Initiation: Introduction

Lovino of the Vargas clan was curled up on Antonio's nest, munching on a tomato the captain had given him and waiting for the other man to come into the room. It was a quiet day on the ship, and Lovino was enjoying the time to himself, though he couldn't help but feel a bit lonely. It was still hard for him to get used to his new life on this ship and being a free human. He hadn't always been this way. He hadn't always been a h uman at all. Before, he had spent a countless amount of time locked up in the dungeon of the wizard who had given him this form, powerless and terrified as he was trapped in an endless cycle of being harvested for his rare and valuable blood- the blood that remained that of a dragon even if he didn't look like one anymore. It had been a few months since the former dragon had been rescued by a certain pirate, and only recently that Lovino had decided that he could trust him. The Spaniard may have been strange and down-right annoying at times, but he had looked after him and during this whole ordeal, had never once given Lovino a valid reason to doubt him, as suspicious as the dragon could be. If the pirate had wanted to sell him or cast him off, he would have already done so by now, Lovino was convinced. When Antonio had first brought him on board, Lovino had assumed that he had just switched from imprisonment by one human to imprisonment by another. After all, why would a someone want a cursed dragon if not to gain something from it? But there had been no chains or cages. No drugs or knives. No reason to believe that Antonio intended to hurt him at all. Lovino had thought all humans were the same, but this one pirate had proven him wrong.

The captain finally entered the room in a bit of a rush, closing the door behind him and hanging up his prized red coat before making his way over to where Lovino was.

"You wanted to talk about something, bastard?" Lovino questioned between bites of his tomato. The pirate had asked him to wait here for him earlier that day, and Lovino had been doing just that, eating his way through a pile of tomatoes from which only this one remained. He gave Antonio a bored look as he rolled over onto his back and stared at the pirate upside-down with his unnaturally golden eyes. He winced slightly at the action and growled when Antonio came over and sat down next to him, carefully pulling up the dragon's shirt.

"Yes, but first, let me check you wound," the pirate said as he inspected the bandages over Lovino's ribs. The dragon frowned as the captain started peeling them back- it hurtdammit- but he didn't stop him. The man knew what he was doing, and as much as Lovino hated being fussed over like a hatchling, he trusted him. "Looking better," the pirate murmured as he examined the deep, stitched-up cut, "but you have to stop moving around so much or it'll open again."

"I feel fine," Lovino huffed stubbornly. He really just wanted to avoid more of that foul-smelling ointment, but Antonio was already going for the medical kit and taking it out along with some fresh bandages. The dragon growled and attempted to roll away, but the pirate put a hand on his shoulder and gently kept him in place.

"Come on, Lovi…I know you don't like this stuff, but you need it to make you feel better. You do want to get better, don't you?"

The dragon scoffed and looked away.

"Don't call me that ridiculous nickname, dammit."

"'Lovi'? But why not? It's so cute! Like you."

Lovino spat some fire in the air, earning a look of disapproval from the captain, but fuck if he cared.

"I'm not cute,dammit! I don't know why the hell you keep saying that."

Lovino hated this body. For him, there was nothing attractive about it. It was his weak, pathetic prison, and there was nothing he longed for more than to break free from it and return to the form in which he truly belonged. He didn't expect the pirate to understand that, though.

"Alright, calm down, Lovi, erm, Lovino," Antonio replied, eyes glinting with amusement at the dragon's glare. "I need you to hold still for a moment."

Lovino continued to scowl at the man, but finally just humped and hissed as Antonio spread the stinging ointment over his wound.

"You fought well yesterday," the pirate told him as he began to wrap the fresh bandages around the slighter man's torso, prompting Lovino to sit up a little so he could reach around his back. "The crew was impressed. You've learned how to handle a sword properly, and you're faster than most of the men on this ship."

"Heh. I hate that stupid hunk of metal. Weapons are a cowardly way to fight…but I suppose without real teeth or claws, there's not much of a choice."

Antonio chuckled and finished bandaging his newest crew member, laying him back down on the bed.

"I don't care how you fight as long as you don't burn down my ship. And be more careful! You made your captain worry so much yesterday!"

Lovino scoffed. He didn't know why Antonio cared so much. Men like those in the crew died all the time. The dragon didn't expect to last long if he continued this kind of life, but it wasn't as if he had anywhere else to go. For the moment, he was satisfied with the food, warmth, and protection provided here- especially so soon after his escape when it was still dangerous to be out in the open. These pirates may have been barbaric and hard to get along with, but at least they were elusive. No one would ever find him here…

Antonio smiled and pushed the bangs back from Lovino's forehead. The dragon's golden eyes locked with his, and Lovino sighed, letting the air out slowly so as to not aggravate his injury. Antonio's own eyes widened in curiosity, and he ran his hand back over the other's head experimentally while Lovino rested without protest. For once, he didn't smack Antonio's hand away or snarl at the pirate for touching him, which was the reason for the pirate's fascination. He could rarely ever lay a hand on the dragon without fear of losing it, and even treating his wounds made him nervous sometimes. Today, however, Lovino was allowing it. This was strange, but it was…comfortable. Or at least not as awkward as it had once been. The dragon wasn't in the mood to fight it, anyway.

