"We have to fly again?" Karin glanced warily at the blue dragon. "No offense, Myndræl."
"The only way to Dragon Isle is by dragon back." Toshiro replied, Myndræl shrugging at her last comment.
"Well, okay."
"It'll be a little cold." He warned as he mounted, ice suddenly spreading across the dragon's body under him. "I do this to protect me from the scales, Myndræl doesn't like saddles."
"And he likes being frozen?" Karin quirked an eyebrow, taking his offered hand as he assisted her up to sit behind him. It was indeed cold.
"He's an ice dragon, he likes it."
To confirm, Myndræl purred and she laughed as she felt it through her body.
"It's a quick flight, you won't be cold long. Hold on tight, though."
She obliged, putting her arms around him as Myndræl spread his wings. The young prince tensed a bit as his heart raced but he quickly calmed it back down. This was not the time to be embarrassed.
'You like her and she's holding onto you, of course this will happen.' Hyorinmaru snorted.
'Damn hormones…' He shook it from his mind as his partner took off, Karin's grip tightening, and they headed for the floating island.
"Only a few of them are friendly." He told Karin, looking over his shoulder at her. "About five or so are pets of sorts to the Greenleaf Family, the rest don't really bother with others and they tend to act superior."
"They sound lovely." Came her sarcastic remark. He rolled his eyes and looked ahead again.
True to his word, the flight was quick as Myndræl landed in the clearing, some of the other dragons moving to the edge as they spotted the two riders. Lilianna was there to greet them, playing with Shimmer once more, and the diamond beauty he'd learned was called Dimara nodded her head to them in greeting before returning to her watch. She was the biggest dragon there, but there was apparently a bigger one that he hadn't met yet, a female whose daughter resided on the island.
Toshiro heard Karin gasp in wonder behind him and smirked slightly. Yes, the dragons were impressive. He helped her off and Myndræl walked away to speak to his drake friends, Shadow and Shaderunner. They were the closest in age to each other.
"The dragonling returns." Lilianna smiled. She turned away slightly as Shimmer clambered onto the violet dragon's back, tiny clear wings flapping madly to balance herself out. The older dragon pushed her all the way up with her snout and Karin giggled, finding the situation adorable. "Ah, and you've brought one with you…though, hers isn't quite a dragon."
"Eh?" Karin looked confused now.
"The spirit within you." Lilianna lowered her head and Toshiro pushed the girl forward. She turned to look at him nervous, and he just smiled slightly and motioned her onward. "A dragon yet not a dragon. Perhaps a basilisk or wyvern, I'm not positive which."
"Aren't wyverns a kind of dragon?" Karin questioned.
"Of a sort. Wyverns tend to be…how should I put it? Hm…" The violet dragon debated internally while Shimmer attempted to climb up her neck, gripping onto the silky mane with tiny paws. "Ah, more instinctual. See, dragons have more wisdom than most creatures, allowing them to branch off into other elements such as the ice dragon Myndræl. Wyverns retain our old forms and instincts and reserve their powers strictly for fire. Still a powerful breed just not as, diverse or…experienced."
Karin could tell the violet dragon was trying to be polite about the explanation but couldn't help feeling slightly insulted. Before she could reply, the white dragon slipped off of Lilianna's neck and she moved quickly to catch her.
"Careful there, you'll get hurt." Karin smiled at the baby which gave a feline-like purr and smiled back at her. "Probably shouldn't climb so high until those wings of yours work, eh?"
Shimmer giggled and nodded to her, flapping her tiny wings to show she understood what the human meant.
"Despite the differences in your powers, Shimmer seems to have taken a liking to you." Lilianna grinned as she watched the crystal dragonling crawl onto Karin's shoulder and curl around her neck like a scaly scarf.
"What kind of dragon is she?" Toshiro asked. He'd never thought to ask before, as Shimmer was still young and probably didn't have powers.
"Little Shimmer hasn't quite proved her talents yet, but I have recognized a subtle light within her matching that of a healing dragon's."
"Then she'd probably like my twin better." Karin smirked. "I cause the injuries, Yuzu fixes them."
The violet dragon chuckled at that before moving her head closer to Karin. Shimmer obeyed the silent command and climbed on before being moved to rest within Lilianna's wings.
"You're good with dragonlings, young one." The violet dragon turned back to Karin. "What is your name?"
"Karin Kurosaki."
