Expanded Horizons: Beyond the Blue

Taking Flight: Chapter Two

Ulan sat in his usual booth to the side of the stage, the scent of tobacco smoke and alcohol perpetually lingering in the air of his favorite establishment. He wasn't one for smoking or drinking really, never had been, but he enjoyed these sorts of places. People were relaxed, friendly, and eager to share.

A lovely young lady, human, stood up on stage, singing gently into the mic a nice little tune about adventurers from afar. They were some sort of super-capable group fighting against a great force of evil that wanted to use massive weapons to control the world. She said it was based on something real at the beginning, but Ulan had trouble hearing over the crowd before most performers started.

Ulan always wanted to hop on that stage and try his claws at performance, but he was always really nervous. He had never heard of a dragon singing on stage or playing an instrument, at least not in biped-dominated societies. There were dragon-heavy areas elsewhere, but he couldn't speak to how the scene played out in those areas.

Tonight, he decided, was finally his night. He had been practicing his flute playing and he thought he was getting pretty good. When he asked his parents if they thought he could perform, they excitedly told him to give it a shot. They were always his first check on whether or not something would be a good idea.

Ulan twiddled his claws together on his table, nervous, and didn't even notice the manager walk over.

"Hey, kiddo," the older elf man said.

"Oh, hey, Rainart," Ulan replied with a forced smile.

"Nervous?"

"A little."

"Don't be, I reserved a spot for you because I thought you were good!" Rainart slapped a hand against Ulan's dull scales. "That piece you played was wonderful. Where did you learn it?"

"Oh, I made it up, 'cuz I wanted it to go well with your place."

"Really?!" Rainart threw his head back and laughed. "Well, you may be able to make some extra coinage if you keep up that kinda work! I look forward to hearing you play."

Ulan felt his chest puff a little and his confidence rise as Rainart sauntered off to see other customers. He had always liked him; it's why he preferred the Rusty Rudder over any other dive bar in the city. His parents weren't fans of any of the places, but Ulan took the liberty to come to this one.

Before long, Ulan's time slot came up, and he marched right up the stairs of the stage and sat on his rear and shoved his legs forward. The audience went quiet as they watched his unusual, biped-like sitting position and he just smiled a big toothy smile and waved at them. He heard a few chuckles at his silly expression, then refocused himself on his instrument. With a deep breath and slow sigh, he began to play.

The audience went totally silent as he played his tune, wide eyes everywhere and wonder abound. Ulan had to find someone to make his flute special for him so his claws could close the holes, but he managed to get a working flute and hit every note he needed. His upbeat tune got several of the ladies in the audience to pull their men up to the dance floor for a nice little swing, and most others were bouncing their heads or tapping their feet.

The performance was short, but when Ulan finished, the crowd erupted into applause and whistles of approval. Ulan's smile turned open-mouth, and he continued waving at the people as he stood up and hopped along off the stage. His first ever performance, and it went off without a hitch. Life was good.

Ulan took his usual seat again and felt his legs start to shake a little. The nerves he had been suppressing were hitting him just a little, combined with the relief that he had done a good job. His eyes fluttered closed and he let out a sigh of contentment, and when he reopened his eyes, a drink sat in front of him.

"Cheers to you!"

Rainart had come over with a drink for Ulan to calm his nerves. Ulan took it happily, letting himself indulge a little big, and lifted the glass gently to his lips to take a sip. It was sweet, like most drinks he enjoyed, and had a hint of honey to it. He loved it.

"What is this?" he asked in wonder.

"Mead. Not many people ask for it these days, but I figured you'd like it."

"You were right about that!"

"Haha, I'm glad you like it! I'll be sure to keep some for you any time you come on by. It'll be good for some post-performance celebrating, since I do hope you'll keep this up." Rainart winked. "I think the other patrons liked it."

"They all looked like they were having so much fun!" Ulan replied, his smile quickly spreading back across his face, making Rainart laugh. "Man, it just felt awesome to get to set the mood and see everyone loving it."

"That's you, the staple of this side of town," Rainart said, clinking his glass to Ulan's. "There's a good reason everyone loves you. Lots of good reasons, actually."

"I just wanna be nice to people," Ulan said shyly, though appreciative that people tend to gush over him.

"You fight hard for what you want and STILL don't step on any toes," Rainart said. "You take every limit people try to give you and say, 'Nah, man, this ain't it', and it's... it's inspiring, ya know?"

"Haha, I, uhh, don't, actually."

"Baaahhhhh, no worries, you don't need to. Just keep being yourself, that's all anyone can ask, and you're one of the few where that's all anyone even WANTS from you. We all love ya, kiddo."

"Gosh, I... thank you." Ulan felt like he should grow tiny, but he didn't really want to. The attention he would get like this sometimes felt so weird, but he did enjoy it.

"So hey, cheers to you. All your drinks are on the house from now on. I'll have plenty of mead for you. And who knows? Maybe some lady dragons will take a liking to mead when they hear you like it here too, haha!"

"Haha, yeah, the ladies..."

Rainart walked off once again and Ulan finished his glass of mead. Before he could even look for a server, one came right on by and dropped him another glass and took away his empty. Ulan appreciated the quickness of the service, as his social battery was starting to run just a tad low. He wanted to see the next few performances before he left, maybe get inspiration for songs or new instruments to learn after mastering the flute.

Ulan enjoyed the remainder of his night, then headed home, a light buzz in his head, a contented grin on his face, and a body ready for a good night's rest for yet another day of socializing, selling, and maybe performing, all in his usual schedule.