Revenge of the Myth

(My bad! I'll edit it after this post!)

With a bright smile, Chinza gave the biggest thank you she could muster. Being told that the room was hers again made her feel a sense of relief she couldn't describe. After losing her place to belong, she had a new place to belong. She had someone who cared enough to give her a room, and she had the opportunity to play with and take care of animals just like she had when she'd help the farmers while on errands for her family.

It was the moment she remembered her parents that she became a wee bit saddened. She hadn't realized until after wiping some tears out of her eyes that Erbrow was heading somewhere else- the bath. She recognized where it was, having at least some spatial memory. Curious to watch a dragon bathe, she followed without thinking, before awkwardly asking, "Mind if I join you? I'm certain I smell from working with the manure earlier. The animals may not have minded it, but I've been meaning to take a shower ever since I worked on it."
 
Erbrow glanced around his shoulder at her and gave a soft grunt. He flicked his tail in an indication to follow, like a human cocking a finger at someone. Then he kept walking back to the pool of warm water. He didn't look back again, not sure if Chinza had understood or not, but unwilling to repeat or seem too happy about her coming. He had his reputation to keep up, after all.

He stopped at the edge of the pool and hesitated, teetering on the brink. Then he leaned forward and fell in with a splash. He sank deep into the water, going completely under before his feet found the bottom of the pool at its deepest point. Then he surfaced and easily moved to the edge where it was much shallower. The currents tugged at him, but he was able to easily anchor himself and resist. Now he lounged on his side along the shallow rim, his tail trailing out in the water. The water grew noticeably warmer from his own temperature, and he sighed contentedly.
 
Knowing she had other clothes to change into, Chinza jumped in from the side and began wading water once she came up from underneath. The tunic she'd worn was clinging to her body primarily, but parts of the hem swayed with the currents. "It's not very comfortable swimming in clothing, but it'd be kind of embarrassing if I didn't," She said, meaning to say it to herself, but instead it came out aloud.

She was raised to be modest, and being nude with someone else, even a dragon, was unacceptable behavior she'd been taught. So, she always swam in clothing, even if it was just her underwear- but, as she hadn't made anything good for swimming yet, she just stuck with the tunic. "This water is really warm. It's amazing how nice a warm bath can feel after a long day of play."
 
Erbrow grunted softly at her words, but he raised his head to study her curiously. "Why?" he asked suddenly. Then, realizing he likely needed to clarify, he asked, "Why do you need to wear clothing?" He wanted to continue, but it was bothersome asking questions. He stretched out once more.

"Yes," he replied in answer to her question. "The water feels good. It is a good place to rest until it is time to eat." Ugh, so much chatter! He was almost looking forward to this evening when he could use his human form to speak more freely.
 
"My mother and father told me you should never be seen naked, though we did bathe together while naked when I was small. But once you're of a certain age, you're supposed to act more modestly... Not that I was known for modesty with my temper." She laughed nervously, realizing another reason there were some in the village didn't mind the idea of her dying. She had a violent temper, though it was usually set off by good reasons to be angry.

Shaking off the thoughts, she began swimming around the pool of water, smiling. "But I never got to take a bath in a bath this big before. It's really amazing! We both fit perfectly, and there's room for even more!"
 
Erbrow just stared at her. Dragons did not have the same idea of modesty that humans had. It wasn't like you could take off your scales or something. He did get the idea for modesty with the temper, although he had yet to see anything proving that. Nothing and no one could throw a temper tantrum like a giant, fire-breathing lizard that considered itself the epitome of Awesome. Anything else paled in comparison.

"I made it," Erbrow replied to her bath comments. "It fits me and you. Another dragon would be a fight." He meant that having another dragon would cause a fight, not that it would be a fight to get one in. And he sincerely hoped she didn't think she could invite a bunch of humans to come play in his pool!
 
She giggled and blushed slightly when he pointed out it fit the two of them, but he seemed not interested in having someone else in the water with them. She didn't fully catch that there would be a fight rather than it was hard to do, but she seemed to understand well enough that either way, another dragon wasn't welcome. To Chinza, that was fine- she was still adjusting to living with one dragon and his livestock. The last thing she needed was another giant that could kill her at any moment.

