Dragon Kin - Chp2 Doubts and Discoveries

It was dawn before he finally decided to rest. He had long since left the ominous shadows of the mountains far behind himself during the night. The land slowly gave way to rocky ground and then finally grassland. He picked a spot next to a small stream that was ambling its way along the landscape below. There was a tree nearby for shade and a small outcrop of rock that over hung a tiny waterfall.
Landing, thankfully, wasn’t as difficult as he had anticipated and if anything he overcompensated, bracing for impact a little too early and not quite enough when it really mattered. It was wobbly, but a touch down nonetheless. Gently, he placed the woman on the ground before unwrapping her from the fur coat and softly laying her head upon it. The climate had changed dramatically since leaving the mountains just as he had hoped. A warm breeze was blowing carrying with it the heavy scent of wild flowers. The sun was low in the sky and the water in the stream splashed playfully over the pebbles that were scattered across its bed.
He was suddenly overcome with tiredness but forced himself to stay awake for a little longer. He checked over the woman who was now much warmer than the previous night and breathing steadily in a deep sleep. Walking over to the outcrop he bent down on all fours and dipped his long tongue into the icy water. A shiver ran up and down his body but ignoring it he drank deeply.
As he lifted his head he stared once again at his reflection. The same sapphire eyes looked back at him and the two ebony horns pointed threateningly toward the sky. So I’m a Dragon he thought. Of course I am, he answered himself, what else would I be? Disgruntled that he was creating yet more questions and problems for himself he hauled himself up onto two legs once again and settled down next to the woman, who had now turned on her side in her sleep.
It was a good sign. With any luck she would be awake soon and be able to give him answers that his mind desperately craved, or at least enough to satisfy it. When he could keep his eyes open no longer, he drifted into an uneasy sleep.
Strange and disturbing images flickered through his dreams and it wasn’t long before he was awake again. To his delight a figure was bent low over the stream filling a leather pouch with water. The woman was finally awake and looked as though she had made a full recovery.
He wanted to press her for questions but was anxious about trying to talk to her after the disaster the night before. It wasn’t long though before a tendril of thought snaked its way into his.
“We can’t stay here, it’s not safe. We were lucky to have survived the night.” She said.
It wasn’t quite what he expected and didn’t much like the idea of moving again so soon, but seeing as he knew as little about his surroundings as he did himself, he put up little protest. A little after noon she made signs that it was time to move, refilling her pouch at the stream and pulling the fur coat around herself she looked determinedly toward the south.
“This stream should lead us to a road before long,” she said aloud, catching him slightly off guard, “It should take us to a small forest. I’ve already made plans for a friend to meet us there.”
This just raised more questions and he was growing slightly impatient. How had she communicated so fast with this friend? Why was it not safe here? Sure they were out in the open but there wasn’t a soul for miles, his keen vision and hearing told him that much. What riled him the most is that she hadn’t even thanked him for carrying her away from the mountains, he could have left her there to die! He was so lost he could bear it no longer and viciously struck out at her consciousness.
“Who are you?!” he demanded.
She stopped immediately and turned to face him. He thought he saw tears enter her eyes for a split second before she forced them back. Expecting this sudden outburst to make her angry he braced himself but instead she merely stared at him intently.
“Skye,” she replied simply, “my name is Skye.”
The name was somehow familiar but from where and when he had no idea, just like he hadn’t any idea who he was for that matter. Other than he now knew he was a dragon he still didn’t know his name. As she turned to leave again he asked:
“What about me?”
The answer took a lot longer to make its way across their open consciousness this time. Although she didn’t look at him and carried on walking a few feet in front of him he could tell it was somewhat hurting her inside to tell him this.
“Zander” she said finally before hastily severing their connection.
All other efforts to communicate were in vain as every time he tried to reach out to her again he found himself blocked. It was as though she had put up a barrier to her thoughts. His few attempts to communicate verbally produced nothing but low grunts and growls. This, and the fact that he was still walking on two feet, seemed to amuse her slightly and he caught a smile out of the corner of his eyes.
“Please,” she said, “everything will be explained soon and you might find it more comfortable to walk on all fours.”
Slightly embarrassed he tried as Skye suggested. It felt strangely awkward at first but after awhile he settled into it and after longer still began to feel foolish for ever attempting walking on two legs in the first place. This was clearly the way he was designed to work, what had he been thinking? As much as he was sure dragons couldn’t blush he knew Skye was thoroughly enjoying watching him wrestle with his pride.
As the stream began to widen he tried to press her for some more answers but the barrier to her mind held fast and no more words left her mouth. Annoyed but resolved that this was as much information he was going to get he retreated to his thoughts again. Finally he had a name.
Zander, he thought to himself happily.
Zander.