Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Sora!”

She felt tears well up at the sound of her name. She knew Moon knew. She knew everyone knew.

But she still couldn’t move. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Tamarin’s unconscious form, her body frighteningly still. Moon and Qibli came running, Umber right behind them, but she barely registered their presence until Moon grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around so fast it made her vision spin with it.

“Sora, you need to leave! Icicle knows it was you, and she’s going to try and kill you.”

“I— I know…” Sora let her tears spill freely as Umber wrapped his wings around her. She didn't even have the energy to stand up, slumping into her brother like her limbs had become jelly.

“Sora, why didn’t you tell me?” Umber asked, gently cupping her face with his talons and lifting it up so they were eye to eye.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, stammering as she struggled to push out the next sentence. “I didn’t want to get you involved. Or Marsh. Or Clay.”

Her gaze fell upon the door way of the infirmary, so when she at first saw the IceWing enter, she let out a sharp gasp, nearly collapsing in fear—only for it to be Winter, not Icicle.

“Sora.” He bit out her name like a blade slicing the air. He was mad. Really mad.

“I j-just…" She sniffed loudly, her tears were falling fast, blurring her vision and tickling her chin. She wiped at them angrily, her inhales sharp and shuddering as they entered her lungs. She could feel the IceWing Prince's gaze burning holes into her eye lids. Looking in his eyes might just set her ablaze, just like she'd done to Carnelian and Bigtail with the bomb. "She— she... she killed Crane!" Sora’s voice cracked, and the weight of her grief pressed down on her chest, suffocating her.

Winter stopped in front of her, his anger faltering for a moment. His brows furrowed. “Who?” His voice had softened, oddly gentle for an IceWing.

“My—my sister…” she sniffled, leaning into Umber. “Icicle killed her.”

Winter’s expression shattered in an instant. Shock rippled through him, stiffening his posture. He had come here thinking she was a murderer, that she had done all this with cold intent.

“I…” Winter’s tail lashed, his wings tensing, but before he could say anything else—

A furious roar split the cave.

Icicle was too fast. Sora barely had time to react before the IceWing lunged for her.

Winter was in front of her in a flash, and Icicle slammed into him instead, sending them both stumbling. She snarled, trying to shove him aside, but Winter flared his wings, momentarily blinding her with the sunlight reflecting off his scales.

Icicle blinked furiously before lunging again.

Everything became a blur. Qibli was on her back, claws digging in, but Icicle was stronger than he must have expected. She roared, spinning around and shaking, attempting to throw the SandWing off her back, nearly taking Umber’s head off with her tail. Winter reacted fast—slamming into her side and helping Qibli pin her down.

“WINTER, GET THE FUCK OFF ME! YOU FOOL!” Icicle screeched, thrashing wildly.

Sora stumbled back, heart hammering so hard she could hear it in her ears. The blood drained from her face. She had been inches from death.

Moon rushed over. “Sora! Are you okay?”

Sora shook her head, the movement making her stomach lurch. Moon pulled her into her wings, but her legs felt like they couldn’t hold her up. She crouched down instead, shaking.

Talon steps pounded through the hall, rushing toward them.

The moment she saw Clay, she ran—slamming into his chest so hard she nearly knocked herself over backwards.

“Sora! What happened?” Clay’s warm wings wrapped around her, but all she could do was sob.

“I—I’m sorry! Don’t be mad at me!”

“Don’t be mad at you?” Clay sounded confused, concerned.

She choked on a breath. “I SET THE BOMB!” Her voice cracked. “I TRIED TO KILL ICICLE! BE— BECAUSE—” Her sobs cut off her words, a wretched, broken sound. “SHE KILLED CRANE!”

Silence.

The whole cave felt frozen in time. Even the dragonets gathered outside didn’t make a sound.

Icicle’s scream shattered it. “SO YOU ADMIT IT, YOU CRAZY BITCH!”

She thrashed harder, slamming her hind legs into Winter’s chest. He grunted but didn’t let go.

