Shaynen sang as he skipped through the underbrush. He was slightly off key and he would run out of breath or his voice would break. Yet there wasn’t a moment of thought spared to it. Not when he was concerned about the pine needles sticking through his bare feet. He’d gotten the hang of living in the wild after too long for him to keep track of the days. He figured out what the poisonous plants looked like and figured out what was safe to eat.

In a stroke of luck, he stumbled upon a large patch of berry bushes that yielded a good harvest in the summer. There was a pattern to their plant order which led Shaynen to believe the plants were intentional. He peeked out of the bushes to see if there was anyone tending the bushes. He had seen no one yet but there was always a chance.

The little blue berries were obvious in the sun that shone through the trees. Shaynen snuck out of the trees and crept to the bushes. He stood up and began picking and eating the berries. Making sure he left a good amount on the bushes so that whoever the bushes belonged to wouldn’t know he was technically stealing.

He froze when he heard a snap from the bushes. Turning to run before he was spotted. However, his retreat was blocked off by a young woman just slightly taller than him.

"Don't run!" She said, holding up her hands. "Uh… common? You speak common? I just wanna talk." Shaynen wrinkled his nose and started backing away from her but found the brushes stopped his retreat.

"My name is Yona, what's yours?" She asked, not approaching but crouching down to his level. "Don't be afraid, are you alone?" Shaynen narrowed his eyes and scrutinized her. She wore loose grey pants with a white cloth wrapped around her torso. A line of beads tied a dreamcatcher to her wrist.

Shaynen mumbled at her.

"What?" She crept a little closer.

"I said, Shaynen." He said louder.

"Are you alone out here?" She crept closer. Shaynen all his head no. "Where are they?" He pointed over her shoulder and she jumped to her feet. Spinning around in a panic. But she saw nothing behind her.

"Hey, that's not funny." Yona turned back around. Half surprised to see Shaynen still standing there. "You shouldn't play tricks like that."

"I'm not playing tricks. They're right there." Shaynen could see the bend in the light where the presence was watching. If he closed one eye, he could even see very faint details.

"Who is?"

"The dragon!" Shaynen pointed harder.

"The what?!" Yona turned but still didn't see what he could see.

"You aren't looking right," Shaynen sighed. She turned around again, with a faint realization on her face.

"How long have you been out here?" She asked. He shrugged. He tipped his head as if he were listening but Yona couldn't hear anything.

"They said it's been altogether three years." He said.

"Three years?!"

"Yeah, I left home three years ago." He said with a smile.

"Do your parents know?" Yona asked, Shaynen's smile disappeared and his gaze dropped to his feet. "Oh. Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean-"

"It's okay. I have to go now." Shaynen said, he took off to the side and was gone before Yona could grab him. She felt a chill and heard the trees creak as something followed the boy.

…

"I'm telling you! There's a boy alone in the forest!" Yona snapped. The masters of the temple of dreams smiled and gossiped amongst themselves.

"There is a tiny chance that a boy, an elven one as you have described, could live in those trees without others." One of the masters said condescendingly. "He must have been giving you the runaround."

“Well…” Yona started but felt her throat choke up a bit at the ridiculousness of her next statement. “He said he was with… a dragon.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“That’s what he said, he said there was a dragon and that he could see it. Which of course I thought was ridiculous cause dragons don’t really adopt little feral kids but when he ran off. Something followed him.” Yona said. “I could hear something and the trees moved.”

“A child got into your head and the wind spooked you.” One of the masters sighed, a chorus of poorly hidden snickers traveled around the room.

“What were his eyes like?” Spoke up a new voice. Yona turned to the left side of the room where Master Arye had entered.

“There were odd.” Yona said. “One was blue, and one was silver.”

“Something interest you?”

“Something does,” Master Ayre said. “Yona, take me to where you found him.”

…

Shaynen laid back in the tree and stared up at the sky. The leaves were changing their colors and when the wind blew a couple would make their way toward the ground. Even with the warmth of the sun coming down, the wind’s chill was vicious. Fall was coming and winter soon behind it.

While he’d created a nice little nest for when the skies were clear, the colder months didn’t have many of those. Over the years he’d found an abandoned lean-to that he’d tied more branches on and made somewhat more sturdy. It was where all of his blankets and other treasures were already hiding. In the back of his head, he knew he should be still preparing for winter. But he was just still thinking about that girl he’d bumped into.

