“Ultimately, the peace accords were unsuccessful. Mother was unwilling to concede the territory we gained during the war, and Finn was unwilling to admit he staged the assassination of my Grandmother. The Goddess was livid, but we carried on. The cease-fire remained, and to this day, our Kingdoms are technically still at war.”

Sitting across from me at the denfire, Kuro’s wings droop a little. “What about Lucy? Did you really become friends with her?”

“Sort of,” I say, ruffling my feathers. “After our little stunt, the knights insisted on keeping us apart. But on the last day of the conference, we were allowed to spend some time together. I asked her a ton of questions about the war and being a Princess, and she answered them truthfully. She had no reason to do that, but she did.”

I used to wonder how my relationship with Lucy would unfold once I became Queen. Did we really build a rapport that day? Could we one day achieve what Mom and Finn failed to do? Or did I totally misjudge how much Lucy liked me?

“I don’t trust her,” Enyll growls. “She must have known they killed your Grandmother. She was acting friendly on purpose.”

I exhale a long sigh. “I’ve thought a lot about her behavior in the seasons since we met. She was trying to manipulate me, and Finn was helping. That much, I’m certain. But I think some part of her believed I was right, and it was in our best interests to be friendly to each other. I’ve often wondered what she would say to me when we finally met as adults,” I chuckle to myself and add, “Can you imagine if she saw me as Kin?”

“She would be terrified,” Kuro growls in delight.

Enyll adds, “You’d be the one manipulating her!”

“Maybe I should visit her in greenwing,” I smile.

Sitting beside me, a pair of tawny wings rustle. “Well, that was an awfully interesting story,” the mad Loner remarks, jerking his head like he had an itch he couldn’t reach. “T-to think that Farlanders are capable of such interesting lives. I really would have never guessed!”

As he finishes talking, the Loner folds his wings and rises to his talons. He dips his head at me in particular before turning about and walking away.

Huh? Is he leaving already? “Um, are you going to sleep, mister Loner?”

The Loner stops with one talon in the air and smiles awkwardly. “Yes, I believe I will be. Fair dreams, Princess Asha Lordanou.” He dips his head, then disappears from sight into the back of the den.

He spoke awfully genuine just now. Quite frankly, it was the first genuine thing he’s said all day. For whatever reason, this Loner seems to have gained a particular interest in me.

…

Before we fly from here, I want to ask him a few questions.

Another gust of wind howls into our den, adding to the snowdrift at the entrance. It took so long to tell my story that before we knew it, day transitioned to night. Enyll had planned to tell his own story, though he seemed rather crestfallen in the wake of the enlightening story from my past. Still, I was able to convince him to share his story of the crazy mate he got paired with on Couple’s Night.

Needless to say, Enyll is still single.

After that, we decided to settle down for the night. As Enyll lies against the ground near the fire, I ask Kuro, “When do you want to leave tomorrow morning?”

“As soon as the snow stops.” She leans close to my head and whispers, “I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.”

“Okay.” I smile and nod in understanding.

I trace my way to the back wall of the den, past the pile of sticks the Loner meticulously organized. I settle onto the ground and curl into a ball, laying my head just past the tips of my tailfeathers. “Goodnight, Kuro.”

Laying beside the fire, Kuro smiles back. “Fair dreams, Asha.”

As I close my eyes and wait for sleep, a particular memory resurfaces in my consciousness — one I had completely forgotten about until this moment. Mom worked late on the final night of the peace accords, desperately trying to reach a deal with King Finn. But, eventually, the talks fell through, and she gave up. I remember being roused from sleep by an Owl who told me I was returning home. I was grumpy… not because I was awake, but because I wouldn’t have a chance to say goodbye to my new friend from Sarlain. I protested, of course. But no matter what I said, Mom wouldn’t listen to me. By the time I marched back to the Blue Daemon, I was exhausted. All I wanted to do was fall asleep in my quarters, but Mom asked me to lay with her instead. That night, I fell asleep on her lap, allowing the drone of the propellers to dull me to sleep.

