A year earlier…
He looked ahead at the massive plain in front of him. The trees lined around a small circular area in the middle, where there were flowers and grass spread all over, and even a river bank cutting right through it. The water was crystal clear, and he could perfectly see the reflection of all of the trees on the surface from a distance.
Looking a bit closer at it reveals the rocks on the riverbed, all different sorts of shapes and sizes. Some sharp, some dull, and some big enough to where he probably couldn't lift them. He imagined how many underwater insects called those specific rocks home. This is my home, he thought, glancing over at Flame.
The Healing Center was only the place they ate and slept, while whenever he was next to Flame, that's when he was truly home. Wherever Flame went, he wanted to go as well. If he wanted to go to the Ice Kingdom and freeze, he would go right along with him.
Well, he would probably try to talk him out of it at first, but if he had to choose, he'd take the Ice Kingdom any day.
As he admired the view of the beautiful patch of land, an image flashed in his mind, and he inspected the land a bit closer. It took a few seconds, but it finally clicked.
This was the part of the island where Flame had first retreated to, back when he ran away from Avalanche. Back when he had chased him down across the ocean, wondering if he would fall out of the air and drown. Back when life was more complicated than just hugs and kisses. Back when we were just realizing how much we love each other.
This is the spot where I found him when he ran away, Umber realized. He could still remember the pain in his chest when he'd found him crying. Whenever Flame was sad, he was sad. It was like their emotions were interconnected in some strange way.
"Is this…" he asked, letting the question hang in the air. He had a feeling Flame would know exactly what he was talking about.
"Mhm," Flame said proudly. "My favorite spot on the whole island! It kind of looks like the rainforest — a miniature, less fruity version of the rainforest. Oh, and let's not forget the RainWings constantly swinging around bothering you." He seemed more happy than usual. Maybe it was because he loved the place that much.
That joke earned him a chuckle from Umber. "Are they really that bad? I've never seen the rainforest before."
"Of course! The last time I was there, the only time I got some peace and quiet was when they were sleeping, or I found a spot far away from the kingdom! Moons, they never seem to shut up. I don't know how they can take it."
"Well, remind me to go there if I start enjoying the screams of dragons outside all day." He gazed upon the small plains once again, the wind blowing the grass beautifully in the wind, causing it to wave and flourish.
He took one last glance at everything before he'd go and sit down by the bank, but his eyes caught something they hadn't before. That something was a blanket that had red and white squares clashing at their corners for space, creating lighter reds and darker whites. On top of that, there was a basket seemingly made of straw sitting atop it, and as the wind turned and blew in his face, he quickly picked up the scent of fresh food.
The best part of it all was that it was right next to the bank, creating a great swimming and drinking spot.
This time, he'd really gone all stereotypical on him — with the picnic basket and blanket choice, that was. It wasn't every day that your boyfriend took you out to an island far off the coast of Pyrrhia to spend the night.
He stared at them for a few seconds, imagining all the things they would do that day. Like sit down and relax, eat, swim, sit down and relax, kiss, and most importantly, sit down and relax.
"You just gonna stand there, Mud Muffin? I know you wanna go and dig your snout into the basket," Flame interrupted.
He ignored the horrible nickname and slightly leaned up against him with a smile. "Only if you come with me," he said affectionately.
Flame didn't need to be asked twice, and they both walked over to the picnic area. Even more clearly he could see through the bank now as the light rippled and bent through the water. He bent over the grass to look at it, and he could see his reflection perfectly.
The noise it made wasn't too loud either, almost like a white noise. When nobody was talking, all he could hear was the wind blowing, the river flowing, and the birds chirping as the cool breeze flowed along his scales like a wave of relaxation.
He wished he could stay there — stay there forever with Flame right beside him as long as his heart beat. He wondered if they could build a house here in the future and live off of the land, away from all of the kingdoms and any other possible war.
No, he thought. This place needs to be preserved so it can stay beautiful like this forever.
He backed away from the river and walked over to the picnic area, where a certain SkyWing had already made himself comfortable.
His legs and arms were tucked as he sat; it was as if he expected to be there all day. Not when there's such a perfectly clear river right next to us, he won't!
One way or another, Flame was going in that water with him, whether he liked it or not.
He sat down next to him, closest to the picnic basket — obviously. Taking another sniff in its direction revealed the scent of a bunch of fresh sandwiches, and a stew Flame had cooked up last night and probably reheated on the way there.
