************Ron POV************

“You’re insane. Completely crazy. What made you think this was a good idea,” Ron continued to say as Emily seemed to try and block him out.

“Well, if you don’t like it then you don’t have to take care of him. Either way, it doesn’t look like he will be waking up for a few hours,” Emily said as she crossed her arms to face Ron. He slightly growled before he sighed and raised his arms up in the direction near the cabin and created a cage made of strong, thick wood.

“He will stay in there. I don’t like it, and you will be the sole caretaker of the creature. Honestly, I wish you would have asked me before doing this but it’s too late now,” Ron groaned as he watched Emily carefully set the roggolet down in it’s new home.

“I will stay here until it wakes up. When that happens, I’ll feed him and see how he feels.” Ron shook his head as he turned and started back towards the cabin.

“C-could you possibly bring me a few pieces of that meat you had gotten from the village last week? And possibly a rose?” Ron spun around with anger in his eyes at her words.

“You bring that thing here, expect me to be ok with it, then ask me for a rose for it? Like hell!” He stomped back to the cabin and slammed the door in a fit of anger. Emily stayed where she was.

Ron clenched his fists and paced back and forth from one side of the living room area to the kitchen. He could feel Emily’s presence unmoving, but he was too upset to care. He knew how vicious riggolets could be, and he had watched one villager killed by the beasts. Ron hated them, and the thought that Emily was being kind to one wasn’t helpful.

Emily sat outside for about an hour before she went back to work at the garden. Ron was cutting up lettuce when he felt movement outside. He concentrated and could feel her footsteps vibrate through the earth, each one like she was hesitant.

Almost in the same instant, a roar broke through the silence of the forest. Ron jumped and almost dropped the knife in his hand. He ran to the window near the door and looked out. The riggolet was awake, and obviously very pissed.

Emily had ran over, looking like she was muttering under her breath. She raised her hands and pressed it against the cage, creating a light so bright Ron had to look away. When it had died away, he looked back and saw the riggolet had its wings spread open wide but had calmed down.

Emily continued to mutter under her breath and walk around the cage. The riggolet followed her steps before it seemed to run out of breath and slowly sat down. The creature kept its eyes on her, but looked like it relaxed slightly.

Ron was in a bit of shock at how she managed to work with the animal. He hadn’t expected her to react the way she did, and he couldn’t tell what it was she was saying. The only thing that seemed to stand out was whatever she was doing made him relax as well.

He finally gave in and turned back to the kitchen. He grabbed the package of meat that sat in his makeshift fridge and walked out with it. He slowly went towards the cage and was halfway there when Emily noticed him. She quickly looked to the ground, but he continued to walk to her. She tensed when he got closer, something that surprised him but all he did was put the meat in her hands.

The riggolet seemed to grow protective of Emily in a way, whistling in a low pitched way when she had tensed up. Ron avoided its gaze and went back to the cabin.

Emily slowly turned back to the cage and opened the package. She carefully push a few slabs of meat through the bars of the cage. Ron watched from the safety of the window as the riggolet ate without taking a breath of air. He could feel the sickness wafting from its body from where he stood, but he refused to change his mind just yet.

After feeding and watering the riggolet, Emily sat down next to the cage and crossed her legs. She had stopped speaking, but instead kept eye contact with the riggolet. It slowly fell asleep as darkness had overtaken the island, night calling the bird to its natural call of rest. Emily sat for another hour before she stood up and walked back to the cabin.

Ron had kept his senses on her, and when he felt her move he walked to the kitchen and took out a bowl of salad. He placed it at her normal spot before he walked to his bedroom and laid down. He heard her walk in and stop at the table. She had picked up the bowl and placed it back in the makeshift fridge before she walked back to her room.

Slight guilt ran through Ron at her actions, but he continued to hold firm. He laid in bed for about half an hour before he heard her move in her bed. Without thinking, Ron stood up and quickly walked to her room and carefully opened the door.

Emily was asleep but had tears fresh on her cheeks. He sighed and walked into the room. Ron slowly laid down in the bed next to her before he wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her forehead lightly and closed his eyes, quickly drifting to sleep.

************Emily POV************

She was dreaming about nothing. She was in a white room and was crying out for her family, her friends, and Ron. She was scared and hated being alone, and even though she had realized she was having a nightmare there was still that fear that boiled in her stomach.

There was daylight shining through the window in her room when she finally managed to force herself awake. She jolted awake and sat up quickly, smacking her head against Ron’s.

“Ouch, damnit Emily! Why do you do this every time you have a nightmare!” He cried out as he fell backwards off the bed. Emily gasped and jumped forward in an attempt to catch him before he fell off but ended up falling off with him.

She landed next to him with her head against the dresser. Ron groaned and rubbed his head before he stood up and held out his hand. Before Emily had taken it, a low cry came from outside.

