Heart, 24 years later.
Raya lit the small candle, chasing away the darkness from her desk with a feeble orange light.
She shivered, pulling up the corners of the large red cloak around her. The night's cold was unforgiving for those who didn't stay safe in the warmth the bed alone could offer. The candlelight and its warmth were but a reminder that the bed was the place where she should be.
But she still had something to do and couldn't just go to sleep yet. She hadn't had the chance to finish her work when she was dragged away against her will and now she was about to solve this small inconvenience.
Raya looked at the pile of documents on the small table, trying not to think about how many times she promised to clean up that mess. The candlelight was functional to illuminate the clump of papers scattered all over the table, but her eyes trained to work in chaos did not take long to find what she was looking for. After all, they were the only sheets not scattered over the entire surface of the desk: well-folded and sealed letters.
She guessed they were some commercial requests from other nations. Winter was coming and cities would need access to Heart's food stock to survive, generally in exchange for wood and wool. It was a monotonous and unhappy burden that of reading all the requests and deciding the best course of action for Heart, but this too was part of the duties of a Chief. Of course, she could have watched those next morning, but she tried to keep her desk free from all the work at the end of the day – figuratively – and she couldn't close her eyes knowing she wasn't done.
Just these few and then she would return to bed.
Without wasting any more precious time, Raya sat in the chair, making as little noise as possible. She didn't wish to wake her up, especially not when she spent all that time making sure she was asleep. She needed to be quiet even when she opened the letters, otherwise, she knew she would never be able to get out of bed and finish her work that night. She must take advantage of the opportunity.
Gently moving the stack of sheets to make some space, Raya took the first letter and removed the blue wax seal of Spine with the mastery of someone who had opened several of those in her life. She went through the content rapidly, already knowing what this letter was about from the first line. She sighed, softly. It was exactly as she thought. Spine asked for 5% more food, in exchange for 8% more wood from the next shipload onwards.
She thought about it. It was something Hearth could afford as the stable conditions of the international scenario and favorable weather drastically increased the prosperity of their fields and consequently food availability. So, despite being winter, Heart's demand would be easily satisfied and she could spare more food for her neighbor. Moreover, 8% more firewood would mean more firepower to warm up houses in the coming freezing winter months, something which would surely come in handy.
As Raya reached for a paper to write an answer, the door opened and a woman entered. She immediately noticed the candlelight and Raya sitting at the desk and she stopped.
"Oh, my apologies, Chief. I didn't know you were still awake and working," said the woman, sounding apologetic but with an evident hint of disapproval coloring her voice.
Raya stiffened, anxiously turning to the fabric divider behind her. She waited for a long moment, expanding her senses and feeling.
Nothing.
She sighed in relief.
"Are you still trying to hide your night work from her?" asked the woman, lowering her voice but raising an eyebrow at her.
"Yeah, or at least I'm trying to," said Raya, still on alert, turning her attention to the woman who was now giving her a doubtful look. "It will work this time, Suri" she defended.
"If you say so, Chief," shrugged Suri, handing over a small pile of papers and letters.
Raya's shoulders dropped as she took it. She huffed, silently. "I thought these were the last for today," she said, gesturing to the letters she was about to work on.
Suri nodded. "They were, Chief," she said. "This is the first wave of tomorrow's."
Raya slumped against the chair, leaving the new papers to fall onto the old ones, sighing louder than she intended.
"I can't go through all this stuff," she said, disheartened. "Not tonight."
Suri shook her head slowly. "Your dedication to your duties is admirable, Chief," she said. "But it will do you no good if you spend your nights out working, especially with this cold," she added, gesturing at the cloak still tightly wrapped around her small form. "Besides," she said after a small pause. "She will be displeased."
Raya sneered a suffocated laugh, wrapping herself even more in the cloak. "You're right, Suri, as always," she said, her eyes looking around the room lit by the candle. For a moment, she lingered on the long white spear on the wall right over the dead fireplace and her mind started swaying in the past. "Maybe I should start lighting the fireplace when I work at night," she said, absentmindedly.
