Notes: My laptop was finally fixed. This isn't much, but it's something and I'm starting to be okay with that.
Dashi knows what's coming when the early winter winds carry brimstone and reptile musk down from the mountain side. He'd barely been able to sleep the last few weeks, hadn't even been able to feel satisfaction at Wuya's defeat because he knew what would come next.
Yet after months of false starts and endless worrying about his wild hearted little brother, it's beginning again. He still doesn't know what to worry about. No matter how many times he's pulled Chase back inside from grueling training sessions or tried to distract him from too many late nights studying with prank wars or some new game, it doesn't make a difference. His little brother is still gone and he doesn't know how or why.
He's first through the temple gates. Guan tries to follow, but he sends him to evacuate whatever villagers he can. Guan tries to argue, but he won't hear it. He doesn't explain why, just tells him to stay with the villagers in the temple. He can't think of a good enough lie when he can't get the sound of tearing flesh from his mind.
He's still too stiff and awkward as he runs through the village. It's on his other side this time. He knew where the Chimera was three years ago and slipped out of its way just in time. Then a year later he put himself in the path of a rampaging sea serpent.
He waits for what feels like ages just outside the village. Frost covers the grass and clouds of steam rise with every ragged breath he takes.
Then there's movement in the forest. Chase leaps between the trees without a sound. He coils on an outstretched branch, studying him with too human eyes almost glowing in the early morning mist, then lunges. With a flick of his wrist, the frost surges up to meet him. The jagged crystals score Chase's chest and muzzle with a thousand fine scratches. Blood drops spray as his dagger sharp claws scrabble for purchase on newly formed ice.
"Chase," he says, ice creeping up the dragon's legs, rooting him to the ground. "I don't want to hurt you, but I can't let you hurt anybody else."
He comes as close as he dares, vicious bone crunching jaws snapping just short of his face. Chase strains against the ice. It cracks and reforms to hold him. He knows Chase too well not to expect the horrible crack as fights to free himself. He's watched his little brother break himself open in service to his own ambitions too many times to think he wouldn't.
Chase sinks back onto his haunches as much as he's able, his left foreleg hanging uselessly from a broken shoulder, and blood oozing down his heaving chest. The dragon glares in too human anger as he starts shaking.
No. Shivering. Chase is shivering.
His little brother has never been cold and now he's shivering. Yet as much as he wants to let him go, he can't forget the strip of green scales clutched in bloody jaws.
"What happened to you?" he asks, sliding just a little closer.
It's early winter. He knows that much. Chase has been anxious and restless since Wuya's defeat.
No. He was anxious before that. Chase had always been a little high strung. It just had direction.
But he'd been almost fine the night before. He seemed a little distant and distracted at dinner, but not worryingly so.
And then he slips off into the night to become this. Had he seen something in the woods while taking the long way back between the library and the dormitory? Had he finally gone after Hannibal as Guan was afraid he would? Or was he experimenting with Heylin magic again and a spell finally went so far out of his hard-won control that he became this?
"Come on Chase." He pauses, just too far away to reach out to his brother. "You know me." The little dragon snarls, shrinking further back. "You don't want to hurt me." Slow coils of steam rise from the dragon's jaws like smoke. "Let me help you."
The dragon slowly sinks down onto the frosty grass. His growling fades into low chittering. His slit pupils widen in what Dashi hopes is recognition and the anger in his too human eyes softens to scared pleading.
"There you are." He reaches out to his little brother. The little dragon slowly raises his snout to his outstretched hand. "Let's go home."
For a few seconds, his fingers brush cool, smooth scales.
Then jaws snap around his wrist, too quick to even sting as Chase's teeth sheer through flesh and bone. Blood spills over the ice as he falls back, stunned.
His vision is already greying and crackling at the edges. Burning, electric pain starts to make its way through the shock. It sounds far away when the ice around Chase's feet starts to crack. He barely has the presence of mind to hold him in place and little more to seal over his bleeding stump.
And from the eager gleam in the dragon's eyes, Chase knows he can't keep it up for long.
He snapped back into his body, the crystal glasses having already fallen into his lap. He frantically rolled back his sleeve. His wrist throbbed, but the skin was smooth and unbroken.
He buried his face in his hands and for what felt like forever, forced himself to take deep, slow breaths.
He was just about the look again when a wave of exhaustion hit him. He's only been looking into the future for moments, but it feels like he's lived every single year that passed. He can't stop moving his left hand.
He slowly got to his feet and started rolling the mantis flip con between his fingers as he left the seldom used meditation chamber.
Chase and Guan were still sparring the courtyard. Their so-called training had already devolved into lighthearted roughhousing long before he'd left with some excuse about very important monk meditation. Had he really only been gone a minute?
He watched from the doorway, while they flipped around, laughing and calling out moves that all sounded like far more effort than they were worth. Guan grabbed Chase's arm, flipping him over his shoulder and into the soft sand.
Chase brushed his long hair out of his eyes and tucked the bits that had come loose from his ponytail behind his ears. Then he held his hand out for Guan to help him to his feet and a bolt of ice shot up Dashi's back. He barely stopped himself from calling out as Chase pulled Guan to the ground, both of them laughing as they resumed sparring like nothing was wrong.