Chapter 3: An Old, New Normal

As she flew through the air, doing multiple flips toward her quarry, the feeling of it all was exhilarating. Oh how she had missed the thrill of the fight. The thrill of battle where stakes were never higher. Where one wrong move could be your last, but another skilled maneuver could secure victory. She now had the accumulated knowledge of two lives lived; and while her Huntsclan skill was the preeminent force fueling her confidence, she figured her newer background in gymnastics didn't hurt either.

She delivered a forceful kick directly into the Dark Dragon's eyes, which she had planned when she made her initial leap toward him from the roof. Her training from so many years ago, whizzing about like a computer in her brain; instantaneously identifying weak spots to exploit on the large beast. An unfocused and distracted dragon, is a slain dragon. She had used that proverb to her advantage here making sure to eliminate at least one of his senses before moving onto the next. A soft underbelly. Behind the left ear. These were her targets.

Attacking him directly to the head, meant her best shot was at the left ear. She would need to find the proper leverage in order to land a significant blow there. After landing the kick, the Dark Dragon had yelped out in pain as he began trying to locate the mystery attacker. As he thrashed about in confusion, she took hold of his horn and held on for dear life. She shifted her body weight down trying to get her footing on the back of the beast's neck. From there, she was sure she could find the leverage needed to strike a final blow.

"Rose, heads up!"

It was Jake's voice. She quickly glanced over to where his voice came from and saw her huntstaff whirling towards her at an unprecedented speed. She smirked, catching it in stride with her right hand while her left hand still clung to her foe's horn. Just like old times, she thought. It felt good to be fighting side by side with Jake again. Over their many months together teaming up, they had developed a chemistry on the battlefield - each knew where the other would be and when. Like yin and yang, they balanced each other out.

With staff in hand, she flipped her body backwards onto the Dark Dragon's giant wing hoping to get a shot off with her staff. When she landed, the thought crossed her mind to try firing a blow at the left ear but there was no time to be that precise. She instead chose to fire a blast at the monster's back which got the reaction she hoped. A loud roar of pain left his jaws; she did another backflip, this time landing on his tail. But when she looked up, he had his full attention on her. Uh oh. His attacks came swiftly at her and she was forced to retreat, narrowly dodging the swipes of his claws.

The sheer size of him vibrated the ground all around her, almost causing her to lose her balance several times. Every lunge of his that missed went straight through the ancient stone ground and ripped up all sorts of rocks and debris that were quickly filling the air making it hard to see. She continued evading his attack, flipping and dodging all the way to the other side of the Temple where she landed on some steps. It was a chance to briefly catch her breath; she was dismayed by the fact that she had been forced to go on the defensive so quickly in their fight. He had to have been the most powerful dragon she had ever faced. And that was no shot at Jake.

No sooner had she taken a breath, she saw her enemy's massive tail coming at her with full force. In the blink of an eye, she jumped out of the way again narrowly escaping the critical blow. Still on the run. She was never going to defeat him like this. She had to figure out a way to go back on the offensive. It was then that she noticed the building around her start to become transient, flickering in and out of existence. It was a strange sight to behold because she could still stand on it as solid ground. She glanced up and saw that the lunar eclipse was reaching the final part of its cycle. In minutes, it would be over. Are the Temple and eclipse connected? she thought.

Suddenly she heard Fu shouting in the distance to everyone who could hear him. "We gotta get out of here before the eclipse ends or we'll be stuck in this temple for the next thousand years!" Thousand years? She had her work cut out for her. Things were starting to look dim. She had barely landed a blow on the Dark Dragon despite giving him everything she got. As the dragon from earlier had proclaimed, she was no match for him on an even playing field. But if she could distract him long enough for everyone else to escape, she may be able to trap him here. It was quickly dawning on her that her own chances of survival would be slim to none with this plan. Sorry Jake. But this is what had to be done. She saved the magical world from utter destruction before and she would do it again. No matter the cost. It was time to set the plan in motion. She made sure to stay as far away from the entrance as she could, sidestepping toward the back of the temple drawing her enemy towards her.

The wind started to pick up and, suddenly, a giant portal three times the size of the temple appeared above and behind her. Everything all around her slowly started being sucked in; she could feel the force of it tugging at her back. However the Dark Dragon seemed laser-focused on her, continuing to send attacks her way and not concerned at all with the circumstances around them. An unfocused and distracted dragon is a slain dragon. Her plan was working. Just a couple more deflections of the lightning-like attacks with her staff and she would begin sprinting toward the exit. She knew that with how big he was, there was no way he would be able to maneuver out of the building in time.