“IT WAS A FUCKING BATTLE!! I KILLED HER BECAUSE I HAD TO!! NOT BECAUSE SHE WAS YOUR SISTER!”

Tsunami stormed into the cave, immediately jumping in to help restrain Icicle. Sora barely noticed.

She was seeing red.

Her claws trembled. She wasn’t thinking anymore—only feeling.

Sora charged.

She didn’t even register Winter moving until she was caught mid-air. Cold scales pressed against hers, locking her in place before she could land a blow.

“I’LL KILL YOU!” she shrieked, clawing and fighting, trying to break free. “YOU TOOK CRANE AWAY! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!”

Winter blocked her view of Icicle with his wings.

For some reason, that helped. Just a little.

Sora’s vision blurred as her rage collapsed into something else—something unbearable. Her whole body trembled, and suddenly she didn’t care that Winter was holding her back. She pressed her face into his scales and sobbed.

She felt him tense at first. But then he exhaled, allowing her to cry into him.

Before long, Clay was there instead, pulling her into his wings, into his safety, into his embrace.

How could they still love her?

She was a murderer... a monster...

——

Hours later, Sora sat alone.

The tiny, claustrophobic stone room swallowed her whole.

She deserved this.

No one had come to talk to her. She had spent most of her time staring at the door, tracing every groove and line in the wood. It was a distraction—one that barely lasted.

Her breath hitched.

One. Two. Three. Four—

The door creaked open.

“Sora?”

Her heart lurched. She recognized the voice instantly.

Winter.

She stared down at her talons. Why is he here?

She had tried to kill his sister. Twice. Why would he want to be alone with her? Was he going to take revenge and kill her? Maybe that would be better then whatever fate Moorhen or the other three Queens had in plan.

Instead, Winter sat beside her. For a long time, he didn’t speak. The silence stretched, unbearable, until he finally asked, “What was she like? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Sora’s head lifted. He cared?

It was strange, knowing he and Icicle were siblings. They were nothing alike.

“Y-yeah…” She fiddled with her claws, glancing away. “Crane was—she was the big sister who always teased us, made us laugh when we were sad. She was funny, smart, and brave. She wasn’t much bigger than me, but she fought hard…”

Her voice broke.

“She sounds like my brother,” Winter murmured. His wing nudged hers gently. Had he meant to do that? Had he purposely done it? Either way, it felt nice, a friendly gesture that meant so much more then he'd probably meant it too.

Sora wiped at her eyes. “R-really?”

Winter nodded. “He’s gone now. Captured by SkyWings two years ago. Killed in Scarlet’s arena. All because I was a coward.”

Sora frowned. “What do you mean?”

Winter hesitated, staring at his talons.

“We were looking for... scavengers when we ran into a patrol. Fourteen SkyWings. My brother… begged for my life. Told them I was weak. A failure.” His voice wavered. “I still don’t know if he meant it, or if he was just trying to save me. But I left him there. Alone.”

Silence.

Sora’s throat tightened. He blames himself too. At least he hadn't directly killed him. Like she had. Carnelian... Bigtail...

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “You must love Icicle.”

Winter exhaled. “I… don’t know how I feel about her. I know she hates me.”

Sora hesitated, then said, “You’re a much better dragon than her.” She met his gaze. “You’re a better dragon than most.”

Winter’s eyes widened slightly, as if the idea had never occurred to him.

“…Thanks,” he muttered.

A tiny, hesitant smile tugged at his snout.

For a brief moment, Sora thought maybe—just maybe—she wasn’t entirely alone in this.

"It's nothing." She shook out her wings before curling them around herself as she sat back on her haunches. It was strange that he was so much taller and broader than her. She was older than him, yet she was the same size as Moon. Maybe it was genetics—his family and hers were vastly different. He had most likely grown up training and well-fed, while Sora and her siblings hadn’t had it too terribly, but it wasn’t great either.

