Dragons Change

AN: I know this is kind of short for how long the wait was, but I've been slammed with homework recently. I actually doubt that I'll be able to post anything else until this semester is over because the pile I have to do is getting huge at this point since I keep putting it off. So, life lesson: don't procrastinate.

And, as I promised, Winter and Faredir's newfound bond isn't exactly solid yet. That point is made abundantly clear, I think. Also, get ready for feels later on.

Disclaimer: I do not own Wings of Fire. My OCs Aurora and the Spirits, Faredir, and Flint belong to me. Cataclysm belongs to her owner BizmuthTheRainwing. Inferno belongs to his owner IceDragon07. Cover art for the story belongs to beyzul on Deviantart.

Chapter 28:

Winter spent the rest of that day practicing with that rock. It wasn't very long after that first success that he was able to make it hover for the five minutes Faredir had told him to aim for. After that, Faredir had told him to switch so he was using his left palm instead of his right. That was a little tougher since his right was his dominant one, but he was able to do it within an hour. Then, Faredir told him to do both at the same time.

He was still practicing that when the sun started going down. It wasn't as easy as it sounded to the outside observer. If he concentrated too hard on one, the other would flag and fail. Faredir had said being able to concentrate on multiple things at once was paramount—especially in battle, where things were much more chaotic.

As the sun started to dip closer to the horizon, Faredir spoke up. "That's enough for today," he declared. "Let's head back to the city for now." At Winter's slightly miffed expression—he had just surpassed three minutes—the older dragon chuckled. "You can practice more in the city if you want, as long as you don't try to attempt things you're not ready for."

Winter nodded in agreement. As fun as blowing up that tree had been, he didn't think Faredir—or Ruby, for that matter—would appreciate holes being blown in the palace walls. Besides, he was just now realizing how hungry he was. With everything that's happened in the last day, it was understandable that he had forgotten to eat since breakfast yesterday. His stomach growled to emphasize that point, and Faredir chuckled at his sheepish expression.

They took flight without another word, but they did converse on their way back to the palace. "I know this is an odd request," Faredir began, "But I would ask you not to tell anyone of our familial ties."

Winter didn't really understand why that would be a problem, but he decided to just go along with it. Although… "What about, Moon? She can read minds, and she's made it abundantly clear that she likes to hang out in mine."

"She already knows," Faredir revealed. "When I gave her access to my mind, she discovered that fact…among others. I asked her not to reveal that truth just as I am asking you."

Winter was quiet for a few minutes before another thought popped into his mind. "What about Hailstorm? I know Flint only adopted him as a sib fairly recently, but shouldn't that…"

He trailed off when he saw Faredir shaking his head. "I know he is your brother, and I will treat him with the same respect as your other friends because of that. However, something tells me that he would be less accepting of me as a father since his own held pride rather than disgust for him." He paused and turned back to Winter with a serious yet gentle expression. "Does that offend you?"

Winter shook his head. "No. It's your choice. I wasn't asking you to adopt him, too, I was just wondering what you thought about him," He paused for a moment before continuing. "And I think you're right. Hailstorm was Narwhal's pride and joy, so I don't think he would even want to be adopted."

Faredir nodded. "My thoughts, exactly. Besides, he doesn't need me…not like you do." Winter looked away at that, his throat suddenly clogged with emotion. He swallowed heavily before nodding. Faredir slowed down in his flight until he was even with Winter. "You shouldn't feel ashamed about feeling these emotions, Winter," he said gently. "The fact that you feel them isn't a weakness like you were raised to believe. They just show that you are a sensitive soul who's suffered far too much neglect."

Winter was silent for a few moments before speaking up. "H-How—" his voice broke, so he cleared it and tried again. "How did you accept that your father hated you?"

"It's just as you said," Faredir revealed. "I accepted it. I accepted that nothing I ever did could change the way he viewed me, so I stopped trying to prove myself to him. I stopped lamenting how I wasn't good enough for him and simply moved on. And no, it wasn't as easy as it sounds. I was very much like you once, but enough time passed for me to realize that the only dragon I could count on to help me through my struggles was myself." Faredir shook his head with a sigh. "I didn't have anyone to lean on back then, but I'll make sure I'm there for you when you need me, now."

