Ellie sat with her knees curled up against her chest. Her wings protected her from the gale, but not much. She was trapped in a cold, wintery wasteland with a very dismal dragon. The magical bonds that Spurr had used to ensnare them had faded away a few hours ago, and since then, Elkay hadn't so much as spoken a single word. She was sitting in the snow with her back turned to Ellie. She had the same posture as the day she found out that Nublar had been firebombed. Ellie didn't know what to say to comfort her. She was a little nervous that the dragon would blame her for Zebil's death. Maybe it was her fault. She didn't really know.

Finally, drawing up all of her courage, Ellie slid over to where Elkay was sitting. She put her hand on the dragon's arm, but she didn't react. Ellie pulled away and sighed.

"Elkay, I didn't mean for him to die. I never thought in a million years that Spurr would . . . I mean . . . I'm sorry."

Elkay didn't respond. Ellie bit her lip.

"I wish I could have saved Zebil, but-"

"Richard."

Ellie blinked.

"Sorry, what?"

Elkay stared ahead with glazed eyes.

"His real name was Richard."

Ellie nodded and rested her chin on her knees. After a moment, Elkay reached over slowly and picked her up, holding her in the crook of her arm. Ellie prepared to break free and run for her life.

"Listen, I would have saved him if I could, but-"

She felt large tears landing on her shoulders. Elkay pressed her face against Ellie and started sobbing.

"He's gone, Ellie. He's gone forever."

Ellie hugged her snout.

"I'm sorry . . ."

"I don't have any friends from Asterpara. He was the only one. We've had each other for billions of years. Now he's gone, and he's never coming back, because he's not going to the Beneath. He was good. He was good, and I'm never going to see him again. I'm all alone."

Ellie felt tears streaming down her own cheeks.

"I'm so, so sorry. I wish I had just kept my mouth shut."

The dragon whimpered and squeezed her tightly.

"You're all I have now. You're all that's left."

Ellie swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Shhh. It's okay. I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving . . ."

They sat together for a while, both sobbing quietly. After a moment, Elkay placed her granddaughter gently in the snow.

"We're stuck here."

"No, we aren't. We can always fly back."

Elkay shook her head.

"I can't. I can't go back. I can't face my mother again. I have to stay here. You can go alone. Just go."

Ellie closed her eyes. After a moment, she sat down.

"I'm not leaving. Whatever happens, it doesn't matter to me. I promised to stay by your side, and that's what I'm gonna do."

Elkay wiped her eyes.

"But you have a story to narrate."

Ellie gave a weak smile.

"Family is more important."

Elkay whimpered quietly and picked her up again. Ellie returned the hug.

"I'm sorry for making your life so much more complicated than it needed to be," Elkay whispered.

"That's okay," Ellie replied, "If I was given the choice to do it over again, I wouldn't change a thing."

They said nothing after that, but they didn't really have to. Ellie knew that her grandmother needed her, and she was prepared to stay with her for as long as possible.

Ellie wasn't joking when she said that she wouldn't change the past if she could; up until she was thrown into the middle of a raging ice storm, things were going pretty well for her. She liked her life. She liked her family, she liked her friends, and she liked the home she'd made for herself. All of that took precedence over a stupid little story. As much as she was needed elsewhere, nothing could be more important than this.

No matter what, she couldn't let anyone feel unloved.