The Fall of Dragon Haven - A Dragonkeeper Fanfiction

Old Friends

The cluster left Jining the afternoon after Mrs Zhu's recovery. He'd known her for one day, yet Bong had spoken non-stop about Mrs Zhu in the week and half since.

"Do you think Daiyu fancies me a tough guy?" Bong asked Anh over breakfast one day.

Anh, who still had sleep in his eyes, rubbed the crust away. "Sorry, who?"

Bong crooned, "Daiyu - Mrs Zhu?"

Anh blinked. "Oh!" Bong and Mrs Zhu were already on first name basis? "Oh. Uhm..."

"Because she said, while I was cooking her breakfast the other morning," He sat up straight and began speaking in a high-pitched voice. "'you must be really brave.'"

Anh cocked his head. "Okay?" He thought for a moment. "That seems... promising."

Bong continued. "So I said to her, 'well! I needed to find what snake bit you, didn't I?' And she said, 'You didn't need to get hit for it.'"

Anh chuffed. "She's right about that."

"And I said, 'well, that's where you're wrong – I had to, for you.' And then she said, 'But you don't even know me.' And I said... well, I actually, I didn't know what to say to that." Bond said scratching his bald head. Anh sipped his tea while Bong thought. Then Bong said, "So, what do you think?"

The tea was too hot! It burnt his tongue. "Ahh," He said airing his tongue. "Thorry. What wath the questhen again?"

"Do you think, that she thinks, that I'm tough?"

Anh waved air onto his tongue. "Why are you athking me?"

"Well," Bong said with a knowing nod. "You're the one with the girlfriend."

Anh laughed as his tongue cooled. He thought about what Bong said for a moment. "You know she's not my girlfriend, Bong." Anh said.

Bong shrugged. "Well, you know more about girls still."

Anh shook his head. "I don't, Bong."

"Well, I can't talk to Lao about her – he only thinks about getting his noodle wet!" Bong said with a huff.

Anh bit his lip. Lao was something of a womanizer, something of which Anh couldn't stand about him. But he didn't like women. Plus, now that Anh thought about it, whilst Bong would make fun of him from time to time, he had never seen Bong with a woman before. His older cousin... fancied a woman.

He didn't realize he was smiling. Though his constant talking about Mrs Zhu – Daiyu – had been a little annoying; he was rather happy for Bong.

Anh looked up at his older cousin with a smile. "I think Mrs Zhu would be mad if she didn't think of you as an absolute renegade."

Bong's cheeks flushed, but he made no attempt to hide his pride. He folded his arms behind his head and leaned back onto the sleeping red dragon. "Yeah... yeah, she may."

Although they had left Jining in a dismal light, the closer they got to The Summer Haven, the more excitable they became. Hei Lei bragged about the different game that he was looking forward to hunting. The game around The Winter Haven were usually too small and boney for his taste. The Summer Haven had larger, more wild game that he enjoyed.

Anh found himself day-dreaming often about Yara. What he would say; what she would say. And after the initial re-meeting, where would they go now to meet? Would they still meet in the park? He had always wanted to take her to Dragon Lake. Maybe if he saved enough money, he could buy some wood and build a small house by the lake? There was also a bubbling anxiety in his stomach that Anh didn't want to acknowledge, but sometimes dwelled on. What if they were two different people now? It has been three years after all...