Surprise! I Finally managed to end this chapter before the exams. Thank you for your patience and welcome to all the new followers. I hope you are enjoying the journey far.

-Azotac

Auros, Nix and Gaia were staying under the shade of a rocky ruin when they saw their two friends directing towards Spyro's hut. The white dragon noticed that the purple dragon's morale seemed to be sombre and sad.

"Maybe they told him about that soldier…"He said to himself. Upon noticing his still visible limp, his mood saddened. He couldn't help but to feel sorry for his violet friend, as he partially felt guilty for all that happened to him in the recent days. Auros actually hated himself a bit for getting injured so early during the assault of Warfang, denying him the possibility to defend his friends and new home from the grublins. He sighed sadly, dropping his head low, with the thought of all that happened during the last week bearing his mind. The azure dragoness, which was beside him, noticed his sudden drop of morale. She hesitated a second, but then unfurled her wing on the larger white dragon's back, caressing his scales gently. Auros turned his eyes to face her, smiling weakly. The dragoness nuzzled his cheek gently, which made the white dragon shudder automatically. His tension eased a bit, comforted by her presence. Soon after they broke the contact and parted a bit, with Auros aiming his snout at the sky above them. Nix watched him for sometime, trying to find a way to distract or cheer him up. She didn't like to see his usual smiley face spoiled by that frown.

"Auros?"Asked Nix, suddenly.

"Yes?"

"Would you like to go for a walk…with me?"Asked timidly the azure dragoness, moving her eyes to her surroundings.

"It's really a beautiful day and I'd like to see more of this place, before we leave."She concluded, turning her gaze back to the youngster. Auros nodded smiling.

"Of course, I'd love to. But we should ask to the Guardians first. I don't think it's good just to leave without anyone knowing."He stated, standing up.

"Wait me here, I'm gonna ask Master Terrador. I'll be back in a minute."He reassured, trotting away. Nix watched him leave, while beside her, Gaia began to stir.

"You're taking him out for a walk?"She asked, with her muzzle curling into a malicious smile.

"Wanna get some privacy to…explore him?"She then said, jabbing gently her friend. Nix reddened instantly, shoving away the earth dragoness with her forepaw.

"Gaia! I would never…"She then stopped.

"We're barely at the beginning…and we're far too young."She concluded. The azure dragoness watched her friend.

"Do you mind if we leave you here, while we're away?"She asked.

"Nah, I'll be taking a nap. All that swimming and eating seriously tired me out."Replied the green dragoness, laying back on the sand.

"I'll leave you two lovebirds alone."She concluded resting her head on her forepaws. Soon after, Auros came back and with Nix they walked outside the camp, moving southward.

The coastline extended endlessly in front of their eyes, losing itself in the horizon and in the blue of the ocean. The sky was dotted with white clouds that partially obscured the Sun at their passing. Around them the environment remained unchanged, apart for the gradual disappearance of the ruins that marked the spot of the camp. On their left they could see the outskirts of the eastern forest and far in the distance, almost completely hidden in the mist and clouds, there were the mountains from which they rescued their purple friend.

The two youngsters walked with their paws in the low water, letting the sea caress their scales. Nix turned her gaze from the beautiful nature around her, to the dragon beside her. She had to admit he was quite nice-looking. His form was generally well built, with strong muscles visible under his candid white scales, which partially reflected the colours of the sea. The gold hue of his chest and horns gleamed in the sunlight, his muzzle tinted with a relaxed smile. She returned the focus back on his scales and she noticed with disbelief the quantity of scars that marked his form. The one he received in the assault of Warfang still clearly visible on his flank, even after a week and several red gems. She frowned at that sight, as in her sparked a bit of curiosity and pity for the white drake. Nix actually realised that, apart for his name and the fact he was really kind and good-looking, she did really nothing more about him. However before she could open her mouth, Auros spoke.

"Would you like to know why they don't go away?"He asked. The dragoness remained dumbstruck at first by the sudden question. He must have surely noticed that she was staring. Nix cursed herself in her mind, before answering him.

"I just…noticed that they didn't already fade. So yes, I would like to know, if you want to tell me, of course."She replied shyly. Auros replied with a smile, before sighing.

