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Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I do not own or profit from Raya and the Last Dragon (2021).

Raya and the Last Princess of Fang

                Namaari had noticed her right away. How could she not? And not just because she was the only other child in attendance. And not just because the man next to her, presumably her father, was Chief Benja, the one who had summoned them all here to the Land of Heart.

              No. This girl caught her attention for other reasons and yet Namaari could not put her finger on why. She was just drawn to her somehow. Even now as Chief Benja addressed them all, Namaari could hear none of his words. Her focus was solely on the girl beside him.

              The girl looked to be about the same age as herself. She wore bright turquoise  embroidered  with golden dragons which accentuated her smooth skin that was maybe a shade darker than her own. Her midnight hair had two braids framing either side of her face while the rest was pulled up with an elaborate golden ring.

              Namaari’s eyes traveled, intrigued by this girl and she was startled to see warm, brown eyes glancing back at her. An unconscious smile curled her lips for a moment but then she remembered herself and looked down, trying to remain stoic. Namaari could feel the heat creeping up her neck but she chalked it up to the uncomfortable formalwear and not the way those eyes had seemed to stare straight through her. Eventually, the pull of this girl’s gaze was too strong, and Namaari found her eyes wandering up again.

              As the other Chiefs descended into bitter shouting Namaari continued to do her best to look as poised as her mother next to her, standing straight and holding her hands loosely in front of her but all the while her mind was racing, filled with thoughts of the Heart princess.

               For a moment they just stared at one another as the people all around them yelled and argued. Namaari watched as a troubled crease formed on the brow of this girl and all of sudden, she made her way down the steps towards the group. Closer to Namaari.

              Namaari’s heart began to pound in her chest as the girl approached, her nearness making her features come into even clearer focus. She watched her intently as she stopped at the bottom of the stairs and brought her hands together to form the traditional circle, with a slight bow of her head before her voice rang out clear.

              “I have something to say.”

              They all stopped to listen to this little girl. She had commanded their attention with so few words. But then she broke into a wide smile and opened her arms in welcome.

              “Who’s hungry?”

              Namaari could not help the little snort of laughter that escaped her at how bold this girl was. Hesitantly, she looked up at her mother only for her to unexpectedly encourage her with a light hand on her back.

              “Go ahead. It’s all right.”

              Maybe that is when she should’ve suspected something was amiss, Namaari reflected to herself much later. It was not that her mother was never gentle or encouraging, it was just not something she did in front of most people, and especially potential enemies as she had been brought up to view the other lands.

               Namaari approached the girl, head down, but chancing a few glances up at her until she came to stand directly in front of her. She was painfully aware now of the crowd watching their interaction, but it was too late to turn back now.

              “I’m Namaari…of Fang,” she introduced, finding her voice somehow, despite the heat that was spreading to her ears now, blood pounding there.

              “Hi, Namaari. I’m Raya” the girl returned her greeting, a soft, genuine smile on her lips that was quickly replaced by a gasp of surprise and almost disbelief as she looked down at her necklace.

              “Is that Sisu?”

              Namaari nodded excitedly, her heart fluttering. If she were being honest, she had worn it in the hopes someone would notice it. It was easily her favorite piece of jewelry and it was so rare to find someone who was as interested in dragons  as she was much less recognized that it was Sisu.

              “Sorry- uhm, yea, I might be a little bit of a dragon nerd,” Raya seemed to gush and all of sudden Namaari had no trouble finding words, responding playfully,

              “Hey, I’m the one wearing the Sisu fan necklace.”

              “C’mon,” Raya grinned broadly and gestured with her hand for Namaari to follow her. Namaari did not need any more convincing so she was surprised when Raya slid that same hand into hers effortlessly, tugging her up the stone stairs with her as if they had been friends for years and had not just met during so much turmoil.

              That radiant heat now seared past her neck and ears into her cheeks, and she was sure it had to be visible for all to see, but she was not sure she cared. In Fang, there was very little in the way of physical affection, that even included among families. And yet, Raya’s hand in hers was not unwelcome. Quite the opposite actually.

               With her blood rushing in her ears, she could hardly hear Raya asking her if she had eaten but somehow, she was able to reply as they ran past Chief Benja and into the Heart palace.

              Namaari could not remember the last time she had smiled this much.

              That should have been the second red flag. To be that happy and carefree while all that rage simmered around them.

              Raya’s trickle of laughter was something Namaari decided she would never tire of hearing. She had purposely told a story about her mother that she hoped would elicit just that response so she could hear that infectious sound again. They had kind of fallen into a game of asking each other either/or questions and while Raya had been asking most of the questions, Namaari did not mind. She was enjoying listening to the sound of the Heart princesses voice.

              So, Raya had asked her the most embarrassing thing her mother had ever said to her and Namaari had told her about the time her mother had caught her curled up sleeping with the royal serlots, telling her if she did not watch out and start spending time with people her age then she would up alone and, “become a cat lady.”

              “Seriously?!” Raya managed in between laughs, “your mom actually said that? Awkward.”

              Namaari could not help the grin that split her face at Raya’s reaction. They barely knew each other but already she was so comfortable with the Heart princess.  

              “Okay, next question: hand to hand or swords?” Raya asked wielding the dango stick with a flourish before holding it out to her. Namaari took the offered food and replied without hesitation.

              “Blades all day, " Namaari waved the stick around as she said this, mimicking a sword before also holding it for Raya to take the other rounded treat.

              “Right?!” The other girl gladly took the food and popped it whole into her mouth, licking her fingers afterwards. Namaari watched Raya rapt attention, mesmerized by every little gesture and every word that left her lips. She realized it was her turn so she thought about a safe question.

              “Okay. Dressy or casual?” she asked, popping the other dango into her mouth while she waited for Raya’s response, but she didn’t have to wait long.

              “Only a monster would choose to wear this outfit on the regular,” Raya answered emphatically, pulling at her collar dramatically.

              Laughter bubbled up in Namaari at that, while she agreed that the fabric looked a bit constricting, she thought Raya looked beautiful in her outfit.  

              Whoa… okay. She knew that almost instantly she had become quite comfortable with the other girl…but to think she was beautiful? That was normal, right?   It was true anyway.             

              "Uh, rice or stew?” Raya asked, gesturing to the food between them.

              At the mention of rice Namaari’s smile slipped off her face, looking down and noticing the food for the first time.

              “I didn’t think that’d stump you,” Raya teased lightly, apparently sensing Namaari's change in mood.

              “Ah, this is actually one of the first times I’ve had rice in a while,” Namaari admitted, glancing down at it. Even as a princess she didn't have access to all the things the people of Heart gad in abundance and rice was one of those things. Such a simple staple of most meals, but not In Fang, not for a long time.

              She could feel Raya’s gaze watching her intently. She wasn’t sure what had caused her to open up this much to a relative stranger, but she didn’t regret it. She had just met Raya but could tell instantly that she was someone she could trust.

              “Really?” Raya seemed to have a hard time with the idea. How could she understand? Namaari had never left Fang and just by being in Heart for a few hours she could see how differently they lived. The prosperity. The prosperity. The vast space. All so different from the small, cramped little island Namaari called home, where there was barely room for the people much less the crops to feed them. Their canal kept them safe from the Druun but not from the impending famine.

              “Fang may look nice on the outside, but we have some pretty big holes on the inside,” Namaari replied, lost in those thoughts. The path of this conversation had darkened and she wasn’t sure if Raya wanted to hear all of this.

              “Oh,” Raya’s face had fallen and Namaari could not have that. She did not want Raya to pity her. She wanted that bright smile and carefree glow to return to the other girl’s eyes.

              “Sorry, didn’t mean to bring it down,” Namaari apologized, shaking the lingering fog away. She could see the turmoil in Raya’s eyes with this brand-new information. She could see that Raya’s worldview had just been challenged a bit. Namaari doubted Raya had ever left Heart either and had no idea how the other lands lived. But she could also see that Raya was someone who cared, who wanted to understand.

              “So!” Namaari redirected with a shrug as she put the bowl of rice down, trying to bring back the carefree atmosphere they had previously had, “we both have single parents who are terrible at telling jokes, we are both warrior women who despise uncomfortable formalwear,” she continued to list off before Raya interjected brightly,

              “And we’re both Sisu super fans.”

              The mention of her favorite topic reminded Namaari of the scroll tucked away in the pocket of her pants.

              “Yeah,” Namaari slid her hair behind her ear, self-consciously. It was a habit that her mother hated, so she rarely did it these days but sometimes she forgot.

               "You know… Fang legend says that she’s still out there.”

              “Sisu? You’re kidding… right?” Raya breathed, hanging on Namaari’s every word now.

              “Want to see something?” Namaari said conspiratorially as she pulled out the dragon scroll that she had stolen from the Fang archives, eliciting a scandalized gasp from the girl next to her.

              “Are you supposed to have that?” Raya whispered anxiously, but Namaari could also see the other princess’s excitement.

              “No,” Namaari scoffed as if it was obvious, opening the scroll and spreading it flat on the floor in front of them as she scooted closer to the other girl.

               “According to this, after the mighty Sisu blasted away all the Druun she fell into the water and floated down stream. Legend says she is now sleeping at the river’s end.”

              They both had unconsciously leaned forward, and Namaari had not realized how close thy were to each other until their shoulders brushed. With just that brief touch, it felt like a bolt of lightning had shot through Namaari’s body, causing her heart to race and her breath to catch in her throat.

               While all this was happening, Raya’s little TukTuk had walked across the map and looked up at them, curious about why this old piece of paper had monopolized these two girls’ attentions.

              “But which river? There’s like hundreds,” Raya wondered, gesturing at the map.

              “I don’t know, but if we could find it, could you imagine? A dragon back in the world. Things could be so much better,” Namaari said earnestly. She had waited so long to find someone who was as passionate about Sisu as she was and sharing this with Raya felt so right. She was sure she'd get an earful from her mother later about fraternizing with the enemy or whatever but it would be worth it.

              “Yea, maybe we really could be Kumandra again.”

              Namaari followed Raya’s line of sight to her father. The man seemed to be having trouble engaging the people from the various lands to speak with one another, but he was trying. It felt as though Kumandra was not an impossible dream.

              Namaari was not sure what inspired her to do it. Maybe it was the fact Raya was the only other dragon nerd she had ever met. Maybe it was her hopeful expression as they talked about Kumandra. Maybe… maybe she was developing feelings for her. Whatever it was Namaari reached behind her neck and unclasped her necklace, holding it out with two hands.

              “Here,” Namaari offered gently, as Raya held out her own two hands to take the necklace hesitantly. Those wide, expressive eyes raised to hers as she breathed in disbelief,

              “Whoa! Really?”

              Seeing that Raya was still holding the necklace, unsure if she could accept it, Namaari was compelled to gently wrap her fingers around Raya’s, closing them around the dragon pendant. The feel of Raya’s skin making her heart pound once more.

              Raya held it closer to her face, a strange expression there. Namaari forced herself to look away, trying to steady her erratically beating heart.

              “Hey,” Raya said softly to get her attention, “come with me, Dep la.”

               Namaari’s breath hitched at the intimate nickname but she tried to hide it even as the heat returned to her face.

              “I want to show you something.”

              For the second time that afternoon, Raya took Namaari’s hand, this time to lead her out of the palace and into the forest. As they ran side by side, Namaari decided she could get used to this. If this is what Kumandra would be like then she was sold.

              And this is the part Namaari had played over and over in her mind for six years. She was sure Raya did too. But she was certain that her version was much different. She just prayed she was given the opportunity to explain what really happened to Raya one day.

              Raya led her to the temple where the dragon gem was housed, both princess’s removing their shoes as they entered the sacred place.

              The moment her bare feet touched the cold, damp stone floor of the temple, Namaari could feel the weight of Raya bringing her here. The level of trust it took for the Heart princess to share this with her was not something Namaari took lightly.

              “The spirit of Sisu… I can feel it,” Namaari breathed in awe, instantly making the traditional bow of respect.

              “It’s the last bit of dragon magic in the whole world,” Raya explained, smiling fondly at the precious gem as she led Namaari closer. The hazy blue glow from the gem illuminated the dank space and lit up Raya's face.

               Namaari had the sudden urge to reach out and take the other girl's hand this time but before she finished processing that thought t he clattering of weapons and the pounding of dozens of footsteps rang out in the cavernous space.

              What was happening? Namaari’s head whipped back in surprise as Raya’s did the same but they had no other time to react before they were completely surrounded by Fang soldiers in their tell-tale white and gold. 

              The sound of her mother’s steady voice cut through the confusion.

              “The dragon gem is Fang’s now.”

              Chest heaving, heart pounding, Namaari threw a glance over at Raya who looked exactly how she felt except there was something else rising above her confusion.

              Hurt.

              Oh no. No. No. NO!

              “Raya, I swear- I didn’t-,” Namaari called out to her desperately. But it was too late. Everything descended into chaos after that. The last time she saw Raya’s face it was contorted with betrayal. An image Namaari would never forget.

Chapter Text

              Warm air whipped around Namaari’s face, tousling her hair, as she gripped the reins on her serlot, Chaiya, moving in concert with the powerful animal. If she never had to set foot in the desert of Tail again it would be too soon. There had been too many oppressively scorching hot days and freezing cold nights out here for her to count. Not to mention the sand seemed to permeate everywhere. She was certain that she would be finding it tucked away in places for many months to come. 

               But it will all be worth it. She had to tell herself that.

               A slight glimmer on the ground caught her eye as they bounded past. After hours of riding with the sun reflecting off the sand, she wasn’t sure she had actually seen it at first, convinced her mind had imagined it. But just to be sure she pulled Chaiya to a halt before urging her back more slowly in the direction of where she had thought she had seen it.             

              Her eyes narrowed, Namaari scanned the ground until she spotted it. Immediately she hopped down off Chaiya and walked over, keeping her face neutral and trying to keep her pace steady, peripherally aware of the other Fang warriors watching her. Crouching low, she reached down with her left hand and picked up the familiar object, using the thumb on her right hand to wipe off the excess sand that had clung to the intricate engravings. She tossed her hair to the side and brought it closer to her face to get a better look. Not that she needed to. She knew exactly what this was.

              Namaari released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She’d recognize this piece of jewelry anywhere even after only laying eyes on it for maybe a few hours over six years ago. Raya's hair ring.

             Weeks in the desert and finally some concrete proof that it was indeed Raya out here.

             When the dragon scroll was stolen a couple months ago Namaari could hardly believe it. There was only one person who would have the nerve to sneak into Fang's archives for that particular scroll. She distinctly remembered when General Atitaya informed her of the theft. It had felt as though her whole world had shifted. She had been convinced that Raya had been turned to stone, if not on that day six years ago, then surely at some point shortly after. 

             There had been many a sleepless night for Namaari in the last six years over what had happened, even if she had no idea what her mother had been planning. She had grieved, believing the girl who had changed her life in just a few short hours was gone. The idea that the girl- a woman now- had survived the Druun all this time had caused a flurry of emotions she hadn't been prepared for.

             Once she had gathered herself, Namaari had insisted to her mother that she be the one to go and track down the culprit. She attempted to justify the risk of going outside of the protection of Fang’s walls to retrieve a scroll of very little value by rationalizing that the thief may be plotting something against Fang.

            Of course, the real reason Namaari seized this opportunity was to see Raya again, alive and well; as well as can be expected after spending six years alone in a dystopian hellscape. Based on Chief Virana’s knowing gaze that pierced through the fiercest warriors, she knew Namaari’s true intent. But Namaari could care less. She had to find Raya, explain to her what really happened. After that, well, she hadn't thought that far ahead.

              Ultimately, her mother acquiesced with the caveat that Namaari bring a small band of warriors with her on this mission, lecturing her (once again) on making what she referred to as, ‘emotional decisions.’ It was a phrase that never failed to raise Namaari's ire, but she hid it from her mother, refusing to prove her point.

              It had also been the phrase her mother used to justify exploiting her and her instant friendship with Raya that day six years ago. And maybe she was right. After meeting Raya she never would have betrayed her. Chief Virana knew this and used her own daughter to get to the dragon gem. Namaari would never forgive her but she was determined to fix Fang's mistake, even if it was not her own.

              Grasping the ring securely in her fist, Namaari straightened up and strode purposely over to the edge of the canyon. Below, in the distance, she could follow the path of the river, more akin to a stream now, leading to what appeared to be a shipwreck. This must be the river’s end that the dragon scroll spoke of and where Raya was seeking Sisudatu.

              Namaari could hardly believe she was this close to Raya after all this time. After six years of wondering what had happened to the woman, not a day going by without thinking of those warm brown eyes. Eyes that had looked at her with kindness she had not seen before or since.

               The sound of Lieutenant Wahn’s cocky voice broke through her thoughts of the Heart princess.

              “Princess Namaari, the Tail lands are infested with Druun. Benja’s daughter is as good as stone out here,” he snickered in derision of their mission while glancing around the barren landscape, “Retrieving some useless dragon scroll isn’t worth the risk.”

              Namaari saw red. How dare he question her? How dare he speak of Raya? 

              In the blink of an eye, Namaari had spun around, hooked her hand around the back of his neck and thrusted her foot forward, tripping him and throwing him face-first into the sand in one smooth motion. He fell hard and Namaari stood over him, challenging him to retaliate.

              “Anyone else want to question why we’re out here?” she asked carefully keeping her voice free from the emotions swirling inside her chest, her hands curled into loose fists at her sides in a silent challenge for anyone else who dared insubordination. The three others, as well as their serlots, looked at her apprehensively, not daring to speak up.

               Namaari was a hard ass but she knew that had been a bit of an uncharacteristically strong reaction even for her. She strode back to Chaiya, stepping around Lieutenant Wahn who had yet to pick himself off the ground in his humiliation.

               Before mounting her serlot once more, Namaari pulled a bit of leather string out of her saddle bag and securely tied one end. She opened her hand and took a moment to appreciate the golden ring once again before sliding the leather through the ring, creating a slipknot. She slipped the makeshift necklace over her head and clenched it for just a second before tucking it the neckline of her tank top.

              After the incident with Wahn and knowing how close they were to Raya now, Namaari made a quick decision.

              “Wait here and rest. I’m going to scout ahead,” she ordered them.

              If any of them disagreed with her decision they said nothing, merely dismounted their serlots, as Namaari and Chaiya made their way down into the canyon alone.

              “Good girl, Chaiya,” Namaari patted her serlot’s neck, as she slid off her back, landing on the hard ground with a light thud.  The dried-out land allowed for no footprints, no ability to track Raya’s path.

              However, soon there was a rather large giveaway that the other princess was nearby in the form of her trusty TukTuk on his back, legs flailing in the sky as he tried in vain to right himself. Namaari almost didn't recognize the creature at first. The last time she had seen him was in Heart temple and at that time he was barely the size of Raya’s palm. Namaari could see the makeshift saddle pinned between his large shell and the ground.

              So that’s how she’s been getting around so quickly, Namaari mused to herself. It was pretty ingenious. 

              There was no sign of the Heart princess though. Which was somewhat concerning. How did her TukTuk end up like this? Alone and on his back? Namaari was certain Raya wouldn’t intentionally leave her trusted friend like this.

              Not wanting to startle the creature, Namaari stepped cautiously up to him, making her presence known.

              “Hey there,” she called to him, stepping into his limited field of vision, and making sure he could see her empty, weaponless hands. His large russet eyes flicked over to hers before going wide in surprise. He began making a deep grumbling sound, swinging his legs with renewed vigor to try to flip himself over.

              “I’m not going to hurt you,” she tried to assure him as she got close. He didn’t seem angry or afraid, but almost anxious to see her. But she couldn’t be sure.

              Namaari assessed the situation, seeing the only way to flip him as lifting him up near his head. It was not going to be easy, but she also couldn’t just leave him like this. “I’m going to lift you up, okay?” Namaari warned him, he stared up at her and seemed to settle, so she grasped the edge of one of the plates of his shell near his head.

              Bending her knees and lifting, Namaari was able to lift him easily at first but the higher she lifted him the harder it became. She gritted her teeth, her muscles straining as she struggled to adjust her grip when she almost had him vertical. She had to plant her feet as she put her full weight against his shell.

              “Get away from my TukTuk!”

              The shout startled her, but it worked out in her favor because it startled TukTuk too and luckily it was the last push she needed to get him flipped over. The great fur bug flopped onto his stomach and, with the sudden loss of counterpressure, Namaari stumbled forward into the back of his shell.

              Namaari righted herself in time to see the familiar woman running towards her.

              Raya.  

              Namaari’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of the Heart princess. How different she looked from the 12-year-old girl she had met all those years ago but also unmistakable. And beautiful.

               As much as she wanted to, Namaari didn’t have time to reminisce because of the appearance of the creature behind the Heart princess.

              Trailing Raya was a bright blue dragon with a flowing mane of purples, greens, and blues…

              Immediately, Namaari fell to her knees, lowering her head in respect and lifting her hands in the traditional circle. Her heart was racing and her breathing uneven with emotion at laying eyes on the princess of Heart as well as the legendary dragon.

              Namaari stayed there for a moment and then dared to open her eyes and lift her head just in time to see Raya’s fist coming right at her face.

              Pain exploded in her jaw and the force of the blow sent her sprawling onto her back. She barely had time to lift herself up on her elbows before the point of a familiar kalis sword halted her from moving further. Following the path of the wavy blade up to the hand covered in a wrist guard to an arm partially obscured by a red cape to the livid features of the woman’s face.

              Namaari’s mouth filled with the copper taste of her own blood, but she didn’t care. The girl she had been so drawn to all those years ago had transformed into an equally intriguing woman. Gone were the rounded features of her youth, replaced by the soft lines of adulthood. Again, as much as Namaari wanted to continue staring, refamiliarizing herself with the beauty of the Heart princess, the sword pointed under her chin required her immediate attention.

              “You found her,” Namaari spoke with wonder. 

               The dragon standing behind Raya anxiously played with her tail as she watched their tense interaction, but giving her an awkward wave at Namaari's words, and a "Hey there." 

              “I did,” Raya bit out, “no thanks to you.”

              She guessed she deserved that. She should have tried harder to find the Heart princess. If she had known Raya was out here alone all this time...

              When Namaari had no reply, Raya reached into her pocket and pulled out a scroll. Namaari recognized it right away, even before the Heart princess threw it at her. It landed noiselessly on her stomach but Namaari made no move to remove it, the other woman’s sword giving her very little latitude.

              “Wow, okay, something tells me you’re not besties,” Sisu commented, her eyes darting between them. Even if she had been able to find her voice, Namaari would not have known what to say. In a different world, maybe they could have been friends. Maybe she was being naïve but Namaari still hoped things could be different. She was still having a hard time with the mixture of guilt and relief swirling through her at seeing Raya.

              “Sisu, meet the back-stabbing binturi who broke the world,” Raya practically spat, fire burning in her dark eyes. Namaari wasn’t sure what she had been expecting when she actually caught up to Raya but she would take a sword to the throat just to see her alive. 

              “Raya, I-,” she began but the mere mention of her name seemed to infuriate the woman before her. Raya interrupted her with a borderline snarl,

              “No!”

              Namaari had not realized there was space for Raya’s sword to come any closer to her throat but somehow there was, grazing the hollow there. She was certain if she swallowed the tip would pierce the sensitive skin there. But if nothing else she had to warn her about the others.

              “No,” Raya said more calmly, but the tone was even more deafening than her shout, “Don’t.”

              “Please, listen to me,” Namaari pleaded, not heeding her warning, and while Raya’s face said listening to her was literally the last thing she wanted to do, she remained silent while Namaari continued, “There are four Fang warriors with me. You need to leave now. If they see you have Sisu with you then Chief Virana will send the entire royal army after you.”