"Why do you willingly choose to talk to me when I killed dragons while trying to kill your sister?"

Winter hummed, as if he had expected this question. "What you did is horrible, but I can relate, in a way. The NightWings killed my brother in Scarlet's arena. I won't trust a NightWing, even if it was life or death."

"Not even Moon?"

"No. Not even Moon."

Sora tilted her head at him. "Really?"

He nodded, his head turning toward the door as he heard talon steps approaching.

Tsunami walked into the room, her eyes immediately narrowing when she noticed Winter. "Why are you in here? Where's Sora?"

At the second mention of her name, Sora poked her head out from beside Winter. Was she really that small, or was Tsunami just blind?

"Oh, what are you two doing in here?" The SeaWing princess asked haughtily. "You do know mating isn’t—"

"Woah," Winter interrupted, giving her an incredulous look while Sora went red. Where in the world had she gotten that conclusion from? Maybe it was a joke, it wasn't an appreciated one. That last thing Sora wanted right now was to deal with jokes. "I was talking to her, trying to comfort her, but of course the bitchest of Princesses with a worse rbf then me had to open her mouth."

Tsunami rolled her eyes and gestured to the door. "We're going to be talking to Sora privately now, so you can leave."

Winter scoffed but didn’t argue, gliding out of the room in all his sparkly glory, but not without shooting one last glance back at Sora. Were all Prince's like this? Strangely complex and difficult to figure out?

Tsunami turned back to Sora as Sunny and Clay entered, Sora resisted the urge to run into her brother. She wasn't the one who deserved to be comforted. She was a killer, not a victim. "So, Sora, as you know already, we want to have a talk with you…"

Chapter Text

“You’re not going to hand me over to Moorhen?” Sora asked shakily, hardly believing it was true. She absolutely deserved to be behind bars for her crimes, so why wouldn’t they? She had literally bombed a cave and killed not one but two dragons, along with severely injuring another. Just because she hadn’t meant for it to happen didn’t mean she had tried her hardest to prevent it. She had only cared enough to make sure her brother was safe, and yet, the dragons she had nearly murdered in her own blind, desperate need for revenge had saved her life from the very dragon she had been trying to kill.

“Yes,” Sunny nodded. She looked a little shaky herself and had a hard time meeting Sora’s eyes. It hurt, but at least Sunny cared enough to help protect her alongside her big brother, Clay.

“What you’ve done is horrible. It may not have been intentional, but it was first-degree murder nonetheless. Not only that, but you also now have charges of attempted assassination against one of the heirs to the IceWing royal throne, which could get us, the school, and possibly Moorhen in a great deal of trouble if Glacier decides not to be merciful. It could even lead to the school being completely shut down by the queens.”

The gravity of the situation truly began to weigh down on her shoulders. She had possibly ruined something that was the best solution for peace between the tribes. She had been so blind to how her actions could harm the school, could harm the peace the Dragonets of Destiny had worked so hard to achieve. Even if that goal was slow to reach, Sora’s actions could potentially destroy all their hard work, grind it into dust. As if it had never been.

“I don’t deserve it,” she whispered, quickly adding, “I mean—I don’t deserve to be saved from my crimes…”

Sunny and Tsunami glanced at each other, shifting awkwardly.

“Oh, Sora, of course you do! It may not be right, but you didn’t kill them on purpose. I don’t know what I’d do if I had to sleep in the same cave with my sister’s killer. Well, yes, my sister—but I never knew her like you did.” Clay reassured her, taking her much smaller talon in his. “And I don’t plan to lose another sib.”

Sora wasn’t sure how she still had tears left to spill. She had been crying almost all day. Her mouth and nose were red and raw, her eyes bloodshot and dry. She wanted to reverse time, undo her actions. Go about it the right way, so no one who didn’t deserve death met its gates.

“We found a perfect cave a few mountains away for you to hide in,” Sora heard Sunny say, but she didn’t lift her head from her brother’s shoulder. The poor little MudWing was too exhausted to do so.