"You're an important part of this crew, you know," Antonio said as he stroked him. "That's why I've decided- you're ready for your initiation."

The dragon stared at him.

"'Initiation'? What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Well," Antonio began, "every pirate has to go through it. It's a ritual by which you become an accepted, permanent member of the crew."

Lovino scoffed.

"I doubt some stupid human ceremony is going to make those bastards like me any better. The assholes hate my guts."

"The crew does not hateyou ," Antonio said, his expression hardening. "They just need more time to get used to you."

"Huh. And how long do you think that'll take, 'Captain'? It's been months now. I'm just too fucking different."

"You're special," the Spaniard told him. "One of a kind. But you can be one of us too. That's what the Initiation is all about."

"And what if I don't want to do it?" Lovino questioned, giving him a challenging look. "What if I don't want to be 'permanent'?"

The pout on Antonio's face was sadder than Lovino expected. What would the captain do? Would he tell Lovino that he had no choice in the matter? Would he tell him he had to stay? The dragon bared his teeth slightly, but the pirate's answer caught him a bit off-guard.

"I can't force you to stay forever," the captain told him, "but as long as you live on this ship, you're one of my men. We have a duty to each other. I'll protect you and look after you in every way I'm able, and in return, you'll fight for me and protect your crewmates the same way you did yesterday."

"I didn't do it for them," Lovino growled stubbornly. "They were going after the damn tomatoes."

Antonio laughed loudly at that. Of course, the idiot of a captain had been there too. They had both been standing at the door to the kitchen when the rival pirates had invaded their ship. They had been badly out-numbered, and their enemy had fought ruthlessly, but Lovino hadn't allowed them to go further into his new territory. He had fought back, both with his sword and with his own power. The fire of "a demon" had been enough to scare off the less bold, but a few had stayed behind to try their hand at slaying him. Only one had landed a successful blow, and that had been while Lovino had been too distracted…defending the tomatoes, of course.

"Alright, then. You protect the tomatoes, and I'll take care of the rest," Antonio smiled, looking at him warmly. "All I ask for is a little loyalty."

Lovino huffed, well aware that the pirate was humoring him. They both knew that the only tomatoes they'd had the past few days had been the ones from the harbor this morning. There hadn't been any on board last night…but fuck if Lovino was going to admit that he'd been protecting anything else.

"Whatever," he muttered.

"Besides, why would you want to leave? You have all the tomatoes you can eat right here! Most of the time anyway…And we rarely ever run out of meat."

He grinned, thinking he had found out just how to bribe the dragon, but Lovino was still giving him an impassive look followed by a frown.

"That's a valid reason, all right," he scoffed, but admitted to himself that the captain might have known him better than he liked.

"Will you think about it, then?" Antonio asked, placing a hand lightly over Lovino's bandaged area. "I want you to start feeling more accepted around here."

"That's not going to happen," Lovino scoffed. Then after a moment, "…but I'll think about it."

Then Antonio did one of his many strange human things and pressed his lips to Lovino's forehead. The dragon just stared at him, wondering why he had never seen another human do this to someone. He supposed the other men around him were never friendly enough to do such things. He didn't exactly live with the warmest bunch.

"Gracias, Lovi," the pirate said, ignoring the glare the dragon gave him for the name. "Get some rest now. I'll come get you when it's time for dinner."

Lovino grunted and watched him leave. He didn't understand the sudden empty feeling when the pirate shut the door behind him, but it seemed to happen a lot whenever Antonio left him alone. Stupid human… Lovino closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep, considering the captain's proposal as he did so and wondering what they'd be serving in the mess hall that night.

A/N: Hope you're enjoying this AU. I've always liked dragons, so Dramano is very enjoyable to write. He has a very different view of the world from any other Romano I've done, and it's fun to build on his character. The idea for this world came from a Halloween event on the site I roleplay on. Everyone had to choose a role, so for Romano, I chose the dragon. Spain chose the pirate, and England chose the wizard. The bigger story goes into more detail on there, but for now I just wanted to write a short story about this chapter of Lovino's life while he's still getting used to living with the pirate crew and being human. Stick around for more soon~