Chapter Text
Wind turbines don't look very big from afar.
After all, why would they? They turn so quickly, to be that large would be... well, it would have to be mind-blowing, right? The white shine of the metal blends into orange and black as the sun settles itself upon the horizon. In the haze, they appear almost ethereal, like other worldly-beasts marching together towards distant lands.
Ike sighs as he settles down on the picnic blanket, the fringes of his hair blowing in the breeze. It's a beautiful view, certainly, but the turbines aren't why he's here. He's waiting for someone. Or rather, a pair of someones.
A pair of someones rather ethereal themselves.
Perhaps on cue, the sound of wings beating echoes in the distance. Ike simply smiles and closes his eyes. He doesn't need to look back to know who it is. The wind picks up, sending the cloth into a frenzy as air streams past, as though a helicopter was landing nearby. But rather than the twirling of blades, the rhythm only gets louder and more rapid. Wind howls in his ears, but only when it begins to subdue does he crack open an eye to glance to his side.
"'Sup? Hope we aren't too late."
As though she hadn't been sending up a gale that rivaled a weaker hurricane, Selen lay on her left side, wings folded off behind her. Her cheek rested on her fist and she flashed a toothy smile that showed off her fangs. To others, the whole show might have seemed intimidating, but her laugh should be enough for one to know where her heart lies, and that they'd need no fear around this dragon-girl.
Unless they had a fear of verbal teasing, anyway.
Ike let out a chuckle. "I'm not sure when else I'd expect a solar dragon and a lunar dragon to show up. Unless you thought I'd sit here all night and wait 'til sunrise." His head dipped, and he glanced to his left side as Elira gently landed on his other side, already sitting cross-legged. As her arms stretched upwards behind her back, the feathery wings quickly settled in a circle in front of her, brushing up against the novelist without thought. If he were dumb, he'd ask for a feather to use as a quill, but he didn't quite feel like getting thwacked in the back of the head, even jokingly.
Not at the moment, at least.
"Yeah, well, you know I can't just drag Selen out of a race. I'm sure you'd be making friends with the fireflies under the stars if I hadn't grabbed her as soon as they handed out the trophy."
Ike hummed. "Making friends with fireflies? That sounds kinda fun, actually."
"Hey, don't sell us short! We tell way more interesting stories!" Selen interjected. Her playful tone removed any weight from the accusation, of course. "Plus, we put their flying to shame."
Her bragging got a laugh out of her friend. "You're offering to fly for my amusement? Selen, you just flew here right after a race and you make it sound like it was a leisurely jog!"
The purple-haired dragon-girl rolled over onto her stomach, her feet kicking back and forth in the air. "Well, what do you expect from the fastest dragon alive? That I'd moan and complain like a hatchling whose wings got a bit sore?"
"Uhhh..."
"Ewiwaaa!!" Selen suddenly cried out, draping herself over Ike's shoulders and rocking back and forth. "Ikey's being a big old meanie face! He's ordering me to fly around like I'm some sort of circus act."
Caught off-guard and under assault in more ways than one, Ike sputtered out a response. "S-Selen?! What is with this random gaslighting?! She's literally been sitting next to us this whole time!"
Elira laughed at her younger sister's antics while the duo tussled together. In the end, of course, Ike feel flat on the ground, with an audible "OOF!" when Selen fell on top of him. Both soon joined the solar dragon in laughter, the elder sister wiping a tear from her eye as Ike and Selen sat themselves back down in less of a tangle of limbs. "So," she started, pausing to let out one last chuckle, "how did your day go, Ike? I'm sure it was more interesting than my day."
"Uh, unless you actually spent all day dragging your sister here, I somehow doubt that." Ike's vision flickered over the distant turbines before flitting to the dragon-girl on his left. "You can literally fly, Elira."
"And I'm an absolute marvel to be around, anyway." Selen exclaimed as she fell back, hands resting behind her head.
Elira's exposed eye rolled, though mirth clearly shone in it. "Well, I guess I had some fun sculpting the clouds. You'd be amazed what kind of show you can put on with a couple of shadows and some imagination."
Ike laughed at the thought of the dragon rolling their way through the fluffy clouds. A view looking down over miles and miles of grassland. "Yeah, probably beats a candle and some hand-puppets."
There was no frustration in his tone, but Elira noticed something was wrong nonetheless. Even Selen cracked open an eye to check on her friend. The author's eyes were distant as he stared out over the hills. The wind turbines, ever present, were slowly becoming lost to the encroaching dark after the sun had set below the horizon.
"Do you guys ever get bored of it? Flying?"
Elira tipped her head to the side, brows furrowed. "...I haven't. At least not yet."
"Same." Selen exhaled, pushing herself up to look out at the orange glow of the horizon. The trio were now engulfed in shadows.
"...glad to hear it." Despite his unfaltering smile and matter-of-fact speaking, Ike's true thoughts seemed a thousand miles away. The sisters shared a glance, obviously not buying it.
"...well, is there a reason for this inquiry?" Elira asked, a finger poking Ike in the cheek. Despite himself, the novelist smirked. "Maybe you're planning on exploring the topic of 'existential crisis' in your next book?"
"Nah, just a monkey jealous of two spectacular flying lizards." Ike sighed, pushing himself to his feet. "I should probably head back home soon, it's getting late."
The lame excuse didn't achieve much, as evidenced when a hand shot to his right wrist.
"Woahwoahwoah. No need to rush off, bud. You can't just get rid of us like the sun's some sort of clock." Selen grinned.
Ike blinked. "...uh, it kinda is, Selen. Like, on an entirely astronomical scale."
Another hand came to rest on his shoulder. "Well, in that case, looks like we'll have to turn back time and un-set the sun." The solar dragon announced.
Confusion crossed the author's expression. "What's that mean? Last time I checked, I'm the only one here with experience in time travel."
The two sisters exchanged a nod. A nod with the type of character that sent sudden chills down Ike's spine.
"Yeah? Well, get ready to take some notes, Chronos." The younger sister laughed.
"Seriously, what are you guys talkING ABOOOO-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"
Ike never got a chance to finish, his words trailing off into a shriek as his feet left the blanket, the cloth being blown clear across the hilltop as the wind suddenly picked up. His feet did not come back down to the earth.
Instead, the ground only got further away, as he was pulled into the sky by his arms.
His legs were kicking out in utter panic. Instinctively, he grappled his left hand around Selen's arm, clinging on for dear life. Elira's grip left and soon her arms looped underneath his shoulders. The kicking quickly subdued afterwards, if only because his brain managed to piece together that kicking his captors would be a surefire way to return to gravity's grasp. Still higher they rose, the beating of his heart mixing with the sound of two sets of beating wings. Below, they left behind the ground.
Below, they left behind the enormous wind turbines.
The sun engulfed his vision once more. With Elira still holding him tight around the torso, his left hand let go of Selen to block it. He regained his bearings and almost instantly, his heart was caught in his throat.
The view was simply breathtaking.
"NEXT TIME!" Elira yelled over the flapping of her own wings. "YOU SHOULD JUST ASK IF YOU WANNA TAKE A FLIGHT!"
"YEAH, WE GOTCHU, FAM!" Selen shouted down from above.
Ike looked between the two siblings, each giving him a grin. There was plenty of mischief visible, a requirement when it came to the dragon sisters. But there was plenty of affection too. An emotion he often forgot when he struggled with the tougher questions he imposed on himself, having such spectacular friends.
And as he gazed out at the view, knowing the two wouldn't let him down until, at minimum, the sun had set once again, he remembered to appreciate the other meaning of "spectacular".