"Or maybe," Suri's serious voice brought her back to the present. "You should just go to bed," she proposed. "After all, there is a reason why you don't need fireplaces at night even in the coldest of winters, but this won't work if she..." and she gestured with her head toward the fabric divider behind her. "...Is not here with you."
Raya closed her eyes, tired. Suri was right and the cold she was feeling was the first and most evident proof of it. Besides, her plan to finish her work of the day had already failed as new papers arrived. However, she couldn't help but feel bothered by knowing that there were still three or four letters under the new pile that she should have completed already. It itched her very skin and it was difficult to go away without completing her task.
"If she would just let me finish my work before-"Raya tried to protest but she stopped midway. How could she be angry? It was impossible to be angry with someone who just wanted the best for you. Truth be told, it was just impossible to be angry with her.
Suri shrugged again, gesturing to the pile of papers. "May I?" she asked.
Raya nodded tiredly and watched as the woman took the letters she was due to read and respond to that day. She recognized the opened letter from Spine and some others. Out of those, two were easily distinguishable: a red letter and a white one.
She rose from her chair.
"Give me those, please," she said as she took the two letters from the woman's hands.
The red one was from the capital as the red wax seal with a dragon engraved in it clearly stated on the front. And considering the year, she could already guess the content of it too.
"Is that the invitation?" asked Suri, gesturing to the red letter and coming to the same conclusion.
"I guess so," said Raya.
"It's rather an important year. It is the twenty-fifth anniversary of you defeating the Druun, Sa-" Suri bit her tongue and closed her mouth.
Raya wanted to sigh again. She told Suri and all the people in Kumandra that she did not defeat the Druun, not alone anyway. Boun, Noi, Tong, and Sisu were there with her, and despite them receiving some recognition, the majority of the praise was always for her, especially in Heart. She was glad that Suri refrained at the last moment from calling her "Savior" as many were still doing around the village despite her pleas not to. Suri only complied because she was her friend, but it was still difficult for her not to call her that, apparently.
"I guess it is," said Raya, placing the letter down for another moment. There was no hurry for it. It could wait.
The white letter in her hands, however…
"Ratana," said Suri, noticing the color of the letter. "It has been some time since she last showed up."
Raya nodded, still looking at the letter, touching it delicately as if it were a special treasure. "Almost a month," she said.
Suri huffed. "One would think that woman would spend more time in her homeland now that she's done," she said, no real contempt in her voice, just disappointment. "After all, her friends are here," she added. "Even her small cult of nuns is stationed here. There is one outside this door right now too, by the way," she said, gesturing to the door right behind her.
One always was outside her door or in sight when she was out.
Raya giggled softly. "If Ratana was here she would say-"
"Mockery is beneath you, Suri," finished the woman with a small smile. "Besides, a humble royal assistant should not defy a cult leader. It could end very badly for one of them"
"For the cult leader," they both said at the same time, chuckling.
They self-censured themselves with a hand in front of their mouths to laugh as silently as possible.
"Ah, Rat, Rat, I kinda miss her, you know?" said Suri, shaking her head.
Raya smiled. It was typical of Suri to tease their friend saying that she created a cult of white dressed nuns. It wasn't really a cult, of course, but an order. And the people inside were not priests and nuns but just people who'd had a tough life and wanted to help others who'd had a tough life. It was quite a serious effort from a woman doing already a lot for all of Kumandra every day.
The two fell into a calm moment of silence, filled with good and bad memories of another time. Raya jealously kept the letter between her hands and Suri didn't ask her to open it or tell her its content. She knew how often Ratana opened up with Raya, with her and only her about many things, so she never asked. She just waited for Raya to tell her what she could, when she could.
Raya's eyes fell on the small inscription on the letter's front. "To the Savior," it read.
She smiled, shaking her head. Ratana was the only one who still and always called her Savior, but it wasn't like with all the others, nor did it feel like it. There was no reverence behind that title like with everyone else, and it did not feel like a title given to her to enhance her to the pantheon of the gods. It felt more like a nickname, one that spoke of a profound and intimate gratitude, a word to always remember both of them the deep link fate and the universe built between them.
