When at last Cynder saw the seaside town with her physical self again, she was surprised to feel her eyes sting. She hadn't realized how much she'd missed home, for all the discomfort it had contained. No, she'd missed being herself, in a place where she genuinely belonged by her own merits, instead of a place she fit into by lying. A twinge of awkwardness had her landing on the shore, her claws sinking into the warm sand, a sensation she'd all but forgotten. Spyro was here, as were a lot of other dragons, all of whom knew her and had been waiting for her to return…and now, here she was, out of nowhere. She took a steadying breath, then walked into town.

It was the middle of the day, and dragons were going about their business. As expected, the moment she was noticed, her name rang through the air, and a ripple went through all the townsfolk as her return was registered. Questions bombarded her, dragons crowded around her; she did her best to take it all in stride, which mainly meant brushing them off by telling them she had to see Spyro. They understood, sort of, even if they kept asking her things all at once so that she couldn't pick out any single voice to reply to even if she tried.

Someone went running to tell Spyro, and soon, he was running out to meet her; she caught him in her wings, and held him close, in the real world, for the first time in so long.

"You finally came home," he murmured.

"I did," she said, stifling happy tears. "I promised you I would."

"Is everything…?" he asked uncertainly.

"Everything's taken care of," she told him, pressing her forehead against his. "It's all over."

"What about the reason you left?" asked an annoying voice.

Cynder chuckled and turned to Sparx. "Yeah, that's taken care of too," she told him. "It's all taken care of. I found what I was looking for, and then some. Oh!" She turned to Spyro. "Listen, Spyro…I told you a community of dragonflies like the old ones were out there, remember?"

"Yeah," he replied.

"Well, they're coming here now," she told him hurriedly. "Kin - I mean, Kindel, their princess - is going to lead them here. She'll know how to get here through our bond. Er, she's my bondmate."

"Princess, eh?" Sparx commented.

"Don't get any ideas," Cynder warned him. "They're not too fond of you."

"What, because I ruined all the dragonflies with the pact?" Sparx asked.

"Well, yeah," Cynder replied.

"Then how are they-?"

"It's a long story," Cynder said quickly. "And it's theirs to tell, really. But, Spyro," she said, turning to her young husband, "the dragons need to know they're coming. Can you do anything?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," Spyro said. "Let's talk to the Elders, they'll know how to handle things."

Green and purple eyes met, and for a moment, it was like they were the only two people in existence.

"I love you, Spyro," Cynder said. "After all I've been through, that one thing has never changed."

"I love you too," he said.

An odd surge in her chest made Cynder give a forced "Oh!" Energy from everywhere and nowhere poured into her, filling her further than her little body could contain. In awkward, twisting bulges, she began to grow. All the dragons around her backed up in surprise as Cynder came of age and matured into an adult dragon of old.

"Whoa," Sparx commented when the change was done.

"Um…" Cynder looked down at herself, then around at her surroundings - she was suddenly too big for everything, buildings were too small. It wasn't quite to the same degree as living with the dragonflies had been, but it was ironic enough to make her laugh. The voice that came out of her throat was deeper, richer - it was the same voice that had been hers while she had served Malefor, except that, instead of malice, it was full of kindness and joy. Hearing her happy laughter in that voice felt strange, but in a good way. Then she looked down at Spyro, who was suddenly tiny compared to her, not much bigger than her head.

"Uh…" Spyro stared at her, wide-eyed.

"Oops," she chuckled. "I, uh, I guess I've matured. Well…this is awkward. Don't worry, I'm sure you will soon too."

"You'd better," Sparx noted. "Then you two lovebirds can start making eggs!"

"Sparx!" Spyro exclaimed, glaring at his brother.

"What?" the little yellow bug asked, shrugging. "I'm just saying…"

The adult dragons around them were almost as tall as Cynder, but given that they were bipedal, she was still a couple of times their size. When she raised her long neck, she could easily see over them all. Female dragons of old were slim and sleek, but just as massive as their male counterparts, which gave them the appearance of being bigger. Her ring and amulet had grown with her, as had her iron jewelry (fortunately), so what had happened was a metamorphosis beyond anything anyone around them had ever seen before. Knowing this, Cynder felt uncomfortable.