“Okay… where is it?”

——

“I don’t want to stay here alone… I’m scared.” Sora sniffled, a strange hiccup mixed with a sob escaping her throat.

Clay nuzzled his snout against hers, trying to pry her off of him. Ever since she saw the damp, cramped, gloomy cave she’d be hiding in alone, she had latched onto him like a monkey, her arms and tail wrapped around him to prevent his escape.

“It’ll be okay. I’ll visit as often as possible, as will Sunny.”

“What about Umber and Marsh?” She lifted her head from his neck, wings and shoulders sagging. Would her other brothers ever know where she had gone? Had Clay decided to keep her location secret from them?

“It’s for the best that we keep it a secret from them.”

Sora wilted. She hated this—having to wait for company. How would she sleep here, alone? She never slept alone. Back in her cave with Icicle, she had always sneaked out to sleep with Umber or Marsh, snuggling against them. She wasn’t used to sleeping without their scales pressed up against her own.

Now she would be truly alone. No one was going to hug her, snuggle her, or keep her distracted 24/7.

She was truly alone…

——

Clay had left around two or three hours ago and had yet to return to check on her. At least Sunny had thought to bring her some scrolls along with schoolwork. Sora wasn’t a fan of schoolwork, but if it kept her distracted from her own dark, spiraling thoughts, it was welcome.

Even as she worked, she didn’t feel like she was really there. She felt separated from reality. Alone. Missing Crane more than ever.

Maybe it would have hurt less if Icicle had just ripped her to shreds.

A faint scrape of claws against stone jolted her back to focus. To be safe, she backed away into the dark shadows in the corner of her new cave. The jagged rocks and their shadows swallowed her whole.

Had she already been found? Was she about to be tried for her crimes? Was her life completely over now?

She didn’t want to live in a cell. She wanted to see her brothers.

She forced her thoughts to go blank—thinking would cause tears, which would blur her vision. She could not afford to lose focus if she needed to defend herself or flee.

A beautiful, pale white and blue dragon sauntered in through the cave’s mouth.

Sora furrowed her brow. Why was Winter here?

Was he going to get revenge on her for Icicle?

Why hadn’t he done it when he had confronted her at school? Was he waiting for the right moment—separating her, making sure she was alone?

He had seemed so genuine when he had told her about his brother, about how the guilt ate at his very being, tore him down, made him blame himself for escaping something he wouldn’t have survived if the opposite had occurred.

Maybe she was misjudging the situation completely. He was looking around almost curiously, dark blue eyes peering into the shadows, squinting to make out her figure.

Was it possible he didn’t want to harm her at all?

That he had simply come to talk to her?

Her—of all dragons.

Why her?

“Sora?” He asked the shadows, sitting back on his haunches, tail curled around his talons.

How could such a simple shift in position look so graceful?

How odd… yet so interesting.

Sora hesitated, unsure if she should follow her gut.

Luckily, she didn’t have to decide.

As she lifted her gaze to watch him once more, their eyes met.

“Sora?”

She shook her head as he neared. “Go away.”

He slowed to a stop as she snapped at him, a small wall of jagged rocks between them—a spitting image of the one that separated them through status and tribe.

“Why did you try so hard to find me?” Sora questioned, gesturing with her talon for him to back up.

Winter shrugged. “I’m not exactly sure. I usually sneak out around this time of night to be alone. Clear my head, I guess.”

“Every night?” She asked, carefully winding her way out from behind the stalagmites. She hissed as the underside of her tail caught on a needle-sharp edge.

“Whenever my clawmate doesn’t notice...” Winter muttered, tilting his head away, but his eyes didn’t follow. They flicked to her tail.

“You’re bleeding.”

She glanced at her tail, swinging it nearer. “It’s not bad,” she decided. Her wings fluttered, feeling lighter than they had in a while.

He still seemed to worry about her, his gaze continuing to shift to the cut.