               Namaari felt foolish. In her need to find Raya she had unintentionally put her in danger. She had never even considered what would happen when she found the other woman. Not allowing herself to hope it was even possible. But now she had several Fang warriors who were under Chief Virana's orders to retrieve Raya and the scroll and a livid Heart princess who wanted to hear none of it. She wasn't sure how to fix this but she had to make sure the others didn't find them here. She could figure out what to do next once Raya and Sisu were safely away.

              “Yea, that sounds bad.” Sisu’s rough voice interjected. They had somehow almost forgotten about her. “We should probably make like a river and rush right out of here.”

              They both stared at her, but the sacred dragon just grinned at her own joke, looking to them for a laugh. None was forthcoming, the tension still so high between the two women.

              “Princess Namaari?”

              The deep male voice caught both of them off guard and they both whipped their heads to the sound.

              Namaari couldn’t believe it. He had followed her. Wahn had had the nerve to disobey her orders, once again, and follow her. And now he had his crossbow trained right at Raya. To his credit, from their current positions he must think he was rescuing her from "Benja's daughter."

               But it was then that his line of sight shifted towards the blue dragon standing behind them both, his eyes going wide in shock and awe.

              It’s too late, was the thought that flashed across Namaari’s brain.

              “Stand down. Lieutenant Wahn,” Namaari ordered from the ground, but at his words Raya had swung her sword to point in his direction. Noticing this, Namaari took the opportunity to hop to her feet, getting ready to step in front of Raya and Sisu protectively- she had to keep them safe no matter what- but everything happened so quickly after that.

              Raya cocked her arm back to swing her kalis into its whip form at the intruder, but Wahn's finger was already squeezing the trigger.

              It's true what they say. Time really does seem to slow down in times of crisis, each moment passing with excruciating clarity. Namaari saw what was about to happen and her instincts completely took over.

              Lunging forward, she used both hands to shove Raya out of the path of the bolt. She had just enough momentum to clear the Heart princess but not enough to get herself out of harm’s way. She could feel the force of the bolt tear through her flesh and the muscles of her deltoid. 

              The pain did not immediately register to Namaari, looking around her as everything returned to normal speed. Almost in unison, Chaiya and Sisu bounded forward and bared their teeth at Wahn, effectively terrifying him enough to drop the crossbow and scamper away.

             Meanwhile, Raya had managed to catch herself before she fell, still holding her sword but now it was lowered with no one to point it at anymore. The Heart princess was taking heaving breaths, her brows seemingly furrowed in confusion as she tried to process what just happened. The fact that the Princess of Fang was going against her own warriors probably wasn't making a whole lot of sense to Raya right now.

              “Are you all right?” Namaari asked her, breathing heavily from the jolt of adrenaline that had just shot through her veins. The other woman gave her an odd look that Namaari had difficulty deciphering but maybe that was because she was starting to feel a little lightheaded. But it was no longer a look of hatred which was progress.

              “I’m- ah-I’m fine. But you- you have…,” Raya seemed to have difficulty finding words, her eyes darting down to Namaari’s arm and then back up again.

              “Oh, yea, wow, that doesn’t look good,” Sisu deadpanned, nodding empathically in agreement.

              Then she noticed that they were all staring at her, more specifically a point down and right. Namaari followed their line of sight to her arm.

              The sight of the bolt sticking out of her arm somehow broke the spell that Namaari’s brain had conjured to protect her. White, hot pain coursed from her shoulder down to the tips of her fingers, causing every movement, every slight shift of her muscles to be extremely painful.

              For some reason she had not believed that the bolt had actually lodged itself into her arm. She had thought it had just grazed over, leaving a gash or something, but to see the bolt protruding from her torn skin was more than a little surreal.

              Namaari knew what she had to do. She didn’t know if she could get the right angle to yank it out with the way it was, but she had to try. Wahn’s aim was true that was for sure. By Namaari’s calculations, based on her height of her shoulder in comparison to Raya, it would have ripped straight through her neck.

              Pushing that thought from her head, Namaari reached up with her left hand, testing to see if she could even reach the shaft of the bolt and get a grip on it. Turns out she could but the movement proved to be excruciating. Gritting her teeth, she could not help the grunt of pain that escaped her. Showing weakness was almost as painful as the wound itself.

              At some point Raya had sheathed her sword and was now approaching her cautiously. Namaari could feel the sweat beading on her forehead from the pain now and her vision was getting blurry around the edges. She could still make out the Heart princess’s face contorted with conflicted emotions and her eyes focused on the injury. Probably debating if she and Sisu should just hop on TukTuk and roll away, leaving her there. After all, Raya still believed she had been the reason her father was stone. Why would she help a, ‘back stabbing binturi’? Which is why she was surprised by Raya’s next words.

              “Let me see it,” Raya ordered gently, stepping close enough to touch her. Namaari forced herself to stay put despite the urge to jerk her wound out of the Heart Princess’s reach. And yet, at the same time she had craved this closeness with the other woman since the day she had met her, if only under different circumstances.

              “We have to get this out,” Raya told her, her hands still hovering, unsure.

              “I’ve got it,” Namaari replied quickly, bracing herself. She needed to do this and fast.

              Raya looked as though she was going to protest but before she could say anything Namaari took a deep breath and reached around with her left hand again. In order to prevent the pain from becoming too much, this time instead of just grasping the bolt, Namaari grabbed it and pulled it out in one smooth motion.

              She released the breath she had been holding in what sounded almost like a low, guttural growl. With her eyes closed, Namaari just stood for a moment, allowing her heart rate to slow and her breathing to steady.

              “Hey.”

              Raya’s voice was close again and Namaari slid her eyes open to see the Heart princess, her brow furrowed and holding up some bandages now.

              “May I?”  She stayed still as Raya leaned closer to the wound to see the depth. Reaching out a tentative hand, Raya’s fingers gently touched the skin around it, blood beginning to slide down her arm. Namaari’s heart had begun to race, the feeling of Raya’s skin on hers something she never thought she’d feel again.

              “You should keep moving. Lieutenant Wahn will return with the others looking for-,” Namaari inhaled sharply in pain as Raya pressed the clean fabric to the wound, stemming the blood flow, then breathing out and finishing, “Sisu.”

              “This looks like it might need a couple stitches,” Raya said simply and Namaari raised her gaze to see Raya staring back at her intently. She couldn’t read the emotions behind those eyes and they didn’t have time to pick it apart right now.

              “You need to get to Tail’s gem piece before they do,” Namaari replied, the way Raya’s eyebrows shot up in surprise told her that she guessed their mission correctly. Sensing this was her window of opportunity Namaari continued, “I can help you, if you’ll allow me.”

              Her arm was beginning to throb with pain, but she never broke Raya’s gaze. The other woman looked away, seeming to weigh her options and take stock of their situation. She was probably still trying to reconcile whether to trust someone she had spent hating since she was twelve. After a few moments she spoke.

              “Can you ride like that?” Raya asked her doubtfully, eyeing her serlot who had taken to pacing anxiously back and forth.

              “Uhm guys,” Sisu tried to interject, but she barely registered as Raya worked swiftly to finish tying the bandage securely around Namaari's arm.

              “Probably not as quickly as your TukTuk right now but I’ll manage,” she replied, doing her best to keep her breathing even through the pain. She could see that Raya was trying to be as careful as possible but there was no avoiding it. She was well trained in riding one handed but usually that entailed having a spear or some other weapon in her other hand, not injured.

              “Ladies,” Sisu chirped again.

              Raya seemed lost in thought, trying to figure the logistics out of getting to the Tail chief’s hideout quickly and stealthily with a bright blue dragon and two princesses, one of them injured and infamous around the lands for, “breaking the world.”

              “Okay, people!” Sisu yelled, making herself glow to get their attention. “I don’t mean to interrupt the party planning committee but look!”

              They both followed her line of sight, and sure enough, the tell-tale dust of the Fang warriors riding this way in the distance was clear across the flat lands.

              Raya and Sisu mounted TukTuk- the dragon a little clumsily, trying to figure out what to do with her extra length; the saddle wasn’t exactly designed for two people much less a dragon.

              Despite Namaari’s injury she was able to hop up on her serlot with minimal effort, holding the reins in her left hand while she rested her right arm loosely over her thigh to keep from straining her muscles.

              Raya glanced over her shoulder down at her and then they were off.

Chapter Text

                 It wasn’t the most comfortable journey Namaari had ever been on, but it was thankfully relatively short. It was a little after mid-day by this point, the sun pounding down on them and making Namaari only slightly jealous of Raya’s wide-brimmed hat.

                 The pain in her arm had transformed into a dull throb, so Namaari was relieved when they arrived at the entrance to the Tail chief’s hideout, hidden in one of the many barren canyons. TukTuk rolled up the set of steep, hand carved stairs with no issue and Chaiya made short work of them as well with bounding leaps.

              Ahead of her, Sisu and Raya reached the landing, hopped off of TukTuk, and prepared to enter the narrow passageway. Namaari followed behind, eyes darting around; she didn’t like the look of this entrance. It reminded her of an animal trap, a funnel forcing the prey into a narrow path where it would spring on them when they least expected it.

              Raya must have had the same reservations because she slowed her pace to survey any possible danger, however Sisu was completely oblivious.

              “Sisu, I don’t-,” she began to call ahead to the dragon but before she could even finish her sentence Sisu had backed herself into a booby trap, tripping over a rope that sent a deadly-looking spiked column falling towards her.

              Namaari was too far away but her instincts sent her flying off her serlot and towards them. Luckily, Raya was just as quick but significantly closer because she dove at the dragon, sending them both past it to safety as it crashed mere feet behind them.

              “Are you okay?” she shouted over to them, her heart pounding in her chest as she rushed over towards the fallen column. She could see them picking themselves up and dusting off their clothes.

              “Yea... wouldn’t have been a day without at least two near-death experiences,” Raya replied dryly, but Namaari could see the subtle shakiness in her hands at the close call.

              “This doesn’t make sense… none of this would stop a Druun,” Sisu mused as she glanced further down the passage, seemingly unaffected by almost being crushed to death. As her own heart struggled to return to its normal rhythm, Namaari followed her gaze and saw the tangle of ropes that awaited them, each probably rigged to some other kind of deadly trap.

              “It’s not to stop Druun, it’s to stop people,” Raya told her matter-of-factly before glancing back over the column at Namaari.

              “Who knows what else is in here. I think you should stay out here until we get back with your arm all…,” Raya trailed off gesturing to her injury, unsure of how to word it delicately apparently, so Sisu “helped” her.

              “Jacked up,” Sisu finished.

              Namaari didn’t like it. Her arm still worked. The idea of not being able to help them made her feel powerless.

              “And if you two get yourselves killed?” she challenged. She didn’t really want to think about that.

              “Then I guess the dragon gem is yours,” Raya shot back, causing a weird ache in Namaari’s chest. The look on her face must have given Raya the hint that she was serious because her voice softened, “Look, if we're not back soon then we're probably in trouble and need your help but if your people show up and take us by surprise we’ll really need you out here.”

              As much as she hated this scenario Namaari couldn’t argue with that logic, so she merely nodded. She watched just long enough to see the impressive, acrobatic feat of the other woman gracefully and effortlessly glide around and over the ropes, her heart doing funny things in her chest. She couldn’t pick that apart right now.

              “Be safe,” she mumbled to herself, turning to watch the horizon.

              Waiting was not really something Namaari was good at it. She was taught from a young age that leading by example was the only way to earn your people’s respect. So she had thrown herself into her martial arts training, learning as much as she could, becoming the best warrior she could be so that when the time came she would be able to lead her people into battle and protect her land.

              And now she was embarking on probably the most important journey she would ever face, and she was waiting with her serlot and a giant fur bug.

              She took the opportunity to look down at her wound and see that she had begun to bleed through the bandages a bit, an angry bright red stain telling her that it was still actively bleeding. It wasn’t a large wound but it was deep. Raya was right, of course, she would probably need stitches and sooner rather than later.

              After giving her food and water, Chaiya was resting in the sun, purring lightly. TukTuk on the other hand seemed to be staring anxiously into the passage his friend had disappeared into, obediently awaiting her return.

              “Hey, she’ll be okay,” she told him softly, placing a comforting hand on his shell. She wasn’t sure he could actually feel it nor was she sure who exactly she was supposed to be convincing, but he gave her a sympathetic grumble in response.

              Namaari was beginning to develop a soft spot for this giant creature, and not just because he was Raya’s trusted friend all these years. She could still remember from that night she met him when he could fit in the palm of Raya’s child-sized hand. She could hardly believe it was possible he could  have grown from that little thing to this giant one in only six years.

             Her thoughts were cut short when she noticed Chaiya’s head shoot up, her ears at attention as she stared at something in the distance. Namaari followed her gaze, but she didn’t see anything at first. Eventually, she could see the tell-tale dust cloud of someone coming this way. And fast.

              Stepping forward and taking a deep breath, Namaari prepared herself to confront the people she had been tasked to lead. Chaiya jumped up from her position as they neared, mirroring her stance, ready to defend Namaari if necessary, even against her own kin as well. Namaari gave her friend an appreciative pat on her head before turning her attention back to the potential threat in front of her.

              As they neared Namaari watched as they slowed their pace, approaching cautiously. They stayed on their serlots except for Lieutenant Wahn who hopped down and bowed respectfully, bringing his hands together. She was tempted to do what Raya had done to her earlier and punch him in the face, but she resisted the urge.

              “Princess Namaari, please forgive my earlier transgression. I was only trying to save you from Benja’s daughter,” he spoke clearly, raising his head, his eyes darting to her wound briefly.

              She had never liked him. Watching him in training she had seen his disdain for women, something that had become uncommon in Fang after several decades of female leaders. Yet, Namaari could see the resentment in his eyes at having to be subordinate to her and General Atitaya. His prejudice showed by referring only to the Princess of Heart in reference to her father.

              “Clearly, I do not need saving,” she replied simply, holding her fists at her side, ready if he were to make any kind of move.

              Namaari had barely finished her sentence when Wahn insisted, “Then allow us to assist you by taking the dragon and the gem pieces back to Fang. We could-”.

              “Your assistance is not necessary, nor is your presence,” Namaari interrupted him bluntly before continuing, addressing all of them once again, “Return to Fang. Tell Chief Virana that I will be aiding the Princess of Heart in repairing what Fang destroyed. Do no attempt to obstruct our mission or I will have to intervene with force.”

              Wahn scoffed at her, stepping closer causing Chaiya gave a low growl beside her. To show the seriousness of her threat, Namaari crossed her arms around herself and grasped the handle of her swords. He seemed to hesitate but only momentarily before continuing forward and addressing her once more, “Think of what Fang could do with that kind of power. We could keep our people safe. We could secure our future.”

              “You dare question my motivations?” Namaari growled back, unsheathing her swords in a flash of light, the sound of the blade sliding against the sheath filling the air. Namaari’s wound screamed in protest at the sudden movement but she hoped the gritting of her teeth came across as an attempt at intimidation instead of a grimace of pain. “I am doing this for Fang. Saving the last dragon and reassembling the gem pieces will save Fang and restore all of Kumandra. It will fix what we broke.”

              The appearance of the weapons had the desired effect of halting his forward approach. So, Namaari repeated herself, enunciating clearly.

              “Leave. Now. And do not follow us again. That is a command from your princess.”

              Lieutenant Wahn seemed to consider whether it was worth continuing down this path, but ultimately he decided to back down. Bowing once more, he turned to go back to his serlot and mounted him with ease before glancing back down at her.

              “Very well, Princess Namaari,” he emphasized her name with a smug smirk on his face, “We shall relay your message to your mother and inform her of your treachery.”

              And with that they were gone, leaving Namaari staring after them, her chest constricting. What had she just done? Did she really just betray her people? Her mother and Atitaya would absolutely think so.

              And yet… Namaari had never been more sure of anything.

              Namaari sheathed her swords slowly, her arm protesting as she did so. She glanced down at her wound, the bandage completely soaked through with blood now to the point it had begun to trickle down her arm and was now dripping off her elbow into the sand below. Lifting her left hand to cover the wound, she tried to put pressure on the wound to stem the flow.

              “Did you mean that? About Kumandra?”

              Namaari followed the source of the familiar voice to see Raya stepping out of the shadows of the cave. Her dark hair framed her face, accentuating the soft curve of her high cheekbones and flyaway hairs cut across eyes that were looking at her with an intensity that Namaari had not been expecting. Her breath hitched for a moment and she swallowed thickly.

              “I did,” Namaari replied simply, her tone even, trying not to get her hopes up that she was starting to earn the Heart princess’s trust. Raya held her gaze and Namaari wasn’t sure, but she thought she saw a flicker of something there. But she also didn’t get the chance to pick it apart.

              “Namaari! Look! I’m people!” Sisu’s gravelly voice called to her in excitement.

               Namaari somehow managed to tear her eyes from Raya to Sisu, surprised to see not the blue dragon from before but a fair skinned woman with bright blue and purple hair instead. Raya must have recognized Namaari’s confusion because she attempted to explain.   

              “We got the gem piece. Apparently, each one gives Sisu different powers. Mine made her glow and this one gave her the ability to shape change,” Raya gestured to Sisu who was currently counting her human fingers in delight.

              “That’s… that’s incredible,” she said in awe, eliciting an even bigger grin from the dragon-person.             

              “Wait until you see me swim,” Sisu winked at her, eliciting a small awkward laugh from Namaari.

              Not only was she still reeling from Raya’s eyes on her but Namaari was also unsure how to respond to the informality from the legendary dragon. She had dreamed her whole life what it would be like to meet her, but she was nothing how she imagined. Deciding to change the subject, Namaari turned back to the Heart princess.

              “And the Tail Chief?”

              Raya seemed to shift a uncomfortably at the question but shrugged a little. “The Tail chief is…uh,” Raya seemed to be searching for the words before continuing, “not going to be a problem.”

             Namaari could read into the words she did not say. The Tail chief was dead.

              “Oh toi…,” Raya’s voice had gone quiet, her brow furrowing as her eyes shifted down.

              Namaari followed her line of sight to the blood trailing down her arm. Raya then seemed to leap into action, heading to her TukTuk’s saddle bag to retrieve more clean bandages. She watched as the other woman approached her quickly. Her closeness caused the now familiar rush of emotions in Namaari and when Raya’s eyes met her own, she still expected the hate she had seen earlier, but once again she found none. Instead, Raya’s eyes seemed to be asking permission to which Namaari nodded slightly, unable to speak around the lump in her throat.

               Namaari allowed Raya to cover the blood-soaked bandages with the clean ones, stemming the flow once again temporarily.

               “We really need to take care of this,” Raya spoke softly, finishing the knot on the bandage, “Let’s head down to the water. Maybe we can get a boat to Talon and I can stitch this up on the way.”

                 After some minor preparations, Raya and Sisu mounted TukTuk and Namaari hopped up onto Chaiya and made their way slowly towards the water in the hopes that they could find a boat. It was a tedious, painful trip for Namaari, much more so than the trip from the river’s end, because this terrain was much more uneven, requiring several leaps from Chaiya that jostled her arm.

                Eventually, they had made it down to water level and approached the docks. There really weren’t a whole lot of people milling about or boats docked but one stood out immediately. It was a fairly large boat but that wasn’t what caught their attention; it was the huge shrimp sculpture on its roof.

                “Let me handle this,” Raya said assertively as she and Sisu dismounted TukTuk, “Stay here.”

                Namaari was in no place to argue. The pain in her arm was searing while her fingers had begun to go numb, probably from the blood loss. She slid off her serlot, gritting her teeth as the motion bumped her arm. She could see Raya vault herself onto the boat effortlessly from the dock and look around for the captain. A young boy with short, ruffled dark hair and wearing the traditional yellow of Tail appeared. From their spot at the end of the dock Namaari and Sisu could catch some of their conversation and while at first the young boy seemed amiable, things quickly turned.

                “The Shrimporium is not a water taxi,” she heard the boy dismiss her, crossing his arms. She could not quite make out what Raya was saying as she held out some jade and pointed over to them. The boy followed her gesture and narrowed his eyes, their eyes meeting briefly before he whipped his attention back to Raya. He was now whispering incredulously and Namaari wasn’t sure but she was fairly certain she heard the words, “Fang” and “binturi.”

                Raya looked over at her this time, her eyes shaded under her wide brimmed hat, so Namaari couldn’t discern what she was feeling. Namaari watched as she turned back to the boy once more, her shoulders sagging for a moment. Then she replied just as quietly so that Namaari couldn’t hear.

               Whatever she said worked. The boy seemed to relent and Raya grinned, motioning for them to come over.

               The Shrimporium was a large boat but it wasn’t THAT large. Once all three of them (plus Captain Boun, as he referred to himself) and Chaiya and TukTuk had all boarded, the boat didn’t seem as spacious as before. Namaari couldn’t complain though. This would be a much smoother, safer way for them to avoid the Druun and get to Talon quickly. Captain Boun predicted they would get there before nightfall. When Namaari saw his method of moving the boat however…

               Slowly, painfully slowly, the young boy pushed the boat away from the docks with a long bamboo pole.

               “Don’t you dare,” Raya’s voice was low in warning. Namaari turned to see her pointing a threatening finger at Sisu who, in turn, leaned over the side of the boat, eyeing the water longingly.

              “But I’m a water dragon,” she whined, “this is literally my thing.”

              “You have to stay hidden! People would lose their minds if they saw a real, live dragon!” Raya yell-whispered back at her, looking around them nervously to see if Boun was nearby but the boy was still at the back of the boat.

              “No one would see me. I swear,” she promised, leaning even further over the edge.

              “Don’t do it.”

               “I’m doing it.”

               “No! Sisu!”

                “It’s done.”

                And with that Sisu flung herself off the boat and into the water, landing with a loud splash.

                Namaari didn’t have time to process what that meant when all of a sudden the boat lurched forward roughly, throwing everyone towards the back of the boat from the momentum. At the time, Boun and Namaari had been the closest people to the rear. Boun caught himself on one of the supports for the awning and, while Namaari didn’t slide far, her lower back still hit the wood painfully and her hands shot out behind to steady herself, aggravating her arm even further. She didn’t have time to dwell on it though because in the next second Raya came falling towards her, hat flying off and backpedaling as she tried to regain her balance. When she came within reach, Namaari threw her hands around the other woman’s waist, halting her momentum and cushioning her from the force of hitting the wood as she had.

                Once they got used to the motion, Namaari became hyper aware of the fact that Raya’s back was flush against her chest. She was certain that the other woman would be able to feel the pounding of her heart there. The wisps of Raya’s dark hair tickled her cheek and through her heaving breaths she could catch the scent of sandalwood which did nothing to calm her racing pulse. The bare skin of her arms fully pressed against Raya’s own, the warmth there making it difficult for Namaari to regain her focus.

                “What was that?!”

                The sound of Boun’s voice finally drew her out of the trance she had been in. Namaari cleared her throat, not trusting her voice at first before she set Raya back on her feet.

                “Are you all right?” she asked softly, concerned when Raya seemed to freeze in place.

                “Uh, yeah. I’m good. Totally. Mhmm Mm,” Raya turned to her with an odd look on her face, planting her feet as the boat was still moving fairly quickly, while Namaari’s hands hovered around her just in case she lost her footing again.

                After a few minutes, the boat slowed suddenly, still moving forward from the momentum of the extra help from Sisu but not actively being propelled like before. The abrupt change in speed threw them all forward and this time, Namaari stumbled into Raya’s arms.

               With deceiving strength, Raya grasped her hips, halting her fall and searing Namaari’s skin through her tunic. And their faces were close, so very close. Namaari could feel Raya’s warm breath on her cheek.

