Published: June 10, 2020
Rewritten: April 5, 2023
Word count: 3,363
Inspired by Seonghwa looking like Toothless :3
DO NOT read or interact if you're under 14
You trekked through the dense forest, your boots brushing against the lush undergrowth as you proceeded through the greenery. The light smell of post-rain petrichor lingering in the air, the scent calming to your senses.
There's a story that's been passed down through your family about a dragon boy that lives in a cave somewhere in the woods. Your grandma told you about it when you were a kid. She said he has dark hair and large, red wings. She told you she saw him with her own two eyes. He caught her watching him, snatching her up with his clawed hands. He nearly killed her until he found out she wasn't a threat. She said after that day, they started spending time together every so often and shared stories with each other. Of course, you didn't really believe her until she showed you a red dragon scale. You remembered it well, the color was like that of fire and it had a faint sheen to it, the light reflecting off its smooth surface. She told you the he gave it to her. Ever since then, you've wanted to find this so-called dragon boy, and now that you were old enough to go out on your own, you did just that.
Your grandmother told you there would be a tall oak tree near the cave. She said you'd know it was the right tree if there was a light pink flower growing near the base of it. You'd been on the lookout for the oak, scanning the area vigilantly about halfway through your journey. After just a bit more walking, your eyes immediately found the small bloom, it's pale pink hue standing out against the greenery and the dark wood of the oak. Your heart leapt with excitement at the sight of the flower.
Almost there. You thought to yourself, pressing forward.
You advanced through the forest, making sure to stay on a straight path, not wanting to risk getting lost. The towering trees and lush greenery that seemed to stretch for miles finally began to thin out and you felt like you could breathe a bit easier. You climbed over a large rock that was blocking your way, coming out into a small clearing. There were clusters of rocks that somewhat protected the area, keeping it hidden from prying eyes, this detail caught your attention. As you scanned the area, you spotted a large, rocky wall, somewhat resembling a small mountain. Roughly ten feet off the ground was an opening in the rocks, a cave.
"There it is." You whispered to yourself, feeling a sense of excitement building within you.
Hurrying over to a nearby mound of rocks you began to carefully climb your way up to the cave, moving with the utmost caution. Your hand reached for the ledge, but your foot slipped. A yelp left you as you quickly latched onto the nearest rock, successfully regaining your footing before hauling yourself up onto the ledge. Once you got to your feet, you entered the cave, looking around to see what was inside. It was kind of small—so small, in fact, that you could see the back of it from where you stood. Your eyes scanned the walls but nothing looked out of the ordinary. As you neared the back of the cave you noticed a large rock resting against the stoney walls. Glancing around, you searched the cave floor, not seeing any signs of a dragon living there, not even a scale. You let out a sigh of disappointment.
Maybe it really was just a story.
Just then, your ears picked up the faint sound of flapping somewhere in the distance. You were quick to brush it off, thinking that you were just imagining things—well, you thought you were imagining it, that is until a strong gust of wind blew your hair in front of your face.
"What are you doing here?" A deep and unfamiliar voice asked in a stern tone.
Slowly, you turned around to face the person. A tall, slim man stood at the entrance of the cave, a set of large wings outspread behind him.
No way.
"Y-You're... you're the dragon." You sputtered.
"Who told you I was here?" He asked harshly as he advanced towards you.
"My grandma." You answered, backing up against the cave wall.
"What are you talking about? No one knows about this place." He stopped in front of you, your eyes landed on his tail that was covered in shiny black scales. A perplexed frown tugged at your mouth.
Wait.
"They're not red." You muttered quietly to yourself.
"Excuse me?"
"Your scales. My grandma said she met a red dragon, but your scales are black."
"My grandfather had red scales." He stated, seeming less hostile than he was a few moments ago.
"Then... who are you?" You questioned, looking up at his tall figure.
"I'm Seonghwa. You are?"
"Y/n. I think my grandmother was friends with your grandfather."
In the dim light you could see his sharp brows knit together in bewilderment.
"Now that you mention it..." He trailed off. "My grandfather told me a story when I was young. A story about a human who would come and visit him."
"That's her!"
His mouth opened just slightly in both surprise and realization.