…

I raise my head from the ground, flat and cold. Across the den, Kuro is gazing into the fire with her wings slightly mantled, trying to stay warm. A small noise passes through Enyll’s nostrils, audibly announcing he’s drifted to sleep.

…

I rise from the ground and stroll across the den. As I approach the fire, Kuro’s head turns.

“Asha?”

I say nothing and continue walking. I’m too tired to respond, too exhausted to ask permission for what I’m about to do. Kuro watches closely as I lie beside her and nudge my head under her wing. I push it above my head and scoot closer to her warmth, allowing her wing to fall against me like a heavy duvet. I lie against her flank and bury my head into the cleft of her wing.

Um, hello? Asha? What are you doing?!

Am I being partial right now? Absolutely not. And I couldn’t care less.

I’m untold miles from home, a home I might never see again. In this land of ice and snow, hunger and longing, the only thing that’s real is compassion for your fellow Dragon. Even those stricken by madness understand this fundamental fact. But me? I’ve been too caught in the past to feel the warmth that’s right before me. It’s time I start living in the present.

‘You can’t rest a talon on two islands.’

I close my eyes. A heartbeat later, Kuro makes a soft noise as she rubs her head against my own, adding to the warmth flowing around me. It’s not long before the crackling sounds of the fire dull me to sleep.

I awoke the next morning. Warm.

When was the last time I didn’t wake up freezing cold? Probably the last time I slept beside Kuro. As dawnlight glows through shuttered eyes, I feel Kuro’s flank beside me, rising and falling gently on shallow breaths. She’s asleep, which means Enyll must be up and about on his watch. I should let him know I’m awake. That way, he can get some extra sleep until Kuro awakens. I open my eyes to discover Kuro’s wing draped across me, left in the same position as when I fell asleep. Using small and delicate movements, I inch forward until I have enough room to stand upright.

But as I rise to my talons, I immediately notice something wrong.

“Enyll?” I whisper. Across the fire, He’s lying with his head in front of his talons, eyes closed. “Enyll, are you awake?”

The copper drakon’s crest rises and falls, but he doesn’t respond. He’s fast asleep.

Um, this isn’t good! He and Kuro were supposed to take turns staying awake! But before my dismay can spiral into a full-on anxiety attack, I realize something important:

None of us are currently dead.

That’s right, those two took turns staying awake to keep an eye on the mad Loner and make sure he didn’t try anything fishy. But we’re all still here. Nothing fishy about it. After allowing a moment to let my heart rate stabilize, I slink past Kuro and trot to the back of the den where the passage to the Loner’s room is located. Hoping not to disturb him, I peer my head around the wall and wait for my eyes to adjust to the lack of light. I stare into his room, looking for any sign of the rise and fall of his tawny feathers. I look… and keep on looking. I think a pile of rocks is near the back wall, but I don’t see the Loner. I reposition myself so as not to block the dawn light and still don’t see him.

He’s gone!

“Wha..?!” I ask aloud, panic now flaring. “Kuro?! Kuro, wake up!”

“Mmmh…” Kuro mumbles dreamily as she regains consciousness. “Asha?”

I bound to her side and announce, “It’s the Loner! He’s gone!”

Kuro’s eyes open like a pair of venetian blinds. “Gone?” she raises her head in dismay and gazes across the den to see Enyll sleeping soundly. “HEY!”

The copper drakon stirs but remains firmly asleep. Kuro growls and jumps to her talons, shaking off sleep. She steps past the denfire and kicks Enyll in the flank with her foretalon.

“WAKE UP!!”

“AAGGH!” Enyll recoils backward in pain. He raises his head, and a puff of smoke drifts from his nostrils. “Kuro!? What are you doing?!”

“You fell asleep!! You were supposed to stay awake, featherbrain!”