“Why didn’t you let her see you?” Shaynen rolled over and sat back. He looked down into the trees and could barely see the dragon’s outline looking up at him.

“She was not mine. They have a funny way of doing things in that place.”

“What place?” Shaynen crossed his legs and leaned forward. Grabbing a quilt of scraps that he’d crudely sewn together with the fiber harvested from tree bark. He swung it over his shoulders and knotted it to keep it still.

“They call it; The Temple of Dreams. It’s a place I know well.”

“Why?”

“It is where I met your parents.”

“Both of them?”

“I believe so…” The dragon shifted, and the trees tilted. Sending birds flying. “Though I honestly don’t remember. They were hardly seen apart, so perhaps I met one of them and am simply mistaken.”

“You don’t remember a lot.” Shaynen pulled his blanket tighter around my shoulders. “Are you going to forget me?”

“At the moment I cannot.”

“Yeah but… a long time from now. When you and I aren’t together.” Shaynen found it hard to speak. “Will you forget me?” They went quiet. After the silence the dragon sat up and looked with deep scrutiny into Shaynen’s eyes.

“I don’t think I will. Time is different in my home, and it sees in every direction. You become more eternally familiar to me.”

“Okay,” Shaynen smiled. “That's good to hear, I’m glad.” The dragon’s near invisible form rippled and their feathers shivered.

“What is it?” Shaynen jumped to his feet.

“Your will is stronger” They sat back down and leaned against the trees in contentment. “As a result, I am stronger.”

“Oh, good.” Shaynen sighed and relaxed again. He stared up at the sky but sighed after a short time. “I guess we should get back to work.” He tucked the quilt out of his way and climbed back down the tree. Landing on his feet easily and skipping off in the trees. Behind him the trees shook as they moved out of the large astral dragon’s way.

“Where should we look next?” Shaynen mused, more to himself than his companion. “Probably can’t go back to those bushes, least not without risking seeing that lady, which I don’t know if it’s a bad thing. Might not be a bad plan to crash there for the winter, right? I’m sure it’d be warm.”

“Shaynen?”

Shaynen sprang like a cat up into the nearest tree from hearing his name spoken aloud. His heart pounded in his throat and pins and needles pierced his hands and feet. Out of the brush came an older man in the same looking attire the young woman from earlier wore.

“That’s your name, right?” He asked. Shaynen nodded slowly, eyes still wide as a full moon. “Can you come down?” Shaynen shook his head no. He had no exit plan, not that he could move if he had one.

“I am Master Ayre from the nearby Temple of Dreams. Where’s your mother?” He called up. Shaynen glared down and climbed up higher in the tree. “Wait! Come back down here!”

“My mother’s gone now.” Shaynen snapped viciously and climbed out of sight. His chest felt tight.

“How?” Master Ayre called up in an instant response. He cleared his throat and Shaynen could see through the trees the man covering his face with a small shake. “I knew her, we grew up together.” Shaynen looked at the scarce outline in the trees. He slid down the trunk enough to be seen by the man.

“Yeah?” He asked. “Did you know my dad too?”

“Not really, no.” Master Ayre said, “I’m sorry, are you by yourself?”

“No, I’m with-”

“A dragon, yes I’ve heard.” He said. “Aside from that I mean.” Shaynen was quiet, unable to speak and unsure if he should say it.

“Yeah,” Shaynen murmured. It was too quiet to be heard but the boy’s body language spoke louder than his words.

“You look exactly like her.” He said with a small smile. Shaynen climbed down the tree a little farther. “I don’t suppose she spoke about us at all?”

“No,” Shaynen shook his head. Suddenly suspicious, he narrowed his eyes and reached up to scale the tree again in a hurry. “How do I know you aren’t making it all up?”

“I guess you got me there.” Master Ayre shrugged. “What do you need to believe me?” Shaynen narrowed his eyes and looked up at the dragon.

“I know you can see it,” he continued. Shaynen looked down at Master Ayre. “just like your father.” Shaynen’s felt a gasp get stuck in his throat.

“Can you see them?” He asked.