Just as she was beginning her sprint to leave, the beast swung his tail at her from behind. Luckily she was able to dodge it, but not before it took out many foundational pillars of the temple. Now pieces of the building were flying up toward the portal and down at her all at once. One by one the pillars came crashing down. She clenched her jaw as she ran with all of her might toward the exit, trying to find any extra stamina she could buried within her. She heard the Dark Dragon yell out in agony behind her, sounding as if he was being pinned down by the falling debris. I can make it. Just a little further.

But she couldn't make it. The last pillar to fall came down over her and with a cry of pain she felt her right leg get caught under its weight. The impact sent shock waves through her body, but she ignored the pain and tried desperately to free herself with her staff. Somehow she had managed to hang onto it this whole time. Come on. I just need the right... leverage and this thing will… budge. She worked at it over and over but it simply would not move. Her leg was completely caught underneath it and there was no escaping. Her hope was dwindling fast as she saw more and more of the building being sucked into the portal. She looked over to see if she could spot the Dark Dragon but he appeared to still be pinned underneath the fallen debris.

While the hopelessness of her own situation was overtaking her, she held onto the silver lining that she had at least succeeded in her mission. She had defeated the Dark Dragon. He would be stuck here with her for a thousand years, never to inflict harm to the magical world again.

She refused to give up on her leg, still prying on the piece of debris that laid on top of it with her staff. Her current life, the one with her family, flashed before her eyes and she shuddered at what they would think of her permanent disappearance. When she had sacrificed her life atop the Pantheon building, that had been different. The only person that deeply cared for her in that life had been Jake. And he knew the risks of what they did, despite the inevitable sorrow he would be plunged into by her death. But now she had a whole family she would be leaving behind. She knew it would absolutely destroy her parents and sister to learn of her death.

But it was a life she wasn't even supposed to have. She felt she had cheated fate by enjoying the spoils of Jake's suffering. This was her penance. Maybe it would have been better to let the Aztec skulls be her own demise. It would have saved her family from the heartache of her inevitable death now.

Suddenly she felt a presence behind her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jake trying to help lift the building off her leg. No! Jake, you have to get out of here! You need to be there for your family. For the whole magical world. Let me bear this burden.

With anguish in her voice, she cried out to him, "Jake, it's too late! Let me go!"

But she saw the look in his eyes and knew she wasn't going to convince him. She knew that look all too well. And it was the reason why his statement from earlier in the day had rattled her, although she didn't know it at the time. Rose, look at my eyes. It was those same eyes that had caused her to pause the night of the Equinox Hunt when he was tied down waiting to be slain by her. The same eyes that made her heart flutter every time they stared into her soul past her callous exterior. They were the reason she knew, without a doubt, how strongly he felt about her.

With his dragon strength, he was able to move the pillar just slightly, so that she was able to pull her leg out from under it. "Come on!" he shouted as he picked her up and took off like a rocket in the opposite direction of the portal. He gripped her tightly as he flew; hope now invading her mind as she could see safety within their reach.

But just when she thought their escape was sure, she heard Jake give out a loud cry and felt her head whip backwards. She turned her head and saw the Dark Dragon had somehow grabbed ahold of Jake's leg with his tail. He was pulling them backwards toward the vortex, using his claws to dig into the debris that still held him down. That monster was determined to take them with him into his thousand year exile if it was the last thing he did.

Jake pulled and struggled to free himself but it was no use - their enemy's grip was too strong. She had to do something. The Dark Dragon began to laugh maniacally - believing this was it. There was no escaping for them and the sound of gloating escaped from his jaws. Rose sized up the distance from herself to Jake's hindered foot. She inched her staff down in her hands to give herself as much length as possible. She'd only have one shot at this. With as much force as she could possibly muster, she came down hard on the Dark Dragon's tail with the sharp blade of her staff.

"Hyah!"

It was a clean sever, straight through the beast's flesh and instantly they were out of his grasp; Jake now flying as fast as he could in the other direction.

"No!" The Dark Dragon shouted behind them as he plunged into the abyss along with the rest of the temple, never to be seen by them again. Don't look back.

They weren't out yet though. She could see the rest of their group staring back at them, their faces stricken with worry that they wouldn't make it out. Come on, Jake. Fly faster. Get us home. He was moving so fast that she had to close her eyes almost all of the way shut; the dust and particles in the air were too much to keep them open. Through squinted eyes, she saw the opening of the portal getting smaller and smaller. Just a little further.

