@MadEmperor [Continued from here (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27044.0)
"M" for minor discussions of previous abuse]
It only took about a day to get from the foothills into the mountains proper, but even with just that day of travel the change in the land was palpable. The trees grew hardier, the ground rockier, even the scrubbrush was tough and clinging as opposed to the deep, leafy ferns of Serendipity or even most of Connlaoth. A wind was blowing in from the north, carrying the chill and scent of the tundra with it.
Home.
River was practically a pup again, constantly darting off the path to sniff at game trails or particularly interesting plants, romping about through the evergreens and occasionally circling back around so she could play-stalk Kahroan along the trail. It had become something of a personal challenge to her, to see how close she could get to the dragonman before he recognized her presence.
She never got too close--dragons were fairly difficult to sneak up on.
Kahroan couldn't help but laugh happily at her antics. He had never seen her let herself be so much of a wolf before, and it warmed his heart to see her so happy. It was a shame that he wasn't built to frolic with.
Suddenly, he released a huff and his mouth formed a muted smirk. "Behind me, to my left."
"Damn."
She emerged from some scrubby foliage and linked her arm through his, grinning crookedly. "Thought I might have ya that time."
A sharp wind cut across them and even she shivered a bit, pressing closer to his side instinctively. "Oof. I'd nearly forgotten how chilled even early spring can be up here," she murmured as they walked. To be fair, she wasn't exactly dressed for the weather; since they'd left the caravan she'd stuck to wearing her enchanted clothes that stayed with her as her form changed, and they didn't exactly come with a coat. All things considered, she was significantly more resilient to the cold than a human would have been.
The ice dragonman was quite comfortable, so it took him a moment to remember that she wasn't as cold-resistant as he was. He folded a wing around her for what little protection it offered. He just wished he could do something to warm her.
Guiltily, he said, "Are you sure you're going to be alright? I wish we had thought to buy you a coat or something."
"Oh, I'm fine," she assured him quickly. "I grew up in this--though my family spends most of the winter as wolves, usually, if we're not in the cabin. It's just...been a while since I've been back."
She gave his wing a soft, curious look, but appreciating the shelter from the wind and still quietly baffled that he had wings. They had clicked together so quickly, so naturally that she sometimes had brief moments of remembering how very different they really were.
She frowned a bit. "Alright. So. My family. I warned you they may be a bit...protective, yeah?"
"You did." He rumbled thoughtfully. "I feel like you mean more than being suspicious of anyone you bring home."
He imagined her brothers quietly stalking them. Any moment, they might pounce on him and demand to know his intentions towards their sister. She would tell them to back off, but would they listen? He didn't know.
"Errr...yeah." She sighed and glanced down, rubbing at the back of her neck. She'd known this was something she'd have to bring up with him since their relationship had begun developing into something romantic, but she still didn't like talking about it.
"They're not—they trust me, but I...I had someone, I mean I was with someone for—for a little while, and it...wasn't good. I hid it from my family because—I dunno really, I guess I thought I'd done something wrong? But then it got really bad, and I finally told them, and—"
She huffed. "They just...they don't wanna see me hurt again, y'know?" Trying to lighten the mood, she said quickly, "I think Storm will take a shine to you, though, he's always been fascinated by dragons." She chuckled a bit.
Kahroan gently squeezed her hand. "I understand. Family is like that. I'll try not to take it personally."
"And Storm will probably be disappointed he can't go on a dragon ride. Or that I actually know very little about being a dragon," he added, lightly amused.
"So... any advice on winning the others over? "
"Woof." She laughed lightly, happy to be moving on with conversation. "Well, Sky, my sister, and Shadow have seven pups between the two of them and their mates, so if you can tolerate that long enough you'll have earned their respect for life. Mmm, Mam's a hunter, so she's happy to talk survival skills all day if you let her, Storm loves stories, and Ash is the eternal baby. Oh, and my dad seems scary, but he's a soft touch and he like bunnies."
She crinkled her nose up. "I'm not kidding. He's mad for them—we aren't allowed to hunt them in family pack territory."
He laughed, gaping. "Elba's ashes, that's-- I thought my family was big, and we Yoreiqi have a very open concept of family."
"I mean, we don't bind ourselves by blood. I had two mothers and six siblings, and I can't tell you if any were blood. The connection is what matters."
"Oh, I like that," River said thoughtfully. "A pack can be like that, sometimes—just sort of pulling people in when the connection is there. We, ah—"
She paused, abruptly remembering a few rumors she'd heard of Yoreiqi culture that she'd never actually asked him about. "We tend to be a little more...monogamous, I suppose," she said carefully, then hurried to add, "I mean, usually. It's not like, a hard rule or anything."
"Honestly, I never was much for the usual Yoreiqi open relationship. I wasn't really into relationships at all. I find connection... difficult, which is why my mind rebelled against how I felt about you since the first time we fought together." He gave her a fond look. "And, maybe it's the dragon in me, but I can't imagine you not being enough. "
Realizing that dragons mate for life made his expression briefly morph into shock before settling on embarrassment. "Well--that is--I..."
"Oh?" That was actually quite gratifying to hear, though she didn't know if she would have expected it to be. Then he was fumbling and stuttering, and she fully processed all of what he'd said. "Oh."
"...Kah?" She paused and reached up to cup his cheek, tilting his face gently toward her to meet his eyes. She smiled slightly. "Me too."
She stretched up onto her toes to kiss him lightly before starting to walk again, faintly flushed.
The dragonman rumbled happily as they continued on, even more like a purring cat than usual.
Icy wind buffeted them as they made their way across a narrow ledge. A single rock came loose by Kahroan's foot, clattering down the mountainside as he held tight to the cliffside. He'd never be able to fly in this weather unless he suddenly became a true dragon.
"Whew. That was close." He silently cursed fate for the rockslide that had blocked the short way to their destination.
"Careful!" It was a stupid thing to say, and she knew it, but the word was torn from her anyway. Just in front of him, River was toeing her way carefully along the narrow ledge, checking each step for stability before she rested her weight on her foot. She squinted against the wind, trying to judge the distance from where they were on the ledge to safer ground.
"I don't think it's too much further," she called over the sound of the wind, continuing to pick her way carefully along. "Once we're around that bend we should be able to jump it..."
Being a heavy dragonman did him no favors as he followed carefully behind her. Just because the cliff held for her didn't guarantee it would for him. He told himself to be ready for anything.
The ground cracked under her foot this time. And the broken section shifted to the side, threatening to spill her to her doom.
The ground started shifting under her feet, wreaking havoc with her balance, and she yelped, trying to press herself closer to the cliffside. "Get back!" she shouted in warning to Kahroan as the cracks spread, spiderwebbing away from the cliff face in all directions. "Get back, it's not safe!"
A stone beneath her left foot clattered free, and her ankle twisted at the sudden change in stability. In a desperate bid, she tried to fling herself around the bend in the ledge toward the wider section of the trail.
The ledge crumbled away beneath her heel as she moved, and she gave a wordless cry as she fell, grabbing desperately for what was left of the jagged edge of the ledge.
"River!" In a panic, he lunged for her but was forced back by the crumbling ledge. "Hold on!"
As the jagged ledge cut into her hands, Kahroan rammed his claws into the mountainside to create handholds and began to climb sideways. It was agonizingly slow for him, in terror that she would lose her grip at any moment.
She couldn't give a proper answer beyond a grunt of acknowledgement as she struggled to heave herself back up onto the ledge. But there just wasn't room--her feet scrabbled at the sheer side of the rock face, trying to find some sort of purchase so she could at least more securely hold herself in place.
The stone cut into her palms, making her grip slick with blood. She clenched her eyes shut and just tried to breathe for a moment, to calm the instinctive panic and think.
Kai give me strength
Kahroan prayed he was fast enough to reach her in time as he climbed over to her. He reached down for her, urgently calling out, "Grab my hand!"
"I--"
She looked up at him, panic clear in her face. "I can't--"
He won't let you fall.
She closed her eyes, took a breath, then used every ounce of strength she had to yank herself up as far as she could before she released the ledge with one hand and grabbed for his. For a single, heart-stopping moment her fingers just barely brushed his and she started to fall back with a terrified yelp.
She flailed, caught his hand, and held on for dear life.
In the brief moment that she flailed to grab his hand, he felt his heart sink. When she finally caught his hand, he breathed a tentative sigh of relief. They weren't safe yet, though.
"I'm going to swing you up onto the ledge! Get ready to let go when I tell you!" He used his draconic strength to swing her back and forth, then swung her upward with a groan of tremendous effort. "Now!"
She nodded to show she understood, then allowed him to swing her weight to gain momentum before letting go on his cue.
It was a near thing, but she made it onto the ledge. She gave a sobbing gasp of relief as she braced herself on her hands and knees and just crouched there, trembling. Then her brain seemed to catch up with what had happened and she tried to shift back to give him more room on the stable section of the ledge, though she was still panting lightly.
He climbed over the ledge and gently dropped down to it. He took a moment to recover, breathing heavily from the exertion. That had been way too close.
His heart was still pounding as he embraced her, trembling with relief. "I was afraid I'd lost you."
The moment his arms went around her she burrowed into his chest, whimpering quietly. She'd been in some close scrapes before, but that was...way, way too close. Normally her battles were against something she could actually fight, not fucking gravity.
"I'm here," she mumbled, though her breathing was still a little ragged. "I'm here. I'm okay. We're okay..." She sighed and tucked her head up under his chin. "Thank you."
Kahroan didn't want to ever let go again. He knew that he'd have to, but for the moment he held on to the illusion that he could. He gently rubbed her upper arm to ease her trembling, or was it he that was trembling?
"I couldn't have lived with myself if I didn't do everything in my power to reach you." He exhaled slowly. "But we aren't safe yet. This storm is picking up strength fast. We need to find some kind of shelter before you freeze."
River nodded, though she didn't seem anymore inclined to let go than he was. She knew he was right though, and lifted her head to take stock of where they'd ended up.
Well. On the--if possible--positive side, they had made it across the treacherous terrain of the rockslide. The proper path was visible just around a slight curve in the ledge. She indicated it with a slight jerk of her head.
"If--If my memory's right, there should be a cave system that lets out not too much further along. It's not the best shelter, but it'll get us out of the wind."
She steeled herself with a breath, then forced herself to stand, though she quickly reached down to take Kahroan's hand and linked their fingers together.
The storm quickly strengthened as they walked onward. Visibility diminished rapidly, and the two were forced to feel their way along until, finally, the dark mouth of a cave materialized from the wall of white that surrounded them. The dragonman pulled her inside and away from the biting wind.
The cave was deep enough to provide sufficient shelter while also being tall enough to allow for a fire without suffocating from the smoke. Remnants of a fire in the back of the cave showed that others had had the same idea before them. That just left the matter of what to burn.
Resilient as she was to the cold in comparison to most, River was still shivering quite badly by the time they made it into the cave--though whether that was solely due to the cold or a mix of that and leftover fear was unclear.
"We've got s-some rations we can use as k-kindling," she offered through chattering teeth. "We sh-sh-should be far enough into pack t-territory that we won't need to worry about s-saving food..."
It wasn't ideal--if another rockslide happened, or some other unforeseen obstacle, they would be down a day or more's worth of food. But they didn't seem to have many options.
"The food?" he asked dubiously before sighing, "I... suppose we have no better option."
With her hands all cut up, he took it upon himself to assemble the fire pit. He arranged what few pieces of firewood he still had strapped to his pack and coaxed one to light the old-fashioned way. He added the kindling and gently blew until the flames sprang to life.
He sat, motioning for her to cozy up beside him. "I may not have the body heat to warm you, but I'm still warmer than nothing."
River didn't need any further prompting. The moment he motioned her closer, she had all but teleported across the space separating them and tucked herself securely into his side. Sure, he didn't run warm, but he wasn't as cold as the cave--and she liked the closeness, especially after their little adventure on the mountainside.
She could have taken her wolf shape to combat the cold, but she found that she didn't want to lose the feeling of being cuddled up next to him in human form. She let her head rest on his shoulder and sighed as the fire slowly started to thaw her out, her shivers gradually subsiding.
"I forget, sometimes," she murmured, almost to herself. "How harsh the mountains can be."
"I've never even been this far north. Before--well, all this--" Kahroan motioned to his body. "I wouldn't have made it in this cold. Too much of an island boy."
"It's enough to make me start to see this body as a blessing. It also brought me to you after all." He nuzzled against her with a happy rumble.
"Mmm." She smiled a bit and leaned into him a little more. "Not to mention we probably wouldn't have made it passed that rockslide without all this."
She gestured to him the way he had, following the path his hand had made, but ending with her palm pressed lightly against his chest. She hissed quietly as her battered hands protested, but didn't pull back.
"We'll have to wait out the worst of the weather," she murmured, glancing to the mouth of the cave. "Hopefully it'll only be a few hours..."
"Gods. Your hands..." He pulled her hand away to look at the damage. The dragonman clucked like a worried parent. "We need to clean and bandage this."
He started gently picking out tiny shards of rock from the lacerations. "Tell me if I'm hurting you."
She winced, but shook her head. "It's not that bad," she assured him quickly. "I've certainly had worse."
She bit her lip to avoid growling as he began picking bits of rocks out of the cuts, a wounded animal's instinct.
"...That's nice," she murmured once most of the debris was out, staring at her hands in his. The contact of his cool scales against the sounds was a relief, even with the cold outside.
Kahroan was just about to wash the blood off of her hands when a strange instinct overtook him. Before he could think about what he was doing, his long, forked tongue was already out, cleaning the wound as a full dragon might.
He jerked back, embarrassed, "Oh gods! Sorry! Sorry! I--err--didn't know I was going to do that."
River blinked, a little taken aback—partly because, well, she somehow hadn't realized that his tongue was actually forked, though it only made sense.
Then she laughed, leaning after him slightly when he pulled. "It's alright," she tried to assure him, still giggling. "Trust me, I get it. I'd have been doing it myself if you weren't keeping my hands busy."
She reached up as though to cup his cheek, then caught herself and pulled her hand back, frowning. "Hang on, I've gotta—fuck, I hate hand wounds, bandaging is irritating enough as it is..."
"Here... let me." Kahroan took out some bandages and resumed gently licking away the blood, bandaging her hands as he went. The whole thing was rather comforting and, to him, oddly romantic.
"Better?" He looked at her with deep affection, and more than a little attraction.
River sighed quietly as the pressure of the bandages relieved some of the stinging in her palms. She idly wondered if dragons had some sort of disinfectant in their saliva, as the throbbing subsided rather quickly once he was done.
And then he was looking at her, still holding her hands, and her moth went suddenly dry.
"Mm—" She swallowed and nodded. "Mhm. Much. Thanks..."
She had started leaning toward him without fully realizing it, until they were a breath apart. She stopped herself as she realized what she was doing and flushed lightly. "Ahm—sorry. I don't—ahem."
"Don't be." He kissed her before she could say anything else. The passion in his kiss said that he'd been waiting for the first remotely romantic moment he could get to kiss her since they left the caravan. And that he loved her deeply.
River kissed him back just as enthusiastically, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing as close as she could manage. By the time they broke apart, she realized she was half in his lap and breathing a little heavier than usual.
"Kah, I—" She let her brow rest against his and closed her eyes with a sigh. "We're mad," she decided, chuckling quietly. "But I...I—"
She couldn't get the words out. She wanted to, but they caught awkwardly in the back of her throat.
Kahroan swallowed, the same words wanted to escape his lips more than they ever had. But what if he was wrong, and she wasn't about to say that? No, that didn't matter; it was time.
