Chapter 12

It's been two years, and I've doubled in size. I think I'm about half the size of my mother currently. According to her, this means I'll be bigger than her when I finish growing. As it turns out, that young dragon back then had definitely been following my mother, recognizing her from almost a decade ago. It doesn't really matter to me, because they never came to get revenge. "Zavi! Pay attention!" I received a hit from her tail on my cheek, causing my head to jerk to the side. I rolled my eyes at her and came back in. Fighting her is way different from battling with my father. While he stands there like a brick wall, she's as elusive as a snake. I've only landed a couple of hits on her, other than with magic. She had even been forcing me to try using both elements at once, combining burning flame with freezing ice for a fire so cold it burned. Reminds me of the blue fire scientist use sometimes--even doctors. It had even turned that very color, which made me rather pleased with myself. I've always liked the color blue.

We whipped around each other, trading blows and magic. She smiled when I snapped at her, managing to take a single scale from her neck. We stopped and landed so I could take it from between my fangs and present it to her. "Nicely done!" She examined it, applauding me for taking it flawlessly--not a scratch. It hurts to have a scale pulled out, but they grow back way faster than hair. She tossed it aside and nodded to me. "Again." We dashed at one another, but before clashing, we jumped, doing a backflip and opening our wings at the same time. She seemed to expect me to do as I always did and start right for her, but I caught her off-guard. When she looked up for me, I was nowhere to be seen. While I opened my wings, it doesn't mean I have to fly...I can just land with my wings spread. Now I leapt, only having to beat my wings once to reach her. Rather than actually use my horns, I headbutted her harmlessly. She yelped, flailing around.

"Got you that time!" After regaining balance, she snorted at me.

"That was nothing like I taught you!" Her eyes were fierce, but soon became gentle. "You did great. I'm sure your father was the one to teach you that?"

"Possibly. Actually, I copied the move that dragon did to father but added to it." She just hovered there, blinking at me.

"You were watching that closely?" I nodded and she grinned. "You're a force to be reckoned with. I'm certain now that anything used against you will be reflected right back at them. Now that I know that, let's get serious." A cold chill ran through me at her words. That sounds painful. When we began, I learned two things; one, I was right, it hurts, and two, my mother is terrifying when she gets serious. After she finally slows down, I droop and become a scaly opal puddle on the platform. "What's wrong? Weren't you stronger than that?"

"Ugh...it's too hard. You're too strong."

"Just because something is stronger doesn't mean you shouldn't try, it means you should just try harder. Who knows, you may become far more powerful than me in the long run." I doubt it. My father's coughing carried from the cave down to us. "He hasn't gotten much better. We may never be able to leave, Zavi, if this continues." It seemed like a veil of grief shrouded her from my heart when she looked to the side. "You can go. I want you to have fun while you can." She left for the nest, wanting to tend to my father. 'Have fun while I can'? I don't like the sound of that. Although, I have an idea of who I'd like to hang out with. I smirked and took off, zooming with renewed vigor. Xyon. I want to know how he's doing. My speed and strength have increased by a lot compared to the last time I met him. I think I might be able to carry him now. It didn't take long before the forest he lived in came into view. I glided on the breeze, watching for him among the trees--as well as making sure there weren't any other humans there. Where is he? Ah! I smiled at the smoke coming from his house's chimney.

He's home, or at least was not long from now...no-one would leave a fire unattended for too long. I don't see him...huh? Why are there so many footprints? Some are definitely his size, but others are far too large. A shudder ran down my spine, making my whole body quake for a moment. What happened to Xyon?! I furled my wings to dive, landing outside his house and hooking the handle with my talon. I opened the door, peering inside, taking in the scent. Woah...so many different people were in here, it's dizzying. He's not inside? I bent my long neck to examine the print on the ground. Looks like there was a struggle of some sort. What did they do to him?! I shoved off, pounding my wings to race in the direction of the village. That scuffle is very recent...they won't be too far off yet--if they went to the village. Did they go elsewhere? I'll scan their trail. I backtracked, making sure of where they went.