And with one final burst, Jake flew them through the opening just as it came to a close. They tumbled to the ground as he reverted back to human form, both grunting from the impact. And then they just laid there, basking in what they had just accomplished. They had finally done it. It was over.

Loud cheers erupted all around them; everyone hugging and celebrating a long and hard fought victory. Some had tears of exuberance in relief that the grave threat was no more. Her heart was overcome with joy as she slowly stood up from their rough landing, taking pride in knowing that this time she was able to rescue the magical world without sacrificing her life.

She saw Jake standing there staring back at her, looking handsome as ever. Her feelings for him exploded within her as she looked lovingly upon his face; every last bit of angst and turmoil surrounding their star-crossed romance, dissipating along with the eclipse. This boy was everything to her. She loved him with a love so deep, not even their destinies could keep them apart. They would always come back to each other. They would never forget each other and what the one had done for the other. They were unbreakable.

Overwhelmed with affection for all that he had done for her in this life and the last, she took hold of both his arms and pulled him in for a passionate kiss - hoping to salvage what she could of all their lost time together. When their lips met, it was a feeling of pure ecstasy. She had waited so long for this; for them to be rid of all the dangers that seemed so intent on keeping them apart. There was no more Huntsclan. There was no more Dark Dragon. It was just her, Jake, and their love.

She could tell she surprised him with her sudden kiss but when he leaned back into it, she smiled against his lips. As she pulled back, she could tell he had something to say. "Rose," he smiled. "You remembered. But how?"

She reached for her pocket, hoping the picture was still there. And it was. "You left this at my house," she said while holding it up, beaming from ear to ear. Jake now smiling wide back at her recognizing his prized possession, which made her face soften and her emotions swell. "Let's just say it brought back some memories."

And with that, Jake took hold of her hand with both of his and gazed intently into her eyes. The moment was too much, but they had earned this. They had earned their happy ending.

"Care to go for a walk?" he asked sheepishly. And how could she say no? Her heart was overjoyed to reconnect with him right here before anything else could stop them.

She remembered the lie that she had told her parents earlier though. It was late and they would be worried about her. "Hold on," she smiled. "Let me check my phone first to make sure my parents aren't turning the city upside down trying to find me." He nodded, respecting her wish. She took out her phone and was surprised to see none of the notifications were from her parents. Her sister was a different story though:

Rach: Ok

Rach: Where are you? You want to pass this exam tomorrow right?

Rach: You so owe me! Mom and Dad called and assumed you were already here…they said you left an hour ago! You're lucky I covered for your sorry butt! Where are you?

(2) missed calls: Rach

Rach: Rose, I'm getting worried. The library is going to close soon. You coming?

The last text had come just a few minutes prior. She looked at the time on her phone and knew the library would be closing in about 45 minutes. She felt guilty and quickly typed out a text that she was okay, still on her way and would meet her at the front of the library outside. She would explain…somehow. But she couldn't stay with Jake here for long.

"We can walk for a little while but I really need to get home soon," she offered. "Can you fly me back once we're done?"

"No problem, m'lady," he replied, ever eager to hold her hand and intertwine their fingers together. As he interlocked her hand with his, she saw him look past her at someone else. She followed his eyes to the person catching his attention and stopped. Now they were both looking at Lao Shi; and him looking right back at them. The last time she had spoken to Jake's grandfather directly had been when he had asked her to break up with Jake out of concern for his safety. She had definitely understood where he was coming from following the Cupid arrow incident, but being that was where their paths had last crossed she felt an uneasiness rush over her feeling his gaze upon them - wondering what type of judgments he was making.

To her relief, Lao Shi gave them a warm smile and nodded his head in a quick downward motion before turning back towards his daughter and son in law to speak to them. Jake nodded back; some form of unspoken communication between them as a sign of his grandfather's approval.

She noticed her staff on the ground where she had left it, and leaving Jake's side briefly she reached to pick it up. Pushing a few buttons, she released a strap that extended the length of the staff and hugged the weapon tightly; she then used it to sling around her back, making it much easier to carry. It won't hurt to keep this on hand, she thought. Then he grabbed her hand again and led her back down the hiking trail from which she came earlier that evening. Her adrenaline built up from the fight was slowly dwindling in her body now, and a throbbing pain appeared in her lower leg which had gotten caught underneath the debris. She had a bit of a limp but walked it off as they headed down the hill. I won't be able to hide this from my parents for long.