"I know we are, but I... I love you so much I can't stand not saying in one minute longer."
Her breath actually caught for a moment. Then she was kissing him again, uncaring of her cut palms or the howling wind just outside their makeshift shelter or just about anything else but him.
"I—I love you, too," she breathed when they broke apart again. She let her nose nuzzle against his, then tipped her head up to kiss his forehead.
His instincts told him where this was going. His body wanted it desperately, but the logical part of his brain told him that was a bad idea. At least, not as long as he didn't produce much in the way of body heat.
Breathing heavily, he said, "We shouldn't... not here..."
River whined quietly, a sound that was so entirely instinctive she literally couldn't stop it. She had the good grace to be embarrassed when it registered, flushing and nodding in agreement with him.
"Yeah...yeah, we—we probably shouldn't." She swallowed, trying to force her heart rate to slow. Then she laughed breathlessly and let her head come to rest against his shoulder for a moment. "Though I suppose I'm really the only one between the two of us who'd be bothered by the cold."
She pressed a light kiss to his shoulder before pulling back slightly to meet his eyes. Then she suddenly giggled again, pressing a hand over her mouth in an effort to smother the sound. "Gods, I'm sorry," she huffed. "I just...I haven't, ah, done anything like this in a while..."
His tail wrapped around her waist as he gazed lovingly at her, awkward as the moment was. "I... haven't either."
He shyly looked away with an embarrassed huff of breath. "And--well--never with these... parts..."
That was a very good point. River blinked, as she'd honestly been so swept up in the moment that she hadn't really given that aspect much thought. How did dragons even...?
"I mean, we could—" She coughed and glanced away, grimacing through a blush. "If—only if you wanted to, of course, but I mean, we could...try to...figure those parts...out?" The cold shouldn't bother him, after all. "But I don't know if you want—or— you know what, I'm going to stop talking now."
She laughed a bit again, very red now, and had to work to resist the urge to bury her face in her hands.
Kahroan blinked, momentarily perplexed by what she could possibly mean. He coughed when he finally put it together. "I--err--might be open to that."
"For educational purposes, of course," he added with a smirk in his tone.
"Right. Absolutely. Educational purposes." River found herself smirking back as she leaned in to kiss him again.
By the time the storm had begun to die down, she had almost entirely forgotten about the cold. It wasn't that Kahroan necessarily gave off a lot of heat—quite the opposite, really—but there was...a sense of comfort that came with closeness. It was something she hadn't experienced in a while, and realized with a slight pang that she had missed it.
Their fire was fading along with the storm, and she snuggled herself a little closer under Kahroan's wing to press against his side.
"We can probably get moving again soon," she murmured. "Then it should only be a few hours until we're close enough to the cottage that my family should be able to scent us."
"Do we really have to?" He pretended to pout, but it didn't quite work on his draconic face. "This is so... nice."
He nuzzled her one last time and sighed, saying, "Yeah... we should. You're cold and we're both tired."
When he didn't move, he added, "You first."
"Mmmrrmph." She gave him a pout of her own and snuggled closer, then sighed and forced herself to sit up.
"This is nice," she agreed with a soft smile, stroking his cheek fondly. "But it might be even nicer in a real bed. After some real food."
She leaned down to kiss the bridge of his nose—or, snout—then sat up again and peered at the entrance of the cave.
"We should get moving. That was probably the tail end of a late winter storm—they can kick up again pretty quick, we should cover what ground we can."
Kahroan cooed when she kissed him. She was definitely right—a real bed and real food sounded amazing after roughing it in the cold. And they'd finally be able to... educate each other. The thought made him smile to himself.
He forced himself to his feet and hoisted his pack onto his back. "Let's go meet this pack of yours."
The truth was that the dragonman was incredibly nervous. It was just that his desire to get River somewhere warm was a great deal higher on his list of emotional priorities.
"Right. Let's." She gave him what she hoped was a comforting, confident grin, but honestly she was a bit nervous herself--it had been months since she'd been back home, and now she was returning with a stranger in tow. A stranger who was essentially a humanoid dragon. A stranger who was essentially a humanoid dragon and also had become her mate absurdly quickly.
Gods. Her mother was going to lose her mind.
But she was also excited to be back, to see her siblings and parents--nieces and nephews, too, of course, though they were always an endless font of energy.
"Do you like children?"
The question was out of her mouth before she could stop it; she'd just been thinking of her sibling's pups, and then...well. There it was.
That made him pause a step. "Ch-children? I mean, I don't have a problem with them. I just haven't been around them in a long time. And the village children thought I was weird, so even then not a lot except for when I was a child too."
He hadn't been nervous about that part until that moment. Now it was all he could think about.
Oh dear. Seemed she'd frightened him.
She did have to smother a chuckle at the look on his face. "Alright, well don't fret too much over it," she tried to assure him, reaching over to take his hand and give it a squeeze. "I've got a gaggle of nieces and nephews, but there's always a parent or an aunt or uncle in easy reach, so it's not as though you'd be left with no backup."
She debated adding more, then figured fuck it and said, "Honestly, they'll probably be so fascinated by the whole..." she waved her free hand up and down at him, "this that you won't need to actually do much to win them over."
Kahroan chuckled. "Yet another gift of my condition."
He really was beginning to wonder if he was cursed at all. This body had done nothing but keep him alive and provide the push he needed to open his heart to someone again. And that someone happened to be the love of his life. No curse would do all that, would it?
"I'm sure you're right. I... don't have anything to worry about, do I?" He didn't quite rumble, but there was a happy look in his eyes.
"Nah." She smiled and leaned into him slightly as they walked. "You'll be just fine."
Pulling a face, she laughed a bit and added, "I'm the one who's going to be in trouble. It's been too long since I've been home, and I haven't exactly given them much warning." She grimaced theatrically--then sincerely, as she reached to move a scrubby branch from one of the nearly horizontal trees that grew at this altitude in the mountains and her hand twinged painfully.
"Shit," she hissed, shaking her hand before peeling the bandaging aside to look at it.
Kahroan looked worried. "Did you open the wound?"
He quietly hoped that the licking had been a safe thing to do. But animals did it all the time, and he wasn't human anymore. Their explorations in the cave had made that abundantly obvious.
"I know you're more than capable of looking after yourself, but please let me do the path clearing."
She tsked at him and started to say something about him worrying overmuch, but then she saw the edge of the cuts on her palm and she paused. "Well...huh."
She looked up at him with a curious sort of frown. "Kah...do dragons have, like...healing abilities?" she asked slowly. Because she was realizing that the twinge from her palm had been the first they'd bothered her in hours--and that she really should have been worse off. Even looking at it, the cuts looked maybe days old, rather than hours.
Kah stopped to look at her hand, his scaly brow rising. He hadn't even considered that he might possess magical abilities beyond his freezing breath. It made sense, he supposed.
"I've heard rumors of water dragons doing such things, and ice is a form of water. So... perhaps I do. The evidence is right there."
"Seems so..." She squinted at her palm a moment longer, then gave a mental shrug and rewrapped the bandaging. "Well! That's certainly useful."
She snorted quietly and shook her head, then looked back to him with a crooked smile. "Aren't you just full of surprises?"
The faint trail they were following began to wind through more and more trees--scrubby pines and stubborn brush, all clinging determinedly to the thin layers of earth that coated the mountainside--and she took a deep breath of the chilled air. "I'd nearly forgotten how clean it smells out here."
As they walked, he wondered what other secrets his new body held. He would have to take some time to find out. Being in what had become his element could well help him discover his capabilities.
When she spoke again, he breathed in himself and sighed contentedly. "It really does. It's nice after so long in civilization. Refreshing."
Just then, he almost thought he sensed movement. She should be able to sense it too if there was something, so he wasn't worried.
"Right?" She grinned and bumped his shoulder lightly. "It really has been too long since I've been back, I--"
She paused, cocking her head. Slowly, a smile started to spread across her face. Without much warning, she tipped her face up and howled; it wasn't the sound a human made to imitate a wolf, it was a wolf, echoing out through the mountains in a long, shivering cry.
When she dropped her head she stilled, listening. Then an answering howl came, much closer than a proper wild wolf would have risked getting to an unfamiliar predator's scent. Close enough that they could hear the rustling in the branches as something crept through the trees to their left.
Kahroan was a bit surprised to hear the howl of her wolf form escape her lips. But it set his nerves at ease when the responding howl assured him that there was no threat. The pack had found them.
He turned to look, instinctively showing no fear, though he did have to resist the sudden urge to show dominance. Instead, he would let River do the talking. It was her family, after all. He was just the stranger she had come home with.
It took longer than she would have thought for her brother to show himself--and when he finally did, it was to spring out of the trees and hit her full-force in the chest with his two front paws, knocking them both onto the ground.
So much for maintaining any level of dignity.
"Oof!" She glowered up at the grinning wolf, colored in a gradient of darker grays, with the same bright hazel eyes she had. "Ash, you bastard, get off!" She rolled them over, sending the wolf sprawling and chuffing in amusement, a chuff that changed to a laugh as the shifter changed into a human form.
"Oh, you absolutely deserved that!" Ash chuckled. Like River, he wore enchanted clothing to came with him through a shift, though his were just breeches and a light undershirt. "Six months, Riv! What the hells?"
"I've been busy!" she replied defensively. "Besides, I was all the way down in Serendipity--it's not exactly a quick trip back." Remembering herself, River quickly clambered back to her feet and shot Kahroan an apologetic look. "Oh, er, Ash, this is--this is Kahroan. Kah, this is my obnoxious baby brother, Ash."
Ash rolled his eyes at her. "First off, we're littermates, I'm not your baby anything. Second, I'm definitely her favorite." He grinned at Kahroan in a friendly way, though there was something behind his eyes, in his body language, that kept some of a wolf's wariness on meeting a new hunter.
Kahroan had to force himself not to laugh at Ash's antics, but a faint smile did cross his muzzle. Perhaps if she had been laughing, he would have too. Nonetheless, he was glad when the moment shifted to introductions.
"It's nice to finally meet a member of River's family." He extended a hand to the wary shifter, slowly. He knew the instinct well.
When Ash got a closer sniff, he might notice how much the pair smelled of each other... and not quite in the way mere traveling companions would.
"Cheers, mate." Ash took the offered hand, then quirked an eyebrow as they shook. He looked sidelong at his sister. "So. New friend?" He was smirking.
River blushed and glared at him. "Shut up."
He laughed. "Oh, Mam is going to have kittens. Six months you don't visit, and then you come home with a Serenian dragonman in tow smelling like that." Looking to Kahroan, he raised his hands peaceably and added, "Which is entirely her fault, nothing against you or anything."
River rolled her eyes.
He narrowed his eyes, insulated for her. "I'm not sure this Yoreiqi dragonman likes what you're insinuating about his ma—about her."
That slip is going to cost me.
He hoped Ash didn't notice.
"Hey, it's alright." River automatically reached out to touch his arm with a small smile. "He's just playing, it's okay." She understood why he would feel defensive, but she knew that there was no real judgement from Ash--her brother just tended to be a bit of an ass.
"Ah, no offense meant," Ash added with a crooked grin. Then he hummed quietly. "Yoreiqi. That's...not what I would have expected, honestly," Ash noted, cocking his head. "You're handling the cold pretty well for an islander, aren't ya?"
He gave his sister a look that said he had definitely noticed Kahroan's slip, but he seemed unwilling to continue teasing after the reaction it had gotten.
Kahroan rubbed the back of his neck as he considered how much to say. "I'm fine, comfortable actually. I'm an ice dragon. Which, yes, is unusual for Yoreiq. I... well, I wasn't born like this."
"I'd rather not explain more than once. It... was an unpleasant experience." As he said this, he threaded his fingers through hers for comfort.
Ash's eyebrows crept higher, first with curiosity at what Kahroan was saying, and then with something almost like smugness as the dragonman took River's hand.
"Hey, that's fair," he told Kahroan with another vaguely friendly smile. He still seemed to be evaluating the man, though he certainly wasn't planning to be outright hostile. "Well, Storm's on a hunt with Akina, but he'll be back at the cabin by sundown." He glanced up, judging the time. "Bit after us, actually, if we set off now. Seems like you're right on time to meet the whole pack."
It was River's turm to arch an eyebrow. "Akina? How long has that been going on?"
Ash chuckled. "Ah, hells, Riv, you've got a lot to catch up on."
Kahroan noticed the smugness but didn't care. Her touch always put him at ease, and he wasn't going to hide what she was to him.
"Akina?" he asked as he prepared to follow. He assumed she was her brother's new mate, but clarification always helped.
"Oh, we've known her since we were all pups," River explained as Ash gave them a nod and shifted easily back into his wolf form, trotting along beside them. "She's lovely, and one of the cleverest people I've ever met. No idea what she sees in Storm, but he's been mad about her since we were kids. Guess he finally said something."
Ash chuffed a laugh and swerved to butt his head against her hip, giving her a wolf's grin. She smiled back and scritched behind his left ear, which he leaned into for a moment before mouthing playfully at her hand.
Or started to. He pulled back quickly when he saw the bandaging and sniffed, then looked up at her with a concerned whine.
She waved him off. "It's a bit of a long story, we can tell everyone back home. But I'm fine, really."
He gave her a Look that said he clearly wasn't convinced, but huffed and let it be for the moment.
Kahroan chuckled lightly at the sibling camaraderie, though it also made him wistful for the family he'd never see again. At least, if hers accepted him, he'd have a whole new one. The thought made him happy.
"I can understand beastspeak, if you want to talk while we travel," he offered, feeling like an extra wheel all of a sudden.
Ash gave his sister a startled look, and she laughed with a shrug. "Yeah, part of the dragon thing, we think. Go on, it's a bit weird, but you get used to it."
The wolf huffed and shook his head, making a noise that River took with his body language and instinctively understood while using beastspeech to communicate with Kahroan: You two must have one hells of a story.
River chuckled again. "You could say that."
Kahroan chuckled along with her. "It's been interesting, alright."
"But quite rewarding." He gently bumped against her shoulder with a happy, loving rumble and a languid sway of his tail. He was in love and didn't care who knew it.
River smiled back, a hint of color in her cheeks; her brother rolled his eyes theatrically, but there was a slight wag to his tail. He still gave Kahroan considering looks as they continued down the trail--then off the trail, following the two wolves' sense of smell--but seem amiable enough. He was at least content to chat as they walked, filling River in on family news she'd missed or asking Kahroan questions about Yoreiq.
It only took them a few more hours of travel to reach what River and Ash had referred to as "the cabin", which, once they had cleared a dense barrier of pines, was revealed to be something really more like a country chateau: it had clearly started out as a cabin, but over the years more new additions had been tacked onto it, until it was taking up a good portion of the clearing where the house stood. There was a wide stretch of surprisingly green terrain--mostly moss--leading up to the main entrance, and a gaggle of pups, half in wolf form and half two-legged--wrestling with each other in the late afternoon sun.
River glanced up at Kahroan with a crooked smile. "Ready?"
Ash whuffed, alerting their nieces and nephews to their presence. They all stopped, staring. Then, in one voice:
"Auntie River!"
"Oh, hells."
She went down under a mass of wagging tails and squealing, flailing human children. Ash was clearly laughing, despite still holding onto his own wolf form.
He Kahroan couldn't believe his eyes. This is what she called a "cabin"? He had wondered how such a big family could fit in a cabin. Now he had his answer; they could fit because it was practically a mansion!
Then River was buried by a horde of adorable bodies. He burst out laughing in delight at the sight.
Gods. You just got their attention, didn't you, you daft lizard?
Five sets of ears--furred and not--all perked up and five little heads whipped toward him to study him curiously.