"Lady Karin, would it be any trouble to watch over Shimmer? The other dragonesses and I take turns but there are hardly any of us that stay here long enough, we keep ourselves spread out across the lands. This is the place dragons go to have full protection from others and to raise their young."
"What happened to Shimmer's mother?" Karin frowned.
"She was killed by another dragon when she went out to help her mate. Dragons are by no means peaceful, that's why this sanctuary was made. There are no fights within these walls; Lady Ruala's magic makes sure of such."
Karin cast a sympathetic glance to the shimmering white dragon looking up at her with eyes of light green like a new leaf.
"I don't know…I have no idea how to babysit a dragon."
"How long are you to stay in this realm?" Lilianna instead questioned.
"Um…I don't know." The black haired girl turned to Toshiro. The young prince shrugged; he didn't know either. He hadn't been expecting her in the first place. "I should get back to everyone; they'll be worrying about me."
Lilianna did not miss the hint of sadness that passed Toshiro's expression as she said this.
"Can your sister see spirits?" The violet dragon asked.
"Yeah, she could see them starting a few months ago." Karin quirked an eyebrow before realizing what the dragoness was getting at. "Oh no, I can't take a baby dragon home with me. Even if only certain people could see her, it would be hard to hide her since we'd have to keep a constant eye on her."
"Shimmer can be surprisingly quiet when the situation calls for it." Lilianna grinned, reaching down to gently nuzzle said dragonling. "I believe she senses your sister through you and wishes to meet her."
"But my sister doesn't have any powers to speak of; she's the most normal out of all of us. She can't have a dragon partner."
"You'd be surprised about the kind of partner dragons pick, Lady Karin. Healing dragons actually prefer those with little power and a kind heart."
Toshiro stepped past Karin and knelt down next to Shimmer. The crystal dragon purred happily at him and accepted his hand as he petted her.
"Perhaps if a dragon were to help you." Lilianna suggested to Karin, motioning at the Ice Prince before her.
"Lilianna, I can't return to the World of the Living." Toshiro frowned up at her. "Not yet."
"Oh you're both so stubborn." The violet dragon snorted and the people she spoke of shared a confused glance. Dragons; so cryptic. Then, Lilianna picked up the tiny dragon and once more placed her in Karin's arms. "As long as you're here you can take care of her. She's ready to fall asleep at the moment so you don't have to do much yet, and Myndræl can assist you if you need it."
"Um…okay."
The violet dragon was about to say her farewells, Myndræl already heading back over as Toshiro called him, when another dragon landed beside her. It was a dragoness, a little younger than Myndræl, and fiery crimson with golden swirls along her backside, crimson wings hiding some of the swirls, and black spines down her back. Her underbelly was darker red and she was better muscled than Myndræl, the ice-water dragon built for speed and maneuverability. Amber eyes locked onto Karin and the dragon grinned, lifting her head high. She was the same size Myndræl had been when he'd approached Toshiro.
"Well, Dyrilæn." Lilianna quirked an eyebrow at the crimson dragoness. "Is there something you need?"
"Yes." Dyrilæn replied. "Her."
Karin blinked in surprise and Toshiro tensed. This fire dragon wasn't the friendliest with humans. Myndræl sensed his partner's worry and stepped forward threateningly. The fire dragon frowned at him, realizing that this dragon was partner to the Soul Prince and therefore superior.
"I believe she wants to partner with your friend, dragonling." Lilianna said to Toshiro.
The fire drake nodded.
"Her spirit is wilder than most humans." Dyrilæn bowed to Karin, just as Myndræl had bowed to Toshiro. "Shall we partner up?"
"The dragons like you as much as they like me." Toshiro relaxed once the drake's motives were known and smirked at her.
"There is a dragon for every strong spirit." Lilianna replied mysteriously. "We may not be around at the same time, nor are we always in physical form, such as Hyorinmaru, but we are always watching our partners. It is rare for a dragon to find the one their soul connects with."
"Guess we're one of the lucky ones." Karin said to the crimson dragon. She grinned and bent her head down so her new partner could pet her. "Great, now I have two dragons to look after."
"You have no idea." Toshiro shook his head in mock disappointment, looking amused, before moving to sit atop his dragon and freezing over the scales.