The moon now shone down upon them in full force as they made their way onto the trail leading back to the city. Its light lit the path ahead of them much better than when Rose had been running along it. She could spot several things she couldn't last time; there were signs sporadically placed in ideal locations, there to guide hikers on their journey. She also saw bats above them, just their silhouettes swooping by trying to catch a meal. In the distance, there was an owl perched on a dead tree branch, every so often offering a distinct hoot that spread across the trees.

Neither of them had said anything yet, rather just enjoying the silence and each other's company. Starting a conversation now would be difficult given their limited time to spend together. She knew once they started, it would be hard to stop and she was already in enough trouble as it was with her sister. After the long battle, silence was nice for a change. Silence filling the space around them was a foreign concept in their past, in-person dating relationship. It was something that was impossible to find while duty bound to be mortal enemies.

But she could feel him wanting to say something. She could tell he was trying to find the words. She understood. There was so much to say. But where do they start?

"You kept your promise," was what finally came out of his mouth. He was still smiling; both of them weren't going to stop doing that tonight. The comment struck her. "My promise? What do you mean?" she asked, not sure where he was going with this.

"Your promise. The one you made to me on top of the Pantheon building. You said you would never forget me."

The simple statement sparked a warmth in her heart that slowly consumed the rest of her; touched by the sentiment and realization that she had indeed kept her word to him. "I could never forget you, Jake. I mean, how could I? After everything you've done for me? I just…don't know how to put into words what you mean to me. I never deserved any of this…" she trailed off feeling tears creep into the corner of her eyes.

"But you did, Rose. You're the most amazing, selfless person I've ever met. You've always deserved the world and more. And I always wanted to be the one to give it to you. You deserved a family that loved you. You deserved to be happy for once, you know?"

She replied, "I just can't believe you did that for me. You gave up everything between us just so I could have a family. And you knew I wouldn't remember anything. Wouldn't remember you…"

Jake was resolute in his position. "As long as you were happy, that's all that mat-"

"I love you."

That stopped him in his tracks and he turned to look at her again, with her following his lead. She thought she may have said the words too fast for him to catch them, but from the look he was giving her now that wasn't the case. She had his full attention. The way he looked at her in that moment sent shock waves through her system. She had absolutely meant it, and she had wanted to tell him for the longest time. In her former life, she had been so scared of those words and what it meant for two people born to be sworn enemies. But that fear was behind her now. It was the one thing she wished she told him as she was pulled up to the sky by her wish. And now she had to make up for lost time. She couldn't wait any longer. He had to know.

"I love you too, Rose. More than you know."

They shared another kiss, this time embracing with arms fully wrapped around the other as her staff fell to the ground. She was still taller than him, but she didn't mind. She didn't care at all, actually. Appearances had never been something that mattered all that much to her. A genuine heart and confident personality drew far more interest from her than looks ever could. And Jake had both in spades.

Holding him in her arms now, without the slightest paranoia about who may or may not be watching was definitely something she could get used to. This was how it should have been all along. The last time she felt this sort of feeling with Jake was the time after their double lives were revealed to one another and she had returned from the Academy. No more secrets. No more lies. No more trying to slay him, stuff him, and mount him on her mantle. At that time, it had felt like a huge step forward in their relationship. Little did she know, it was just scratching the surface.

Their kiss continued to deepen until she realized this was the longest they had ever done this before. Neither really knew what they were doing; both of them had never made out with anyone before. They were each other's first love, after all. She decided that this would be the first session of many to come with Jake. She loved kissing him; the idea of this being their new normal was intoxicating to her. They were running out of air and had to stop just to catch their breath; their eyes catching one another as they pulled away gasping. And then she couldn't help it; she laughed. Once she started she couldn't stop and it was contagious, both of them beginning to belly laugh together at something as simple as losing your breath in a kiss. She had never been happier in her whole life.

"Come on," he said, finishing out one final chuckle. "Let's get you home."

And with that, he reverted into his dragon form, scooped her up effortlessly into his arms and took off into the night sky.

Jake flew on steadily ahead but he continued their conversation while in the air, her now straddling his back with her huntstaff again strapped to her back. "So what's your family like? Are they everything you hoped they'd be?"

Rose answered, "Jake, they're everything I dreamed about and more. I love my parents to death and my sister is like my other half. I don't know what I would do without them."

"Do you think they'll like me?"

Rose thought back to earlier in the day when the police dragged Jake away from her house, with her parents sternly looking on and harshly judging how he had interacted with their daughter. It wasn't the greatest first impression to say the least. She reasoned it was going to take a long time now for them to trust him, which was understandable. And it was unfortunate how that had to play out; she would try to help the second meeting go better but she didn't have high hopes. She was going to have to figure this out.

