Scene #2225: Sakura and the Dragons!

Owner	Pose
Valka	It's the beginning of spring in Berk, when the weather becomes something more than the usual 'hovering just above freezing' that it is for a large portion of the winter, and transitions nicely into 'rain in the morning, followed by warm sunshine in the afternoon.' Those sunny moments are what draw the Dragons and Denizens of Berk out of the warmth of their homes. Most wish to see sapphire blue skies strewn with fluffy clouds rushing by overhead, stripping down to one layer of clothes and sitting out in order to get a little sun. When that lovely yellow orb is hidden behind dark clouds during the cooler months, the moment it decides to make an appearance, you get what you can, when you can! Valka is outside the village, near the warp gate, dressed in a light dress that leaves her arms bare, her long red hair bound into it's usual three braids, blowing in the breeze. The area is calm - a field of grass with several boulders deposited after the last ice age offering perches, hiding places, and seats for those who wish them. Several dragons linger nearby - Gruff, the blind Hobblegrunt, Cloudjumper, the Stormchaser, and Stormfly, Astrid's Deadly Nadder - all enjoying the weather. Sunning near Valka in the case of Gruff, rolling in the grass in the case of Stormfly, or just sitting there near Valka on one of the larger boulders looking regal, in the case of Cloudjumper. Several smaller dragons that are about the size of cats, Terrible Terrors, wind around Valka's feet, one sitting in her lap, as they beg for morsels of food which she gives them, from time to time, clicking her tongue at them, scratching underneath their chins. The rock she had been sitting on had been abandoned to lean against Gruff's side, the dragon's scaly skin shimmering through the colors of the rainbow as he breathes. It's peaceful. Controlled chaos. Perfect for someone to walk into and discover the newness of it all.
Sakura Kinomoto	And, right on cue, here comes Sakura! Wearing her school uniform, as school just let out back home. She's limping a little bit as she walks, her leg still not -completely- healed. The fifteen year old shivers a bit as she steps into the cool air - it may be warm for Vikings, but for someone from a more temperate climate this is still pretty cold! But, she's soon distracted from the cold by the -dragons-. Her eyes go wide, and her mouth forms into a warm, beaming grin. "Oh, wow..!"
Valka	The swarm of Dragons kind of stop, all pausing, turning to look at the new arrival for a moment, Gruff turning a shade of violet, Stormfly looking over from on her back, and Cloudjumper's head swiveling almost 180 degrees to look back over his shoulders. The smaller Terrible Terrors, excited by the new person, squeak and skitter over, pausing close to Sakura, lifting their heads up to sniff - even getting into a fight with each other when one slips in front of the other in an effort to get petted first! From her seat, Valka looks over at the noise and smiles, sitting up when she sees a new visitor. "Hello there. Welcome to Berk." A good first thing to say as she rises, patting Gruff on the side of the neck to calm him, his color going back to a muted green that matches the grass beneath him. "You must be...Sakura, yes? How is your leg?"
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura eeps a bit as all of the dragons suddenly turn to look at her - and one turns purple! That... that can't be good, can it? But then she's being accosted by Terrible Terrors. She giggles a little, stooping down - still obviously favouring her right leg - and reaching out to pet the closest little dragon. "Awww. Who's a cute little dragon~? You are! Oh yes you are!" Pet pet fuss fuss. <3 Then she looks up at Valka. And flushes pink. "O-oh! Um. Yes." She quickly stands up - and winces a bit. "M-my leg's fine! Mostly. Um. You're Valka..? Thank you for the gift basket! The bread was very good." Smiiiile. Oh my gosh that is a bright smile. It's almost like it could light up a room!