               Raya quickly released her as the boat steadied, looking away so Namaari couldn’t see her face behind the curtain of her hair. She felt compelled to say something, but she didn’t know what. Was the Heart princess feeling any of the things Namaari felt?

              While Raya nervously strode away, first righting her TukTuk and then trying to convince Sisu to get out of the water and back into her human form, Namaari took a seat on one of the elevated pieces of wood at the stern of the boat, allowing her senses to return to normal. Now that they were safe on the water where the Druun couldn’t get to them she could take a second to process the situation she had gotten herself into.

             One thing was certain: despite her earnest belief in Kumandra and that helping Raya and Sisu collect and reassemble the gem pieces would help Fang, her mother and her people were going to see her aiding the Princess of Heart as a betrayal.

            Namaari didn’t take that lightly. Even though her mother had used her all those years ago and they had a less-than-warm relationship, Namaari still wanted to make her proud. She also thought of General Atitaya and the respect she would lose from the fierce woman who she considered a friend. Then there was the children. The ones who looked up to her and watched her every move. What would they think? She only hoped they would survive this journey and Namaari would have the chance to explain it all to each of them.

           “Okay, let’s see this,” Raya’s voice cut through her thoughts, starting her a bit. She usually prided herself on her sharp senses, but the other woman had somehow distracted her in more ways than one.

           The Heart princess sat down on her right side with a bowl of water, some bandages, a jar of salve, and suturing supplies. Namaari’s body both wanted to shy away from the incoming pain but was also drawn to the other woman resulting in her sitting stiffly, frozen in place by the opposing forces. Namaari watched her movements, relishing the now familiar feeling of her heart skipping when the Heart princess was near. 

          Carefully, Raya used her lithe fingers to begin to peel the blood-soaked bandage off the damaged skin. Just as the last of the bandage was removed, it had stuck a little to the wound when the blood had started to dry, causing the motion to tear at the edge of the wound.

          Namaari could not prevent the sharp intake of breath at the sudden shock of pain. Raya’s hands immediately stilled, biting her bottom lip anxiously as she glanced up into Namaari’s eyes. Despite the loathing that had been there mere hours ago all Namaari could see was concern.

          “I’m sorry…. Are you ok?”

          “Yeah,” Namaari said softly, her mouth dry. As she finished removing the old bandages, Raya moved on to cleaning the residual dried blood with some clean fabric she had found, dipping it into the bowl of water. She held it for a moment, hovering over her skin before hesitantly washing away the blood, starting in the areas furthest away from the wound and moving closer.

           By this point Namaari had completely forgotten about the pain, so focused was she on Raya and her careful, practiced motions. At this distance- or lack thereof- Namaari could see the way the fading light reflected in her dark eyes and made her skin almost glow. Her face was creased with concentration on the task in front of her, moving onto the sutures.

          “Where’d you learn how to do this?” Namaari spoke up after a long silence between them, keeping her breathing steady as Raya stitched her up as gently as she could. 

          Raya looked away and Namaari noticed that a troubled crease had appeared on the usually smooth skin between those eyes. Without looking up she set aside the bowl of water and began applying the salve to the wound and re-wrapping it with fresh gauze.

          “You learn a few things when you’re alone on the run from Druun for six years,” Raya said it matter-of-factly, no trace of the bitterness that Namaari was certain she must feel. The bitterness that she had more than earned.

           As Raya finished tying the bandage, Namaari covered her hand with her own, the motion drawing Raya’s gaze to her questioningly. She knew she might not get another chance, so took a calming breath.

          “Raya…-,” she began, her words failing her. She had spent night after night imagining what she would say to the Heart princess if she ever got the opportunity and now she couldn’t even string more than three words together.

          “Whooooooo’s hungry?”

           Captain Boun’s voice shattered the moment and Raya hopped up quickly to join him and Sisu at the table near the middle of the boat.

           Namaari’s heart sank at the interruption. What if she had lost her chance? Glumly, she dragged herself up and slowly made her way to the table as well.

           “Ooh I am!” Sisu replied excitedly as the captain placed two bowls in front of them. TukTuk and Chaiya were already sharing a bowl of congee which impressed her. Chaiya usually wasn’t one to share.

           Namaari doubted the captain had any food for her. She had seen his suspicious- almost outright hostile- glares when he thought she wasn’t looking. She wasn’t surprised. From what she had heard, none of the other lands trusted anyone from Fang. She was surprised when he brought over three bowls.

            “Three house specials! How spicy would you like it? Hot, hotter, or BOUN goes the dynamite!”

            “Bring on the heat!” Sisu cheered emphatically but before she could grab her bowl, Raya sat next to Sisu and took her bowl from her, bringing it closer to her face and eyeing it suspiciously.

             “Uhhh, what are you doing?”

             “We don’t know him. It could be poison,” she whispered to Sisu.

             “Why would he poison us?” Sisu shout-whispered back loudly enough for them all to hear.

              “Yea, why would I poison you?” Boun asked, flipping his empty bowl and heading back to his cooking station. Raya seemed to watch him closely thinking. Namaari had a suspicion that someone had perhaps tried to poison her before...

              “First, to get my jade purse, second to steal my sword and third, I don’t know, kidnap my TukTuk,” she listed but Namaari thought the last one was a bit of a stretch.

              “All good points but if this is poison then you’re gonna die happy,” he said eating a spoonful of the concoction and kissing his fingertips in satisfaction.

              “Yea, thanks but we’ve got our own eats,” Raya insisted, struggling to bite through some of the jackfruit jerky she produced, a laugh bubbling from Namaari at her face as she did so.

              “He really didn’t poison it, you know,” she said, taking her bowl, pouring some of the hottest sauce on it, and taking a bite. Raya’s jaw seemed to drop in disbelief.

               “And how do you know that, Princess Undercut?” she asked, resting her elbow on the table and looking up at her.

               “I watched him make it. He stuck that spoon in there and tasted it about twenty times,” Namaari shrugged, relishing the spiciness. Fang was known for their chili peppers so heat was not a problem and this reminded her of home. “So, I question his food safety standards but it’s not poisoned.”

               “This is delicious! And yea, by the way, definitely not poison,” Sisu piped up as well between mouthfuls. “But it’s h-hot, it’s hot, it’s h-hoooooooot. It’s really hot! Water! Boun! Captain Boun! We need water, water on deck please!” Sisu shouted, panic setting in.

                Namaari just shook her head in amusement leaning against one of the beams as she continued eating, listening to the sound of Raya’s laughter.

                 The sun had set which meant the Druun had come out, appearing to drift aimlessly on the banks of the river as they floated slowly by. TukTuk and Chaiya were anxious of their presence, reflecting the rest of their moods.

                  Namaari had settled herself on the back of the boat where she was able to see Boun who continued to use the long bamboo stick to steadily push them along, but her eyes were on the Heart princess. Raya was comforting her TukTuk, staring out at the monsters, eyes set with hatred, her body on edge by their presence so close.

                  Namaari was used to seeing them across the canal back home in Fang but rarely this close. When on her journey to locate Raya, she and her warriors had had a couple close calls but had avoided them for the most part.

                  “During the day you can almost forget they’re here, but at night…,” Boun commented looking sullenly over at the banks. “This is why I never leave the boat.”

                   “You’re a smart kid,” Raya replied from her place, now sharpening her sword. Her gaze drifted over to Namaari’s briefly before going back to her task.

                   “What are Druun anyways?” he asked quietly. Her heart ached for him. He reminded her so much of the kids back in Fang… except they were blissfully sheltered from the Druun, protected by Fang’s man-made canal.

                   “A plague. Born from human discord. They’ve always been here waiting for a moment of weakness to attack. They’re like the opposite of dragons. Instead of bringing water and life to the world they’re like a relentless fire that consumes everything in its wake until there’s nothing left but ash and stone." Namaari had yet to see Sisu so somber. Her eyes were turned towards the Druun, a look of pure disdain.

                    “They took my family,” Boun admitted quietly.

                     “They took mine too,” Sisu replied, gently taking four of the pink flowers she had collected while floating past and had on a wooden tray. She brought her joined hands to her forehead and released them with a silent prayer.

                       Boun paused his task of guiding the boat, laying the pole down, and approaching Sisu. He, too, took several flowers, mirroring her gesture in remembrance of his family.

              After a moment, Raya stood from her place and scooped up a single flower. Namaari could only assume that it represented her father as she watched the Heart princess release it into the river. Hurt creased her features and Namaari couldn’t take it anymore. She had to try and explain again. She needed Raya to know that she would never had intentionally caused her such pain.

              As Boun moved back to his place on the other side of the boat and Sisu looked longingly down at the water, Namaari made her way over to the dark haired woman.

              “Raya?”

              The Heart princess turned her head to look over at her, her long hair sliding over her shoulder at the motion. Her face held no anger or annoyance, just lost in thought. Namaari felt awkward all of a sudden, reaching up a hand to brush her hair behind her ear. She slowly matched Raya’s posture, leaning her forearms against railing, before taking a deep breath.

              “That day…,” she began once more, praying she wasn’t about to lose this tenuous thing between them.

              “Namaari, It’s okay. It’s in the past-,” Raya shook her head, no longer meeting her eyes as she straightened up in preparation to walk away. Throwing caution to the wind, Namaari stood up as well and reached out to cover Raya's hand that rested on the wooden railing. It was light enough that Raya could easily slide out of her grasp, but she hoped the gesture would get her attention and make her want to stay and listen.

              “No. Please, I’ve waited six years,” Namaari pleaded, unashamed of what she was sure was a desperate look on her face as she turned her body more fully to face the other woman.

               Raya glanced down at their hands but remained silent and made no move to leave. Namaari took that as permission to continue.

               “I didn’t betray you,” she said in one breath, the words she had practiced so long finally able to be spoken out loud. The crease had returned to Raya’s forehead, the intensity of her stare making it difficult to continue, but Namaari held her gaze. She needed Raya to see the sincerity and truth in her eyes.

               “I didn’t know that my mother had us followed,” she continued, feeling braver with each word. Raya hadn’t punched her again so that felt like a good sign. “I only learned later of her intent.

              “She knew of my love for the legend of Sisu. She also knew Chief Benja had a daughter the same age as her own... She had our warriors watch us during the dinner… they followed us believing- correctly- that we would bond over our mutual love of dragons and you would take me to the dragon gem.”

              Namaari shook her head bitterly, having a hard time meeting Raya’s eyes now. The years of guilt causing a burning behind her own eyes that she fought, swallowing thickly before continuing.

              “I had never met anyone like you before… everything I said to you… giving you my necklace… it was all real… and my mother took advantage of it.” The words were flowing out of Namaari like a flood and she wouldn’t have been able to stop them at this point even if she wanted to.

              “When I heard that someone had stolen Fang’s dragon scroll, I prayed it was you,” she revealed, her chest tightening at the memory of the hope that had filled her knowing there was even the smallest possibility that Raya was alive. “For years I thought my mother’s actions had led to you being turned to stone. I was being torn apart by guilt. Playing that day over and over in my head. Wishing I could’ve recognized some sort of sign of what my mother was planning.”

               She hadn’t realized she’d still been holding Raya’s hand until she felt the slight squeeze around her fingers. Namaari glanced down at their joined hands, confused before looking up searchingly into Raya’s expressive brown eyes. Somehow, Namaari found the ability to say one last thing.

               “I swear to you, Raya. I would never have hurt you. Not then and not now.”

               Despite everything that happened… that was still one of the best days of my life. Those were the words Namaari left unsaid. She didn’t think she was ready to say them and she was sure that Raya wasn’t ready to hear them, especially since it had been the day her father was turned to stone, leaving her alone.

               Namaari held her breath has Raya’s lips parted slightly as if she was about to say something Before she could hear what Raya had to say in response, another voice cut through the air disrupting the moment again.

                “Looks like we’re here,” Boun called to them.

                They both followed his line of sight to the town lit up in the darkness. Talon.

Chapter Text

               By Namaari's estimation, they still had a few minutes until they would reach one of the many docks leading into Talon. She turned her attention back to Raya after the brief interruption, realizing they were still holding hands on the wooden railing, the Heart princess's fingers interweaved with her own. Namaari couldn't help but appreciate the way their hands seemed to fit together so perfectly and she reluctant to let go as if breaking the contact would also break some sort of spell.

              Namaari then lifted her gaze to find that the Heart princess was looking at her too, an unreadable expression on her face. Namaari searched her eyes for any sign of the feelings within but it was impossible for her to tell. Whatever Raya had been thinking it appeared as though she had come to some sort of decision after a moment.

              “Let’s focus on getting this gem piece and then we’ll talk more, okay?” Raya said softly with a warm smile, before giving her hand a gentle squeeze and then releasing it. Namaari watched her make her way across the boat to TukTuk, her hand already felt cold in the absence of the contact, but she was able to breathe again.

              Even though she wasn’t sure if Raya believed her or not, Namaari had an overwhelming sense of relief that she had been able to speak those words to the Heart princess after all this time. And if she had to make a guess based on the fact Raya willingly held her hand, Namaari thought that maybe, just maybe, Raya could begin to trust her… or perhaps even more?

              A rush of emotions swept through her at the thought. If she was honest with herself, Namaari knew she had feelings for Raya the moment she laid eyes on her. At twelve years old she was too young to know the full extent of what the flutter in her chest and the heat creeping up her neck had meant. After everything that had happened that day, she had not dared to allow the thought of having any kind of relationship with Raya, much less a romantic one. Now, that she was faced with the girl as a grown woman there was no doubt those feelings were still there and as much as she tried she couldn’t quash the hope she had that perhaps Raya could feel the same way.

            “Wow! What a smart way to Druun-proof your house,” Sisu’s voice brought Namaari back to reality and she attempted to focus her thoughts on the task at hand. “Build right on the water. The people of Talon are geniuses.”

              Namaari glanced around apprehensively as Captain Boun eased the Shrimporium up to the dock. The tell-tale pink and purple of Talon was everywhere, and the town built over water seemed to glow with it. 

              “Yeah. Talon may look nice, but it’s a hotspot for pickpockets and con artists,” Raya replied with a hint of bitterness. She must have been here before.

               Raya had moved on to getting TukTuk’s saddle ready, her eyes had a faraway look to them as if she were lost in thought. Namaari wished she could read the Heart princess’ mind.

              “Lucky for me. Empty pockets!” Sisu told her gleefully, holding her arms out, the sleeves of her tunic hanging over her hands, a goofy smile on her face.

               Namaari turned to survey the interconnected network of docks and platforms. In sharp contrast to Tail there were people everywhere, shopping, eating out, unafraid of the Druun lurking on land.

            It was strange being here. While searching for Raya, she and the other Fang warriors had bypassed most of the inhabited parts of Talon so Namaari had never actually spent any amount of time here. She’d be lying if she said wasn’t a little fearful of what the people of Talon would think of someone from Fang coming onto their lands. After all, Fang had broken the world and from what she has heard from scouts in the past was that the other lands wanted nothing to do with them and were usually outright hostile. 

              Chancing a glance to her left, Namaari was startled to see Raya staring back at her. How long had that being going on? She desperately wanted to walk over there and… do what? Honestly, the first thing that had come to mind was wrapping her arms around the other woman and assuring her they’d get her father back. Namaari fought the urge, knowing that it may do more to damage what progress she had made with her.

              The Heart princess quickly looked ahead but if Namaari wasn’t mistaken there was the slightest hint of red to her cheeks. And was she side-eyeing her as well? She tried to ignore the fluttering sensation in her chest and the grin that pulled at the edges of her lips.

             The other woman seemed full of nervous energy now, pulling her cape over her shoulders and placing her hat on her head. She cleared her throat and addressed them as Boun finished tying off the boat to the dock.

              “Okay, so here’s the good news. I know where the gem piece is,” she said confidently before moving on to, “The bad news? It’s being held by the notorious Chief of Talon, Dang Hai.”

              Namaari only could reference Dang Hai from her memories as a twelve-year-old. She remembered how the large man seemed smug, stroking his long braided beard, while Chief Benja had addressed them all.

              “What Dang Hai lacks in style, he makes up in mean,” Raya finished folding her arms across her chest with a grim look on her face.

               “Gotcha. Now, we’re just gonna have turn up the charm. Let’s go get him a gift!” Sisu replied with enthusiasm, hopping off the boat and getting ready to march into   Talon.  Raya caught up to her quickly.

               “Sisu, I think maybe it’s safer for you to stay here on the boat,” she said, “Without you, we can’t put the gem back together.”

                Namaari couldn’t help but agree with the Heart princess on this one, so she stepped forward.

                “I’ll go with you,” she offered, adjusting her dual swords on her waist and ignoring the soreness in her arm from her injury.

                “Uh, as much as I could use your muscle,” Raya started but then seemed to struggle for a moment, the hint of pink returning to her cheeks, before continuing,” I mean, as much as I could use your help what I really need is for you to stay here and keep Sisu safe.”

                Namaari frowned. She didn’t like the idea of Raya going alone. What if she was captured? Or worse?

                Apparently sensing her hesitation, Raya continued, “Plus, as someone from Fang… well, let’s just say your presence might draw some unwanted attention. Not to mention you’re already hurt from saving my life earlier- thank you for that by the way.”

                Namaari stepped forward so she could address the Heart princess without the others overhearing. “You don’t have to do all of this on your own anymore,” Namaari said softly softly, “I realize you’re more than capable but I want to help you.”

                 When Raya didn't respond right away she was worried that she had overstepped but then the other woman just grinned.

                 “I’m not alone. I’ve got TukTuk and Sisu and you, plus Captain pop and lock over there,” she joked nodding her head towards Boun. Namaari huffed a little failing to find humor in the situation despite the fact that the young boy's antics while cooking earlier had been rather entertaining.

                 Raya unexpectedly stepped forward as well and leaned in to force Namaari to look into her eyes. “Hey, I’ll be safe. And I promise when I get back with the gem piece we’ll finish that conversation.” 

                Namaari set her jaw and could only nod, unhappy with the arrangement but trusting that Raya could handle herself.

               “Okay, guys. I’ll be back before you can say, ‘jackfruit jerky’,” Raya told them, making one last check of her sword and ensuring she had the gem pieces in her bag on TukTuk’s saddle before making her way down the dock with the giant fur bug lumbering behind.

              Did Namaari mention she hated waiting? She especially hated waiting when Raya’s safety might be at risk and yet this seemed to be becoming an unwelcome trend.

              After Raya had left, Namaari had positioned herself at the back of the boat once more with Chaiya, stroking her furry head, trying to convince herself it was to calm the serlot and not her own raw nerves. She couldn't stop replaying the conversation she and Raya had just before they arrived in Talon, wishing they'd had more time. It was ironic really. Six years of waiting just to have to wait a couple hours more. But if waiting meant that Raya was one step closer to getting her father back then Namaari could wait another six years if she had to.

              Namaari needed a distraction. Tilting her head to the left she could see Sisu on the dock, bouncing on the balls of her bare human feet anxiously. She seemed fixated on getting the Chief a gift and was trying to figure out a way to go about it. Of course, Namaari might not be able to stop the legendary dragon- even disguised as a human- but there was no way she'd let her go alone. Raya had tasked her with protecting her and she would not fail.

               Shifting her gaze to the side Namaari could see that Boun was next to her, coiling some of the extra rope. Every once in a while she would catch him looking over at her suspiciously. She wasn’t sure what he was expecting her to do. Steal his congee? She also wasn't sure what she would have to do to earn his trust but she hoped she'd have the chance.

              “Ah, so it’s true,” a weathered female voice drew all of their eyes to a few yards further up the dock.

              Namaari’s eyes narrowed as she spotted an old woman dressed in expensive-looking garb, a tall hat perched on her head. She was flanked by two large, shirtless men who were so similar looking that they must be related. 

              “What is the Fang princess doing in Talon on a boat from Tail?” the disjointed female voice carried over to where Namaari was sitting on the boat. In response, she shot up to her feet and Chaiya did the same. “You thought you could come to Talon and cause trouble? Well, I hear about every boat that comes across these docks and yours is not welcome here.”

               One of her impossibly large henchman had grabbed Boun at some point and had him in a loose headlock while the other identical henchman was quickly approaching Sisu.

               Namaari sprang into action, vaulting herself over the boat’s rail onto the dock. Sisu was backing up slowly, unable to take her eyes off the man in front of her. Namaari pulled Sisu behind her and ordered, “Get back on the boat.” She didn't get a chance to see if Sisu heeded her or not.

               The lackey readjusted his course for Namaari, hands outstretched, trying to grab her. As he lunged forward she easily dodged his slow, lumbering attack and used his own momentum against him by sticking out her leg to trip him. It worked. He couldn’t stop his forward motion in time to keep from falling off the dock and into the water below.

               There was a yell of surprise as he hit the water and a flurry of splashing as he tried to swim back to the dock but now Namaari’s attention was on the next man.

               He seemed to tighten his hold on Boun, knowing it was his only leverage against her and Namaari didn’t dare draw her swords for fear the boy would get harmed in the ensuing fight. But she was surprised to see the man’s eyes go wide in fear suddenly, looking at a space over her shoulder. Not daring to take her eyes off of him in case he took advantage of her distraction, Namaari strained her ears to try and figure out what was spooking him. A familiar low growl met her ears over the splashing sounds coming from the other man and she couldn’t stop the smirk of triumph on her lips.

               Chaiya jumped onto the dock and stalked past Namaari towards the man, her hackles raised and ears flat against her head. The man was backing up slowly, almost running into the old woman behind him.

               Boun must have sensed his opportunity because he opened his mouth and clamped down hard on the man’s arm, biting it as hard as he could. He yelped in pain and dropped him to the ground. After that many things happened all at once.

               Without anyone in her way, Chaiya pounced at the man who let out a high-pitched scream as he turned and ran as fast as his hulking frame would allow. Meanwhile, Boun was losing his footing from where he was dropped and was pinwheeling his arms to catch his balance. Namaari rushed forward and grabbed the boy by the crossed fabric at his chest, pulling him forward and setting him safely on the dock.

              The man who had fallen in the water had made his way noisily further down the dock and managed to haul himself up. As soon as he was standing, he ran as well leaving a path of soaked wooden boards in his wake.  Now, the only one left was the old woman.  

               Namaari approached her slowly, still not drawing her weapons. “Who are you?” she asked calmly.

               Despite both of her men abandoning her she still looked unafraid, lifting her chin in defiance.

               “You better tell her. Princess Undercut here isn’t  afraid to hit an old lady,” the sound of Raya’s voice was a welcome one. Namaari glanced past the old woman to the source. Raya grinned, her arms crossed under her cloak and Namaari could feel the now familiar pounding of her heart starting up again. 

               “I'm Dang Hu. Chief of Talon,” she told them evenly. “And you’re here to steal my dragon gem piece, Princess Raya."

                If Raya was shocked the woman knew who she was as well as their mission her face didn’t show it. Instead, she drew her sword and held is loosely in front of her.

                “That's right," Raya confirmed and then Namaari was surprised to see her face turn sympathetic. "I'm sorry about Dang Hai. But if you just hand over that gem piece we can work on bringing him back.”

                “And what makes you think I have my son’s gem piece?” the woman countered.

                 All of a sudden, a small furry creature popped up on Raya’s shoulder with the glowing blue stone, sticking his tongue out at her. Namaari recognized the creature as an Ongi, sneaky creatures that were infamous for pick pocketing. Two other Ongis appeared on top of TukTuk behind Raya as well as a toddler, all with smug looks on their faces. Behind them Chaiya came strolling back, a content look on her feline face. Namaari couldn’t wait to hear the story behind this one.

                It was clear from the way the older Chief’s face fell and her hands went to her pockets that the Ongi had stolen the gem piece from her while they had all been talking. Seeming to finally realize her situation and that she was vastly outnumbered, the woman had a glint of fear in her eyes for a moment.