"I have a…"He then paused, a frown coming on his features."I don't even really know how to call it, honestly…"He sighed."It should be an intolerance to red gems. They actually cure me, but the process his rather painful and in addition they leave these scars, which takes a lot of time to fade away."He added, turning his gaze away."The only who know about this…problem of mine are the Guardians as well with Spyro and Cynder. Actually Master Volteer offered to help me, but his research has been quite unproductive."He concluded. Nix pondered with almost disbelief his words, as she never heard of something so debilitating and by the helplessness in which he spoke, it made it seem that wasn't something curable. She got closer to him, draping her wing over his back. He replied with his usual gentle smile and a delicate nuzzle on her forehead. Soon after they stopped on the shore, sitting in the sand, one near each other admiring the beautiful scenery before them. Auros lost his gaze in the horizon, where the blue of the sea met the one of the sky. The hypnotic sound of the crushing waves was gently cradling his mind, making him focus again on all that happened recently. However this time he didn't let himself drag away by the worries, as he returned his attention to the moment he was living right now, standing beside a beautiful dragoness, in a beautiful landscape. He turned to gaze her, following the lines of her slender but strong body with his eyes. The translucent colour of her scales was reflecting the light of the sun, shimmering brightly. The silver of her horns mixed beautifully with the blue of the sky as her astonishing eyes were lost in the horizon. He smiled at himself, feeling the luckiest dragon in the world in having the chance to share his time with such an astonishing creature.

"It's really beautiful out here, thank you for asking me to come with you."He finally said, returning his gaze to the landscape. Nix turned to face him, but before she could talk he continued.

"But I think we should head back now, we moved quite far away from the camp."He stated. The dragoness blinked few times, before nodding in acceptance.

"You're right. Let's go."She said, before unfurling her wings and darting up in the sky, raising a cloud of sand. Auros coughed and blinked quickly in order to shove away the sand and then took the sky after her. The white dragon reached her in seconds, flying to her right. They smiled at each other before speeding up the pace.

It took them a dozen of minutes of steady flight to return the base camp. They landed softly near the ruin where there was Gaia, still sleeping soundly under the shade of the crumbled wall.

Cynder left the hut after keeping company to her lover. Their little swim actually took him a lot of energy and in addition the bad news about the fallen soldier struck him deeply. Of course, even if Terrador told him that it wasn't his fault, Spyro still felt guilty for the passing of the fire soldier. He cried for some minutes, with the black dragoness by his side, consoling him. In the end, when all the emotional was burden released from his wounded body, he drifted into sleep, comforted by Cynder's company. She couldn't feel more sorry form him. It wasn't right that he suffered even more after all he's been trough, but still he couldn't find peace, not with his self-imposed guilt clinging his heart.

Outside the small structure he found Sparx hovering in front of the entering.

"How's he going?"Asked worriedly the golden dragonfly.

"His wounds are almost healed, but his leg still pains him a tad…"

"And to make things even worse, he feels guilty for what happened to the fallen soldier."She added sadly.

"It was predictable… I mean it's my bro we're talking about. Always piling everything on his purple shoulders."Replied Sparx.

"Yeah…".

There was an awkward silence between the two for sometime, until the dragonfly broke the eerie calm, his sigh taking by surprise the black dragoness.

"You know, I feel quite an asshole right now…"Stated the golden bug. Cynder raised her brow in disbelief.

"I feel like I never really worried for him, like a real brother would and should do… He's been always with me"He chuckled sombrely." I can say I took him for granted…"

"Even when you returned from the battle with Malefor I didn't think I could really lose him. Yes it did cross my mind, and I grieved for a couple of minutes, but then I remembered he is the strongest dragon in the world so my preoccupation faded."He paused.

"But when I saw what happened to him in that…cave, what those monster have done to him… my confidence just crumbled."He sighed.

"I saw my only brother and best friend almost fade away before my eyes and I…I did nothing to help him, if not making jokes."He concluded. The black dragoness remained completely dumbfounded by his words. Actually she never expected that she could hear a serious speech by Sparx, maybe these last days made him mature more quickly than the last few years of his life. She suddenly felt pity for the poor dragonfly, as she moved closer with her muzzle to him. Cynder nuzzled gently the dragonfly, which was taken a back for a second.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to comfort you, idiot."She replied. The dragonfly reluctantly placed his tiny hand on her nose, feeling the back scales gently warmed by afternoon the sun.

"You know…you're not that bad"He added.

"Oh Ancestors! A compliment from the Mighty Sparx?! Is the world ending again?"She said ironically.

"Yeah, yeah, don't get used to it…"His mouth curled into a mischievous grin.