"Let's go talk to the Elders," she said. "Maybe they'll know what to do."

"Well, if they don't, you'll have to leave again," Sparx teased.

Neither Cynder nor Spyro were amused.

~X~

The walk to the Elders' temple wasn't very long, but Cynder did her best to explain to Spyro and Sparx everything that had happened while she'd been away. By rushing, she got through the final battle with Sley just as they were walking through the field outside the temple area; she did not have time to explain what Sley had taught her about dragon anatomy and physiology. With the few seconds remaining, she simply said,

"Sley taught me everything he knew about dragons, so I know what's happened to me. Dragons mature all at once, usually when they have enough understanding of the world and themselves to make a conscious, mature decision about something central to them. I don't know why you haven't come of age yet, actually…you should soon, you're definitely ready."

"What determines if a decision is maturation-worthy?" Sparx asked.

"Dragon magic," Cynder replied with a chuckle. "No one can predict it. I doubt even the Chronicler understands how it works. But that's the thing about dragon magic, it's unpredictable, and fickle," she finished with a shrug.

Cynder held her head high as she and Spyro met the Dragon Elders, apart from when she had to duck to get in through the mercifully large doorway. Questions of all kinds bombarded them, and they did their best to explain everything. Above all else, Cynder prioritized explaining the coming of the dragonfly colony she'd been living with, and didn't let the discussion stray from that subject for too long.

"So, even the dragonflies are returning," Titan rasped. "I'm so fortunate to have lived this long. You know, I haven't seen my own bondmate in years, apart from during the fight with Malefor. Maybe we should have bondmates of adult dragons return as well."

"That is fascinating, how dragonflies were actually the product of dragon magic," Thomas said ponderously. "There's definitely a great deal to do. And Cynder…" He cast a critical eye over her lean form. "If all dragons of old will be as big as you are, we're going to have to start renovating all the buildings in the Realms."

"What a project!" Magnus said brightly. "We certainly do have a great deal to accomplish, don't we?"

"Then we should get started," Astor said with finality. "No time to waste, especially not with the dragonflies returning!"

With matters now in the claws of responsible adults, Cynder allowed herself to relax, and she knew Spyro was relieved, too. They went outside, the Elders all exiting and leaping into the air to spread word across the lands.

"Well," Cynder said softly, "I guess this is the end of our adventuring. We can settle down now." She turned to look down at the little purple dragon. "Right?"

He nodded. "Right," he confirmed. "Unless something else happens, we can finally get a break."

"The only reason we didn't a while ago is because of you, Cynder," Sparx pointed out.

Instead of being offended, she just laughed. "Yeah, well, it's a good thing I went off on my own, or Sley would have destroyed us all."

"Yeah yeah, Sley this and Sley that," Sparx said dismissively. "Whatever! Let's just enjoy our permanent vacation now."

"Sounds good to me," Spyro said.

~X~

The dragonflies returned the next day, Kindel leading them by following her bond with Cynder. While the masses were meeting for the first time, Kindel buzzed over to Cynder.

"You got big," she commented.

Cynder laughed. "Yeah, I guess I came of age."

"So you won't need me anymore," Kindel said.

"Don't be ridiculous," Cynder chided; "you're my sister. We'll always be friends."

"So, this is the princess, huh?" said an annoying voice as a yellow glow drifted up to Cynder's eye level. "White dragonfly. Awesome."

"And you must be…Sparx the Traitor," Kindel said, looking Sparx over.

"Traitor?!" he exclaimed. "Hey, I was just trying to help Spyro out, okay?"

"Relax," Cynder told him, sensing her partner's emotions, "she's teasing. The past is in the past now."

"That's right," Kindel agreed. "Although…" She looked around. "Is the Purple One here?" she asked Cynder.

"Down there, silly," Cynder said, gesturing to a spot by her right foreleg. "He's still small."

