Warm light traced my skin, its touch gentle as it pulled me from the darkness. As I opened my eyes, I saw that we were no longer in a dark part of the forest. The sunlight I had begun to miss had returned and so had the mellow chirps of the birds above us. A golden glow painted the trees, the setting sun creating an illusion of safety when I knew deep down there could be danger lurking in any shadow.

I laid on the ground with my head resting on one of the satchels we had brought with us and a cloak covering me to act as a blanket. Sat beside me, picking the dirt out of her nails with a dagger, was my sister. My eyes searched our surroundings, at the small camp that had been set up, but Larc was nowhere to be seen.

"What happened?"

Haera's gaze shifted to me as she caught my movement. "You passed out because you needed to rest when you said you were fine. Idiot." She leant over to flick my forehead and pass me a flask of water, the latter I gratefully accepted. "You can't do that again, Zo. We all need to be as alert as we can while travelling through here. What if the Dragon-born or another creature hiding out here took that as an opportunity to attack us?"

I shrugged, a wave of guilt washing through me as the water soothed my dry throat. "I'm sorry. I just wanted us to make as much progress as we could towards the Lyre."

My sister sighed, pulling me towards her as I sat up to wrap me in her arms. "Just don't let it happen again. You terrified me."

"I won't," I replied as I passed the flask back to her. "Where is Larc? Shouldn't he also be here?" Until Haera had mentioned him, I had begun to think that I had imagined him.

She rolled her eyes, motioning her head towards some trees. "He's out bathing in a lake he found to get the blood out of his hair. I would have gone with him to make sure he's not up to anything bad, but I needed to stay here with you."

"Right, because bathing to get rid of the blood all over your body is suspicious." I laced my voice with sarcasm.

"You never know, he could be contacting some other Dragon-borns and letting them know about everything that's happened so far." She crossed her arms, inviting me to challenge her thought process. A challenge that I accepted ardently.

"I highly doubt it. I don't know why you're giving Larc such a hard time. He's only trying to help us and stop the war."

"And I'm just trying to be cautious. I don't want us to end up dead because I didn't have my guard up." There was a slight wobble in her voice and, without a second thought, I knew what it was caused by. Haera didn't want to lose anyone just like we lost our father. It was heart-breaking enough already losing one person, she didn't want to lose me too.

"I understand. Maybe you can just try to be a little bit kinder then?" I suggested, taking my sister's free hand in my own. "You don't have to let your guard down. The poor guy has just lost his wings — Larc isn't able to fly anymore and I bet it's taking a toll on him. He almost died because of it too." Giving her fingers a gentle squeeze, I met her eyes. "By all means, you can still be cautious about his plans, but there's no need to be so mean to him."

Haera scowled. "I'll consider it."

"Thank you." I let go of her hand, rising to my feet. "I'm going to relieve myself. I won't be too far away and I'll be back in a moment."

After waiting for my sister's nod of approval, I wandered away from the little camp they had set up, trying to assess where would be close enough so I would still be safe but was still far enough away that I could have some privacy. As I scanned my surroundings, hoping I wouldn't find a creature staring down at me from the top of a tree, I spied the lake that Haera had mentioned.

The trees opened into a wide clearing, letting sunlight glisten and dance along the ripples in the lake. A large opening in the leaves revealed a bright sapphire sky with only a few clouds drifting past. It would have been the perfect place for animals to drink from, but there was no creature in sight. The only life I could see was Larc.

He stood in the lake with his back towards me, giving me a flawless view of his back — every muscle and ridge in his skin on full display. Larc was now rid of the blood that had once covered him, revealing the deeper blue shade of his hair, some stray strands reaching the nape of his neck. The Dragon-born cradled his remaining wing, holding it close to assess the damage.

I stepped closer, wanting to see the expression on his face, but a branch snapping underneath my weight alerted Larc to my presence.

He carefully placed his torn wing back in the water and stepped closer to the shoreline of the lake. My eyes trailed lower and lower as the water revealed more of his body until I forced myself to avert my gaze.

"You're awake," Larc stated as I quickly turned around, feeling heat flood my face.

"Yes. I'm awake." Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the Dragon-born's clothes on the ground neatly folded in a pile. Well, as much as they could be. With the rips and tears in them, they had to be called scraps of fabric rather than clothes. "I- I bought some of our father's old clothes for you to change into. I don't know if they will fit, but I thought it would be better than nothing. They're still with Haera, though. I didn't realise I was going to meet you out here."

What was I doing? Embarrassment crept up my neck at the awkwardness of the conversation. Why was I even here? All I had intended to do was relieve myself, not watch Larc bathe like a creep.

"Thank you. That's very kind of you." Water rippled behind me and his voice grew louder — closer. "Why are you turned around? Is something the matter?"

My cheeks grew hotter at the reminder of the sight behind me. "You haven't got any clothes on," I answered, willing my voice to be steady. "I don't want to make you uncomfortable by looking at you."

A deep chuckle sounded from Larc's chest. "Why would it make me uncomfortable? Do humans have a fear of nudity?"

"I wouldn't call it a fear, it's more embarrassing to be around each other naked." If someone had told me a day ago that I would be talking with a naked Dragon-born, I would have placed my hand on the forehead and checked them for a potential fever.