Winter tried to remember the last time someone had promised to always be there for him. He was pretty sure Hailstorm was the most recent. Then, it was Aurora before that. However, the first dragon to ever promise him that was Flint. The Mudwing had undoubtedly saved his life without even knowing it, but as much as Winter cared about his two brothers, it felt different when Faredir said it. He could only assume it was because the Changewing wanted to be the father figure he never really had. "Thank you," he finally said. "You have no idea how much that means to me."

"Actually, I do," Faredir replied. "Like I said, I was once in your position. I'm sure the guards already told you, but you are welcome to come up to my room whenever you want. I spend most of my time either there, in the throne room, or in the libraries, so it shouldn't be too hard to find me if you want to talk."

Winter nodded to show he understood, and any further conversation was cut off as they approached the palace. With a final wave goodbye, Winter changed course and landed on his balcony as Faredir flew up to the fifth floor. Winter tried to open the balcony door but found that it was locked. He knocked, hoping that Hailstorm was there to let him in but was surprised when the door opened to reveal a mildly confused Moon. "Oh, hey, Winter," she greeted.

Winter blinked a few times before composing himself. "Hey, Moon. Uh…What are you doing in my room?"

She leaned out the door and looked to the left where another balcony was visible. She pointed at it. "That's your room over there. This is my room."

Winter looked at the balcony for a second before replying with a simple. "Oh…I think this was my room last time we stayed here. Uh…sorry."

He was about to hop over to his balcony when Moon shrugged. "That's okay. Did you want to come in anyway?"

Winter stopped for a moment and looked between his balcony and her. He shrugged back after a few moments. "Sure."

Moon's smile brightened and she stood aside to let him enter. As Winter looked around and spotted the small but noticeable dent from where he slammed Hailstorm into the wall to prove that it was, indeed, the room he stayed in previously, Moon broke the small span of silence. "And, technically, it was our room last time."

Winter released a sigh as he reminisced about that time. "Yeah, it was. For what it's worth, I enjoyed our time here together."

"So did I," she replied with a small nod. A silence started to fall between them as Winter busied himself with studying the minute details of the room. For some reason, he felt awkward being around her now. Just when he was beginning to think it would be better to excuse himself, Moon beat him to the offer. "If you're uncomfortable, you don't have to stay," she said. However, Winter picked up on the small hint of sadness in her voice. She was offering him a way out, but she would rather he stayed.

Winter sighed again. His heart ached at being so close yet so far away from her. There was a constant nagging in the back of his mind, though—a doubt that just wouldn't go away. She had used him in the past, and despite how desperately he wanted believe that she wouldn't again, that doubt stuck with him. "I should probably let Hailstorm know I'm okay," he said. It wasn't the best excuse, and he knew she knew it was just that—an excuse. "Maybe we can talk later?" he offered instead.

She looked a bit disappointed that he had decided not to stay, but she nodded, nevertheless. "Yeah, okay…I'll be looking forward to it," she replied softly as he walked out of the door.

He got to his door before the reality of what he did hit him. He banged his head against the door and just left it there. "I am such an idiot," he said to no one in particular.

The door opened and he fell forward briefly before catching himself. "Bad day?" Flint asked.

Winter stared at the Mudwing for a solid minute before facepalming. "No…just a bad last five minutes," he sighed as he looked back up at his companion. "Up until then, I actually had a really good day."

A bit of Flint's concern vanished at hearing that. "Well, that's good. Faredir said he was taking you outside the city for some training?" Winter nodded. Flint thought for a short moment before asking, "How can you train at animus magic?"

At that, Winter's enthusiasm starting creeping back in. "Well, turns out I'm not an animus," he proclaimed. "I have something called White Magic."

Flint nodded slowly, not really understanding but going along with it anyways. "Uh huh…Was it cool?"

Winter smirked, "I disintegrated half of a tree."

Flint looked a lot more interested at that. However, his question was cut off as Winter's stomach growled again. "Well, as much as I would love to hear that story, I should let you get something to eat. Hailstorm took a plate of food from the cafeteria for you at dinnertime in case you got back tonight."

Winter looked in the direction of where his door was and smiled. He was so fortunate he had such good brothers to look out for him. "I should go eat, then," he excused himself.