"I'm sorry for being so snappy." He bowed. "No one knows about my existence. Well, I thought no one knew. I'm just cautious is all."
He extended his hand to you, his nails long and sharp resembling claws. Despite their unsettling appearance, you weren't afraid.
"Friends?" He asked.
You reached out and shook his hand. "Friends."
"Would you like to come inside?" He offered. "I'm sure you don't want to be sitting in a cold, wet cave."
"Inside?" You echoed. From what you could see, you were inside.
"Step back for moment." Seonghwa said as he moved past you.
You stepped aside to give him space, watching as he grabbed the large rock situated at the back of the cave, pushing it to the side and moving it with ease. A dark and weathered wooden door sat behind the boulder that had previously concealed it.
So this is how he stays hidden.
"Follow me." He beckoned.
He retrieved a key from his pocket and used it to unlock the door, pushing it open. You followed him as he stepped inside.
Your eyes widened in amazement as you took in the decor of his home. There was a fancy chandelier filled with flickering candles hanging over the living room. The couch appeared to be made out of some type of velvety material, gold encrusting the framework of the furniture. A dark wood table sat on a maroon colored rug in front of the couch, a small bronze sculpture of a dragon adorning the middle of it. A massive shelf took up the entirety of the back wall behind the couch. Most of it was filled with books, while small trinkets and tchotchkes, vases and vintage relics and tiny souvenirs sat on the other shelves. You unconsciously walked over to the bookshelf to look at all the tiny nicknacks lined up: a jar full of gems, blown glass vases, chunky and jagged crystals, a couple hourglasses, and a crystal bowl.
"You've got so many cool trinkets." You commented.
"Thank you. My family has collected things throughout the years. A lot of that stuff came from knights."
"Knights?" You parroted in disbelief.
"Yeah. Back in medieval times us dragons teamed up with knights. In return for helping them battle they would give us small trinkets and gifts."
"Woah."
"All of those items you see have been collected by my family members throughout their lives."
"You have relatives that fought with knights?"
"I do. It's pretty cool." He smiled softly, admiring the items lining the shelves.
You turn around, your eyes catching sight of a fireplace on the opposite wall of the living room. You tilted your head to the side, wondering how it was possible for a fireplace to be in a cave. As if Seonghwa could read your mind, he spoke up.
"You're probably wondering how I can have any sort of fire in here."
"Actually yeah, I was. Won't the rocks break away?"
"Not at all. This is a magical cave. It won't break or catch fire."
"What about the smoke from the fireplace? Wouldn't a huge trail of smoke coming from a cave be a dead giveaway to your location?"
He let out an amused chuckle. "The smoke just gets absorbed into the rocks."
You blinked a few times, processing his words.
"What? I don't understand. How?"
"I told you, this cave is magic. How do you think we managed to stay hidden for so long?"
You let out a huff, trying to process everything.
"That would make sense." You murmured.
"Try not to think about it too much." He chuckled softly. "Have a seat."
Moving over to the couch, you sat down on one of the cushions, surprised by its plushness.
"Why do you need a fire?" You inquired aloud. "Besides for light, of course. I thought dragons didn't get cold."
"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not fully dragon." He gestured to himself.
"Right. Sorry."
"It's fine." He gave you a gentle smile, taking a seat beside you. "I don't expect you to know everything about me."
You glanced over at him, taking in his appearance now that he was close and under decent lighting. His dark hair was swept to the sides of his face, framing his features nicely. His ears were pointed, shiny silver earrings dangling from them, the light from the flames reflecting off the metal. Two small horns adorned the top of his head, while black scales decorated his temples and cheekbones. His irises were a deep, golden hue, sharp brows resting above them and framing his eyes. His wings were large and looked quite powerful even while tucked in while his long tail rested on the couch, the end of it curled up on the floor by his foot.
Seonghwa cleared his throat, snapping you from your daze.
"You were staring." He pointed out softly.
"Sorry. I was just getting a good look at you."
"What do you think?" He asked glancing over at you, a tinge of worry flashing across his features.
"I think you're handsome." You admitted truthfully.
"Oh." His eyes become round, surprise written on his face. "I wasn't expecting that."
"What were you expecting?" You asked.
