𝓢𝓮𝓽 𝓶𝓮 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓮 (𝓣𝓸𝓭𝓸𝓫𝓪𝓴𝓾/𝓑𝓪𝓴𝓾𝓽𝓸𝓭𝓸)

Chapter 6

Sorry this took so long to come out!

For all his walks in the woods, he'd never been there in the depths of night. The moon barely filtered through to the ground, and the shadows warped the foliage around him into strange and frightening forms. Owl calls echoed through the trees and bats shrieked in the distance.

His lantern barely gave him enough light to see by; everything more than a yard or so in front of him was cloaked in shadows. He'd slowed his horse to a walk hours ago so they wouldn't trip on any roots in the dark.

I really hope I don't run into any wolves. . .or bears. I'm not equipped to take on a bear by any means.

Then he laughed quietly at his own thoughts. He was accompanied by five dragons; bears and wolves wouldn't pose much of a problem.

Hopefully, anyways.

He heard Ochako chirp from beside him and he tugged at the reins, halting his horse. He turned his head and saw the pink dragon flying over to the side.

"What did you find, Ochako?"

He carefully dismounted and followed her off the trail, nudging aside branches and saplings. Then he held his lamp aloft.

There was a small cave nestled into a rockface. It was sheltered and hidden from view—which made it the perfect place to rest for the remainder of the night.

"Oh, well done, Ochako!" He patted her head and returned to the path, grabbing his horse's reins. "Come on, everyone. Ochako found us a place to rest."

He led the way back to the cave and slipped inside. It was small, but it would fit him and his dragons. So he set down his things and unrolled his bedroll before stepping back out and clearing a spot for a fire.

A quick snack, I think. Then sleep.

Once the fire was going steadily, he grabbed a small hunk of bread from Natsuo's hunting pack, as well as a wheel of cheese and a small knife. He held the cheese over the fire until the edge began to melt, then he caught it on the bread and cut the tendrils. After wrapping the cheese in cloth again, he pulled out a few strips of dried meat and placed them on the hot cheese before taking a bite. It was nothing like the rich meals he was used to, but it seemed to taste better.

Maybe it's because it's my first time eating something I made myself. . .even if it is as simple as bread, cheese, and a little meat.

As he ate, he pulled out a few more meat strips and whistled softly. His dragons immediately came from the cave and circled him.

"I thought you five would like some dinner too."

The meat strips disappeared quickly.

After they'd all eaten their supper, he stood up and stomped on the fire, putting it out. Then he re-entered the cave and pulled off his doublet.

Who knows how long I'll be wearing this before I can change. . .best keep it as clean as possible for as long as possible.

As soon as he laid down on his bedroll, the dragons curled up on and around him. Tenya draped across his legs, Momo rested her head on his shoulder, Tsuyu used his arm as a pillow, Ochako outright laid on his chest, and Izuku assumed his favorite position around his head.

He slept much better than he expected to.

~~~

It was on his third day of independence that disaster struck.

He stopped in a small village to get a few more supplies and, if possible, a change of clothes; and he chose to leave the dragons in the forest for their safety. However, as soon as he started back down the road with his new supplies, he heard the pounding of hooves behind him.