"See you in the morning, then." Flint smiled once more before he shut his door and Winter walked back in the other direction toward his room. The door was unlocked when he tried to open it so he walked in. Hailstorm looked up. At first his expression was one of nervousness, but when he saw who had just entered, it shifted to one of concern. Winter smiled to show he was okay, and his brother's worry melted away when he saw that he was alright. "I was told there was food here," Winter joked.

Hailstorm just pointed to a tray of food sitting on the table. Winter dug in without another word as Hailstorm went back to what he was doing before he came in. Winter paused after a moment seeing that the older Icewing seemed upset about something if his expression and reserved posture was any clue. He appeared to be studying something in his claws intently, but Winter couldn't see what it was. Before he could ask whether or not he was alright, Hailstorm spoke. "Would you mind spending the night with Flint?"

Winter blinked at the unexpected question but composed himself rather quickly. "Why? Expecting company?" he tried to joke.

"Yes, actually," Hailstorm replied. Winter studied him for a few moments before the older dragon sighed. "Please, Winter," he pleaded. "This is extremely important for me."

"…Alright," he finally agreed. "Can I at least take this with me?" he gestured to the food for emphasis.

"Leave some of it just in case, but yeah, you can take some," Hailstorm agreed. Winter grabbed most of the fruit since it was easier to carry and made for the door. He opened it just in time to see a Skywing with his claws poised to knock.

"I wasn't expecting you to have company," the Skywing, a male by his voice addressed—though it sounded more like an accusation—Hailstorm, who had come up behind Winter as soon as the door opened to reveal this new dragon.

"This is my brother, Winter. He was just leaving, though," Hailstorm replied, then pinned him with a look that said, 'please leave'.

Winter nodded slowly as he walked out, taking a moment to take in the Skywing's features. He seemed a few years older than Winter was, so he was probably close to Hailstorm's age—perhaps a year or two older. His scales were a deep red—darker than most Skywings he had seen—and his wings were a brilliant yellow-orange color. He seemed rather muscular for a Skywing, but he still wasn't as well-defined as Winter was. His posture was rigid, so Winter thought that he might be a soldier. He was tall, too—at least two heads taller than Winter. When they locked eyes for a moment, Winter could see that he guarded his emotions well.

All of those observations took less than five seconds, and then Winter was heading out the door towards Flint's room, though he gave one last goodbye to Hailstorm before he left. He got about halfway to his other brother's room before he heard the door shut. Winter looked back and saw that the door was indeed shut. And the lack of dragons in the hallway meant that the strange Skywing had entered Hailstorm's room.

He knocked on Flint's door, and the Mudwing opened it, though he seemed rather confused as to why Winter was knocking on his door again. "Hailstorm has company," Winter said.

Flint started slightly in surprise. "He never mentioned that he would earlier," he thought aloud. "What sort of company?"

"Romantic, I think," Winter said. "He didn't mention anything about a Skywing?"

Flint shook his head and beckoned Winter to come in. He shut the door after Winter had entered. "No…though he did go talk to a Skywing when we went to eat earlier. He was really quiet afterwards, too."

"Male or female?" Winter asked.

"Male," Flint replied.

"Dark red scales, tall, kind of muscular?" he continued.

Flint thought for a moment before nodding. "That sounds about right, but then again that describes a good number of Skywings."

"Yeah, but I'm more concerned about this particular Skywing," Winter huffed as he took a place at the table to start eating.

Flint sat on the opposite side of the table and observed him for a moment. "Would it bother you if Hailstorm had a boyfriend?" he asked.

Winter paused and put the fruit he was about to bite into back down as he thought about the question. "…I'm not sure," he finally answered. "Icewings tend to frown upon things like that even though the other tribes consider them to be acceptable, so that's what I thought growing up. Then again, it didn't take me long to realize Qibli had a small crush on me when we attended Jade Mountain, and…I was oddly okay with that after a while." Flint gave him a sly look, but Winter just rolled his eyes. Though he couldn't stop the small smile that appeared on his muzzle. "So, would Hailstorm having a boyfriend bother me? Probably not…but I would've liked to know who this dragon was before now."

Flint nodded, more serious now. "That's understandable. It's a big thing to just drop on somebody without warning. Hopefully, we'll be able to meet him and get an explanation from Hailstorm as to how they know each other." He paused. "That's assuming we're not making a mountain out of nothing. For all we know, they could just be old friends that drifted apart after a bad argument or something and this is them trying to heal old wounds."

