Lydia sighed happily as the steady wind blew through her silky hair. She had thought long and hard about whether she should ride on Lithon's head, holding onto his horns, or allow him to carry her in his talons again. It was a decision she had only made once her feet were re-bandaged and her back re-dressed. She didn't want to risk losing her grip and plummet to the earth below. Falling from a dragon, hundreds of feet in the air, even if the said dragon would catch you, is not something she looked forward to. So she chose the safer option. And she didn't regret it.
She sat securely in the safe space his talons created. Not particularly comfortable, but definitely manageable over short distances. She actually found herself enjoying the view of the ground below her, peeking through the gaps of Lithon's closed talons. She felt like she was in a cage. No, 'cage' was the wrong word. She wasn't in a scary bared enclosure that refused to let her leave, no. Instead, she was in a cocoon. A cocoon that kept all danger out rather than keeping her in. She could ask to be put down at any moment she wished and she knew that her words would not fall on deaf ears. So she just enjoyed herself, savoring the moments before she had to try and convince a whole troop of soldiers, sent to 'save' her, that dragons weren't the savage beasts they thought they were. Not an easy task...
Lithon strained his wing muscles as he tried to fly as slow as physically possible while still actually flying. He tried to glide as much as he could so that the wind force his wings created wouldn't hit Lydia. His foot was clenched tightly next to his stomach to try and keep her warm and out of as much wind as he could. It was hard but he could tell that she was enjoying herself this time around. Knowing this he tried even harder to make the flight more enjoyable for her. It was difficult but it was definitely worth it.
Eyeing the land in front of him and finally spotting the soldiers, Lithon noted that they were further away from his home than the last time he saw them. Good. His circling around method worked.
Lydia felt a small vibration go through the safe cocoon she sat in and heard a deep rumble coming from Lithon's chest. She knew what that meant. The troop was close.
"Let's go down now." She called above the wind. She knew she didn't have to speak very loud for him to hear so she just raised her voice a little. A hum of disagreement rumbled threw Lithon's entire body. He didn't like the idea.
"We need to go down or they will attack. What do you think they'll think when they see their princess in the talons of a dragon? There will be no reasoning with them!" She tried to convince him. She knew that this was the best option. It would give them the best chances of succeeding. She could still feel Lithon's deep growl as they slowly descended from the sky. He wasn't happy but at least he was listening to her. Lydia felt her heart swell with happiness. He trusted her, truly trusted her. It was an honor she had never had before and she liked how it filled her with confidence. Confidence in knowing that, no matter what, Lithon would listen to her opinion. Even when he didn't like it. And in turn, she trusted him too.
Lithon landed in the forest on one foot, the other clutched to his chest to make sure that Lydia was ok. Slowly lowering his leg and uncurling his talons, he began to shift and moved in such a way that by the time he was fully shifted, he was holding Lydia in his arms, clutched tightly to his chest. He was scared. This was how Aderria had been captured. She was then brutally tortured for her affiliation with dragons before she was finally put to rest. He didn't want that to happen to Lydia. But, this is what she wanted and, unlike Aderria, Lydia had him to protect her. He never got the chance to protect or defend his sister, his parents got in the way, trying to protect him, but they weren't here now. Nothing was there to stop him. He would protect Lydia with all his might, with his life if he must. With his mind set stubbornly in place, Lithon began walking in the direction of the soldiers, knowing it would take them a good hour or so to reach them.
Lydia was well aware that it would take a while to reach the soldiers from where they landed, couldn't risk them seeing Lithon in his dragon form after all, but she didn't quite realize it would be so long... She was bored and tired. The gentle flutter of Lithon's heart next to her ear was like a sweet lullaby and the heat radiating off of him was soothing and making her a little drowsy. It seemed to her that she only closed her eyes for a mere few seconds before Lithon's deep voice penetrated the hazy fuzz in her mind and brought her attention back to the situation at hand.
"We're almost there, just a few more minutes." He told her, his voice gruff with tension and nervousness. Lydia just nodded, not knowing how to reply verbally as no words came to her mind.
Only a few minutes later and Lydia felt the steady rising of Lithon's chest stop. She glanced up at him to see his facial expression had hardened. He was holding his breath. He was nervous. Slowly trailing her fingers along the lines of his muscles on his chest through his shirt, she tried to calm him down and make him relax, even just a little. She was relieved to hear him let out a deep exhale before his breathing became normal again.
Stopping only for a few seconds to regain his composure, Lithon finally stepped out into the clearing where the soldiers had made camp.
"It's the princess!" One man called and with only those three words, soldiers came pouring out their tents. One man, in particular, caught Lithon's eye. He came barging out of his tent, swishing the tent door aggressively aside and stormed right up to them.
