almost shy without directly being so.

"I'm not so used to people seeing these traits just yet." Bringing those now blue eyes back to her, he offered a kind smile. "But your kind words were welcome."

[fierceprotector]

If one were to ask those that knew her they would tell Runyu that the polite aura was something that she always had. She was silk until she needed to be steel and protect her siblings from those that would try to harm them or say things that they shouldn't. She would be the same way with her son or any friends that she made.

He gets a soft, warm, smile from her," You usually hide them then? There is nothing wrong with hiding, if you're not used to something, but always remember there is a beauty in who you are too."

Tea in the Garden

[amethystfiend]

There were newer people that came and went in Four Seasons Manor. People that knew her master or Brother Zhou. Of course, she watched them. Always watching.

She'd been supplied with clothing that she was familiar with, all purple, and a whip on each side. One of them her master had made and the other was hers. Something that had showed up from home.

Sitting down across from him she cants her head slightly, the way that a cat would, or just someone that was overly curious. Not because of his features but because he was a stranger to her. "Which one are you?"

She'd say that he shouldn't have gotten past her notice, but she'd been dealing with a bit from home, and was only now pulling away and branching out from the familiarity of her master, Brother Zhou, Chengling, and the few others they knew from home.

[dragonrising]

Realizing he wasn't alone, he looked over to the girl. Her curiosity made him smile a little, more so because of the question. It was surprisingly easy to forget about his anxieties over his features with her questioning him like that.

"Which? What do you mean?"

Oh he could pinpoint what she was saying but he feigned ignorance as he smiled at her instead. After all, he could be which of a number of things.

[amethystfiend]

Those eyes watch him closely and that curiosity just grows. Humans and ghosts did not co-exist together. It's the one thing that she'd been told quite a bit growing up. Yet her master, her big brother, seemed to surround himself with humans. It made her heart ache, sometimes, over the one that she'd lost. The one that had accepted that she was one of her master's ghosts. His little amethyst fiend.

"Do you know master or Brother Zhou?"

It was possible that the stranger knew both of them. Possible that he even knew Chengling, but she doubted that one a bit. Unless, of course, Chengling had done the same thing she had and branched himself outside of their family.

[dragonrising]

"I am familiar with both of the masters of the manor. They have been very kind to me."

Very kind to him. However, he saw no reason to go that far into detail. Instead, he directed his newly blue eyes out to the gardens with a smile still tugging at his lips.

"One was good enough to offer these rooms to me so I could look at the gardens. A surprise to me later when I found out I was so near their rooms though."

[amethystfiend]

Very kind to him. She knew what that meant when it came to her master, even if Brother Zhou was his soulmate. This place was weird and her master had gotten close to others. Then again, so had Brother Zhou. She paid more attention than what they thought she did. Even if it probably wouldn't surprise Brother Zhou or her master that she did so.

He was near to where her master and Brother Zhou were which has her watching him that much more. That curiosity about the other might be there, but there's something else in those eyes and she seems to come to a conclusion. More to herself than to Runyu, really.

"If you ever fucking hurt them..."

The threat is there loud and clear. This? It wasn't an idle threat either. Gu Xiang is very protective of her family and this immortal needed to know just how protective. After all, Kexing was like a father to her. He'd been the one to raise her. The one to give her the name that she had.

"Master and Brother Zhou are important to me and I won't allow them to be hurt."

Park

[redblademaster]

Mingjue, when he's not by his lover's side, is out in the park training with his sword. It isn't Baxia, but it doesn't need to be. That isn't to say that he can't call for the sword if it came down to it. Baxia always comes when called. However, he knows that the sword is safe. Xichen had managed to keep it hidden away from him.

The sunlight, when it hits right, shines off the pearly white scales that adorn the back of the Nie Sect leader's neck and the sides of his throat. Having woken up to his love as a full dragon had been interesting. So, some of the features had stuck in human form. Like the dark horns, silver and black, that adorn his head. He's actually gotten used to them a bit. Having Xichen helps.

He does, however, note the newcomer and will let Runyu do as he pleases, for the moment.