Yes, she did still think it possible that Erbrow might eat her someday in the future. She had no doubt her end would be as his meal, whether by choice or by force. However, for the time being, she felt quite safe with Erbrow. She wasn't even sure why, but having someone willing to look after her after what happened to her parents... It was a relief she never expected in a hundred years, let alone that day she was meant to die.

"You really are an amazing builder, Erbrow. You built this bath, and I'm certain you built most of the cavern rooms yourself. It's hard and meticulous work, building a home. It's inspiring being able to see it with my own eyes."
 
Erbrow arched his neck, preening at her praise. "Hard work, but good work," he purred. Maybe he was being too harsh on this human. Clearly, she had some taste to be able to see how marvelous a job he'd done creating his own den. Most silly humans thought dragons merely found some gaping hole and slept on rocks or piles of gold. So uncomfortable! So silly! But this girl, she understood her dens!

He rose out of the water, rivlets streaming down his glimmering scales. "The meat will be done cooking," he told her. He shook himself off and walked out, sending waves of water lapping up the sides of the pool. He flicked his tail around, catching her before she could be swept out to the deeper water and guiding her up onto the side. "Come. It tastes bad cold." He shook himself again and padded back into the mountain.
 
Chinza began to stare in admiration at the dragon, smiling happily over the fact this was the dragon she met. Surely, he was different from most of the stories- and she liked that. Learning the truth was enticing, and helped distract her from her heartbreak.

As she started to get carried away by the currents he created with his tail, she found herself against his tail, being guided to the side wall so she could get out safely. She was a bit embarrassed needing his help as much as she had just because of a wave, but she was grateful and made sure to thank him- both for helping her out of the pool and for making the food once again.

"You know, I can cook sometimes for you too. I used to cook with my mother. Though the meat you cook is rather delicious, so it'd be a shame to lose out on that." Her toothy grin was back, as well as a shudder from being in wet clothes. "Maybe next time I'll ignore mother's words and go without the tunic... I'm freezing."
 
Erbrow poked at the coals a bit and stirred things up. "Go, get dry," he told her, flicking his tail the way a human might wave their hand. "This is done when you are ready. Don't get ill. Humans are so fragile." He huffed, partially at how fragile humans seemed to be, and partially because saying that much all at once was a bit strenuous on the throat. He fished out the meat and started scraping off the burnt hair with a claw. It was not particularly appetizing, but it needed to be done, and he handled it expertly. Then he began dividing the meat up into fair portions. He gave Chinza pieces of the best bits. She was little and didn't need to eat nearly as much as he did, so it was no hardship to him. He finished getting things properly sorted out and stared at the meat. Greenery. When she was done changing, he would talk to her about making the green part of the meal. Dragons needed a little bit of vegetables in their diet, the same as nearly every other carnivore, but it was annoying to handle. She had little hands. She could make the vegetables and leafy things more appetizing so he wouldn't have to just chew and swallow whatever he happened to find. Yuch.
 
Chinza nodded the moment Erbrow gave her the command to dry off. She walked to her room, still feeling giddy as she thought of it as that, and entered to look through the clothes that had been left behind by the previous tenant. The clothes were all for a man bigger than she was, but she was able to find things that fit well enough. Changing out of the tunic into an old button-down that reached her knees, she giggled and ran back where Erbrow was cooking.

She happily took the bits she was given, surprised a bit that they all looked so perfect- had he given her the better bits on purpose, or was it just a fluke? She thanked him for the meat, then began to ponder something. Were dragons purely carnivores? She'd only seen him eat meat so far. Would he be angry if she asked to find some veggies of some sort for herself? Chinza, like the majority of humans, was an omnivore. She needed a bit of everything to stay healthy...

"I know it may not be as necessary for you," She finally mused, "But do you keep any veggies or greenery for the animals? Humans are omnivores- we need a lot of veggies for our diets to stay healthy. I don't want to get ill- it's more fun being together than having to hide in my room for days."
 
Erbrow eyed the human. Was she a mind reader, or was this purely just a logical step? He looked down at the meat he was tearing apart with his claws. A logical step. That made a lot more sense than her being some sort of dragon mind reader. He gulped down a bite of deer meat before answering. "We need some green," he confirmed. "I do not like green. I will make the meat. You will make green." He was getting tired of talking.

