She pulled back from the kiss.
She opened her eyes.
He was no more.
Her beautiful beloved dragon was looking at her with eyes that could no longer see. He was stone still. Crimson covered his tongue which hung sideways from his mouth and the red spilled onto her lap which held his head.
She had never imagined someone so ultimately powerful could truly die. His snake-like body twisted behind, half of him in the water and covered with scales that gleamed even on a moonless night. The green mane was flopped over to one side, ends twisted. Front claws had made deep marks into the ground where he had sporadically tried to clutch at anything in his final moments. A feathered tail was twisted at an odd angle towards his spine.
But the knife was the worst.
There, only the hilt could be seen where it had plunged into his side through the ribcage. The metal had easily dove through the scales, much easier than it should have.
Chihiro could only stare at the ugly hilt. It was plain, undecorated, nothing beautiful about it at all. However, lightly tanned hand came into her line of vision, blocking her sight of the cause of death. She glanced up at her would-be rescuer.
"Why?" she sputtered.
A blonde-haired young man proudly stated, "did you see that sucker! I've read the fairy tales! You were being charmed by him so that he could bring you to his lair and keep you as a servant until he decided to eat you."
She couldn't see straight. All she had wanted to do was go for a late night swim with him. Now, because she had decided to play an innocent game of tag in the woods, he had mistaken the noises from the "knight" for her. Now he was dead.
Chihiro broke out of her trance with a smile. Spirits never really die, especially if they are killed in the mortal world.
On top of the water strode a boy with green hair, coming towards her.