Author's Note – This is set in Children Of Dawn chapter 10 – Wanderlust.
Moon-Dancer and his sister strolled around the outside of the group of ground-kin, many of whom were dancing at this bonding and food-eating ceremony.
He and she had agreed on being present at this event because they wanted opportunities to get to know ground-kin better. Maybe even find some that might be life-bond ground-kin. Neither of them knew how finding such a life-bond was supposed to happen, but meeting young ground-kin was probably a good place to start.
"See any, sister?"
"Maybe them over there," she nodded toward a group of three ground-kin sitting at a table.
He recognized their faces but not their names, "Yes, we should meet them."
At their approach, the two young males grumbled while the female rolled her eyes.
"Great, the talking dragons. If only they could speak proper," the female huffed.
Yes, it is great we are here.
"Yeah, the Chief's... spawn," a male muttered.
No, we are not playing a game of deep caves and sky-kin. Silly ground-kin.
Something about how these three did not look at him, preferring to stare away from him and his sister, was liver-chilling.
"Hello, I am Moon-Danncerr."
"I am Hiddenn-Hope!" his sister blurted out.
"What arre yourr nnamess?" he purred.
"Borlasson." "Daeronson." "Gudmundsdottir."
"Do youu wannt to talk about the feasst?" he asked.
"Nope." "Not with you." "Leave us alone."
Even though he did not know these ground-kin, he still felt like he had been hit or had cold water thrown in his face. These three did not want to talk about anything with him and his sister?
What did we do wrong?
He and Hidden-Hope trotted away on their own and sat by the side of the great-hall-den.
"What was that? Why were they cold to us?" she warbled.
"I do not know. Maybe it was a test of us as possible life-bonds. Maybe they were just being tail-twisted."
He spotted Kin-liver nearby. That trusted ground-kin could surely answer any questions he and his sister had about finding life-bond friends. But he also did not like running to someone else for help in living life. It was entirely possible that finding a life-bond friend was something that could not be learned, instead needing to happen on its own.
"Could the happy-water-wine twist their thinking?" Hidden-Hope asked.
"Yes, if they were drinking it."
"Is it... is it that we are not grown big yet?"
"No. Erevan, Alvor, and Safiya became life-bond ground-kin when Dawn-Singer, Aurora, and Rain-Eater were as grown as we are. The problem is something else. Maybe we are just not good enough for them," he sighed.
He glanced at opposite sides of the great-hall-den. On one side stood Erevan and Helga beside Dawn-Singer, Flies-With-Sun, and Moon-Pinner. On the other side were Alvor and Safiya with Aurora and Rain-Eater. They all looked happy and content.
"Maybe we should just sleep. Sleeping by the fire would be warming," he proposed.
"Really, sleeping by a fire is warming?" she huffed.
"Yes, I am surprised you did not know that."
She growled and snapped at his neck before following him over to lie down beside the fire. Between the warmth of the fire, his full belly, the constant noise, and the lingering twistedness in his liver at how strange ground-kin could be, he found it hard to stay awake.
His memories of the great-hall-den in Haven were good ones. This one would be no different in time.
Flies-With-Sun had seen many strange and twisted things from the ground-kin in her time with them in her life-flight. They had never been in the hidden world, and she knew nothing of them before finding them here.
Two of the ground-kin in particular were close to her liver. Erevan and Helga were sitting at a table while Moon-Pinner stood by the table, listening to whatever they were talking about with their kin.
It always amazed her how warm Erevan's liver was to her life-mate and her little one. He was always respectful, playful, and considerate to them. Helga was the same as her nestmate brother. She was especially warm to Moon-Pinner and had helped a lot in teaching her ground-kin words.
Dawn-Singer had shared his back and wings with both of them through the many cycles. There was warmth in their doing so.
She remembered Dawn-Singer's funny but also chilling story of how Erevan had once started thinking of him as a life-thrall, as his wings to use, or something twisted like that. Erevan had learned and changed his ways by biting out his rotted thinking. She had always feared that Helga might be similar. Nestmates tended to think similarly on many life-ways.
On the other paw, she had never seen any rotted thinking from Helga. She knew that Helga wanted something from her. It felt like a part of a ceremony in a way. Sky-kin and ground-kin who cared a lot for the other should go flying together.