Winter, however, wasn't convinced. He remembered how Hailstorm was acting before he left. That didn't look like two friends who had drifted apart rebuilding their old friendship. "…I guess," he answered instead.

Flint looked over to the window for a moment before turning his attention back to Winter. "Did you have to get up early tomorrow for more training?" he asked.

Winter pondered that for a moment before looking over to the window. It was dark out. "I'm not sure. He didn't mention anything, but I would assume yes. Even if we didn't go train, I'd still like to talk with him."

Flint looked interested at that. "Oh? Do I detect a turnaround in how you view him?"

Winter chuckled. "Yes…I admit I was wrong to judge him so harshly. He's a lot more complex than I ever expected." Flint nodded. After a moment, Winter motioned towards the bed—which was big enough for both of them. "Do you mind sharing?"

Flint chuckled and walked to the bed. He motioned for Winter to follow, so he did. "Not at all. It'll be just like old times," he said lightly. Winter smiled at his words before settling down next to the larger Mudwing—this time remembering to remove his chest-plate and the anchor. Fortunately, he didn't implode.

As Flint's wing draped across Winter's back, the Icewing realized how long it had been since the two of them had done this. Lately, Winter had been spending the nights with Hailstorm, but before his real brother had reentered his life, Flint had been the one to give him comfort during the night—an anchor to keep the stormy seas of his mind from overwhelming him. It made him realize how far they had drifted apart in such a short span of time. "I never should have doubted you, Flint," he said softly.

Flint flicked his gaze over to him and smiled gently. "Don't worry about it. It's all in the past. I'm just glad we got passed it and things can go back to normal."

Winter responded by putting his head down on Flint's forearm. "I love you, Flint. I know I don't say it much, but I do."

Flint's wing tightened its grip on him as the Mudwing placed his head down next to Winter's. "I love you, too," he whispered.

When Winter woke the next morning, it was to a knock on the door. He blinked a few times to get the sleep out of his eyes, but Flint was still asleep. He tried—unsuccessfully—to escape from under Flint's wing to see who was at the door. The Mudwing stirred with a quiet groan and blinked wearily. "Someone's at the door. Will you let me up?" Flint raised his wing so Winter could get up but laid his head back down and fell asleep again when he was clear.

Winter noticed that the sun had hardly peaked above the horizon, so he wondered who could possibly be at the door at this early hour. He opened it to see a dragon he honestly didn't expect to see. "If you want food, get it now. I'll be waiting for you in my quarters. Don't make me wait too long." With that Faredir turned and left.

Winter watched him go with curiosity and slight concern. He seemed worried about something, he thought to himself. He didn't really want to know what could worry Faredir that much, but he would inevitably find out sooner or later. He heard another door open and turned to see Moon sticking her head out of the door. They locked eyes for a moment. "If you're getting breakfast, can I come along?"

Winter nodded. "Might as well grab Flint and Hailstorm, too."

If her expression was any indication, she would've rather it just been the two of them, but she didn't argue. He went back inside and shook Flint awake. The Mudwing startled awake but calmed when he saw who it was. "What is it?" he asked, still half asleep.

"We're going to get breakfast. Did you want to come?" At the mention of food, Flint was instantly fully awake. He got up and all but ran towards the door. Winter chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes."

He closed the door when he left the room and joined Moon and Flint. Winter went to knock on Hailstorm's door, but Moon stopped him. "Let him sleep. He was awake until a few hours ago."

The door opened while Winter was digesting that. "I'm still awake, actually," Hailstorm said. His voice and the dark rings under his eyes betrayed the fact that he was extremely tired, but he was still awake now. "I couldn't sleep after Horus left."

"Well, at least we have a name now," Flint mused.

Winter nodded but pinned Hailstorm with a serious look. "You know I'd like the full story later, right?"

Hailstorm nodded after a moment's hesitation. "I figured as much. But for now, can we just have breakfast together?" Winter nodded to show his agreement and the four of them made their way to the dining hall on the first floor. They didn't talk much on the way there and there weren't many dragons in the hallways this early.

In fact, he didn't actually expect any food to be prepared this early, but to all of their surprise, a few cooks were in the kitchens. When they saw the four of them enter, one of them—an older male Skywing—waved to get their attention and placed four hot plates of food on the counter. "We were told to have four plates of our best food ready for you all," the cook explained.

