Story Snippets

    The voices are growing closer, but it's hard to hear them over the sound of my heart rapidly beating against my chest, and the loud rasping of my breath as I run. I can't let them catch me. If they catch me, they'll arrest me. Dragon Bonds, the people who have close bonds with dragons that form over a period of time, don't often associate with the villagers. They're scared of us, to be completely honest. Well, not of us, exactly, but the creatures in which we interact with and live among, but it might as well be us.

I can't be taken away. I have to keep running. Tonight's lecture from my sister about 'not dying' should be a fun one.

I pull my hood up over my head and keep my eyes locked on the trees that sit along the edge of the Forest of Avenlire, the large area covered in woods that resides right in the center of our land. Stories of the horrors that live within its boundaries are used to terrorize the small children at bedtime, trying to keep them from wandering towards its clutches. But what the people don't actually realize we are the real horrors, not the things that live inside. Actually, inside the forest, it is quite magical, believe it or not. Beyond the forest is even more amazing. That's where the dragons roam.

I'm five yards away from the trees... now four. Three. Two. I leap into the branches, grateful for the cover the bushes and shrubs, as well as the vines and ivy that climb up the trunks of the surrounding trees.

I continue to run, dodging branches and jumping over roots that seem to appear out of no where. I slow, my sprint petering out to a jog, and then eventually into a walk. I grin. Hey, I made it without dying again. This time at least. I look around, squinting through the darkness, looking for the small engraved arrow into the base of the large oak tree that signals to me I'm close to home. After a bit of searching, I find it, running my finger over the trunk, fingering the little symbol. I laugh. I swear I forget where it is every time I come in here, even though I live in of these woods. In my defense, humans can't see in the dark as well as dragons can.

I walk in the direction in which the engraved arrow is pointing, treading lightly on the soft grass as the sky above me opens up into a small clearing, exposing the star spattered midnight canvas spread overhead. A small hut like structure, almost resembling a lean-to, sits alone in the middle of the clearing. A small stream of smoke curls up through an opening in the roof, and I smile softly.

"Home sweet home." I say to myself. I approach the hut and duck into the opening, which is covered by a piece of dirty fabric strung up with a long braided strand of grass. Zaylia, my sister, looks up when I enter. She rolls her eyes when she sees my dirt streaked face and torn clothing.

"I swear Terrence, if you got caught again-"

I put my hands up in surrender. "I didn't!"

"Alright well you almost did, I'm sure."

She shakes her head. "Damn, you know I can't handle the dragons by myself! If you go and die on me, I'll come down and drag you back up from hell myself-"

"I'm fine, I told you!" I look away. "And you know very well the other Bonds would help you if I died-" I add in a mutter, but stop when she gives me a look that basically says 'alright, would it be better if I just killed you?'.

My sister sits cross legged in front of a small fire in a dirt pit in the middle of the hut. Our supplies- blankets, clothes, medicine, etc.- line the sides of the hut which are made up of packed and dried mud, wood, ferns, grasses, and whatever else we could find to make up a stable structure. Our bed rolls are also tucked up on the side of the hut. I'll be needing one soon enough. It's funny how you don't recognize how tired you are until you're finished running for your life for the second time in a day.

Zaylia's in the middle of weaving a small mat out of grass, a small pile of grass strands sits next to her on the hard compacted dirt ground.

She pats the earth beside her. "Sit down," she nods to the small bowl of food next to the fire pit. "It's been sitting there for a while because I thought you'd be home earlier, but SOMEONE decided to almost get caught by the authorities so-"

"Shut up, I get it, you don't want me to die, blah blah blah, I'm gonna eat now." I say, sitting down, taking the bowl into my hands. She snorts at me, continuing to braid and weave the strands of grass together. It's still a little warm.

"Stew?" I ask, bringing the bowl to my mouth.

She nods. "Vegetable." She watches me eat in silence for a minute, then laughs a little. "Monty was upset you didn't come visit her today, I fed her for you." Monty is my dragon. Well, not that the wild dragons that roam our lands have owners, but she has a bond with me. I met her when I was just six. She was much smaller then too, I remember. Her scales have changed color a bit since then as well. It's amazing to see these creatures grow.

"How's Driad?"

"He's cranky, not enough sleep." She rolls her eyes. "He kept snorting steam at me today, and he always does that when he's mad about not having the amount of sleep he prefers." She shakes her head, laughing to herself. "He's so spoiled, he got all mad when I didn't bring him his steak yesterday."

"He's always been like that though."

She shrugs. "True. I love him to death though."

I smile at her. She does. Driad, her bonded dragon, has been with her since she was nine or so. Actually that was right around the time when Dad died. He had a dragon then too, but Bane is long gone. Not dead, no, but dragons bond for life, and when their human bond dies or goes away, they don't bond again. Contrary to common belief, Dragons are not viscous creatures. They have feelings, just like humans do. They have personalities, emotions, bonds, and so much more. They're not even close to the blood thirsty killers the people of the villages present them as. They're kind. They only attack when threatened or when their bond or herd is threatened. I've learnt this particular thing through experience. More than once.

I drain the bowl and set it down on the small pile of wooden dishes by the opening to the hut. I'll have to wash the dishes in the morning by the stream before I go flying with Monty. I yawn, and though I try to stifle it, Zaylia catches me. "Sleep, now." She demands, tossing me one of the two bed rolls.

"Sleep, now." I mimick, but catch the bed roll gratefully in my arms. "I'm going to sleep outside tonight. You headed to bed soon?" She nods. "Soon." I smiles. "Night loser, don't die."

I stick my tongue out at her.

"Don't die either."

I duck out of the hut before she can throw something else at me and spread the bed roll out on the grass. I lie down on my back, looking up at the stars, trying to find all the constellations. My dad was the one who taught me how to find all of the constellations. We used to lay out on the grass- just how I am now- and look up at the stars. He used to wonder out loud about how even though we can be so distant from those who we don't agree with or from those we argue with, but we are all united because even though we may not be related by blood, we all come from the stars, and we're all under the same sky. We're all family, even if we don't agree sometimes. The thought brings a smile to my face.

So with that in mind, I close my eyes, letting the soft melody of the forest at night soothe me, the sound of the crickets and other small animals lulling me into a drowse before letting myself sink into a deep sleep, cradled by the bed roll, and beneath that, the soft grass that coats the earth.