“No, nor will I ever. I am bonded to a different spirit.” Master Ayre held up a dreamcatcher with the strings making the outline of a porcupine.

“What’s that mean?” Shaynen jumped out of the tree.

“Why don’t you come back with me and I’ll explain it?” Master Ayre held out his hand for Shaynen to take. Shaynen stared at it.

“Back where?” He asked.

“Back to the temple with me, it’s warm and I’m sure there’s something to eat in the kitchens.”

Shaynen felt his stomach rumble, he slowly took Master Ayre’s hand.

The whole walk through the forest, Master Ayre spoke about the temple of dreams. How it was founded and its beliefs. The main idea of it was that dream-like spirits that take the form of animals to enter the mortal plane inhabited the astral plane. The acolytes of the temple aligned themselves to the astral plane, bettering their soul in hopes a spirit would choose them to lead their lives.

The explanation made Shaynen laugh at first, but with more thought he considered that his parents both must have believed this in their lives. With this thought he tried a little more seriously to understand the idea behind it. Voicing questions like; what happens if two people have the same spirit animal? Which Master Ayre patiently explained that can’t happen, there are as many spirits as there are people in the world, and only a small population believe and practice the rites that allow the spirits to connect with them. It would have to be the craziest and unlikeliest of coincidences for two people to end up with the same spirit. Though Master Ayre mused, it could people who had deep connections.

The conversation lapsed into silence. Shaynen had more questions, but they were for someone else. Once Shaynen’s thoughts had wandered to the dragon, he noticed the trees weren’t shaking. He stopped and listened. He couldn’t hear the sounds of being followed.

“Is there something wrong?” Master Ayre asked.

“I think I’ve gone too far,” Shaynen said. He pulled away from the older man but Master Ayre didn’t let him go.

“What makes you think that?” He asked.

“They aren’t following us anymore.” Shaynen said. “And I think I really should stay where they follow.”

“If they are what they say they are, then they can follow you a few feet down the road.” Master Ayre said reassuringly. “They know where you’ll be.” Shaynen was pulled forward, but he kept looking back. Stumbling when he was pulled forward while looking back.

“This is sure a long way,” Shaynen mumbled.

“I had to track you through a lot of bushes.” Master Ayre chuckled. “I didn’t expect you to be so far in the forest. It’s amazing you’ve been able to live out here by yourself.”

“I wasn’t by my-”

“Yes, I know.” Master Ayre sighed quickly. “But you were out here, with only yourself finding safe food and shelter. Have you been living out here in the cold months too?”

“Yeah, where else would I be?” Shaynen said impatiently.

“Few experienced adults can say that. Much fewer children.”

Shaynen stared at the ground. He felt a hollow sense of pride, which both made him walk tall and hang his head.

“I don’t think I’m as amazing as you think I am.” Shaynen said quietly.

“I don’t think you’re giving yourself enough credit.” Master Ayre said. “You’ve gotten this far, and that’s not a minor feat.”

“But I didn’t do it by myself.” Shaynen said, finally catching up alongside the older man. “I had help,”

“I’m sure you did.” Master Ayre said. But his tone didn’t sound like he meant it. Shaynen glared at him. “It’s not that I don’t believe there is something attached to you, your eye is proof enough of that, but I just can’t believe that it did anything for you. It’s just… just ridiculous to think about.”

“It is not!” Shaynen yelled.

“There is no reason to raise your voice. I’m not saying it’s impossible. Merely that it’s very difficult for me to believe. Maybe when you’re older and you undergo your ceremony, you’ll prove us all wrong and a dragon truly guides your stars but until then, you’ll just have to excuse my skepticism.”

“I don’t know what that word means but it sounds rude.” Shaynen said with his nose in the air. A realization snapped him back to the conversation. “Wait a minute, I never said I was staying.”

“Fair enough I suppose.” Master Ayre nodded. “We can discuss future plans, in the future.”

“Yeah, no use worrying about what will be.” Shaynen agreed.

“Now that sounds exactly like your mother.”

Shaynen grinned, taking Master Ayre’s hand a bit more firmly and skipping a bit. He hummed to himself as he jumped over rocks.

“There it is,” Master Ayre pointed through the trees and Shaynen looked up. All he saw was the smooth outer rock wall and above it was a rounded stone tower.