"Whossat?" Callum, one of Shadow's triplets, asked bluntly, pointing at Kahroan as though he could possibly be referring to anyone else.
Rain, who at seven was two years older than her cousin and therefore far more grownup in her mind, scoffed at him and batted his hand down. "Don't be rude."
Chuckling, River sat up with Minna and Forest--Callum's siblings--still in her lap. Forest was in wolf form, gnawing at her hair, and Minna was babbling something about how River had stayed away too long and it wasn't fair and had she heard that Uncle Shadow was out hunting with Akina and--
"Pups, this is Kahroan," River introduced him, smirking a bit. "He's...gonna stay with the pack for a while."
Ash snorted at her, shrugging upward into human form. "Alright, you little gremlins, leave off. Your Aunt River can't breathe."
The dragonman gave the children a shy wave with an amused glint in his eyes as he lowered himself closer to their level.
"Hello. I'm a good friend of your Aunt River." He was stiff and awkwardly formal, unsure of exactly how to talk to children.
Two of the children--Minna and Sorren, Rain's twin--returned the wave, Callum, evidently ever-tactful, pointed to him again and said, "You're stuck."
"Callum!" Both River and Ash frowned at him.
"He is!" Callum pouted at his aunt and uncle. "You're supposed to change all the way. He's stuck."
Kahroan shot River a look of shock. How could the little tyke know that? What was even happening here? Was he really just... stuck? Would he suddenly become unstuck without warning?
"What--what do you mean... stuck? Do you know how to get unstuck, so I can not do that? I very much like being this size."
Both River and Ash looked just as befuddled as Kahroan, and the she-wolf shrugged at him, shaking her head and mouthing, I've no idea what he's on about.
"I mean you're stuck," Callum repeated, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world and they were all incredibly dull for not understanding. "You go all the way animal-shaped, or all the way human-shaped, we can't just stay like that."
"Alright, Cali." River stood, placing Minna and Forest back on the ground. "Maybe we can chat about this with your mum and dad?"
"Speaking of." Ash jerked his head back toward the front entrance of the cabin, where a cluster of the adult, human-shaped wolves were standing about and murmuring to each other. Then one, a young woman with silvery gray hair and bright gold eyes, broke from the cluster and waved, grinning at them all.
"Bout time you showed back up, Ree!"
River laughed and waved back to her sister. "Oi, no lecturing until you come and collect your little urchins!"
The dragonman chuckled awkwardly as he realized he had read too much into the boy's statement. There was no magical insight, just a child's understanding of how changing forms worked. He shrugged at River, embarrassed.
He straightened up when the first adult started towards them. With some relief he returned to River's side and awaited the inevitable questions.
"Ree?" he teased gently.
River crinkled her nose at him. "My siblings couldn't always say my full name correctly," she explained just as Sky reached them and pulled her sister into a smothering hug.
"Sky--can't breathe--" River gasped dramatically.
"Deal with it," the other wolf play-growled, squeezing tighter. "You stay away so long and this is what happens when you come home."
River chuckled, finally wriggling free to hold the other woman at arm's length. She waved as the others began approaching more sedately, all smiling, clearly thrilled to see her, but casting her companion looks that ranged from curious to wary. The pups scampered back to hang onto the nearest adult's leg as the pack gathered around them, passing greetings and hugs and hair ruffles around before finally River disentangled herself from her family and took a step back.
"So who is this, then?" Nora, her brother Shadow's mate, gave Kahroan a slightly puzzled but friendly enough smile.
"Right." River dragged her fingers back through her hair. "Everyone, this is Kahroan. Kah, this is Nora, she's those three's mum--" she gestured to the triplets--"My brother Shadow, he's her mate. This is Sky, that's her mate Elwyn, they're Sorren and Rain's parents--" she pointed out the twins.
Sky piped up, "We've got another pair, but they're only two, they're down for a nap."
Kahroan had kept to himself for so long, that being the center of attention for so many was more than a little intimidating. Though it was, at least, easier to speak to adults. He understood adults; they were largely rational beings.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet all of you." He nodded to them politely, but there was an unmistakable anxiety in his body language. If they rejected him, he could never ask River to choose him over her family. The pack was everything to a wolf.
Shadow laughed. "Wish we could say the same, but someone--" he mock glared at River-- "didn't see fit to tell us that apparently she was bringing a new lad home."
River rolled her eyes at him. "Well, it all happened rather quickly--it's sort of a long story, we should wait until Storm and Akina are back. And where's Mum and Dad?"
"Waiting for a proper greeting from their eldest."
The pack matriarch's voice was light, and the smile she gave both her daughter and their guest was wide and friendly, but her gold eyes were clearly evaluating as they flickered between the two. River's siblings and their mates immediately made room for Elise, who looked shockingly like a version of River with fine white hair that didn't seem entirely due to her additional three decades of life.
River beamed at her and stepped into her arms. "Hiya, Mum."
"Hello, darling." Elise nuzzled against her head and kissed her cheek--a gesture that Kahroan might recognize from River herself, as it had tended to be her preferred casual form of affection when they first began traveling together.
"Your father's in by the hearth," her mother added as they broke apart. "Perhaps we'd best moved this introduction inside? I'm sure you're both hungry." She gave Kahroan another welcoming smile, the softness of her expression replaced with something a little cooler, more considering, but not hostile.
Before he could keep it in, an excited rumble escaped him at the prospect of food. With an embarrassed groan, he said, "Yes... food would be wonderful."
He noticed the gesture that meant he was being judged for worthiness. It was something he had reasonably expected but was still nervous about. He needed to be on his best behavior while also just being himself. This was easier said than done for someone who doubted his own worth, but he was in a good place mentally, so he thought he could manage.
He quietly followed the family inside, shooting River a nervous smile as he paused at the door to shake off the snow. Then, he exhaled and stepped inside.
River returned his smile and mouth quickly, You're doing fine, before she followed him into the house.
It was instantly warmer; the "great room"--what had once been the actual cabin that Elise and her mate Lake had built to start their life together--sported an absolutely massive hearth, large enough for their entire pack and then some to gather in around the fire. Provided everyone squeezed in a bit.
Lake was lounging in front of the fire in wolf form, though when his mate and children spilled into the room, he heaved himself to his paws and gave himself a brisk shake.
River grinned at the massive gray and tan wolf, quickly kneeling to accept a greeting sniff and nuzzle, then wrapping her arms around his neck. "Hey, Dad."
Welcome home. Her father used beastspeech, eyeing Kahroan curiously over her shoulder, showing that he was assuming the dragonman could understand him. I take it you've brought a guest.
"Right, yeah." River stood and held a hand out to her mate with an encouraging smile. "This is Kahroan."
"It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Longfang." He gave a small, slightly-too-formal bow. Next to what happened on the mountain, this was the scariest moment of his life. And wolves can smell fear, which did nothing to help his nerves. He had to focus on her assurances that his love for her would be all he needed.
The wolf sniffed at him, not getting too close, then took a step back and reared up onto his hind legs and then into a human form. Like his wife, the salt-and-pepper of his hair and bear seemed to reflect the coat of his wolf shape more than it did his age, though there were also deep crow's feet around his eyes and laugh lines at the corners of his mouth.
"Relax, lad, I'm not going to eat you," he told Kahroan with an amused huff. Smirking a bit, he added, "Not if you don't give me a reason."
"Dad," River protested, frowning at him.
Lake chuckled and reached out to sling an arm around her shoulders, tugging her into a sideways hug and ruffling her hair. "Ah, I'm just giving him a hard time. Well met, Kahroan, and welcome."
The dragonman's relief at having his head still attached came off of him in waves. He exhaled, smiling at his mate. Chuckling, he said, "I've got to admit, for a moment there, I thought you just might. I don't think I've ever been so nervous in my life."
"Now... I believe someone mentioned food?" He looked hopeful and very hungry. "We had to burn most of what rations we had left to keep warm in that snowstorm."
"You did what?"
Elisa looked absolutely horrified, but she was looking to her daughter, not Kahroan. "You see? You see? This is what happens when you don't tell us you're visiting, we could've come and met you--"
"Well, the rockslide would've stopped you just as much as us--" River started, then snapped her mouth shut. Oh hells.
"The rockslide?!"
"We're fine! It's fine!" River waved her hands at her now overly concerned family. Her father seemed to be restraining himself from sniffing at her like a proper wolf, and her sister-in-law had her hands over her mouth, wide-eyed. "See, look? We're both fine, right, Kah?" She looked over to him a tad desperately.
"Oh don't you drag him into this, young lady, I know exactly how reckless you can be," her mother huffed, to which River couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"Mum, I'm twenty-eight years old, are you really trying to young lady me?"
"You bet your ass I am, and I will do it until the day I'm in the ground," Elise seethed. "Now you sit, and I will get you some proper food and then you can explain this rockslide."
River sat; she knew better than to argue further.
I'm sorry, he mouthed to her. He knew better than to butt in, but it was hard not to jump in and defend them. The rockslide had already happened by the time they reached the pass. It wasn't like they could have predicted that! Though, he supposed they could have prepared better.
Then he smelled the food, and his worries were forgotten. He was that hungry.
Still muttering about how River should've known better gods damnit, Elise bustled off to the kitchen with her second-eldest son in tow. Shadow looked absolutely delighted, winking at his sister as he went, which earned him a rude gesture in return.
River scooched to the side on the pile of furs that she'd plopped into, gesturing for Kahroan to join her. Sky settled close by, murmuring to her mate to ask him to fetch the twins; he nodded, giving her a quick parting kiss. The rest of the pups were sprawled out in front of the fire, Ash playing with two of the triplets, now both in wolf form.
"Well." Lake settled himself into one of the few actual chairs, then leaned forward over his knees. "So. This is serious, between the two of you?"
...No one could claim the man wasn't direct.
River sighed and let her head fall back so she was addressing the ceiling. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."
Kahroan settled in next to River and laced his fingers between hers. A little of his nervousness returned along with Lake's directness, but he powered through.
"Yes, sir. I..." he said, pausing to look into her eyes before again addressing her father, "I love her very much. I... know it all happened very fast, but I feel it with every fiber of my being."
River smiled and squeezed his hand gently in encouragement.
Lake nodded, looking at them both consideringly. "Aye, it can happen that way. It's more common for folk like us, I suppose, I'm not sure about...dragons?" He cocked his head, and River nodded in confirmation. "I suppose there's a story there," he chuckled.
"A story you can tell over tea." Elise reappeared with Shadow at her elbow, passing around cups of tea and warm bowls of some sort of stew that smelled of mountain herbs and venison. River took hers gratefully and dug in. Gods, she was starving.
Kahroan gladly accepted the food and the tea with thanks. Even with his comfort in the cold, the warmth of his first bite renewed his spirits. He practically inhaled it and had nearly emptied the bowl before speaking.
The dragonman explained how he was at a low point and made a bad deal, which triggered his body to transform into what it is now. Then, in the middle of that, how River found him and helped him through it. He relayed their travels, and how working side by side opened his heart until that bright, sunny day when it became undeniable how he felt about her.
He nodded for her to continue the story.
River picked up easily where he left off, explaining how they had thought that since Kahroan's dragon side seemed to be more of an icy influence, they had figured he might be able to better acclimate to the changes in an environment like the mountains. Of course, that meant she had to tell them about the rockslide, and her near-fall.
She tried to downplay that as much as possible, but it wasn't like she could hide her bandaged palms. Still, other than a hard look from her mother, and a few comments about hear near a thing it must've been, there wasn't too much of a fuss.
"So...now we're here." She shrugged, adding a little guiltily, "I know I haven't been home in a while, and this is all a lot to take in at once."
"And I know I'm a complete stranger, but I feel like I've known her my whole life." Kahroan did his best to come across with the sincerity that he felt. He almost promised that he'd never hurt her in any way, but all relationships had ups and downs and hurtful words would always be spoken in the heat of the moment. He could only do his best to be understanding and forgiving.
"Though we come from vastly different worlds, I can't imagine one without River in it. If you'll have me, I know I can make her happy."
River leaned against his shoulder slightly with a soft, reassuring sound from somewhere in the back of her throat.
Elise and Lake exchanged a glance that spoke volumes, but it was too quick to be properly deciphered. After a moment, Lake merely shrugged and spread his hands. "Well, unfortunately for you, lad, that's not up to us--it's up to her." He smiled slightly. "But our home is yours so long as she'll have you."
That seemed to be tacit permission for the rest of the pack to dive in asking questions, especially the pups: what was fighting a dire bear like, did he like Serendipity, the mountains must be so different from Yoreiq, what did he think of them?
Kahroan gave River an unintentionally humorous "oh no" look when the volley of questions erupted from the pack.
"Whoa! One at a time!" he laughed. He told them how big and frightening the bear was and how brave River was. Serendipity was beautiful in its way, but had nothing against the vibrant jungles and clear blue waters of the isles. That said, the mountains had a certain majesty that even Yoreiq lacked.
Then he had a question of his own. "I know Callum was only misunderstanding my appearance, but what he said about being stuck has--well, stuck with me. I'd hate to learn the hard way that my current shape isn't the end of my predicament. Obviously, it's not the same as being a shifter, but could you tell me what it's like to tell your bodies to change?"
"Or does it not work that way?
They all exchanged glances; it was something none of them ever really considered, telling their body to change. Since they were all quite young, they just...did it.
All but Nora, whose mate eventually murmured, "Maybe you'd best take this one, love?"
She chuckled quietly and shrugged. "Well, it--first off, you should know I'm not a shifter, not like the rest of the pack. I'm a mage, and I've got a particular knack for transfiguration. After--" She paused, eyes darkening, then shook her head. "After I...left Connlaoth and met the pack, I learned to take a wolf form. It was...difficult. It's painful for your body to change that way, if you aren't born to it. But the more I practiced, the more I changed, the faster the shift would come on, and after a while it was just like stretching a sore muscle." She tilted her head at him. "I had to...think about the differences, I suppose. How I experienced the world as a wolf--they can't see colors, did you know?--and how I experienced it as a human...it's like a sort of meditation, almost."
Kahroan gave her a sympathetic look as she mentioned leaving Connloath. He knew the pain of being driven from your home. And he knew the pain of transforming without being born to it. It was hard to say which was worse.
"I don't know anything about how dragons see the world. Sure, maybe things look... I dunno--more vivid, sharper, with perhaps more blue, but that's it."
"Don't get me wrong, I don't exactly want to change all the way, but if it's going to happen, I want some say in it. As a dragon I could possibly learn to change back and forth properly."
He looked to River. "But I won't explore that if you don't think it's worth the risk. To be honest, I'm not sure I think it is."
"Oh, but not just sight, but...how you feel as the non-human form, I suppose," Nora tried to elaborate. "Like, a wolf relies more on their ears and their nose than their eyes, or--or how I can hear my children across a field, or feel the echo of a herd moving through the earth under my paws. But as a human I can feel the warmth of a fire on bare skin, I can even hear music differently, it's..." She laughed quietly and shook her head. "I don't think I'm explaining this very well, it's--I never exactly had a formal education in magic."
River shot her sister-in-law a sympathetic glance before looking to Kahroan. "I think it should be your choice," she told him quietly, giving his hand in hers a gentle squeeze. "I'll be here for you no matter how you want to move forward."
Kahroan squeezed her hand in return, feeling lucky to have found her. Turning his attention back to Nora, he said, "Things are certainly different. Touch is strangely muted and my hearing isn't any better, but every other sense is stronger. Taste especially... so much that it's hard to know where it ends and smell begins."
"And the cold hardly bothers me. As a full frost dragon, I imagine it wouldn't bother me at all."