Village, definitely. They might have switched their route at some point, so I watched the tracks carefully from the air. I lost his unique scent among theirs the moment I opened that door...so I can't search for him directly. The cool breeze gently lifted me higher, providing a wider range of view. That must be the village...neat little houses resembling cottages from my old world were spread out, some bigger ones clumped together rather than separated. They all had chimneys with smoke wafting into the air, but their homes didn't look near as neat as Xyon's. Now...I focused my eyes, examining anything that moved. I'll find him, but they won't like it if he's hurt. I hid the last time...not going to promise I can do it again. What's that trail of smoke? It's not around any buildings I can see. The heat rising from the village helped me stay aloft, erasing any need to beat my wings. Cheering made me tense up. What are they so happy about? I drifted overhead, freezing up in terror at what I saw. Isn't that a pike?! Like what the people from my world used to tie 'witches' to?! I tuned in my ears, making sure I was too high to be seen, but close enough to hear them. "Burn it! Burn the monster! The creature of dark magic!" Dark magic? They began to spew curses and shout threats when a few people brought a hooded person out towards the pike, tying them up tight. Who's that? A man stepped up and raised a fisted hand, getting complete silence in a matter of seconds.

Taking a deep breath, I heard him say, "Now, all of you knew of the witch, right?!"

They chorused, "Aye!"

"The witch, a wretched hag who loved a beast, a monster! A foul being from the depths of hell itself!?"

"Aye!"

"You know of the vile offspring between them?!"

"Aye!"

"And for so long, we've allowed that creature to live among us?!"

"Aye!"

"And how does it repay us?! It practices black magic! Sorcery created by the king of demons!?"

"Aye!"

"Shall we sacrifice this creature?!" Now he joined them in their 'aye' cheer. "Shall we allow it one last look at the world?! One last wish?!"

"Aye!" This is like a cult...so disturbing

He reached up, grabbing hold of the cloth and ripping it off the person's head, revealing their victim. My heart skipped a beat. "Speak! What might be your last wish upon death?!" Xyon! Why is he tied up there?!

He licked his lips and gazed at the crowd before hanging his head. His voice barely carried up to me as he whispered, "I just want to speak with Zavi one more time. She will be destroyed if she can't find me." The man scowled at him. Xyon looked at him with sad eyes. "That a no…? That's fine too. There's no way she cares that much anyway." He went completely limp in submission, his sadness and hidden fear causing his wolf features to appear. "Hurry up." I was so lost in his sorrow I couldn't do anything but stare wide-eyed, tears hardly beginning to well up along with remorse in my heart.

"See before you, the spawn of a monster and a witch?!" I'm a dragon...of course he wouldn't think I care.

"Aye!" Did he ever believe I was a friend?

"Shall I spare this foul being?!" Or did he think I was some sort of monster, something to be feared?

"Nay!" It makes more sense than him accepting me so easily.

"Shall I cast this creature from hell back where it came from?!" I mean, who would trust a dragon?

"Aye!" His parents were killed by dragons.

"Then witness as I purge this village of a demon!" No. A dragon. Who trusts a dragon? Him. The torch was tossed onto the kindling and they fanned it, trying to speed the flames along. What am I doing?! A rush of guilt made me move quicker, falling into a vertical dive, tilting up just enough to aim right for Xyon as the fire began to engulf the wood. I let out a cry when I swooped in low, barely brushing the hair of those in the crowd with the tip of my tail.

Xyon had his wide eyes trained right on me. "Z-Zavi?! Zavi!" His tail wagged gently and his ear moved down. He's happy I'm here? Awesome, because I'm glad too.

The humans were screaming when I blasted the flame with icy water, slamming onto the platform. "Xyon! I'll get you out of here!" I hadn't landed where I'd intended, but that's due to the unusually warm air here. I'm not used to flying somewhere with heat. It was so easy to fly that I lost control. I tore at his bindings with my talons, careful not to hurt him.

"That demon even has a mighty dragon under his control! Quickly, take them down before they can escape!" I hissed and knocked a row of them down. They're getting spears...Xyon finally fell free. I caught him as he fell, taking off and going as high as I could--making sure I didn't go so high he couldn't breathe. On instinct, I started for my home, not completely thinking it through.

"Hey Xyon, what was that about?"

He looked up from my cupped paws. "That was the village neighboring mine. They are the ones who were cast out of the towns elsewhere...they heard of my situation from those guys two years ago who wanted a harpi egg. More like tortured them."

"But didn't they say you'd 'been allowed to live among us'?"

"By 'us' they meant everyone in the world."

