The dragons were flying overhead more often. Vine and Hickory would wait and watch in wordless terror as the giant beasts would soar overhead, increasing in number and variety. The previous day, Hickory had counted forty-three dragons. At least.
This day, after four more dragons had disappeared over the treetops, Hickory had turned to his sister, hands shaking.
"This is getting dangerous." he whispered, eyes on the sky in case more came. "We have to go."
"NO!" Vine hissed.
"This isn't the time! You saw what happened to home. There's no way anyone but us survived."
Tears formed in her eyes. "But... we can't have been the only ones."
"There are other places out there. All we have to do is find them, right? If we go down river a little ways, wouldn't it make sense to find someone? And if we get to the sea, there's gotta be some boats. Or we can make them!"
"There are dragons in the water, too." Vine sniffed, wiping tears from her face.
"Uhh, not the water then." he amended, wiping tears off his little sister's face. She was so little. She didn't need all this fear. "Not the desert either, okay? We'll... we'll go around the rainforest. There aren't any dragons there!" At least he thought.
Vine looked up at her big brother, looking so scared and small. Hickory would give anything to protect her. Anything at all. At long last, she nodded. Hickory breathed a sigh of relief.
"We'll be safe, I promise. We'll find a good place where no dragon can ever hurt us, ever, got it?"
"Promise?" Vine asked, lower lip trembling.
Hickory pulled her in for a bone crushing hug. "Of course."
He could only pray that everything would be okay.