The Moon Child's Dart
Flora_Winters
Disclaimer: I do not own Legend of Dragoon and I'm not making any money here either.
Summary: Spending years seeking justice for his murdered parents, Dart returns to his second home, finding it in flames. Now he has to rescue his best friend and find out who ordered his kidnapping and the destruction of his village. An epic adventure awaits them all. Language, MM, OC, Violence
Chapter Nine
The sun glared down on his dark head and a hot breeze scorched his cheeks and burned the back of his throat. Sand swirled around him, stinging his violet eyes as he stood within the heart of an endless desert. The rolling dunes went on into forever. There was no relief from the terrible heat in sight.
"Hello!" He shouted, voice sounding ever so small and desperate. Panic swept in on razor swift wings and he spun around as his terror mounted all the more. He didn't know what direction to start walking in. Everything looked the same and he was all alone. "Dart!"
Suddenly every fine hair on the back of his neck stood on end all at once. Even with the heat, his entire body shivered and broke out into goosebumps. Everything was suddenly so still and a deafening silence enclosed him all around. He was so afraid, he couldn't even move. It was like he was being watched and studied very closely by something much, much bigger than him.
A loud blast of thunder unlike any thunderclap he had ever heard before sent him to his knees with his hands pressing hard against his ears. Looking up with tears streaming from his eyes and blood pouring from between his fingers, he saw a beam of golden light descend like lightning from the clear blue sky and strike the desert floor in the distance. Rising slowly to his feet, his eyes kept getting wider and wider.
A massive wall of sand was heading right at him. He was about to scream, but something grabbed him by the ankles and pulled him under the shifting sand.
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Shara bolted upright with cold sweat dripping from his chin. He wrapped his arms around himself and saw that Dart was sleeping at his feet. His left arm was thrown over his ankles and the swordsman was gently snoring. The fire flickered a few times before going completely out, casting their little camp into semi darkness. He glanced over to see that Lavitz was sleeping soundly as The Moon That Never Sets' beams floated down between the tree branches to dance upon the dew kissed grasses.
He tried to free his feet as carefully as he could, but Dart's eyes instantly opened and his blond head popped up to look at him. Shara quietly told him he just needed to go relieve himself and to go back to sleep. The swordsman slightly narrowed his eyes as if not quiet believing him, but complied nonetheless. Shara got to his feet and faded on silent feet into the darkness between the gently swaying trees.
He made his way through brush and thicket to the stream where Dart had filled the water skins hours before and removed his clothes. He waded out into the cool water and dived under with a silver splash. He swam up to a rock and came up out of the water, whipping his long wet locks out of his face. Taking a seat on the rock, he drew his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, drawing them in tight. He rocked back and forth resting his head against them. If anybody had been looking, they would have thought him a nymph or some kind of sprite in the moonlight.
He wanted to go home, but he had no home to return to. He wanted to see his parents, but he no longer had parents to see. It had all been taken away from him. The only thing he had left was Dart, and if he was taken from him, he would surely go insane. He would no longer have a mind to give a damn about anything. He'd just collect himself a good sized vial of Snowdrop's venom, mix it with his favorite wine, drink it all up and go to bed. It was nice to have well formulated plans.
Would you truly take your own life should something happen to Dart, Beloved?
Shara didn't even jump when the moon spider's voice penetrated his mind like a silk curtain being drawn to the side. He looked down to see the moon spider looking up at him with all his shiny amber eyes. His silver fur had drops in it. He must have swam right up to him.
Without Dart, I have no reason to exist. I would just be a mindless doll, sitting in the shadows somewhere where people would whisper and use me as a warning against giving too much of oneself to another.
The moon spider was silent. The only sound was the running water lapping against the rocks. He looked up at The Moon That Never Sets and drew in a deep breath. A warm breeze caused him to shiver. He picked up Snowdrop, placed him on top of his head, and slipped back into the water, making his way back to where he had put his clothes down.
As he walked from the water, every drop on his skin shown silver under the moonlight. As he bent down to pick up his pants, he heard a twig snap and his face heated with rage. He quickly hid his intimates with his pants and pursed his berry red lips.
"Do you remember what happened to the man that spied a goddess bathing under the moonlight?" He asked the trees before him. "Surely you do. Granny told it to us enough times."
Dart stepped from behind a tree, looking abashed and slightly offended that he'd been caught. He kept his blue eyes averted while dawn slowly tinged the sky. "She turned him into a deer and he was torn apart by his own hounds." He turned his back to the dark headed teen.
Shara slipped his pants on and combed his long fingers through his wet hair. "You're lucky I'm not a god, Dart."
Dart snorted under his breath. "The world is lucky."