               “We appreciate your cooperation,” Raya said smugly, taking the gem from the creature and putting it in her pocket before continuing, “Now if you don’t mind, we have a pretty tight schedule.”

               Dang Hu couldn’t move quickly by any stretch of the imagination but without her henchmen she seemed to realize that it was wise to leave. With a grumble, she hobbled past the group down the dock back towards the rest of Talon.

               The Ongis ran past all of them onto the boat and they all just watched as the feeding frenzy began. Sisu seemed thrilled at the new additions, trying to engage them in one sided conversation with little success.

               “I kind of promised them all of the congee they could eat,” Raya said with a grimace as Boun just stared at her in horror.

               “Well, they are going to be with us for a while then because Ongis have nine stomachs.”

                “Oh, toi,” Raya swore under her breath but tried to recover with humor as usual, “But hey now you have new customers?”

                 The boy just shook his head in disbelief and instead turned to Namaari. “Hey,” he said seriously, “Thanks for your help back there.”

                “Of course,” Namaari gave him a slight bow of her head. The boy seemed to be looking at her in a new light. Gone was the suspicious side eye, replaced by a gleam of respect before he ran off to try and wrangle the Ongis appetites.

                Next came the tiny girl that had come with the three Ongis. Wearing the pinks and purples of Talon, her jet black hair pulled into rows of little pony tails she hobbled over to her and seemed to size Namaari up. Would even a baby judge her for being from Fang? After some apparent consideration, she lifted her short arms up to her in the universal baby gesture of wanting to be picked up.

               “And who might you be, little one?” Namaari asked, bemused she reached down and lifted the child up with her good arm and settled her on her hip. It was something she had done many times with the children back in Fang and she didn’t give it a second thought. She could see on the collar of her shirt, an embroidered name: Noi.

               Noi grabbed the dangling part of her earring and gave it a slight tug. It was a little painful but the child was just exploring and testing limits, so she reached around with her other hand and removed the piece of jewelry. “You want this?”

              Noi took it with a slew of babbles before gesturing to be put down. As soon as her feet hit the dock she was off towards the boat and a meal as well.

              Namaari glanced back to find that Raya was staring at her with an odd look on her face.

              “What?” Namaari asked self-consciously, glancing down to make sure the child hadn’t left some kind of body fluid on her tank top or pants. Why else would Raya be looking at her like that? Finding nothing she turned her attention back to the Heart princess, only for it to be her turn to give Raya a strange look.

              Chaiya came up behind Raya and brushed her head against her with an affectionate purr. The Heart princess seemed a little taken aback by the sudden gesture but gave the serlot a gentle scratch behind the ear regardless.

               “I was on my way back when I found this one. Can we keep her?” Raya mock-pleaded, her hands pressed together and pouting.

               Namaari gave a little laugh and a shake of her head, tearing her eyes away from those incredibly distracting lips of hers. 

               Noi came charging back towards them at the serlot, hands extended to grab her fur. Chaiya’s eyes went wide and she leapt clear over the child and bounded back onto the boat. She promptly climbed up to the roof, settling herself on top of the giant shrimp sculpture’s back where she could be safe from tiny hands.

               “Do I want to know how you went into Talon looking for a gem piece and ended up with three Ongis and a baby?" Namaari teased, as they both turned and walked side by side down the dock back to the boat.

               “Nope, what happens in Talon, stays in Talon, " Raya replied simply eliciting a chuckle from Namaari as they stepped back onto the boat and Boun shoved off.

                As much as she wanted to talk to Raya, Namaari realized the boat was getting rather crowded, making private conversations almost impossible.

                Boun had made them all dinner- several dinners for the Ongis- and they sat at the table in the center of the boat talking amiably. It had already been late when they left Talon but by the time they were done eating they were all exhausted. Boun had allowed Namaari, albeit somewhat begrudgingly, to take a shift at pushing the boat along while the others got some rest. Raya would take the next shift and then Boun would get them the rest of the way. Sisu could get them to Spine in no time easily, but Raya didn’t feel it was worth it to risk blowing her cover. They weren't quite ready to let the others know her true identity.

              Namaari peered into the darkness, watching for anything that may come their way. The Kumandra River was fairly wide here so she was less concerned about running aground or into something than she was about possible bandits. She had stationed herself on the port side of the boat so she could primarily use her left arm to push the boat forward with the bamboo pole. Her right arm still protested the motion but the pain was much more manageable than it had been.

              Her ears perked up at the sound of light footsteps coming towards her from the front of the boat. Her heart picked up its pace because she’d recognize the sound of Raya’s foot falls from a mile away.

              “Hey,” the Heart princess’s soft greeting did nothing to calm the pounding in her chest.

              “Hey,” Namaari echoed, giving the boat another shove forward to try to distract her from the emotions swirling inside her. There was a slightly prolonged silence after that. When it was broken they both spoke at the same time.

              “Can’t sleep?”

              “How’s your arm?”

              They both laughed at their awkwardness, looking away from each other. Namaari glanced back over at the other woman, their gaff dissolving some of the tension.

              “My arm is good, thanks to you,” she answered Raya’s question. The other woman seemed to swat the air as if the compliment was a fly she could shoo away.

              “I’m sure you could use a break,” Raya offered.

              “You should be resting. We agreed your turn wasn’t for at least another hour,” Namaari countered. The truth was that she had no intention of waking up the princess for her shift but now that she was awake she was curious about the reason.

              “Yea, I couldn’t sleep through Sisu’s snoring. Dragons, am I right?” she joked but Namaari could see the dark circles underneath the princess’s eyes even in the gloom around them. The weight she must be carrying, being so close to getting all of the gem pieces and finally seeing her father again.

              “You know, you're right. I could use a break,” Namaari said suddenly, lifting the pole out of the water and setting it down quietly inside the boat before continuing, “but so could you. Come on.”

              Namaari nodded towards the front of the boat and made her way to the prow, Raya following behind her. She eased herself down, letting her legs dangle over the side and then she watched as the other woman did the same, leaning back on her arms instead.

              The momentum kept the boat moving steadily forward and Namaari allowed herself to take a deep calming breath, the crisp night air filling her lungs. She could tell they were getting closer to Spine the way the temperature was starting to drop as they moved north.

              They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, Raya looking up at the stars, Namaari glancing ahead with her hands settled in her lap. She wanted to speak up but simultaneously she didn’t want to shatter the peaceful moment with the woman beside her. Her legs were close enough that if Namaari adjusted in the slightest they would brush against one another.

              She wasn’t sure how much time passed, probably no more than a minute, but eventually Raya sat forward, mirroring her position now. The bare skin of Raya’s arms brushed against her own and stayed there. She was grateful the Heart princess wasn’t looking at her because she was certain she would see how Namaari had temporarily forgotten how to breath and how her entire body had frozen, scared of making the slightest move that would break the contact.

              “I have something that belongs to you,” Raya said suddenly, pulling an expensive-looking red cloth out of her pocket. Namaari watched intently, curious, her brow furrowed in confusion. What could she possibly have of hers?

              Raya handed her the cloth and she carefully pulled back the folds to reveal an instantly recognizable object.

              Namaari couldn’t stop the gasp of shock at seeing her Sisu pendant, laying in her palm, just as it had looked the day she had given it to Raya.

              “I tried to take good care of it,” Raya told her softly.

              Namaari could feel Raya’s eyes watching her as she ran her fingers over the gleaming metal surface. To know that not only had Raya kept her gift all this time, but through all of the hardships she had faced she had kept it in pristine condition….

              Her chest tightened and her throat seemed to close up with emotion. It took her a moment to reply, having to clear her throat when she did so, “I never thought I’d see this again.” Namaari dared to look into Raya’s warm eyes when she spoke again, “I never thought I’d see you again.”

              She could feel the burning in the back of her eyes, tears threatening to fall at the meaningful gesture. Instead, she wrapped the pendant back up and placed it back in Raya’s hand, holding it there for a moment so she could feel the warmth there.

              “It was a gift. Please. Keep it,” she told her, removing her hand reluctantly.

              Raya stared back at her now the one seemingly speechless, so Namaari reached into her collar and pulled out the other woman’s hair ring that she had tucked there earlier, easing it over her head.

              “I actually have something that belongs to you too,” she told her, “I haven’t had it nearly as long. In fact, I found it this morning when I was searching for you, but I thought you might want it back.”

              Raya smiled at her with what Namaari could swear was affection, before glancing down at the piece of jewelry in her palm. She picked it up and examined it for a moment, her eyes seemingly lost in thought. After a moment, she took the leather string and looped it back over Namaari’s head, adjusting it so the ring sat centered on her chest.

              “You keep it,” Raya insisted with a soft smile, “it suits you much better.”

              Namaari could feel the heat in her cheeks as Raya’s hand hovered over her heart, the ring still in her fingers. She was having a difficult time focusing on anything but the feeling of having Raya so close to her.

              “You know,” Raya began softly, tilting her head to look over at her, “I think I knew.”

              Namaari still wasn’t sure if she could breath. This was the conversation she had been waiting to finish all afternoon and evening and here they were.

              Before she could formulate even the most simple of responses Raya continued, looking down at her hands now as she spoke. “I was scared and hurt and angry and I needed someone to blame,” Raya revealed, her voice just above a whisper. Even through the darkness Namaari could see the turmoil in those bronze eyes as she seemed to remember the hardship of the last six years. “But in my heart I knew you hadn’t betrayed me.”

              Namaari was speechless. She had no idea how to respond. Relief flooded through her that, not only did Raya believe her, but that a small part of her had known all this time. All she could manage was to meet Raya’s gaze, her eyes searching for what? She wasn’t sure.

              Their eyes were locked on one another and Namaari felt drawn to Raya as she had never been with anyone else. Their arms and legs were fully flush against one another’s now and all Namaari would have to do would be to lean in mere inches to kiss her.

              But then Raya stood all of a sudden, her face losing its intensity and transforming into one of awkwardness as she spoke again, “Uh yea, there’s no way you can fake that level of dragon nerd. Oh, and sorry for punching you in the face earlier by the way."

              Namaari made no move to stand, instead releasing a loaded breath, laughing as if she hadn’t just been thinking about kissing the woman next to her. 

              “I’ll survive,” Namaari tried to joke but she wasn’t so sure. 

Chapter Text

Sleep evaded Namaari after her conversation with Raya. She was eventually able to catch a few minutes here or there but would always be awakened by something whether it was a creak of the boat or a light snore from one of the ongis. Once she was awake her thoughts always drifted back to the Princess of Heart and that took her down paths that made it even more difficult to get back to sleep.

Eventually she gave up on sleep entirely, laying there awake trying to rest her body but even that seemed impossible, so she sat up and surveyed the boat.

The ongis and Noi had chosen to snuggle up with Sisu while Chaiya stayed as far as she could up on the roof. Raya had taken her turn steering and then was relieved by Boun for the home stretch. Currently, she was leaned up against her TukTuk, both of them sleeping soundly.

This must be the safest place Raya had slept in a long time. Pain stabbed Namaari’s chest at the thought. How could she be so spoiled to miss her bed back in Fang when Raya had not had the same luxury the last six years?

“So, does she know?” Sisu’s rough voice caught her off guard and startled her out of her thoughts of the Heart princess. She hadn’t heard her wake up, but it looked like the ongis and Noi had as they were stretching and already looking for food.

“What?” Namaari blurted, staring at the wild-haired woman beside her who seemed to have a wide, knowing smile on her face.

“What do you mean ‘what?’” Sisu folded her arms across her chest, the long sleeves hiding her hands. “Does Raya know you’re totally in love with her?”

Namaari was pretty sure she died for a second. Her eyes went wide, her heart stopped and then started beating wildly in her chest and she forgot how to breath. In a panic, her eyes darted over to where the Heart princess had just been and she was relieved to see her still sleeping soundly.

“Sisu!” Namaari hissed at her, lifting her hand to push her hair behind her ear anxiously.

“What? You do!” Sisu shrugged, her grin getting wider and more mischievous. Namaari’s heart was still having difficulty finding a normal rhythm. 

“I…,” Namaari didn’t know what to say. Was she really that obvious? Namaari was no fool. She had figured out what this feeling was, though she hadn’t dared name it, even in her own mind.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell her,” Sisu assured, bumping her shoulder with Namaari’s uninjured one companionly, before adding, “But you definitely should.”

With that, the dragon-in-human-form hopped down from her perch, leaving Namaari to wonder what had just happened.

By now, everyone was awake, even Raya was stirring. The fog around the boat was becoming even more dense, making it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of them. Boun continued to navigate with the bamboo pole slowly and carefully.

“Hey, get any sleep?” Raya’s voice drew her attention and Namaari watched as the woman approached her, a tired smile on her lips as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

Namaari offered her a smile of her own and she shrugged. “I’ll sleep better when we have all these gem pieces.”

“Agreed.” Raya sat down next to her on the little step leading up to the bow. There wasn’t a lot of room there, so Namaari was painfully aware of how close the Heart princess was, thighs flush against one another, her conversation with Sisu still ringing in her ears. “How’s your wound?”

Namaari tried to remain composed with her this close, steadying her breath before replying. “It’s okay. Just a little sore.”

“May I?” Raya asked softly, fingers hovering over the bandage, waiting for permission. The Heart princess was so close that Namaari could feel her warm breath spreading over the bare skin of her arm and it was making it incredibly difficult for her to concentrate on the actual words leaving the other woman’s lips. Somehow, she managed a slight nod in response, swallowing hard.

Namaari watched intently as the other woman gently peeled away the bandage, assessing the stitched up wound underneath. A feather light touch to the skin surrounding it caused Namaari to tense up. Raya picked up on it and must have assumed it was due to pain when really it was the electricity from her skin.

“Does it hurt really bad?” she asked, biting her lips. She seemed to search Namaari’s eyes, a crease forming between her own brows in concern.

“Oh, no, it’s all right. You just surprised me,” Namaari told her. It wasn’t a lie. But it wasn’t exactly the whole truth.

“Mhmm,” Raya hummed in response, turning her attention back to her arm. “I should change the bandage and put more salve on it. I’ll be right back.”

She watched as Raya went over to TukTuk’s saddle and got the necessary items and came back a moment later. She continued to observe the woman as she tended to her wound, her face now soft and relaxed.

When she was finished, Raya put the salve jar in her pant’s pocket but made no move to leave Namaari’s side. “Thank you,” she said, earning her a smile from the other woman.

“I feel like it’s the least I can do for the woman who saved my life after I punched her in the face,” Raya joked, with a shrug. A small laugh escaped her as she looked down at her hands, remembering vividly how close that arrow had come to hitting Raya.

They sat for a moment in a comfortable silence until Boun’s voice cut through the stillness.

“Um, I think we’re in Spine,” Boun said from his perch on the railing of the boat. Namaari and Raya followed his line of sight towards the land on their right. It was still early and the light had not yet fully broken the horizon so the bamboo forest paired with the dense fog left an ominous impression.

“Geez, how can he tell through all this mist?” Raya wondered aloud next to her. Her words brought a flood of nostalgia that Namaari hadn’t been expecting. Before she had given it much thought, she started speaking.

“’Little morning mist.’”

Sensing Raya’s confusion Namaari explained further. “That’s what my mother likes to call me.” Namaari glanced over at Raya who appeared to be listening intently, head tilted to the side slightly so she continued. “I asked her once why she chose that nickname for me.”

“What did she say?” Raya asked, intrigued. Namaari wasn’t sure why she was revealing this to the princess of Heart, but it was too late to back out now.

“She told me it was because I gave her hope,” Namaari recalled, looking down at her hands now as she spoke, quoting her mother. “’Like the morning mist at the beginning of a new dawn, there is the hope of a new day, new opportunities. Even if you can’t see it yet’.”

Namaari turned her face away from the other woman, her curtain of hair hiding her eyes as she felt hot tears welling up. She steeled herself and willed them not to fall down her cheeks. She was still so angry with her mother for everything that she had done     but still a part of her knew that everything her mother had ever done was to protect her. Even betraying her own daughter and condemning another’s to life as an orphan.

Namaari was surprised when the woman next to her slipped an arm around her shoulders, careful not to lean too much on her injured side.

“My Ba calls me ‘Dewdrop’,” Raya offered, a wistful smile on her face. Namaari couldn’t help but find it interesting both of their parents gave them nicknames related to water. “I never asked him why but I imagine it was because I was annoying like when you walk through grass covered in dew and you’re your feet get all wet and then everything sticks to them.”

Namaari couldn’t stop the bubble of laughter that escaped her. Raya was grinning at her, obviously pleased that her attempt at cheering her up was working. It never ceased to amaze Namaari that Raya could always find a way to transform her darkness into something light.

By this point Boun had found a place to stop the boat but it wasn’t near the shore. They both stood from their spots, Raya’s arm falling away from her shoulders, leaving Namaari’s skin feeling cold without its comforting warmth.

Namaari gazed at the land before them and it looked as though the people of Spine had placed jagged bamboo stumps to keep boats from getting too close to shore. It was effective but by Namaari’s calculations they’d still be able to hop across them to land.

“I’m coming with you this time,” Namaari told Raya, leaving no room for debate. The woman smiled back at her, no hint of argument in her face.

“Good. Because I’m going to need your help with these Spine rage heads,” she said and then walked over to TukTuk to grab her bag with the dragon gems, her sword, cape, and hat as well. Namaari simply checked that her dual swords were secured to her waist and told Chaiya she’d be back soon. The serlot still wouldn’t risk coming down with the ongis and Noi still bouncing off the walls and eating anything they could get their hands on.

“Remind me never to have kids,” Raya joked, exaggerating a sigh but Namaari just shrugged.

“They’re not so bad.”

Raya stared at her as was becoming a habit of hers and Namaari shifted under her gaze, wondering what she was thinking. She wouldn’t get to find out now because Sisu came bounding up to them.

“All right! Let’s bring this Spine Chief some eats! Can’t go wrong with offering up a nice home-cooked meal,” she declared, reaching for one of the only pans of food the ongis hadn’t stolen yet, Boun opening his mouth to protest.

“I really feel like you’d be safer on the boat, Sisu,” Raya tried but Sisu was ready for her this time.

“Look, we tried your approach. I stayed on the boat in Talon and we saw how well that went. So, with all due respect humans, I’m coming with you.”

Namaari chanced a glance at the others on the boat who didn’t know that Sisu was really a dragon. At her use of the word, ‘humans,’ Boun made a funny face but said nothing. The ongis and Noi were using TukTuk as a slide so nothing to worry about there.

“Okay, okay,” Raya relented, also seemingly anxious about Sisu almost blowing her cover… again. “Let’s just go. And leave the congee.”

They bounded over the bamboo posts and onto land with no issue, then began the hike up. None of them had spent any time in Spine so they had no idea where they were going much less where the dragon gem piece could be.

The air temperature had dropped considerably so, while Namaari felt the chill in her tank top, she was grateful that Raya had her cloak to protect her. A light coating of snow covered the ground along with red leaves and it really was quite beautiful if the stillness wasn’t so disconcerting.

They really should have seen someone, anyone, at this point. Sisu’s voice filled the void even as Namaari strained to listen for anything that might put them in danger.

“So, what do we know about the Spine Chief? Because I gotta tell ya, I hope he’s friendlier than Dang Hu and more alive than the Tail Chief,” Sisu kept up her running narrative.

“I don’t know much about him honestly,” Raya replied, hand on her sword even as she tried to keep the water dragon entertained. “Namaari, do you remember how we came up with names for all of the Chiefs? What was our name for the Spine Chief again?”

The memory came back to her with perfect clarity and her face split into a grin. “Chief Pontificate,” she replied, eliciting a snort of laughter from the other two women.

“Oh, my toi, yes! That was it!” Raya was holding a hand up to her mouth in a feeble attempt to stifle the sound of her uncontrollable giggles. “I mean what was he trying to prove using that word?”

“That Spine isn’t a bunch of brainless rage heads,” Namaari offered, the smile still on her face, pleased with herself for turning the tables and being able to be the one to make the Heart princess laugh this time.

“No wonder Kumandra fell apart,” Sisu guffawed, holding a hand to her forehead, pretending to be scandalized.

They continued their trek, the incline starting to flatten and ahead Namaari could just make out what looked like gates.

“Looks promising,” Raya said, her eyes shifting all around the area while Namaari did the same.

Namaari didn’t like how exposed they would be if they walked through the clearing up to the immense gates. The longer she observed her surroundings, the more it looked as though no one had been here in some time. There were no obvious tracks in the snow and the bamboo wall had accumulated a layer of snow. Even on the ground in front of the gates there was no sign the snow had been disturbed in a way that the gates had actually been opened.

“Raya,” she began but the other woman was already nodding in agreement.

“I know,” she said, a grim look on her face, “I don’t like the look of this either. It’s too quiet.”

“So, should we just knock?” Sisu offered and Namaari was impressed with the dragon’s endless naivete even after what had happened in Tail and Talon.

“Uh, no. We won’t be doing that,” Raya said an incredulous look on her face.

“Oh, I’m doing it,” Sisu told them and trounced off to the imposing gates before Raya or Namaari could argue with her further. 

In a panic Raya ran after her but Sisu was already at the gates, her hand reaching for the comically large door knocker. Namaari raced after both of them, catching up with Raya. 

“Sisu! No! Stop!”

But it was too late. As soon as Sisu banged the knocker against the door a hidden trap had sprung from beneath them. The next thing Namaari knew she was in complete darkness with the nauseating sensation of being flung into the air. She was aware of pressure against her chest and being constricted into an enclosed space so tight it was almost impossible to move her limbs. 

“Oh, toi… okay so I can see now how I might have been a bit hasty, but I-I-I’ll get you guys down. Don’t worry,” Sisu’s voice was muffled and sounded like it was coming from a distance below.

Namaari’s eyes were beginning to adjust to the dim light and the bag was some kind of loose burlap so it wasn’t completely opaque. She could just make out Raya’s mess of dark hair and her limbs struggling to right herself in their claustrophobic space. 

Unintentionally, the Heart princess elbowed Namaari in the stomach causing her to let out a grunt of surprise. 

“Sorry!” Raya apologized, stilling her movements to prevent from doing something like that again. Now that they were settled Namaari could use her other senses to determine that Raya’s back was pressed against her chest, her head up against her shoulder and they were both bent at the waist in a way that Raya was pretty much sitting in her lap. 

They both still had their weapons but as for Namaari’s double swords, there was no way she’d be able to unsheathe them in these close quarters without someone being cut up to ribbons. The same could probably be said for Raya’s sword even if she had the egress to do so. 

“Guys! Someone’s coming!” Sisu’s voice called up to them again anxiously. 

“Go! Hide! Get back to the boat. We’ll figure this out,” Raya hissed down to the dragon and Namaari thought she sounded surer than she felt. 

Sure enough, a moment later the sound of heavy footfalls could be heard below them. She couldn’t tell what the person was doing but just by inference she could tell it was someone large. 

Suddenly, they began to descend. Namaari braced herself for the impact of hitting the ground but it still took her by surprise when her back connected with the solid surface and the wind was knocked out of her. They didn’t have time to adjust to their new setting because they were subsequently hauled up again and moving forward, banging against something hard. From the rhythm of the motion Namaari could tell a person had lifted the bag and seemed to be carrying it over their shoulder with Raya and herself swinging against their back as they trudged along.

“Hey, let us out of here!” Raya yelled, kicking out towards the person a bit but with no response. Namaari’s arms had been pinned to her sides during this time but she wriggled them free to encircle Raya. She wasn’t sure if it would offer her any reassurance, but it would also function to protect the Heart princess if the person dropped them again.