Valka	The terrible terror that's being fussed over - not the ones fighting, mind you - squeaks with a reassured, haughty tone to the rest of them, if something can squeak like that, butting his head up into Sakura's touch lightly, seeking scratches behind the ridges on her head. The others stop their squabbling and slink closer to Sakura, one on the left, the other on the right, watching, tentatively sniffing, and talking to each other about the newcomer to their little world. To the uninitiated, it's just a dragon, but Valka can tell it's a girl from where she stands. Yay years of practice! Valka chuckles softly and approaches, bending down to pluck one of the Terrors off the ground and into her arms where, with a little wiggling, it curls into a tight little ball with just his eyes showing, the rest hidden behind wings and tail. "I'm Valka, yes." What a polite girl! There's a moment when Valka studies the wounded leg, motherly concern floating to the surface before she turns her attention to the brown-haired girl. "You're quite welcome. The honey and bread always made me feel better when I was ill, and the candle...well, our Wise Woman requested that we send that for healing." She shakes her head, a wry smile flickering across her expression for a moent. "It's good to hear you're doing better. Swords are not supposed to go into little girls, but those kind of things happen, from time to time." She smiles. "Consider it a lesson. Don't get poked by swords."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura continues to smile - these tiny dragons are so cute! "The candles smell lovely! I used one of them when I took my bath last night." Smiiile. "I... don't know if lavender-scented candles really did anything to help my leg, but..." She then pouts a bit, crossing her arms. "It's not like I meant to get stabbed with a sword!" Huff. "He was on the other side of the roof and couldn't even see me, how was I supposed to know he'd throw his sword at me?"
Valka	They are cute, but it makes you wonder why they're named Terrible Terrors, doesn't it? "It's more of a spiritual thing, I think. Soothe the mind, soothe the body. I mean, we've only just gotten Union medical things here - it's taking a bit of getting used to, using those sticky things to cover cuts, or those shots to keep us from getting sick, but it's making us better for it." Valka crouches, sending the terrible terror off with a playful pat to investigate Sakura again, straightening, smoothing out her skirt. "I know you didn't...call it Viking Love or something like that. When something bad, it's a lesson to not let that bad thing happen again. If he threw a sword at you and hit, it was either extremely talented - unlikely - or extremely lucky in his case - quite likely. So saying to not do that is to say 'ignore fate' which...I mean, we're vikings. sp fate's a big thing for us, and ignoring it doesn't happen. So...I guess I was meaning to say 'be careful.'" She shifts back and forth where she stands. "I'm....still kind of learning to be with people."
Sakura Kinomoto	"Fate doesn't usually care about trivial things like a warrior getting hit in a non-vital location that'll heal up in less than a week. It cares more about big events like warriors getting stabbed through the heart or losing limbs or meeting specific people or stuff." She nods her head. She... sounds alarmingly like she knows what she's actually talking about. Huh. "...So. Are you going to introduce me to your pe- um, friends?" She isn't entirely clear on the relationship Valka has with these dragons!
Valka	"Let's just say that you coming here is a stroke of good luck on the fate scale then, hmm?" Valka turns to look at the dragons, then back to Sakura. "If you'd like. Come on." Valka motions with her right hand and begins to move back to the dragons who, seeing her coming closer with a guest, straighten, get to their feet, or turn around on top of the boulder to watch as she approaches. Stormfly actually preens herself, plucking a few bits of grass out from beneath her spines before squawking, almost like a crow would. "First lesson. Sakura? This is Stormfly, Gruff, and Cloudjumper." Valka indicates both by moving to stand next to each one as she says the name, touching them lightly on the neck. "If you'd like to come say hello, just step closer and let them smell you." She pauses, making sure Sakura's attention is on her. "Don't be afraid." She crouches to give Gruff a light pat on the cheek, the dragon bumping her lightly with his head before standing. "They look scary but they're really quite friendly."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura follows after Valka - still limping a bit - a she talks. She looks at the three dragons in turn, still smiling brightly. She approaches them - Stormfly first, going in the same order Valka did - and reaches out one hand gently, letting the dragon sniff at her. "Hello," she says in a soft, gentle voice. "My name is Sakura."