He grinned. "Oh, and flight? It's amazing."
Nora smiled. "Isn't it? Learning the wolf shape was difficult but rewarding—I learned a snowhawk a few years later, though I suppose I don't use it as much. Mostly to scout if we're on a hunt."
"Mama!" Forest was suddenly demanding her attention, and she gave them another quick smile before allowing the child to pull her over to the cluster of pups in front of the fire.
"Storm should be back with Akina any minute," Lake noted, glancing to the door. Then to River: "Why don't you show Kahroan where you'll be staying? We can explain the situation when they get in."
"Hey, don't have to tell me twice to find a bed," River chuckled. When Ash whistled, she flushed and snapped, "Not like that, you eejit. We've been traveling the better part of a month, we're exhausted."
"As you must be," her mother tutted with a quick glare toward her youngest. "Go on then, show him around. There'll be a proper supper at sundown, if you care to join us."
When they were finally alone in her room, he looked at her and sighed with a tired, happy rumble. "Gods... I think I just might sleep for days," he chuckled tiredly.
"Wait, this is your room, isn't it?" He hadn't been in a woman's actual bedroom before. It was a surreal realization.
River gave him a tired laugh in agreement. "Well, you can if you like—we actually have a minute to breathe, finally."
She chuffed quietly and nodded when he asked about the room. "Yeah, it is. Haven't been back in a while so I'm sure the pups have been in at things..."
She looked around the room. It really hadn't changed much since she was a pup herself; for a while all five of them had shared a room, then it had been her and Sky in one and the boys in the other, then they'd all had their own space—their parents had just kept building on.
Despite the size of the place, their furnishings were quite humble; most everything was hand carved, or traded for in one of the small mountain villages. Her bed wasn't all that different than anything they would have found at an inn on the road, but there were a few odds and ends that spoke to the life she had when she was here: a few books on a vaguely rickety shelf, an old hunting bow in one corner, even a few more changes of shifter-enchanted clothes.
Kahroan realized that he should find some regular clothes to wear. He only had one undamaged shirt, so he should be selective about wearing it until he could secure more. But clearly, they had a system for that.
He found himself fingering through the books, curious what sort she read. However, he was too exhausted to process anything else and gazed longingly at the bed instead. "Yeah... I can't even think anymore."
He practically fell onto the bed, groaning. "Hurry up," he yawned, "or I'm leaving the waking world without you."
River laughed lightly as she collapsed back onto the bed beside him and curled up against his chest. "Go right ahead, you'd have to drag me out of this bed with a team of plow horses at this point."
She tipped her head up to peck his cheek before burrowing under the covers, sighing quietly at the familiar relief of sinking into a bed she knew, rather than a sleeping roll or a spare mattress in a tavern.
Kahroan followed her under the covers, cradling her with his large body. He nuzzled her once before falling asleep with a gentle rumble in his chest. It was the best he had slept in a long, long time.
He had no idea how long it had been before he finally woke up. Sleep faded so slowly that he didn't yet know if she was still there with him. He gave an exploratory nuzzle to what he hoped was her cheek and not the pillow, mumbling, "Mm.. morning..."
Despite the comfort of a familiar bed and Kahroan's arms around her, River slept fitfully, waking and nodding off several times throughout the night. She didn't know what it was—there was just a sudden anxiety in her chest, as though her body no longer remembered how to behave when she wasn't constantly on edge.
So she woke easily when Kahroan nuzzled against her cheek, blinking blearily and offering him a yawning smile. "G'morning," she replied, turning to lay pressed against his chest with her head tucked up under his chin. "I didn't keep you up last night, did I?"
He yawned, rumbling contentedly. "No. I slept like a rock. I can't even remember a better night."
"Did I wake you just now?" he asked guiltily.
"Not really," she assured him with a small sigh. "I was in and out most of the night. Don't know what's wrong with me."
She cuddled a little closer and tipped her face up to press a light kiss to his shoulder. "Gotta admit, it's pretty nice to be able to share an actual bed," she added with a small laugh. "Normally I overheat with the blankets, but you seem to be a handy cure for that."
He pecked the top of her head, puffing a cool, gentle breeze out of his nostrils when tickled by her hair. "Happy to be of service."
He lightly stroked her back with a mischievous smirk. "How long do you think we can stay like this before someone comes to check on us?"
She chuckled. "Honestly, I'm surprised someone hasn't already--"
She was interrupted by a loud pounding on the door, and her brother Storm's voice: "Oi! Everyone else got to give you a proper greeting, so I think you can pause any early morning canoodling for your favorite brother."
River groaned and tried to burrow deeper into the mattress. "S'not my fault you were out on a hunt! And tell Akina she's too good for you!"
"Brat."
"Prick."
Storm laughed. "C'mon, Nora and Ash have got food on the table."
Kahroan laughed lightly, kissing her head one more time. "I guess that means time's up."
He reluctantly began to feel uncurl himself, taking time to stretch out the kinks. "Gods... I didn't know I could bend like that."
She winced sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry, I suppose this old bed isn't exactly comfortably built for two."
She sat up, stretching her arms up above her head and arching her back. "Mmph. I'm certainly looking forward to more proper food," she chuckled.
"Yeah," he chuckled as he worked the kinks from his wings, "I think we slept through supper."
The dragonman gave her one last nuzzle and climbed out of the bed. "It was worth it, though. I feel great after that."
His eyes fell on a mirror and lingered there. He hadn't actually seen his reflection since he became something new; it was quite disorienting to see such a different face starting back at him. "Gods... so that's what I look like."
River smiled and leaned into his nuzzling, then followed him out of bed with a reluctant sigh.
She paused when he caught sight of his reflection, looking from him to the mirror. It was a rather dingy looking glass, long disused, so the pair staring back at them seemed almost to have a faint, hazy film over them.
She wrapped her arms around him from behind and stretched up onto her toes to peck his cheek. "Yep. You're beautiful."
Kahroan looked down at her inquisitively. "Beautiful? Me? Nobody has ever called me that before."
He hadn't been someone people usually considered attractive before. It was a strange concept to get used to, having anyone find him appealing. It made him thank his stars yet again that he had met her.
He turned his head back to the mirror. "We certainly make quite the pair."
The image of the half-dragon, half-wolf children that they might have flashed through his head, but he shook the thought away.
Too soon for that.
"Yes. You." She kissed his cheek again. And she meant it--it wasn't just that she didn't care about how he looked in his half-dragon form, she actively liked it; though she thought she probably would have liked any way he looked, because he was Kahroan, no matter what the outside shape was.
She chuckled quietly and nodded in agreement with his assessment. "We really do." Her eyes flickered over their reflections again, pausing a moment on the scar on her cheek before she shook her head and pulled away.
"C'mon, let's go get some food before my family claims it all," she chuckled lightly.
He barked a laugh. "I bet they would too."
He kissed her forehead before motioning for her to lead the way. He thought he was going to enjoy their time with the pack.
"Good morning, everyone," he said with a smile and a polite nod.
Greetings were called and River was quickly drawn into a tight hug from the brother who had been absent the night before, then she was passed to Akina with a laugh. Storm's mate stood out among the grays, tans, and blacks of the other wolves' coats with a mass of curly russet hair, so she was certainly hard to miss. She gave Kahroan a friendly smile and called playfully, "Welcome to the madhouse!"
As they had slept in a bit, most everyone was done with their breakfast, but they lingered to chat and laugh and catch River up on all the family gossip she'd missed in the months she'd been away, as well as pester Kahroan with questions about his time with River and his past in Yoreiq. Eventually, the pack began filtering outdoors, some one two legs and some on four, until Storm, Akina, and Elise were the only ones left with them as they finished up their meal.
"I should go make sure Ash isn't teaching the pups bad habits," Akina chuckled, rising from her chair. Storm gave her an almost painfully sappy look when she bent to kiss his cheek before giving them all a little wave and slipping out.
River shook her head in mock amazement. "Still don't know what you pulled to finally win her over."
Storm huffed. "Excuse you, I am a godsdamn delight."
Gods, is that how I look at River?
"It's certainly... busy around here." He chuckled lightly. "It must be hard to find time alone."
It occurred to him that wolves probably didn't place much importance on things like privacy and solitude. Then again, his people weren't too keen on those either. He was an anomaly in that regard.
"Can be," Storm agreed with a shrug and a smile. "That's when you hit the mountains for a day or so, just to get away from the noise. Or you do what River does and fuck off entirely for six months."
River groaned and halfheartedly threw a bread roll at him. He caught it, chuckling. "Oh, you just wait until Mum starts riding you two about grandkids. Then we'll never see you."
River suddenly went very red and actually squeaked, unable to get a proper protest out.
Kahroan froze, wide-eyed. "Kids? Bu--who--we--what?" He stammered, unable to form a sentence.
He gave River a helpless look, wondering what she was thinking. Had the thought even crossed her mind?
The thought had not crossed her mind, really, but now it seemed to have taken up a permanent residence.
"I'll, um, I'll just—I'm gonna get seconds! Anyone want seconds? I'm getting seconds."
River all but fled the room, Storm smirking at her back as she retreated. He quirked an eyebrow at Kahroan. "Touchy subject?"
Kahroan rubbed his neck nervously. "We haven't... actually discussed anything along those lines yet. We clicked together so quickly that I don't think either of us has thought that far ahead."
"We just know we love each other." His smile was faint, but warm.
"Oh, ick." Storm rolled his eyes, but in a good-natured sort of way.
The expression morphed into something more serious after a few moments, as he glanced in the direction his sister had gone, then looked back to Kahroan.
"Look--I'm not gonna give you some big speech, alright?" He sighed and ran a hand back through his charcoal hair. "Riv is a grown woman, and she's more than capable of kicking your ass herself if you fuck up. Just..." He frowned. "Be careful with her, alright? She's not as tough as she pretends."
"Is anyone?" he answered seriously.
After more thought, he added, "I mean, yes, I'll... remember that. I already know she's more kind than she believes. She... could have left me to suffer alone, but she chose to stay by my side. She had every practical reason not to get involved."
"Yeah," Storm sighed. "That sounds like River. Honestly, we all give her a hard time, but she really is the best of us. She's just...got a sort of wanderlust the rest of us don't. And she's somehow convinced herself that...y'know, what happened to her before, it's like she's somehow trying to atone for it, even though she didn't do anything wrong, it just--"
He cut himself off, realizing a growl was sneaking into his voice. "Sorry. I'm sure you're already got the idea. She's just...like that." He seemed to be operating under the assumption that River may have given more details of her past than she actually had.
Kahroan assumed Storm was just talking about her abusive ex. He understood that a lot of women in such situations did, in fact, feel as if they had done something wrong. But that was as far as that knowledge went.
"I can promise you that I'm nothing like her ex. I could never treat her like that." Of course, she never specified exactly what Thorn did.
"Yeah well, you do seem like a decent sort—and like I said, she's more than capable of kicking your ass. But I'd like to think if anything did happen, she wouldn't get the chance. The pack would rip you apart before she ever got to you."
Storm let that hang for a moment before shrugging and saying more casually, "It's not that we don't trust her to make her own decisions. Just after Thorn, well...we might be a bit hyper protective."
Kahroan was properly disincentivised by the threat, but he was also surprised it had taken that long for one of them to put it in words.
"She warned me as much, and I can't say that I blame you. You don't know me at all. But I'd like nothing more than to get to know all of you, because I plan on sticking around for as long as she'll have me."
Thinking he heard someone coming, he looked to see if River was coming back.
Storm gave him a nod and a cautious smile. "Likewise, Kahroan."
River re-entered the room with the seconds she had mentioned—even if they had been an excuse, she wasn't about to turn down more food.
"You two getting along?" she asked as she took she'd seat again, nudging Kahroan's arm gently with hers.
"Oh, yeah." Storm beamed at her. "We were just talking about how adorable half-dragon-half-wolf babies would be."
River choked, then glared at him. "I hate you."
"I'm your favorite and you know it."
Time passed...
Kahroan flew over the trees, diving to flush a trio of deer towards the waiting wolves. He was thrilled to be a part of a group hunt again, even if his role had changed since his days in Yoreiq. And if it brought the pack closer to him in the process, all the better.
The deer rapidly approached the ambush point. The dragonman swooped again to adjust their course to keep them from bolting out of the trap, but not so perfectly as to eliminate all challenge. Wolves were too proud for that.
Sky and Elwyn had accompanied River for this particular hunt, along with the girls' father. With Kahroan flying above to flush the deer out, it was a simple thing for the four wolves to cut an older dove from the herd and take her down quickly.
Lake set up a howl that the rest quickly joined, celebrating the hunt and thanking the doe, which would provide strength for the pack.
Sky yipped happily to the shape flying over them, beckoning Kahroan down with pricked ears and a wagging tail.
Kahroan nodded down to her as he passed. He banked around and came in for a landing. Snow crunched under his feet as he touched down. His flight skills were definitely improving.
"This takes me back." He smiled, eyes wistful.
Sky yapped again, tail wagging, and gave him a sharp nod of approval before moving to the doe to help her father begin dragging it. River shrugged herself into human form and stood up on her toes to wrap her arms around Kahroan's neck.
"You're getting better at that," she noted with a smile, meaning his landing. Then she cocked her head. "Takes you back?"
Kahroan hugged her close, smiling down at her with a gentle rumble in his chest.
"To hunting with my friends in Yoreiq. Only I wasn't the flusher." He was a little wistful, but it was hard to be sad when he was so at peace. Coming to the mountains agreed with him.
"Mm." She leaned into him a bit, watching his face carefully, then smiling when he seemed merely wistful, rather than longing. She never begrudged him missing Yoreiq, of course, but she was glad he didn't seem to dwell on it so much. It seemed healthier to her to focus on the here and now. "How did you used to hunt?"
"With bows and spears. We actually used a method much like this often, to separate boars from the herd. We even thank our kills, as you already know from that bear."
He smirked. "Of course, I never got this kind of reception afterwards. That always went to Naotoa. I bet he has fathered children with every woman in Kakona by now, possibly the whole island."
River snorted. "I'd be careful about mentioning fathering any children, regardless of who's doing it. If you haven't noticed, my family is a bit mad for pups," she noted dryly. In the few days they'd been staying with the pack, her mother had dropped hints about "the next batch of grandbabies" no less than six times.
Lake twitched his ears in their direction and gave them a wolf's grin. I swear I won't say anything to your mother, he assured, in a tone that made River think he was not at all intending to keep that promise.
Kahroan winced apologetically. "Sorry. I'll... try to be more careful."
He gave her a secret flirtatious look that said, though he wasn't any more ready for that discussion than she was, he wouldn't be opposed to doing something for... educational purposes.
River returned the look playfully, if maybe a little wistfully. There wasn't a whole lot of opportunity for...privacy in the packs' home. Which was why most of her siblings had their own little getaways stashed throughout pack territory: small shacks and cabins that they could escape to should they need the space from the noise and bustle of their family.
Since River tended to travel further afield, she had never bothered to find her own such sanctuary. It had never seemed that important before--though she'd be lying if she said she didn't regret it now.
"How're you holding up, by the way?" she asked Kahroan quietly as they set off after the three wolves hauling the deer along. "I know this must all be...a lot."
Aside from the occasional implication, Kahroan didn't really pressure her for physical satisfaction. However, there was no doubting his attraction. He certainly enjoyed the frequent embrace.
"It is very different from anything I've known. But, I feel like I belong, which I haven't felt in a very long time." He smiled, gently squeezing her hand in that sweet way of new love. "Your family has done nothing but make me feel welcome and the cold air feels wonderful on my scales."