“Hmm,” he hummed, puffing out a cloud of tiny ice particles from his nostrils. “I won’t tell anyone about you, if that’s what you were worried about.”

“Oh… thanks…”

It hadn’t even occurred to her. She had been more stuck on why he was here, talking to her. Was he dumb? Did he have no common sense? Shouldn’t he hate her? Shouldn’t he fear her?

She had bombed a classroom. Killed two dragons. Nearly taken him and his entire winglet with it. Tried to kill his sister twice.

She settled on that.

He was dumb.

“Icicle is going back to the Ice Kingdom. You won’t have to worry about her.”

His muscles were rigid, tense.

“…What else?” Sora pressed. He was withholding something.

“She attacked Clay.”

Sora’s heart dropped through her chest to the floor beneath her talons. No, no, no, NO! Her face paled, her talons seizing his in her panic. “He's alive, r– right?”

He was startled at her sudden grip, awkwardly holding her talons. “He's alive, but… she–” He took a deep breath, avoiding her eyes, peering over at a mouse that slipped out of a crack in the cave wall. He leaned up, no longer at eye level. “She clawed out one of his eyes, nearly slit his throat.”

“WHAT!?” Sora shrieked, releasing his talons to grab his shoulders. He winced as her claws dug in hard enough to bring blood to the surface. She breathed in short, choked gasps. This was all her fault. She had tried to kill Icicle, and in return, Icicle had taken it out on her brother.

Her fault. Her fault. Her fault.

“IT’S ALL MY FAULT!!” she wailed, so angry at herself she was screaming. Her throat burned, the shrieks dragging needles up her throat, tearing it up until it was raw and bleeding.

“Sora—”

He was interrupted by another wail.

“I DI– DIDN'T WANT TO GET THEM HURT!!! THAT WAS THE– THE LAST THING I WANTED!!”

Hyperventilation made breathing hard. All she wanted to do was scream—scream until she couldn’t, until her throat gave way.

Cold talons pressed gently against her back. Wings encircled her, shielding the world out. A head above hers, another scaled body against her own, cold against her. It felt… steadying, a cornerstone.

Sora’s breathing slowly steadied, her screaming coming to a stop. She felt no shame as she burrowed her snout into his neck. It was something balanced she could rest on, trusting it not to tip over and send her falling.

"It's not," he whispered, his voice grounding her more than anyone else's ever had. How could he stay so put together when everything around him was falling apart? How was he picking up the broken pieces of her and putting them back into place? Mending her.

“My sister would never think to target your siblings. I highly doubt she even paid enough attention to figure out who your siblings were.”

Sora, with great effort, lifted her head from his neck, meeting his fierce blue-eyed gaze.

“My sister is working for Ex-Queen Scarlet… to save my brother.”

Chapter Text

"So... what you're saying is that you're leaving," Sora said, her voice growing quiet. She watched him nod, knowing she shouldn't feel so disappointed. What was it about this beautiful idiot that made her so desperate for him to stay? Was it because, out of everyone, he was the one who sought her out? Not even Moon. She didn't know where she was though. If she even cared.

"Oh." She tried to sound like it didn't mean anything at all, when, in truth, it mattered so greatly that it hurt.

Winter shifted awkwardly. "I don't hate you."

That brought Sora’s gaze to his. How funny. How odd. What a bizarre prince.

"Then you're a fool," she replied bluntly, turning away in a flash. She wished to be small, to crawl into the tiny cracks in the stone, to hide there until Winter gave up and left her to rot alone, like she deserved. Instead, she found an alternative—burying herself in a blanket of shadows, curling up and trying to block out the world with her wings.

"Where would hating you get me?" she heard him ask. "I may be known for being a jerk, but I'm no fool. You've taught me things, oddly enough."

Sora peeked out at him, brow furrowed. His body was facing her, but his eyes were elsewhere, distant. She wondered what was swirling around in that royal brain of his.

"Hate kills dragons."

For some reason, the way he said it sent a chill rattling through Sora’s bones.