Valka	Stormfly acts like a large chicken or pigeon, lowering her head to sniff at Sakura - quite large, compared to Sakura, but not as large as Cloudjumper who is still on top of his boulder, watching everything that's going on. She stands on stubby legs, wings folded up, tail back behind her, crowned with a brace of long, seeingly sharp-looking spikes, and a mouthful of sharp teeth. But those eyes show intellgence. Warmth, even, and when the dragon tilts her head to sniff at Sakura, it takes a moment for the blue-scaled dragon to learn all that she needs to learn. There's a rumble and a chirr as she rests her head on Sakura's shoulder, puffing a breath, sending short hair fluttering. Sakura may notice that the dragons are considerably warmer than the air - almost like a very hot bath, but covered in the softest of scales. Valka watches quietly, her hand resting on Stormfly's flank, just above her wings, and watches. "You've got a way with them, Sakura. They like you." she says softly.
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura rubs the back of her head with her left hand, while gently placing her right hand on the side of Stormfly's head. "I guess I'm just likeable! Eheh. I have a lot of experience dealing with, um... magical creatures. Although these aren't actually magical..." How can she tell that just by looking? "She's warm.." she murmurs. "They're not reptiles, then."
Valka	Valka chuckles. "Why does that not surprise me? I mean, with the multiverse, I've met so many different people, a girl of your age having experience wtih magical beasts is just...commonplace, I guess." Stormfly gets a pat on the side as Valka moves over to retake her spot by Gruff, the Hobblegrunt's milky eyes turning to regard her, sniffing, before he turns a milky white and rumbles in contentment. There is a moment where Valka looks sort of torn befor she finally admits something. "I....don't exactly know what a reptile is. I mean...they're dragons. They lay eggs, have scales, and they're warm. I mean...I guess it's because of the fire that they breathe, but it might be something else. I don't know." Valka shrugs and watches Stormfly and Sakura interact. Apparently biology isn't Valka's strong point. I mean, when you don't need to know what a reptile is, and no-one's ever told you, how would you know?
Sakura Kinomoto	"Reptiles are, um... you know snakes? Do you have them here? Snakes are a type of reptile." She nods her head, then gently disengages from Stormfly and approaches Gruff next. Hand held out, smiling gently. She repeats her introduction~
Valka	"We do have snakes - not many, of course, since it's cold up here - but we've never referred to them as reptiles. Is that a Union designation?" Valka asks, watching as Sakura approaches Gruff. The larger-than-the-Deadly-Nadder dragon's head lifts, slowly, his milky eyes blinking as he feels someone coming closer. He doesn't stand - instead, he moves his head in the direction he feels Sakura is coming from, the ruff of his neck going back and then coming up, flashing all the colors of the rainbow, like a chameleon changing colours in a disco. "Gruff was blinded by a Dragon Trapper's trap." Valka intones quietly, moving aside to let Sakura get as close as she would care to. "So we take care of him. Give him a good home, don't we? All the fish he can eat." The dragon actually gives a laugh-like sound, flicking his tail to brush against Valka's legs at the mention of fish before sniffing Sakura. "Don't let him lick you." Valka warns. "Dragon saliva is almost oily...a devil to get out."
Sakura Kinomoto	"Oh, don't worry, I can use magic to clean it off if I get it on me," Sakura says mildly, while gently placing one hand against Gruff's head. "..He's blind? That's... awful," she says, softly, genuine concern in her voice. "I'm sure there's some way to return his eyesight... Although he might be like Toph..." she murmurs, mostly to herself. "Ah... actually, um." Pause. "The world I come from places a lot more emphasis on education than some do? Like. Scientific education and stuff. Reptiles are an... order...? Of animal? I think? Like fish, or birds."
