The Forgotten Zodiac

She sighed, her body understanding his signs rather than her mind. She somehow understood what he meant by everything. Each touch spoke to her in a way she couldn't explain, but still understood. She slowly laid down on the ground, his body followed her closely until they were both laying together, curling around each other, and her allowing him this close to her spoke of her trust in him. She tucked her arms close to herself, pressing her chest against Boko's and resting her nose against his throat, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of his tongue against her ruddy red scales.

"We're supposed to talk," Boko chuckled. He lifted his head slightly and looked at the others; only one other pair were lying next to each other. Another of the smaller sized dragonlings. The rest of them were sitting, and one couple was flying in slow circles above the others as they talked. Leonen was sitting with another, his unhappiness obvious. But Boko didn't care too much, quite happy to lay with Shiya and let his touch do most of the talking.

Leonen wasn't the only one glaring, though. The elders were all unhappy. One of the oldest ones, a haughty female by the name of Ulla, was watching with a judgemental gaze. "How did he win that, anyway? Did he cheat somehow?"

"Fire isn't against the rules," Vuker was sitting with the elders, one of them licking his wounds from the fight. A lot of them liked him, but he wasn't the one participating. "Boko didn't do anything a dragon couldn't have. He could have burrowed, which dragons can't do, but he didn't. It was a fair fight, and he made sure to keep it like that."

"But that fire! Drakelings cannot use fire at such high levels. He cheated somehow!" Ulla snorted unhappily. "I say we suspend him from the trials."

"You can't do that," Vuker was very good at keeping his cool, even against dragons that were a hundred times larger than he. "It was a clean fight."

"Well, look at him now! Getting all lovey-dovey with Shiya...that girl deserves better. She would do better with Leonen. That dragonling knows exactly what he's doing, and he's a great size for his age!"

"If only his brain would catch up." Vuker snorted. "Shiya doesn't want him. Isn't it dragon culture that both partners have to agree if they are to become future-mates at all? I didn't think you'd grow into the drakeling mating culture so quickly..." Drakelings were a bit more primitive. Mates weren't for life, and males skipped from female to female. The only solid pair had been Du'uru and his mate.

"Silence yourself, you pesky little bug." Ulla brought her claws down near him, but he didn't move. Vuker just stared at her unblinkingly, his ears flicked up. She wouldn't hurt him. Even if no one was around, the bond between Drakelings and dragons was already unstable. If a drakeling young were to fall at a dragon elder's hand...no one wanted that.

Luckily, a loud roar of greeting rang out, and Zephyr flew in, Sylas and Leo clinging to his spikes, Dark still unconscious in Sylas' arms. Mithor bellowed an answering call that also served to signal the camp as to who was approaching. Vaira called as well, her voice high and happy as her life-mate landed, shaking himself off. Dragons mated for life, as they had seen through Naybrin; he had never taken another mate after his had died. After finding their mate, after all, dragons usually never felt the need to find another. It was just something in their magic, in their spirits. It was rare for a dragon not to go mad or kill themself after the death of their mate.

Zephyr chuckled, saying "By human standards, he's not that cold, Vuker. Their bodies naturally don't put off as much heat as us." He exhaled, then looked up and spotted Boko laying with Shiya. He smiled and stepped away, walking over to them. He knew what this sight meant; Shiya was who Boko had picked to be with. If they were a true match, during the Skydance, a magical bond would be strung between them, bonding them for life. Even if Boko was a drakeling, if he loved Shiya, truly and completely, the bond would be there. It always was. Zephyr and Vaira, though never taking part in the Skydance in front of the other dragons, had done so through instinct years ago. It was a part of them, ever since Naybrin and the Goddess had cast it down in magic, at the beginning of their time.

"Boko," Zephyr said, bending his head and nuzzling his son. "Is this your chosen?"

Shiya hummed softly and pressed her tongue to his chin, holding it there for a moment in what he knew was a kiss. "I am your chosen, and you are mine," she said softly. "I want that life-bond at the Skydance. I want to prove to the Elders and the rest of the dragons that just because you're a drakeling doesn't mean you can't love like a dragon. Because I feel like you're a dragon on the inside. You care...more than anyone has ever cared for me..."

Boko curled his head under hers again and nuzzled her chin. "I'll do it, then. For you, and for the two of us...no matter what it takes, right? There are only a few trials left. I think two, before the Skydance..." He smiled and wiggled with excitement. "We're gonna do it, Shiya. There's no way Leonen can stop us now, even if he tried!"

She gave a small, soft giggle, feeling completely at-ease around him, then looked up as Mithor gave the call to return to the ceremony. Zephyr tilted his head back, then said "I'll be watching, you two. I would say 'make me proud', Boko, but...you've already done that." He licked his son's chin gently, then stood back as the two untangled themselves and headed off.