"I don't have anything to be embarrassed about." The smirk in his tone was audible, an invitation to get her to turn around. I refused to accept it.

"I assume Dragon-borns don't feel the same then?"

"That assumption would be correct." Larc paused for a moment, his footsteps growing nearer until he stopped directly behind me. "Could you please move out of the way if you don't want to see me then? I brought a cloak to dry myself and you're standing next to it."

My eyes fell to the ground to find the cloak he spoke of directly next to his clothes. His winged-blade was also laid neatly beside it. "I'm sorry!" I moved to the side, still keeping my back to him. The temptation to glance behind me to glimpse at how the remnants of his wings were coping rose within my chest, fighting to take hold, but I stayed firmly in my spot.

Leaving would have been the right thing to do at that moment, but I still had questions I wanted to ask him. "Do they hurt?"

"Does what hurt?" The cloak rustled as the Dragon-born used it to dry himself off.

"Your wings," I whispered, worried that the reminder of them would bring back the sorrow of him losing them.

"A little. Surprisingly, the one that got severed completely hurts more than the one that remains. I think whatever pain receptors ran through the spine of my wing got ruptured."

I nodded. That explanation made sense. If the rest of the wing had been ripped to shreds, that included more than just the tissue that made up the majority of them. "I have some salve that I brought with me that might be able to help with the pain."

"Thank you. I would appreciate that. And thank you for everything you've done too. I just realised I haven't properly thanked you yet for actually saving my life. I never expected to survive that."

"No problem." A strange heart-warming feeling filled my chest. "I was only doing as the Goddess willed." I had been thanked before for healing people's injuries — that was normal when you were the only Goddess-blessed healer in the village — but this felt different somehow.

"You can turn around now, Zofia. I'm fully clothed, so there will be no embarrassment for either of us," he said with a soft laugh, amused by the fact.

I turned around slowly, half expecting him to still be naked just to get a reaction out of me, but he kept to his word. Larc looked a lot better now that blood didn't matt his hair and dirt wasn't smeared across his face. Freckles were sprinkled across his cheeks and forehead, the brown dots barely visible unless I squinted. He had tied his hair back to reveal the sharpness of his jawline and the stubble that had been brushed along it. His hands were calloused, likely from fighting for his queen. My heart thudded against my chest as my eyes roamed his body, daring me to think that the Dragon-born could have been deemed attractive.

"There you are." Larc's smile reached his eyes. "It felt strange talking to the back of your head. I'm surprised your sister let you come out here alone, she doesn't seem to like me at all."

"Ah, about that." What did Haera think I was up to? It had been much longer than it took to relieve myself and she hadn't come searching for me just yet. "She doesn't know that I'm with you."

His brows raised in surprise. "You better get back then. I have no doubt I'll get an earful of insults if we return together."

I frowned at the truth he spoke. "Haera doesn't have ill intentions, she only wants to be cautious because your race is at war with us. I've asked her if she'll try and be a little nicer, but only time will tell if that will happen."

"My southern regions were certainly offended when she threatened to sever them from my body. I don't know what I would do if I lost my second-favourite body part too," he chuckled, his shoulders relaxing. "Are you not cautious or frightened by what I am? I do appreciate your kindness, but it isn't something I would have expected from a human. It would be smart to be scared."

"Is that an insult or a threat? I can't quite tell." I crossed my arms, hiding the smile that fought to break onto my lips.

Panic passed through his expression. "That's not what I meant. I merely-"

"I know, I'm teasing you." His sigh of relief had giggles bubbling out of my mouth. "I was definitely scared at first. When I found you on the ground outside of my house bleeding to death, I was terrified for my family and the village. I didn't know if there were any more Dragon-borns around."

"And yet you healed me."

"It was the right thing to do," I replied with a nod. The memory of his pained sobs played through my mind. Larc's cries for his wings and the defeated look he'd had made it unbearable to not heal him. "I'm not scared of you now, though."

Before Larc could respond, a cry came from within the trees. "Zofia?" My sister called, her voice filled with worry.

"I'm over here!" I yelled back. It was no wonder why she was worried, Haera probably thought I had been kidnapped or killed while trying to relieve myself.

A growl reverberated from the direction that Haera had called from — one that could only belong to an animal or creature that we had been warned about. The forest stilled around us. Where the leaves had once swayed in a phantom breeze, they froze, as if holding their breath. The sun retreated behind clouds for its own protection.

"Haera?" I called out to my sister, ready to charge into the forest to find her, but a Dragon-born stepping in front of me with his sword drawn stopped me.

Not a moment later, my sister burst out of the trees, running towards us with all of our satchels in her hands. "Run!" She screamed, reaching out to grab my arm to drag me along too.

Prowling behind her was nothing like I had ever seen before. The creature's coat was thick with darkness, shadows rippling along its mane of hair. Its clawed feet dug into the ground as it walked with ease, giving it extra stability as it stood. As it snarled at us, it showed off its several sets of teeth that appeared sharp enough to pierce stone. The most unsettling feature was that its eyes glowed a transfixing blue, the same shade as the power that ran through me.

Larc assessed the creature, looked down at his sword, and decided even his skills in battle weren't enough to face it. "Move!" He yelled, taking satchels from my sister to lessen the weight she had to carry.

Without turning back, we ran into the opposite side of the forest, hearing the footsteps of the creature following close behind.