Namaari wasn’t sure how long they were in there trapped but at some point the movement changed and there were several new sounds as well. The first sounded like a door opening and closing and the next was more like the sound of footsteps on wood.

They weren’t prepared for what came next either, at least Namaari wasn’t. It was extremely disorienting to be in the dark like this and not know what this person was going to do next. But with a great hurl the trap they were in seemed to be flipped upside down. Namaari could feel herself falling towards the ground with Raya underneath her, she shot her hands out to try and catch herself so she wouldn’t hurt the other woman, but in the next second they were righted again on their feet back to back.

Then they  were being lifted from the ground in the bag, but just as they were about to make the most of their newfound egress, some kind of rope was pulled tight around them. Their faces were still covered so they couldn’t see what exactly was happening or who was doing this but Namaari could feel the rope tighten on the skin of her arms, lower than her injury but close enough to pull at the skin uncomfortably.

Once again they were being lifted into the air, but this time they stayed upright, seemingly hanging from a rope between their backs which were pressed against one another’s. Namaari was surprised to feel Raya’s fingers slip between her own and clasp her hand.

The sound of the footsteps retreating was a welcome one and even more so when it was followed by the sound of the door opening and shutting again.

She could feel the other woman shaking her head to try and rid them of the fabric over their heads.  Eventually, she managed to shed the sack and it didn’t take long for their eyes to adjust to the newfound light.

“Okay, where are we?” Raya asked to the empty room. Namaari’s eyes swept the space as well. It was a small hut, just one room by the looks of it. There was a large front door, a barrel that appeared to be used as a table, a bed, and their weapons and Raya’s hat leant against the wall near the door. Her eyes continued to travel until they landed on a makeshift bassinet.

Namaari was taken aback by the tightness in her chest at seeing the evidence of a little one here, a handmade toy elephant sitting untouched for some time as evidenced by the layer of dust that had accumulated.

She didn’t have time to dwell on this depressing image because the next moment the large door swung wide, cold air blustering in, the silhouette of a hulking man standing there. After a short pause he stepped in, having to duck his head slightly to get through the door.

“You two must be dung of brain to think you could steal Spine’s Dragon Gem,” the man growled, hefting his oversized axe onto his shoulder and sauntering into the cabin.

“Gem? Who said anything about gems? We have no interest in gems?” Raya scoffed and Namaari couldn’t help but wince at how poor of a liar she was.

The man then proceeded to lift up her leather satchel and dump the three glowing gem pieces onto the top of a nearby barrel.

“Okay, yea. I can see how that makes me look like a liar,” Raya said quickly, realizing she was caught. Namaari’s thoughts were racing, trying to come up with some kind of escape plan, only vaguely listening to the man as he and Raya bantered back and forth.

As the man stepped away, talking more to himself now, Namaari could feel the woman behind her flail around a bit until her boot was up near her hand.

Somehow, she managed to get what she was after because Namaari saw that she had a little karambit knife. Raya hooked it on her pointer finger to prevent from dropping it as she began to awkwardly but carefully try to cut through the ropes.

Namaari couldn’t help but be impressed with the Heart princess. But also the idea that the hardships she has been through being on her own had caused her to learn to be prepared enough to have a knife in her boot at all times was depressing. Namaari would have time to dwell on this later, but for now they needed to escape.

“Get ready,” Raya made short work of the rope and they both dropped to the floor, landing on their feet with a thud and shaking off the excess ropes.

The huge man turned towards them at the sound, the eye not covered with a patch wide with surprise. He started to come towards them but Namaari was prepared. She leapt, twisting her hips and striking him hard with the heel of her foot in a jumping back kick to his chest. Even with his hulking frame it knocked the wind out of him and sent him stumbling back into a support pole. Raya seemed to be on the same wavelength because she was ready with the rope, rushing forward and tying him up, making multiple passes to ensure he couldn’t get up. To ensure he didn’t move during this process Namaari snatched up Raya’s sword where the man had left it leaned near the door and kept it pointed at him.

“How?” Was all he could manage, his mouth hanging open, still apparently unable to process what just happened.

They didn’t have time to talk further about it because then all of a sudden, the door burst open. TukTuk rolled in with the Boun, Noi, and the ongis on his back. They screeched to a halt just before running into Namaari who sprang quickly out of the way.

Chaiya rushed in behind them and straight to Namaari, rubbing against her side, before moving on to Raya and doing the same.

“Hey, we had it under control, Captain Boun,” Raya huffed, her hands on her hips but the mood turned quickly with the boy’s next words.

“Fang’s here! They have Sisu!” he said in a rush, out of breath.

“What?” Namaari’s head snapped to him, striding to the door and cracking it open to look out. She wasn’t sure where they were in relation to the gates, but she quickly realized they were on a hill above.

There below stood General Atitaya and at least a dozen warriors from the Royal Army. And there was Lieutenant Wahn with a crossbow pointed at Sisu, still in her human form.

Fear, anger, and whole host of other emotions swirled through Namaari. She tried to steady herself by resting her right hand on the door frame to lean against it, silently cursing her mother. The last thing she wanted to do was to have to fight Ty. 

The feeling of a gentle hand on her left shoulder drew her eyes to the side where the Heart princess stood, gazing at her in concern. She watched as Raya’s eyes turned to scene as well before meeting hers once more.

“You know her?” Raya asked, her eyes unreadable. This really wasn’t the right time to have this particular conversation so Namaari responded cryptically,

“You could say that.”

That answer didn’t seem to satisfy the Heart princess but as she turned to look back down the hill again something else caught her eye.

“Wait, you’re the only one here?” Raya blurted, turning to look back at the Spine man with an incredulous look on her face. While Namaari had been focusing on the Fang warriors, Raya had been looking on the other side of the gates at the sea of people all turned to stone.

“My people battled the Druun with much valor, but lost,” the man told them, looking away sadly.

“Okay, the Royal Army may be here on my mother’s orders but they’re still my people. I’ll handle this. I’ll get Sisu back. You get the others to the boat.” Namaari handed Raya her sword back and grabbed her own dual swords, strapping them to her waist. As she did so Raya lightly grabbed her arm stalling her movements.

“Whoa, slow down, I don’t think so. You can’t take on the whole army by yourself. I’m coming with you,” Raya argued before she was cut off.

 “I knew you were Fang,” the man practically spat with disdain at Namaari from his spot on the floor, interrupting their conversation.

Chaiya rounded on him and snarled sensing his hostility toward Namaari.

“Hey, watch it,” Raya said, her voice low with warning as she pointed the tip of her sword at his face. Namaari placed her hand on top of Raya’s on the hilt of her sword, convincing her to lower it.

“You are the reason my wife and son are stone,” the man continued, his voice full of emotion, not caring about the weapon in his face. “My wife was one of Spine’s most fearless warriors, she was there that day. The day your people destroyed everything,” his words dripped with hate. Namaari could feel the venom and she couldn’t say that she blamed him. Her attention was once again drawn to the makeshift bassinet in the corner of the room. Her heart ached knowing her mother’s actions had hurt so many people. Children without parents, parents without their children.  

Kneeling down so she could look into his eyes, Namaari wasn’t sure it would work but she had to try and convince him her intentions were pure.

“What’s your name?” she asked gently. She could see he didn’t want to answer her, but he surprised her after a moment’s hesitation by grunting in response.

“The moniker given to me is Tong.”

“Tong… I know you’re hurt. And angry. My people have done terrible things in the name of a misguided attempt to protect our own,” she began, trying to keep his gaze as she spoke. “I can’t change the past, but I’m here to fix what we broke. I don’t expect you to trust me. But I’m asking you to help my friends. They need to be safe and you are the only one who knows this area. Will you get them safely back to our boat?”

Namaari wasn’t sure she could trust him, but they didn’t really have a choice at this point. After a pause in which she could see the internal debate in his dark eyes, he ultimately nodded.

“Okay, then,” she unsheathed one of her swords and cut the ropes free, holding her hand out to help him up. He wasn’t quite there yet so he ignored her hand, hauling himself to his feet.

“Namaari, no. You don’t have to do this alone. Isn’t that what you told me?” Raya pleaded, and Namaari was surprised by the level of emotion in the other woman’s voice.

“We can’t let them have the gem pieces. They’ll take them and we’ll never be able to get your father back or anyone else for that matter,” Namaari tried to rationalize but Raya bit her lip in response, holding back a retort.

Without another word, Namaari left the others, Chaiya following behind her.

“Hey, you should go with them too, girl,” Namaari argued weakly to the serlot, knowing that her faithful companion would never leave her side. The great cat just gave a chuff in response, falling into step beside her as they made their way down the hill.

Once they arrived, without preamble, Namaari shoved the enormous bamboo gates open with both hands and stepped through. Her swords were sheathed, she made sure it was obvious her hands were empty and weaponless. She strode across the clearing towards the line of her former comrades, all holding crossbows pointed at the ground, save for Ty, who, like her, was weaponless.

“Princess,” Ty greeted her with her formal title and her hands in the form of a circle above her head with a slight bow. Traditionally, it wasn’t proper etiquette in Fang for someone of a higher rank to do so, but Namaari felt she needed Ty to know she came from a place of utmost respect.

“General.” Namaari bowed before lifting her eyes to her former… what? She wasn’t sure what to call her. Their relationship was complicated at best and now, even more so.

“Chief Virana has sent me to bring you home along with the gem pieces and the dragon,” Ty spoke in a strong, even voice, making it clear her orders came from above Namaari and there would be no room for debate.

Namaari didn’t dare to look behind her to see if Raya and the others had gotten away lest she alert any of the warriors, but she sent a silent prayer they made it back to the boat okay. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Wahn with Sisu in front of him, anxiously fidgeting.

“I’m sorry that you wasted a trip because I won’t allow any of that to happen,” Namaari told her simply.

“Tell us where the dragon is!” Wahn shouted, lifting the crossbow higher towards Sisu’s back. If the situation wasn’t so dire Namaari would have been able to appreciate the irony of Sisu being right in front of him and him having no idea she was in fact the legendary dragon they were looking for.

“Stand down, Lieutenant Wahn,” Ty ordered him, not even sparing the lower ranking officer a glance.

“Release my friend and let us be on our way,” Namaari said calmly, knowing full well that the General would never go against her mother’s orders.

“You know I can’t do that,” the other woman said.

“My friends and I are trying to help fix what Fang broke, Ty,” Namaari tried a different tact and saw the General shift a little at the nickname, so she saw her opening and kept going. “While we’ve sat protected in Fang the other lands have suffered. Families have been torn apart because of our actions. We can bring them all back. But not only that, if we could reassemble the dragon gem and rid the world of the Druun, Fang could expand to the mainland. Our own people would no longer be starving. Please, you can help us make this right.”

She had known her long enough to see that Ty was listening to her, really listening. Namaari could see the conflict behind her eyes and knew that she could hear the truth in her logic.

“Treason!” Wahn yelled, turning his crossbow to point at Namaari.

“Oh, I don’t think so, bud. We’re not doing that again,” Raya’s voice growled from behind her and she snapped her attention to the Heart princess just in time to see her fling her sword in its whip form towards Wahn’s crossbow, knocking it out of his grasp.

Simultaneously, TukTuk had appeared in front of her, rolled up so only his shell was exposed, essentially forming a shield. Wahn had unwittingly gave them their window to escape and they all jumped into action.

“Oh, by the way…,” Sisu said next to Wahn, “I’m the dragon.”  With that, she transformed into her true form before their eyes, leaving the Fang warriors, including Ty, dumbfounded.

“Hey, can I borrow that Talon gem real quick? Thanks,” Sisu took the glowing gem from Raya and on contact with her paw, an opaque fog blew in, making it impossible for any of them to see more than a few feet ahead of them.

“Time to go!” Raya shouted, and for the first time Namaari noticed that Tong, Boun, Noi, and the ongis were standing near the gates, watching with wide eyes. Literally, no one had listened and gone back to the boat and now Sisu’s identity was revealed. Namaari wondered how long they had been standing there.

Raya reached down and lifted Boun, Noi, and the ongis onto TukTuk with her and they began to roll down the hill towards the shore. Sisu bounded after her, nudging Tong, his mouth still hanging open in shock at seeing the dragon, “Come on, big guy. We’ll explain on the way.”

Namaari hopped on Chaiya and all of that pent up agitation the cat had been holding back came in handy because she sprang forward and sprinted after the others, easily catching up.

“You were supposed to get back to the boat,” Namaari half-heartedly reprimanded Raya as Chaiya bounded along beside TukTuk. She couldn’t find it in her heart to be angry with the woman, even finding her lips curling into a slight smile.

“What can I say? I was jealous,” Raya smirked down at her, urging TukTuk faster, leaving Namaari and Chaiya to catch up.

Chapter Text

They all made it back to the boat in record time. Since Sisu’s cover was already completely blown, she remained in her dragon form, diving into the water and pushing the boat easily to put as much distance as possible between them and the Fang warriors.

Catching her breath, Namaari glanced around to see that everyone had made it on board safe and seemed to be trying to process all that had just happened. She was having a hard time putting it all together herself.

From being captured by Tong, to somehow escaping, to having him join their crew, to Ty showing up, their time in Spine was a blur. The thought of Atitaya brought Namaari back to that moment and their brief conversation. Ty was always level-headed and rational, but she was not cold-hearted. Namaari had been so sure she was getting through to Ty but because of Wahn’s actions she’d never know.

Glancing over at the princess of Heart, Namaari could see that she had flopped down near the rear of the boat, her elbows resting on her thighs. Her dark hair, slightly lightened by her years spent out in the sun, blowing across her face. The copper of her skin still glistened with sweat from their rush to get back on the boat. The features of her face were smooth, from the soft curve of her jawline to her high cheekbones. Namaari’s fingers itched to trace those lines and weave through her hair.

It was pointless denying it anymore, especially to herself. Sisu was right. Namaari was in love with Raya. She may have been in love with her since the day they met. She couldn’t help the small part of her that dared to hope that one day Raya could maybe feel the same way but for now they had to focus on the task at hand.

As the boat began to slow, Namaari was still staring at the Heart princess when she saw Raya get hit with something in the back of the head.

“Did you just hit me with a shrimp tail?” she asked, whipping her head around to look back at Noi and the ongis in disbelief. All of the others were staring back at her with angry grimaces on their faces as well, except TukTuk who just looked confused about why shrimp was going to waste.

Boun was the first one to confront her, “When were you gonna tell us she was Sisu?”

“Well, technically, you always knew she was Sisu,” Raya replied with a smug look on her lips, but Noi just hit her with another shrimp, unsatisfied with her answer apparently. “Seriously?”

Suddenly realizing something, the young Tail boy turned to Namaari with a look of hurt. “Did you know too?”

There was no point in lying, especially not if she was trying to earn these people’s trust. “She’s the last dragon. We were trying to protect her,” Namaari explained simply.

It was her turn to have a shrimp tail aimed at her but, unlike Raya, she was ready for it and caught it in mid-air with a smirk to the little Noi. She looked grumpier at the turn of events, but Namaari just shrugged and tossed it up to Chaiya who was probably starving hiding up on the roof from them. Now that was out of the way, Namaari chose to lean against one of the supports, folding her arms across her chest.

Her answer seemed to satisfy the others. They could imagine the danger Sisu would be in if she were to go across the lands in her dragon form.

Namaari’s slid her gaze over to Raya briefly, and maybe she was mistaken but Namaari thought she caught her staring at her arms before looking away quickly. A smile tugged at the corners of Namaari’s lips at the idea of the Heart princess looking at her. Maybe it wasn’t as impossible for Raya to have feelings for her as she originally thought. But she wasn’t going to get her hopes up.

Namaari was glad when Tong had decided on a different tactic, instead turning his attention to Sisu herself, who had by this point climbed back on the boat and settled herself behind Raya, listening to the exchange.

“Why are you here, divine water dragon?” he asked, wonder in his gruff voice. His amazement reminded Namaari of the first time she had met Sisu. It was hard not to be completely in awe of a dragon considering they were the stuff of legends these days.

“Isn’t that obvious, big guy?” Sisu replied with a big grin on her face, pulling Raya into her side with her tail. “My girls, Raya and Namaari and I are gonna fix the world. Bring everyone back.”

With those words the mood on the boat changed almost instantaneously.

“You’re gonna bring everyone back?” Boun unfolded his arms and his face, previously scrunched up in anger, softened into one of hope. “I wanna help.”

“I’m sorry, I can’t let you do that,” Raya sighed. “It’s too dangerous.”

To Raya’s credit, Namaari knew she was just trying to protect them. Most of the people on this boat were children, how could she let them risk their lives? But these were children, like Raya, orphaned by the Druun and who were forced to grow up too quickly and learn how to, not only to provide for themselves, but exist in a world where seemingly no one could be trusted.

“You’re not the only one who lost family to the Druun,” Boun countered, a pained look on his face. Namaari was certain he was thinking of whatever family he had back in Tail who were currently stone and wondered how long he’d been without them.

“Please,” he pleaded, lowering himself to his knees and bringing his hands to together before lifting them in the circle above his head, eyes lowered respectfully. “Let me help you.”

Noi and the ongis followed suit shortly after, hopping down from their place on the table and mimicking Boun’s gesture.

Then to their surprise, their newest addition, Tong, stood, his hands holding out the Spine dragon gem. “I, too, wish to join this fellowship of Druun butt-kickery!”

Relief flooded Namaari at the sight of the glowing blue stone. She had been fearful that it was still back in Spine somewhere and they would have to risk going back to find it. Tong reverently placed the gem in Sisu’s paws and Namaari watched as her hair stood on end and the sky opened up with a burst of rain.

The dragon smiled up at the sky wistfully, “My big brother, Pengu’s magic,” she told them as Raya lifted a hand to feel the rain drops.

After so many hot, dry days it was a gift to feel the cool drops on their skin. Namaari closed her eyes and allowed herself to enjoy the sensation of the water soaking her through.

Her eyes were drawn back to Sisu as she seemed to hold out her paw and form a sort of iridescent platform which she wasted no time in stepping up onto, new ones forming as she climbed higher and higher. They all watched as the legendary dragon galloped through the air on these magic platforms, twirling and jumping, seemingly effortlessly. It was incredible.

Namaari glanced over at Raya and watched in awe as the rain drizzled down on the woman’s upturned face, a content smile on her lips. The drops clung to her eyelashes and glittered in the mid-morning sun. She looked so peaceful. It was as if for just a moment she seemed to forget the seriousness of their task and just enjoy watching Sisu dance across the sky and splash in the water. If this is what uniting the lands and bringing all of the people and dragons back was going to be like then Namaari would fight to her last breath for Kumandra.

When they had left Spine it was still early in the morning, but Fang was quite a bit further away from the other lands, aside from Heart, which had been mostly deserted after that day six years ago, the majority of its residents turned to stone.

As they floated along the Kumandra River, ever closer to her homeland, Namaari’s dread grew. She wished she could enjoy the beauty of her surroundings, but it felt as though her stomach had turned to lead. Her mind raced with all of the possible scenarios that could occur when they reached Fang. She was certain it would not be safe for the others so, whatever happened, Namaari would have to be the one to do it.

The others had started to discuss strategy, huddled around Raya’s map of Kumandra which had seen better days. Namaari listened for a while as they tried to come up with the best plan to steal Fang’s piece of the dragon gem.

Despite everyone’s evolving attitudes towards the other lands and becoming increasingly open minded to each other, there was still an underlying prejudice towards the people of Fang. Namaari stayed silent as they made snide remarks as if it was just a shared truth, as if she, the princess of Fang, wasn’t right there.

Raya intervened several times. Particularly when Tong mentioned the blades of Fang were especially designed for stabbing backs she shut that down. The Spine warrior had the decency to look repentant. But Namaari decided to step away anyway.

Having developed a habit of leaning against the railing of the boat, Namaari took up the familiar position. She hadn’t been alone long when she heard light footsteps behind her.

“Hey.”

Namaari glanced over her shoulder at the sound of Raya’s voice. The Heart princess was approaching her, a warm smile on her lips. When she was within arm’s reach, Raya leant back against the wooden railing of the boat so she could see Namaari’s face. She folded her arms across her chest and watched Namaari intently.

“Jade for your thoughts, dep la?”

Namaari’s heart pounded wildly in her chest at the woman’s use of the affectionate nickname. They had come a long way from yesterday when Raya had been calling her ‘binturi.’

If she had been in Fang or anyone else had asked her the same thing, she would have put on her stoic façade and brushed it off. But Raya was different. Namaari would gladly share her entire world with Raya if given the chance. For now, she looked down at her own hands where they were clasped in front of her, rough from years of sword training, considering her next words.

“I’m thinking about the path behind us,” Namaari said, trying to be as honest as she could. “So much has happened. And yet there’s still so much left to do.”

Out of the corner of her eye Namaari could see Raya nodding in agreement.

“It’s been quite a journey,” Raya said before turning her gaze to her once more. “How are you feeling about going back to Fang?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? How did she feel about going back to Fang? Her chest was filled with so many emotions that it was hard for her to know. She was apprehensive. She was scared. She was also hopeful.

Her mother had the last dragon gem piece and somehow they would have to get it from her. Namaari had been playing the scenarios in her head and she just didn’t know what the right path was. So, she told the truth.

“I don’t know but I don’t want to fight my people. My friends. My family. But I have a feeling it will come to that.” Namaari breathed, the ache in her chest growing at the thought.

She chanced a glance over at Raya and saw nothing but empathy in her honey colored eyes. The Heart princess reached over and covered her hand with her own. “Hey. We’ve come this far. We’ll figure it out.”

Namaari knew she was right, one way or another they would get the gem piece. But what would be the aftermath?

“Soooo,” Raya drew out the ‘o’ trying to appear nonchalant and failing miserably, “that woman back in Spine… she one of those friends or something?”

Namaari remembered earlier when Raya had said she was jealous. She’d be flattered if the situation wasn’t so complicated with Ty and everything wasn’t so tenuous with Raya.

“General Atitaya?” Namaari clarified as if she didn’t already know who Raya was referring to, “She is- was- a friend.”

She could feel Raya watching her closely.

“After all this… who knows,” Namaari sighed heavily. There was no doubt in her mind she was doing the right thing but that didn’t make it any easier. “At one point we considered pursuing a romantic relationship but that ended before it began,” The words flowed out of Namaari’s mouth before she really thought about it.

Beside her Raya seemed to shift a little as she said, “oh? Why didn’t it work out?”

Namaari considered her next words. This was her chance.

“My heart belongs to another,” she replied softly, her eyes locking onto Raya’s so the woman had no doubt of whom she was referring.

The princess’ eyes widened in surprise.

“Namaari…,” Raya began but she never got to finish.

“Hey! Let’s stop here. I want to show you guys something,” Sisu’s gravelly voice cut in and squashed the moment.

Releasing a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, Namaari turned her attention to her surroundings.

Her chest clenched at the familiar land ahead of them.

Heart.

In order to hide from the Fang soldiers potentially passing them, Boun navigated the boat into an alcove that Raya pointed out.

As they neared the princess’s former home, Namaari watched her face carefully. Her eyes had a faraway look to them as if lost in thought. She could only imagine the painful memories probably racing through Raya’s mind right now.

She wanted to comfort the woman but right now Sisu was chatting away next to her, seemingly unaware of Raya’s silence.

They climbed onto a dilapidated dock and up onto the grassy shore while Boun tied the boat to the sturdiest thing he could find, a tree near the banks. Even now, as an adult, Namaari marveled at the lush greenery of the Heartlands. None of the other lands came close to its beauty, much like Heart’s princess herself.

These were the thoughts that had overtaken most of her waking hours at this point. She was relieved to have been able to share some of what she was feeling with Raya, even if they weren’t able to continue their conversation, again. Namaari ached to know what Raya thought but once again she would have to wait to find out.