The next trial was for the girls.

"You will go into the forest and the areas around the Sacred Plains and hunt down a meal for your partner," Mithor said. "They must be happy with it for you to continue. This is, essentially, a chance for them to judge how well you will be able to help provide for yourselves and your future children."

Shiya shivered, looking scared, but she tilted her head back and gazed at Boko for a moment, then felt better.

Boko beamed at her. "You can do it," He encouraged, nudging her slightly with his muzzle. He untangled himself from her, beaming as he did so. "This'll be fun for you! You know how to hunt, yes? Yes, you do. All dragonlings do." He flicked his tail, smiling. "Go on, Shiya, you can do it. I trust you to get me something tasty for breakfast." He giggled, tilting his head to the side.

The signal was given for the trial to begin, and off the girls went. Boko watched as Shiya left, and he purred away like a motor.

A while passed, during which the boys waited. This was a trial for the girls, just like the previous trial had been for the boys. The Elders flew out after them, watching from the skies like hawks. Nilia, Leonen's partner, returned first, dragging a large bird with her. She had painstakingly pulled all the feathers off, then had roasted the bird in a unique way. She had spilled its blood and guts into a spot she had hollowed out in some stone, then had boiled the blood and cooked the bird in it. It was clear that she was very taken with Leonen, but she hadn't realized that he didn't particulary care for her in return.

Boko watched quietly. Why did Leonen not see that someone was in love with him? Him, such a evil dragonian that he was...she liked him. But he ignored him. Which only made him more evil...Boko sighed unhappily, then turned his attention back to the treeline. He started to fasten his wings back on, not really knowing what trial was next. If it was fighting more, he'd take them off again, probably.

Finally, Shiya reappeared, carrying a cooked squirrel with her. She was too feeble to take down a deer properly, and she wasn't a strong enough flier to catch a bird. She had been lucky to sneak up on the squirrel, but she had recovered nicely in her way of cooking it. She had burned all of the fur off, then had used a talon to peal the stomach open, stuffing several blueberries and strawberries she had found inside it, along with several chunks of salt rock. After cooking the squirrel the rest of the way, she had pulled the now-salt-less rocks from its stomach and deemed it finished. She set it down in front of Boko, suddenly shy.

Boko blinked and lowered his head, sniffing the dead animal curiously. He hesitantly took a tiny bite.

Then he scarfed the rest of it down as though it were the only thing he had gotten to eat in ages. "THIS...this is AMAZING." Boko gasped, eating more of it happily. However, he saved the last bite and pushed it to Shiya. "Try it! It's awsome, you've gotta eat some," He nodded eagerly, grinning widely. "Taste it, taste it!"

She blushed under her scales and shook her head, saying "N-no, Boko, you're supposed to eat it. It's okay." She shifted and fidgeted, still not used to getting such praise. She smiled and bent her head, gently nuzzling him, then said "I've never cooked before...are you sure it's okay?"

"Little one, you could present him with a cooked mushroom and he would tell you it's grand," Zephyr said with a smile. "He's a good boy. And besides, it looks like you have a knack for cooking."

"But daddy, this is REALLY good! It's SALTY!" Boko jumped up and down, then ate the last piece. "Soooo good." He nodded and bumped his nose against her's, a sign of thankfulness. Then he looked up at Zephyr, beaming. He crawled up his father's leg and neck scales, going through all that trouble to lick Zephyr's ear once or twice. "I missed you, dad." He said softly before hopping down, smiling widely at Shiya.

"I missed you too," Zephyr said, smiling at his only child before turning at Mithor's call to the next and final trial before the Skydance.

"This trial is one the couples must perform together," the old brown dragon said. "Your task will be to get from one point to another without using wings. You will have to rely heavily on each other if you want to succeed."

Boko immediately turned his head and released the clasp on his wings. "We've got this," Boko squeaked at Shiya, grinning. He was used to not using his wings, by now. He had never been a strong flier, and neither had Shiya. It would be a piece of cake for the two of them, and Boko quickly found that he was growing excited again. He hopped up and down happily, grinning.

She licked under his chin softly, feeling nervous, then looked up as Mithor drew out a map in the sand for them all to see. They were to go from the Sacred Plains to the Hallowed Hills, and from there, to the volcano that stood high over everything. At the top, Mithor would be there to take them home. He showed them a specific route they were meant to take, which was full of several dangerous obsticales they would have to get over.

Once they were ready, he said "If at any time you feel you cannot keep going or one of you falls injured, send flames into the air. We'll be watching closely. You have until midnight tonight to finish." He shook himself, then lifted his head and called "When you're ready...and...begin!"