Raya opened the white letter and then began to read through it expectantly, curiously drinking in the words, absorbing the content quickly. Initially, a small smile made its way on her features, illuminated by the swinging light of the candle. Then, her expression turned to sorrow, as she finally stopped reading, lowered the paper, and remained looking ahead in contemplation.
"Oh Rat," she whispered.
Suri looked at her with an arched eyebrow, but asked nothing.
"She is coming back in Heart, soon," Raya said, her eyes still looking ahead in space, but back in time. "She plans to go visit Arun's daughter before heading to the Capital."
The royal assistant did not respond, but considering the change in her features, she got the hint very clearly. She looked away.
The silence built again between them and this time it held something different, an un-comfortability that wasn't there before. Suri was visibly uncomfortable and no matter how much she tried to hide it, with her eyes down and hands behind her back, she was still shifting on her feet, looking everywhere but at her.
The light in the room seemed to lose its intensity and the cold to grow stronger.
Raya noticed.
"Suri, I-"
"I know," promptly answered the other woman. "It's just that I-" She faded.
Raya said nothing. She knew. They talked through that topic before but it remained difficult, even after so many years, especially during such anniversaries.
The two remained in total silence for another minute, or maybe it was an hour. At some point, though, the royal assistant strengthened her position and clearing her throat, she spoke:
"I can answer to that for you," she proposed, gesturing to the Spine letter still open on the table.
"Oh no, I don't think-"
"Raya?" the sudden, sleepy, but familiar voice made the Heart Chief stiffen in the chair.
Despite herself, Suri smiled. "Looks like she got you," commented Suri.
Before Raya could even register it, the woman had taken the letter from the desk and had literally run to the door, with the Heart Chief managing only to look powerless as the woman waved at her before she disappeared, closing the door.
At the same time, from the partition between her office and the bedroom, a familiar dragon appeared. She looked sleepy, her amethyst eyes veiled and foggy, but this was definitely not enough to prevent her from seeing the human sitting at the desk at night with her body tightly wrapped in her red cloak.
The dragoness' eyes opened wide and awake, the sleep's fog gone and the worry taking its place.
"Raya! What are you doing out there at this time of night?!" she almost yelled, concern everywhere in her voice. "It's too cold for you to stay out of bed and the fireplaces are dead."
The dragoness stepped forward, joining the woman at the desk and twisting herself as best as she could around the chair and so the woman. Her body automatically seeks that of the human through the wood, and given the dragoness' length, including the tail, she managed to wrap Raya all around, holding her tight in her front legs and placing her head gently on top of hers, using the fur along her neck to warm the human as best as possible.
Despite being taken by surprise, Raya couldn't help but feel her heart flutter at both the preoccupation written all over the dragoness' features and her very presence. She instinctively leaned into the familiar and well-liked warmth of the dragoness, shivering inside her warm embrace. She sighed in pure bliss, a smile that lit up her expression at the sensation of the dragoness being so close to her.
The dragon sighed back, though she seemed more exasperated than satisfied.
"What did I tell you about working at night?" she said, not at all satisfied with how she had found the human, although she did not sound surprised at all.
Raya grunted. "I needed to finish my work," she justified. "I can't go to sleep if I haven't finished everything, and you dragged me away before I could finish." She pouted, for even if the dragon couldn't see it, she could definitely imagine it. "You know how I am and yet you continue to do it every night."
"I know you're stubborn," the dragoness replied, sighing sleepily. She lifted her head and went directly for the human's long black hair, dipping her nose into it, inhaling and nuzzling gently. Raya giggled at the dragoness' antics
"Stop it," she said, trying effortlessly to move the dragoness' muzzle away from her hair.
"Going back to bed?" Sisu asked, hopefully.
"I can't," the woman replied, although she was certainly enjoying the attention that the dragoness was giving her, she still had a job to do.
Sisu emitted a small wail of exasperation, but Raya was not done yet.
