Everyone loved Bernard, that was his whole deal - he was an incubus-rukel and he lived up to his potential. Got a moment? He'd step right into your heart and leave you wanting more. He rarely had to exert any of his true power over anyone, Bernard was adorable as he was, and had a clever wit about him so he could talk about practically anything.

He would talk about trees, about school, and whether the baseball team was going to win this year, with the girls that he attracted. They all had something different to chat about, they were all needy in some way... But what Bernard really wanted to talk about was dragons. After all he came from a world populated by them, and this one did have them too, albeit imported from far and wide. When would he get to discuss his one love?

Was it even possible that he could find a friend, someone who wouldn't just fall for him and try getting physical? He was still a Rukel after all, and somewhat small at that, so he preferred four-footer friends to the tall humans and aliens at Carramba. Some day, he thought, some day he'd be talking to someone and they would announce they were off to find a dragon bond, and couldn't he come with?

He surely would. Some day.

***

"But I would like to see them, at least," Bernard said, and the group of girls (human, non human, and otherwise) around him sighed. Some were forlorn, some were irate.

"If you leave, than that jerk of an ex-boyfriend will want me back!" Said one.

Another added, "we want you to stay!" With a chorus of cheers of 'please stay!' 'don't leave us!' added in for good measure from the rest.

Bernard sighed. He was used to this, of course, but what he had to do, was somehow ditch this group of clingy girls. They all wanted to discuss whether that color of lipstick looked good with their shoes or whether the baseball team's pitcher would be up for a movie, or whatever. It wasn't that he was not concerned with their issues, it was that they got old pretty quick when there was a larger group than usual.

And this time, there were no fewer than twelve of his 'girls' around. It was a long weekend - Thursday and Friday off in addition to the regular weekend days - and the girls wanted to get in as much of Bernard's aura as they could. It didn't bother him at all that some of these girls had left their boyfriends for him. What did bother him was every once in a while one of those angry boys would start throwing rocks or thinking up ways to get back at the innocent Bernard...

Was he innocent? Well, it wasn't like his powers over women were unnatural or trained, they were innate, they came with just ... existing for him. Try explaining that to an angry linebacker? Even a 15 year old one?

Eventually Bernard had to just run away, sprinting on all fours until he could bat his wings up and down to escape into the air. He was pretty sure that one or two of the girls left on the ground had powers of flight (one was a witch with a broom in her hands, and another was a superheroine in training - they both flew) but neither of them seemed to remember how at the moment. He dove into the high window of a building nearby, one of the Humanities buildings, and panted heavily.

Though the rest of the room was empty, with desks and chairs in haphazard lines around a central desk, there was a human woman at that desk who looked faintly familiar to Bernard. She was dark skinned, tanned with black hair, and that hair was her most distinguishing feature: it being in a 1 foot tall mohawk. Dominique Talshoy was her name, and she was, aside from being the Political Science teacher that most kids liked, a dragon rider.

"Oh goodness, you aren't just a bird," Talshoy gasped and then laughed. She stood with curiosity, and then tilted her head - her hair standing perfectly at attention even when she did so. "You're one of those little creatures, I've seen you down on the ground in the shade trees..."

Bernard nodded once, still trying to catch his breath from his explosive exit from that shade tree.

"If I might ask, what scared you up here? Or ... can you even talk?" Talshoy blinked oddly and then made a head gesture that indicated she suddenly heard something she hadn't expected to. It was her dragon, Ringeth, who was a red-brown, white and blue star-patterned male. "Oooh, I see," she said a moment later, "Ringeth says you've been asked to attend a peculiar hatching. Did you want a ride?"

"OH yes, I would," Bernard blurted out, when she said that. It was such a relief talking to a woman and not having her just fawning over him! He wondered absently when they started down toward the exit of the building, whether it was because she was an adult, or because she was a rider, or just what? It wasn't that she was gay, she was enamored of some certain people on her homeworld. It was probably her connection to Ringeth, and that made Bernard think even more.

"What if... I can't ... um," Bernard said, when they had cleared the building (the clump of girls was mostly still out behind it crying to each other) and were headed down to the dragonry area, "I mean, what if I can't use my abilities after I find a dragon? Don't some people do that?"

"Oh... Well," Dominique said shrugging, "that's a possibility but I doubt that you'd lose any of your charm. I have heard that others actually gain control over their natural abilities and their powers work well. I think it depends on what you'll be wanting out of a partner. Ringeth was very unexpected for me, but he's proven himself to be a good friend and a valuable ally in my war."

