FSE

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I touched down, gripping the tomes against my body.

What is going on with me today? I haven't thought of Frith in eighty years.

Once inside, I grabbed a book with blank pages. Other creatures used a writing utensil of some sort, but with magic, no ink or etching was necessary--only a paw.

Mana works excellently for recording thoughts, even allowing for color-coding to your desires, although I preferred black.

The moss under my feet and belly relaxed my tired muscles--the same moss Frith and I discovered in the harpy forest. The same moss he had planned to make his bedding out of.

How I missed him.

We searched all day but came upon no sign of the creature who attacked us earlier. There wasn't even a scent to follow. We stayed in the harpy forest another night, taking turns keeping watch. The harpies did not return to their nests.

" Hey, Frith. Don't you think the harpies would fight for their homes?"

"I've been thinking the same thing. Not only that, but we would have noticed them all flying away unless they left as soon as we entered that cavern."

Frith seemed lost in thought. The clouds grew thicker as the day waned. The sun neared the horizon, making the shadows appear darker than usual.

"If the harpies were not sacrificing their young, they would have noticed the disappearance of their kind--especially their parents. I feel like that's something they would have mentioned when we asked them."

We were in the same nest, the sticks and other sharp objects poking my belly.

Scales brushed alongside mine. Frith stretched out beside me.

"Fri-Frith, what are you doing?!" I was startled at his movement.

I tried pushing him away with my paw, but he moved back into place.

"I'm cold. You're warm. Let me stay."

His scales certainly didn't_feel_ cold.

Butterflies filled my stomach. But even so, it felt nice being this close to him.

We slept together that night, and it was one of the best nights I'd ever experienced.

I was halfway through one of the books when I was interrupted by a flicker of light emanating from the entrance. Someone wanted in.

I felt no animosity in their flames, so with my affirmative flame, they entered.

I returned to my reading as I waited for them.

"Furest?"

I looked up to find Cythra standing in the doorway, her scales full of life.

"How are you feeling?" She strode in at my beckoning paw.

"Thank you!" She bowed her head, crossed one paw in front of the other, and stretched a wing in front of her chest, She forgot all about my question.

"No need to thank me, it was my pleasure. It's what I do."

Gratitude glowed in her eyes like hot coals.

"Thank you so much for saving my life."

"Cythra, it wasn't just me who saved your life. A young hatchling did most of the work."

She stood up, no longer bowing. When a dragon bows, it shows the utmost respect to the dragon they bow to, no matter who it is.

Rising, I touched her chin with an outstretched wing, lifting her head up, so our eyes met.

"A hatchling?" she asked.

"Yes, around the age of ten. If it weren't for him, you wouldn't be here right now."

"Where is he? I have to thank him."

I retracted my wing, wondering if I should tell Cythra where Ymerc is. Considering their rooms are next to each other, she would eventually figure it out.

"He stays in the room right next to your--"

She sprinted out of the room before I could finish, claws hurriedly scraping the stone.

They are likely asleep. I hope she doesn't cause too much trouble for them. I'll probably hear about it from Ymithia later if she does. I'm not looking forward to that.

Though, the look of confusion on Ymerc's face would be something to see.

Illness came over me. Fog crept into my skull. I needed to get through these books and getting sick wouldn't help at all.

I turned the information spread before me, notes scrawled in several notebooks and scrolls. Several sentences were highlighted in each tome opened in front of me.

Each book by itself didn't have any significance, but a few parts caught my eye. When I compared them to each other, there was definitely something there, but none of it made any sense. Or maybe I was just grasping at scales trying to find anything in nothing.

I looked at these books for hours; I needed food and a break. Both sounded lovely.

It was mid-afternoon, and still no sign of that fiery creature who attacked us a few days ago. The harpies were just as quiet. Occasionally, I would see a flash of bright green in my peripheral, and every time it was the wind moving the stupid leaves.

"Hey, Frith. You don't think that creature killed all the harpies, do you?"

He took a moment, pondering what to say before responding.