"Who are you." He demanded from Lithon, not even sparing Lydia a glance. Lithon puffed up his chest like a cat and glared at the man in front of him. He knew who he was. He was obviously the leader of this troop, and therefore, Lydia fiancée. Lithon had not forgotten the red handprint upon Lydia's cheek when he had first laid eyes on her and, although he didn't know for absolute certain, he was confident that it was this man who did it.
"Step aside. She needs to rest." Lithon spoke confidently and with authority. He had no doubt that the flight and walk here had tired Lydia. He wanted her to be comfortable before all this began.
Lydia watched as Lithon blatantly ignored John's question and made demands of his own. She knew her fiancée, EX fiancée, wouldn't stand for that and she quickly swallowed the thick lump that had latched itself onto the inside of her throat and opened her mouth.
"I'm fine, thank you. John, we have something to discuss. Shall we use your tent?" She spoke firmly. John threw her a hard glare.
"Don't speak out of turn, woman. You speak when spoken to or when you have something useful to say. I asked this man a question and I expect him to answer." Lydia felt the deep rumble go threw Lithon's chest long before it's rough but quiet sounds reached her ears.
"She's a woman, not an object. Now she has something important and 'useful' to say so listen." He growled. Lydia sighed. This was not going well... Perhaps introducing Lithon to her ex-fiancé was not only a bad idea but a strategically disastrous idea... This could cause the whole plan to fall apart... Not that there was much of a solid plan to begin with but what little she had was being shredded right in front of her eyes.
"Calm down." She whispered as low as she possibly could, barely moving her lips. With his advanced hearing, Lithon easily heard her and instantly took a deep breath to cool his burning anger.
"Shall we?" He asked, finally getting a hold on his anger, and without waiting for an answer he marched into the tent he had seen her fiancée come out from. Lithon didn't even bother to survey his surroundings, he just gently placed Lydia on a chair within the tent and whispered in her ear quietly, "be strong." before he pulled away.
Rilling up as much confidence as she could muster, Lydia straightened her back and began to speak just as John entered the tent. Neither her nor Lithon gives him a chance to respond.
"Dragons aren't monsters." She said firmly, staring deep into her ex-fiancé's eyes. He scoffed.
"You must be delusional, woman. Not monsters? Then what kidnapped you? Was it not a dragon? Was it not a monster? Speaking of which, where is the beast? How did you escape its lair?" He inquired, speaking to Lydia as if she were a child.
"Dragons are not monsters. I've spent the last few days with one and I'm still alive am I not?" She countered, avoiding his questions.
"Not unscathed it would seem." He threw back, letting his gaze linger on her feet. From the corner of her eye, she saw Lithon stiffen.
"I had no shoes." She defended.
"And how does this," he gave Lithon a glance. "man play into things?" Lydia didn't know what to answer... She couldn't say that he was a dragon, the very dragon that kidnapped her. Not when John wasn't anywhere near convinced.
"He's... He's..." She tried but nothing come to mind. She couldn't say he 'saved' her or she wouldn't be helping the 'dragons are good' case and she couldn't say that he found her... Again not helping... "He's..." She tried once again but once again failed.
"This is why a woman shouldn't speak." John sneered at her. "You say you have something important to discuss with me then you can't even answer a simple question. Absolutely useless." He concluded as he turned his back on her. Lydia's face instantly fell and she felt the bridge of her nose tingle as her eyes began to water. Was she really so useless? Of course, she was... She couldn't even get the proper words out her mouth let alone fully convince John that dragons were good. Lowering her eyes to the ground she let her tears fall.
Lithon had had enough. He couldn't just sit by and watch Lydia accept the absolute skat that came out this man's mouth. She's a confident and proud woman and she should stay that way, not accept lies someone else says about her.
"Mind your tongue!" He raised his voice, stepping towards the man that has insulted Lydia. "Lydia is a strong and independent woman and any man should be proud to have her heart! When I first took her she did nothing but argue with me and demand her release. She even tried to escape on her own, resulting in her battered feet, and you say she's useless?! How many women in your kingdom, how many women on this earth, do you know that would stand up to a dragon!?" He yelled, absolutely furious. He huffed out of his nose and he felt a familiar burning sensation pass through his nostrils as smoke slowly filled the tent.
Lydia let out an ear-piercing scream as John drew his sword from its sheath with lightning speed and pointed it towards Lithon.
"Since you took her?" He questioned, replaying Lithon's words over in his mind as he glared straight into his eyes. "So you're the dragon I've been hunting." He smiled cruelly as he swiftly lunged towards his throat.
Lithon has no choice. He had to shift.