He ate another bite before waving a claw toward the exit up into the animal level. "There is a bunch of green in the shed. You can use that. More than that, we will discuss." He wondered if she would want to plant a garden. He saw them sometimes but never paid much attention. He didn't think it would matter much if she wanted a garden. After all, dirt was dirt, right? And how long could it possibly take to grow a carrot?
 
Chinza was more than happy to do her part to help make their meal more healthy- well, healthier for her. She wasn't sure if it really helped dragons to eat their vegetables. She could only hope she could make a decent enough salad with the greens in the shed. Heading upwards towards the shed, she found the greens he was talking about- and they looked delicious! She was surprised to find there was a small variety of vegetables, but she figured they were snacks for the animals. Taking a nearby bucket, she filled it with some veggies and brought them with her down to the fire pit.

"Can I have the sharp blade to cut some of these? After that I just need to shake them and they're all done. I was surprised there's no dirt on them."
 
Blade? As in a knife? Erbrow gave her a look then proffered his claw. "Here is your blade," he said dryly. "Do what you you need with it." Why on earth would she think there would be a knife in a dragon's cave? Silly human.
 
Chinza carefully held the Erbrow's claw, not used to using a living being as a sharp tool to cut things up. She held the veggies up to his claw, running things back and forth quickly to cut them into pieces. When she felt everything was cut well, she pat his... would it be a hand, a paw? She wasn't sure what to call it. She pat it to show she was done with it and murmured a thank you before putting the veggies back in the bucket and stirred them slightly with her hands so they were well mixed. "Alrighty, salad's done. I don't have any ingredients for sauce, but veggies taste great when they're fresh, and these look fresh enough to me to taste yummy."
 
"There is a sauce that goes on vegetables?" Erbrow asked. He shook off his claw before leaning over and sniffing at the "salad." "What sauce?" It looked a little more appetizing than eating whatever green thing he happened to pick up as he went along. Alright, there was a bit more to it than that, but not much. In any case, it looked eatable and he was willing to try it. He waited, though, letting Chinza take what she wanted. She was much smaller, after all.
 
"At home, we use a sauce of sorts- we usually call it dressing, but I had a hard time with the word as a kid, so I just always called it sauce... Anyway, it's an addition to salad that makes them more palatable, especially for kids that don't like veggies at all." She giggled a bit, remembering the old days when she refused to eat any of the salad her mom would make without dressing to make it taste better. She shook off the memory, not wanting to start crying.

It took a few moments for Chinza to realize she was being allowed to pick out her veggies first. She took some veggies into her lap and began to pick at them, not knowing where to find a makeshift plate besides her 'dress', which was just a long tunic. "These ones are super tasty. They don't need sauce at all. You picked them well."
 
Sauce. Dressing. Hmm. He was still uncertain as to the need, but if it made these veggies taste better, Erbrow would give it a try. If Chinza ever wanted to make it. He had no idea how one made sauces, but he presumed it required more utensils then he owned. He did not exactly need or desire to do much cooking to need anything more than a couple of buckets and his claws.

He took the "salad" when Chinza was finished with it and held the bucket between two claws. "Tasty? Good. I cannot tell the difference." Then he tossed everything into his mouth in one go and all but swallowed it whole.
 
When she watched Erbrow take a mouthful of the salad, Chinza couldn't help but giggle slightly. "You should really eat slower. My mom said every creature, big and small, needs to eat carefully to not hurt their stomach." Smiling, her eyes turned downcast. Oh, how she missed her mother's nagging! Her father's protective nature! She could feel tears welling up in her eyes, but shook her head rapidly to free them and stop any more from coming out. "Sorry about that. Anyway, the point is... you should eat slowly and carefully, not in huge mouthfuls that may give you a stomach ache. My mom said even a dragon has to be cautious."
 
"This is barely a mouthful for me," Erbrow pointed out dryly. "I am a dragon. Everything in my belly burns and is destroyed." He hesitated a little, though, a bit thrown by her brief show of tears. She was still suffering despite her insufferable cheeriness. He did the dragon's version of clearing his throat - which sounded like boulders clashing. "Your mother spoke of dragons, did she?" he asked, trying to sound a little lighter. "That seems like an odd thing for a human mother to be discussing."
 
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