Winter nodded. "Thanks," he said. The cook nodded with a smile before turning back to other matters. They grabbed their food—a combination of fish, beef, and pork which were all cooked—and made their way to a table in the center of the room since no one else was there.

Winter took his seat and noticed that Moon sat beside him while Flint and Hailstorm sat on the other side. He noticed that Flint was all but drooling at the noticeably larger portion of food on his plate and chuckled. In truth, the food did look and smell delicious. He'd have to thank Faredir later.

They all dug in to their meals without any further hesitation. It took all of his will to stop the pleased moan from escaping when he took his first bite. He had eaten plenty of delicious meals in his lifetime—their old cook at the Sanctuary, Amber, was a well-known professional in the Mud Kingdom—but this was something else entirely.

There were those at the table who hadn't had the pleasure of eating a professional's work before, however. Moon didn't even try to hide her pleasure after taking that first bite. "By the other moons, I have never eaten anything so good!"

There was a round of chuckles. "Other moons?" Winter asked with a smirk.

She shot him a playful glare. "Shut up…It's something Kinkajou said once," she explained. Winter just gave her a playful sideways glance before returning to his meal. It passed in companionable silence. The others were taking their time, but Winter had somewhere to be.

If they noticed his slight hurry, they didn't comment. He was done in less than twenty minutes, and he was about to excuse himself when he heard Moon groan as if in pain. He looked over to see her holding her head in her claws with her eyes screwed shut. He looked to Flint and Hailstorm just as they turned to look at him with worried expressions. They knew what this meant just as well as he did.

He turned his attention back to Moon just as she opened her eyes again. With only a brief moment of debate, he reached across the short gap separating them and started messaging the area between her shoulders in a soothing manner. She spared him a thankful look and he nodded to her—a wordless gesture for her to take her time and collect her thoughts.

"You should get upstairs," she said after a moment.

Her seriousness surprised him for a moment. Before he could ask 'why', a loud—and extremely pissed-sounding—roar bellowed throughout the palace. They all looked between each other, not liking the sound of that one bit. "Was that—" Hailstorm began.

"Yeah," Flint answered. "I've never heard him this ticked before. Something big must have come up."

Winter, however, only spared the conversation minimal attention. He stared at the ceiling as if he could see all the way up to the top floor. Yet another roar sounded—louder if that was at all possible—and Winter wasted no more time.

He sprung up from the table and sprinted to the door. His companions' incredulous calls for him to stop landed upon deaf ears. Winter didn't stop. He sprinted as fast as he could to the nearest set of stairs—paying no mind to the panicked residents and guards now beginning to flood the halls. And when he reached the stairs, he ran all the way up to the fifth floor and burst through the door at the top just in time to hear, and see, a bookshelf come flying into the hallway and smash into the wall.

Wasting no more time, he ran to Faredir's door. His initial question of, "What's going on?" as he rounded the corner was cut off with an undignified yelp as he was forced to duck a flying dresser. The tirade Winter was about to unleash for almost getting domed by flying furniture was cut off as soon as he saw the dragon within.

Faredir was once again in his natural form, but smoke was pouring from his nostrils in droves and dark magic was radiating off of his scales. His red eyes—fierce-looking under normal circumstances—were glowing with the sheer amount of anger burning inside him.

His talons were gouging the marble floors and fire glowed between his teeth—visible because of the vicious snarl on his muzzle. Books, broken furniture, and pieces of the wall were scattered around the floor. Speaking of which: large chunks of wall looked to be either blown away or simply punched so hard it shattered the marble. One of the crystal chandeliers that hung from the ceiling had fallen and smashed into the floor.

He took in the devastation around the room with a growing sense that maybe coming up here wasn't the smartest thing to do. When he finished taking in all the damage, he turned his attention to the dragon who had caused it.

Faredir was staring straight at him.

However, his presence didn't seem to calm the raging dragon. Faredir's talons were clenching and unclenching, gouging new marks into the floor and he was trembling with the amount of rage he was struggling to keep in check. That piercing stare never left him for a second, and Winter found himself taking an involuntary step back as his instincts screamed at him to get away as if he was faced with a dangerous predator.