"I'm glad." She smiled at him and squeezed his hand back. "You seem...I dunno, it's hard to describe, exactly. More confident. Comfortable."
It was like he was properly settling into his still comparatively new skin. It was gratifying to see, in a way. Grinning, she added lightly, "It looks good on you."
Two days later.
The hot springs were something of a hidden treasure of the mountains--River was more than thrilled to show more of her home to her mate, but if she was honest she was also visiting for herself; heating meltwater over a fire could only do so much, after all.
"Come on, just this way," she laughed, fingers laced through Kahroan's as she led him around a bend in the path toward a series of gently steaming pools, though the edges of them were dusted with a light powdering of snow.
"Hold on!" Kahroan laughed as he stumbled to keep up, "Dragons only move so fast!"
He had no idea where she was leading him. Hot springs weren't really a popular thing in a place that was never cold. He was excited to see what she was so anxious to show him.
"Dragons only move so fast, he says," River snorted, tugging him along until they reached the edge of the first spring. "Here, see?" She gestured to the lightly steaming water with a smile. "They pop up now and again in places like this, something about pressure and fire under the earth--anyway, it's basically like a natural hot bath."
She dropped his hand and took a step back to start wiggling out of her tunic. "Go on, try it. I bet even ice dragons like a nice hot spring now and then."
"Huh... I think we have these around the volcanoes, but they aren't fit for bathing. Too hot."
The dragonman began shrugging out of his clothes. It was a significantly more complicated process, so he had plenty of time to appreciate the view as he worked.
"Gods, you're beautiful." He smiled, rumbling his appreciation.
It was hardly the first time she'd been naked in front of him, but it felt...different. There was a faint fluttering in her stomach and a heat in her cheeks that had nothing to do with the steam rising off the water.
Beautiful. It was a word she didn't apply to herself very often--or ever--and so she was never quite sure how to react to it, even coming from someone she loved.
"If you say so," she tried to laugh his compliment off as she shimmied out of the rest of her clothes and quickly dipped one foot into the water. The contrast between the chill air and the heat of the spring was sharp, and she hissed quietly, though it was a good sort of burn. She glanced back at him as she stepped in properly, wading in up to her waist. "Join me?"
"Just a second," he answered, awkwardly hopping out of his trousers.
He waded in after her, hissing from the sudden heat. It felt strange against his cool scales, yet the initial discomfort faded quickly.
"Oh... this i nice." He waded up to her, rumbling happily like a cat in a patch of sunshine.
"Isn't it?" She grinned, wading out toward the center of the small pool. The water only got about as high as her chest at the deepest point, so she bent her knees a bit to almost fully submerged before standing again, shaking wet hair back out of her face.
"C'mere." She held her hand out to him. "It's not deep--though I suppose swimming really isn't much of an issue for you huh, island boy?"
"It shouldn't be, but then I have a very different body than the last time I was in the water." He stepped closer and took her hand with a smile, tail swaying gently in the water.
"True enough." She smiled and pulled him gently closer, guiding his hand to rest on her waist as she let her own glide up his arm to rest lightly on his shoulder. "I love this place," she murmured, looking around even as she stepped closer through the water. "Hidden away from everything, safe and warm in the water even when the snow is piling up all around you--it feels like you're in another world."
A soft, happy sigh escaped her and she let herself lean into his chest slightly. "I'm glad you came out here with me today," she murmured. "Don't get me wrong, I love how much you've been getting on with my family, how willing you are to spend so much time with them, but...I'll admit I've kinda missed it being just the two of us."
Kahroan kissed the top of her head as she leaned against his chest. He put his other arm around her lower back, her nearness making his heart beat a little faster. Sinking just a little lower to let the warmth flow through him, he said, "It's been far too long. I almost forgot what it was like to be with you and you alone."
His tail coiled around her waist, gently tugging her closer as if it had a will all its own. His body knew something his conscious mind didn't want to assume.
A soft rumbling noise started up in her chest when his tail curved around her, and she basked in the closeness; she could feel his heartbeat against her own chest, and knew that hers was rapping out a response against her ribs.
"Speaking of...being alone." She chuckled, perhaps a little awkwardly, and tipped her head up to kiss the line of his throat gently. "We, ah, might not get much time to ourselves while we're staying with the pack. D'ya think...we should...take advantage?"
Before he could think twice, he gave her cheek a lick of affection, taking in her scent the best way a reptile can. It wasn't too unlike something wolves do, right?
"Most definitely." He rumbled contentedly and excitedly. Sinking lower, he kissed her lips, her neck, her breast...
River giggled quietly when he licked her cheek, a little taken aback by the gesture but certainly not put off.
Her breath caught as his mouth moved lower and she tipped her head back even as she leaned into him. "I—I love you..."
There was a small alcove tucked away amongst the hot springs where they found themselves some hours later—River had quite lost track of them time, so she wasn't actually sure how long. The heat from the springs kept the little space warm enough for her to rest comfortably against Kahroan's side, her head pillowed on his chest.
"Well." She tipped her head back to grin at him. "That was...educational."
Kahroan was happier, more at peace than he had ever been. Smiling down at her, he gently ran a knuckle along her spine. He wanted to know every inch of her body by heart, so that even when they were apart, he could just close his eyes and be reunited with her.
"We should tutor each other more often." He return her grin with a waggle of his brow.
River closed her eyes and arched into his touch with a happy rumble deep in her chest. "Mhm," she agreed lazily, tracing absent circles over his chest with one finger. "I'm sure we still have a lot to learn..." Propping herself up on her elbow, she leaned up to kiss the bridge of his nose, then pulled back with a grin.
"Gods, I could stay here forever," she sighed quietly.
Kahroan cooed at her kiss and grinned back at her with boyish enthusiasm. "Well we could try."
Then he sighed as well. "But then the pack would sniff us out, and we'd lose this spot. Decisions, decisions."
She chuckled lightly and kissed him properly, one hand drifting up to cup his jaw and better tilt his face toward hers.
And, as if on cue: "Oi! Riv! We know you're out here." Shadow's voice rang out from somewhere near the edge of the cluster of hot springs.
"C'mon, get your pants on--don't make us drag you back home naked, Mum'll have an absolute fit," Ash added, a laugh in his voice.
River groaned and dropped her head onto Kahroan's chest. "I love my brothers, but there are days that I wish I was an only child," she grumbled.
Kahroan groaned, the moment destroyed. "So much for our private paradise."
With incredible reluctance, he reached for his clothes. "We're coming, you spoilsports!"
Why had they agreed to this? It was obvious that the pack was trying to put the idea of having children in their heads. But saying no would be rude, so there they were, watching the pups and doing their best to keep them out of trouble.
"No! Don't play with the... oh, forget it. Gods, River, how do you wrangle these little gremlins?"
"What the fu--"
Callum stared up at her, all big eyes and innocent smile, and she just barely caught herself. "Fhhhuuuuuhhhhh-iddlesticks makes you think I know what I'm doing?"
She grabbed for the gray and white pup--Minna--that launched herself at Kahroan's unprotected back with a tiny play-snarl and dragged her back. "If you hadn't noticed--oof! Ouch, Forest, puppy teeth still hurt--I'm not exactly well practiced at this."
"Auntie River?" Rain tugged on her sleeved. Frazzled, River looked to her eldest niece.
"Yeah, sweetness, what's up?"
Rain pointed to her younger siblings--the youngest of all the pups--who River had thought they'd left napping in their cots in front of the heart. The toddling twins, Lila and Teerin, were in fact trying to catch Kahroan's tail.
Kahroan kept turning just out of reach, jerking his tail away every time the two got close. He shot River a pleading look as one actually caught it, hanging on and giggling.
"No, Teerin, that's not--right, Lila, Teerin's the other one. Sorry." Poor guy was seriously frazzled.
"Oi, you wiggy buggers, c'mere." River darted forward and scooped one twin up in each arm. Both of them growled at her, then whimpered when she frowned at them.
"Snake," Teerin demanded, reaching for Kahroan. "Snake. Snake."
"I--I think he wants you?" River guessed, a little wide-eyed.
"He just wants a tail ride. I... don't think he realizes it's part of me and not some critter."
He sighed in resignation. "I guess it's not like he could hurt me. Let him at it."
"No, I mean--"
"Snake!" Teerin demanded, clearly approaching a good two-year-old tantrum if he didn't get his way soon.
"I think he wants you," River tried to explain, struggling to balance the twins as her nephew wriggled and reached for Kahroan insistently. "I think he wants you to hold him."
"Snake, hold," Teerin agreed, nodding as he stretched his chubby little arms out for the dragonman. His sister, on the other hand, was still focused on Kahroan's tail, but she seemed content enough to watch it for now.
"Oh..." He paused awkwardly. "O--okay."
The dragonman reached out uncertainly, obviously having never held a child and terrified of doing it wrong. He knew that, between his claws and his relatively new strength, there was a lot that could go wrong. It was something he needed to get over if he ever wanted to...
No, no. That line of forward thinking was what the pack wanted. Sneaky wolves.
"Snake!"
Teerin grabbed for Kahroan's face happily as River gingerly passed the toddler over. "Here, just, make sure you're supporting his weight--oi, Twig, c'mon now, pup, can't you make this easy?"
"Snake," the boy cooed, poking at Kahroan's scales once he was safely in his arms. He seemed particularly fascinated by the slight change in coloration, babbling and poking at those particular scales insistently. "Snake, snake, snake."
River snorted. She couldn't help it. "Close, lad. Dragon. Can you say "dragon"?"
Her nephew looked at her, then up at Kahroan. "Drah-gahn."
"Yes. Good. I'm a dragon, not a snake." He chuckled with a soft smile. "See the wings? Snakes don't have those."
Despite his size and the power of his body, he was gentle with the boy. He was also as patient as he always was. He probably would make a good father, if that's something that was on her mind.
"Wings!" Teerin clapped and laughed. "Drrahhgon wings. Rhon fly?"
"Yes, he can," River chuckled. She was half watching Kahroan and the boy, trying to keep her other eye on the rest of their charges. "Forest, sweetheart, don't--can you put that down? No, I know I'm not your mum, but I'm still in charge here--"
She glanced to Kahroan and Teerin again, and something went tight in her chest.
"I--" She swallowed passed a sudden lump in her throat and quickly looked away. "Callum, Minna, can you come here a second? We need to get everyone ready to go out, let's wait for the pack to get back outside, yeah?" she said quickly, trying to rush passed the feeling.
Kahroan wiggled his wings for Teerin, enjoying the wonder in the boy's eyes. Smiling, he said, "Maybe some day, if you're really good, I can take you up for a ride."
He didn't know if the parents would be okay with that, so he was careful not to promise anything. Children didn't understand broken promises.
Teerin seemed quite thrilled with this idea--and of course three of the others had overheard, and all began demanding that they get a turn to fly with him too.
River watched the whole lot of them suddenly cluster around Kahroan, tugging at the hem of his shirt and asking questions about flying--what was it like, was it scary, had he ever fallen, could he see soooooo far, like Auntie Nora did when she was a snowhawk?--and she found herself smiling softly as she balanced Lila on her hip.
Her vision started to go a little hazy, and she realized with no small amount of horror that she was tearing up. Shit.
She quickly placed Lila on the ground and nudged her toward the group, murmuring, "Go to your brother and sister," before she took wolf shape and gave herself a brisk shake.
Sorry, she told Kahroan in beastspeech, not looking at him, despite the fact that it was much easier to hide the threat of tears as a wolf. Sorry, just--needed a second like this, y'know.
It wasn't quite a lie, but it was--she realized uncomfortably--the closest to one that she'd ever told him.
Here. Try and herd them outside and I'll see if I can get them playing as wolves, she offered in an effort to alleviate the chatter around him.
Suddenly overwhelmed, he mouthed, thank you, and began luring the horde outside.
"C'mon kids, let's play outside!" he said playfully, crouching down to urge them on.
Next he'll be telling dad jokes.
The pups followed him easily outside, wrestling and chasing each other, then pulling Kahroan and River into the game--a game which clearly had no set rules, and mostly seemed to involve play-hunting each other around the "courtyard" of sorts that the pack's home skirted.
River mostly just watched them romp, laying in a patch of sun with her paws crossed as the two smallest pups snuggled up next to her--once Teerin's curiosity about Kahroan had been satisfied, of course.
When the others finally returned to take the pups off of their hands, Kahroan returned to her side. He sighed, exhausted but also fond. While he wasn't ready to be a father, children did have a certain charm.
"Well that was... a lot. How do they keep this up every day? I almost lost my mind." He chuckled tiredly.
River, still in wolf form, rumbled a chuckle and agreed with a nod, judging her head against his leg.
You did good. Another rumbling wolf's laugh, and she added, Though I don't think I'm ready to add to the pile just yet. Sorry, Mum.
She went quiet for a few moments, just leaning into him. Then: Kah? I...I think I should tell you something... She looked to her family, then to the woods around their house. Walk with me for a bit?
Kahroan enjoyed the quiet moment, content to just stand there with her leaning against him. When she broke the silence, he gave her a look that asked if he should be worried, but he nodded and followed.
When far enough away, he asked, "What is it Riv?"
She waited until they had enough distance that none of her well-meaning, nosy family would catch up with them quickly enough to overhear should they come looking.
Then she took a breath, and told him; told him the worst of it, what she had never been able to tell the pack. Why she had really found the courage to leave Thorn, what he'd done, how she'd lost the baby--or rather the possibility of a baby--how Thorn must have known, because a wolf can smell those sorts of things, how a piece of her still felt it was her fault, if she'd just left sooner...
She managed to keep her voice even the whole time, though she couldn't quite meet his eyes as she spoke. "And...that's it." She drew in a deep breath, then released it on a sigh. "I just...after today, I know--I know my family is going to be on about the babies. And it doesn't bother me, it really doesn't, I know they're mostly playing. But I--I couldn't stop thinking about it, and even though I don't know when--if--I'll be able to tell them, I felt like I had to tell you and--"
Oh, great. Now she started crying. She cut herself off quickly, jaw clenched as she tipped her head back and fixed her eyes on the slowly emerging stars.
As glad as he was that she felt she could confide in him, he was saddened and angry at Thorn all over again. If he ever met the wolf, he didn't know what he'd do, but it wouldn't be pretty. For her sake, he largely kept this line of thought from his face as she told him everything.
The loving dragonman embraced her when she was done. He didn't say anything, only providing her his broad shoulder to cry on if she needed. He did hope she knew she could be weak around him and he wouldn't judge.
River went stiff and tense for a moment in his arms, then slowly thawed, until she finally wrapped her arms around him in turn. She turned her face into his shoulder, shaking lightly with a few rounds of quiet sobs.
When she was done, she didn't step away, just continued to linger in the embrace. "Thank you," she whispered into his chest. It wasn't just for the hug, or for listening, it was...everything. She hoped he knew that.
Kahroan did know, and felt much the same. She had made every single aspect of his life better for knowing her. And the more he knew, the more he believed that.
He held her tight. "Thank you for being able to confide in me. For knowing that I'm here for it all, the ups and downs."
She smiled through the last few of her tears and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "I know we should head back," she sighed as she pulled away. "But...do you think we could just stay like this for a few more minutes?"
"Of course." He smiled down at her, allowing the embrace to linger for as long as she needed.
Just over a season had passed in peace, and the day seemed like any other. Spring was around the corner, which meant more game and easier hunting. So this time Kahroan was allowed to join the ambush, his coloring blending into the still-snowy rock of the mountains.
River had been tasked with flushing out the deer. They seemed oddly absent from their usual grazing area. But, before she could worry too much about it, she smelled why; the smell of blood both human and wolf floated to her on the breeze, along with the faint smell of old smoke.