"Cyn".

"How did you call me?"She replied sternly, but before she could act, the dragonfly had already speeded away from the youngster. Cynder snorted a puff of black smoke, gazing her lover's brother running away.

"He's back to normal, it seems."She thought, before turning back into the hut. She curled herself around the sleeping figure of the purple dragon, which was resting calmly on the leaves-made bed. She licked swiftly his cheek, making him unconsciously smile. He hummed gently, before shifting a bit the position of his head, letting the dragoness get a bit more comfy. She inspected again his body, as she caressed his neck with one paw. He was getting better, he just needed some more time. Cynder remained in silence, watching over him for all the time, while outside the sun slowly shifted in the sky.

Spyro woke with Cynder curled around him, covering his body with her magenta wings. He smiled at the sensation of the dragoness's scales against his own, her warmth flooded his heart with peace and calm. He tried to stay still, but her beady eyes were already open only few seconds later, eyeing wearily the purple dragon.

"Good morning."He said, nuzzling her cheek.

" 'Morning, handsome."She replied the nuzzle. The last day of permanence by the coast passed rather quickly and smoothly for him, since he rested for all the afternoon and slept early in the evening. He felt a bit better than the last morning, with a bit more energy in his limbs and a strong will of returning home after his rather long and daunting imprisonment. He nuzzled again his black companion before rolling on his belly a slowly pushing himself up, his right foreleg trembled a bit at the sudden strain, but he managed to stand on his paws without a flinch. Spyro then unfurled gently his wings, exercising them a bit, joints popping at the movements. He smiled, feeling no more muscular pain in his back, after all he may be able to fly home by himself today, as he didn't want to be another burden to the group. Cynder eyed him with a curious smile, before addressing him.

"You seem to be healing more quickly."She said getting closer to him, licking his cheek."I'm glad that you're feeling a bit better."She said lovingly.

"Yeah, me too. I really want to go home as soon as possible, I don't want to burden you guys even more."

"Spyro, you're never a burden. Some guards out there said that they're honoured to be chosen to rescue you."Replied the black dragoness. Spyro shook his head sadly.

"Still, someone lost his life because of me…"

Cynder pressed him muzzle against his in order to comfort him, then slide her head down until their foreheads met together.

"None of this is you fault, remember Terrador's words."She said, with a firm yet gentle tone. The Guardian's words returned afloat in the purple dragon's mind, easing a bit the guilt clenching his heart. He sighed.

They stood like that for some other moments, until Cynder pulled away, smiling at him.

"C'mon, we should prepare to leave."She said gently, moving for the exit of the hut.

The morning sun welcomed them at open arms, engulfing their form with bright and warm light. Spyro examined his surroundings, noticing that the camp was already almost dismantled, with several soldiers stripping on their armours and standing in formation.

"Spyro! Cynder!". The couple turned around to see who called them. It was Terrador, accompanied by Argentia. The silvery dragoness bowed slightly her head in their presence before returning her gaze to the guardian.

"Spyro, my boy, how are you feeling?"Asked worriedly the earth dragon.

"Better, Terrador. I think I may be able to fly by myself-"

"You're not flying anywhere, until I've done a proper check up on you, Spyro."Interrupted the medic. The purple dragon recoiled a little, before straightening his posture up, while the dragoness got closer to him. She inspected neatly his most serious wounds and the wing joints as well as his back. Cynder couldn't help but snicker at the sight of his embarrassed partner. To her, he always looked very cute when put under social pressure. Spyro turned his gaze to face her, discomfort clear in his gaze, she rolled her eyes and replied with a gentle smile which calmed him down.

After several minutes and a final overall glance, she sighed happily.

"Well, well. It seems you were right. I'll let you come home with you wings, but as soon as you feel an excessive strain, tell us to stop. You can't afford to overburden you muscles right now. Ok?"She asked. Spyro nodded.

"Very well, we're leaving in ten minutes. Gather your things."Said Terrador smiling, before leaving with Argentia. Soon after the departure of the Guardian, another familiar face came into view and, before Spyro could process it, a glowing speck was hugging firmly his muzzle. He instantly recognised his brother, and replied the hug by gently posing his right forepaw over the dragonfly.

"How are you feeling bro?"He asked with concern.

"Actually better, Argentia said I can fly home by myself today."Replied the youngster.

"Hey, that's really good news, I'm happy to hear that." At this answer Spyro raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"Are you sure you're feeling well Sparx?"He asked inquisitively.