"If it did, the smell of blood would be heavy in the air, and I don't smell anything but the forest life. Besides, if it did kill them all, it couldn't hide all their bodies from us before we arrived. Even if it did, we would have caught the scent of rotting corpses long ago."

He was right. He always took a more logical stance than I did, looking at the facts rather than what-ifs.

The wind soothed my aching wings, carrying me for a while before letting me go.

We had been flying all morning, looking for any sign of either the harpies or that strange creature. Still, nothing had pointed us anywhere, so we pushed onward. We had made well over a dozen circles around the harpies' nests, now sweeping wider outward to cover more of the forest. Still, I doubted we would find anything.

"Furest, let's land. I wanna run some thoughts by you, and I don't feel like yelling over the wind."

He angled downward, disappearing below the treetops with me following suit shortly after.

By the time I landed, Frith was already laying down. His wings folded and relaxed at his sides, his paws crossed in that manner that spoke, "I'm deep in thought, don't disturb me." A position I had come to like over the years.

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

Wait, is he gonna say he likes me? I don't know if I could handle that, all these years of unrequited love, and it couldn't come at a worse time either.

Butterflies filled my belly, my heart picking up its rhythmic beating.

"What do you think that creature was?"

My heart froze, the butterflies stilling like ice.

I should have known. Come on, Furest, stop thinking about him like that!

I turned my attention to his question, thinking hard about what I knew over the past few days, starting with the disappearance of the harpies.

"It was cloaked in flames, heat unusually hot compared to that of normal fire, and when it attacked, it didn't light any of the surroundings alight."

"Precisely. Very few creatures have that much control over fire. It is a chaotic element."

I laid down, far enough to keep my distance from him. I didn't need to devolve into useless worrying or being consumed by thoughts about him. Not now when we could be attacked at any time.

"I can count the creatures who have control on one paw," I responded.

"Precisely, so let's go over it again. What do we know?"

A wolf sped out from behind a tree and caught a rabbit trying to burrow into its den before sprinting away.

"The creature was cloaked in flames, though its fire touched the surrounding plants, it didn't light them on fire. It was fast and silent. We didn't notice it till it attacked us," I told him.

Frith flattened his paws against the ground. His wings tensed, but there was nothing here besides us.

"Dragons don't usually have that kind of control over fire, while we can breathe it, it is hard to control who or what it touches. Although, there have been stories about dragons in the past who had complete control over their fire they could create armor from it welding their internal flame into an almost impenetrable layer over their scales."

"Yeah, but they were just stories told to us as hatchlings. They didn't have any truth," I responded.

His eyebrows rose, gaze centered on me.

"Furest, you know just as well as I that all stories come from somewhere. Most of the time, there is some truth to their fantasy."

"Well, if there was truth to the stories, why hasn't anyone been able to control their fire since then?"

He shook his head. He honestly had no idea.

"Besides dragons, there are griffons. While they don't normally have fire magic, some griffons were born who could wield fire like dragons, but they haven't been seen in ages. Legend says they disappeared. One day they were there and the next they were gone, no notes or anything left behind to explain their disappearance."

He had a point. It wasn't entirely improbable for those said group of griffons to suddenly come back, though that was hundreds of years before we were born. If they were still alive, I doubt they'd come back now.

"The other possibility is . . . phoenixes. Unlike us, they have near-perfect control of fire, igniting their feathers in bursts of flame that don't harm them or anyone they choose but can kill at the slightest thought."

"That would explain how the forest didn't get set alight," I added. "And the screech."

If a phoenix did attack us, it would explain a lot, but dragons and phoenixes fought in the first war together against dark magic, why would one attack us?

Frith seemed to read my mind.

"I don't know why one would attack us. We are still on friendly terms even after all these years. Though dark magic would make sense, it twists the mind to the point where there is no semblance of their personality left. There is one thing I want to clear up."

"What's that?"

I had already told him everything I know about this mission. He knows everything I know. Does he doubt me?