"Besides, I think you may want to know what's written here," she said, waving her friend's letter in front of the dragoness' face.
"What is it?" asked Sisu, yawning.
"A letter from Ratana"
"And what does it say?"
Raya smiled, slyly. "Didn't you want to go to bed?" she said, sarcastically.
In response, Sisu gently ruffled her hair with her paw.
"Ok, ok! You won, you won!" Raya laughed.
"So?"
"She will be at the capital for the anniversary," Raya explained, taking the letter and reading through the initial lines again. "She talks about the preparation of the celebrations for the 25 years since the end of the Six Years of Nothing and the defeat of the Druun" Then she snorted slightly at the next words of her friend. "She is also so keen to stress that all the Chiefs and members of the Council and Commission must be there, especially the Savior of Kumandra and all."
The savior thing was always something that made her turn up her nose, no matter how people like Ratana used it sarcastically.
"Hmm, it sounds funny," murmured Sisu, resting her head on hers again, yawning tiredly, showing her long and sharp fangs in the orange candlelight. "If there's a party, there's food too, which is good enough for me."
"Of course, it would," said Raya, rolling her eyes at the dragoness' bottomless stomach. "But you haven't heard the best part yet."
"And what would it be?" asked Sisu, beginning to close her eyes on the woman's head, dozing off.
Raya cleared her throat dramatically and bringing the letter before her eyes, she read out loud from the text. "Imagine the honor for the Dragon Capital to have the two Saviors of Kumandra in one place after 25 years for a celebration of this magnitude. I mean, it's already great to see the Chief of Heart at the Council meetings, but the Chief of the Heart and her companion, the Great Sisudatu, is something else entirely."
"What?!" blurted out the dragoness, suddenly very awake.
She took the letter from her hands, almost tearing it in the process, to read it herself. Raya has been teaching her to read in recent years. Writing was too complicated, too much time and effort, but reading had been doable over time so that now the dragoness could read what she wanted without an intermediary.
"Companion? Really?" she complained, outraged. "I've told that woman a thousand times that the right term is mate, not companion. The difference matters"
Raya chuckled. "I think she did it on purpose."
Sisu snorted, dropping the letter on the desk and returning to her previous position on her human's head. "Of course, she did," she said, annoyed. "That human is..." she stopped, thinking about the right term to describe the human, but finding none. "... well, you know."
Raya laughed.
However, her mirth died out quickly as her expression turned sad. Sisu, of course, felt the change.
"What is it?" she asked, worriedly.
Raya sighed and told the dragoness what she had already told Suri. "Ratana plans on stopping in Heart on her way to the capital. She wishes to visit Arun's daughter."
"Oh," was everything the dragoness could say.
Raya murmured. It was the only obvious reaction. After twenty-four years of trying and failing, every month at the beginning, and then every year in this very period – well, many would have already given up. But not Ratana, never her.
"You think it will be different this year?" asked Sisu.
"No, I don't think so," Raya said, sincerely. "And I don't think this anniversary will make things any easier for them either."
"I'm so sorry for her," said Sisu. "It is unfair how much that woman has to suffer. Hasn't she suffered enough?"
Raya thought the same thing. Actually, she had been thinking the same thing every year for the last decade.
Ratana was a woman that made mistakes like everyone, but unlike everyone, she put all herself into trying to make up for them, becoming the literal servant of Kumandra, helping the poor and needy in every nation, even going as far as founding an order to reunite people in need that would help other people in need.
Not to mention how much she helped Raya in her first years as a Chief.
When will her punishment end?
Silence surrounded the two females as both mull it over in their minds. Cold was not a problem anymore since the body of the female dragon was everything Raya needed to keep herself warm and safe – which was also the reason why all the fireplaces in the room were dead – but the weight of their friend's fate was too much for them to bear, especially that night, especially for Raya.
So, she tried to light up the atmosphere.
"You know, you looked just like your sister," she teased.
Sisu sounded confused by the sudden change of topic. "When?"
Raya smiled. "Before," she said. "When you read companion instead of mate in the letter"
Needless to say, which sister she was referring to. They both knew.
