Sorry if the story's been kind of bland so far. Between stress and a cold, my writing just hasn't been up to standards.

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Rose swatted low hanging branches and bushes aside. She ignored the pain as brambles scraped her skin making small cuts. Her mind was racing with thoughts of Draco being involved in a life or death struggle with some unseen adversary. She immediately placed Kane as the culprit.

She could hear the sounds of a struggle as she neared Draco. Draco and who ever he was fighting weren't the only ones involved. Panic gripped her and she ran faster, tripping over exposed tree roots. The echoes of the battle bounced off the rock walls on either side of her, making it difficult to pinpoint the source. She didn't know how close she really was until the protective covering of the forest fell away and she found herself out in the open.

The first thing she saw was a seven-foot-tall wolfish looking monster. It leapt on Draco's back and sank its teeth into the back of his neck. The dragon roared in fury more than pain and struggled to dislodge the creature. Bowen was trying to shoot the monster with his bow and arrow, but it would be near impossible not to hit Draco in the process.

Rose immediately dashed to Draco's aid. She climbed onto his back, which was difficult considering how much he was bucking and rearing, and snuck up on the monster attacking him. Her staff crackled and sparked for a few seconds until it had built up enough energy, and she took aim at the creature's exposed back. Suddenly, one of its ears swiveled back and its head followed suit. Its blood red eyes narrowed and it snarled, revealing a mouth full of terrifyingly sharp fangs. He lost interest in Draco and went for Rose. She dove off the dragon's back and whipped around to face him.

He was airborne and about to land, fangs first, on her. There was a blur of black and brown, and Rose found herself perched atop Bowen's horse, sitting in his lap. She saw the beast lying in the dirt several yards away, painfully picking himself up off the ground. There were gashes in his side resembling claw marks—dragon claws to be precise. The muscles in his body tensed and he settled a red cold glare on Rose. Draco roared threateningly. The beast regarded him with a look of annoyance, but chose not to continue the fight. He glanced at Rose--a promise that he would be back--and dissolved into the dark foliage. There was nothing the least bit cowardly about his retreat. It was as if he didn't consider Draco or Bowen much of a threat.

Rose found herself focusing on other matters. Removing herself from Bowens lap, for one. She leapt to the ground, grinning inwardly at the embarrassment the dragon slayer was trying to hide. She came to the next item that needed to be taken care of: any injuries Draco might have suffered. Upon inspection, the bite on his neck hadn't gone deep at all and there wasn't any bleeding that she could see. Now she had some questions that demanded answering.

"What were you guys doing out here?" she asked crossing her arms. "This is a good ways from the campsite, so I believe you two have some explaining to do."

"I went out to find some breakfast before you woke up and I ran into that thing," Draco explained. "Bowen came and tried to help me."

Rose seemed satisfied with the answer. Suddenly, there was a whirring noise, and, in front of the group, a sparking blue tornado touched the ground. They all backed away apprehensively, Rose readying her staff. The tornado stirred up dust and leaves, making it almost impossible to see. It spat out two large shapes and three smaller ones, then died down. They waited anxiously for the dust to settle.

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Short chapter, I know.