"Scary. Weird. I don't know." He trailed off as his eyes cast down.
"Why would I think that?"
"I've just always had this certain image of humans in my mind. Like they're scared of people—creatures like me. I thought I was scary."
"Some might be, but I'm not." You offered him a warm smile. "I think you're intriguing."
"Intriguing." He repeated to himself.
"I'd love to learn more about you, if you don't mind."
"You would?"
You nodded eagerly.
He tried to hold back a smile before speaking again. "What do you want to know?"
"Can you breathe fire?"
"I can. Not all dragons are able to, but I'm one of the ones that can."
"Woah. Can you show me? Or is that too much to ask?"
"Sure." He stood up and walked over to the fireplace, giving his wings a powerful flap causing the fire to be blown out immediately. The only light in the room was now coming from the candles in the chandelier above.
"Ready?" Seonghwa asked.
"Yes."
You squinted your eyes, trying to focus on him in the dim light. He took in a deep breath in preparation before blowing flames into the fireplace, rekindling the fire he just extinguished, the sight leaving you in awe.
"That was so cool!" You gushed excitedly, not being able to contain your enthusiasm.
"You think so?" Seonghwa asked bashfully, returning to the couch.
"Yes! That was awesome. Definitely the coolest thing I've ever seen."
"Thanks." He scratched the back of his neck nervously, getting shy from your praises. "Do you have any more questions?"
"I do. This one might be stupid, but can you shift into full dragon form or is this your regular form? You mentioned that your ancestors fought with knights and I was just wondering if you could shift into a full dragon or not."
"It's not a stupid question at all. I'm able shift into a full dragon, but I don't usually do it. I don't really have a need to, plus I'm much more comfortable like this. I feel more like myself."
"This is another silly question, but what's it like to fly?"
The gleam in your eye was obvious to Seonghwa as you awaited his answer.
"It's freeing. I can go whenever I want. And the view from above is beautiful."
"I bet it is, especially at sunset."
"Yes." He nodded. "It's unlike anything else."
"Do you live here alone?" You asked, noticing the emptiness of the cave as soon as you'd stepped inside.
"I do. My parents moved off somewhere else more private and gave this place to me. That's how it's been for centuries."
You hummed, nodding at his words. "How do you get food? What kind of food do you even eat?"
Seonghwa let out a laugh. "Regular food, just like you."
"Oh." You muttered, embarrassed by your question.
"It's alright, don't be ashamed." He patted your shoulder softly. "Acquiring the food isn't all that difficult, actually. There's a secret market in this forest for creatures like me to purchase food from."
"Really? That's so cool. Where do you get the money?"
"Ah. Right here." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a few octagonal gold coins. "This is the currency we mythical creatures use. We get it by selling things. For example, I sell my scales to wizards in exchange for money."
Your eyes went wide at that bit of information.
Wizards? Secret markets?
"My scales fall off and I just collect them until I have enough to sell."
"This is all so interesting." You said, taking all of the new information in, committing it to memory. "I never knew these things existed."
"Well, I think that's the point." He chuckled softly.
You had many questions like were fairies real and do unicorns actually exist? If wizards are real, perhaps those things are too. Despite your curiosity, you kept those queries to yourself thinking they were a bit embarrassing.
"Y/n." Seonghwa spoke up, using your name for the first time since you arrived. "If you're not in a hurry, I would really like it if you stayed a little longer." He professed shyly.
"I'll stay as long as you want."
"Well, in that case, can I offer you some tea?"
"Of course. I'd love that."
Giving you a gentle smile, Seonghwa stood up from the couch and disappeared into a small kitchen area rummaging through the cabinets. After listening to him shuffle around in the kitchen for a few moments he returned holding a kettle, placing it over the fire.
"You know," Seonghwa began, sitting back down on the couch. "I've never interacted with a human before."
"I assumed as much based on the way you reacted when you saw me in the cave."
"Yeah." He forced a nervous laugh. "Sorry about that... again."
"No worries. I get it. You have to keep yourself safe. To be honest, this place is well-hidden. I don't think anyone would find it unless they were purposefully looking for it."
"I hope you're right."
Once the kettle above the fire started whistling, Seonghwa got up to retrieve it, preparing two cups of tea.
