Anaisa felt unbidden tears fill her eyes. The night she had once spent in this clearing had felt sacred somehow. Safe and protected. And the healing water had saved their lives through dangers and injuries.
And now, the forest was ablaze.
The towering, beautiful trees were cracking and breaking as sparks drifted from their branches.
Campfires were something dear to her soul, but the wholesale destruction of this beautiful place was wounding her heart.
The roar and crackle of the forest fire was startling in and of itself, but Anaisa gradually realized that the heat and smoke should be deadly at this distance.
Why wasn't she burning? Why weren't her lungs choked for lack of oxygen?
The wight, now descended from the dragon's back, took its place beside her. The dragon itself had its neck extended towards the fire, inhaling deeply as if taking in some delicious scent.