Dawning Zinnia

~ about the species ~

The species "faerie dragons" is a catch-all name for dragons who possess special kinds of magic; specifically, illusory magic, the ability to make others see or hear or feel things that aren't really there. The more feral dragons have been known as tricksters who love to use their magic to lead travellers astray and towards their demise just for shits and giggles. The more sentient dragons of their kind, on the other hand, use their magic much more carefully and for good purposes and uses to create magnificent works of arts or fascinating architecture.

Faerie dragons also get their name from their size, as they are perhaps one of the smallest dragon species out there, ranging anywhere from the size of a domestic cat to the size of a large canine. They come in all different shapes and colors depending on what certain subspecies they may be, if any in particular. And aside from illusion-related magic, they usually are heavily nature magic-oriented, too.

They have fairly long lifespans (compared to that of humans or other similar races), with an average lifespan around 700 years of age, with some rumors of faerie dragons reaching nearly a thousand years old! They are an elusive race and most you won't find except deep within the wild places of the world. Their favored regions are often places with dense forests, as large trees make perfect homes for such small dragons. There are tales of those that live out in the desert sands, normally near an oasis, or those that love wide-open plains with lots of wildflowers.

However, it is not easy to find the villages that consist completely of faerie dragons. They use their illusion magic to their advantage to hide their towns from the plain eye of wandering travellers. Faerie dragons have no particular hierarchy as far as rulers go. They often just meld themselves in with other dragonoid races or live in small groups where they are led by an elder or multiple elders depending upon the group size. Their native language is Draconian but are a species capable of being multilingual with ease.

The specific subspecies of my character are referred to as "Glasswing Faeries", their name stemming from the appearance of their wings. The colored parts on their wings are translucent and shimmer beautifully when the sun catches them just right, as it would in regular stained glass.

As a dragon species, they are normally no larger than domesticated dogs, sometimes appearing larger due to their wings and tails. Their skin is leathery and often a very dark color (most commonly just black, sometimes tinted a little differently, and there have been only legends about those with white scales). The majority of their color comes from their wings that come in all sorts of vibrant combinations, as well as fins that grow from their heads and elbows that typically appear the same as the colored portions of their wings.

Another peculiar note of their appearance are crystal-like growths that sprout from their tail and shoulders, and sometimes even on their faces. For lack of a better term, they are indeed crystals, and they house the magical powers of the glasswing faerie that possesses them. Should these crystals crack, they may possibly cause problems with magic control, but broken or removed crystals can cause the glasswing to lose their magical ability altogether. Glasswing faeries that have been kept as pets often have all of their crystals removed to prevent them from being a threat to their owners.

Due to their beautiful and unique appearances, many have, in the past, been kept as pets by those rich enough to keep such a rare creature. Faerie dragons in slavery are far and few between, however, since most can often elude any that dare try to capture them with the help of their magic. In the areas that still allow slavery, the incredibly wealthy may own one of these.

Many faerie dragons will often take up a life of solitude, or one where they perhaps only live with their close family instead of a small village. These dragons often choose one certain place to remain for the rest of their lives, keeping themselves out of sight thanks to their magical powers. These faerie dragons are sometimes called protectors or guardians, or even just restless spirits for those that don't really help out with anything, and sometimes gain protection if they choose a place with civilization nearby.