With that little bit of stress relieved, they got to the dragonry area and Ringeth bugled to greet his partner. He was a large dragon, surely fitting for a revolutionary like Talshoy to ride into battle. "Where are we headed, anyway?" She asked, helping the small creature up onto the neck of her dragon, between her knees.

Ringeth answered for him, the Abstract Destiny, he said, it has some... interesting creatures indeed there. Just now, I wonder how big they will get, if you're going to be caring for one.

"I can manage, I think," Bernard said. He actually had no idea how he'd manage to take care of a creature which might wind up being ... well he didn't even know - did cat-dragon-hydra-things grow big? Or small? Or just what? But then he realized he didn't have any trouble getting girls to come near him and talk, why not suggest they help him clean, care for and examine a large dragon? Well that was how he'd do it, certainly.

The other Rukels would be jealous, he suspected. He knew one or two had found friends, but this one... it would be special. Not only did he know he'd find a dragon of some kind here, he'd clearly be able to talk shop with them! That would be great!

***

Dominique and Ringeth remained on board while Bernard was waiting for the clutch - a strange mix of hydra and cat-dragon - to hatch. They gave him encouragement and cheered him on when they called everyone in for the hatching. Not too many people got to watch, but there would be enough eyes on the candidates as it was. Each of the already rambunctious hatchlings had four heads! One set of heads in particular focused on Bernard, and rooted him out from the many other folks there.

"Bernard! Hey Bernard!" four heads exclaimed merrily, as a little male awkwardly kitten-galloped over. Each head wore a broad grin. "I'm Narruz! I'm--ooo!"

As suddenly as he'd run up, Narruz's heads all jerked over to the right, looking at something new. "Food's over there!" he laughed, half-forgetting his new bond and galumphing off again.

Well Bernard couldn't ignore that! In fact he didn't ignore the call to food, either! They enjoyed the freshly chopped meats (and Bernard grabbed a few of those tasty butter crackers that someone put out for the humanoids, he adored those things! especially with peanut butter!) and then met back up with Dom and her dragon.

"Do you think he'll ever pay attention to one thing at a time?" Dominique asked, as the four heads all but tried to get their body to run in different directions at once.

"He already does," Bernard announced, "I can tell. Maybe ... a food reward would be good..." he pondered a bit, and then chuckled, looking up at the much bigger human. "I think he'll be able to help me sort out the girls back at Carramba! I mean, he'll be able to talk to them all at once, while I get a bit of a break."

That was a relief on the way for Bernard. Though he hated to admit it, he would prefer some of the girls that came around to fawn about him, to be maybe.... a little more ... smart? Or concerned about something other than their own problems? After doling out lots of purring scratch-my-shoulders-if-it'll-make-you-feel-better sessions, maybe he'd like a bit more than he'd had.

And now, looking at the contented (if distracted) Narruz over there (who was now asleep - or parts of him were asleep, the other heads were gnawing on their tail...) he seemed to have found that something more.

***

Bernard hid out in the Hypercalc lab for a while, the Cryogenics area for a brief, cold night, and a few simply curled up in the Admin Torus (which was an ever-circulating moebus strip of connecting hallways in and among the Administrative building, follow the green line and you can always return to where you started) to keep from being accosted by the girls when he got back to Carramba. He knew that he and Narruz would need time to get settled again, and he wanted some quality time alone with his new bond friend.

One morning, shortly after the second week he'd been hiding out, Bernard spotted a pair of women's shoes - complete with a woman's toes - standing right next to him. He woke frantically, which startled Narruz into waking too.

She giggled, reached down and petted them both. "Honey, you've got to get back out there sometime. It's all right, you can always come to my office."

It wasn't Dominique who was there, no it was someone almost entirely opposite her in appearance. Darkly brown, with black-bottomed orange afro hair stylishly shaved and cut, and a pair of headjacks coming from her temples, the woman was Cybil Qeats. She was essentially the head of the whole Admin wing, and had a wicked sense of humor. With a grin on her lips, she picked up Bernard and indicated Narruz to follow her into an unmarked door nearby.

"Isn't it dangerous just walking through the --" Bernard said, having heard horror stories about people getting lost in the Torus wing.

"Not when you have the keys," she said, jingling those selfsame keys in her other hand. All four of Narruz's heads looked up at the sound and then gleefully followed. "How you've managed to stay here without getting in trouble I don't know," Cybil said, "but really. You belong in the sunlight, under your tree don't you?"

"How... did you know?"