If she wasn’t mistaken, every now and then Namaari thought she could feel Raya’s eyes on her when she wasn’t looking, but whenever she turned to the Heart princess her eyes were anywhere and everywhere else.

They walked in relative silence. Noi being carried by Tong who had seemed to develop a soft spot for the little con baby. The ongis rode on their new best friend, TukTuk while Boun walked alongside Sisu, trying and failing to hide his looks of wonder at the dragon. Namaari smiled as she watched Chaiya stalk alongside Raya, nudging the woman’s hand every once in a while with her enormous, furry head. She couldn’t remember the serlot being this affectionate with anyone other than herself.

Namaari followed behind the others, partly to watch for danger, but mostly because she still didn’t feel like she entirely belonged with these people. Whether real or imagined, Namaari felt like her being from Fang made her separate.

It wasn’t long before they came upon a bridge. The bridge.

Memories of laying eyes on Raya for the first time flooded her mind, filling her with a mixture of emotions. She didn’t have the time to pick them apart because Raya’s voice called out to the group.

“You guys go ahead. I’ll catch up.”

So caught up in her own feelings, Namaari had not been paying the fullest attention to her surroundings. She looked over at Raya only to see her eyes fixated on a point ahead of them on the bridge.

Following her gaze, Namaari’s heart stopped when she saw what the Heart princess was looking at: the stone figure of her father.

She had been pulled away by her mother and the Fang warriors that day and never knew what happened in the aftermath. To see his figure made it all the more real.

The others seemed unsure of what to do, many of them probably inferring that the person Raya was looking at was family of some kind. All of them could empathize with feeling of watching the Druun turn your family to stone. Guilt coursed through Namaari because of course, she was the exception. She had never lost anyone to the Druun. And her people were to blame.

Sisu stepped up beside Raya and for once seemed to be at a loss for words, her usual pep talks not seeming to be appropriate in this situation. The dragon glanced back to Namaari who nodded slightly and somehow without either of them speaking Sisu got the message: I will stay with her.

Without a word, the others continued on across the bridge, Chaiya the last to leave with one last nudge and purr. Raya looked down at the serlot and gave her an affectionate smile and scratch behind the ear before she followed the rest of the group.

The princess must have been aware that Namaari had remained behind because she began to speak.

“We made it this far. But the Druun was coming fast.” Raya stood facing her father’s stone figure, her head bowed, shoulders slumped.  For a moment, Namaari just stood back, giving the other woman as much space as she needed but letting her know she was there if she needed her. “My Ba threw me into the river with the gem and his sword… he sacrificed himself to save me. This is the first time I’ve come back.”

Namaari watched as Raya’s shoulders began to shake. She couldn’t see the Heart princess’ face from this angle, but she could see her right hand come up to her face, seemingly trying to wipe away tears.

Her heart felt like it was being ripped out of her chest seeing Raya in pain. She didn’t wait any longer. Namaari strode forward, closing the distance between them quickly, but once she was within reach of the other woman, she wasn’t sure what to do.

“Namaari,” Raya’s watery voice surprised her, but she remained silent, allowing her to continue, “What if it doesn’t work? What if we fail? What if-?”

At this, Namaari laid a hand on her shoulder, gently turning Raya to face her. The look on the other woman’s face made her heart ache, tears making tracks down her cheeks even as she reached up to wipe them away again.

Without giving it another thought, Namaari slipped her arms around the other woman’s waist, her hands sliding up her back, and pulling her close. Raya responded immediately, her arms lifting up around Namaari’s’ shoulders and burying her face in the crook of her neck.

The motion pulled at the wound on her arm, but Namaari hardly noticed, the feeling of Raya’s warm tears on her skin her primary focus.

Namaari would do anything to keep Raya safe and prevent her from ever feeling pain like this again, she swore to herself as she tightened her hold ever so slightly.

Raya tears slowed but she made no move to leave so Namaari just held her as long as the Heart princess needed. She would stay there for an eternity if Raya would allow her to, her face buried in her dark hair.

She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, the sun beating down on them above, but eventually Raya’s arms seemed to loosen, her hands sliding slowly down Namaari’s arms, careful of her bandage. She lifted her face from Namaari’s neck, but did not yet meet her gaze, instead staring at a point below the hollow of her throat. While her left hand remained resting on Namaari’s bicep, her other hand came up to the gold ring around her neck, her fingers grazing it.

Following Raya’s lead, Namaari loosened her grip and her hands slid to Raya’s waist, just above her belt. The thin material of her top did nothing to prevent the heat from her skin seeming to burn Namaari’s hands. Namaari didn’t dare breath, trying to memorize everything about this moment and the feel of Raya in her arms, despite the circumstances.

Those amber eyes lifted to hers and Namaari could see while the tears were gone, the red, swollen skin remained, and the dried tracks left tell-tale marks down the smooth skin of her cheeks.

The overwhelming desire to kiss Raya swept over Namaari. They were so close. But somehow her brain was still functioning enough to remind her that this was not the time nor the place.

Namaari was reminded of their conversation earlier. Even after basically confessing that her heart belonged to Raya she hadn’t been scared away. Raya was still here and there was something in her eyes that gave Namaari hope.

Then, Raya stepped back a little, blinking rapidly as if a spell had been broken, but her hand slid down to Namaari’s, interlacing their fingers. She was beginning to get used to the feeling of her stomach doing flips every time the Heart princess touched her but she never tired of it nor did she suspect she would.

“Come on, dep la.”

It was a request, of course, but Namaari wouldn’t have denied her regardless. Raya led her by the hand over the rest of the bridge and up to the path after the others.

Raya held her hand the entire journey. The path led them up the arch-shaped stone where the Heart palace and former temple of the dragon gem was located. The Heart princess seemed to know exactly where Sisu had taken the others, leading her straight to the place where it all happened six years ago.

The temple was much easier to navigate now after being abandoned for so long, the traps long sprung and no longer a threat. Namaari still marveled at the beauty of the place, especially with nature having claimed the stone structure.

The others were all standing in various parts of the dank room, the sun pouring through the open ceiling. When they noticed Raya’s return they each seemed to offer a look of warmth. They’d obviously been waiting for her anxiously.

They were still holding hands as Sisu spoke. Raya made no move to relinquish her hold and Namaari certainly had no desire to do so either.

“Sisu, why did you bring us here?” Raya asked softly. Namaari was certain the memories were flooding through Raya at being in this place.

“This is where it happened,” Sisu replied.

“I know,” Raya said solemnly and glancing over at Namaari, “we were there.”

“No. This is where is happened 500 years ago,” she countered. “I want you all to meet my brothers and sisters,” Sisu announced, pride in her voice as she walked up to some of the hanging vines and pulled them back revealing an immense stone dragon. “The real mighty ones… I miss them.”

The group was in awe, all turning to bow in their own way. Raya voiced Namaari’s thoughts exactly, “I never knew they were here.”

“See that classy-looking one over there?” Sisu nodded across the room, “That’s Amba. I get my glow from her.” She proceeded to do the same with the others. “And that’s Pranee. She’s a shapeshifter. Jagan. Fog.” Until she got to the slightly larger dragon directly in front of her.

“And Pengu,” Sisu said in reverence, “he’s our big brother. He brings the rain.”

“We were the last dragons. All the other dragons had been turned to stone. We were drowning in a sea of Druun. But my oldest brother, Pengu, refused to accept defeat. This is where we’d make our last stand… United. So, one by one, they combined all their magic, creating the Dragon Gem.

Namaari listened to Sisu intently, only ever having read the ancient scrolls in Fang’s archives. To hear the story from the legendary Sisudatu herself was surreal.

“I don’t know why they chose me. It could have been any of us. All I know is I trusted them… and they trusted me,” she continued. “And so, when they put their faith in me, it empowered me beyond anything I could imagine.”

The room was somber, considering Sisu’s story and thinking of the path still ahead of them.

“Look around. You are the people of Tail, Talon, Spine, Heart, and Fang.” She looked at each of them in turn, speaking passionately. “You are all Kumandra. If we can trust each other and work together we can save the world.”

They all made their way back down from the temple, hopeful. As they crossed the bridge to the mainland, Raya paused briefly to give one last bow to the stone figure of her father and offer him a lotus flower in his upturned hands. Namaari paused with her and as Raya finished, she offered her a small smile. The Heart princess slipped her hand back into hers, only releasing it once they were back on the boat.

Raya turned to the young Tail boy and said, “All right, Captain Boun. To Fang.”

Chapter Text

“In Spine, we would just crush the skulls of our enemies,” Tong grumbled, leaning back on the stool he was sitting on and crossing his arms across his immense chest.

By nightfall Namaari would be back in her homeland and they still had yet to develop a feasible plan to acquire the last gem piece from her mother. As the sun began to set and the sky turned various shades of pinks and purples, the gang huddled around Raya’s map of Kumandra at the Shrimporium’s table once more, this time with Namaari joining the conversation.

Namaari was stood, her hands planted on the table as she glanced around at her new comrades. Boun had taken a break from pushing the boat, allowing the current and their momentum to do some of the work while he sat at the table across from her. Noi and the ongis were perched up on the table itself and, despite the fact that they were a crew of three animals and a baby, they seemed to be taking in everything she was saying, their eyes narrowed with focus. To their right sat the hulking frame of Tong, frustrated but still studying the map with his one uncovered eye. Chaiya and TukTuk were taking the rare opportunity while the ongis and Noi were distracted to eat uninterrupted and Sisu was in her dragon form lounging behind her, paws crossed. That just left Raya.

The Heart princess sat to Namaari’s left, elbows resting on her knees and looking over to meet her eyes every so often. Raya hadn’t said much since they returned from her homeland but Namaari assumed it was because the trip had dredged up a lot of painful memories. Regardless, Namaari missed the sound of her voice, her laughter, even her sharp quips. However, the others filled the void she left, apparently unaware of the subtle change in Raya.

“Okay, how about this…,” Boun began and proceeded to go through an epic, though unlikely scenario, where he fought off the first wave of Fang soldiers. Namaari had to suppress a snort of laughter at this considering he was an eight-year-old chef and these Fang warriors were trained assassins from birth in the art of fighting to kill. Next, he imagined Tong coming in and taking down the others with his “giant axe of bad axery.” Again, highly unlikely. Then, finally, Noi and the ongis would steal the gem from Chief Virana and pass it to Sisu who would "boom the Druun away" and as he said, “bye bye, binturis.”

Namaari shared a glance with Raya, who offered her an eye roll in response before breaking her silence, “Yeaaaa, I don’t think that will work, Captain Boun,” Raya replied dryly, her tone turning firm as she continued. “Plus, we agreed. No one from Fang gets hurt. These people have families just like you. They are not responsible for the choices of a few.” 

A wave of affection washed over Namaari at Raya’s defense of Fang. It meant a lot to her that the Heart princess would say that despite everything Fang had taken from her. All Namaari could manage was a grateful nod to the woman, feeling the edges of her lips curving upwards slightly as she smiled to herself before turning back to the map. She cleared her throat and directed their attention back to a more realistic analysis of the situation.

“Fang will be heavily guarded with soldiers everywhere. Even more so since my mother will be expecting us to come for her piece of the dragon gem next,” Namaari cautioned them. “Not only that, but the gem is located on a staff that my mother carries around with her everywhere.”

The others gave a collective groan at what sounded like an impossible task, and maybe it was, but Namaari was going to find a way to get her mother’s gem piece one way or another. The fate of the world depended on it. 

“So, here’s my plan…,” Undeterred, Sisu began to run through her idea of basically just offering her mother cats with knives (or was it knives with little cats on them?) as a gift for the last gem piece. Namaari realized after the mighty dragon was done speaking that she was pretty sure she had a grimace on her face the entire time she was speaking.

No, they needed a real plan. And Namaari had one but they weren’t going to like it.

“I think the only way is if I go in alone,” Namaari suggested, ignoring Sisu entirely, not willing to even humor the dragon's idea. "I’m the only one who can get in and take it without alerting the entire Royal Army. Sisu remains safe and my mother won't be able to steal the other gem pieces.”

Namaari crossed her arms over her chest, straightening up as she glanced around at each of them to gauge their reactions. She saw no argument in Boun, Tong, or Noi as they mulled it over, some of them nodding slightly in agreement. Sisu’s wide expressive eyes looked troubled and Raya’s were narrowed in concentration until all of a sudden her brow cleared.

“Okay, but what if we just gave her the gem pieces?”

All eyes snapped to the Princess of Heart, Namaari’s included. Had she just heard her correctly? Boun was the only one able to find his voice and blurt, “what?”

“What if we gave her our gem pieces?” Raya repeated, the idea forming as the words spilled out of her. She turned to Namaari, “What do you think your mother would do if we all just walked right up to her with a dragon and offered her our gem pieces?”

The idea was ludicrous. But for Raya’s sake, Namaari played the scenario in her head. What would her mother do?

She wanted to believe her mother would help them. Namaari imagined her mother’s reaction to laying eyes on Sisu, a real, live dragon. Would she be in awe? Possibly. Would she be afraid? Doubtful. Or at least she wouldn’t show it. Would she feel hope? Her mother’s primary objective was to protect her people. At any cost. Would she be able to see that they weren’t a threat and that bringing Kumandra together was in Fang’s best interest? Could she trust her mother to do the right thing?

After playing it out in her mind, Namaari could only answer honestly, “I… don’t know.”

“I bet that deep down your mother wants to save the world as much as we do. If we can just get through to her then maybe she’ll help us.” Namaari looked up to see Raya’s eyes on her, warm and gentle. And hopeful.

Namaari wasn't sure it would work but she trusted Raya.

“Okay. We’ll go with your plan,” Namaari relented, eliciting a smile from Raya, which in turn caused the familiar flutter in her stomach. She gave the caveat, “But I still think I should go first and speak to her to make sure it’s safe before you all follow.”

The Heart princess' smile widened at her and Namaari could feel her heart begin to race, her own lips curling into a smile. To see Raya happy- and especially to be the cause of that happiness- was something Namaari had only dreamed of up until this point.

“I like this plan,” Sisu interjected with finality. “Now, who’s hungry?”

Rushing water. That was the sound that alerted Namaari that they had arrived in Fang before anything else.

A line of waterfalls stood across the river from her homeland causing a steady roar in the background of life in Fang. Growing up she loved to swim out and explore the caves hidden behind them, but now, the noise pounded in her ears, reminding her of the difficult task ahead.

The sun’s light had long faded from the sky, leaving the only illumination shining down from the moon and the stars. Namaari instructed Boun to dock the boat a little ways away on the other side of the river behind an outcropping of trees where she was confident a passing guard doing a regular perimeter check wouldn’t be able to spot them.

Once he had finished tying off the boat Boun got to work preparing a meal for all of them, clearly passionate about his craft, banging a beat on the pots and pans. Namaari couldn’t help but think this could be their last meal if they failed but she did her best to push that thought out of her head. 

As the meal was about to be served the boy from Tail and the warrior from Spine got into a heated debate about ingredients but Raya was able to solve it in quick order with a dash of palm sugar. Boun dipped the ladle into the pot and lifted it to his lips, slurping. His eyes went wide in surprise.

“Whoa! That’s good!”

“It’s just a little something my Ba taught me,” Raya replied fondly. 

“Did he also show you how to make that delicious jerky?” Sisu asked, trying to keep the sarcasm out of her voice and failing.

“No, that was all me,” Raya laughed, settling down onto one of the stools next to Namaari before turning nostalgic again, “it’ll be nice to share a meal with him again.”

Of its own accord, Namaari's hand reached out to cover Raya's on the table, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze. The other woman looked up at her and gave her a grateful smile. She released her and they began filling their plates with the delicious smelling food.

“I know what you mean,” Boun piped up, a similar bittersweet air about him. “I have this really obnoxious sister who always tousles my hair. I can’t wait to see her most.”

“After we win the day, I look forward to filling my eyeball with the joytastic image of my village full again,” Tong’s gruff voice turned soft, “and holding my wife and son again.”

“Mama!” Noi babbled while the ongis chittered next to her excitedly.

While they ate the conversation was relaxed and everyone seemed to open up, talking about their families and what they were most excited about when everyone was brought back. Namaari felt she had no right to participate. After all, she hadn’t lost anyone to the Druun. There wasn’t anyone who would be coming back to her. So she ate in silence, content to listen to their stories and sharing in their laughter. 

As they sat around the table, sharing this meal together, Namaari could feel the group giving themselves over to hope.

Once they had all eaten their fill of Boun’s feast, each of them went off to their own corner of the boat to try and get some sleep before tomorrow. It was getting rather crowded on the small vessel but they still managed to find  ways to get comfortable. Namaari had offered to take the first watch, knowing sleep would likely evade her again but Boun insisted he take it since he was going to be up a little bit cleaning up anyway, so she didn't argue.

Just as she was about to take up a position near the front of the boat, she heard light footsteps approaching. Glancing up, she saw Raya coming towards her, bandages in her hand and a small smile on her lips when their eyes met.

“Can I take one more look?” she asked, gesturing to Namaari’s injured arm. She had almost forgotten about it truthfully. The pain had become a dull ache in the background but she would never pass up an opportunity to be close to the Heart princess so she nodded her acquiescence. 

“Thank you,” Namaari said softly. As Raya got to work, the Fang warrior watched her movements with rapt attention. The wound seemed to be healing well, no sign of infection from what Namaari could see.

Upon finishing the final knot, Raya’s fingers rested over the bandage in a feather light touch. After doing this several times now, Raya had become quite efficient, and yet Namaari could be mistaken, but it felt as though Raya’s touches were lingering a bit longer each time.

Chills ran up Namaari’s spine as Raya’s fingers slid slowly down her arm, over the band there, and seeming to trace the curve of her bicep. Down they continued, grazing the inside of her elbow and along her forearm to her hand. Intertwining their fingers, Raya’s eyes remained focused on the trail her fingers had made and held her gaze on their joined hands, her thumb caressing the sensitive skin on the back of Namaari's hand.

A light tug signaled Namaari to follow Raya, not that she needed much convincing. She'd follow Raya to the ends of the world. Raya pulled her to the back of the boat where TukTuk had flopped down and was already snoring lightly. The other woman lowered herself onto the wooden floor, pulling Namaari gently down with her. She gave no resistance, settling herself next to the Raya.

Snaking her arm around Namaari’s and hugging it to her chest, Raya tilted her head to rest on Namaari’s left, uninjured shoulder, wisps of dark hair tickling the Fang warrior’s bare skin. At first Namaari tensed up, surprised and unsure but her body quickly relaxed into the touch.

Her chest constricted at the idea that Raya felt safe enough to sleep on her shoulder like this. Namaari swore to herself right then and there that she would never do anything to betray this woman’s trust or even make her question that her faith in Namaari was misplaced.

Across from her, Namaari could see Sisu, bright turquoise fur easy to spot in the semidarkness. The dragon had a big grin on her face, pointed teeth gleaming, and then she gave her an exaggerated wink before closing her own eyes.

At some point Namaari must have fallen asleep because one by one her senses began to return. She could feel a warm, comforting pressure against her entire left side. The scent of sandalwood drifting up to her nose. Straining her ears, Namaari could hear light, steady breathing close by. Eventually she was able to convince her eyelids to open and immediately her tired eyes were greeted with the beautiful sight of Raya cuddled into her side.

As much as it pained Namaari to leave her, she needed to get a head start on crossing the river into Fang. It would be too difficult to leave Raya when those piercing dark eyes were staring at her. So, Namaari pressed a gentle kiss on the top of the Heart princess’s head. Then, carefully she adjusted the other woman so that way she was leaning more fully on TukTuk and Namaari could stand up. She paused a moment, just gazing down at the beautiful woman, her face relaxed in deep sleep.   

Namaari would do anything to protect Raya. And as much as Namaari loved her mother, she couldn’t guarantee how she would respond to all of them coming into Fang or seeing Raya again after betraying her. Likely she would just have her taken prisoner and try to take her gem pieces but if she fought back, which if she knew anything about Raya she knew she would, who knew what would happen. The plan was that if her mother did indeed agree to help them then Namaari would set off one of the fireworks Fang was known for signaling it was safe for them to come.  

So, she left her there, going against everything in her body pulling her back to the woman she loved. 

She gave TukTuk a small pat on the head and Chaiya jumped down, seeming to sense Namaari readying to leave. Namaari considered asking her to stay on the boat but she doubted she’d listen, fiercely loyal as she was, so she allowed the cat to join her.

But just as she had one leg over the edge of the boat and onto the shore, a voice made her freeze.

“I misjudged you, Warrior Princess.”

Namaari’s head snapped towards the sound and her eyes landed on the huge shadow of Tong sitting at table, sharpening his axe, the day’s first light illuminating his blade which in turn reflected up onto his grizzled face. He must have taken up watch some time in the night.

She weighed her options. Her eyes scanned the rest of the boat and by the looks of it no one else had awoken. She could just ignore him and keep going. She opted to reply though, keeping her volume low.

“How so?”

He paused his movements to look over at her while he spoke. “I mistook you as a spineless Fang cretin with no honor. But...to protect the ones you love at all costs is the way of a truly honorable warrior,” he said gruffly, but the look in his uncovered eye was soft.

Namaari didn’t know what to say but she was glad it was dark out so he couldn’t see the blush coloring her cheeks. She couldn't even be offended by his comment about Fang because she was wondering how her feelings for Raya were so obvious. Before she could formulate a response, he spoke again.

“I'd follow you into battle any day, Princess of Fang,” he stopped what he was doing and formed his hands in the traditional circle, bowing his head slightly before returning to his task without another word.

Humbled by this mighty warrior's words, Namaari merely managed a nod in response before stepping onto the shore.

After trekking the relatively short distance to an overlook, Namaari paused, looking out over her homeland across the river. Even from this distance she could just make out the first movements below as her people began their day. From fishermen readying their nets to palace guards changing shifts, they went about their lives, safe from the Druun but isolated from the rest of the world.

This is how Raya found her. She hadn’t realized she had been standing there that long but the Heart princess must have noticed her absence and caught up to her.

“Thought you could just sneak away unnoticed, Princess Undercut?”

Namaari could hear that she was trying to sound nonchalant but there was a slight edge to her voice that gave away her emotions. Throwing a glance over her shoulder, Namaari gave her a small smile but withheld a response, not trusting her voice quite yet. She assumed Tong must have told her where she had gone.

Raya’s skin seemed to glow against the light reflecting from the morning mist. Her dark hair was still slightly mussed from sleep and her crimson cape looked as though it had been thrown on haphazardly.

“Hey,” Raya’s voice was soft, all humor gone. Namaari had watched her approach and yet she was still surprised when Raya was so close. The Heart princess reached out a hand to Namaari’s shoulder, gently guiding her to face her and causing a jolt of electricity to run through her at the simple touch. 

“You don’t have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders,” Raya told her, sensing correctly the increasing pressure she had put on herself. When no response was forthcoming Raya continued to speak.

“Namaari,” Raya then lifted that same hand to Namaari’s cheek, the pad of her thumb grazing the arch of her cheekbone. Her palm was warm on Namaari’s skin and unconsciously her eyes slid closed at the intimate contact. “That day. Six years ago. It changed my life in a lot of ways. Not all of them bad. I had never met anyone like you and I think that’s why it hurt so much. I thought about you every single day since then. And I’ll admit that I blamed you for a long time for what happened to me and my Ba.”

Namaari kept her eyes closed, her chest tightening as she listened to Raya’s words.

“But I was wrong,” Namaari’s eyes slid open at her firm tone of voice and she forced herself to not look away from Raya’s intense stare. “These last few days… There’s no doubt in my mind that you are not responsible. You are not responsible for your mother’s choices and you are certainly not responsible for fixing the world.”