He reigned that fear in, though, and took a slow step forward—testing the waters, as it were. The large dragon growled, a warning not to come any closer. Winter looked into the larger dragon's eyes and saw a struggle he was all too familiar with. Right now, Faredir was so lost in his anger that his rational mind was vying for dominance against his predatory instincts.

Winter knew what that was like. He knew how hard it was to fight against such instincts. It was a fight he had lost when it mattered most, and he had hurt Qibli because of it. And honestly, he was lucky he was able to stop himself from doing anything more. He was ashamed of himself for what happened because he knew that if he hadn't been able to stop himself, Qibli probably would have died that day.

That was the real reason he left Jade Mountain. Sure, his anger had been rooted in the fact that Moon was ignorant to his feelings and what they meant, but if that had been the only problem, he could have worked through it. Based on the fact that neither Sunny nor Moon mentioned what he did to Qibli, he could reasonably assume that the Sandwing hadn't told anyone.

He sighed to himself upon remembering arguably one of his worst moments. He lifted his gaze to stare into Faredir's once more and took another step forward. The growling intensified, but Winter took another step…and another…and another.

When he was within striking distance, Faredir raised his claws as if to strike Winter if he continued testing him. He stopped momentarily—his gaze still locked to Faredir's—and saw lucidity beginning to shine through again. His claws, which had been poised to strike, now gestured for Winter to wait.

Faredir closed his eyes and took several deep breaths as he slowly lowered his claws back to the floor. After several moments, he reopened his eyes and locked them on Winter again. Though he was clearly still immensely angry, he was clearly in control of his faculties again. "I apologize if I frightened you," he said. "I just received some…terribly bad news."

Winter cocked his head to the side in confusion and looked around the room once more. "What kind of news could be this bad?" he asked, gesturing to the wreckage for emphasis.

Faredir walked to the balcony, another growl rising from his throat. "Aurora's idiocy is matched only by her obliviousness!" Winter started slightly from the viciousness in his tone, but he nevertheless joined him out on the balcony. "The Skywing Spirit has cut ties with the others. If his ego is as great as I believe, I wouldn't doubt for a moment that he'll decide to serve Urfael instead." Winter blinked a few times as he absorbed that. He remembered the strange feeling he had about Stratos when he first met the Skywing Spirit. Shade had asked him not to tell the others about his misgivings, so maybe the Nightwing Spirit knew this would happen. "And unfortunately, it only takes one Spirit to unlock Urfael's prison—it doesn't matter which."

Horror dawned upon Winter. "I-I'm not ready to fight him yet!"

"I know," Faredir replied calmly. "Fortunately, even if Stratos is the key needed to release Him, that fact remains moot without access to the lock that keeps Him in place."

"And what might that be?" Winter asked, hesitantly.

Faredir released a small sigh before turning to Winter with the answer, "Me." He looked back to the horizon with a grim expression. "And while I am a very powerful dragon, I am not unbeatable. Urfael's power to influence this world is limited as long as He remains locked away, but I suspect this information will be the catalyst He needs to take it from me."

"How long?" he asked quietly—almost not wanting to know the answer.

"Not long enough…" Faredir turned to him with a serious look. "I'm going to have to advance your training. I must get you ready to face him before He returns. Come." Faredir gestured for Winter to follow as he launched himself into the air. They circled around and landed on the roof of the palace. "The most important thing you need to learn is how to defend yourself from attacks," he stated. "You can create a shield with your power to prevent enemy attacks from landing…"

Faredir proceeded to explain the concept and demonstrate the ability to form a shield. The remainder of the day consisted of Winter trying to perfect the technique, but it was something he couldn't easily do. In fact, by the end of the day, he still couldn't, much to the Changewing's frustration.

His frustration was understandable, though. Winter could tell that the anger wasn't directed at him. Rather, it was a distinct sign of how unsettled he was. Winter was certain that Faredir had expected to have more time before Urfael returned. Or perhaps he expected Him to remain locked away forever. Now that he was faced with the very real possibility that He was soon to return…

Faredir was afraid.

And that, in turn, terrified Winter. Faredir was the strongest dragon Winter knew. Knowing he was this afraid of Urfael was…

There were no words.

"Enough," Faredir declared at last. "You'll never be ready at this rate," he grumbled. "Can you at least recreate your accidental success from the other night?"