I looked at his happy expression. When did his wolf tail and ears vanish? "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Haha, I truly believed I was about to die." He scratched his head in an almost embarrassed manner. "Thank you Zavi!" He stood on my paw, found balance, and hugged me--at least, I knew it was meant to be a hug, but for the most part he wasn't quite able to wrap his arms all the way around my neck. "Other than that...you seem stronger than before."

I smirked at him. "That reminds me, Xyon, why I made sure to increase my strength."

"And why is that?"

"Get on my back and find out." I raised him up to my shoulders, adjusting my position in mid-air. He grabbed hold of my spikes and pulled himself up, taking his seat at the base of my neck over my shoulders. "Ha! You're a dragon rider now!" He blinked at me, then glanced down. His ears and tail popped out immediately in a mixture of excitement and fear. "Cool, right?" He nodded, seeming not able to from words.

"But...I'm kinda cold…" I wanted to face-palm when I realized the problem--a human-like reaction, I know. They stripped him down to torn and worn down tunic and trousers. His arms, hands, part of his chest, and halfway down the calves to the feet...are bare. Why didn't I notice that sooner?! I closed my eyes, focusing my magic on the area he was sitting. My scales heated up as I generated fire magic, creating a little heat pocket. That should work. He rubbed his arms one more time before settling down. "Much better...you're warm." He leaned forward, pressing his face against the back of my neck, his arms wrapping around me. He's warm too. This is pretty cool though...I have a dragon rider! Maybe not something viewed very well in this world, but I'm enjoying it enough to make up for any of that.

"Have you been watching the scenery?"

"Yeah." I wracked my brain for what was bothering me, but got nothing. "Are you and your parents doing well?" My wings hitched and I changed direction as fast as I could. I almost brought him to my home...where my parents are.

"Yes. How about you?"

"Great...what was that about?"

"What was what?" I kinda didn't want to dwell on that topic too much. And, you know, while I'm stronger than before, all he did was get heavier...not by much though. Even with it only changing a tiny bit, I can still feel his weight as stress on my wings, and his body is creating drag that I'm not used to. I'll have to learn how to fly all over again...I should start putting things on my back and flying with them if I'm going to follow through with this. He doesn't know yet, but I plan to be strong enough to help him avenge his father--if he so wishes.

"Why did you change path?"

"Ah...the wind. Where we go doesn't really matter, does it?"

"I don't think so."

I glanced back at him to see he was gazing at the ground, his wolf ears and tail gone. "Xyon, have you ever thought about that dragon? The one who killed your father?" It's a sensitive subject, but I want to know if hanging out with him will give me a fun life or not.

"Where did that come from?"

"Just curious."

He nodded slowly, then sighed, leaning further into me. "Yes...I have. He annihilated my proud father, yeah, but that's not it." I felt his hands clench and his body stiffen with what felt like rage. His beastkin features slid into being as he glared at the sky. "It mocked him, making fun of his bravery and sacrifice, stating that he would never win…" He took a shaky breath. "It said...even if he crawled and begged for mercy, it wouldn't spare a newborn pup like him." The snarl in his voice made me shudder, sensing the aura of malice coming off of him. Ah...remind me not to mess with either him or my mother too much. Geez, I would not want to be that dragon right now. "I want it to suffer like my father did…" I felt a tear fall on my scales and frowned. A sensitive subject indeed. "...but I don't have the power to do anything about it." Great! Then I didn't train for nothing!

"Hey, Xyon, try and grin instead of crying. I'll help you rid this world of that cannibal."

"What? Seriously?"

"Of course! You're my friend! I have literally rushing right into roaring flames to save you...can't get better than that!" He coughed, then slowly managed to turn it into a laugh. Not sure if I've decided to deal with more than I can handle, but I want to know why I'm here in the first place. If this is a dream, I'll wake up at some point, so let's relish in it for as long as possible with the friends I make along the way.

"Didn't you freeze those 'roaring flames'?" He made air quotes with his fingers, grinning. It's strange how those wolf parts just pop out and vanish all the time...are they ever out for an extended amount of time?

"Details, details...do they really matter?"

"Ha, I guess not. You're my first friend, though…" I flinched.

"Agh! That's not good! You need more friends! For now...this is your first time flying, right?"

"Yeah, other than the time you grabbed me."