"Me? Yeah, of course I'm feeling well. I…"His gaze drifted to Cynder who was watching him with a piercing gaze, knowing where this discussion was going. The dragonfly sighed.

"Can we talk alone for a sec?"Asked then Sparx to Spyro. The black dragoness smiled inwardly, before nodding.

"I'll leave you two alone, I'll be checking on with the others to see if we gathered all of our things."She said, brushing her flank on Spyro's and leaving the two brothers alone. The purple dragon watched her walking away mesmerised by her form. He shook his head, and focused back again on his brother, which was gently rubbing his left forearm.

"So what do you want to tell me?"Asked Spyro. Sparx sighed defeat.

"I…I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."He finally said. The purple dragon raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Sorry? For what?"

"For me being the worst brother in the whole history."

"You're not that bad."

"Bro, I'm being serious… It took me the fact that you nearly died before my eyes to realise that. I…I din't protect you when you needed it, I didn't worry enough why I should had… I'm so sorry."

Spyro remained completely dumbfounded by his words. He never expected the fact that Sparx, of all the people, felt so sorry for what happened to him. He proved compassion towards his brother, which he knew that deeply cared for him, even if he didn't really show it sometimes. The youngster grabbed the dragonfly with a gentle move of his paw and held him close to his chest.

"You're a great brother Sparx, don't ever doubt about it."

"I love you bro."Said the dragonfly.

"Me too." The two brothers stood like that for some other moments before Spyro released his hold on Sparx, which flew in front of him.

"I promise I'm gonna be a better brother for you, starting right now."He said, putting his hand on his heart.

"Does it also mean that you're gonna stop mocking me?"Beamed the youngster.

"Don't exaggerate, I'll still remind you that you're an overweight lump from time to time."Snickered the dragonfly. Spyro was about to retort when a voice interrupted the conversation.

"Spyro! Sparx ! We're leaving!"Called Cyril.

"We should go. Grab my horn."Offered the purple dragon. Sparx latched onto his right horn, while Spyro trotted towards the group of dragons. He found happily that the leg didn't pain him much as before, if not for the new tissues that itched and pained only when stretched. He smiled, feeling his body stronger, even if not quite as before. Few moments later he reached his companions, which were all ready to take off. He walked near Cynder, nuzzling her cheek. Terrador cleared his throat to gain the attention of the group.

"In moments we're leaving for Warfang. If the wind will favour us, we'll arrive at the capital by sundown."He then turned his gaze towards the purple youngster.

"Spyro, you, as well as the other young ones, will stay in the middle of the formation. Remember to halt us if you're feeling too tired to proceed."

"Thank you Terrador, I hope that it won't be necessary."Said Spyro, bowing his head.

"Very well, I'll stay in front, Cyril you'll cover the back."He said to his ice colleague, which nodded promptly.

"Private Lance? You think you'll be able to support us with a bit of wind magic?"Asked the guardian.

"Yessir!"

"Good, now let's go. Home is waiting for us all."He said, darting up in the sky. Soon after the whole team rose in the air, leaving behind the Eastern shores. Spyro aimed his gaze at the horizon, with the sun which was beginning his rise above the end of the world. He turned his eyes to his left, seeing Cynder flying near him. She smiled fondly at her companion, giving all the support that he needed. He smiled in return, brushing gently his wing on hers. He then looked behind him, seeing his other three friends following their pace, also them with a good grin plastered on their snouts. They nodded in acknowledgement, before Spyro returned in his gaze in front of him. Underneath his paws the treetops were always more distant and with them the thoughts and the worries about the last week's events faded away. In his mind just one thing now.

Home.

Surprisingly their journey went smooth as still water, as the wind magic of the Wind soldier managed to help a lot Spyro during the flight. He hardly ever beaten his wings, turning his movements in no more than an endless glide. He was just mesmerised at the possibilities of the wind element and he inwardly hoped that there was a possibility for him to learn and master also that element. The legends say that the purple dragon can master all the elements, it should imply that wind his also in his possibilities. He shook his head at the thought, letting that idea slip away for another time. It was actually sundown when the Dragon City walls came into view and with it a great sense of calm and relief flooded Spyro's heart. After another half an hour, the barrier was just few hundreds meters away. He could distinguish the guards patrolling the ramparts beginning to clear the platform fo their landing which was signalled with couple of magical torches on the side. Spyro also spotted other figures but he couldn't really recognise them. He glanced lovingly at Cynder, which brushed her tail on his flak, sending shivers down his spine. Finally the platform came into view and the rescue team landed in sequence on the stone. Spyro managed to soften his landing in order to not strain his leg. The soldiers around him quickly formed a line behind in front of the two Guardians and the Captain, they all saluted with their wings, waiting for release. Spyro walked to Terrador's side and when the Guardian noticed his presence, he stopped his brief speech.