"I know everyone who is on Campus, dear," Cybil said, grinning again and tapping her temple jack. "You'd be amazed at the things I know." They went through the doorway and Bernard found himself blinking at the bright sunlight. They were outdoors, in fact right from a door that he always assumed held a janitorial closet or something, in the nearby building from his tree home.

"Ooh I like it here!" Narruz said, romping down to the tree, and scratching his claws on its trunk casually. Suddenly two of his heads looked in opposite directions, and the other two at Bernard and Cybil. "I think those girls are coming!"

Cybil gently set Bernard down, "you're one of the nicest creatures on campus, you know that. They have missed you! And like I said, come to my office, and Dom said she'd be happy to host you when you need to, as well." She patted Bernard's head again, and went back into the Torus.

Leaving Bernard with a half dozen girls who squealed and giggled and sobbed happily. "We're so glad you're back! Look at you, have you grown? Oh who's this!" Each said in turn, something similar. Bernard tried to keep up with them, but it was Narruz who did indeed save the day by having multiple heads and therefore multiple voices with which to reply.

"My name is Narruz! I like your dress!" "It's a good tree, I like it too." "Don't cry, I think Bernard will want to talk to you about it." "I didn't know girls could make sounds like that... Didn't you hear it?"

Eventually things settled back down, and Bernard eased back into his routine. He trotted happily around campus with his bond friend, and as Narruz grew older, he also grew a bit in size! He was starting to get big enough to actually 'ride' before the end of the semester, even though he'd started out pretty large compared to Bernard. However, Narruz didn't let anyone but his own bond friend climb on his back - that was an honor that only he could have. Everyone else just had to walk.

Well, there was that one time, a girl from another planet passed out at a rally and no one else noticed. Bernard and Narruz saved the day when they put her on his back and trotted her off to the nurse's office before the rally got out - they were sure she'd have been trampled by everyone leaving.

And there was another time, someone's little sister had come to school with them, and she was just barely learning how to fly. She'd gotten herself stuck in the trees, so it was up to Bernard and Narruz to get her down. By this time, Narruz's plumage had grown in almost fully - Bernard hadn't expected there to be such glorious feathers around his wing arms!

By the time Narruz had to use his poison stinger - just that one time - he was as grown as he was going to get. It was the end of the school year, everyone bidding people farewell and coming back the next day to hang out anyway. Something had gone awry in the Magic Studies dimension and escaped - it wasn't big, but it was fast, and almost swallowed two students who stood unaware by the fountain. Narruz dropped in and stung it, and the creature all but fell to dust before their eyes. It was drifting away on the wind when the students who'd summoned it came along, and they were sternly warned about such things by campus security shortly after.

"You're very brave," said one girl. "And so cute too!" "Such pretty feathers!"

"Narruz is very handsome," Bernard said. "And thank you for helping clean up his feathers last week," he said to one passing girl. It had worked out nicely, that they'd gotten people to aid when Bernard just couldn't keep up with the job of grooming a creature some ten times his size - without thumbs.

Over the summer, Narruz and Bernard visited with the dragon riders a lot, developing friendships that went deeper than the conversations of the school year. Later on, during the first semester of Narruz's second year, one of them suggested they turn in the little tokens that they'd received at the hatching, get something 'special' for Narruz. Bernard was curious, he hadn't known what to do with the shiny bit of metal, and so he and Narruz headed back to the Abstract Destiny once more.

***

Just before they were to go, however, Cybil Qeats appeared on the walkway above, peering down curiously and with a strange aura from the second story of the Humanities building. She had such a strange new look. Nothing about her body had changed, the orange flattop hair and wires sticking out of her ...

I can see her now, Narruz thought, I didn't see her before, when she helped us out of the Torus...

Oh, that was different.... Bernard made an attention-getting chirp, and Cybil correctly interpreted it. She headed down to the grassy area by his tree.

"Well hello little distraction," Cybil said, smiling.

"You got something done," Bernard said, and his dragon Narruz echoed it. Narruz was almost fully grown, not quite as large as he'd be next fall, but big enough to look Cybil in the eye. Bernard knew something had changed about her, even though she outwardly was confident she was looking around with a weird expression.

"I... you can tell?" Cybil said, unconsciously putting her finger on her head jack.

"I can tell, Narruz can tell, really," Bernard said. Narruz gave several chuckles.

"Could you ... do something for me?" Cybil asked, looking at the taller of the heads on the cat-hydra. "I ... just had some magic put on my brain. To make it easier for dragons and people to think to me. But I've never... really heard a dragon. Very distantly, like it's from across a mountain."