River's head jerked up as she caught the scent of blood on the wind--a rare southern wind that was blowing sidelong up the side of the mountain, coming from...
Wait. Smoke.
Oh no.
Mum, Nora! She barked, then howled, trying to call the other two she-wolves in to flank her as she took off in the direction of the scent. Elise and Nora were leading their respective parts of the pack, Kahroan having been included in Elise's group. It was one of the bigger hunts they'd risked in the last few weeks, with only Lake and Ash left behind to watch the pups.
Something's wrong, this way, River called as the pack fell in around her.
The search didn't take long. Partway down the mountain, they found a pair of wolves, one with white fur and a scar over one eye that they knew as Snow. The elder wolf had been struck with an arrow and was breathing raggedly. The other had taken several and was most definitely dead. Both had burns and reeked of smoke, as if they had fled an inferno before being hunted down and left for dead.
Kahroan remained airborne, keeping his eyes peeled for danger.
"Snow!"
The older wolf was of Elwyn's birth pack—it was customary for packs to remain matrilineal, so Elwyn had come to live with Sky and her family when they became mates, but his pack lived close enough that they visited frequently.
Elwyn was already kneeling by the elder by the time River and Shadow took human shape. Akina was in wolf form on their heels. In the chaos of smells and the shock of what they'd found, it took longer than it normally would have to realize.
Who...?
River knelt by the fallen wolf, closing her eyes with a sigh. "...Aldran," she whispered.
Elwyn's head snapped up, eyes wide. Then he was howling, Sky beside him with her arms wrapped around his shoulders and her face buried in his neck as her mate mourned his brother.
Shadow was going over Snow's injuries. River just stood there, feeling in shock. "What—what happened?"
Snow's one good eye locked on River as he tried and failed to stand. Zealots... they-- He coughed, crimson droplets spattering the snow. They set fire to the lodge while we slept. We... we tried to run, but... Gods, they killed so many...
"Oh gods." River pressed a hand to her mouth.
Her mother growled low in her chest, pressing her shoulder against the elder wolf's to help him stand. Elwyn was still collapsed by Aldran's body, hands fisted in the wolf's fur. Sky was just whispering to him over and over, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."
"We need to get back to the cabin." Nora's voice was impressively calm—in any other group she might have fooled them. But a wolf could smell fear, and she was terrified. "Ash and Lake—the pups—"
She was a hawk in moments, soaring up even higher than Kahroan's circling and heading for the pack's home like an arrow loosed.
"She's right," River whispered, and Shadow nodded, already taking his wolf form to lope away after his mate.
Storm had knelt by Sky and her mate, urging quietly that they had to go, they had to move, he was so sorry but they couldn't stay here...
"I'll help Elise with Snow," Akina told River. "Get Kahroan and get home—you'll get there faster if you fly."
When Nora flew off back to the cabin, Kahroan took that as the sign to land. He looked from the dead wolf, to Snow, to Elwyn, and then to River, and she could see that he understood that they were in danger. All he said was, "What do you need me to do?"
The truth was, he was terrified, angry, and deeply moved by the loss he saw in everyone's eyes. Most of the pack could see through his calm exterior by then, but maintaining his composure was his way of coping with a crisis.
"Can you fly us both back?" River asked, trying to force down rising panic and walking off the grief. No time for that now. "Nora and Shadow are already headed home, but if something happens—"
It would be just Nora, Ash, Lake, and the pups. Shadow couldn't run as fast as his mate or Kahroan could fly.
A season ago, Kahroan would have thought he couldn't fly them both. But now, he was so much more comfortable in his new skin, and he had given his wings a lot of exercise. So, he nodded. "I believe so."
He looked toward the others and then back at his mate. "Will they be alright?"
River gave him a brief look without any artifice, her own fear and grief plain on her face. "I don't know," she answered him honestly. "But we don't have time—we have to get back."
She stepped up to him, more comfortable than she would have been a season ago with the idea of letting him carry her. As quietly as she could, she explained, "The dead wolf, Aldran...he's Elwyn's little brother. Snow says their pack lost a lot of people."
Kahroan nodded gravely. "You can tell me on the way."
The dragonman scooped her up and held her firm. "Wrap your arms around my neck." When she was secure, he took to the sky. He was slower with a passenger, but was still at least as fast as a running wolf. They would get there quickly.
She obeyed, clinging tightly to his neck as they rose into the air, the mountains forests growing smaller beneath them.
Despite everything, there was still a tiny part of her that thrilled at the miracle of flight.
River turned her face into Kahroan's neck. "We've known them since we were pups," she whispered, voice small and plaintive. "Aldran was only nineteen..."
Her words elicited a mournful, angry growl. "Did he saw who did this... this monstrous thing."
Kahroan knew there were those that feared shifter, and that fear often leads to hate... but this? This was evil. Whoever was behind the killing couldn't be allowed to terrorize people unchecked.
"Snow said it was zealots," she replied quietly. "They--Connlaoth has always been our neighbor, and not always a friendly one. There's always groups who think what we are is too close to magic--or they resent us for hiding people like Nora from their damned Church. But this..."
She shook her head and held him a little tighter, not for security but for comfort. "We'd never--no one had ever come this far into the mountains before. Not for this. They were always content to let us be, so long as we left their duchies alone. Most of them don't give us much thought one way or another. Why--I don't--"
She swallowed thickly and hid her face against his chest with a small whimper. She couldn't even properly process what was happening.
"They must be from one of the more extreme factions of the Church. It's the only thing that makes any sense. I hadn't thought they had become anywhere near this bold." His heart broke along with hers, for he had long since thought of himself as part of the pack.
"We'll figure this out. Fight or flight, I'm with you."
River nodded woodenly, finally able to lift her head enough to at least scan the treetops and mountainside below them.
By the time they reached the cabin, Nora, Ash, and Lake had gathered the pups out on the sprawling front lawn. Nora must have explained the situation--or at least some of it--because both Ash and Lake were steely-eyed, despite offering reassuring smiles for the pups.
Of the seven children, only the oldest twins--Sorren and Rain--seemed to have an inkling that something might be wrong.
"Oh gods." River swallowed thickly. What were they supposed to tell them?
Kahroan landed and helped River recover her balance. His wings were tired, but he knew he might need them again at any moment. More pressingly, he thought Shadow would have beaten them there or at least be right behind them.
Glancing back at the treeline, he asked, "Riv. Did you see Shadow from above? I thought he'd be here by now."
"I--no, I thought he was--"
"River! Where are the others?" her father called, moving toward them.
"On their way--Snow is hurt, and Elwyn..." She swallowed. "Shadow--he was supposed to be right behind us, I don't know..."
Lake's eyes hardened. "Stay here. Get everyone inside--we were going to head for Sky and Elwyn's cabin to the southwest, but if it's going to take them longer to get back here, we can hole up for a while. I'll find your brother."
"Dad--"
"Inside. Now."
Kahroan felt he could do more than wait. He was a gods damned dragon. The least he could do was help find a wolf.
"At least let me help search from the air." He knew what the answer would be, he just couldn't resist trying.
"No." Lake shook his head. "You might be able to spot him faster from the air, but you'd also be making yourself a target. Stay here, guard the pack. I'll be back soon."
Nora was looking in their direction, brow furrowed as she seemed to realize her mate was missing, that he should have arrived at the same time.
"We should take them to Sky and Elwyn's anyway," River murmured. "Nora can fly back to the others and tell them where we're headed--a snowhawk won't draw the same kind of attention as a half-dragon."
Kahroan nodded to Lake. The older wolf was right, of course; the dragonman would just draw attention to them if he hadn't already.
"I'll make sure they get there safe." He projected a certainty that he would do everything in his power to protect them all. The suspicious loner she had met all those months ago had completely transformed into a brave, loyal, and caring soul.
"Be careful, Dad," River murmured, grabbing his arm.
Lake rumbled and butted his head against hers lightly. "I'll be fine, and I'll be back with your brother before sundown."
She nodded, stepping back to give him room to change.
"Nora, Ash!" She waved them over, and they corralled the pups back toward her and Kahroan. "We're going to visit Sky and Elwyn's cabin," River told them, trying to keep her voice light in an effort not to worry the children.
"Alright you little rascals, we're going to play a game." Kahroan crouched with his hands on knees wasn't as good at playing things light, but then he was usually Mister Serious so it would be fine. "Sneaking is an important skill for any hunter. So we're going to practice moving quietly, and the first one to make a loud noise or talk loses. Alright?"
When the lot of them grew quiet, he looked at River and nodded.
Rain looked like she wanted to argue with Kahroan, clearly suspicious of the whole situation; but she looked around at her aunts and uncles and seemed to realize that maybe now wasn't the time. She reached out to take her twin's hand and squeezed tight.
The younger triplets seemed all too eager to play a game, no matter what the game was, and Ash and Nora had each picked up one of the toddlers so they could be more easily mollified through the trek.
"Alright everyone." River smiled at her nieces and nephews and held a hand out. "Make a chain now, and let's follow your uncle Kahroan. Ready?"
She looked to her mate, her smile brittle but holding, and nodded.
Kahroan let one of the children hold onto his tail, and they were off. He led them down the slope quietly, the only sound being the crunching of snow underfoot. The hunter stuck to the trees whenever possible, occasionally pausing to listen and sniff for humans or possibly hunting dogs. Nothing was going to sneak up on them if he could help it.
Suddenly, he motioned everyone to hide behind a boulder. River smelled them at almost the same time: four humans and two dogs approaching from the south.
Both River and Ash quickly herded the pups behind the boulder, and Nora knelt with her arms around the gaggle of children as Ash passed Twig back to her.
"Stay here," River whispered to them. Ash looked like he wanted to argue, but she shot him a hard look and he snapped his mouth shut, nodding once.
Taking wolf shape, she crept back out to take her place by Kahroan's side, hackles raised and lips curled in a soundless snarl.
They soon saw the scouting party stalking through the trees. At least that was the assumption; the group couldn't possibly have overwhelmed an entire pack by themselves. The humans were all armed with swords and bows, except one with a flintlock rifle like the ones the caravan bandits had.
But the true threat, the one much more difficult to hide from, came from the large hunting dogs sniffing ahead of the group. If the wind shifted, the dogs would be alerted to the wolves' presence. In preparation, Kahroan quietly readied his spear.
The wind shifted.
Shit.
The hounds snapped their heads up, ears perked, and then set up a baying that sent a chill down River's spine.
We have to take out the rifle first. The fur along her spine was a ridged ruff and her silent snarl had become a true growl as she sank into a crouch. If we get him down, Ash and Nora can make a break for it with the pups.
Kahroan nodded. The hunter pulled back his arm and planted his feet in preparation to strike. He waited until he had a clear shot and stepped out, throwing his spear. It wasn't made for throwing, but with the strength of a half-dragon behind it, it sailed through the air and struck the rifleman in the chest. It went right through his leather armor and sent him tumbling.
The others saw Kahroan and grew enraged that yet another magical freak dared to fight back. The two with the dogs released them and charged towards him, swords drawn with the knowledge that their arrows would do little. The other pulled out a hunting horn; if he succeeded in blowing it, more would come.
As soon as the man with the rifle went down, River barked an order to her family: Run, now!
The first dog slammed into her side and they rolled, snapping and snarling at each other. She had size on the hunting hounds, but there were half a dozen of them. She just barely caught a glimpse of Ash and Nora racing into the trees, each holding a toddler with the rest of the pups shielded behind them.
River tried to lunge for the man with the hunting horn, but the dogs were on her; it was all she could do to keep them occupied, keep them from going after her pack.
Kahroan slammed into the first swordsman, grabbing the man's sword arm and forcing the weapon from his hand. The other came at him, but the dragonman shoved the one he was engaging into him, sending both tumbling. Kah tried to get the one with the horn but he was too late. The horn sounded just before his desperate attack landed, breaking the horn along with the man's jaw. Reinforcements would be coming, but if the couple could take out the scouts they could keep them off to the scent of the pups.
Having recovered, the swordsmen charged the hunter's back. With a roar, Kah swung around to meet them. He dodged one blade and took a shallow cut along his arm from the other. These men were better trained than the bandits had been.
River was a whirl of teeth and claws, snapping and snarling until the hounds had retreated to their masters, limping and whining.
She lunged for one of the swordsmen engaged with Kahroan, earning a cry of pain as she bit down on his calf, growling. The one with the horn tried to knock her off with a blow from a club, but she hung on.
There was shouting, footsteps in the trees. The reinforcements were nearly on them, though it seemed there was only a handful--another scouting party, not the main force that had attacked Snow's pack.
Kahroan pressed his momentary advantage and slashed one across the throat. The other cursed the dragonman and lunged, but Kah moved just in time to lock the blade against his side. He broke the man's sword arm, grabbed the sword, and ran him through. He then slashed the blower, who went down for good this time.
"Are you okay?" He quickly looked her over.
I'm fine. You? There was just the barest moment to breathe as she looked him over, head cocked in concern. She sniffed the air. Ash and the others should be far enough by now--we just need to make sure this next wave doesn't get any tracks, and--Kah!
The second scouting party had arrived; all she saw was a glint of sunlight off metal as one lowered the barrel of his rifle, then she was slamming into her mate's side to knock him into the late spring snow, the way she had when the caravan was attacked by bandits.
It seemed this time she was a little less lucky.
The gunshot cracked through the air and she yelped, collapsing to the ground beside Kahroan and panting heavily. The thin powdering of snow beneath her began to turn red.
Kahroan's eyes went wide with fear. "River!" He kneeled by her, blocking the arrow that followed with his scales. "Where were you hit?! Talk to me!"
It couldn't end like this. He didn't make it through all those miserable years just to lose the love of his life too. Not her. Gods, anything but her: his form, his mind, his life, anything. Just not her.
River had dealt with a lot of weapons in her time, but she'd never actually been shot before. She had once heard that the worst part of a gunshot wound was the shock.
She decided whoever had said that was a fucking liar.
I think..shoulder, she managed to tell Kahroan, but she couldn't be sure. Her entire left side was radiating white hot pain. She tried to push herself onto her feet and collapsed back with a whimper. No--no time. There were still the scouts to deal with--and that rifle would be reloaded soon enough.
Run...
"I won't leave you; I can't," he pleaded desperately, trying to help her up. He'd carry her if he had to. If he died trying to save her, so be it.
The second scouting party came closer to cutting off any escape with every second.
Kah--please...
She gritted her teeth, then forced herself back into a human form with a grunt of pain. Without thick black fur to obscure the source of the blood, it became clear that the shot had caught her just beneath her shoulder as a wolf--meaning the bullet seemed to have struck her ribs.
"Go," she rasped, trying to shove his shoulder. "Protect...the pack..."
Kahroan felt the world slow to a crawl, his heart nearly stuck between beats as he contemplated obeying her wishes.
Thump.
He prayed to his gods for her flame to continue.
Thump.
He pleaded with the magic gem around his neck to give him the power he needed.
Thump thump.
He felt it answer, pulsing with light in time with his heart. It wasn't like before; this time he accepted it. He could save the pack if he just said yes.
The reddish light washed over him, turning blue as the magic became part of him. He stepped towards the zealot, breaking into a run. With every step, he grew larger and less distinct. His bright form dropped to all fours and leaped into the fray, coming down as a complete dragon, nearly three times his previous height at the shoulder.
He roared, shaking the mountainside, before knocking one human away with his tail. Without a pause, he spewed freezing fire at the suddenly fleeing attackers. They were frozen instantly. But they weren't out of the woods yet; more dogs bayed in the distance and would arrive soon with the main force.