Enyll gazes around the room in confusion. His eyes glide past me towards the back of the den where the Loner’s room is located. He bares fangs and snarls, “I fell asleep, Kuro? I went to sleep because it was YOUR TURN to watch the Loner!”

“Hey!”

The arguing Kin swivel their heads to face me.

“You guys don’t have to fight about it, okay? The Loner is gone, and nobody got hurt. The snow stopped. He probably went on a morning hunt.”

I angle my wing towards the entrance of the den. Beneath a cloud-free sky, dawn light tickles the jagged peaks of an ashen mountain ridge, bathing the snow-packed valley in a kaleidoscope of brilliant gold and scarlet red. Fresh scorch marks are present on the ground near the entrance — the snowdrift that grew in the evening to nearly seal the den has been cleared by fire. Obviously, the Loner went on a morning hunt and didn’t want to wake us.

Lowering their feathers, the tension deflates between Kuro and Enyll.

“It was still your turn to watch him,” Enyll growls, quickly preening his chest feathers.

Kuro shakes her head. “No, it wasn’t. I stayed up for at least a full wing before waking you up. You said you would take over, but obviously, you fell back asleep.”

“That’s jimbaldung. If that were true, why don’t I remember falling asleep?”

“Nobody ever remembers falling asleep. Bitch.”

Confusion smacks Enyll across the face. He shoots a glance at me, and my dumb grin gives it away.

“You’ve learned too much from her,” Enyll snorts. He stands up and stretches his foretalons in front of him. “Fine, whatever! Nobody got hurt, and everything is fine. You can stay here with Asha while she wakes up. I’m going to wait outside.”

While I wake up? But I’m already awake! I open my muzzle to object, but Enyll ignores me and continues walking until he’s sitting beside himself on the cliff outside the den.

My wings droop to the ground. I guess there’s no helping it when it comes to these two. “I wanted to ask the Loner some questions, but I don’t think we should wait for his return.”

Kuro looks confused for a moment before nodding. “We need to catch prey before the sun gets too high.”

With our plans determined, Kuro rises to her talons and helps me douse the denfire with snow and dirt. After giving ourselves a quick preen, I turn to step out of the den with Kuro following my tail.

“Asha, wait.”

I stop and turn about. To my surprise, Kuro hasn’t been following me — she’s sitting by the remains of the fire with her tail wrapped tightly around her talons.

“Asha, I… “ she trails off and averts her eyes. What is she so apprehensive about?

“Kuro?” I ask.

Gathering courage, the feathers of her brow furrow in determination. She asks quickly, ”Can we talk about what happened last night? I mean, not right now. But later. Tonight.”

Oh, my Goddess!

Kuro wants to talk! About us! I can’t believe it! Despite everything that’s happened in the past few months, she’s never wanted to talk about her feelings until right this moment! She finally gathered the courage to do it!

So… what should I tell her? Has anything changed between us since we slept together last night?

After a brief moment of contemplation, I open my muzzle to speak, but something catches my eye. Something beyond Kuro’s wings. I look past her to the back of the den where the Loner’s pile of sticks is located. And it’s there, lying motionless, that I spot Calypso’s body. My guilt has returned to remind me of my dear friend, the one I never had the courage to acknowledge as he lived. But unlike the prior times my guilt has tried to haunt me, Calypso seems more… distant this time. It’s as if he’s moved farther away from me.

…

I promised him, as his Princess, ‘That your sacrifice will not be in vain.’

Is this what Calypso would have wanted? To witness me mated to a Dragon in Felra? To see me… happy?

…

“Of course,” I smile at Kuro. “Let’s find an island somewhere and tell Enyll to buzz off.”

Kuro’s face beams brighter than the morning sun. “Okay!”

With renewed vigor, she jumps to her talons and trots beside me as we exit the mad Loner’s den and rejoin Enyll. With the whole day in front of us, we leap into a pure blue sky and catch a sun-fueled thermal rising from the valley floor.