Oh that's no problem, I can talk if you want!

I can talk all day if you want!

I think she heard us,

I'm pretty sure we're talking too much, let her speak! Each of the four heads chimed in.

It was clearly overwhelming. Cybil swayed, her hand pressed gently against her temple. Narruz was used to talking to different people at once, it made sense that when they spoke together as one they would be a bit powerful. Bernard knew that much, he'd felt every moment of his bond in his own mind.

"I ... heard you," Cybil said. Bernard flapped up with his improbable wings and Narruz supported him, sitting down on his hind legs and holding up his beautifully plumed wing-hands. Bernard dabbed at the tears Cybil was crying.

She was probably feeling everything that Bernard had felt almost two years ago...

"I know the feeling," Bernard said quietly.

***

Not too much later, Bernard came to Cybil's office but not to hide. He and Narruz were headed to the Abstract Destiny to get something, and he invited her to come along. She'd been to hatchings before, but this would be something special. Narruz' mind couldn't help but blurt out many things they would be seeing and doing - and that there was a nest on the sands that needed people to attend to the eggs.

"Me?" Cybil said, "really, you think...."

"Of course they think," Dominique said, "so does Ringeth. Let's go kids," she indicated the brown marked dragon, who was more than big enough to sit both women, the Rukel, and hold on to the reasonably small Narruz.

They made it to the place, and immediately Dominique and Cybil headed off to this one secluded bay of the Abstract Destiny, while Narruz and Bernard headed into the shops. One particular location called to them, due to the fact that its name was printed on the metal token they'd gotten. Draconic Designs.

"We're here for a ... thing," Bernard said, "Narruz wants to get something, with this token."

The humanoid-looking man behind the counter eyed the little Rukel and his small dragon, and grunted. "You're on the list for a second token too, what is it you want to get?" He waved one of his hands at a listing with images of the prior works of art that came from this place. Bernard was a bit unsure: was Narruz thinking of getting some weird glowy bit embedded into his beautiful hide?

"No, no, no I have an idea, I don't want that stuff... we need something for the ladies..." Narruz said. Other customers had arrived in the meantime, but there was a small creature - barely twice Bernard's height (he'd be about the same if Bernard stood upon two legs) - watching them from near the counter now.

Narruz scampered over, noted that the creature flinched a bit, and calmed himself. Though two heads were trying to see what the other customer was getting, and a third was involved with the bright shiny lights coming from the open doorway to the installation rooms beyond, the fourth explained in simple terms what they wanted.

"That sounds easy to do, I will be back shortly... Let me take measurements," Rodato said, pulling a tape measure out and briefly sizing up Narruz's necks.

And it was true, it didn't take long. Within two hours Rodato-ronija came back out from the work shop, and displayed in his small hands four delicately glowing objects.

"Put them on me! Put them on! Bernard!" Narruz said excitedly, calling Bernard back to his side from viewing the other amazing work that the shop did. He took his little paws, fumbled a bit with the cloth, but Narruz was willing to stand as still as he could so these little necklaces could be applied. When he was finished, Bernard thanked the workman, who vanished as quickly as he'd come.

"Is it love? Ask me!" Said one head with a heart bearing a question mark.

"How do you stay in love?" Said the tall head with the feather crest, "I am the one to call upon."

"Broken hearts mended here!" Said the brow-spiked lower head.

"You can love more than one at a time!" Said the right-hand head.

Bernard laughed, "well now we do have it covered, huh?"

"Those really are cute," Dominique said from the doorway, "come along - Cybil's probably going to find herself a bond here, you want to stay with me while we wait for her?"

"I do!" Bernard said, and Narruz with his four heart design necklaces pranced out of the shop.

Name: Narruz D'hothorni

Bonded to: Bernard

Gender: Male

Species: Feline Hydra Mutt

Hatchling Height: 1'1" at shoulder

Adult Height: 4'5"

Color: Black

Personality: Narruz is an absent-minded little beast, easily distracted from anything he's supposed to be doing. It's not that he has issues with concentration, but that he's very curious and prone to mental sidetracking. He can be incredibly attentive to detail once he's focused on something provided he doesn't get distracted again! Narruz has a very intelligent set of minds within his heads--it's just getting to pay them attention to one thing at a time that causes trouble.

Abilities: Breath Weapon (Fire). Dark Vision. Telepathy. Venomous Stinger. Verbal Speech.

Hatchling Token: Minor (used)

Adult Token: Minor

Developed Taint: None