He rounded on the one he tail-swiped and lowered his head over the man with a rumbling growl. "Why?" he demanded with unexpected volume. Lost in a dragon's fury, he had momentarily forgotten the urgency of her wound.
The world had gone sort of hazy with pain and panic. River couldn't even get o her feet, her breath coming in labored gasps. For a moment, as Kahroan charged the zealots and began to change, she actually thought she was hallucinating.
But—no. No, he was...
Oh holy shit.
He was a dragon.
...We are in far too much danger for me to find that as attractive as I do, a small, nonsensical part of her brain noted. What could she do—shock was a hell of a drug.
The man Kahroan had pinned spat at him, despite the clear terror in his face. Rather than answer, he just hissed, "Abomination!"
Kahroan snarled and bit down on the man, shaking him in the air until his neck snapped before regaining enough sense not to eat him. The dragon locked his gaze onto River, and his rage left him. He returned to her side but didn't get too close for fear he might hurt her.
"Hold on a little longer. Can you do that for me?"
"I..."
She could barely keep herself propped up against the cold stone that Ash and Nora had been using to hide, her eyes fluttering as her vision started to tunnel.
She swallowed thickly and reached out to him with her good arm, whimpering quietly. "I'm sorry...Kah..."
She tried for a smile, but it came out more as a grimace. "Let me...look at you?"
Kahroan drew closer, bringing his snout close enough for his breath to ruffle her hair. He angled down so she could stroke his muzzle.
"Don't apologize... You aren't going anywhere." He was afraid, pleading her to stay with him.
She whined quietly, a wounded-animal sound, but reached up to lay her palm against his muzzle.
"You're beautiful," she told him with the ghost of a smile. Her eyes fluttered shut, ragged breathing starting to slow.
A sudden cry from the air nearly pulled her back to consciousness; Nora, in her avian form, circled over them once before coming in for a screaming landing, staggering as she took human shape just above the ground.
"Kah?! What the hells happened, I heard this noise and felt some sort of surge of magic, and you're—oh no." Her eyes widened and she dropped to her knees next to River. "Riv? Honey, look at me—Kah, what happened?"
Kahroan had to fight the emotional shock to even speak. "They... they were aiming for me, but she... she pushed me out of the way..." he explained flatly, every word a knife in his heart.
"Please save her. I--I can't lose her."
"I'll try," Nora whispered, her hands pressed to the gunshot wound in River's side. "I don't have much healing magic, but..."
She closed her eyes, hands glowing briefly for a moment as River's flesh knitted back together beneath them. The wolf shifter whimpered, brow furrowed in pain, but her eyes didn't open.
Nora sat back, panting. "That—that'll stop the bleeding. It should be enough for us to get her to the cabin. But the bullet is still in, and I think she has some cracked ribs...we-we'll have to reopen to wound once we're there to try to fix that."
She swallowed and stood shakily, looking around at the bodies. Her eyes hardened. "More will come. And you—you can't risk flying like that, you're too noticeable. Can you carry her if you walk? I can lead you from the air."
"I can carry her if you can secure her to me. There's rope in my pack, but I don't know where it ended up." Kahroan lowered himself to the ground as much as he could, unsure of where River could be secured.
The pack was lying on the ground next to his amulet, whose chain snapped when he changed.
Nora nodded quickly, gathering up his pack. She paused when she caught sight of the amulet, then delicates picked that up as well.
"Kah?" She showed it to him, brow furrowed. "Isn't this...why you're a dragon? How can you still be...?"
His big eyes widened. "No! Don't tou--huh... it doesn't seem to have a hold on me anymore." He thought about her question before saying, "I guess it was just a trigger. It must not have been doing anything to keep me changed. Still, don't touch the gem; that's what started this."
He looked back to River, making a sad, urgent coo. They didn't have time to discuss anything else.
Nora nodded as though the sound he had made was Common, gingerly slipping the amulet into his pack before hurrying over to lift River onto his back and secure her with the rope.
"I know, I'm sorry," she whispered to her mate's sister as River gave a soft noise of pain, but didn't see me to have the energy to even move much in her own. "We need to hurry," she said to Kahroan before taking her snowhawk shape and banking toward the cabin, hoping to guide him through the scrubby mountain forests.
Kahroan moved through the forests with haste, but not so much as to risk making a racket or harming his passenger. He was surprised by how easy it was to adjust to quadrupedal movement. He expected that he would walk like a baby deer at first.
Please, please hold on. I don't think I could live without you.
He didn't know that he had just used beastspeech without thinking about it.
River wasn't lucid enough to fully understand what was happening, but she could feel the barest touch of his mind against hers. She shifted slightly on his back, hissing quietly, and pressed her hand against the cool scales of his shoulder.
"I'm...here..." she managed to whisper.
Nora gave a hawk's cry and circled above the cabin once when they were close enough, before coming in for a landing. Elise and Sky ran out to meet her--it seemed the rest of the pack had arrived while River and Kahroan held off the scouts.
All except Shadow and Lake, who were still conspicuously absent.
"Oh gods." Elise saw her daughter tied to the dragon's back, and instantly any questions she may have had about the actual dragon were forgotten. "River! What happened, is--is she--?"
Kahroan lowered himself so that they could get her down. "She's hurt... bad. They shot her."
He noticed the absence, but in light of River fighting for her life, it barely registered. All of his mental energy was focused on her. He could think of nothing else.
"Oh, my baby--" Elise sprang forward to help get River down off his back, then Ash was there to take his sister and bring her back inside.
"Snow is a healer, he'll--he'll know what to do," Sky said, clearly trying desperately to keep her voice firm. "I...Elwyn and I should check on the pups..."
Elise nodded to her, then looked to Kahroan as Nora murmured something about helping Snow and River before ducking inside herself. "You--well. Thank you, for bringing her home."
She seemed to want to offer him some sort of assurance, but...she didn't have any. In his current form, he couldn't even enter the cabin with the rest of them.
Suddenly alone for the first time in months, he let out a sad sigh and curled up to keep watch. The only thing he could do to help her was to make sure they were safe. But all he could think about was no longer being able to hold her, whether she recovered or not.
He glanced down at his huge footprint in the fading snow. It was going to be strange not having han--
Footprints.
Oh no...
Fearfully, his eyes drifted up to follow the trail of dragon footprints left in his wake. He had been careful, but he had failed to take his weight into account. He had led the enemy right to them.
He jumped to his feet and moved up to the cabin, lightly but urgently tapping the door with his claw.
Ash came to the door, looking harried. "I'm sorry, Kah, she's still out. Nora managed to get the bullet out, but there's--she's got a couple broken ribs, we just need..."
He trailed off as he seemed to sense a different anxiety from the dragon. "What's wrong?"
"I made a mistake." The fear and regret in his voice were palpable. "I left footprints."
He felt horrible that he had made such a terrible oversight and that his loved ones could suffer for it. The former human could only hope that the hunters would think twice about pursuing a dragon.
Ash followed his gaze to the dragon prints in the snow, and his expression hardened. "Right." He nodded once, then dropped onto all fours and loped off to grab a low-hanging branch and begin brushing the tracks away.
Stay here. I'll backtrack as far as I can, but you should warn the others. We may have to leave in a hurry.
"Be careful. Shadow and Lake haven't shown up yet, and I'm worried."
Kahroan watched as Ash disappeared into the trees before turning back to the cabin to warn the others. "Everyone. I... left a trail through the woods. Ash has gone to wipe away what he can, but we may have to move in a hurry."
"Shit." Storm gritted his teeth and gave a low growl of frustration. "Damnit. Okay. Okay, we can--we can maybe get further down the mountain, but that just brings us right into the valley..."
"River can't be moved," Nora said briskly, reappearing in the doorway. "Maybe the rest of us can leave, but she can't."
"I know she'd never forgive me if I let anything happen to the rest of you, but... I just can't bear to leave her behind. I'll stay and hold them back as long as I can. Whoever is going with the pups should go now."
The dragon was trying to sound brave, but he was absolutely terrified for them—for her. He had come to think of them as his own family, and losing any of them would be a wound that would never heal.
Storm nodded; he didn't look as though he liked the situation any better than Kahroan, but they needed to protect the pups above all else.
"When Ash and the others get here, tell them we're heading for Fendale. It's a small village at the base of the mountain, about two days' journey."
Elise was the most difficult to convince to leave, but even she had to admit to the necessity. Her mate and three of her children were being left behind, and it was clear that she was distraught, but she allowed her wolf to the surface and began leading what was left of her pack down the mountain.
"I will stay." Snow, the elder from Elwyn's pack, announced this abruptly. He stood in the door to the cabin, leaning heavily on the frame, but there was steel in his voice. "River will need someone to tend her. And I will not run from these zealots. Not again."
Kahroan nodded to Snow with gratitude. "You have my thanks."
With that question settled, he returned to watching the approach.
Meanwhile, a short distance away...
As Ash was destroying the trail left by Kahroan, he heard a twig snap. He wasn't alone.
A wolf's warning howl went up—Ash, trying to communicate with the rest of the pack. But the sound cut off quickly, and Snow frowned out into the distance from where he sat by a still unconscious River by the hearth in the one-room cabin.
It didn't take too much longer for them to realize why; Ash returned with a limping Lake and Shadow in tow, all three of them looking rather the worse for wear, though at least still on their feet.
Kahroan hurried up to them before remembering that he couldn't help. Worriedly, he asked, "You're hurt! What happened? Did they find you?"
Of course, unless they immediately recognized him, having a dragon run up to them might be upsetting. Maybe even if they did, instinct being what it is. Understanding this, he took a step back.
Having seen him in the dragon shape before, Ash just gave him a tired woof of acknowledgement. His father and brother were more instinctively wary, but quickly put two and two together.
Shadow shifted first, dropping to one knee as he painted lightly. "I—I ran into a scouting party in my way back. Da found me; we took them down, but..."
He looked around, his expression morphing. "Where—where's the pack? Nora? My pups, I—"
He tried to stand, leaning heavily on Lake's shoulder.
"They're alright. They left for Fendale. But River can't be moved again, so I stayed to hold the Connloathians off. Snow, too, to take care of her."
Realizing Ash might not have told them yet, he guiltily added, "I'm sorry... she--got shot protecting me. I should've-- It should've been me."
No, lad. Lake shook his head. River is her own woman. She made her choice.
His voice, even in beast speech, was heavy, but he didn't sound like he was accusing Kahroan; any of the wolves would have done the same for their mates.
Kahroan nodded, understanding but not liking it. Was this how she felt when he got shot? "I know..."
He sighed heavily before stiffening at the sight of torchlight in the darkening trees. "Hurry inside. They're coming."
Dogs barked from the north and east. They were close, but at least they weren't in the direction the rest of the pack fled in. While he couldn't attack either group without leaving the others undefended, he was in a good position to see them coming.
Once the others were past him, he flapped his wings and did his best to hover just enough to survey to zealots' numbers. What he saw...
Ash nodded, hustling Shadow and Lake into the cabin. Snow was waiting for them, urging the injured wolves to sit, despite their protests. Ash quickly found River's unconscious form and laid out beside her, whining quietly.
The two approaching groups seemed to be more than scouts this time, though perhaps not the zealots' full force: there were maybe ten in each group, and both had a handful of tracking hounds to hand--even if Kahroan hadn't left tracks, they likely would have been able to track the pack to the cabin sooner rather than later.
The dragon dropped back to the ground with a graceless thud. He wouldn't be flying just yet. He would just have to fight them on the ground. Twenty men and half as many hounds were too many for a newly minted dragon, but he had no choice.
Looking up at the mountainside, he had an idea. The angles weren't quite right, but it could spread panic, and they already knew the cabin's location. He inhaled as deeply as he could, waited for the right moment, and roared with all his might. What remained of the winter snow broke loose and avalanched down towards the northern unit.
The northern troupe scattered in the path of the avalanche, their cries of fear and shock and the baying of their hounds audible even from the cabin.
Lake dashed out to take up position beside the dragon, already growling. How many? Did you see?
Kahroan glanced down at the wolf. "I counted twenty men and eight hounds, divided evenly into two groups. There should be fewer after that avalanche; it was bound to take a couple of men at least. Hopefully fear overcomes hate and most of the northern band loses their nerve. No matter what, I bought us a few minutes while they regroup. They'll want to come at me with everything they've got."
He had been right; both squads broke the treeline simultaneously, only the northern one had been reduced to seven men and two hounds. The archers and riflemen attacked immediately, peppering the ice dragon with projectiles. His hide reduced the attack to an annoying tickle.
"Hells, maybe we can win!" He grinned as he stepped towards the enemy. Roaring a challenge, he breathed freezing flames towards the eastern swordsmen and spearmen. He didn't hit anyone directly, but a couple were writhing on the ground covered in frost. The rest...
It was clear that these militant zealots were not prepared for the reality of facing a dragon; they had prepared for shifters, for what they saw as dangerous magic, but the true advantage of their first attack had been that they struck Snow's pack while they slept.
Against even a wounded, pissed off wolf and a newly formed dragon protecting his mate, they were definitely outclassed.
Or they would be, if not for Connlaoth's infernal killing machines. Lake had the presence of mind to target the remaining gunmen, knocking the few dogs aside so fiercely that one struck a tree trunk with an audible crack of splintering wood.
Several archers drew their short swords and went after Lake while the rest fired arrows after him.
One of the melee attackers lit a threw something at the dragon. The bottle shattered as a bullet from a pistol struck it, splattering a viscous substance across Kahroan's eyes. With a roar, he blindly spewed freezing flames in the general direction of his attackers.
He was suddenly in grave danger.
Lake was forced back toward the cabin, giving every each of ground with snarls and snaps, but unable to hold the line with Kahroan struck blind. He tried to leap to the dragon's defense, but the zealots had formed a wedge to split them apart.
And there were more, filling in along the treeline. It seemed the bulk of their force had been summoned by the sound of the fight; moonlight glinted off a row of rifle barrels.
The first shot rang out, and Lake crouched low. It was becoming apparent that this was not a fight they could win. He tried to call to his sons, telling them to run—his heart breaking for the daughter who would be left behind, the mate he would never see again, the grandchildren he would never meet...
The first volley was loaded, two more shots following that first—and then it suddenly stopped. There was rustling, cracking, then screaming in the trees.
Lake snapped his head up as the wind changed and he was struck with an unfamiliar scent. Unfamiliar but familiar, paradoxically. Who—?
A massive shape suddenly tore from the trees, humanoid but hulking and running on all fours. It leaped for the group of melee attackers that had been herding Kahroan away from the cabin, ripping into one of them with both fangs and a pair of wickedly curved blades held in clawed hands.
More of them poured from the trees, shrieking and howling as they set on the human hunters with a bloody vengeance.
Kahroan quickly figured out that help had arrived. The dragon ceased his blind attacks and craned his neck around to pull a spear from his side.
One of the large forms leaped through the hunters, cutting down a pair of swordsmen with the blades strapped to its thick forearms. It landed in a crouch between the dragon and his attackers.
"I know not why you protect this pack, great dragon, but you have my gratitude. You can leave the rest of these bastards to us." The wolfman spoke with a rough but noble air, his red cape flowing in the light wind. He was a heroic, but savage figure.
But he didn't linger. The warrior leaped back into action with savage enthusiasm, catching a spear between his blades before it could impale him. He sent the weapon flying before ripping out the wielder's throat with his teeth.
The zealots nearby began to flee, but the wolfman wouldn't have that. "Let none escape! They must pay for their crimes with their lives!" he ordered, giving pursuit.