Valka	There's that magic again. Valka watches - she does that a lot, you see - and listens to the explanation and the explanation of the world that Sakura comes from. "It's the way of the world, sadly. I don't know why they thought flame would be a good idea for a creature that, most of the time, is fireproof, but sadly, it got Gruff here a lot worse than we initially thought it did." Valka sounds concerned about Gruff, and the way she strokes him, it's obvious that she's fond of the multicolored dragon. "And...I don't know. We have no way to restore sight to the blind. I mean, there might be, but on Gruff? I'd not want to get his hopes up." Valka smiles, giving the dragon a light headbutt, which causes a happy rumble to come from deep within the beast's belly. "But he's our hobblegrunt and we loves him so."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura nods her head, slowly, trying not to giggle -too- much at Valka's affectionate actions towards the chameleon-coloured dragon. "Aaah... and the last one was... Cloudjumper, right?" she says, softly, approaching the large dragon and holding out her hand. And introducing herself, again!
Valka	"That's right, Cloudjumper. A stormchaser dragon." The large dragon....very large, in fact, remaining on his perch on top of the boulder, leans his head down to peer at Sakura closely. His face is remniscent of an owl's sans the beak, with fringes that look almost like feathers surrounding his cheeks. Yellow eyes focus on the small girl, then look to Valka. "Go on then, be friendly." she says with a smile, standing next to Sakura, resting a hand on her shoulder. "I know you're the biggest and the strongest, outside of Toothless, but you at least show your manners." The way she talks to Cloudjumper makes it obvious that the large dragon and her have a very close relationship.
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura keeps her hand raised, smiling up at the stormchaser with that bright, room-filling smile of hers. "It's okay. I don't bite~" she says in a playful tone, twitching her fingers a little bit.
Valka	Cloudjumper rumbles, shifting his weight back and forth on the rock before climbing down from above, the ground positively shuddering as he lowers himself. The other dragons don't seem to mind, and he is a little imposing, what with being giant and all. Still, he lowers his head within inches of Sakura's and, after a moment, pushes his nose against her palm before leaning back to look at Valka, as if to say 'there, look, I did it.' Valka laughs. "Oh, I don't think he's afraid of that."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura gently strokes the dragon, giggling softly. "Maan. He's definitely not a magical creature," she says softly... Which will probably not actually make any sense to Valka. "There there. Who's a good gigantic dragon~?" Pet pet.
Valka	"No...no magic in this world before we joined the multiverse, as far as we know." Valka retakes her seat near Gruff who, true to form, curls around her and rests his head in her lap, hissing at the Terrible Terrors who seek to usurp his lap. "They're born, they live, they make more of themselves, and they can die. Tragic when it happens, yes, but it does happen. They're as real as you or I." Cloudjumper rumbles, rolling his eyes. Apparently he understands being spoken to, but yes, he seems to be the good gigantic dragon. He trills softly, lowering his head so she can get behind his horns.
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura giggles a bit. "That's not what I... Oh, never mind~" she says softly, while reaching up - getting on tiptoes even! - to pet and scratch behind the massive dragon's horns. "Mmmh. I think these might be my favourite sorts of dragons. I've met a few... Although the ones who can talk are nice people, I gues." Pause. "Well some of them anyway."
Valka	"There are good dragons and bad dragons, just like there are good and bad people." Valka's voice is quiet, Gruff starting to breathe deeply as he snuggles against her to sleep, her touches on his head soothing him. "And I'm glad. The more people who see dragons as something not to be feared, but something to be...well...respected, even friendly to, the better. It's probably best you came here. CLoudjumper, there, might have caused a little of a panic if he appeared in your world."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura can't help but laugh a bit. "Yeeaah. Last time somwething as big as him appeared in my world it kinda... completely ruined all attempts at keeping magic a secret and totally altered the way out society works." She then attempts to climb up the dragon and perch on top of his head. "...So seeing Cloudjumper would probably cause a panic."
Valka	There are handholds - well-placed horns - for hands and feet, and when he feels Sakura begin to climb, Cloudjumper lowers his head, tilts it just so to make it a bit easier, and waits for her to get her footing in the middle of his back where Valka normally rides. "Just as, I'm sure, seeing some of those flying machines I've heard of in your world would cause a panic in mine. I mean...flying without a dragon? How frightening!