It wasn't much, but actions spoke louder than words. And the fact he'd done all of this just as a celebration to them being "official" (whatever that meant, as they might as well have been dating at the time) was much more of an ask than he'd ever wish for.
Flame unexpectedly wrapped his wing around Umber, and though it was warm outside, he took it graciously. He'd only done it a few times before, especially in the last month. Maybe it was something in the water? Or maybe it was the fact he'd started loving him even more after committing, and always wanted him close.
He's never felt loved before, Umber remembered. It must be such a new feeling that he doesn't want to let go of…
His mind steered away from that when he felt a warm jump in his heart, and he cuddled closer to Flame as a response. All he wanted was to be close to Flame right now; closer than physically possible, and he knew Flame wanted the same thing.
They hugged each other tightly for the next ten minutes, intertwining their tails as they enjoyed the sounds of the river sweeping by. At one point, a blue bird landed nearby. His first thought was to sneak up on it and pounce for a snack. But not only did he not want to move from his spot with Flame, but he also had food right next to him — and he liked admiring its pretty colors.
He could fall asleep right where he was, wrapped up in Flame's wing like a breakfast burrito. But he couldn't; not yet. They still had so much to do today — like swim, for example. Maybe even cuddle more and admire the view before it fell dark.
His stomach grumbled angrily, and that moment was when he finally came back to reality and realized it was time to do something. Or eat, in his case.
He reluctantly pulled away and began digging through the basket for something to eat. He could definitely see all the things he predicted, like the turkey sandwiches and the stew he'd cooked up before. And there were a lot of sandwiches. At least ten to fifteen were stuffed in it, all wrapped in plastic film.
"You packed so many! When did you get time for all of this? We were together all day today," Umber asked, holding up one of the sandwiches he snatched.
"Well, when I left and said I was setting everything up, I knew I wouldn't be able to get past your nose. So I just bought the stuff on the way. Well, and maybe raced here as fast as I could to get back quicker."
"Flame! You didn't have to do all that!" he argued as he unwrapped one of the turkey sandwiches, taking a bite from it. Somehow even something as simple as a turkey sandwich was able to taste so good if Flame's the one who made it.
"Of course I did! Today is special! It's a celebration for us being officially together!" Flame explained. "You know how much I love you, so today has to be the best day of your life — better than our date."
"Sandwiches are better than tea now?" Umber joked. Flame's expression turned to worry. "I'm just joking!" he laughed. "Relaxing under the sun is the only way I want to spend my day right now. With you, most of all."
Flame smiled at him affectionately. "Me too."
He hadn't even noticed that he'd been chowing down on the first sandwich throughout that whole conversation, and it was already down to the last bite. He threw it in his mouth, and took a second one out, unwrapping the plastic around it and discarding it in the basket.
A strange curiosity made its way through his head as he stared at the plastic, wondering how it was made. A while ago, he heard that the plastic was taken from sap trees and turned into plastic in some strange way. And once it was thrown out, it would degrade back into the earth. What a strange thing.
Within thirty seconds, his second sandwich was gone. He was about to go for his third when his eyes caught the river ahead of them and a jolt of excitement ran through him at just the thought of swimming.
He didn't waste a second, standing up and trotting over to the river, looking back at Flame. "Where are you going?" Flame asked.
"Into the bank! Are you coming?" he asked excitedly.
"Uhm…no thanks," he refused. "That water's probably cold. I'd rather sit up here and bathe in the sun while you go and flap around in the water like a SeaWing dragonet — like Chromis."
"Wha- I'm not a SeaWing! Or a dragonet!"
"You're about to be when you come back up in an hour."
"That doesn't even make sense! Get in the water with me before I make you!" he threatened. Though it was empty, and Flame knew that just as well as he did.
"Whatever," Flame said mockingly. "When you're done, come back over here and lay with me. I'll watch from here to make sure a sea monster doesn't get you."
"Aww, what a sweetheart," Umber said sarcastically. "I bet you'll show that sea monster who's boss. If you get in the water, maybe you'll have a better angle to fight it, and I'll be even more impressed with your bravery."
"No thanks, I already look brave enough. Wouldn't want to show off in front of all of the…birds? Yeah, the birds. Wouldn't want to steal their girlfriends or anything."
Umber snorted. "You'll steal their girlfriends?" he chuckled. "Maybe you'll steal their boyfriends, but certainly not their girlfriends," he said quietly.
"What? I can so!"
"Are you going to prove it to me or something?" he smiled.
"Sure, as soon as I kill that sea monster. From here." He pointed to the blanket beneath him as he laid down.