Kahroan let himself collapse to the ground, suffering from a multitude of small wounds. He'd live even without treatment, but it looked painful. But without being able to see, he couldn't be sure how hurt he was.
The Red Howlers set to their task with a righteous fury; they were so efficient that the Longfang pack were allowed a moment to breathe. Lake limped his way over to Kahroan's side and helped to pull the spear from his flank.
Shadow and Snow had emerged from the cabin, clustering around the dragon even as they watched the wolfmen drive back the last of the hunters.
"Who in--? Dad?" Shadow looked to his father, clearly bemused. Lake shook his head slowly.
I'd heard rumors, but...
"River, stop!"
All three wolves snapped their heads toward the cabin door to see Ash chasing after his sister. River must have woken in the noise of the battle, and despite her brother's frantic protests, she was stumbling toward Kahroan.
Kahroan brought his head around to look, but everything was so blurry that he couldn't tell which shape was his mate. Snow could see why the dragon couldn't; there was oil splattered across his eyes. It was the same thick oil that the zealots had used to destroy his pack-home.
"River? You shouldn't be out here. You shouldn't even be moving," Kah protested.
"Oh my gods, what happened?" River demanded, blatantly ignoring the reprimand from her mate and brother both. She managed to stagger to Kahroan's head before her knees gave out and she sank down beside him, trying not to but unable to help leaning against the dragon. Her ribs still throbbed with a jagged pain, but she paid it no mind.
Kahroan gave a tender, pained coo. "I don't think I'm hurt that bad, really. I just... can't see right now. They splashed something in my eyes."
The fear that he might never see her face again haunted his every word. That hurt more than anything else.
"Oh, sweetheart..." She stumbled a little closer to his head, trying to reach up to him, but she couldn't keep herself upright. As her legs buckled a second time, Ash caught her and lowered them both to the ground.
"You're alright, you're gonna be alright," he muttered, looking from her to Kahroan. "Both of you. We'll...we'll figure something out."
The wolfman with the red cape returned with a slight, lean girl in tow. She definitely stood out among the large beastmen that had rescued them just before things had been lost.
"You are fortunate that we were near enough to help." He was grave, but he seemed to have a bit of a proud smirk going.
Lake took a human shape so he could offer the leader of their rescuers a small bow. "We are grateful," he murmured, the truth of the words plain in the way his voice wavered. "My pack owes you a debt we can never repay."
The girl that the wolfman had brought with him rolled her eyes. "Oh, this one's on the house. Bastards had it coming. So. Who's hurt? Just these two?"
When Shadow, Lake, and Ash all just sort of stared at her—River was leaning heavily against her mate's side, forcing her breathing to come shallow so as not to stress her ribs—she rolled her eyes again.
"I'm the medic. The dragon and the she-wolf seem worst off—am I missing anything?"
I believe all of us save one are worse for wear. Snow took on his human shape and approached. "I am Snow of the Blackpaw Pack. I did my best to help the Longfang healer keep everyone held together. Please allow me to assist you."
The leader of the rescuers gave the old shifter a look of respect and sympathy. His loss must be unfathomable; that he could continue on said much of his resolve.
Shyla nodded, approaching Kahroan's head. "It should be easy enough to flush out your eyes--this will probably sting a bit, fair warning--then I can see to her." She waved a hand in River's general direction. "What's your issue? Broken ribs?"
River nodded wearily. "Think so. I...sorta got shot."
The medic's eyebrow quirked up and she turned her head in River's direction, but didn't quite look at her. "Well. Damn. Alright, clearly someone fixed you up enough that you're not actively dying--hold tight a moment. You, Blackpaw, think you can rustle up some bandaging for the worst of the lads?" Back to Kahroan, she said, "No offense, but seeing as you're a fuck-mothering dragon, I'll get your eyes cleared and then focus on the wolves. You'll have to wait a bit before I can look at any of that."
She gestured widely at the scattering of wounds over his flanks, then used the same hand to reach back to the mercenary leader. "Aeris, can I borrow your eyes?"
The dragon chuckled lightly as Snow headed inside to get bandaging materials. "Yes. I will keep. The others are much, much more pressing."
Aeris stepped forward with a nod and a lightness in his footing that said he was ready for anything... always. "Of course. Use me as you wish."
Shyla rolled her eyes at the wolfman, muttering something about him being too ready to self-sacrifice, but she reached out to take his hand--or, paw. She could form the connection without touch, but it was always easier with contact.
Using Aeris's sight, she gestured for Kahroan to lower his head so she could get at the oil in his eyes, flushing them clear with a small tincture from her pack that smelled almost minty, with a hint of pine.
"And now you." She knelt by River's side, gesturing widely. "Lay down, I need to feel these ribs. You got the bullet out?"
River nodded as she obeyed. "Nora and--" She yelped as Shyla began pressing along her ribs, then gritted her teeth and breathed carefully. "Nora and Snow did, yeah."
The half-elf nodded curtly. "Good. You're lucky to be alive, you know. Doesn't seem like these actually shattered, just cracked. We'll get them bound as tight as we can, and you should take it easy for a few days. I'll have to disinfect the wound, too, but..."
She turned her head back toward the dragon. Voice softening a bit, she concluded, "She should be fine."
Kahroan stopped blinking away the tincture and sighed with immense relief. The news that his mate would be okay filled the gaping pit of dread in his heart. He craned his long neck around to present his snout for River to hug.
Looked back at Shyla and the returning Snow with one big blue eye, he said, "Thank you. Both of you."
He would have to thank Nora later. They owed her the most.
Snow dipped his head to the dragon, but Shyla just huffed and shrugged. "My job, no need to thank me."
She moved to stand, then suddenly swayed as her connection with Aeris broke. She blinked and shook her head, reorienting herself to a lack of sight.
"Where..." River suddenly pushed herself up, wincing. "Where's everyone else?" She had been unconscious when the bulk of the pack had left with the pups--and she had woken in the middle of the skirmish. She was playing a bit of catchup.
"Don't worry, they fled towards Fendale before the attack." Kah said soothingly, giving her a look that chastised her for moving.
Noting the way the pair looked at each other, Aeris gave a hearty laugh. "I've always wondered just how a dragon falls in love with a human. A wolf makes much more sense."
Despite the look he gave her, she was upright enough that she could wrap her arms around his snout; which she did, pressing her cheek to his snout and finally releasing an anxious breath she hadn't even realized she'd been holding.
She smiled crookedly at Aeris, giving him a brief nod. "To be fair, he wasn't quite this much of a dragon when we met," she chuckled, looking up at him. Her smile softened and she stroked her hand over his jaw, marveling silently at the reality of his new shape.
Despite not being able to actually see the details of what was happening, Shyla pulled a face. "Ick. Couples."
"Don't mind her. She's just jealous." Aeris gave a wolf's equivalent of a smirk.
"Now, when you say he wasn't this much a dragon..."
Kahroan grew sheepish. "Well, you see..." He explained his situation.
Aeris grew somber. "I can sympathize. My bloodline is forced to live as neither man nor beast, our shifting locked into the forms you see before you. Shyla is... lucky not to be one of us by blood."
Shyla glowered in his general direction, but the expression softened a bit as more of the situation was explained.
Lake shook his head, a little wide-eyed. "So it's true, then. The Ulfar clan--your pack. You really are...cursed?"
River, Ash, and Shadow looked at their father, then back to Aeris. "Wait...Aeris Ulfar?" Shadow stammered out. "That--I mean, you're--holy hells."
"You were our bedtime stories, mate," Ash noted, sounding a little awestruck. "How...how did you even find...?"
Snow was looking to Aeris was a painful hope in his eyes. "They did reach you, then? Do you know...how many made it?"
Aeris gave a sad nod. "I'm sorry. We only found two survivors, and one may not make it through the night. This wasn't some random mob; these monsters were well armed, organized, and knew exactly what they were doing."
No longer under imminent threat, Snow finally allowed the grief to wash over him. He returned to wolf form to release a mournful howl. The poor old wolf had lost nearly everything.
Aeris addressed the others with a grave, determined look in his eyes. "We took a few prisoner. We'll find who organized this, and find a way to make them pay. This, I promise you."
Lake gave him a stern, silent nod. What else could they say? Their pack had been lucky, compared to the Blackpaws.
River pressed a little closer to Kahroan's side, turning her face into his scaled flank. Ash knelt beside snow and hesitantly laid a hand on the older wolf's shoulders.
Shadow nodded in gratitude to Aeris, and murmured, "Thank you again. We can never repay you for this. But I--my mate and pups are down the mountain. I need to find them."
Lake nodded slowly. "We should meet up with the others as soon as we can." He looked back to Aeris. "If there is ever anything we can do for you, you can call on us."
River's closeness triggered a happy rumble totally at odds with the mood of the moment. Kahroan winced, embarrassed but not sorry. He could never apologize for feeling so loved.
"I could fly you straight to them if I wasn't so cut up. As it is, I couldn't even try until morning at the earliest."
Aeris nodded to Lake. "I can send a couple of Howlers with you, if you'd like. Not that I expect you to need them.
Lake dipped his head again. "If you can spare the wolves, we would be grateful. I'm sure it will make my mate and children feel more secure to see an escort."
"And you aren't flying for a few days," Shyla added sternly in the direction of Kahroan's voice. "You may not be dying, but you should definitely give it at least two days before you try to use those wings. You probably could fly before then, but you'll just set your healing back."
River nodded in acknowledgement. "I'll make sure he stays on the ground. Thank you."
"Fine, fine, no flying." The dragon grumbled unhappily.
Aeris didn't know about flying, but he too knew the pain of being forced to stay still when all you wanted to do was get moving. To Lake, he said, "Consider it done."
After everyone that was going to leave had gone, Kahroan looked to River. "You scared me, you know. More than I've ever been. I--" His voice trembled with emotion. "I thought I was going to lose you."
"I'm sorry." River stroked her hand along his cheek, letting her brow rest against the edge of his jaw for a moment. "I just--I saw the gun come up and I just...I couldn't even think about it, my body just moved."
She smiled at him and kissed his cheek lightly. "But I'm alright. Ribs will be sore for a few days, but I'm fine."
For a moment, he just closed his eyes and enjoyed the contact. He rumbled contentedly, but with a sad edge. "Just as I didn't hesitate to become this to protect you. But.... now I wish for nothing more than the ability to hold you again."
"It's the furthest thing from fair."
She sighed quietly and hugged his muzzle. "I know," she murmured, "I know, I'm sorry." She stroked a hand over his cheek again, eyes searching his face. He was so blatantly different from the man she knew, but...she could still see him, felt she could see Kahroan's expressions on the dragon.
"How do you...feel?" She frowned in concern. "I mean, before, when you first started changing, you seemed to be in pain. And--oh my gods." Her eyes widened and she suddenly looked around, as though that would actually do any good. "The amulet--what happened?"
"Its in the cabin, in my pack." Kah nuzzled against her lightly. "I think... I was wrong. Maybe it had malicious intent to start with, but something changed. Perhaps it saw something in me and decided to help in the only way it could, and accepting what it wanted to give me made it let go of me."
"Or maybe the curse simply ran its course. Either way, I feel--different, like myself but... like something more. Maybe even more myself, if that makes any sense."
"I'm just glad you're not in pain," River sighed, relieved, as she leaned against his side.
A thought occurred to her, and she paused in stroking her hand over his scales. "Kah, do you think...if you're not cursed anymore, maybe you can...control this." She waved her hand at him to indicate this, elaborating, "I mean, maybe you could...do what we do. Shift when you want to."
"Oh, I'm in pain, just not from that," he said jokingly.
The dragon pondered the question with a thoughtful rumble. "You mean dragon magic? I mean, I suppose its possible. I do think I can feel the magic coursing through me. You have no idea how powerful I feel."
"But, not being a natural dragon, I don't have the first idea how to use it. Its not like the breath; that's more a physical ability than it is magic. I'd need another dragon to teach me."
She gave him a sour look for the reminder of just how much he'd sacrificed to protect the pack, but it melted quickly into consideration.
"Well..." she said slowly. "I don't actually know any other dragons--but I know where we could find some." She cocked her head at him. "Ever been to Adela?"
"Oh yes. Quite a bit. Though just the coastal cities. I saw a few dragon riders, but only flying over." Kah remembered those days as they'd happened to someone else. He had been so unhappy then. "So, yes, I was thinking the same thing."
He smirked just a little. "It's far, but we should get there much faster once I master flying with this giant body."
River returned his smirk--it was a little difficult to read the expression on a dragon's face, but she knew him well enough by now that it came easier than she would have thought. "Well, guess that's one for the bucket list. Fly to Adela on dragonback."
She glanced around them, some of the playfulness leaving her with a sigh. "We should...try to get down to Fendale. We'll need to say goodbye, make sure everyone is alright..."
"We should. Though they might be back before I'm good to travel."
"Whatever we decide about leaving, it will have to wait until morning. We both need rest. And you need to head inside; it's still too cold for you to sleep outside with me." Kahroan sighed heavily, wanting so badly not to be forced to sleep alone.
"No." She pressed closer to his side. "I'm not leaving you out here by yourself."
She leaned back just enough to give herself space to shift, gritting her teeth through the wrenching of injured bones and muscles. While her change from wolf to human or back was typically smooth and easy, when she was injured it was more difficult. She was panting a bit by the time it was over.
Giving herself a careful shake, she padded back up to him and curled herself into the curve of the dragon's body. I'll be plenty warm like this.
Kahroan knew better than to argue the point. Besides, he didn't actually want her to go. So, he just curled around her as far as he could without reopening his wounds.
He rumbled contentedly. "Fine, but if you get cold you're heading inside."
Kahroan had been right. The pack returned well before the pair had recovered enough to travel. They were able to spend a little more time with family before it finally became time to depart.
"I'm going to miss you all deeply." The dragon gave a bittersweet sound and a sincere attempt at a smile. "I consider you my family."
"That's because we are your family, eejit," Ash told him with a crooked grin and a pat on the shoulder. "You fell in love with a wolf, and now you're stuck with us. Afraid that's just how it works."
A few of the others chuckled, but there was sorrow in all their faces. They knew why River and her mate needed to travel, but they were all sorry to see them go, especially after what had happened to the Blackpaw pack.
Elwyn hadn't spoke much in the last few days; even now he was quiet, Lila in his arms as he stood with his mate and their children.
River looked around at them and tried for a smile. "We'll be back before you know it. And we'll write, I promise."
The pack embraced them--which was easier said than done with Kahroan, but they managed--then stood back to give them space, allowing River to climb onto his back.
"Don't worry. I'll bring her back safe." After everything that's happened, he thought it best to correct himself. "Both of us."
As everyone waved goodbye. Kahroan flapped his great wings and took to the air.
The trip was much faster indeed; they reached the Adelan border in less time than it took the caravan to cross Connloath. They had camped each night in the wilderness, Kahroan taking the opportunity to learn to hunt as a dragon. And by the time they had reached Ketra, he had gotten over his aversion to fresh meat.
On the approach, he contacted her with beastspeech. Where should we land?
"Maybe we should present ourselves somewhere?" River offered, thinking aloud. She was still unused to the idea of riding dragonback, holding rather tightly to Kahroan's spines, but she managed to keep her voice fairly even. "This is the seat of power in the country--maybe we need to...I dunno, announce ourselves to someone?"
"Right. We don't want to get the dragonriders angry with us." Scanning the horizon for a sign of where to go, he found an open space far enough from the city gates to not raise any alarms. "Perhaps we approach from the ground or--"
A couple of smaller dragons came into view headed right for them. They couldn't yet see if there were riders or not. "--or see what these ones say."
[Continued here (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27087.0)]