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura gets perched into the place Cloudjumper seems to want her to sit! She giggles a little bit. "Mmh.. flying without a dragon, huh~?" She hmmms a bit. "...Would it be gauche to show off? I can never be too sure." She strokes her hands against Cloudjumper's warm scales. "Mmmh..."
Valka	"Show off, dear? What do you mean?" Valka looks up at Sakura on Cloudjumper, sliding easily out from beneath Gruff's chin - the dragon does manage to stay asleep - and makes her way over to Cloudjumper after taking up her staff. Lifting herself to his back, the woman settles down behind where Sakura sits and gives the beast a pat. "Show off? Like this?" Her staff gives a click and the sensation of a spring coiling up can be felt....followed by a massive rush of wind as Cloudjumper's legs push off, wings extend, and the pair are airborne!
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura yelps as, suddenly, they're airborne! She laughs and grabs onto the closest spine or horn, watching gleefully as the ground vanishes away from them! She... does not seem that distressed! "Haha, wow! This is amazing!" she shouts above the rushing wind. She's grinning like a madwoman! Then... she gives Valka a wink, and leaps to the side, OFF of the stormchaser! "O Key that hides the power of the Stars..." can be heard, but then her voice is swallowed by the wind. Valka can just make out a yellow circle, filled with arcane symbols including a stylised star, moon and sun, floating by Sakura's feet as she falls. "RELEASE!" Sakura shouts, as she suddenly has a pink wand in her hand. "And... FLY!" She retrieves a card from a pocket, tosses it into the air and brings her wand up to meet it - and then a pair of large, feathered, PINK wings erupt from her back. She easily manages to turn her fall into a swooping dive, then banks and climbs back up into the air, grinning like an idiot.
Valka	So /that's/ what the little girl meant! Leaping from the dragon's back is something Valka specializes in when she's got her armor on - the ones with the built in gliding wings - but without? The woman gasps, peering over the edge as the girl plummets, the stormchaser making a quick turn to try and catch the girl when, to both his and Valka's surprise, the yellow circle and arcane symbols appear, and then the wings? The viking woman gasps, peering over Cloudjumper's back, laughing, watching the pink-winged girl soar like a dragon herself!
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura goes a loop in the air, then comes to land on Cloudjumper's back, just ahead of Valka. Able to keep her balance even as the dragon soars along - must be the wings. She twirls her wand, grinning. "Sakura Kinomoto, the Most Powerful Mage in the World, at your service~" She then bows.
Valka	Or practice. Valka's hanging on to Cloudjumper without a harness or wings, moving with the great dragon's movements as if she were a part of him, but she still finds herself a little baffled by the magic, the wings, and the...well...everything. "By the gods..." she says, leaning back to look up at the bowing Sakura. "Valka, dragonmistress of Berk. A pleasure to meet you, most powerful Mage in the World."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura can't help but giggle, before sitting down again, wings folding behind her. She seems a little unsteady for a moment, before finding her balance. She rubs the back of her head. "Eheh. Try not to call me that too much, okay? I think I might annoy some people by being a bit too boastful, sometimes..."
Valka	Valka reaches over to hold one of the main spines on Cloudjumper's back, the dragon levelling off, flying toward the ocean in kind of thataway direction...no where in particular, but allowing the two to talk. What an odd place to have a conversation! "Don't worry, I won't. I tend to keep the dragonmistress a little quiet too." She chuckles. "People find it hard to believe that there's a woman with dragons, yet here we are."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura nods her head slowly, then leans forward. "So you guys are Vikings, right? All Proud Warrior Race and stuff? Big swords and axes and raaaar?" She can't help but giggle a little bit as she 'raar's.
