The Fall of Dragon Haven - A Dragonkeeper Fanfiction

New Years Eve

A year came and went.

Many dragons hibernated in the winter. Hei Lei was not one of them, and so he and Anh spent much of the winter in Tinkling Village. The first harvest of spring was a success and allowed for a second harvest before the end of the season. Summer was glorious, and Anh and Hei Lei spent many days flying and practicing new tricks, and even went on trips far from the Haven for a week or two at a time.

By autumn, the orchards outside Tinkling Village looked like fireworks, boasting colours of green, orange, and red. The Dragon Keepers didn't much visit the town during that second winter for all the dragons decided to hibernated that year. Though it was cold, it was not so much a bitter winter that they felt the need to migrate south to The Winter Haven – much to Anh's delight, though he kept the fact to himself.

The dragon's hibernation meant that food was abundant for the Keepers and there were plenty in their stores from the extra work taken up throughout the year by Anh and Hei Lei. Anh had taken every opportunity to visit the town for work, no matter how ridiculous it seemed to the other Keepers. Whether it was for wood needed to fix the hut, or they had run out of salt, he would go. It became apparent that second spring that Anh had actually worked too well, as the need to visit the village again was redundant. He was itching to go.

The opportunity came a fortnight after the dragons awoke, though it was at Anh's bequest.

"It's almost New Years Eve." He said to the Keepers as they broke their fasts.

"Mhmm hmm." Was the only reaction he got. It came from Bong who didn't even look up from his bowl of congee.

Anh pressed. "New Years Eve... Spring Festival?"

"Yes, Anh." Minh Huyn said shoveling a large mouthful of congee into his mouth. "Thanksh you for shtating the obvioushh."

Anh slumped back. He hadn't really thought this through. They hadn't celebrated Spring Festival last year – or any of the years before that. Why would it be any different this year? In fact, he had never been interested in celebrating himself.

But that was before he met Yara.

Lao, the ever-inquisitive met Anh's eyes. "Do you wish to go to Tinkling Village for New Years Eve?"

That perked Anh up! "Yes!"

"Too bad." Lao concluded.

Disappointment washed over Anh like a wave, crashing against the shores, as he slumped once again back into his chair. Bong chuckled, meanwhile the older keepers kept to themselves. His heart sank as he imagined all the fun with Yara he would miss out on.

No longer with an appetite for congee, Anh trudged out of the kitchen, shoulders slumped and head hanging low. The once-vibrant decorations on the walls of Summer Haven seemed dull and lifeless. He spent the day flying Hei Lei's but didn't feel like practicing jumps or tricks.

Anh is unhappy? Hei Lei enquired. Anh shrugged it off. He couldn't bear the thought of ringing in the New Year without Yara after spending most of winter without her. Worse, he couldn't bear the thought of the old dragon, nor the keepers taunt if they discovered exactly why he wanted to spend the night in Tinkling Village.

After their initial meeting, Anh had practically begged Hei Lei not to tell the other Keepers about Yara. It wasn't that he was ashamed of being her friend – quite the contrary, he was hardly seen in Tinkling Village now without her. Rather, it was the terrible taunts he knew the Dragon Keepers would throw at him.

Yes, the others met with women occasionally. But the relationships were transactional – there was never more to it than just sex. There was a reason for it too. In the Imperial Dragon Era, Keepers could marry and father children. There came an issue with this, however, when difficult choices had to be made by the Keeper in times of trouble. Do they defend the dragon? Or their loved ones? To love a woman was to abandon one's duty to their lifelong companions – the dragons.