"Well…all the better…" Kindel said softly, drifting down to see the young dragon. When she was at the level of those purple eyes, she went still for a moment except for her wings, her magenta eyes wide. "Oh, Purple One," she said softly. "I…I never thought I'd have the honor of meeting you."

"It's not such an honor, really," Spyro said humbly. "I only did what was right. Please, Kindel, don't think of me as some legendary hero - I'm just a dragon, another person like you and Cynder."

"You know my name!" Kindel squealed.

"Well, yeah, Cynder told me everything," Spyro said, getting uncomfortable. "Oh, um, thank you, by the way, for taking care of her. I'm glad she at least had you out there."

"It was my pleasure!" Kindel said brightly. "We had a lot of fun!"

"Alright, alright," Cynder said amusedly, lowering her head to meet them. "Kindel, you still have a whole colony to lead, I'm sure there are a lot of dragons who are waiting to meet you."

"Oh, right," Kindel said, suddenly flustered. "We'll talk later, right?"

"Of course," Cynder replied, and the white dragonfly buzzed into the crowd.

"She's pretty hot," Sparx commented.

Spyro and Cynder gave him a look, but said nothing.

~X~

The Dragon Realms were hectic for the next few weeks. Between magic and manual labor, homes and other buildings were built and rebuilt, and dragonflies across the land swarmed this way and that, everyone finding a place of their own. With Cynder as an exemplar for the size of the dragons of old, everything was renovated, not just for her, but to prepare for the other great dragons that would be born in the future.

When at last everything was settled, and Spyro and Cynder could move back in together, it was a different world. As Cynder settled into her adult-dragon-sized bed, Spyro hesitated at the door, just as she had done at the beginning.

"What's wrong?" Cynder asked.

Spyro shook his head. "I don't know…I'm just tired, Cynder. If Sley was out there, who knows what else-?"

"Spyro, it's done," Cynder told him firmly. "We can finally rest, live normal lives - well, as normal as our lives can be. Just rest." She got up and walked over to him, dipping down to brush her snout against his forehead. "The fighting is over. It's just you and me."

"I don't want to fight anymore," Spyro said, "but I keep feeling like something else is going to come up - it always does."

"I know," Cynder responded. "I don't want to fight either. But we don't need to anymore, Spyro. There's nothing else that can happen, I'm sure of it. We can relax."

Slowly, uncertainly, Spyro padded into their room.

"Are you sure?" he asked, facing away from her.

"I'm sure," she told him, walking to his side and bumping him with her snout again.

"I want to believe that…"

"Then do!" she urged him. "I know your life has been a series of adventures for years now, but this is it. No more. I promise."

In Spyro's stillness, Cynder finally saw the tension he lived with. Every minute of every day, doubt coiled in his chest, doubt that he'd ever have peace. He was always on edge, ready for another disaster to strike, unable to truly relax at all.

"Malefor's gone," she said softly. "The dragonflies have been found and returned. You and I have power far beyond any other living creature in the whole world - no one else would dare threaten the Dragon Realms, no matter who or what they are, knowing what we're capable of. I know…you don't want the power you have; I don't either. But…the fact that we have it, means that we'll never need to use it again."

He shook his head, still not looking at her.

"Spyro, I promise you, we can relax," Cynder said soothingly. "It's over. Everything's going to be okay now."

For another moment, all was still. Then, Spyro let out a tremendous breath, folding his wings as he finally chose to accept what she was saying and relaxed.

Then, he tensed up again, gasping. His form wavered, twitching and bulging, and just like that, Spyro grew to adult form.

When he turned to her, his whole appearance had transformed: the beard under his chin, the matured horns, the yellow spikes on his shoulders. But his eyes were still the same, those amethyst eyes full of kindness and caring.

"There, you see?" Cynder said, trying to make a joke. "It's over."

"Cynder…"

She understood what that one word meant. He looked different to her, not in appearance, in some other way; in his eyes, she could see that he saw something different, too. They were adults now, with everything that meant. Without another word, they embraced each other with their tremendous wings.