Something had been changing in her liver ever since Helga started holding Moon-Pinner and bonding with her even from a hatchling. It was as though everything Helga did was proof of who she was in her liver. Her life was proof that she did not see sky-kin as things, but instead as life with life-fire like her. Maybe she had learned from her brother's mistake in the above or did not need to learn that lesson.
"I am so twisted," she sighed.
"Why?" Dawn-Singer purred.
"Because I have waited too long to do this."
"To do what?"
She got to her paws and nodded to Helga, "I want Helga to fly with me."
She smugly purred at how Dawn-Singer's jaw fell open in a ground-kin way of showing surprise.
"Very good! Why now?" he asked.
"Because I want her to now."
He looked like questioning her, but he did not, "Good. Should we fly?"
"You take Erevan, I take Helga, and Moon-Pinner can fly with us. You... need to talk for me," she grumbled.
"I will," he answered.
Together, they strode to Erevan and Helga, both of whom saw them approaching and waved their paws in greeting.
Please be good and like this...
"Helga, guessss what?" Dawn-Singer purred.
"I didn't do it! My brother did it!" Helga protested.
"Fliess-With-Ssunn wanntss you to fly with herr."
Helga stood up and stared at her in great surprise, "Really?"
She purred and nodded back as Helga held her neck in thanks and bonding.
"When?" Erevan asked.
"Nnow if you arre rready. We cann all fly."
"Let's go then! No saddles, right?" Erevan asked.
"Nno ssaddless."
She entirely agreed with that. The carrying-with saddles were not only strange to carry but they also felt like things that could too easily make the sky-kin into a thing that is used. This way, no saddles, made it only a flight-sharing by two kin who respected the other.
Moon-Pinner hopped before her, tail swaying, "Dam-mother, will you fly and carry Helga?"
"Yes, little one. I will do that."
"Yay! I will fly with you!"
She, Dawn-Singer, Moon-Pinner, Erevan, and Helga left the great-hall-den. Being out of the den brought a lot more quiet, especially since they were away from the ground-kin who drank too much of the happy-water. Erevan and Helga had no problems walking, probably because they did not drink much.
Helga walked at her shoulder while resting a paw on her neck, "Thank you very much, Flies-With-Sun. I've wanted to fly with you for so long, you know."
She nodded and purred.
So have I, even if I did not know until now.
They arrived at the nearest grassy clearing. With much practice, Erevan hopped onto Dawn-Singer's back.
Not sure what to do, she crouched down and let Helga carefully climb flat on her back. It was strange to have a ground-kin's weight on her back for the first time.
Dawn-Singer, Erevan, and Moon-Pinner were then gently gliding above her, having already taken flight.
My turn now...
Helga lay flat on her back and gently held the base of her wings.
She took a deep breath to steady herself and then took flight. Hers was a calm and simple flight with no spinning, tricks, or flaming. This was her first shared flight with Helga, a ground-kin whom she was truly ready to name as kin to her.
In truth, Helga had been like nest-kin for a long time already, but this flight-sharing ceremony made it more real. They still had far to go to become as close as Erevan and her life-mate or Aurora and Rain-Eater were with their life-bond ground-kin. But she was not them and was not comparing Helga to those ground-kin. Whatever her and hers friendship would be like, it would be theirs.
Dawn-Singer brushed her wing while softly roaring. Moon-Pinner answered the roar from her other side.
She glanced back over her shoulder and saw Helga sitting upright on her back, her arms held out so her false-furs flowed in the flight-wind.
What will she do for sky-kin false-hides? There are not enough dropped white scales from me and Luna for a full false-hide our color. Oh well, we will fly those caves eventually!
For now, she was content to glide above the shared-nest with her life-mate and her fledgling at her side in the familiar and bounded skies she knew so well.
Alvor was eager for this mission, even if he was also a little worried. Finally, after three years he would get to go out there and see far more!
Everyone had heard stories from Dragonheart and the Furies about how dangerous the rest of the hidden world was. The problem was always dangerous dragons. But no dragons were more dangerous than Furies.
He considered his few possessions on his side of the room. There was not much he'd need to bring with him on this coming journey. His leather and scale armor, a few changes of clothing, a simple hunting knife, and his necklace were all he really needed.
Being forced to share a room with his sister the last few years had not been pleasant, mostly because he wanted to have space of his own. The feeling was mutual. Maybe the Furies liked piling together to rest as a big family, but humans not so much.
At least he and she would have more space to themselves while on this adventure.