"Shhhh...we'll never talk about that again--in fact, it never happened. Here, let me give you a taste of real flight." I shot out small blast of fire that raised me higher on a bed of heated air. "You might want to hold on tighter." He squeezed my spine spike and made himself flatter. "Here...I...go…!" I folded one wing, falling that way then switching them around so I did a flip. He yelped in surprise, but was doing great. He hadn't budged at all. Seems like I can do more. He's so going to hate me. I let my wings go limp, free-falling. Hah, he looks like a beastkin again. I whipped my tail and furled my wings, regaining control and diving. My wings snapped out the moment before I slammed into the snow, bringing me so close my scales brushed the white powder. I swerved, beating my wings to gain enough height to do a barrel-roll. He sounds both happy and terrified--like a screaming laugh kind of thing. I spiraled up, then fell and spiraled down. I jerked to a stop and he ended up shoved against me by the force. "How was that?" His ears were straight up in attention.

"Fun! Scary, but fun!" Hmmm...now that I think about it, what I did was similar to a roller coaster at a theme park. The only difference is he didn't have a safety buckle. "Can you do it again?!"

"Ha, I would, but too much and you'll lose grip. I don't even want to think about how fast you'd rocket off me."

"Ah~! That sucks." His pouting seemed awfully childish, like he was purposely trying to make me feel bad. He doesn't stutter anymore, but he's still quite reserved...a nervous bundle of joy that is everyone's worst nightmare when angered. This whole time I've been doing my darndest to ignore it, but...there're a few holes in my wings. They were probably made from those spears back there. If I keep doing too many tricks, they'll tear.

"Later, I'll do it later. Want me to take you back home yet?"

He hesitated. "I don't think it's safe there anymore. With what that village of barbarians did, there's bound to be a war between the two villages here. They had tension long before this incident...they will attack because I existed, and my village will fight only for the boys who were kidnapped." He's a child too, just like those kids. In my opinion, he acts and sounds older than he is, but at least he looks his age, if not younger. Thinking about it now...he looks like a ball of fluff, especially when he has his wolf ears and tail out. He, mostly likely, won't like it if I try to touch his hair to find how soft it is.

"So…? Is that a no?"

"It's a no, but where else could I possibly go?"

I tilted my head and evened out, hardly going anywhere, just kind of floating there. "I would take you back to my own home, but I don't think it would turn out very good." Then a thought hit me. "What if you built a home in the trees?"

"The trees?"

"Yeah! If you placed a house that high up in the thicker parts of the forest, you can see when someone is coming but they'll never see you!"

"That's...I've never heard of something like that, other than what the elves do." Oh, I forgot I'm in a different world.

"If that's so, then what about those looking for you? It would never even cross their mind that you might be above them." In my world, it's only logical to get the advantage by a higher standing...perhaps those living here haven't quite completely figured that out yet. "You wouldn't be found unless you wanted to be."

"Awesome...but won't I be exposed while making it?"

He has a point, but I wasn't done yet. "Definitely, so I'll show up every day to both help and distract. I can't guarantee I can be there every day, but you can bet I'll try." I read so many books about dragons and their riders, but I never realized how much the human weighed during those daring trips they made. From the direction the topic went, it feels like he's avoiding accepting my help with that dragon. Anyway, he needs to stay hidden. Too many are after him. "How does that sound?"

"Great…" He relaxed against me, all tension seeming to melt out of him as I flew gently. It wasn't long until his breathing evened out, signalling his journey into dream-land. He fell asleep on my back? This has got to be the best trust exercise in history. His true child-like behavior kinda leaked into his expression and position as his dreams continued to transition from one to the next. I honestly didn't know how to react when he rubbed his face with his fisted hand before nuzzling in more. How old is he, anyway? I'll ask when he wakes back up. I checked the temperature around him, making sure to keep it comfortable. In the end I was flying in circles, trying to avoid both my home and the villages. Faint voices made my wings stutter for a moment, but Xyon slept on. Who…? I scanned the area, taking in just how far I'd truly traveled. Many miles from either place I wanted to keep away from. There, a few hills over and below, a group of four was pointing at me and whispering. Huh? Looks like a human, elf, dwarf, and beastkin...why are they together...and carrying weapons…?

I tuned in to listen to their conversation. "Why can't I?! We're lost in this blasted north!" They're lost?

"No we're not! And even if we were, I wouldn't think asking a dragon is smart! What makes you think that thing will even understand us?! What if it attacks instead?!" Dragon? Are they talking about me?

"What's with you?! Are you saying dragons are not intelligent?!" Ah...I'm being called an idiot. How pleasant.

"I never said that!"