"Ughhh, fine!" Umber moaned, kicking up a little grass. "You win this time, but I swear I'll get you in this water today!"
"Is that a challenge?" He raised a brow with a questioning glare, staring him dead in the eyes.
"Maybe. You'll have to wait and see." He turned to the water, making sure to flick his tail at Flame in annoyance. As much as he pretended not to see it, he most certainly did.
He looked down at the water. He could see the excitement on his face even through the distorted reflection as an idea popped into his head.
But before he could do it, he needed to get in the water first. He dipped one talon in. Freezing, he thought. Oh well, the mud puddles in winter are worse.
With one paw already in the water, the cold began climbing its way up his arm, until it fully engulfed it. It found its way between his scales, pressing cold against his skin. He could already feel the cold shock setting in as short, quick breaths escaped his maw.
His ears perked up, picking up a noise from behind him. From all his time in the war, he'd not only learned to listen a lot closer at everything almost constantly, but he'd also trained his nose to be the eyes in the back of his head.
The scent was familiar, and he almost immediately recognized it. Flame.
He could hear his footsteps as he tried to stay quiet, but he had not nearly the amount of experience he had at being stealthy. The only way something as obvious as that having a chance to work would be if he'd been sneaking up downwind, and even then he would probably make too much noise.
With his scent getting stronger and his footsteps getting closer, he waited for the right moment to strike. Until he heard Flame's talons leave the ground, and he turned as fast as he could, grabbing one of his wrists mid-air, and throwing him straight into the freezing water with a splash.
A few droplets got on his scales, but he hardly noticed them among the unimaginable satisfaction he had.
"Told you I'd get you in the water!" Umber laughed. "It's been years since I've done that!" He fell on the ground and rolled around as he laughed hard enough he thought he'd burst a lung.
He looked at Flame's drenched face, and he was definitely not happy.
But in the midst of his wheezes, Flame grabbed a hold of his tail and tried dragging him in. At first, Umber was able to hold firm, even with his weak knees from laughing. But eventually, he was able to get Flame's talons away from his tail.
"You can't even pull me in!" he mocked, laughing even harder than before. "You should see the look on your-" He was interrupted by the ground on the edge of the river collapsing as it overhung the river ever so slightly. First, it was his top right talon, then his head, and then the rest of his body.
The freezing cold water immediately attacked his scales. He instantly started shivering, even with his resistance to cold.
"That's what you get!" Flame said triumphantly.
"What I get? Didn't you try to push me in?" he chuckled. "You're the one who started this in the first place. At least we're both in the water now, so I caaaan…"
He lunged himself forward, tackling Flame into the water. He could easily overpower him if he wanted, but drowning him was the last thing he wanted to do. So instead, he just briefly pushed him under the water and loosely gripped onto him.
Flame managed to push him off and stand up with relative ease. "Hey, no drowning me!" he jokingly complained. He sent a splash of water in Umber's direction, and Umber did the same once he recovered. They splashed each other over and over and over again, laughing all the while.
Until at one point, it seemed that Flame had grown tired of water being hurled in his face, and he instead tackled Umber this time, pinning him under the water with all of his strength. For Flame to do it to him was fine, as he could hold his breath longer than Flame could keep him under.
He didn't even try to fight him — watching him struggle to keep his grip around each of his shoulders was far more fun than to force his way up and start splashing again.
But as surface water settled, he was able to see Flame's face through the water, even with the current. It was distorted and jumbled, and even then he still seemed like the dragon he fell in love with; the dragon who had taught him to read; the dragon who made him realize that it wasn't just him who cared for his sibs as much as he did; the dragon who taught him dragons can change; and most importantly, the dragon who taught him how much good food there was in the world.
He felt another jump in his heart as those memories came racing back, but much stronger this time. He could feel his cheeks growing just as red as Flame's. He looked into his distorted orange eyes, the same ones he fell in love with, and wished he could stay in that moment forever.
Without hesitation, he reached out for Flame's face and pulled him under, their lips colliding underneath the water. The sudden rush of adrenaline hit him like a truck, just as Flame's did. After just a few seconds, he could practically feel Flame's heart beating faster than his.
Flame pulled them both back up to the surface and pulled away, panting. Though, that could've just been from being underwater instead of the kiss, or a mix of the two. "What was that for?" Flame asked intimately, his hot breath smearing Umber's face.
"Shut up and kiss me." He pulled Flame back in for a second round. It wasn't long before they were on dry land, making out underneath the sun. He didn't know how long they had been kissing, but the water on their scales had completely dried by the time they stopped.