His point wasn’t missed. Sora had tried to kill Icicle, fueled by hatred, giving her the strength to continue her dangerous attempts on the older dragon’s life. Then, once Icicle had figured her out, she'd turned around and done the same. It worked the same way with the SandWing sisters—their hatred, their greed for power, had killed thousands. None of them had stopped to care about the casualties. Had anyone? Sora hadn’t. Icicle hadn’t.

Winter was right.

Silence filled the air, heavy and suffocating, weighing down on Sora’s back and wings. She was going to let him leave without a word. But the moment his footsteps became quieter, she fled from the shadowy embrace that had gladly accepted her.

Finding Winter’s wrist, she stopped him from leaving—leaving like everyone else.

"When you come back, you’ll come see me, right?" Her voice came out choked and desperate. Maybe she was. Maybe she was desperate enough to dig her claws into his arm, wanting to keep him here.

He winced a little, but no comment about her behavior slipped from his lips.

"Why wouldn’t I?" he answered, nothing more, nothing less.

A tiny smile ghosted his face before he spread his wings and soared. The sun hit his scales, turning him into a shining star—one that had come gliding far too close to the surface of the earth.

——

Clay had visited once in the past week. Once.

Sora, alone with her thoughts, was asking for problems.

She hadn’t been sleeping at night, so exhaustion had started ambushing her at random times instead. She thought far too often about Winter. She longed to curl into his chest and hide there. He wouldn’t mind, would he? No? Yes? She had no clue.

Whispers about him flew from ear to ear like dragonflies—obsessions over his beauty. Sora wondered if that was all they thought of him. Just a pretty face.

Was that all he was?

Did they see beneath? Did they see the chinks in his armor, the moments his facade faltered? Beneath it, a dragonet—just like everyone else. Yet he certainly didn’t seem like one. He’d grown up far faster than anyone should. Were all royals raised that way?

Her thoughts ran forward, fast and dangerous—treasonous, even. They needed to slow. Become a steady stream. Not too slow. Not too fast.

The warm brown scales of her wings looked like something special under the bright glow of the ever-high sun.

Day promised Sora the chance for peace—sleep empty of nightmares. Empty of bodies bursting into flame. Empty of curved claws slicing through Crane as if she were nothing more than paper.

Red blood and blue blood, combining into a sickly violet color.

Dead, unmoving eyes.

Mountains of corpses that reeked of death.

The sun was far too warm for the cold of those horrors to haunt her in her most vulnerable state.

Had Winter fought in battles? Surely he had.

"Hmm."

The hum vibrated in her throat. She liked humming.

She lay still, absorbing the sunlight for a long moment. The song began—first in her head, then aloud, quiet and soothing.

One of the many songs Crane had sung to her as she fell asleep in her arms.

The battle still burned behind her eyelids, there even when her eyes were closed.

She burned away the daylight, humming the songs of her late sister.

Not as beautifully as Crane had.

But close.

Sora fell into a deep slumber that night, and her dreams were filled with one boy—his blue eyes holding more than anyone had thought to look for.

They were deep.

Deeper than the ocean.

Secrets hid within, locked in the chambers of his heart.

Sora didn’t have the key.

——

That morning was cold.

Dark clouds drained the life from the world around her.

As did her dreams of a blue-eyed boy returning to her.

How long, how long, how long.

When would he come back?

"Please come back..." she whispered to no one, not noticing how she dug too deep into the back of her talon with her claws.

Red blood slid down mud-brown scales.

Painting the rocky floor beneath her a sickly, metallic-smelling pool of red.

Sora’s teeth ached. She was clenching them too tight again.

——

Three weeks.

Three weeks.

A mountain shook.

Jade Mountain shook.

Sora peered out, curious.

Then—a huge black dragon swooped past, the trees bending beneath the force of his wings.

Four dragonets flew after him.

Fiery orange. Sandy-colored. Dark green.

And blue and white.

He was back.

