Tessa's POV:
The days and weeks slipped by in a blur of happiness. Our days varied slightly, although our daily walks and park visits were a guarantee if the weather was good. Some days I accompanied Taureen and Mom, and other days I was with Aeria and Dad. Occasionally, all of us wandered the streets and buildings of the city together.
I partially folded my wings as I dove through an opening in the tree canopy. I might not be quite as agile as Mom or Dad, but I was nimble enough to weave between the numerous branches. My smaller size also allowed me to slip through areas that the older fledglings couldn't.
Swooping down towards the sandy area along the creek, I backwinged as hard as I could, although I still skidded to a halt from my speed.
"I win!" I crowed triumphantly. "And Tracey takes second place!"
The gold dragonet landed beside me and grinned as she tried to catch her breath.
It wasn't more than a few seconds before most of the others were within sight. Our races were usually pretty close, although Tracey and I usually ended up competing against each other.
Dirk landed heavily and snorted. "How about a wrestling match?"
It was my turn to snort. "I'll pass, thanks."
Dirk had bulked up a lot, and it was no longer as much fun to wrestle with him since he always won.
Abby wasn't keen on a wrestling match either. "What else can we do? We already bothered the Kymari and ate all of the fruit they were carrying. We visited Florence and brought some fruit for her nestlings. I'm not hungry enough to try locating a tree with ripe fruit."
Dirk tilted his head in consideration. "We already swam in the creek and had a race. So, unless we want to go for another swim or sunbathe, I'm not sure."
A purple fledgling commented, "Why don't we go sunbathe with the adults for a while?"
Most of the others nodded and began flying towards the area our parents usually hung out. Reluctantly, I took to the air as I joined them. I simply didn't understand how the wild fledglings and adults managed to sunbathe and nap so much.
It didn't take us long to reach the clearing where about twenty dragonets were relaxing. Mom looked up as we glided into the area above them.
"Do you two want to nap now?" she asked, limiting her discussion to just Dirk and me. "There is something I would like to show you, but it can wait until after you relax."
Dirk's ear tufts perked up in interest. "I'd like to see it."
"Count me in," I added. Almost anything was better than napping.
Mom got up and began leading us through the trees. She seemed lost in thought as she flew. Her silence and unusually solemn mood made me glance at Dirk, although he was no wiser than I was and just shrugged as best he could while flying.
She landed on a branch above a small pond beside one of the Kymari walking trails. We landed next to her. This area wasn't exactly new to us, which just left me more confused.
"This is the place where I made my choice to join the Kymari," Mom told us softly, her voice distant. "Drake had cut out my old tracker, and it must have flowed down the creek into this pond. I found Taureen on this bench days later, mourning because he thought I had died. I made my choice years ago, but soon you will have to decide what you want."
This wasn't the first time we had heard the story of Mom's original escape and return, although this was the first time she was telling us that we would have to make a decision.
She looked at us. "You don't need to make your choice now. There is time, but if you are heavily leaning towards living in the park as part of the wild flock, then it would be wise to think hard over the next few weeks."
"Wouldn't they recognize us?" Dirk asked in confusion. "It isn't possible to cut our harnesses either."
"The harnesses you are currently wearing have a weak point, and we can get them off. It would be best to drop them in this pond since only Taureen and Aeria know that Drake had removed my tracker. Any other Kymari will assume that you were kidnapped. You would have to hide in the far side of the park for a few months and keep your distance from all Kymari, but freedom can be yours. Consider both paths carefully. It will be easier to return to the Kymari than it will be to escape to the park later on."
Even though I was positive that I wanted to remain with the Kymari, I took a few minutes to really think about it.
Would I want to be able to do what I wanted, whenever I wanted? Pick out whatever ripe fruit I desired? Spend all day flying free?
Did I really want to sleep in a cold hole in the ground instead of under a warm lamp? Sunbathe and nap for most of the day instead of possibly finding sicora or crawlers?
The boredom would likely drive me crazy within days. It was already hard to find enough things to keep me occupied during our daily visits.
I shook my head. "I would rather pick a handler any day of the week. Our visits here are fun, but I couldn't handle it all day long. It's too boring."
Mom nodded, and I tilted my head at Dirk.
"I'm not sure," he said quietly, sounding torn. "It's fine being with all of you, but if I pick a handler, I'm scared that I might get very lonely."
I hadn't thought of that aspect and furrowed my eyebrows in thought.
Mom nodded. "That might happen, especially if you decide to not talk to your handler. The mindlink will help us keep in touch, but it is very different from having someone else around."
"If I had a friend or partner, kind of like Tom and Serena, or you and Dad, I would be all for staying. I just don't want to end up alone forever..." he trailed off.
"That is a perfectly reasonable concern," Mom replied. "Not everyone is like Josh or Daisy, who prefer to be by themselves. It might be worth having a few conversations with the other bonded dragonets to discuss what it's like to live by yourself."
"You lived with Taureen for a while before Dad moved in," I murmured. "What was it like?"
She considered it for a moment. "Before Taureen learned I could talk, it was occasionally boring. He did try to keep me amused, and since he was always around, I rarely felt lonely. After he found out, we talked a lot and grew quite close. I never felt lonely after that. But that was me. You two are more outgoing and sociable than I was. It might be different for you."
"Well, when you and Dad were doing patrols, you would have only seen one another in the park or at home," I commented, thinking aloud. "So, we won't be alone much more than you two were. I'm sure we'll still get to come to the park for several hours. I plan on talking with my handler, so that just leaves the night. I don't think it will be too bad for me."