Winter shrugged but tried anyway. It was hard to say who was more surprised when the ball of light appeared in Winter's claws almost instantaneously. "That…was easier than I remember," Winter mumbled.

Faredir's surprise was quickly replaced by a grin—one that sent chills down Winter's spine. "Then we'll start with that instead. Throw it at me," he commanded.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked. Flashes of what happened to that tree when his light ball impacted it appeared in his mind. Faredir narrowed his eyes dangerously, so Winter thought it best to just listen to him. He threw the light ball with all his might expecting Faredir to simply throw up a shield to prevent it from hitting him.

Suffice it to say, that's not what happened. Winter's jaw dropped when the Changewing simply caught it in midair. The white light quickly morphed into purple light, and Faredir now threw it back at Winter.

When it hit him in the chest, Winter went flying quite a ways backwards. He landed on his back with a groan but was surprised when he realized that where he was hit didn't actually hurt. In fact, the only pain he was feeling was from when he landed. Although, he was beginning to regret not putting his chest-plate back on.

He raised his head to look at his 'teacher', expecting him to be laughing at Winter's expense. However, much to his trepidation, Faredir's expression was deathly serious. "Again!" he commanded.

Winter rose, and despite his better judgement, readied another light ball. He threw it at the larger dragon again, but once again, Faredir simply caught it and hurled it back at him. Winter expected it, and he knew what the point of this was. If he didn't want to get hit, he needed to form a shield, and he honestly did try.

He had no such luck, though. The dark ball hit him in the chest again as it was too fast to dodge and catapulted him even farther than the first one had. His breath left him in massive rush as he impacted the ground again. The impact site where he was hit still didn't hurt, but he was surprised his wings hadn't been broken with how hard he landed on them.

He was still laying there, trying to regain his senses when he heard Faredir's command. "Again!" Winter got up with a groan and trudged back to his spot. He looked to Faredir in defiance. He would not do this again. "I said: again," the larger dragon growled.

"No," Winter replied, sternly. "We're done for tonight. You need time to cool off before we start again."

The fire in Faredir's eyes flared as his anger spiked. "If you wish to continue receiving guidance from me, you will do as I say! Now…AGAIN!" His shout had mixed with a furious roar, and Winter looked upon the Changewing with true fear for the first time since their initial meeting.

That fear rooted him in place, and his lack of response seemed to anger Faredir even more. He released another furious roar and threw another dark ball at him. Winter had time enough to widen his eyes in surprise before it impacted him hard. This time, however, the pain from hitting the ground was nothing compared to the sheer agony spearing through his chest.

He screamed.

It was long, loud, and shrill. This wasn't the sort of scream one released when breaking a bone or even getting stabbed with a spear. This was the scream one released when it felt like you were slowly burning alive—agonizingly slowly. It was the kind of scream where sheer, unimaginable pain was the only thing you could feel—usually before death claimed you.

Death didn't claim him that day, but by the Spirits did he wish it had. He had screamed until his voice gave out. Then, he merely whimpered and sobbed as the pain simply wouldn't go away. He looked up through tear-filled eyes at his chest where the ball had impacted him. His scales were mostly gone, and those few that remained were blackened and misshapen as if partially melted. His underlying skin and muscle was also blackened and blistered. He could feel several of his ribs were broken, but none of that was what horrified him the most.

He could see that his ribs were broken.

He was literally looking at part of his insides.

The blood around the wound and the wound itself had been flash-cauterized, which was probably the only reason he was still alive. But that would probably change rather quickly. In his pain-addled mind, he barely heard the fast-approaching clawsteps. It was only when the shadow fell upon him did he realize that someone was next to him. As soon as he saw who it was, though, he screwed his eyes shut with a tiny whimper, expecting the Changewing to put him out of his misery.

He felt himself get picked up in gentle arms. Then, they were in the air. Winter kept his eyes screwed shut…until he felt something wet splashing against his face. He cracked open his eyes and looked up just in time for another wet splash to impact underneath his right eye. He stared at the side of Faredir's face as the Changewing's gaze was ever forward. More specifically, he was staring into his eyes.

Faredir was crying.

"F-Fa—" he tried.

Faredir looked down at him, momentarily, his eyes brimming with both fear and worry. "Shh…don't speak," he said tenderly. They landed somewhat roughly, and Winter whimpered as the slight jarring made the pain spike. Faredir walked carefully through the wreckage of his room on his hind legs while using his wing knuckles to keep his balance. He set Winter down onto his bed.