Valka	Valka almost expected arms above head with scary arms at the 'raar' thing. She still smiles, though, giggling a little. "Well, yes. Proud warrior race, with big swords, axes, and dragons." Cloudjumper looks back at the 'raar' too, giving a snort. Silly humans. "And you?" Valka asks. "A woman who happens to be the most powerful mage in the world?"
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura looks up a bit. "Well my society is actually fairly, um..." She hmms a bit. "Well. Our world has kinda... How do I put this without sounding super offensive..." She hmms a bit. "Technology has made our tribes... a lot bigger, I suppose? So we need less warriors to protect us, so we have a lot more civilians. Also -my- country specifically kinda lost a war sixty years ago and got banned from having an -army-..."
Valka	"Well that just sounds silly. How do you defend against pillaging raiders without a group to fight for you? I suppose you live in a giant fortress or something, protected by your magic?" Valka's halfway teasing about that.
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura shakes her head. "Nope! Pillaging raiders are kinda... less common in my world now? I mean. They still exist! Just." Shrug. "We have a Self Defense Force to repell invaders, although no one's tried to invade us since the Pacific War sixty years ago. North Korea keeps -threatening- us, but..." She rubs the back of her head. "We used to have a pretty strong warrior tradition. But it's kinda gone away in the past few decades." Pause. "Also there aren't many Mages in Japan. I think there's usually about... three."
Valka	Ever see those cartoons where, once something is explained, a tumbleweed rolls through? That's kind of what happens here. Valka blinks when all these new words - Japan, Self Defense force, Pacific, North Korea, even...that must be a place, she assumes - and simply nods. "Is your magic part of the warrior tradition? I could imagine a group of warriors with a mage? Is that right? Mage like you behind them would be very formidible in battle." She chuckles. "Then add a dragon like Cloudjumper, and watch the people flee."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura hmmms a little bit. "...I wouldn't be surprised if we had combat omnyouji and stuff in the past. I'm sorta... my magic is actually -foreign- to my country, so I don't know much about the magic from where I live." She rubs the back of her head. "I should ask about that..."
Valka	"That's...that's really interesting, actually. How did you come to get this magic, if it is not from the lands that you call home? Was it brought on a falling star? Did a wandering traveller lose it and leave whatever it was there for you to find it?" So many questions from Valka!
Sakura Kinomoto	"Oh, my dad - he's an archaeologist - found it when he was investigating an old ruin. I found it in our basement library. And then a whole bunch of trouble happened!" She can't help but laugh. "Althoouugh the -reason- he found it was because the man who made the magic I use planend for me to inherit it after he died... It's this huge destiny fate thing."
Valka	Ah, there's that fate again. Passed from Father to Daughter. Valka nods sagely at that explanation - nothing else really needs to be said. She was destined to get it, and she did. End of story. "Seeing what you can do and considering that the wings were probably a minor power...I think it is good that you are on the Union's side."
Sakura Kinomoto	"The Fly was the first card I sealed, actually. So the second one I ever had. If not for the Fly... Mmmh. Flying is amazing, you know? It's my favourite thing about magic. If not for the Fly I don't think I'd have really stuck with it." She smiles slightly. Then she rubs the back of her head. "Eheh. There's a bunch of people in the Confederacy stronger than me. And a bunch in the Union too. I guess I'm... kinda on the high end when all things are considered, buuut... Psyber could kick my ass, probably. I think Himei probably could too."
Valka	"It all depends on how you look at things, I suppose." Valka says with a sigh, leaning back, tapping Cloudchaser with her toe to send him turning lazily to the right, back to the island where the sun is starting to set. "I suppose it really doesn't matter, when it comes down to things, who's the stronger out of the lot. What matters is the life that you lead, and whether or not you're successful in your life, doesn't it?" Valka smiles over at the girl. "The fly card? Is it like....a banner or something, that you collect?"