Mom tilted her head. "We can always ask Taureen to put a heat lamp in one of the backrooms if you want to try sleeping alone and see what it's like."
"Please," I requested. I couldn't imagine what it would be like to sleep without someone snoring in my ear or rolling onto my tail. It sounded like heaven.
"I'll ask him later tonight," she replied. "There isn't any rush. We have weeks, if not months, to think about this. I just wanted you to begin considering it."
"I think I will find a quiet place to see if one of the bonded dragonets has time to talk," Dirk said quietly.
"That sounds like a good idea," I agreed. "Maybe they can share memories as well."
He nodded and dropped off the branch, gliding away from us. Abby and Glen had shared tons of memories with me, so much so, that I had a very good idea of what life in the park was like. But I didn't know what life was like for a lone bonded dragonet.
We had visited each bonded dragonet several times and knew them fairly well. I wandered closer to the tree trunk and settled down as I considered which dragonet to talk to first.
Seeing that we had no more questions for her right now, Mom quietly flew back in the direction of the clearing where Dad still lounged in the sun. He had left the park to be with her, so if I ever fell in love with someone, they might join me, or I could possibly escape into the park.
But the thought of having a boyfriend seemed very unlikely, or at the very least, years into the future. It wasn't something that interested me right now.
I had to take things one step at a time. With a mental list of the people I wanted to talk to, I opened up a mindlink to Daisy. As always, the quiet lady didn't mind answering my questions. She shared as many memories and images as I asked for, showing almost every aspect of her life.
After thanking her, I contacted the next person, a dragonet who had fallen ill and had been taken into captivity without any choice in the matter. He missed singing the Morning Song with the flock, but that was about it. It wasn't something he would have ever tried, but after nearly a year with his assigned handler, he had no intentions of going back to the park.
Over the next couple of hours, I spoke with over a dozen dragonets. The most ironic part was that my friends were still sunbathing, so I hadn't even missed anything.
Everything I had learned only solidified my decision to eventually choose a handler. Although there was one thing I wanted to try first – I wanted to join the wild flock for the Morning Song at least once.
I got to my feet and stretched my wings as I asked Abby, "Are you guys awake yet?"
"Mmmm... no..."
Sleep coated her voice, so I knew she wasn't going anywhere for some time unless a fox or a Kymari showed up in the clearing. A sicora or crawler might also do the trick, but none had been seen inside the city since the first hive had been destroyed. The guards probably missed some lurking in the forests, but, supposedly, there wasn't any way for them to get over the walls after the last upgrade.
I shook my head, once more reminded that life in the park was far too boring. There were other things I could do though. It was one thing to decide to remain with the Kymari, but picking the right handler was a big task. It wasn't something I was about to rush into, and I was prepared to spend months choosing the perfect one if I had to.
Taking to the air, I flew among the trees until I located a clearing with a dozen Kymari enjoying the afternoon in the park. I landed in a tree and began studying these strangers.
Now that I was closely watching the Kymari, things stood out. A couple of them almost never spoke, which strongly reminded me of Dirk's fears of getting lonely. Another one was leaving the planet in a few weeks and would likely be gone for a year or so. Two of them had a faint accent that made me want to flick my ears whenever they spoke.
None of them interested me, and it wasn't long before I moved on.
I paused near a bench, although I quickly left when I realized that the guy was having a quiet conversation with the woman he was courting. It was just too weird to sit there and listen to them.
Many Kymari were just walking along a path, so I had no way of knowing what their personality was like. Most of those I watched seemed decent, but that was beginning to look like a general trait among the Kymari. It wasn't making my task any easier.
The more Kymari I watched, the more I kept comparing them to the ones I knew well, such as the four guards, Tkael, and – particularly – Soranto.
Any of the guards would be thrilled if I chose them, and they did know a lot about dragonets. Tkael was too serious for my tastes, although I had nothing against his presence in the evening. Besides, I knew that he had no interest in having a bond animal.
My mind kept going back to Soranto, though. He was the most lighthearted and easygoing Kymari I had ever met. His sense of humor amused me. He was always willing to try anything, even if it meant eating an extremely sour piece of fruit.
He usually spent an hour or so at Taureen's place every day, so I would get to visit my family regularly. I wasn't as familiar with Adeline or Maria, though.
Maria usually came with him once a week. As far as I could tell, she was sweet and kind, letting us decide if we wanted to come to her. Adeline seemed a lot like Aeria, but I had only seen her a few times since she worked in a different city.
I would have to think about it some more. Perhaps, I could even ask Aeria to invite Adeline over on her days off so I could learn more about her.
With nothing else to do and no one to play with, I flew to a tree along the edge of the meadow where Taureen, Aeria, and their friends relaxed.
I didn't get to watch them for long. Taureen and Aeria began calling our names as they got ready to head home. I waited a bit before flying over, hoping that they wouldn't realize I had been watching.
Much to my disappointment, today was the day that Soranto was picking Maria up from school, so I wouldn't see him this evening. He parted ways with our group as he went down a different street.
As per usual, the guards left once we reached our home. Tkael went with them, discussing different ways to set up the training room for tomorrow's session.
It was going to be a quiet night.
As Taureen took off my harness, he said, "Your mother says that you want me to set up a heat lamp in the storage room? I can do it tonight, if you like."
"Yes, please. I would really like to try it tonight."
He nodded and walked down the hallway.
Dirk looked at me and commented, "I want to try it tomorrow night."
"Sure," I replied.