She stared anxiously at her friend, walking back and forth within the tiny human dwelling.

Her other friend placed on her big friend’s chest, doing his best to hug their bigger friend.

It did not help.

Even if she did not understand humans, even if she could not fathom their garbling mouth, uttering noises. She could understand they were in a precarious situation.

She could practically taste how scared her friend was.

And from it, she understood they were in trouble.

But what trouble?

Had the metal monster found them?

Had other humans found them?

She did not think so, for if that was the case, why hadn’t they already come to kill her?

Nay, it must be something else.

Trouble filled her mind, such as it did with her friend.

She thought and pondered, licking the air periodically for any unfamiliar scents, any new humans.

Thought and pondered for a time that seemed to go past too fast for her friend’s liking.

She felt it, how he increased the speed in his steps, breathed harsher, heavier.

He was acting like prey in the middle of being hunted.

She did not want her friend to feel such fear.

But something clicked in her head, ears going up as her eyes narrowed on her big friend, biting his nails as if that would ward off whatever was going on.

A hunch, was what clicked into place.

The human who’d come with food and shed water from their face had seemed to have said something special.

And whatever it was, she had a hunch that it meant trouble.

Trouble that could be nothing else but her friend’s demise.

Yes, now that she thought of it, wasn’t he trapped?

Trapped like the rabbits within those human snares.

And soon, her friend would have his head snapped like one of them too.

Panic grew in her heart as she understood. Staring at her friend in horror.

What could she do?

She had no idea.

What must she do?

She had no idea.

Her tail stayed low to the ground, head resting heavily on the comfortable bed, staring at her friend with large eyes. Scales ill kept, dirty, she felt but ignored for more pressing matters.

Jumping off the bed, she moved elegantly towards her friend, stroking her head against his leg and stopping him in place. He looked down at her, face crunching up in what she just knew meant sadness.

Lifting her up, he hugged her close, and she snuggled into the base of his neck. Warm and comfortable. She wanted to stay like this forever.

She heard it, his beating heart beating so fast. Slowly, slowly calming down. She rumbled lightly, heating her core as she did what felt right. Instincts taking over as she felt, safe.

She knew they weren’t, but she felt she needed this. She felt he needed it too.

A moment in time, away from all troubles.

A Still moment in time.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

But trouble always seemed to find their way to her.

Her nose twitched as a new human was coming, coming with two other humans.

She froze within his grasp, thoughts flying around in her head so fast that she could not stop a single one.

Panic.

Then the knocks.

Her human also froze, his slow beating heart immediately picking up speed. He pushed her outwards and stared at her. Deep into her eyes as she stared at his. Red into brown.

A sound, one of a human speaking. Her friend twisted his head to the door, back at her, then at something behind her.

Her friend stumbled forward and grabbed that infuriatingly soft trap, wrapping it over her.

She realized what he was about to do.

He would wrap her up, leave her, and go off to fight alone.

He would leave her, to save her.

She would not have that, she would not allow that.

Struggling against his grip, he grew increasingly panicked, pushing and pulling harder as the two fought over the blanket. One fighting to get the other within, the other fighting to stay out.

A fight no longer than a few seconds. Enough apparently for the humans waiting outside.

A shocked scream, muffled as the screamer pushed their hands over their mouth. She and her friend turned to look, spotting a human clad in metal, staring at them.

Time stopped.

Her friend stared in slack-jawed horror. She stared in fear.

They had been caught, and now there was nothing she could do.

Or was there?

Turning towards the wall, she filled her lungs with brætt líf, filling it with so much that it felt like she would burst, and then more. Heat boiled within, flooding her lungs and throat.

Then, with a bellowing roar, she released a fire so bright that it could destroy all in its path.

Instincts taking over as her eyelids grew darker, body taut, and head facing forward.

A blast blowing a part of their wooden prison into smithereens, and she lept for the opened hole to freedom.

Her friend, on the other hand, stood shocked in place, staring at their freedom as if petrified.

Immediately turning back, she grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled hard.

With a stumble, he walked behind her after grabbing his pack. She pulled harder, and he jogged.

Then she didn’t have to pull, as he started jogging on his own. Jogging turning into a sprint.

Humans behind screaming out after what looked like a shocked pause of their own. She looked behind, and spotted them looking around, unsure, before some took initiative and started following them.

She could easily outrun them all, but her friend couldn’t.

Though their speed picked up as her friend grasped the seriousness of their situation more and more.

Speeding through a human city.

Humans all around gasping as they sped past, pointing and shouting.

Some moving out of the way, some pushed aside by her or her friend.

Twisting and turning, houses blurred past as they moved faster and faster.

So fast.

She could feel it, something unnatural was going on.

She glanced and looked at her friend, seeing how he pushed harder and harder as something seemed too, push him.

Power, brætt líf, instincts. She had no idea, but he pushed so hard and fast that his speed almost seemed on par with her own.

She glanced behind, and saw how the humans hunting them quickly grew smaller and smaller, vanishing from how fast they ran.

Hope filled her body. She looked at her friend and saw how he sped past her.

Hope turning to incredulous joy.

She narrowed her body further, pushing hard and fast as she easily kept pace beside him, beside her friend.

The two blurring past humans all around.

A tongue lolling out as she glanced at her friend, glancing down on her.

An expression formed on his face.

One, she now knew, meant excitement.

The two turned a corner and found themselves on a long and straight road.

A road that led to a giant gate and a wall that seemed impossibly big.

Her human and her spotted it, speeding fast towards it.

She saw how the humans at the gate spotted them. Not too hard as they grew quite the crowd.

Humans upon humans gathered by the gate, armed, she spotted.

It looked impossible. Too many humans were gathered.

But hope hadn’t dwindled, and her excitement seemed to only be spurred on.

Something primal, something instinctual woke within her.

Something she thought had disappeared with her mother. A secret she would only learn as she grew in age and size.

brætt líf filled her body, but not by her choosing. Filled her and seemed to coalesce at her back. More and more, so much more than if she had time to dwell on how much, she would grow worried.

Then even more came. So much more. Her world grew blurry, feet shaky. She held her speed, albeit barely, as her body grew hot. So hot. Molten hot.

But she was not worried. Nay.

She had never felt so alive.

Then something burst, like the chick from the egg.

And wings burst forth.

Instincts that she thought she would never have burst out with them, sprinting faster and jumping.

Flying up and up.

Freedom.

Pure, blissful freedom.

She had waited her entire life for this moment.

She saw the gate in the distance, the walls, and the sky far above.

She soared upwards, roaring in delight.

Fire spewing out as she felt so desperately, free.

Truly free.

Nothing would stop her now, nothing could stop her now.

She could fly anywhere.

She would not have to worry no more.

Flying far above, she looked down on the human city. Looking so small, yet easily discerning all details. Eyes strengthened by the same brætt líf that awoke her wings.

Down there, she spotted the small humans gathered by the gate.

Then she spotted her friend, staring up at her, surrounded by many, many humans.

Immediately, she dove, flying fast as she aimed for her friend.

But she stopped and saw how her friend waved. Waved in a way that told her to stay away.

She did, but not because of him.

No, she spotted the metal monster running towards her friend with a small army of other humans.

Staying in place, her excitement faded. Replaced by horror. And a shivering panic.

She glanced down, down at her friend. So small. Waving turning frantic as he also spotted the incoming monster.

He waved, doing all that he could to chase her away.

Telling her to go.

She could not do that.

She would not leave her friend to the monster as she’d already done once before.

She would not let her friend die.