"But you were thinking it!" It was fascinating to watch the elf argue with the dwarf without raising their volume above a whisper. The human and beastkin were watching them with almost panicked expressions. Not a very stable group.

"No I wasn't! You have no proof!" From what I can tell, the dwarf is on my side and wants to ask directions, but the elf thinks otherwise. This is a fun show.

"I don't need proof!" They leaned in closer and glared at each other, locking eyes with ferocity. They're really going at it. The human and beastkin said something I didn't understand and turned, waving their arms.

The beastkin cupped their hands around their mouth and shouted, "Hey! Can you help us?!" The dwarf started laughing when the elf threw a fit, throwing his bow at the snow. I do believe I can approach now. Furling my right wing a bit, I turned, swerving to head over. As long as they don't attack me, I won't attack them. I should keep Xyon hidden. I flared my wings and hovered in front of them, tilting my wings so I could do so with little effort.

The beastkin helped the dwarf hold the elf back, leaving the human to talk with me. "Do you know where we can find a village? It's full of bandits and rogues that escaped persecution a few years ago."

They're trying to talk in dragonish...it's broken so they're filling in the gaps with the human language, but it still works perfectly fine. "Yes." My language seems hard for them, so I'll use theirs. "You don't have to try so hard to speak with me."

"A-alright. So, you know the village I speak of?" I nodded this time, not wanting to speak too much...waking up Xyon doesn't sound like a good idea. "Can you tell us where to find it?"

"How about I show you instead?" She glanced at the others before facing me again.

"Yeah, that sounds better. Lead the way, dragon…" She looks almost afraid of me. I'm not that scary, am I? I rose up and turned around, waiting for them to settle down. When they began to follow, I continued forward. Due to boredom, I was doing small tricks that wouldn't make Xyon slip but still keep me entertained. At some point I got tired of doing even that and just flew right above them, watching for danger in their place. I hadn't noticed I'd drifted so far down until the beastkin reached up and touched me. I flinched, but did nothing more than that.

She smiled at me and got the attention of her group. "I should do some scouting with the dragon. Those trees up ahead will be hard to get through otherwise."

"Alright." The elf nodded, refusing to look my way.

"Excuse me, dragon." My mind went blank when she jumped high enough to land neatly on my back at the base of my tail. "I hope you don't mind too much…?" I eyed her for a moment then sighed, giving up.

"You don't have ill-intent, so it's fine for a short bit." I say that but the weight has practically doubled now. I flapped hard to rise enough to clear the hills, continuing until the others were too far to hear anything said. "Why did you get on me?"

She tilted her head from where she'd crouched...why hasn't she moved from there? "I know dragons are smart, possibly even more so than everyone in this team here. We only want you to show us the way and give me a good layout so we can properly capture them."

"How did you jump so high?"

"Hm? I'm a puma beastkin. We're known for our leaping and scouting capabilities." Puma...that's a mountain lion, right? Are the animals in this world really that similar to those in mine?

"Would you mind telling me your name? I might as well know the name of the one who is daring enough to hitch-hike on a dragon."

She laughed at my simple joke. At least they know what hitch-hiking is. "Sure. I'm Lalian, you?"

"Zavi."

"Is that short for something?"

"No…"

"Ah, how unique. I was under the impression the water tribe had longer names…?" Her prying is annoying...wait, where'd that come from? My sudden rage had already quelled, going unnoticed by Lalian. These impulses have always confused me. Is because I'm a dragon now?

"Possibly. I wouldn't know."

"Really? How old are you?"

"Yes. What are you doing out here?" I acknowledged her question of my age but didn't answer.

Her tone changed from suspicion to friendly. "We're adventurers. We were selected specifically by an unknown client to travel all the way up here to capture and bring back the people here who have wanted posters."

"Not everyone?"

"No, just them. How come you knew of that village?"

I barely managed to stop a growl. Seriously, what is up with these crazy emotions?! "I've been there."

"Is that where the holes in your wings came from?"

"Yes." Her ears flicked and I caught her taking in the scent carrying in the air.

What is she doing? "Zavi--I can call you that, right? Do you smell another beastkin?" It took my full effort not to flinch or give any sign I did.

"No…only you." She'll find Xyon if this keeps up. How she hasn't already is a mystery all in itself. "Why?"

"I smell wolves. Is there a pack in the forest?"

"Yes." I clearly remember those guys.

