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The next several weeks were spent preparing for the journey. It was not an easy time for me, having everything change around me, seeing Artos worry about the journey and worry over me, and for me trying to avoid the duke and others.

I still look back at that time with a great deal of distress if I think on it for too long.

I am sorry Artos. I would not write about this if everyone did not tell me that it was important for me to do so. I know you don't like to remember this time either and that it upsets you even now.

Artos came in a few days after the argument with his father over me to find me huddled in the closet. He didn't think much of it at first; I would occasionally go in there and sleep or to relax if there was too much happening. It amused him at first that I was hiding in there and then he grew worried, realizing that I was upset by all the activity.

“Come on now, Dracius, it's fine," he said soothingly. “It'll be fun, getting you outside into he sunlight and fresh air. Being cooped up in here all the time can't be good for you."

I couldn't say anything; I didn't know what to say to him, was not sure of the words to use. I knew it upset him that I was scared but what could I do? People were angry with me and even worse off, angry with Artos and others for him taking me in. What was going to happen to me and to Artos?

I was terrified that Duke Grimal would somehow harm Artos for defending me and keeping me about. I wasn't as worried for myself; I had taking beatings and abuse before and had lived up to this point, but I didn't want Artos being hurt for protecting me.

I know my friend. Please don't get upset. That was then.

Artos watched me then closed his eyes and let out a breath. He sat down on the floor. “Come here, Dracius," he said softly motioning for me to come over. It took some time before I could move and very hesitantly walked over to him. He patted his leg and I knew he wanted me to lay down with my head there.

I lay there, trembling, as he pet me and he was silent awhile. He finally cleared his throat and said. “Dracius, I know this is upsetting you. It's upsetting me too. I'm sorry father is having so much trouble with you being about and I don't know why that is. I know you're scared, even terrified of going outside because of all that's happened to you

“I just want you to know that so long as it's in my power I will never let anyone hurt you in any way and that includes the duke. If… if father wants to harm you he's going to have to go…to go through me first," Artos said, his voice trembling at the end.

I jerked back, looking at him in shock. Did I understand his words right? Did he say he was going to defy his father, the ruler of the land to protect me. I shook my head. “Wrong?," I asked.

He looked down. “Perhaps it is," he said softly. “Perhaps I should obey him because he's the duke and my father but I can't, Dracius. I can't let him hurt you or let anyone else harm you for that matter."

I looked away, uncomfortable with the notion. “I am…important. You say. Feelings say it."

Artos nodded. “That's true, Dracius, I do feel it and it's obvious Lady Dawn agrees with me." He reached out and gently lifted my head by my chin and I trembled. “But that's not the reason, Dracius. You're important to me besides that. You're important to me because it's obvious you're a thinking, feeling being. You're important to me because I like you and you're my friend, Dracius.

“Your value to me has nothing to do with being some important figure in the grand design of the light or part of fate or whatever you choose to call it. Your value to me is because you're Dracius. Do you understand?"

I stared at him as the words slipped past any defenses I had managed to erect and flew straight to my heart. All I could do was crawl into his arms, sobbing like a hatchling, unable to convey what I was feeling as he held me and rocked me.

There is no way to explain it, no way to write it otherwise, and I don't think I would even if I could. That time…it's between Artos and I. I beg you not ask any further, Phaegus, Lady Dawn, whoever is reading this missive. It hurts enough to look back without further examining along with emotions that I still don't understand or know how to express.

I will move on.

I huddled close against Artos, watching as servants prepared the horses and pack animals, gathered up food stuffs and other supplies, and checked over all the gear to ensure nothing was left out. They were quite efficient at it though a part of me hoped they would find something missing that would put a stop to this so I could go back to Artos' room.

“Easy, Dracius," Artos said soothingly as he felt me tremble. He ran a hand down my back between my wings and over the robe I was wearing to keep me mostly concealed. I didn't much care for that either. I dislike it greatly when something binds up my wings or covers up any portion of my muzzle.

The party going on the mission knew who and what I was but the general public did not. Artos had a meeting to discuss it with them from what I understand and they were told to mostly leave me be and not to stare. I was grateful Artos did not make me attend.