Sora nearly jumped into the sky and barreled toward him.

She remembered, just in time, that she was supposed to stay hidden.

Oh, yeah.

She was a murderer.

That led to moping.

Waiting.

Fortunately, he came almost the moment he was free.

"Sora?"

She shot up, fast as lightning, breath quickened, waiting for those blue eyes.

One second...

Another...

There.

He stepped inside, tail flicking, curious.

One turn, then their eyes met again.

Three weeks.

Three weeks without him.

"Sora..." Winter murmured, his eyes reflecting pain so deep she felt as if she had truly felt it herself.

He made his way over to her.

She found his talon and held it, tracing the rough edges, maybe even scars.

Winter let her hold his talon.

No flicker of discomfort.

No attempt to pull away.

"What happened?"

She had missed his voice.

Deep and gentle. Maybe not for everyone.

For her, it always had been.

"..."

What had happened?

Why was he so worried?

"Do I look bad?" she asked, shrinking into herself, wings clamped tightly to her sides.

"Not really. Just... tired."

She felt like he was lying.

"You look..." She trailed off, tilting her head, studying him.

"...haunted."

Winter frowned, a crease forming between his brows.

"I suppose."

He lifted her talon.

"You hurt yourself... or did someone hurt you?"

His tone was serious. Not just asking—silently demanding the truth.

"I didn’t realize I was doing it," Sora whispered, trying to pull her talon away.

He let her go.

She regretted it instantly.

"They seem to be starting to get infected." Sora watched his eyes as they took in the self-inflicted marks. An odd look flickered in them... had he possibly done the same before? She knew better than to ask. Instead, she looked at the curve of his chest. That was a hiding spot, safer than any other.

Sora wanted to hide there, to listen to his heart, to see his scales up close. Without bothering to ask, she curled herself into him, resting her head against his neck. His heartbeat quickened at her contact. His whole body was rigid, tense. She felt him turn his head slightly, making sure no one would find them before settling back.

She lifted her free talon, tracing a strange, faded scar along the underside of his arm. It was jagged and twisting. Sora had no clue what it could be from. She wanted to ask—desperately—but she figured it was best to let him speak when he was ready.

Winter rested his chin on top of her head, a sigh escaping him along with a cool exhale.

"I should go get you something for those cuts," he told her.

But she didn’t want him to—because that meant he’d have to leave.

"I don’t want you to leave again."

A shaky sigh told her he didn’t either.

"I’ll be fast, Sora, I promise."

She tried to consider it, but she really, really didn’t want him to go. She needed to stay here, locked against him.

"Promise," he said again, squeezing her talon before slipping away.

She must have looked like an abandoned puppy or something because he hurried back to tap her snout before finally leaving. Then he was gone, a blur of diamonds. Sora was left confused as to why her face had suddenly grown so warm.

It would be a while—she knew that. Clay had left her in a mountain quite a distance from Jade Mountain for good measure. The wait was horrible. What if she had made Winter uneasy? What if he didn’t want to be anywhere near her now?

She prayed that wouldn’t happen. She didn’t want a bad outcome. One where he never returned.

——

He was here.

In her dream, he looked beautiful—like a star.

Had she ever told him that? What would he think of such a compliment?

She got closer, her eyes dropping from those hypnotic blue depths to the jagged scar on his arm, the one he so clearly tried to hide from her.

She wanted answers. But wanting wouldn’t get her anything.

Asking would.

She couldn't. It wasn’t her place.

Something rough and cool took her talon, pulling her away from the world of dreams to something so much better.

Her eyes opened.

Winter was there, cleaning her wounds, bandaging them. Had he done this often? He was good at it—probably could do it with his eyes closed.

"I came back," he murmured.

Sora sighed, relief pulsing through her veins as she sat up just enough to lean into him. This time, his wings encircled them, a chilly cocoon.

Staying here for eternity would be fine.

"Always, please," she whispered into his neck, not sure if he heard.

"Promise," he had.