"Okay Shimmer, hold on tight." Karin had the white dragon crawl back onto her shoulder again before mounting Dyrilæn, not sure what she could do to protect against the scales like Toshiro did with the ice. "Back to your place, then?" She said to the young prince.
"Is there somewhere else you want to go?" He replied, raising an eyebrow.
"Not particularly." She shrugged.
"Then yes, we're going back to 'my place'."
Karin noticed a subtle shift in his posture and Myndræl lifted off quickly. She attempted to copy the posture, one hand up to keep hold of Shimmer, and Dyrilæn took off as well. She was sure there were certain movements she could do to tell her dragon where to fly without speaking as Toshiro seemed so expert at, but for now she just clung on tightly while the crimson drake followed the blue one back to the palace.
Down below, Lilianna watched the two figures retreat.
"Interesting choice of a mate you have, Dragon King." She whispered to herself. "Ice Prince and Fire Princess…it will be interesting to see how their dragons go through with this match up. Myndræl and Dyrilæn were always rather distant with one another."
She moved over to the edge and laid down to sleep, something she hadn't been able to do in a while with Shimmer in her care. She hadn't the heart to tell Karin that she was the only dragoness taking care of Shimmer, as no other dragon felt they had time for the baby, not even the ever watchful Dimara, too busy keeping watch over the island to babysit.
The two dragons alighted upon the top of the palace and their riders dismounted. Karin stumbled a bit until strong arms righted her balance. She forced her blush down and looked up into Toshiro's eyes, noticing with some annoyance that he seemed amused by this. Shimmer purred at him and reached her head out, grabbing his attention as he petted the small crystal dragon.
They didn't go inside straight away, the young prince telling his companion that she should get to know her new partner. As she and Dyrilæn did just that, Toshiro watched over the drowsy Shimmer, setting her in his lap while Myndræl hummed a soft tune that soon had the tiny dragon fast asleep.
"I think Yuzu would like her." Karin commented and he looked up at her. "Shimmer, I mean."
"I have no doubt." He was running his hand down the dragon's back as she purred in her sleep. "It's hard not to like this one."
"You've already got a partner, Ice Prince." The crimson dragon snorted in amusement. He cast a glare at her and she ducked her head a bit. His ice was definitely stronger than her fire.
"When Nakryin gets back from training the others I'll see to getting you home, Karin." Toshiro instead turned back to Karin.
"Training?" Karin questioned.
"When I told everyone what was going on I knew they wouldn't listen to me when I told them to stay out of it." He smirked slightly. "So if they're going to butt in, I might as well offer them a fighting chance. You were supposed to be with them now, not here with the dragons, but fate seems to be against you."
"I wouldn't say that, I did get a new friend." Karin patted Dyrilæn with a big grin and the dragon returned the smile. "What if I trained here with you?"
The words were out of her mouth before she knew it and she wished she could take them back, especially when he frowned, expression serious.
"That won't be possible, unfortunately." He sighed. She was curious about the 'unfortunately' he'd added on to the end. "That pendant protects you from the intense Spirit Energy of this realm; training under it would be a bad idea. I don't intend on anyone coming here until they've reached Captain level power at least, though I suppose your brother would be among the first able to do so."
Karin snorted at that; her brother was a big powerhouse, of course he could survive here.
"Anyway, you can stay the night here for now. The Demon Lords might still be out looking, no sense sending you right back into their midst."
"Thanks." She grinned at him, a small one that truly showed her gratefulness. Toshiro quickly looked back down at Shimmer in his lap, not trusting his heart to remain steady.
'Confess.' The zanpaktous of both Reapers demanded.
'Shut up.' Their masters both replied back, showing no outward sign of that conversation.
Karin followed Toshiro inside as he carried Shimmer. He led her to a spare room on his father's floor and handed the sleeping dragon over, telling her that Lilianna had entrusted the dragonling to her, not him, before he left. He did so reluctantly, lingering a bit at her door, but Karin assumed he was worried for the dragonling. She tucked the creature into the covers before sitting in the bed herself, wondering what she was supposed to do now.
Because I love ya'll and school is starting soon, I'm gonna double update again! ^^ Catch up a little to my actual spot in the story, i'm way ahead.
So Karin gets a dragon, and it looks like Yuzu will too, and these damned confessions will not come! (Oh they'll get there ;D ) I suppose I should be introducing demons soon, the two Solar Five girls haven't been doing anything recently. Meh, we'll get there. Enjoy!