Shara threw a pebble and it struck the swordsmen's perfect right ass cheek, causing the blond to jump forward with an indignant yelp, grab his injured ass, and spin around with an abused look on his handsome face. Shara held his stomach for a few minutes while he laughed. He'd expected Dart to know what he was going to do and dodge, but he hadn't.
"Are you done?" Dart deadpanned, trying to look like he wasn't scratching where Shara had struck him. He hadn't meant to throw it as hard as he'd done.
Shara nodded his head. "I'm done."
"Good," he said, slowly walking backwards as he kept facing him. "Lavitz is awake and ready to set off."
Shara smiled.
"WHOOPS!" Dart yelled and fell backwards over a fallen log. He landed on his back with a thud and groaned.
"Dart!" Shara gasped in suspended shock, running over to him, going down on his knees beside him. "Are you okay? Did you break anything?"
His eyes were rolling around in their sockets and he focused on Shara, giving a slight nod. "Uh uh…"
"How many fingers am I holding up?" Shara asked him.
"Fifty forty-two," Dart answered.
"Close enough," Shara said, helping the blond back to his feet.
I think your grace is rubbing off on him, Beloved.
Shara laughed as they made their way back to where Lavitz was waiting.
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Dart bathed in the warmth of Shara's smile. It made his heart happy and filled him with joy. He'd do anything to make him smile and laugh like that; even if it meant sacrificing his manly pride in the presence of each other's company. He could have easily dodged that stone just by moving his hips to the left. He could have easily stepped over the log and not have done what he'd done, but he'd done it all just to get the light in his world to shine brighter.
Shara looked up at him and burst into laughter again. "You have leaves in your hair and dirt on your nose."
Dart gave him his best gloomy look, which made the smaller man laugh even harder. Dart's heart was laughing right along with him.
Shara made him bend down and Dart let him remove the leaves and clean his nose off with his shirt. "There. That's better."
He grunted in reply and surprised Shara with a quick peck of the lips on his pale cheek.
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Lavitz followed a little bit behind the two boys in front of him. Every so often, Shara would turn around and grace him with one of his little smiles and ask if he was okay or needed any help walking. He'd shake his head, politely decline, and tell them both that he was okay. Dart would flirt with him in the most obvious ways and Shara seemed to open like a blossom.
Shara was absolutely breathtaking. Even though his clothes were dirty from travel, he was celestial in every way. He would keep looking down to make sure the boy was actually walking upon the ground and not above it. Graceful and airy…like a legendary fairy.
Watching the two of them bicker and pretend fight reminded him so much of himself and Albert. Just thinking about seeing the king again filled him with an anxiety and a much deeper excitement. He couldn't wait to see him, to hold him in his arms, and to kiss him again.
"Do you have to go, Lavitz?" King Albert asked, allowing the larger man to hold him tight. "I don't want you to leave. If I command it, you must stay."
"Would you command me in such a way?" He asked, kissing that smooth throat.
"I'm selfish," the king whispered, squeezing. "I…Everyone leaves me…You're all I have. All I trust."
Lavitz kissed him on the lips and looked him the eyes. "Would you command me to stay?"
Albert squeezed his eyes shut, even though tears were flowing freely. He shook his head even though he looked as though it were a terrible war he was waging deep inside. "No."
Lavitz smiled and put the tip of his nose against the tip of the king's nose. "I love you."
"I love you most of all," Albert sniffled.
And that was the most dangerous thing a king could ever say. Those words had filled Lavitz with terror. And when he had been captured by those bastards from Helena, he'd been terrified of how Albert would react to such news.
Oh my gods! What if he thinks I'm dead?
Panic filled him. Terrible visions of a crazed king filled his mind.
No! He needed to calm himself. He was a Knight of the most sacred order. The king would not do anything silly. His keepers wouldn't let him. They'd keep him sound of mind.
If anything were to ever happen to my First Knight…I'll…
And the memory of that horrible laughter chilled his blood.
No! Everything was fine. It had to be.
"Wow!" Shara said, stopping in his tracks and pointing off into the distance. Lavitz came back to himself and looked ahead and beamed with instant pride at the wondrous beauty before him. "It's so big!"
There it was. The kingdom of Bale. The home where his heart resided.
Dart stood beside the dark headed teen and placed an arm around his slender shoulders, pulling him up close to him. "Try not to wonder off."
Shara scoffed and bumped him with a narrow hip. "Shut up."
"What?" Dart asked, rolling his eyes. "I'm just saying. You get lost easily."
"I do not!"
"Yes you do."
"No I don't!"
"You do."
"No."
"Yes."
Lavitz chuckled without meaning to and quickly schooled his face when Shara turned to glare at him with those violet orbs of doom. "Shara. Dart." He said, leading the way towards the giant gates. "Welcome to my home. Welcome to Bale."
To be continued…