Faredir had laid his head onto the pillows, and Winter didn't think he could lift it anymore. He felt weak. And cold.

Winter closed his eyes, resigned to his fate. "Don't give up, Winter! Please…keep your eyes open!" he heard Faredir say. His voice was quiet and gentle, yet it was hiding an underlying layer of fear and panic.

But Winter didn't open his eyes again. He was too tired. He faintly heard a door slamming open and three sets of claws running down the hall. Blackness was overtaking him, but he smiled. He wasn't afraid of death because he knew who was waiting on the other side. He could almost hear her voice even now.

He opened his eyes to see a white nothingness. He looked around before remembering the wound on his chest. It was gone. "I'm getting a severe case of déjà vu, here," he said to no one in particular.

"As you should, Winter," a familiar voice said. "This is the second time you've died."

He turned around and saw her looking at him with a disapproving frown. "Aurora," he breathed as a smile crept onto his face.

But that only seemed to incense her. "Do you think this is a joke!? You are dead, Winter! And I warned you that I couldn't bring you back a second time!"

He felt genuinely hurt by her outburst. "Aren't you happy to see me?" he asked.

"HAPPY!?" she shrieked. "How can I be happy with this outcome!? I—" Whatever she was about to say was cut off as the white landscape momentarily flashed purple and Winter's heart beat painfully hard against his chest.

Winter put his claw to his chest with a wince. "What was that?" he asked. That hadn't happened last time, as far as he knew.

Aurora looked at the 'sky' with both disbelief and hope. "He's trying to save your life," she whispered. She pinned Winter with a serious look. "You must help him, Winter," she commanded. "You have to fight to stay alive!"

Another flash. Another painful beat of his heart.

Voices filtered in.

"Come on, Winter, fight!"

I'm sorry, Flint.

"I can't lose you already, Winter! I just got you back!"

I'm sorry, Hailstorm.

"You can't give up, Winter! Not now! I won't let you!"

I'm sorry, Faredir.

…

…

…

And then, a whisper…

"I love you."

Moon.

Winter gasped as the third and brightest flash filled his vision. His eyes flew open and he sucked in a lungful of air. Or, at least he tried to. His broken ribs prevented him from getting enough air. He couldn't get enough air, and his vision was starting to go dark again. "Oh, no you don't!" He screamed when he felt claws touching his wound, and he screamed louder when electricity shot through his body.

"What are you doing!?" he heard Flint yell.

"Trying to keep him alive!" Faredir's voice shot back. "I need his chest-plate and anchor!" Winter opened his eyes through the pain and saw that no one had moved. Faredir grabbed flint with his free claw and shoved him towards the door. "Do as I say! Else he'll be dead in the next five minutes!"

"M-Moon," he rasped.

He heard shuffling sounds before her face appeared in his vision. She was crying, too. "I'm here, Winter."

He tried to form more words but couldn't, so she leaned in closer. "I love you, too," he whispered into her ear.

She leaned back, her face now held determination. "Which is why you need to stay alive. Fight! Just a little longer!"

His eyes were getting heavy again, but another blast of electricity had him screaming again. He looked to her again with tears in his eyes as he broadcasted a single thought to her. As long as you're with me, I'll never stop fighting. She gasped. And he screamed.

He didn't know how long that cycle went on, but for him it felt like an eternity of suffering. Several times he just wanted it all to end. He could have stopped struggling and accepted his fate any number of times, but every time such a thought popped into his mind, he would look at Moon. The sight of her gave him the strength he needed to go on. He didn't know when it was, but at some point he felt her claws entwine with his.

Then, at long last, Faredir spoke. "This might hurt at first, but it'll save your life." Without any other warning, his chest-plate and anchor was placed atop his chest where his wound was. Once again, he screamed at the contact and the last thing he saw before he fell unconscious was a brilliant flash of white.

AN: I realize that that's one hell of a cliffhanger to leave off on, but it was too good a place to stop. I'm hoping the next chapter will be up by mid-May, and I'll try to do a few chapters of Brighter Future between now and then to at least get something posted. Other than that, I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll be back as soon as I can.

Until Next Time

AdmiralCole22