The Hue of Dawn

Chapter-23 Mangoes and Family

Deathbringer patiently waited for Glory to spill her thoughts.

It seemed as if she was in a battle with herself. Deathbringer twined his tail with hers to comfort her, and that did the trick.

Glory started with long breath. "I was just, thinking about... before."

Confused, the NightWing tilted his head to the side. "You mean before as in the past?" He asked.

Glory's shoulders moved in a shrug and she let her head rest on Deathbringer's shoulder.

"Yeah, I guess so," she paused before continuing, "because what if they're not the same?"

Deathbringer nuzzled her cheek and she looked up at him with a small glare.

"What? Can't I show some affection for my queen?" Deathbringer said with a smirk.

At this, Glory rolled her eyes but continued.

"What I was trying to say, was that, what if my friends aren't the same dragons I used to know?"

Deathbringer waited yet again for Glory to continue. He knew she was gathering her words, trying to phrase her thoughts into something he would understand.

Finally she sighed. "I'm just nervous about seeing them. I think that's what I mean to say. Its been just a little less than a year since I last saw them, and they all have dragonets now, too. I just don't know how to describe this feeling. Lost, would be a good adjective to use," she said.

Deathbringer smiled kindly and gently laid his head over hers.

"Glory, I may not always know what you're thinking about, but I'll do my best to understand. Never forget that, okay?"

The RainWing queen smiled back at him with a hint of wistfulness.

Her eyes glazed over as she looked at the setting sun in the sky. "Yeah. Thanks, DB," she managed to say with a small smirk.

Deathbringer raised his head off hers and stared at her straight in the eye so fast that Glory almost jumped up in surprise.

"DB? What in the three moons is that?!" He asked incredulously.

Glory rolled her eyes and grinned at him. "What, you don't like it? Honestly, I thought you would like it better than mommy dragon."

Deathbringer growled lightly and turned his head away from her so he didn't have to look at her.

Glory didn't have to know that he actually kind of liked the nickname.

Next to him, Glory chuckled and stood up. "Well, I'm going to go check up on the twins. Don't forget to get the fruits out for dinner."

Deathbringer watched out of the corner of  his eye as Glory walked into the hut where Aurora had run into.

He stood up and did as his queen ordered by taking off the large bag that hung from his neck. There were was a buckle near his waist that secured it on his back. That way, the leather bag wouldn't bother his wings as he flew or weigh his neck down.

Deathbringer let the contents fall to the ground and sniffed once more to make sure.

Yep, he had forgotten to pack some toucan.

There was plenty of fruits like mangoes, bananas, and of course, guavas. But no toucan.

He could fly a bit and see what he could hunt, but Deathbringer didn't want to fly too far.

Oh well, guess I'm going to have to wait until tomorrow for meat. I know there are some goats in the mountains.

With that, the NightWing settled for a pair of mangoes and started eating while taking guard.