He stood and approached me, fiery gaze burning a hole through the heart of my soul, embers kindling beneath my scales.

"What exactly were the rumors surrounding the harpies? Go into as much detail as possible."

His words struck like ice, squandering the warmth as quickly as it rose.

Damn it, Frith! Don't play these games with me.

I relayed everything I had been told by the elders, though they did bring in another dragon. What was his name? OH! Abril!

The words tumbled out: "A dragon named Abril told me that he suspected the harpies of sacrificing their own and other creatures, though he never found any evidence for it. They were already starting to suspect him, so he left."

"He specifically said that they might be sacrificing their own?"

What are you doing? You've never doubted me like this before, so why now?

"Yes, he did. Why do you doubt me?"

I rose, arching my back to meet his height with my own. I underestimated how close he was and brushed up against him. I felt each scale rubbing along my own, the friction igniting the smoldering embers into an explosion of heat threatening to escape on my breath.

I took a step back, our scales no longer touching, my heart slowly calming down. Looking at Frith, I realized he was unfazed, too lost in thought to understand what had just happened.

You stupid, dense dragon!

"It doesn't add up," he whispered.

"What doesn't add up?" I ground out, angry that he wasn't paying attention to me. I could understand his position at the same time. We weren't hatchlings anymore.

"Well, the rumor mixed with the phoenix or mysterious creature doesn't make any sense. Let's say, for now, that it is a phoenix. If so, how does it correlate with the sacrificing of your own children?"

He makes a good point, but he forgets one thing.

"Frith, you are acting as if what Abril said is a fact, not a rumor. What Abril said may not be the truth."

"Abril had no reason to lie, at least that I could think of. I have met him before, and he seemed like an honest dragon. So, for now, yes. I'm taking what he said as fact. Besides, all those lessons you had me take with the harpies to 'learn about their kind' while you were investigating felt off."

We had come here under the guise of learning more about the harpies. They expected one of us, not two. So, I had Frith undergo the lessons while I investigated the harpies. Frith still hated me for it, but I had no intention of going through lessons about their life, not when dark magic was possibly involved.

"The entire time I was with them, I kept catching glares or weird feelings from them. I would say we definitely weren't welcome here no matter how hospitable they were."

"Those were just feelings. A gut instinct. They could have been lying."

"Exactly: instinct! It's why we have them. Trust your heart, and it will never lead you astray. And right now, my heart is telling me something isn't right."

He had good instincts. I wouldn't deny that most of the time, if something felt wrong to him, he was right about it.

"How do you explain all the harpies constantly watching us?" he asked, closing the distance between us.

"I... don't know."

Since the moment we arrived, there was always one harpy watching us. I had hoped they would leave us alone after a while, but they didn't.

"Then there is the unexplained disappearance of every single harpy in this damned forest. It doesn't make sense no matter what angle I look at it from."

He shook his head as if trying to dispel any distractions.

"Then let it rest. Sometimes taking a break can help you find the answers later. We are here to find the truth, and we won't leave till we do."

"Then there is you," he said, his words sparking a fire in my stomach, though not the one I was used to feeling around him.

"Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean?"

He turned away, his wings expanding to block any view of his face.

"Frith, don't you dare! You say that and expect me to take it lightly? As if what? That will change our circumstances? Help you find an answer?!"

Silence.

"Fine," I bit out, my voice laced with poison. "It was nice having you here, on this journey, apparently, you never felt the same. You know I'm starting to wonder if all these years you even liked me at all or if I was just a means to an end for you."

He hung his head in an_S_ shape.

Nothing; not even a word. I had expected something from him by now, I guess I was wrong about it. I think I always have been.

"And to think I loved you," I hissed, turning to leave the forest clearing.

I spun and took off, letting the fury residing in my heart take root in my wings, my heart growing heavier with each second till it was a big ball of lead, weighing me down till not even my wings which had always lifted me up could carry me any further.

I landed in the nest we shared over the past couple of days, the one we slept together in just last night. I hadn't even bothered to catch myself, crashing into the strong nest on my belly.