Sisu snorted and said nothing. Raya could feel her annoyance.
She chuckled. "There you go! Exactly like her. I think the time you spent with Pranee lately has affected you a bit too much," she teased.
"She comes once a month," defended the dragoness. "The rest of her time she spends with human and dragon's pups at the Capital" She scoffed. "Can you believe it? One hundred years of hearing Pranee complain about how I and Amba were forever hatchlings and then she decides to spend her time with hatchlings! I swear, I'll never understand that dragoness" She stopped, before adding. "Not that I understand the others."
"Well, your brother Jagan found exactly what he was looking for, right?" commented Raya.
The male dragon was the permanent representative of the dragons to the Capital. A serious and political role, something he seemed very suited for.
Sisu seemed to agree. "Jagan's easy," she said, nonchalantly. "Put him somewhere serious and boring and it will feel like home to him"
"I guess your sister Amba took all the fun genetics of the family, then," Raya joked, perfectly knowing what the opinion of the dragoness was on her glowing-powered sister.
Indeed, Sisu scoffed. "More like she took all the vanity of the family," she said. "I saw some humans work on something that can reflect your image. I hope they'll never develop that people's invention or Amba will die in front of one of those things"
Raya giggled. "Looks like only your brother Pengu is a good dragon in your eyes," she said. "At least with the calmness of the last years, his job got easier."
"Pengu and me, of course," corrected Sisu with a smile so big that the human could imagine it even without seeing the dragoness' face.
Raya turned on the chair so that she could be face-to-face with the dragoness, her dragoness's face, the most beautiful amethyst eyes she had ever seen. She could get lost in those eyes. Whether it was five, then, or one hundred years that had passed, she would always feel drawn to those eyes. Such was the attraction that Raya could do nothing but get carried away and stretch her hands to take the dragoness on the sides of her muzzle, gently caressing her. Sisu melted in her hands immediately, closing her eyes and enjoying the soft touch of those agile human hands.
Raya smiled at the dragoness' reaction and her smile grew even wider when she sneaked a peek at the long braid in the dragoness' long neck fur where a familiar golden ring was tied up, dangling.
"You're the best thing that has ever happened to me," Raya couldn't help but whisper.
Sisu smiled softly as the human leaned forward and kissed her.
"Are you coming to bed now?" asked Sisu after the kiss.
Raya briefly looked at the red sealed letter with the dragon symbol, her friend's white letter, and all the other stuff on the table. She wasn't done, but considering the new documents Suri brought, she would never be done before sunrise anyway. So, she decided to let it go for that evening. Now, the best thing she could do was to take refuge in the furs with her dragon for a well-deserved restful sleep.
"Yes," she said, before screaming in surprise when the dragoness picked her up from the chair, rapidly getting through the partition and into the bedroom on two legs.
"You could have warned me, you know?" she complained.
Sisu chuckled. "And where would the fun be then?"
Sisu gently placed the woman on the large bed full of furs, carefully wrapping her in them to protect her from the biting cold. Sisu climbed onto the bed right after with a slight crunch indicating the weight change. The dragon then circled the human with her long body, letting the human lay her head next to the hairy chest, while the dragoness rested her head next to the woman's lap, her eyelids heavy.
Sisu yawned, Raya giggled.
"Tired?"
Sisu flashed open only one eye at her. "You know that to be so fantastic my beauty sleep has to be of quite a few hours, right?"
"You don't need beauty sleep"
Sisu raised her head and ruffled the girl's hair with her muzzle, whispering something along the lines of "flatterer" and then kissed her on the forehead, before resuming her previous position on the bed, closing her eyes.
Raya sighed with satisfaction, feeling the sleep coming with ease. Maybe it was the weight of the long day, or maybe the warmth and protection provided by the furs and the dragoness next to her. Probably it was all of it together.
"Sisu," she called already on the edge of consciousness.
"Mhh?" replies the dragoness, just as close to the world of dreams as the human was.
"I love you."
Sisu smiled.
"I love you too."