"We'll have to take them into consideration as interference." She shifted around and it felt like she stood. "Who's that?" I looked back at her to see she was staring at Xyon. Ah...at least he looks human right now.

"A friend. He's sleeping."

"Now it makes sense...why you didn't snap at me when I touched you and why you didn't try to kill me when I jumped up here. You've already been letting someone do the same, right? How long have you known each other?"

"Since I was little. That's all I wish to say on the matter."

"Alright. Is that the village? Let me off on a tree." I went lower to allow her to get off, glad there was less to carry. My wings ache. She crouched on a top branch and saluted me. "I hope we can meet again in the future as allies. That said, I have one more request…" I rolled my eyes but tilted so I would circle around her rather than drift away. "They're scattered all over the place right now. If you could just go in there and destroy something, anything, it'll group them together and make it easier for us. When you're done with that, do as you like. I couldn't care less."

"What do I get out of this?" I'm definitely being taken advantage of here.

She paused to think. "You won't have any use for money...what about a magic stone? I found it in a cave on our way here. It was trapped in some ice but fascinated me." She dug around in her bag, pulling out a crystaline stone that continuously alternated between every color. "Not sure what it is. Will this be good?" A stone that no-one knows of? That was trapped in ice until she broke it out? Sounds just as mysterious as my rebirth.

"Yes. give it to me on my way back." I shot off, careful to not disturb Xyon. He's going to wake up if I do this, but I want that stone. Something about it makes me want it...like it's a part of me. Could be a bad thing, but I don't want to risk it having been good and have thrown it away. One thing needs destroyed. This is the correct village, right? I found the scattered spears, the frozen post, and my talon marks. Yeah, this is it. How about that chief guy's house? The one who convinced the crowd Xyon needed to be burned. I examined the village, tracking him to find his home. Ah, of course it's the biggest one here. No...that won't make them swarm. Where's the storage building? I swerved away from that course and found the second largest structure. Looks almost like barns from my world. I blasted a single ball of fire at it and raced off, trying not to be seen. If they like burning things that much, they should try this on for size. I hid among the clouds on my way to Lalian, watching the fireball strike the wood and explode upon impact. Too much power? Probably. Did they deserve it? Most likely. Does it make me feel guilty? Not in the slightest. How has Xyon not woken up yet? He sleeps way too hard.

"Zavi!" Lilian tossed the stone from her perch on the tree. It raced toward me like a miniature rocket. My paw snapped out to snag it as if the speed was meaningless. "Thank you for your assistance!" With that, she vanished among the trees. Didn't I just do something really bad? I kept my eyes on the small group as they made their way through the forest. There's something bothering me about this, and it's not the stone. Aren't there too many children stopping the flames? Where did that tiny army go? The chief hut...why are they all in there?

I rolled my shoulders. "Xyon. Hey, wake up."

"Hn?" He blinked sleepily, yawning. "What?"

"There's a group here sent to capture the wanted people in that village, the one that tried to kill you. Can you tell me why I'm bothered by the chief's hut?"

"What?! You mean adventurers are here?!"

"Yeah...what's wrong?"

"Uh, um...nothing. They'll be fine as long as they don't get hit by their catapult."

"That's quite an interesting thing for you to say!" I narrowed my eyes at him and he shrugged.

His voice remained quiet. "It's easy to avoid. There's only one shot. Leave them be. If they were sent then they're more than qualified for this. They'll live."

He seems afraid of adventurers. "I'll take you to your house then."

"My house?"

"With those guys gone, you won't be in danger anymore. You can stay in your home where you've always been. Just be careful of the possible forest fire coming your way."

"Okay." Is it just me or did he deflate when I said that? Is it really that bad? "You'll come visit, right?"

"Hah, I'll do better than that! I can take you flying every time or help you with whatever!" I set down in front of his house, crouching to make it easier for him to get off. He slid over my shoulder and down my foreleg onto my paw. He hopped off and faced me.

"You promise?" I snorted, slightly offended.

"I would never lie to you on that." I smiled at him, my first friend in this strange world.

"Shake on it." He held out his hand and took a step back to give me room. I smirked, raising my paw gingerly to shake his hand. "The promise has been sealed! Break it and lose your life!" He added a little flair to the end, acting like it was the most dramatic thing he'd ever done. It might well have been.

"Alright. Goodbye for now."

"Bye for now." I took off, speeding home. He's been a great friend.