[dragonrising]

Though he knew he wasn't alone, he wasn't looking to see who was with him. He was instead going to the lake so he could kneel down. Water always made him feel at peace when his mind was troubled with anxieties. Much like now. It made sense really. This was his natural element, something that was a part of his very nature. Being near it would naturally ease his tensions.

Reaching out, he closed his eyes. A bubble of water rose up from the lake and lifted until it was about eye level with him. Then it stretched and moved to swirl around his body. Wrapping him up yet never making contact with him. Runyu sighed at the sound of it, lowering his hand and letting his head fall back so he could just listen to the sound of the moving water.

This...this was what he'd needed.

[redblademaster]

The bubble of water rising actually catches Nie Mingjue's attention. That wasn't something that the Nie Sect leader had ever seen before. Not that he can recall, at any rate. So, Runyu is watched for a time as the water moves.

"Interesting ability." If it comes out a bit gruffier than it needs to, that's just Mingjue. The only one who didn't get that gruffness from him was Lan Xichen and every once in a while his baby brother. It depended on what Huaisang had done that day.
"Something natural?"

[dragonrising]

Without opening his eyes, he smiled a little. "If you mean water being natural then yes. But I imagine you mean the ability. In that case, the answer is still yes. I was born with my energies aligned with Yin and water as my nature."

Reaching out blindly, he touched the water moving around him. As it swirled past his fingers it chilled to turn into shards of ice floating around him instead before shifting back into water again.

"Listening to the sound of the water calms me sometimes."

Markets

[protectorofsmiles]

Looking his way? More like blatantly staring, giving his best cheesy smile, and trotting off towards him in the crowds.

Ever turned around only to see a pointy, scaled tree run towards you? Yeah it's kind of like that.

"I can't believe it! A brother here walkin' around in the markets! Here I thought I'd be the only one like this forever!"

The pointy tree with broken horns let's out a boisterous laugh that attracts a few passing glances from startled passersby, giving the poor silver-scaled man a hearty pat on the back. And should the man take notice of the seven fulm tall tree's own scales that were barely hidden under his opened red jacket, he'll realize why the tall stranger is being so friendly.

[ooc: picture is a little risque, so view when it's safe]

[dragonrising]

He was startled to have anyone run his way. More so at the fact that the stranger was so friendly and calling him brother. The height was worthy of note but he didn't mind having to look up and up at him as he tried to understand what was going on. Tilting his head, Runyu tried to understand what was going on here at all.

But he had no answers.

Though, the traits of the man were worth noting. Hard looking patches on him that seemed almost like scales. And a pair of horns and a tail. It took him a moment since some of the features were nothing like the shape of dragons he knew so intimately but after a moment it clicked.

Oh. Was that what this was about?

Still, he was surprised regardless. "A brother? There are more that look like you where you hail from?"

Four Seasons

[fated_dance]

Don't mind the red fox with too many tails that comes trotting up to a certain dragon! The eyes in this fox should be far too familiar to Runyu to be mistaken. Add in to the fact Zishu can fairly frequently be seen in the mornings especially with a few orange-to-red fox tails and matching ears, it shouldn't be hard to figure out who this particular fox is.

He tilts his head curiously before letting out a playful little sound suspiciously like a bark and...well. Pouncing on whatever Runyu doesn't move out of the way fast or far enough.

[dragonrising]

Runyu blinked when he saw the fox, not sure what he was seeing at first. It took him a moment or so before he noticed the eyes. Which was all he had time for before he had a lap filled with a red fox with many tails.

Quickly, he caught Zishu so the tea wouldn't get knocked over, gently moving the tails out of the way as well. "Ah. You're more eager to simply pounce when you're in this form. You're more polite when you're in your usual body."

[fated_dance]

He doesn't resist as he's moved to Runyu's satisfaction, then settles down with a happy little huff, wrapping his tails around his dragon. He stretches his head up to lick at Runyu's chin. He has just as little shame in this form as his soulmate does with a lover.

[dragonrising]

He laughed softly as that warm little body seemed to try to find a way to wrap up his entire body. So affectionate... But it was cute even if he had to try to move away from the licks. "Ah, you should wait to kiss me for when you can do so properly!"