Emily jumped up and bolted out of the bedroom without changing out of her nightgown. She ran outside to where the riggolet was and had to cover her mouth and nose from the smell. Blood drenched the creature where it laid, and the sunlight had made it sticky. Emily walked quickly to where the creature was and knelt next to the cage.

The riggolet was bleeding from its eyes and nose. Emily opened the cage door and ignored the smell as she knelt down next to the bird. The fresh blood that pooled in the cage soaked into her gown as she placed her hands on the bird and closed her eyes. She could sense the pain it was in, and although she couldn’t heal him she did manage to help the pain a bit.

When the pain had dimmed down enough and the blood slowly ceased to a dribble, the riggolet raised its head. Sadness overwhelmed Emily at the obvious hurt in his eyes. It cooed before laying its head back down into the blood.

“What in the world…” Emily turned to see the shocked expression of Ron as he looked at the scene in front of him.

“I know you hate him, but please help! He’s going to die…” Emily stuttered. She had her hand against the animal as he gave up on making any sort of noise and continued to breath.

Ron only turned and left. Emily felt tears swell up in her eyes as he left into the cabin. She turned back to the bird and could only feel sympathy as she felt his breathing slow. The tap on her shoulder made her jolt.

A rose was at her shoulder. Ron was knelt next to her with it in his hands, trust in his eyes as he pushed it into the palm of her right hand.

Emily felt hope bubble in her chest as she quickly accepted it and pushed it into the face of the riggolet. It could barely look at her when she moved, so she took its beak and carefully forced it open. She fed the flower to the bird, and once it was all gone and the riggolet had swallowed she sat and waited.

The riggolet then took its last breath and laid there in silence.

************Ron POV************

Ron wrapped his arms around the bloodied girl as she gave a gasp of shock and pain at the death of the riggolet. He even felt pain for the poor animal and the suffering it had gone through. He stood up carefully so as to not slip on the blood around the cage, pulling Emily to her feet as well.

When they had started to walk away, the loudest bird call Ron had ever heard ripped through the forest. He spun around just as claws wrapped around his chest and dragged him straight up into the air. Emily cried out as he was pulled into the air above the island.

Ron was face to face with the riggolet that had been revived with the flower’s power. It had a look of intense power as it balanced itself in the air while bending its legs to look Ron in the eyes.

“Why did you save me, man of the island? For thousands of years my kind has come for your roses and yet out of all you save me!” Ron’s heart shook as a voice rang out in his mind.

“Y-you can speak? How did I not know your kind could do this?” Ron asked. The riggolet seemed to look humored by his question as it flew a bit higher into the air.

“My kind has many secrets not even the greatest of kings know. That mistress of yours has been kind, and for that I will forever be in her debt. But you must know that I do not care for you for the murder of my people,” it said. Ron glared at it but couldn’t say otherwise.

“Just know that if you cause any of the people living here pain, I will kill you without remorse. What is your name, riggolet?” Ron asked

“My name is Cahal, son of the great warriors of the northern waters!” He practically yelled in Ron’s mind. He winced at the intensity of Cahal’s voice in his mind, but forgot it as the large bird dove down suddenly to where Emily was waiting in fear.

Cahal set Ron down carefully before he flew next to Emily. He stood up to his full height, about two or three times bigger than the woman that looked up at him. To Ron’s complete and utter shock, he did what looked like a bow before he used his beak to cut her arm.

Ron stood up to fight the riggolet away from Emily, but then he noticed the riggolet cut into its own wing and let the blood drip to the ground where Emily’s blood had already fallen. Once it had mixed in the dirt, the cut on her arm healed instantly. In the place of the cut was a symbol with four black feathers in the middle of a green circle.

Emily examined the mark and smiled before she glanced up at Cahal. In three short steps, she burst forward and leapt onto his back. Ron watched as Cahal spread his wings open wide and gave a great caw. He didn’t notice as Jessica and Analicia ran towards Ron in a state of panic from the noise they had heard earlier all the way in the village miles away.

The two women stopped when they saw Emily atop the bird as he jumped up in the air with Emily holding onto him. Like a beam of sunlight, Cahal’s feathers glistened brightly as the two companions took to the sky for the sealing ritual’s completion that Ron had finally recognized.

The two of them circled the island in less than a minute, the villagers obviously in a state of shock and panic at the sight of the great beast. When they had landed back near Ron and the bloody cage, a different light was in Emily’s eyes.

Her normal expression of sadness and shyness had been replaced with confidence and excitement. Her natural craving for battle had taken over her features as Emily held herself up straight and strong. As she slid off Cahal’s back, Emily had a smirk cross her face. Ron could feel her instincts overtake her, and he realized as his heart started to beat faster just how much he loved it.