The day Frith told me about his crush kept replaying through my mind.

As the sun set, shadows stretched over the mountain range. Below the cliff, a lone wolf wandered through the thick snow, his nose pressed to the ground in hopes of finding a meal.

"Frith, are you okay?"

He startled as if I had shaken him from deep thought.

"Huh? Oh no, I'm fine."

Right, fine as roses. I thought sarcastically.

"Why don't you quit the lying and tell me what is actually wrong? We tell each other everything. Why stop now?"

He thought about it a moment longer before letting out a sigh.

"There is a dragon I like," he said.

My heart seemed to skip a beat.

Perhaps he likes me!?

I ached for him to talk about me--to speak of my name the way he lovingly spoke of his other crush. I always envisioned us as mates. Perhaps that dream was about to come true.

"A while back, I met a dragon with amber-like scales, dark brown spots dotting her body, and eyes that glowed like a thousand suns."

I felt the wings on my heart suddenly get clipped, sending it free falling.

It wasn't me.

"And what is the name of this dragon you like so much?" Venom punctuated dragon.

Again, he thought about it before shaking his head.

He sure did a lot of thinking. I wonder what goes on in that head of his.

"Not saying," He replied. His lips lifted in a mischievous grin.

"So, you're willing to tell me the description of a dragon you like, but not the name? How typical."

"I think one day you will find out. Better just to wait till then, I think you will be thoroughly surprised."

He smirked, his eyes lighting up in that mischievous way that I had come to adore, my heart beating wildly.

In the blink of an eye, he stretched out his wings and took off, leaving me there on that sunset illuminated cliff.

Tears stretched down my scales, leaving sticky trails behind.

Though my heart hurt as if claws had raked across its surface, I still loved him. How could my heart both ache and burn for him simultaneously? It made no sense.

The sky darkened, the hooting of owls welcoming the night. Crickets chirped far below, calling for a mate, a beautiful song I could not partake in.

The faint sound of wings reached my ears, drawing me from my scarred heart.

"So help me, Frith. If you have come back so soon, I am afraid you will regret that!"

I roared as I turned in the direction of the sound of flapping wings.

"I am not your boyfriend."

A large bird dived down, planting his talons in the nest, wood creaking and cracking beneath his fierce weight.

"Who might you be?" I asked. "And we are just friends. He doesn't see me that way."

"Oh? My mistake. Although, to me, he certainly has some strong feelings for you for being just friends."

He motioned his wings in a bird's equivalent of an air quote.

The moon's rays shone down on the bird, illuminating its mix of brown and yellow feathers. Its eyes were silver, seeming to glow amidst the moon's rays. Its talons covered in dense scales, most likely similar to dragons'. Its claws are sharp enough to skin the bark from trees and then some.

"But who am I to know. Perhaps his feelings for you are fake. Isn't that what you said just before taking off?"

"How do you know that?"

I took a step forward, widening my stance. My tail curled behind me, ready to whip at a moment's notice.

"Now, now. I'm not here to hurt you, I'm just a curious passerby strolling through the woods, and I happened to hear your conversation with that other... annoying dragon, and I took an interest in it. Please don't mind my interference."

Oh, I minded alright. What was between Frith and I was private. Not to mention we should have felt or known about his presence, but we didn't.

"Before you decide to attack me, let me point something else out."

Whatever he was about to say couldn't have been good, but other than eavesdropping, he hasn't given me any reason to hurt him.

"Very well. Continue."

"Splendid. Before you left, your friend turned his back on you. How many times has he done that in your life?"

He had a point. Had I fallen for a dragon who had never felt anything for me? Just used me as a convenience? I recalled the countless times he had turned his back on me, every time he didn't seem to care at all. No matter what I said, I never got a response from him.

"What's your point?"

He hopped to the side, turning his back on me just like Frith had done before spinning around again.

"You see, every time he turns his back on you, it's his way of saying, 'I'm done with you,' at least for now, until he can use you again."