"It's going to be hard for them to trust you at first." She saw the disappointed look on his face after her comment and quickly tried to rebound. "Don't worry Jake, we'll figure this out. You'll just have to win them over with that AmDrag charm of yours," she teased.

That seemed to lighten his spirits a little bit. Still, he didn't seem too hopeful either and there wasn't much encouragement she could give that made the situation any better. She changed her tactic and tried to offer some pragmatism. "I think the only way that we will be able to win their trust back completely is for you to show them your dragon form, to be honest. But I can't ask you to do that…it would have to be your call."

She knew his secret was precious to him and he only shared it with those he felt he could absolutely trust. Even if he wasn't so guarded about it, it would put him in real danger if he flippantly flaunted his dragon identity to the world at large. It was not something to take lightly.

"Gramps is gonna freak. But I think you're right. We'll have to tell them everything. They need to know who their daughter is."

She nodded in agreement even though she knew he couldn't see her. They were almost to her house now and she was cataloging thoughts in her head, trying to plan out her next steps of the evening. First, she had to grab her school backpack and Jake's jacket from her room. I should probably let him know what's going on.

"Your red jacket is still at my house. Once I grab that and my backpack, I'll need you to take me to the library to meet my sister. Can you fly me to my bedroom window?"

"You got it, boo," Jake replied playfully.

Rose smiled. She missed that. The playful, flirty banter had been a centerpiece of their relationship even going back to the days before they knew each other's secret identities. And now he was hers again. It was all so surreal that here she was again, in this moment. She had a second chance with Jake. A second chance to do normal couple things. She had always longed for a normal life and that included a normal dating life as well.

Her house was in view now and he quickly sped her over to the window she pointed out, being careful to scout for anyone passing by at this late hour. Luckily for them, the streets appeared to be empty. She wondered if a citizen of Hong Kong spotting what they thought was a dragon would have the same consequences as it would in America. Or if there would be the same amount of uproar. Dragons held a special place in this community and the average person here may have viewed it as a sign of fortune rather than a traumatizing event.

She took hold of the window sill and peered inside to make sure her parents weren't there. Her bedroom door was open and she could see a faint light spilling in from the next room. Her parents were watching TV, a usual late night habit of theirs before heading to bed. That was enough for Rose, so as quietly as she could, she lifted the window that she had purposefully left unlocked before leaving earlier. It slid up without a sound and she swiftly hopped in. "I'll only be a couple seconds, Jake," she whispered. "I'll wave you down when I'm ready." He nodded and flew up to the roof to wait for her.

As she reached under her bed for the backpack and the jacket, she heard one of her parents get up from the couch and walk over near her bedroom. She froze. The bathroom door right outside her room then made a distinct clicking sound and she breathed a sigh of relief. Close call. She slid her huntstaff off her back and left it there for later while grabbing the other things she needed. Soon, she wouldn't have to do all of this sneaking around. She couldn't wait until the day her parents knew everything about her other life and accepted it. But they would take convincing and she was not looking forward to that process.

As she stood up to start quietly tiptoeing back to her window, she caught her reflection in her wall mirror out of the corner of her eye. The moonlight that entered her window lit the room up enough that allowed her to see her own features somewhat clearly in the glass. Oh boy. Her hair was an absolute mess with dirt caked everywhere throughout it. She wore her hair in a braid for a reason when she went into battle; the damage was limited this way but it couldn't mask all of the loose strands and messiness that happened during the course of a fight. Cuts and scratches were littered about her face, some deeper than others, and there would be no way to cover them up completely. Time to think of a good cover story.

She at least needed a story for her parents. She planned to tell her sister everything right away, if not tonight, then first thing in the morning on their way to school. Rachel would be mad, but the naivety of their age would allow Rose to win her over once she showed her some proof. She wondered how her sister would react to Jake. They often talked about boys they had crushes on with each other; but now Rose had a boy she absolutely adored and loved. That would be a lot for her sister to process. But she was wasting time. She opened the window as quietly as she could, motioned for Jake, and then jumped on his back handing him his signature red jacket.

"Aw yeah!" he exclaimed in a hushed tone. "This was my favorite jacket!"

"Don't you have like five that look exactly the same?" she quipped.

Jake feigned a hurtful expression. "Rose, you just… wouldn't understand." She rolled her eyes. "Come on dragon boy, my sister is waiting," she said amusedly.