The quartermaster waved his baton and the servants gave a weary cheer, knowing their job was finally over, as well as to salute Artos and the rest of his party as they mounted the horses.

This was one of the most terrifying things I have ever done in my life. I couldn't shake the feeling that I was about to be discovered and killed.

Artos gently herded me to my horse which had already had a salve rubbed around it's nose to block my scent as did the others. Artos had also taken me down to the stables several times to help get the horse acquainted with my presence. Other than being far larger than I was at the time and fearing my tail would get stepped on or wings broken, I found that I didn't mind horses.

Artos told me I wasn't allowed to eat them which baffled me at the time.

I huddled down in the saddle, keeping my hood drawn and my horse close to Artos'. I was't sure what they told the servants and others about me, who I was, why I had a cowl over my face or anything, but I was paid little or no mind that I could see.

The horse started to follow Artos and it was all I could do not to call out or simply leap down from the horse and flee. I held on tightly but the horse was a docile beast and simply followed the horse in front of it with no complaints which was fortunate for me.

Once we were beyond the town gates and a a goodly distance from the town, Artos reigned in and halted the party, then moved his horse to mine, looking worried. “Dracius? Are you okay?"

“Fear!" I said, huddling close to the horse.

“Hush, my friend," Artos said, trying to sooth me. “I know it's hard to be out but no one is going to harm you, I promise."

I looked up at him, still trembling, but tried to put a brave face to it, smiling a little. He reached out and ran his hand over my head and neck a few times and a nosed at it a little.

“You'll be fine, Dracius. I'll be right here and I'm sure when you get used to being outside without fear of being hurt you'll enjoy it."

I nodded to him though I was't sure if he was right about it or not. Artos nudged his horse and we set off again and a leisurely pace which is about all I could manage at the time.

I've become more proficient at riding horses and actually enjoy doing it from time to time. Most horses have a different opinion of the matter, however. It can be a challenge to ride without my wings and tail getting in the way.

We stopped in the late afternoon to eat. Artos helped me down from my horse and I cried out as my feet touched the ground. It hurt! My tail, my legs, my back, and even my wings all cramped up! I latched on to Artos arm, whimpering.

“Dracius!"

“Hurt!"

“Oh damn it you've never ridden before; I should have known better!" Artos exclaimed in disgust. He hesitated for a moment and sighed. “Here, let me pick you up, Dracius."

He crouched down and pulled me up into his arms. I struggled for just a moment then settled against him, whimpering. I will tolerate Artos picking me up and few others. Now that I am bigger he seldom does so save to hug me.

“Here, lets get Ren to take a look at you," he said worriedly and carried me over to where the young mage was resting against his horse. I whined softly as he walked over. While I was used to Ren's presence he had never really examined me, simply allowing Phaegus to examine me while he looked on.

“Easy, Dracius, you'll be fine," Artos said soothingly.

Ren looked up and smiled, then looked worried. “Is something wrong with him, Lord Artos?"

“He's not used to riding, Ren, and it's done a number on him. Could you look him over and see if there's anything you can do to help?"

Ren nodded. “I have some salves and some medication that Phaegus made that should help him out," he said and turned to rummage though his bags.

I looked up at Artos with misgiving. “Hurt?"

“No, Dracius, he won't hurt you."

I watched Ren warily as he pulled out his pack and set it on the ground, then opened it up to pull out a few bottles. “Ok, set him down there."

Artos knelt down and gently placed me in front of Ren. I watched nervously as Ren prepared the salves. I had never been medicated or treated before in my life. Up to this point the only thing I had done to me was just being weighed and measured. Ren smiled at me.

“I'll be okay, Dracius. I'm not going to hurt you."

I nodded and reached out for Artos' hand as Ren rubbed the salve between his hands, then carefully rubbed it onto my legs and lower back. I think I called out nervously once but Artos hushed me and rubbed my cheeks and chin.

Ren worked as quickly as he could and it did hurt a little when he rubbed over the bruising but I held my tongue, not wanting to upset Ren or Artos. Artos was fine with it; he thought it was ok and I kept that thought firmly in my mind as Ren worked.