Namaari was having a hard time getting her mind to work much less able to formulate a coherent response. But Raya wasn’t done yet.

“You’ve shown me that I don’t have to be alone anymore. And neither do you.”

If Namaari hadn’t been a coward she would have kissed Raya right then and there. They were about to embark on probably the riskiest part of this whole journey and if they failed, she may never know what Raya’s lips felt like against hers.

But she wouldn’t allow herself to think like that.

Instead, Namaari swore that when they succeeded Raya would never have to question the depth of Namaari's feelings for her. If the princess would allow it, Namaari would spend the rest of her days doing everything in her power to make Raya feel safe and loved.

So, she simply said quietly, “Thank you, Raya.” Meanwhile, her heart was screaming, I love you, Raya.

With that, she reached her own hand up to cover the other woman’s, bringing it to her lips and pressing a soft kiss to her palm. Giving Raya’s hand one last squeeze, Namaari turned her back on the Heart princess and walked away.

Chapter Text

While Fang may be protected on all sides by water, methods of crossing the river had been developed for limited hunting and scouting runs. Namaari felt like a small, rarely used ferry guided by a rope secured at each side of the river was her best bet.

She chose not to bring her dual swords, hoping to show that she came in peace. Plus, Chaiya was with her and Namaari didn't envy the fool that tried to harm her while the serlot was by her side.

After having crossed the river, Namaari strode purposefully down the marble walkway in the center of Fang, towards the royal palace. She didn't engage with anyone but she could feel dozens of eyes on her. She was sure the rumor mill had conjured up all manner of outlandish ideas about where she had been and what she had been doing. But Namaari didn't care.

A glance to the school yard showed that her mother wasn't with the children today. Then if Namaari's instincts were right she would be getting her daily briefing from General Atitaya after their confrontation in Spine.

Still no one stopped her as she continued on, Chaiya obediently at her heels.

There she was. Just as she suspected she would be, staring down at the map of Kumandra with the General across from her. Namaari stepped up to them, barely registering their shocked expressions. Even her usually poised mother was astounded at her sudden appearance. Normally, her mother would greet her with a wide smile and her pet name, 'little morning mist'. But today she was taken off guard.

"Namaari?"

"Mother," she spoke formally with the traditional bow, speaking as though she hadn't left her homeland, traveled across the lands with a motley crew, fought against her own warriors in Tail and almost again in Spine, and returned with absolutely no warning.

Ty was still standing on the other side of the map but she had straightened up, and from over her mother's shoulder she could see the pained look on her face. When her mother seemed to remember herself she stared at Namaari and spoke to the General without looking away.

"General Atitaya, you are dismissed," the Chief ordered and while the other woman looked as though she was going to argue she ultimately obeyed, leaving the mother and daughter alone after a bow of her own.

Namaari looked to her mother and could see that her almost ageless skin was creased with worry, something she rarely let show.

"What happened? I got the message from Lieutenant Wahn when he came home from Tail without you… and then General Atitaya said you refused to come home when she found you in Spine."

"Mother, Raya found Sisu. After all this time, she actually found her. We've traveled all over have and gathered all of the gem pieces. All except yours," Namaari explained, knowing now was not the time to go into the finer details of their journey, instead opting to get directly to the point. "She can fix what we broke. She can bring everyone back."

She saw her mother's brow furrow, her hands gripping the golden staff with the gem piece. The change in the temperature of the conversation was almost instantaneous. Her mother's face hardening.

"And that's what scares me," she countered sharply, her voice losing some of its evenness. "When everyone comes back, who do you think they'll come for? You forget. The other lands blame us for what's happened."

"I haven't forgotten, Mother." Namaari was struggling but somehow able to keep her voice level and free of emotion despite the anger simmering beneath her every word. "It is you who have forgotten your humanity. If you could only see what the people of the other lands have gone through because of our selfishness. If only you could see what Raya has been through."

Her voice faltered a little at the mention of the Heart princess and she could feel a burning at the back of her eyes. She was getting emotional and she knew her mother wouldn't respond well to that but she couldn't help it. Not when it came to Raya.

"Namaari. What happened to the people of Heart was... unfortunate. But I did what I believed was best to keep my people and my daughter safe at all costs."

Namaari thought she might draw blood from biting her tongue so hard to keep from scream at her mother. What happened to Raya was far more than unfortunate. To her credit, her mother did look regretful but her words were far from an apology but Namaari wasn't here for an apology.

"If we had the dragon and the gem pieces, we would be forgiven," her mother continued, gesturing around them at their people and their homeland. "We could save the world. But more importantly our people would remain safe."

"Sisu is a dragon, the last dragon no less. She's not an object to be owned by any land or people," she said, "and does it really matter who gets the credit for saving the world? Or who has the dragon gem? If we can come together and the Druun are defeated our people will be safe. If we keep fighting amongst one another it's only a matter of time before the Druun return once more. That's not the world I want to live in. The world I want Fang's children to live in."

Chief Virana did not respond but Namaari could see her weighing her words, analyzing the rationale. Her dark piercing eyes that made whole armies fall into line were now trained on her, but Namaari did not waiver.

"Raya, Sisu, and I have been all over Kumandra. We've brought people together from each of the five lands. All we need is Fang's gem piece." Namaari knew her voice was becoming impassioned but she didn't care. She needed her mother to see. To understand.

"We can fix this right now. All we need is your help, Mother. We no longer have to be the 'back stabbing binturis who broke the world'. We can help all of these people reunite with their families. We can bring back Kumandra and secure Fang's future in it. Otherwise, we doom ourselves to the same mistakes that got us here in the first place."

There was a long pause where neither of them moved. Namaari stood, eyes pleading her mother to see reason. Then slowly she could see the change in her mother, the crease in her brow had smoothed and her eyes had softened, giving Namaari an affectionate smile.

"You know, six years ago I thought I was making the rational decision. The only decision that would keep my daughter and my people safe, however I am beginning to see how I may have accomplished the opposite," she began, her eyes having a far away look to them as she seemed to remember that day, before looking back to her daughter. "Namaari, you are truly becoming the leader I raised you to be."

Going further, her mother reached up and wrested the gem piece from the end of her staff. She held it up to eye-level for a moment to have once last glance at it before she held it out to Namaari. She continued, "Save the world, my love."

Namaari could hardly believe her ears. But she could sense no deception in her mother's demeanor, only sincerity. A grin slowly spread across her face and she took the offered gem piece. The child in her wanted to hug her mother but the adult hesitated. She loved her mother and her mother loved her but physical affection was just not how they showed it.

Instead Namaari gave her mother a grateful nod and turned, preparing to leave to shoot off the signal flare when the ground seemed to suddenly shift beneath her feet. Namaari and her mother stumbled but managed to keep their footing. Her heart began to race, eyes scanning the area to assess the source of the apparent quake.

It happened again. This time screams followed. The buildings, while sturdy, weren't made to withstand this kind of shock and already parts were beginning to crumble and fall, bursting in a spray of rocks and dust as they hit the ground.

Namaari yelled for her mother to get out in the open before turning to run in the direction of the screams. All the while the quakes became more frequent and more intense.

People had begun to panic, running in every direction. At first Namaari thought it was solely due to the quakes but then she saw something that stopped her in her tracks. Something she had never seen in her homeland.

The telltale black and purple shapeless beasts.

Druun.

"Princess Namaari!"

She snapped around at the sound of her name and she saw two familiar children trapped underneath a pile of rubble. She sprinted towards them but skidded to a halt as one of the Druun cut her off. On instinct she lifted the gem piece to it, eliciting an unearthly screech from the monster as it retreated. Her path now clear, Namaari rushed over to the children and, with strength that could only be achieved by the adrenaline coursing through her veins, she lifted the large stone slab.

"Hurry!" she said through gritted teeth, muscles straining in effort. The kids scrambled out safely and Namaari released the rock, it crashed to the ground kicking up dust. "Get to the river."

The older boy appeared to be in shock but had his wits about him enough to lift his little sister into his arms and sprint towards the water.

All around her there was chaos and the island was teeming with Druun. Namaari didn't have time to figure out how they had gotten into Fang because more people needed help. She wasn't going to be able to help them all, but she be damned if she wasn't going to try.

As she aided an older woman, arm around her shoulders as she limped from a wounded ankle, Namaari spotted a welcome sight. TukTuk was rolling towards her but just as quickly as relief flooded her, it just as quickly evaporated and her heart sunk. Atop his saddle wasn't Raya but Boun, the Tail gem piece in his hand. Running a few paces behind was Tong, axe in hand and Noi and the ongis riding on his broad shoulders.

"Where's Raya?" she called to them, not even trying to hide the fear in her voice.

"She's not with you?" Boun sounded just as scared, as they both realized that the Heart princess was missing. The boy was obviously still trying to process something horrific, but he managed to explain through heaving breaths, "Some Fang soldiers found us. They tried to take our gem pieces, but Sisu tried to talk to them. Then she-she-."

But Boun couldn't finish his sentence. He didn't have to. Sisu was gone. It was the only explanation for the water disappearing and how the Druun were able to enter Fang.

Pain shot through her chest at the realization that her friend- if a legendary dragon could be called that- was gone. What would they do now? Her hope was fading but at the forefront of her mind now was finding Raya and protecting as many of her people as she could.

"What happened to Raya?" she demanded. Tong was the one to answer her this time.

"The Fang warriors fled after seeing what they had done. Raya pursued. She has not been seen since."

Namaari was confident that Raya could hold her own against any Fang warrior but she was outnumbered. If she lost Raya... she couldn't think about that right now. Namaari had to find her.

The others must have sensed what she was going to do because Boun told her, "We all have our gem pieces. The powers are fading but we'll help as many people as we can get to whatever water is left. Go help Raya."

She wasn't about to argue. She nodded her appreciation, this was not the time for sentimental exchanges. However, TukTuk's head peaked out from his shell, his large expressive eyes reflected nothing but concern for his lifelong friend.

"I'll find her. I promise," she swore to him, placing a reassuring hand to his head. He made a sound of understanding before tucking his head back into his shell and rolling off.

Namaari eyes scanned the hectic scene around her for any sign of the Heart princess. A growl from beside her, startled her momentarily. She looked down to see Chaiya. Namaari had forgotten the serlot was there but she was instantly glad for her presence.

The big cat was agitated, pacing and looking off in a direction towards which Namaari couldn't see anything. She trusted her friend though, so she lifted herself into her saddle and clung to her reins as the serlot took off.

She was immediately grateful to the serlot because it became clear that she knew exactly where Raya was and took Namaari there in short order. Chaiya bounded into the palace where the clanging of swords could be heard, light reflecting off their blades. Raya was engaged in a fierce battle with Wahn and… Ty?

Namaari barely waited for the serlot to come to a skidding halt as she flew off and out of the saddle. She was really regretting not bringing her swords but that wasn't going to stop her.

She could hardly believe Ty would fight the Heart princess, but she would do anything to protect Fang from a perceived threat. Wahn, on the other hand, she was not surprised to see. They both had their spears and they were on either side of Raya who had her sword drawn, held at the ready in front of her.

Dashing forward, Namaari didn't hesitate to rush to Raya's side, weapon or no. Ty hesitated at the appearance of her princess but Wahn continued forward with his attacks, spear pointed at them.

"Namaari!" Raya breathed, eyes darting to her even as she tried to stay focused on Wahn in front of her. Namaari noticed a deep gash above her right eye that was the source of a trickle of blood into her brow.

A white, hot rage started to build in Namaari's chest knowing it was likely either Wahn or Ty had hurt the princess and taken Sisu from them. As badly as she wanted to throw her arms around Raya in relief at finding her alive, there was something they needed to take care of first. Raising her fists and taking up a fighting stance, Namaari stood back to back with Raya, facing Wahn.

"I suggest you point that somewhere else," Namaari growled to the lieutenant, but the soldier's response was to strike. Chaiya growled but before she could pounce, Namaari easily dodged Wahn's predictable attack. She was able to grab the shaft of the spear as she blocked it and then used his momentum to pull him towards her, thrusting her elbow up into his nose. She felt it crush under her blow, blood spurting from his nostrils almost instantly. He cried out in pain and released his hold on the spear to bring both hands up to his face, so Namaari now had a weapon. She used the opening as an opportunity to deliver a pushing front kick to his stomach. As he stumbled backwards, Namaari used the spear to trip him up and he fell on his back on the marble floor with a loud thud.

"Leave before I feed you to the Druun," Namaari told him, the tip of the spear pointed at his throat, even as the floor moved beneath them and the ceiling crumbled, she held the weapon steady. Blood dripping down his face, Wahn had the good sense to scoot backwards and away from Namaari before scrambling to his feet and running away, muttering 'binturi' under his breath.

Namaari turned her attention back to Ty and Raya. They both still held their weapons at the ready, but neither were engaging. She stepped up beside the woman she had come to love, ready to defend her from maybe the only friend she had in her homeland.

"Ty," Namaari said calmly, holding the spear in a ready position but making no move to attack either. "You don't have to do this."

Her old friend's eyes darted from her to Raya and back again. "I don't have any other choice," Ty replied desperately, "Fang first."

"Look around, Ty. Look where that has gotten us. It doesn't have to be that way anymore." Namaari tried in earnest to convince her, sweeping her eyes around at the rapidly crumbling palace. The conflict was clear in her dark eyes but either consciously or unconsciously she was lowering her spear.

"General Atitaya. It's all right. Let them go," The sound of her mother's voice caught her off guard. Namaari looked up to see her standing at the top of the stairs. She then turned her gaze to Namaari and gave her a sad smile. "I love you, my little morning mist."

In the next instant, Namaari watched in horror as her mother was overtaken by a Druun. It ran through her, stealing her very essence and leaving only a stone figure of her, hands together in front of her.

"No!" Namaari choked out but her words were swallowed up by the sound of falling rocks, dust clouding all around them, illuminated purple as the Druun seemed to multiply.

Then it was as if the floor disappeared, collapsing beneath their feet. All of them stumbled to the ground, dropping their weapons as they slid down into the sink hole and the roof caved in above them. As they plummeted into the abyss, Namaari reached out and threw her arms around Raya doing her best to protect her as they both fell into the darkness.

At some point they crashed to the bottom of the sink hole, their bodies bruised but miraculously not broken from the fall. It took Namaari a moment to get her bearings again as her head pounded and her ears were ringing. Her wounded arm throbbed with pain and she knew the stitches had torn because she could feel blood trickling through her bandage and down her arm.

"'Maari!" she could hear Ty calling from above and her vision began to clear. Raya was still in her arms, recovering as well but starting to sit up. Once she was sure Raya was not seriously injured, Namaari looked up, a narrow ray of light above them where two shadows could be seen.

Somehow Ty and Chaiya managed to cling to a section of the floor above them, pulling themselves up. Ty was kneeling over the edge, fear in her eyes and Chaiya was pacing anxiously, chuffing in distress. But then suddenly the serlot left briefly but came back mere moments later.

"Raya! Namaari!" Boun called from above, they looked up to see the rest of their crew above.

In the next instant the ground gave way near them as well and they plummeted down into the pit with them. Thankfully, they avoided being gravely wounded as well but now any chance of being saved from their situation was all but gone. Not only that, but the Druun had followed them, circling even as they all jumped to their feet and tried to push them back with their rapidly failing gem pieces.

Hope was dwindling. Namaari knew it. She couldn't see a scenario where they made it out of this alive.

But somehow Raya did.

"Everyone, we can still put the gem pieces together. It can still work!" Raya insisted all of a sudden, dangerously turning her back on the Druun to face them all. Namaari had taken up a position next to her and she used Fang's gem piece to cover her while she spoke. Her blood was pumping in her ears and fear coursed through her veins but she focused on Raya's words the best she could, trying to comprehend what she was suggesting.

"Sisu's gone, Raya! We don't have her magic!" Boun argued angrily. Any chance of seeing his family again gone and he and the others had begun to realize that.

"It's not about her magic. It's about trust," Raya pleaded with them, as she had realized something they hadn't. "That's why it worked. That's why we can do it too. By doing the one thing Sisu wanted us to do. What my Ba wanted us to do. To finally trust each other and fix this. But we have to come together. Please."

Despite the impending end, the others hesitated. They weren't interested in giving up their only chances at survival, their cries of dissent getting lost in the roar of the Druun. She looked around at all of them, her eyes landing on Namaari's last. Coming to realize it would take more to convince the others, Raya held out Heart's gem piece in front of her.

"Then let me take the first step."

She turned to Namaari slowly, aware of the Druun at her back but focused only on the woman in front of her. Everything in her body screamed to protect Raya, to do something, but she merely watched the woman in front of her, keeping her own gem at the ready to keep the Druun away from them.

"I trust you, Namaari," Raya told her somberly, hair whipping in the wind. When she was close enough to touch her, Raya reached down and took Namaari's hand in hers, lifting it to place the gem piece in her open palm. As she made to pull away however, Namaari raised her other hand, the one holding Fang's gem piece. Her eyes met Raya's briefly, trying to convey so many things in one look. Glancing back down at their joined hands, Namaari fit her gem piece into Raya's, cradling them in her hands.

Namaari trusted Raya completely. This would work. It had to. There was so much she still needed to say to her.

Raya stepped away from her, never looking away, her eyes sad but full of meaning and then Namaari watched in anguish as the Druun took her.

It felt as though her own soul had been ripped out of her watching Raya's soft skin harden into cold, gray stone. Pain coursed through her, her chest heaving as she tried to force air into her lungs. It didn't matter that she trusted Raya that this would work. The agony of the life being taken from her right in front of her eyes was unbearable.

She was hardly aware of the tears streaming down her face until her vision became blurry and all she could see was the small silhouette of Boun approaching her with the shining blue shard of Tail's gem piece. Raya's sacrifice had changed something in them and now they were going to honor that sacrifice.

Swallowing hard, Namaari forced herself to take the gem piece from the boy and fit it together with hers and Raya's. As Boun leaned into Raya's side, the Druun took him as well. Then shortly after, Noi approached, reaching her hand up with Talon's gem piece. Tong reached down and picked her up, offering up Spine's as well.

Namaari took them both and watched as the toddler snuggled into the Spine warrior's chest as he, in turn, placed an arm around Raya's shoulders and they both, along with the ongis, transformed.

She was alone. She was all that was left. But she wouldn't fail the Heart princess. She had done that before and she'd never do it again.

So, she fit the last two pieces together, completing the dragon gem. She carefully set the completed blue stone on a flat slab of marble atop a pile of rubble. The last light in its depths was fading but Namaari's faith still did not waiver.

Namaari stood in front of Raya. She lifted her hands to cradle underneath hers. Gone was the soft warmth of her skin, replaced with cold, hard stone. With one final glance at her love, Namaari leant her forehead against the rough stone of Raya's and allowed the Druun to take her.

Chapter Text

FANG (part 3)

Namaari gasped at the sudden rush of air in her lungs, her head jerking upright. Her chest heaved with the effort of trying to regulate her breathing and it took several more gulps of air for her to realize in disbelief that she was indeed alive and no longer stone.

It worked. Raya was right.

Raya.

Her eyes flew open and instead of being met with the Princess of Heart’s frozen form, now rich brown eyes looked back at her, shining with the same relief that was flooding Namaari now.

She was barely aware that Raya’s hands still rested in her own, the rain dripping between their fingers beginning to clear away the remnants of stone from where they touched. Namaari watched in wonder as the beautiful woman in front of her released an emotional breath, her eyes becoming glassy with unshed tears.

She was even more in awe when Raya’s hands turned over to slide into Namaari’s as the rain washed away the remaining dust from their bodies. Namaari was graced with a wide smile and a small laugh of relief from the princess. In response, Namaari could feel her own lips curling upwards. Of the two of them Raya was somehow able to find her voice first,

“So, are you going to kiss me now or what?”

That was it. That was all Namaari needed to hear.

Reaching up, she lifted both of her hands to either side of Raya’s face, the pad of her thumb grazing her jaw while her fingers tangled into the fine hairs at the base of her neck. She paused only for the briefest of moments to memorize every last detail before closing what little distance was left between them and brushing her lips gently against Raya’s. 

For a moment, the Heart princess seemed to be frozen in place and Namaari thought maybe she had made a mistake. Maybe Raya had been joking about kissing her? But when Namaari made to pull away it seemed to awake something in Raya and spurred the Heart princess into action. Hands reached forward and grasped her hips, the movement stopping Namaari from retreating. Raya pulled her closer until their bodies were flush against one another’s while her lips slowly responded, tentatively moving against Namaari’s.

It was impossible to put words to the feeling of kissing Raya. She had pictured this moment so many times in her mind, but never could she have imagined this. Her senses were consumed by the woman.

The rain continued to fall around them, dripping down their faces and Namaari could taste the water on Raya’s lips. Their hair became drenched, causing it to cling to their skin. The air around them smelled crisp and cool.  It was as if she had been sleeping her whole life and with one kiss, Raya had awakened something in her she didn’t even know existed.

It was Raya who pulled back just far enough to meet Namaari’s eyes, searching for something, still gripping the fabric of the sash at Namaari’s waist. She didn’t remove her hands from Raya’s cheeks either, instead using her thumb to caress the smooth, wet skin there.

Then Raya’s lips parted as though she were going to say something but the sound of someone loudly clearing their throat stopped her.

It was then Namaari became aware that the others were still there, having been turned back from stone as well. Namaari reluctantly let her hands slide away from Raya so she could turn more fully to look at them. They all had varying degrees of reactions to the two princesses kissing, their faces unabashedly showing their true feelings. Boun and Noi made gross faces consistent with children seeing grown-ups kissing while the only adult of the group, Tong, looked amused and smug, a knowing look in his uncovered eye.

Raya let out a snort of laughter and they all turned to look at her. She lifted a hand to her mouth to try and stifle the sound but to no avail. The snort turned into a giggle which turned into a full-blown laugh, the princess’ shoulders shaking uncontrollably. Namaari couldn’t stop the grin that split her face as well at Raya’s unadulterated joy. She wasn’t sure who cracked next, but they all quickly dissolved into laughter, euphoric from accomplishing the seemingly impossible and giddy from the high of narrowly avoiding being stone forever.

Namaari turned her attention back to the woman in front of her and saw that Raya now had happy tears mixing with the rain as they streaked down her face while she laughed. Her breath hitched when the princess leaned forward and rested her forehead on Namaari’s uninjured shoulder as she continued to giggle. In response, Namaari almost automatically slipped her arms around the woman’s shoulders, pulling her close again.

She was in a complete daze as she watched Raya’s comrades celebrate, unable to truly focus on anything other than the woman in her arms.

Eventually, their laughter slowed, and they began to seek a way up and out of the sinkhole they had plunged into, locating a pile of debris they could climb up. They made short work of it with Tong climbing up first with Noi and then Raya scrambling after them. Namaari gave Boun a boost up to the other woman and then finally Raya reached down and helped pull her up, electric shockwaves traveling up her arms at their touch.

As she straightened up, not yet releasing Raya’s hand, Namaari could see the chaos and wreckage all around, but also the beauty. People were helping one another, reuniting with loved ones, confusion turning into hope as they realized what was happening around them. From her place below in the courtyard, Namaari could see the waterfalls having returned outside of the city, the late evening sunlight glinting off their waters. All of it just solidified that the Druun was really gone.

Her smile only grew as Raya’s trusted TukTuk appeared from around a corner, catching sight of them and bounding over. Raya squeezed her hand briefly before releasing it to hop down the rubble and run over to her trusted friend. Kneeling down, the Heart princess hugged his huge fury head.

A familiar purr drew Namaari’s attention to a spot just behind TukTuk and there was Chaiya, also rushing over to Raya to lean into the princess. Namaari hurried over to them, a teasing glint to her eye as she folded her arms.