The rest of the day was mostly uneventful — though they did go out and explore for a few hours before retreating back to the picnic area — and they laid next to each other for most of it, enjoying the sun. It was nice to get away from all of the noisy dragons at the Healing Center and have a day without distractions.
He wished Sora and Jet would do something similar to them, and take a day off of work and healing sessions, just like Flame had. We'll have to do this again sometime, Umber thought as the moons' light beamed against his scales.
It was cold at this point, causing Umber to shiver uncontrollably. Even his armored scales weren't thick enough to keep it away.
That's when Flame noticed, feeling the little shivers as he cuddled against him. Flame was lying on his back with his wings tucked in, glaring up at the moons. While Umber, on the other talon, was lying on his side, cuddling as close as he could to share their warmth.
He wrapped one wing around him, feeling like a sheet made of pure warmth. It was definitely an upgrade from trying to steal a tiny bit of warmth from rubbing against him, though he still found himself just as close as before, even with his wing.
He smiled, accepting his wing as his newfound blanket, before resting his head against his chest. At that point, Flame might as well have been his own personal sleeping bag.
That's when his eyes caught something in the sky, something he hadn't even noticed until now. There were many, many stars in the sky, twinkling their light in flickers, it was almost like watching a million different fireflies looking for their mate. "The sky is so pretty tonight," he said softly, pointing to the stars above. "No wonder you like this place so much."
"Well, it's where I hatched, after all," Flame responded, resting his head beside Umber's. The added warmth made him feel safer, almost like nothing could touch him with Flame beside him.
"You're so lucky to have been hatched in such a nice place like this," Umber said. "I was hatched in a mud puddle." It wasn't the worst thing to have happened, though. Every MudWing enjoys a nice mud bath from time to time, regardless of how filthy they'd get.
"Hey, it's not my fault I wasn't immediately born into filth," Flame said playfully. "How do MudWings enjoy mud by the way? Whenever I even get a drop of it on me, I feel so dirty."
"Flame, we both know the only reason you're half clean right now is because you 'accidentally' fell in the river," Umber said jokingly, "I wouldn't be surprised if I caught you taking a mud bath while we're here."
"Blah, blah, blah, MudWing," Flame dismissed. "I always take baths!"
"Sureeee you do." Umber snuggled closer, a bigger smile forming on his face as he closed his eyes. Flame managed to somehow pull him in even closer than before, to the point where it felt like he was wearing a nice winter jacket by a campfire on a snowy morning.
There was a long pause where they lay there, slowly drifting asleep. That's when a thought raced through his mind like a paper airplane thrown from the top of the SkyWing palace.
"Hey, Flame," Umber whispered, perking his head up to look at him.
"Yeah, MudWing?" Flame whispered back.
"I love you, you know that, right?" Umber asked reassuringly.
"Of course I do!" Flame retorted. It sounded like he took offense to such a statement — he knew he'd always love him. "And I love you, too."
"Well, how about you prove it to me then?" Umber looked up at him with a smile and a blush, his heart racing yet again with excitement.
Looking up at him, he felt the same jump in his chest from when he was looking at him from underneath the river. Flame smiled back, knowing full well what his words implied.
Graciously, they both leaned in, before the short distance between their snouts closed, and their lips met. The stars shone brightly in the background, spewing out light that almost looked like a tapestry in a palace. The crickets chirped in the background, and he swore he saw some fireflies flicker far in the woods. The white noise of the river only added to it, creating a sound that relaxed him more than anything had in the last year.
Their kiss didn't last long, but it had a lifelong impact and he knew it. This night was special to him, and he knew it would be just as special to Flame as well.
And before he knew it, he was fast asleep on Flame's chest. As his mind drifted, he finally knew for sure that this was the dragon he'd spend the rest of his life long with. Somehow, Flame — someone who was the complete opposite of him — ended up being his soulmate, their hearts forever bonded, creating a connection stronger than steel.
Author's note: Can anyone else tell the improvement in my writing? This last section was basically copied and pasted from that scene in the hospital in chapter 20, I think it was. Except I just made it in Umber's POV instead of Flame's and added to it. I had to mold the story just a little bit to align with that last section, but I think this is some of my best writing yet. Anyway, I still haven't found any beta readers yet, so that offer is still open! My Discord is just Amisgal if you want to, but you have to have past writing experience in order to be a beta reader for me — a writer's eye is always better than a reader's eye.