Sitting on my haunches, I realized he had a point. He'd done it so many times, and each time had something in common. Each time an argument had started, or he was so lost in thought, he barely noticed me.

"You see, you don't need him. He has been using you since you were hatchlings. The only reason you liked him was because of the fun you had together. Tell me, when he was gone, did those feelings persist? Or did you forget they were there?"

Looking back, it was only when I saw him. Otherwise, those feelings remained dormant.

"Your whole life, and you never doubted him for a second? All those times he turned his back on you, and you never once doubted him?"

"Yes, I doubted him. I doubted him all the time. He is an infuriating dragon. Every time he turned away, it hurt. Every time he refused to say anything, it hurt so much it felt like my heart was being torn in two."

"Then why do you stay with him? Why do you let him hang around? If it's out of the sense of love you had for him, I would say that's a pretty lame excuse. You no longer feel for him any longer, so what's the point of keeping him around you?"

"Then what would you have me do?"

The giant bird looked me dead in the eyes--eyes that took on an unnatural hue before flames erupted all over his body, the heat wafting over my scales and warming my tear-stained cheeks.

I remembered what Frith had said about the enemy possibly being a phoenix, and Immediately I was on guard.

"My dear, I mean you no harm. I am revealing what I am, laying bare all my secrets, but the same can't be said for your friend."

"What are you talking about?" I ground out.

"You mean you never noticed? Well, I'll say I am surprised. Growing up, we were taught that dragons were powerful and intelligent, but it seems they were mistaken."

"What in Britosa's name are you talking about?"

He clacked his beak together as if annoyed he had to spell it out for me.

"Your friend has been betraying you all along. Before you journeyed here from Dravawynn, how long had it been since you last saw your friend?"

Frith, betraying me?

Come to think of it, the last time we spoke before, close to a week ago, was at sunset when Frith told me he liked another dragon. After that, he never talked to me.

"It had been a long time," I replied.

"The only reason he wanted to accompany you was so he could help the harpies hide their dirty secret, and the fact you gave Frith so much alone time with them only helped his cause; otherwise, you would have found that sacrificial temple much sooner. How many times has he complained since you arrived?" He waved his wing to the side.

Come to think of it, he complained a lot, especially since he joined me. He doesn't usually complain that much.

"He . . . there is no way he would betray me. We have been friends forever."

He clacked his beak together again, the sharp sound like two rocks colliding.

"My dear, this wouldn't be the first time a dragon has betrayed their clan. What makes it impossible for Frith to do the same?"

There's no way Frith would betray me after all these years. But I couldn't deny the facts this phoenix was presenting. It made too much sense.

"Just a few moments ago, you were having doubts about him. I suggest you leave him. Ditch him and go home. Leave him to deal with the harpies."

Fog clouded my brain. I really couldn't deny what the phoenix was saying. It made sense towards his actions all these years.

"Leave him be and let Frith deal with the harpies."

It totally passed my mind that a phoenix I met moments ago knew Frith's name. I didn't even think about it.

"Or you could save the harpies here some trouble and just get rid of him yourself."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, you see, as I was watching the races, I overheard a group of harpies discussing how they would kill Frith. They were saying something along the lines of . . . oh, what did they say?"

"Out with it!" I roared.

"Oh, yes." He touched his wing to his head. "They were saying that the next time Frith was with them undergoing their lessons, they were going to kill him. Apparently, Frith wasn't doing enough to keep you from learning their secrets. So, why not save them the work? Kill him yourself. After all, he has hurt you many times. I'm sure you would like the chance to pay him back, would you not?"

Quiet fury rushed through my veins, a strength I did not know I had poured into my limbs like a waterfall. With this power, I could finally take my revenge on Frith for all those times he had beaten me.

"Good, my work here is done. Go pay Frith, your ex-friend, a visit."

Oh, I was gonna do a whole lot more than that.

With a mighty roar that echoed far through the forest and shook the nest I was standing on, I took off.

I was gonna end him!