“Really? And here I thought you missed me.”

The serlot just growled happily in response as Namaari came over to them, hugging Chaiya and then turning to TukTuk who also greeted her in his own way.

“I told you I would find her,” Namaari said to him matter-of-factly, givig an affectionate smile to the huge furbug. She glanced sideways at Raya who was beaming at her, her eyes dancing with happiness. Namaari was certain she had never seen anything more beautiful in her life.

Eventually, some of Namaari’s memory returned to her and her eyes snapped up to the open throne room, her mother, alive and well- and very much not stone- stood at the edge with several Fang children. Her mother was smiling down at her and to her right was Atitaya, guilt coloring her face.

Namaari was just about to run up to her mother when Raya straightening up abruptly next to her caught her attention. She looked at her and followed her line of sight and she could barely contain her shock.

There, over the waterfalls, running towards them on the strange magic rain platforms were hundreds of dragons. She watched in complete awe, the rain soaking her through and through, as several of those colorful creatures made a mesmerizing pattern around a spot it in the water. It took a moment for Namaari to realize…

A million thoughts and emotions were swirling through her. Watching, unblinkingly, Namaari could see a column of water rise up in the middle of the dragon-made circle, swirling until it formed a familiar blue dragon.

Namaari’s breath caught in her throat. How could it be?

As her brain struggled to process everything that was happening, she continued to watch in amazement as the water dragon seemed to almost dance around with her brothers and sisters.

She had been rooted in place when Sisu ran lower to the ground towards them and Raya ran after her, calling her name as the dragon ran alongside her. Even as the others ran to catch up to them and greet Sisu, Namaari struggled to move her feet, but she eventually did, hanging back from the group. She felt even after assembling the gem she still had a hard time feeling like she belonged with these people.

Slowly, she approached, looking at the dragon in disbelief, overcome with emotion. She felt her throat begin to close up, not that she would be able to find the right words even if she could speak.

All she could manage was a bow, averting her eyes as she made traditional circle with her hands in respect, trying to maintain her composure. Her gesture was interrupted by the sensation of the dragon’s tail sliding around her and pulling her into a kind of group hug with the others, Namaari’s arms down, unsure what to do, all she could manage was an awkward smile at the others. She met Raya’s eyes across from her and her heart had never felt lighter.

Sisu pulled away first, standing on her hind legs she looked down at them but then abruptly her eyes went wide as if she just realized something.

“Oh, Toi! Did I miss it?! Did you guys kiss already?!”

Namaari’s cheeks began to burn almost immediately but a pleased grin split her face anyway. She chanced a glance over to Raya to see that she wasn’t faring much better, hissing, “Sisu!”

It didn’t take long for the others to dissolve into another fit of laughter at their expense, but the two princesses didn’t care because it saved them from having to respond.

After that the group started talking animatedly about all of the things each of them was going to do with the Druun gone. At some point, Sisu lifted her head and smiled broadly at something behind them all, before she greeted, “Hey, Namaari’s mom! I-I mean Chief Namaari’s mom!”

Namaari’s eyes snapped behind her to where Sisu was looking and there was her mother, her white dress immaculate, as if she hadn’t just been turned to stone and her homeland in complete wreckage. The only sign that anything was amiss, for once, was the mix of emotions on her normally stoic face. A few paces behind her stood Ty, her head bowed in shame, unable to meet any of their eyes.

Chief Virana bowed to very few people. In fact, Namaari wasn’t sure she had seen her bow to anyone in her life but there, in front of Sisu, she brought her hands together above her forehead, her long fingers forming a perfect circle as she closed her eyes and tilted her head in respect to the dragon.

Her curtain of gray hair, a mirror image to Namaari’s, fell back into place as she straightened up. She glanced around at the group of them, a rare smile on her face until her eyes landed on Namaari.

“Namaari,” her mother’s voice was soft as she outstretched her hands in welcome to her daughter. The people of Fang were not known for their physical affection and Chief Virana was no exception. So, when her mother strode forward and pulled her into a tight hug Namaari froze at first, unable to fully process this new behavior.

Namaari hesitated only a moment, not accustomed to such a gesture from her mother, but then in the next moment she wrapped her arms around her mother, squeezing her tightly.

Her mother’s long arms held her firmly as she spoke again, her words shaky, “I am so proud of you, my love.”

Those were words she had ached to hear from her mother for so long, so to hear them, especially after everything that had happened, brought unexpected tears springing to her eyes. She held her mother tight, the reality of it all slowly starting to sink in.

Eventually, they released each other and without a word, Namaari could feel Raya step up beside her and slip her hand in hers, intertwining their fingers. She shot a smile to the Heart princess, her heart full looking into those dark eyes staring back at her with affection that she still wasn’t sure she deserved.

“Now. May I have a word with the princess?” Chief Virana’s voice brought her attention back to her mother, who was looking at Raya with a small smile of her own. Namaari wiped the tears from her cheeks surprised by the request, wondering as to her mother’s intentions.

Namaari gave Raya a searching look, trying to determine how she felt about speaking to her mother privately, but the other woman just nodded. She gave Namaari’s hand a reassuring squeeze and followed the Chief away and out of earshot.

Watching them with narrowed eyes, Namaari almost forgot about Ty standing there awkwardly shifting from foot to foot, unsure of what to say. She noticed for the first time that they were alone now. The others having gone to help where they could. Ty was eventually the one to speak first.

“Namaari, I am so-,” she began but Namaari cut her off quickly.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Ty,” she began, shaking her head before looking at her steadily, “You were doing what you thought was best for our people. There is no shame in that.”

“I wish that were true. I had so many chances to make things right,” she said bitterly, glancing over at Namaari with an unreadable expression. “You knew what was best for our people and I didn’t trust you.”

She and Ty had been through a lot and she knew that for her to be willing to fight her own best friend revealed her true bravery and loyalty to their people. Even after everything, Namaari hoped they could go back to being friends. Someone just had to take the first step.

Without another word she brought her friend into a hug. Ty seemed surprised at first, as she had been with her mother’s embrace, but hugged her back briefly before they both released each other.

They fell back into silence, but this time it was companionable, the tension broken between them. Namaari looked back over at her mother and Raya. The former, much taller woman, now having placed a gentle hand on the latter’s shoulder. Their conversation seemed to be a somber one and Namaari couldn’t help her curiosity.

“So, she’s the one,” Ty broke the silence with a tone of realization. Namaari tore her eyes from Raya long enough to look at her friend’s expression which had transformed to a knowing smile. She was getting a lot of those lately.

Namaari simply quirked an eyebrow in question, waiting to hear her discovery. Ty glanced back towards Raya, nodding her head in her direction.

“She’s the one who’s had your heart all this time.”

Namaari was a little taken aback but the embarrassment was long gone. She looked back over at the Heart princess to see her mother and Raya heading back towards them, speaking unabashedly, “She is.”  

There would be more time to talk about everything but for now that was enough. As her mother and Raya reached them, Namaari tried to catch the dark-haired woman’s eye to gauge her response to their mysterious conversation, but she revealed nothing. It was her mother who spoke to them instead, “Will you be staying with us until the others can meet us in Heart?”

“If Fang will have me.” Raya replied simply.

“Fang would be honored,” the Chief assured her with a bow of her head.

The Chief looked down at her with a bemused smile and a respectful nod of her head, “Fang is indebted to you, Princess of Heart. I hope you accept our hospitality, so we can have time to discuss how to unite our lands. For now, I must see to my people.”

With that the older woman strode across the destroyed courtyard, Namaari watching as she put her arm around a young boy who appeared to be upset, searching for his family. Ty gave a bow and smile to the pair of them before following behind the Chief.

“So,” Namaari began slowly, giving the princess next to her a sly smile. The sound of Namaari’s voice next to her drew Raya’s attention back to the other woman. And then she delivered the line, “Who’s hungry?”

Raya snorted at Namaari repeating her words from the day they first met. Giving Namaari a light punch on her uninjured arm, Raya rolled her eyes, laughing dryly,

“Ha Ha. Very funny, Princess Undercut. Actually, I’m starving.”

Everyone was unsure where to go from here. What do you do after you save the world? Though Raya and Chief Virana’s conversation had led to one idea. The first thing on everyone’s mind was their families. So, after some discussion over a meal they all went their separate ways with a plan to meet up in Heart in two days’ time.

Raya told Namaari that as anxious as she was to be reunited with her Ba, she wanted to wait for all of her new friends to be able to go back to their families and unite in Heart as one. She could think of no better way to see her Ba’s face again than it lit up with the knowledge that his dream of Kumandra had been realized.

Boun, the Tail-native with his Shimporium boat had offered to drop Tong off in Spine and Noi in Talon along his way. Then each of them was going to bring as many of their people as possible back with them to Heart. They were going to accomplish this so quickly with the help of their water dragon friend who was a, “really strong swimmer.”

From her place up in the courtyard of the Fang palace, Namaari watched Boun shove off from one of the docks. She waved to her friends, smiling fondly at the little version of Kumandra they had unintentionally created on their journey to collect the dragon gem pieces and save Raya’s father.

The blue dragon caught her eye from her place in the water, smiling goofily up at her before diving under the waves. She then gripped onto Boun’s boat and they sped off and quickly out of sight.

The Druun had destroyed quite a bit of the formerly pristine city, but the people of Fang were already hard at work restoring what they could and rebuilding what they could not. Namaari expected nothing less from her people; their commitment to one another, watching families help one another so that no one went without.

Namaari’s heart ached to see the wreckage of her homeland. She could only take comfort in knowing that, in the end, this seemingly needless destruction had brought them all together.

When she was certain that all of her people had been taken care of Namaari sought out Fang’s healer, an elderly woman, who looked exhausted but greeted her and Raya with a warm smile and a bow. She asked that the gash above Raya’s eye be tended to first, despite the Heart princess’s arguing that her wound was much more serious. Fortunately for Namaari, the healer was of Fang and bound to the wishes of her princess, so Namaari won this round.

Once the healer was done cleaning Raya’s wound, she moved on to restitching Namaari’s injury. The source of her injury, Wahn, had not been seen since she had broken his nose and taken his spear. She was certain without asking Raya that he was the one who had taken Sisu from this world, even if only briefly, so it was in his best interests if Namaari never saw him again.

As skilled as the healer was, Namaari couldn’t help but miss Raya’s gentle hands tending to her wounds. The healer made quick work of it and bandaged her back up with a scolding jab, telling her not to do anything strenuous to pull the stitches again and looking at them both reproachingly.

Raya’s face was as red as Namaari was certain hers was as well but they said nothing. But as soon as the healer was gone they both burst into laughter at the insinuation. Though, Namaari would be lying if she said she hadn’t thought about doing “strenuous” things with Raya.

In fact, later that evening, after they had shared a meal and were trying to determine sleeping arrangements, those thoughts rose right up to the surface.

“That is your bed?!” Raya had exclaimed when Namaari had led her to her room.

Namaari had lifted a self-conscious hand to rub the back of her neck. She knew it was kind of ridiculous how large her bed was, and she wondered what Raya was thinking.

Meanwhile, Namaari’s rebellious mind had already taken over. With Raya standing in her room images of all the ways they could use her enormous bed floated before her eyes. All the ways she could show Raya exactly how much she loved her, Raya’s body arched under her touch, head thrown back in pleasure.

It had become unbearably warm all of a sudden and the ache in her lower abdomen was making it difficult to focus on anything else.

“You can sleep here. I can take one of the spare rooms,” Namaari had offered weakly, finding her voice only after getting a hold of herself. She told herself that now was not the time for such thoughts. They had only just had their first kiss a mere few hours ago.

She braved a glance at the woman of her affection only to see a look of uncertainty on her beautiful face and that sobered Namaari up quickly.

“Hey, I can find you someplace you’d be more comfortable…” Namaari began, approaching Raya, trying to fix whatever was the cause of her sudden seriousness. When she was within arm’s reach, she took both of Raya’s hands in her own.

“Actually, I was kind of hoping… I mean… could you- could we,” Raya stumbled over her words, her eyes looking everywhere but at Namaari. She waited patiently for Raya to collect her thoughts, her eyes trying to validate without words whatever it was that Raya was feeling and trying to express.

The Heart princess heaved a sigh, finally looking up at her, “This is just the first time I’ll have slept in a real bed in a really long time. Without TukTuk. Without the fear of Druun. I just… I don’t really want to be alone.”

Namaari felt as if her heart was being torn from her chest, a stabbing pain in her heart at Raya’s admission. She knew after everything she had been through that it couldn’t have been easy to admit weakness or show any kind of vulnerability.

“Of course I’ll stay, dep la,” Namaari assured her softly, stepping forward any pulling the woman into her arms. Raya had relaxed into the embrace, her face nuzzling into the crook of Namaari’s neck.

She still hadn’t gotten used to the feeling of being able to hold the woman she loved whenever the feeling took her.

After that they had bathed and changed-separately- into loose fitting tunics and pants in the traditional white of Fang so palace attendants could have their clothing washed for them, something Raya was hesitant to allow but ultimately relented. Namaari knew there were a lot of things that Raya hadn’t been able to experience in the last six years, one of those being that she had not been treated like the princess she was, having to survive on her own and rely on nothing and no one.

Namaari vowed to change that. She would bend over backwards to provide for this woman and treat her with the love and care she deserved. Even though she knew Raya was more than capable. Especially because Raya was more than capable. Namaari wanted to show her that she didn’t need to be.

So, they had gone to bed. At first, Namaari settling on her back on the far side away from Raya, giving her as much space as she needed. But it hadn’t been long before Raya scooted over to her, her warm eyes searching hers in the dark for permission before snuggling into her left side. Raya rested her head on her uninjured shoulder, Namaari’s arm coming to curl around her and Raya’s arm snaking across her stomach. As Raya hooked her leg over hers, Namaari held her close, her heart fluttering in her chest as they settled into each other.

Feeling braver than she had in the light of day, Namaari finally said the words that she had been holding onto for so long.

“I love you, Raya.”  

At first Namaari had thought that maybe Raya had fallen asleep but then a moment later Raya lifted herself up onto her elbow, hovering over Namaari with her long hair falling in a curtain around their faces.

Namaari was taken by surprise when Raya’s lithe fingers slid to curl around the back of Namaari’s head, tangling in her hair, a warmth spreading through her body.

Raya paused only a moment to meet Namaari’s eyes before she pressed her lips to the Fang princess’s. Namaari responded instinctively, sliding her hands onto Raya’s narrow waist, and moving her lips against Raya’s soft ones.

Their lips moved in unison, parting and coming together as the heat started to build. Namaari ached to deepen the kiss and a million other things but instead she forced herself to slow things down before she got carried away. They had time, she told herself.

With one last caress, Namaari moved her lips just far enough that they were no longer touching Raya’s but they were close enough that she could still feel the other woman’s warm breaths on her cheek. She hadn’t opened her eyes and instead slipped her hands from Raya’s waist, around to her back, pulling her back down on top of her.

Raya didn’t miss a beat, she tucked her head under Namaari’s chin, her nose grazing the sensitive skin of Namaari’s throat. The fingers that had been laced in Namaari’s hair slid down her neck and rested lightly on her collar bone where the leather necklace holding her gold ring had slid up.

And they laid like that for a long time, just enjoying the feeling of being so close after all this time. While Raya hadn’t returned her words, Namaari had gotten her response. She held the woman tight against her, feeling whole for the first time in her life as exhaustion finally claimed both of them.

Chapter Text

EPILOGUE (HEART)

This was it.

Their whole journey had led them here. To the land of Heart.  

Namaari had watched Raya carefully on the boat ride to her homeland. The princess had seemed to turn in on herself, lost in thought this morning and quieter than she had been the last two days. She could feel the anxiety and anticipation rolling off the woman in waves and Namaari wished she could do something to ease her mind. But she knew there was nothing that would distract a daughter who had spent six years apart from her father on the day of their reunion. So, she contented herself by making sure Raya knew she was nearby if she needed her.

A familiar boat with a large shrimp on the roof caught their attention along with a few other boats crowding the dock as well. Once they had departed their own boat, Chief Virana and General Atitaya stood with a few other Fang citizens who had volunteered to travel with them, excited to leave the Fanglands for the first time in their lives. They had looked around at the scenery in awe at the sheer vastness of it all, having spent their whole lives on a very small island. Safe but isolated. Almost as soon as Raya and Namaari were off the boat they were inundated by their friends, excited to be reunited after their brief time apart.

Boun introduced them to his parents along with his siblings, two older brothers and an older sister who- just as the young Tail boy had told them she would- tousled his hair affectionately. Namaari could see behind Boun’s look of mock-annoyance the joy he took in the gesture.

Noi and the ongis were in the arms of her mother and her grandmother. Kind women who showered them with appreciation for taking care of little Noi. Raya had quickly covered up a snort of laughter, trying to pretend it was a sneeze. If Noi’s mother only knew that Noi more than took care of herself while in Talon and beyond while on their little adventure. And if Namaari wasn’t mistaken, she thought she spotted her ear climber on Noi’s mother but when she arched a brow at the toddler, she just stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry at Namaari.

Then Tong trudged over, his young son perched in his arms, his wife at his shoulder followed by her brother. The Spine warrior didn’t hesitate to put his son in Raya’s arms and then it was Namaari’s turn to suppress a laugh. The Heart princess was so uncomfortable, holding the little boy out and away from her body, unsure of what to do with him. Namaari chose to have mercy on the woman and took the boy, placing him on her hip as he babbled to her incoherently. She caught Raya’s eye over the boy’s head and she could see the woman's look of gratitude.

Meanwhile, TukTuk and Chaiya didn’t have a care in the world, the furbug rolling around in the lush grass as the serlot playfully tried to catch him. 

Sisu had made her rounds with all of them, those that hadn’t met the dragon yet staring at her in open wonder. And to those that had met her, there was still a sense of disbelief that real, live dragons were truly back in the world. Namaari hoped that Sisu would introduce them to her brothers and sisters at some point, but for now she was content to here her talk about them with reverence Namaari didn't know the goofy dragon had.  

Namaari had introduced them all to her mother and Ty, though they had all met them briefly before leaving Fang. While she could see the guilt coloring her mother’s expression, looking at all of the families she had torn apart by her action six years ago, the others welcomed her and Ty with open arms. All was forgiven. Now was the time to come together. As Kumandra.

Eventually, they all began preparing to head to the bridge that would lead them into Heart but as Namaari scanned the crowd she couldn’t spot the one woman who would lead them across. Stepping away from the group, Namaari glanced around the outskirts, finally laying eyes on the princess.

Raya was sitting on the dock, her feet dangling over the edge, her hands clasped in front of her as she slumped forward. Her only personal items, her father’s sword, her hat, and red cloak were already tucked away on TukTuk’s saddle. The fact that she had allowed the sword to part from her person while around so many strangers, former enemies even, spoke volumes to Namaari. The hard-won trust tangible.

Stepping lightly so as not to startle the Heart princess, Namaari approached. Once she was within a few yards of the woman Raya finally looked up, a distracted smile on her lips.

“May I?” Namaari asked gesturing to the vacant space beside Raya on the wooden planks. Raya replied without hesitation, “Of course, dep la.”

Namaari lowered herself down beside her, their thighs and arms resting against one another comfortably. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the other woman staring off at the water, glistening in the dusk.

After a moment, Raya finally spoke, her voice sounding small and unsure, “Do you think he will even recognize me? So much as changed.”

Namaari’s heart hurt seeing how anxious she was. In response, she gently slid her hand down Raya’s toned forearm to slip her fingers into her closed hand, spreading them out until their fingers interlaced.

“Of course he will,” she assured her with a squeeze of her hand. “A parent never forgets their child.”

Raya turned her eyes to look at her with a small smile on her lips. Nodding slightly, she lifted herself up from the dock, pulling Namaari up with her.

“Are you ready?” Namaari asked softly, brushing Raya’s wild, stubborn hair away from her face. Those warm eyes shifted up slightly to meet hers and they still never failed to take her breath away. But now there was a playful edge to them and the Heart princess gave a quick glance around before grinning at her.

“Well, actually, there is one more thing….”

With that Raya reached her hand up and hooked it around the back Namaari’s head, pulling her in for a kiss. It took Namaari by surprise, but she eagerly responded, snaking her arms around Raya’s narrow waist.

Raya’s short nails grazed over the shaved part of Namaari’s hair, making her scalp tingle pleasantly and an electric jolt shot through her as Raya’s other hand came to rest low on her bicep, near the sensitive spot at the crook of her elbow.

Just as suddenly as she had pulled Namaari in for the kiss, Raya pulled back, leaving Namaari breathless. Slowly, her brain managed to turn back on, and she convinced her eyelids to open. Before she could form a coherent thought, Raya spoke.

“I love you too, by the way.”

Namaari was certain her heart had exploded. That was the only explanation for the way her chest seemed to be bursting with happiness. She was peripherally aware of the fact that her face had split into a goofy grin as she looked down at the princess in her arms.

It was her turn to pull Raya in, sliding her hands up her back so she could bring the Heart princess into her as close as possible. She poured everything she could into that kiss. All the love she had for this woman since she was twelve years old. All the love she still had yet to give.

When the kiss eventually slowed and their lips parted, Namaari buried her face into Raya’s neck, the soft tendrils of her hair brushing her skin and tickling her nose. Raya’s arms had found their way up and around Namaari’s shoulders, holding her tightly.

Namaari could have held Raya like that forever, but there was still one thing left to do to complete their journey.

They pulled back, Namaari’s hands finding Raya’s, giving them an encouraging squeeze while her eyes tried to convey so many things. No more words were needed. Hand in hand they walked over to the others, leading them to the clearing near the bridge. Namaari could feel the eyes of their friends and family on them but she was focused on the woman beside her.

With a slight nod, Raya released Namaari's hand slowly, taking a deep, calming breath before stepping up the stairs.

Namaari watched her reach the top of the stairs and pause. From her spot on the grass below she couldn’t see Raya’s face or what was happening on the bridge but based on the princess’s posture she just knew she had finally laid eyes on her father after all this time.

Her heart swelled as a moment later Raya ran forward calling out to her Ba. It took her another moment to realize that Sisu had come up next to her, the great blue dragon grinning down at her, waggling her eyebrows. Namaari let out an awkward laugh, “You were watching us, weren’t you?”

Sisu just shrugged, unashamed, “What can I say? Rayaari is my OTP.”

With a swish of the dragon’s tail, she bounded up the stairs, leaving Namaari stunned and shaking her head in amusement even as her cheeks burned.

After that her mother stepped up beside her followed by Ty and then their newfound friends and their families. Namaari glanced down the line of them. Boun, Noi, Tong. Fang, Tail, Talon, Spine. And now Heart. In unison, they led the people of each of their lands, being the first after Sisu to step up onto the stone bridge.

Her eyes immediately found Raya’s and even from this distance she could see those dark depths full of love and complete happiness. It took all of her self-control not to run to the other woman, but she managed to stop and bow with the others at the Chief who had Raya tucked into his side. Then they all began to cross the bridge together, seeing the look of awe on Chief Benja’s face at the knowledge his daughter had fulfilled his dream of Kumandra.

As they neared, Raya’s smile seemed to grow, stepping away from her Ba just enough to reach out for Namaari as well. While the others flooded around them, the older man smiled warmly down at her. Raya looked to each of them, the brightest smile on her face as she spoke,

“Ba, you remember Namaari right?”

Chapter Text

Hi All!

I just wanted to let you guys know I was finally able to post the first of my series of one shots as a sequel (ish) to this story! If you're interested, please go check it out and let me know what you think! It's called A Kumandran Love Story.

Thank you all and happy reading!