"Spyro? Shouldn't you be heading to the Temple? I-"

"I know Terrador, I…Just wanted to thank these soldiers for what they did for me."He said before bowing his head, his snout almost touching the stone beneath. That display generated a strong sense of pride in the soldiers, as well as honour and astonishment, in seeing the great Saviour bowing his head before them, showing great humility in spite of his status.

"I'm greatly in debt."He continued, before a strong paw posed gently on his good shoulder. He raised his head, noticing that Baldur was watching him with pride.

"What we did is nothing in confront of what you did for all of us, Master Spyro." All the present soldier nodded in unison with those words. Spyro offered a small smile, before bowing again and return to his companions, which were waiting for him. Hunter knelt before him, putting his firm paw on his good shoulder.

"Trust me when I say that you honoured them in the greatest way it could be ever done."He stated, before standing up.

"I'll stay here with Master Terrador and Master Cyril, I advise you to return to the Temple. You deserve to rest."

Cynder yawned at those words, making Spyro giggle. Eventually they saluted the cheetah and took the sky, followed by Nix, Gaia and Auros.

The first two directed towards their respective homes soon after, saluting warmly their friends, and leaving the three youngsters and Sparx to their return to the great Temple.

They land in front of the door, the two guards bowed their heads at their passage opening the gate. The small group walked along the familiar corridor, before arriving in the main hall, which was now lit with several torches that circled the entire room. Soon after another familiar sound came from one of the doors that led to the Guardians chambers. The door blasted open, revealing Volteer which bore his usual electric smile plastered on his snout. He looked around himself and as soon as he fixed his gaze on the purple youngster, his grin grew even wider. In an heart-beat, he flung him self at Spyro, grabbing him in a strong embrace with both his forelimbs and wings.

"Oh Spyro, it's a so extraordinary, marvellous to see you! You don't know how much I was worried for your wellbeing, but as soon as I heard that you had been found, I almost zapped Ashen out of sheer joy."He said with his usual talkativeness, holding strongly the purple youngster. Spyro patted the yellow dragon's flank, as his wound are beginning to sting. Volteer acknowledged and immediately released the drake, giving him also the possibility to inspect his state. His mood saddened a bit upon noticing the burn marks, knowing exactly what those were for. However he quickly shoved those thoughts away. The guardian smiled at the youngsters.

"So, I bet you're really tired after your journey. I won't hold you youngsters any longer, go and have a good night of sleep."He said. The youngsters walked to the door that brought to the upper floors, before Volteer's voice called again.

"I forgot, Auros? Do you have a couple of minutes to dedicate to me?"He asked.

"Yes, Master Volteer, I'll be there in one moment." Replied the white dragon. He turned his gaze to his friends.

"Sorry guys, see you tomorrow and good night." He said, before trotting in the direction of the yellow guardian.

"Good night you too"Replied Spyro, raising a bit his voice. In the end, the remaining trio made their way to their rooms. As soon as they arrived at the right floor, Cynder coiled her tail around her partner's one, tugging him closer. Spyro nuzzled her cheek lovingly, she purred. Sparx noticed and rolled his eyes.

"Oh boy" He then zipped in front of the two youngsters.

"Let's do like this: I'll go and have a good night of rest in Spyro's room and pretend not to hear or even think about you two love-birds in the other room. If I hear something that I shouldn't, you're gonna pay the consequences, am I clear?"

Both youngsters flushed red, Instinctively Spyro held tighter Cynder's tail.

"I take this silence as a yes. I'm leaving, good night."He said, before disappearing behind Spyro's door. Without wasting any more time the other to entered Cynder's room and flung themselves on the bed, cuddling lovingly to act other. Cynder rested her head underneath Spyro's chin, which enveloped her form with his wings.

Spyro didn't know if it was the feeling of a soft bed underneath his back or the fact that he was holding the most beautiful dragoness in his arms, that made him feel so good. Love and calm coursed along his whole body, making him hold more closely his black companion.

He was finally home.