“Ok Dracius, now if you'll drink this it should help dull the pain down and help you relax," Ren said, picking up a flask.

I eyed it warily and Artos asked “What's in it?"

Ren shook his head. “I'm not sure of the exact ingredients, but Phaegus and Lady Dawn made it so it should be safe for him."

Artos frowned, looking concerned. “You're sure it's not going to make him sick? He's not human."

Ren nodded. “As sure as I can be. I trust my master and Lady Dawn to know what they're doing. Neither of them would ever hurt him on purpose."

“True," Artos said and looked down at me. I looked up at him nervously and he smiled. “It's fine, Dracius. Go ahead and take it."

I looked at he flask then back at Artos. “Phaegus, hurt," I said.

“What do you mean?"

I frowned, trying to come up with the right words. “Phaegus hurt me when…you brought him."

“Oh! That was an accident, Dracius; he didn't do it on purpose."

I nodded. “But this could be…accident."

Artos frowned. “I see your point. It's up to you Dracius. Lady Dawn looked it over as well so I'm sure it's okay."

“Yes, Artos," I said, and reached out and took the flask. I sniffed at it and it didn't have an unpleasant scent by any means. I darted my tongue in to taste it and it had a mild flavor though not unpleasant. I hesitated a little, trying to determine if that little taste had done anything but I felt fine so I drank down the rest of it and looked up at Artos again, shivering a little.

“Very good, Dracius," Artos said and rubbed behind my ears. “How long before it takes effect, Ren?"

“I'm not sure," Ren admitted. “I guess we'll just have to ask him."

I leaned up against Arto's leg, wondering what this was supposed to do exactly. He said it would make me feel better and lessen my pain but I wasn't sure how. Artos scratched behind my ears again and I smiled for him as we walked back towards our horses.

After a few steps I felt rather odd and stopped for a moment, rubbing my belly nervously. What was happening?

“Dracius?" Artos said, realizing that I wasn't following.

“Odd," I said rubbing.

Artos quickly walked back to me, concern on his face. “Odd? Do you feel sick? Hurt?"

I shook my head. “No. Odd. Warm…" I trailed off and gave myself a shake, rustling my wings. I suddenly realized that they my tail and lower back no longer hurt nearly as bad and that I was starting to feel much better, more relaxed as Ren said.

I smiled at Artos. “Better!"

Artos grinned. “Well that's a good thing!"

Night approached as we rode on and the captain of the guard rode back to Artos and saluted him, giving me a brief glance. I pulled my hood further over my head, suddenly glad to have it.

“Lord Artos, we should look to finding shelter for the evening. There is a small hamlet with a decent sized inn and small outpost ahead. We can quarter some of the guards in the outpost and the rest of the party in the inn itself."

Artos considered. “The inn is clean?"

The captain nodded. “Yes, Lord Artos. I've stayed there a time or two myself. Mostly caters to travelers and farmers in from the fields that overnight."

“Sounds good," Artos nodded. “Make the arrangements." He glanced over at me. “And see to it there is a private room and a way of getting my friend to it without him being overly seen."

“Yes, Lord Artos."

I looked at Artos nervously, not wholly certain of what all this meant. He smiled at me. “We're just arranging a place to stay for the night. You'll be safe, Dracius."

“Yes, Artos," I said though I wasn't as confident as he was. Sometimes it seemed that Artos was a little oblivious to what was going on around him or how things were and that he assumed things would go just fine no matter what else was happening.

You know this is true, Artos, and you have admitted it to me. I will collect later.

The darkness fell rapidly which made me both more nervous and more relaxed, though that may seem at odds. Nervous, because I knew that certain animals would prowl at night and more relaxed because I knew that I could see better in the darkness that humans and most other animals, so it was generally easy to avoid detection.

I saw the lights of the hamlet from some ways off and drew my horse closer to Artos as we rode along. Artos just patted my leg and rode on, seemingly unconcerned by our approach. I looked out to see men with torches riding towards us from the village and chirred softly, gesturing.

“It's just our men who went ahead to arrange lodging and some of the guards from the outpost, Dracius. Nothing to are worried over."

“Yes, Artos."

Artos rode forward to meet up with the men while I stayed back, watching nervously. I was sure Artos was right about it all, but at the same time I couldn't help be be leery.