"I'm curious about something." You began, stirring the steaming beverage. "In stories and movies, dragons love treasure and precious belongings. You seem to have a lot of valuables and trinkets. Are you drawn to that stuff?"
"I'm not really drawn to gold or anything like that, but us dragons do enjoy collecting things. We're not exactly territorial over it, though."
"Ah. So the movies aren't accurate." You murmured the last part more so to yourself.
"Movies." Seonghwa repeated. "I think I've heard of those."
"You've never seen a movie?"
He shook his head.
"We're going to have to watch one together sometime."
His eyes lit up in response. "I would love that."
Blowing gently on the steaming tea, you brought the cup to your lips and sipped the hot beverage. You hummed at the taste.
"This is delicious."
"It's my favorite tea. I always buy it at the market. I can't go without it."
As much as you wanted to drink the rest of the tea, you decided to savor it, taking a couple sips every once in a while. You placed the cup down onto the coffee table before turning to Seonghwa, your gaze lingering on him and taking in his unique appearance.
"Could I..." You trailed off, feeling embarrassed by the request you were about to make, wondering if it was too weird. "Could I touch your scales?"
Seonghwa's deep brown eyes widened as a rush of warmth spread along his face. "Sure."
He expected you to touch the ones along his tail, but to his surprise you reached up and placed your fingertips on the scales framing his eyes, the feeling setting his cheeks aflame.
Your gaze lingered on his features, feeling the smooth surface of each scale.
"Wow." You whispered softly in awe. "You're beautiful." The last part slipped out before you could stop it.
"Beautiful?" Seonghwa repeated softly under his breath.
You nodded in confirmation. "Very beautiful."
He turned his gaze away from you, too shy to make eye contact at the moment.
You pulled your hand away, feeling bashful from your own actions and hoping it didn't make him too uncomfortable.
Unbeknownst to you, it had done quite the opposite, leaving Seonghwa rather flustered. He was taken by you almost immediately, your warm and friendly personality drawing him in.
You reached for your cup of tea sitting idly on the coffee table, finishing the remainder of the beverage that was now barely warm.
Seonghwa was quick to offer to take your empty cup, grabbing his own before bringing them to the kitchen to be washed later.
On his way back to the living room, he spotted one of his scales on the rug in front of the fireplace taking a moment to pick it up.
"Here." He handed it to you. "My grandfather gave one of his scales to your grandmother. Perhaps I should give one of mine to you."
Your eyes went wide as you began shaking your head. "I can't accept that. You need it for money."
"Giving one away won't hurt."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive." He responded with certainty, dropping the scale into your palm.
You closed your fingers around it, silently vowing to keep it in a safe place and never lose it.
"Thank you."
This visit with Seonghwa has been like a dream. Never in your life would you have imagined you'd be talking to a dragon, let alone one that was related to the dragon your grandmother met so long ago. But as much as you were enjoying your visit, you knew it had to come to and end.
"As much as I'd love to stay, I think it's time for me to go home."
You could see the way Seonghwa's shoulders drooped in response, however, he understood you had a home of your own and needed to get back to it before it got dark.
"Will you come back and visit me?" He asked, looking at you with hopeful eyes.
"Absolutely."
Seonghwa got up off the couch and led you to the door, pulling it open for you.
"I'll see you around." You told him.
"Yeah. See you around."
You hesitantly stepped outside back into the opening of the cave, taking notice of the evening sky.
"Y/n?"
You paused, turning to Seonghwa.
"Maybe next time you visit, I could take you flying."
The way your eyes lit up made his heart do somersaults.
"I'd love that."
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Dragon Seonghwa is one of my favorite imagines. Not to mention it's such a unique concept! I haven't seen anything like it on Wattpad.
First time around I said there wasn't a part 2 but I did add more and extended Y/n and Seonghwa's visit together. Anything after him offering her tea is new! Btw if I say there's no part 2, please respect that. I like any imagine continuations to be consecutive and I also plan them ahead of time. So if there is a part 2 I'll mention it in the author's note :)
DO NOT steal, copy, repost, translate, or alter any of my imagines. I work very hard on these. If you want to write something inspired by my work, please ask me first