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura nods her head slowly. "I guess that's true. I think I... might be a little too caught up in the idea of being strong, though. I mean... I want to protect people. You know? And the best way to protect people is to be -strong-, right?" "Ah... my magic mostly comes in the form of fifty-three maical cards crafted by a man named Clow Reed." She produces one of said cards! It's about the size and shape of a tarot card - but it's VIOLENTLY PINK. This one depicts a regal-looking woman, with the name 'The Dark' written below and the kanji for 'Darkness' at the top. Valka may not be able to read either, though. "I had to spend a long time tracking them all down after I, um, accidentally scattered them all around Tomoeda."
Valka	"In a sense. The best way I've found to protect people is to be wise. In a conflict, it's not about who's the strongest, but who wins the day. I mean, one of our tactics is to show weakness to get the opponent to strike where you want them to. Why do you think our village is set up with that big open-looking landing area over there?" She gestures and, yep, there's the village, and just to the south, on a narrow beach, is a perfect landing area for invaders. "Foolish, doesn't it seem, to leave the flank open like that? Well...the last time we were raided, they made it precisely to that ramp before the dragons noticed them. So...." Valka chuckles, pointing to the ramp with still-visible scorch marks on the stone walls. "We changed the battle. They were expecting warriors, but they got dragons. And even then, if we didn't have the dragons, we would have the high ground, so they're in trouble there as well. But, that's neither here nor there." Valka sits up, turning to face Sakura, on the back of the dragon. "Protecting people is a noble goal. Changing the world is a massive undertaking. Don't forget that protecting yourself is important as well. To learn from your experiences. To become wiser, so you can use the strength you have in unexpected ways. My father, gods watch over him, used to tell me that, in order to win a game, you should learn the rules better than the rule-makers do. Vikings learn where the holes are, where the rules can be breached. When you are an expert at the rules, you can break them with creativity and style."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura listens! She nods her head, slowly. "I... I get what you're saying. I think? But, the problem is, I... I'm not really that smart. You know? I'm bad at planning ahead. So I just have to... rely on overpowering people I'm fighting. Right?" This isn't entirely true. Sakura is just pretty hard on herself!
Valka	"Smart has nothing to do with it." Valka admonishes. "I'm not smart in the sense of your world, just as you're not smart in the sense of mine. Fighting is all about creating and recognizing advantages when they present themselves. A little luck helps too! The first contact with a foe means your plans often go down the dragon's gullet and you have to count on thinking ahead, being fast, being strong, and being lucky. It all fits together." Valka smiles. "You are a very interesting woman, Sakura."
Sakura Kinomoto	Sakura mmmhs a little bit, frowning... then shrugs her shoulders. "I guess. I do usually look at fights as, um... a problem to solve. Often with overwhelming force, because that's what I'm good at, but~" She giggles a bit. "And I'm only fifteen, you know."
Valka	It's Valka's turn to look amazed. "Only fifteen?" She gives a shake of her head. "I'm just now forty....if you couldn't tell from the gray in my hair." She chuckles, pushing some hair back behind her shoulders. "So much power in such a young woman...." She trails off before looking to Sakura. "Keep your cards safe, young one. Learn your craft, and when you become older and wiser, you will be a force to be reckoned with...even more so than you are now!"
Sakura Kinomoto	Once the dragon has landed, Sakura grins a bit. "...You don't look a day over thirty," she says playfully, before turning to slip off of Cloudjumper. She lands still favouring her right leg - then her wings vanish in a burst of feathers and rainbow light. "It's... getting late. Maybe I should leave..."
Valka	Valka slides off of cloudjumper as well, landing with a thump, the dragon looking over at her, giving her a nudge, and then taking off. The other two are still there, patiently waiting. Valka moves over to Gruff and gives him a little touch, the hobblegrunt rising to his feet. "I enjoyed our visit, Sakura. I should think that, one day I would like to see this Japan place you come from." She shakes her head. "A world with few warriors and more civilians....fascinating. Come." She straightens. "Let me walk you to the gate."