Artos rode back over to me and reigned in close. “Ok, Dracius, they have it arranged so you can go up the back stairs and avoid the main room. They've already checked out our room and made sure I was secure so everything should be just fine. I'll walk with you up the steps as well."

“Yes, Artos," I said, feeling better that he would at least be with me.

While the main part of the party rode up to the front of the inn, Artos, myself, Lady El, and a few others went to the back. One of Artos' men was standing at the back door and simply nodded to Artos as he got off his horse. “It's clear, Lord Artos."

“Thank you. Come on, Dracius," he said, gesturing to me.

I climbed off my horse, wincing at the pain though it was not nearly as bad as earlier, and followed him into the back of the inn. I flinched at the smells coming out of the main room, human sweat, dirt, food, stale ale, and other less savory scents hitting me all at once.

Artos reached a hand out to my shoulder and gently pushed me up the stairway. It was fairly dark, at least for a human, but I could see clearly enough. We made our way up to our room which also had a guard posted in front of it. He nodded and opened the door for us.

Artos ushered me in and Lady El followed. I looked around nervously for a moment, then walked over and settled on the bed, shivering, watching Artos as he looked about the room. It was small, but clean, with a double bed and simple furnishings.

“Not the nicest place but it will do."

“Better than sleeping on the ground," Lady El said and looked at me. “How is he doing?"

“He's fine, El. Nervous about being outside, sore from riding, but I think he's holding up just fine," Artos said, smiling at me.

I smiled at Artos, but kept an eye on Lady El. She still made me nervous. I hesitated for a moment then said. “Artos, hungry."

El stared at me again, frowning. “Keep forgetting he speaks."

“He's shy around others, El, you know that."

She nodded, eyes still fixed on me. “How are you feeling, Dracius?"

I glanced at Artos who smiled and nodded, then back at Lady El, trembling. “Hungry."

“I know that, but otherwise?"

I flinched a little I think. “Hurt. Nervous. Do not like out."

She grunted and I flinched again. “Well, at least you're not freaking out. Hope you learn to talk more smoothly."

“Easy, El, he's only been speaking for a short while. He does better when we're alone."

“He's going to have to do better with others, Lord Artos."

Artos frowned. “How do you mean?"

“Your father isn't going to just let this rest, Artos. He sees Dracius as a possible problem and perhaps a tool to be used in negotiation. The sooner Dracius learns to speak up for himself and talk intelligently the better off it will be for him and for you."

“You think he'd use Dracius as a bargaining chip?" Artos asked, confused.

“It's possible. The duchy is is really bad shape Artos, you know that, and if Duke Grimal thought he could use Dracius to gain some advantage in negotiations he would do so."

“I don't understand how!"

Lady El glanced at me. “I will talk with you about this later."

Artos shook his head. “It involves Dracius. Why can't you talk about it in front of him?"

She looked over at me and then back at Artos with a frown. “I'd rather not upset him and have him panicking"

Artos walked over and put a hand on my shoulder. “I'm not going to let anyone hurt him."

She sighed. “Artos—"

“I mean it, El!"

I jerked back at the power of his voice and he knelt down “Easy, Dracius, things are fine. You're not in trouble."

“Loud!"

“Yes, humans get loud sometimes when they're really serious about something."

Lady El considered the both of us. “Well, I guess if it makes you take things seriously it's a good thing. That said, defying your father is a foolish thing to do, Artos. Sometimes his temper acts first and he thinks later."

“I know that as well, El. But…I can't let him hurt Dracius."

“And that's why I'm saying he needs to learn to communicate better and preset himself as an intelligent…person. Your father is the hardest headed man I've ever met in my life, but he's not stupid. Right now he sees Dracius as little more than a pet and one that's taking up your attention, attention that should be used to solve the problems of the duchy."

“Dracius doesn't take that much of my time!"

“You may not see it that way but your father does. I wonder at times too," Lady El said pointedly.

“If you want to protect him you need to get him into the public eye as an intelligent, thinking person. Otherwise I can't say for sure what will happen. By your leave," she said with a short bow and walked out before Artos could say anything else.