The competition was coming soon in a few days. The Dragontamers were finalizing the preparations.

- Cloud will have to stay here, - Leif said, while controlling his equipment for the umpteenth time. - You can't bring dragons that don't participate. My parents will keep an eye on her, don't worry.

Mira caressed his dragon's fluffy head.

- You'll be a good girl, won't you? - he asked her. Cloud headbutted his hand. - Of course. I'll miss you, little Cloud.

Leif smiled tenderly.

- We'll be back before you can even notice, - he reassured him, approaching him to press a kiss on his hair.

Mira grabbed his shirt and shyly pulled him close, before kissing him on the lips.

***

It was the departure day to the island where the competition took place. At every change of season, Leif had explained, there was a rotation and the competition took place on another island.

- Have you taken everything? - asked the fire Dragontamer, with his bag on his shoulder. It contained his mysterious outfit: even though the boy had tried it on a few days before to make sure that it was still perfect on him and wasn't ruined, he had forbidden his boyfriend to see him while wearing it. He wanted it to be a surprise.

Mira scratched his head.

- Wait... I don't think so, - he replied, thoughtful, then grabbed him by the shirt and kissed him. - Now I have.

And he smiled, blushing softly. Leif laughed.

- Are you sure? Did you forget something else? - he teased him, and Mira kissed him again and again, until he was breathless. - Let's go. We shouldn't make the others wait.

They said goodbye to the blonde's parents and to Cloud. The dragon seemed unaware that her tamer was leaving and ran to him happily as every day.

They went to the beach, where the other Dragontamers were waiting with their dragons. Some villagers were there to wish them good luck.

- It was about time, lovebirds! - exclaimed Yorick.

- Mira had forgotten something... - Leif casually said, turning to his boyfriend to wink. He blushed.

- Y-yeah...

- Are you ready? - Rorik asked. He looked good and relaxed; his arm was around Lynae, who looked as relaxed.

- It isn't a long trip, - Leif whispered in Mira's ear.

- Ready! - everyone said at the same time, before getting on their dragons.

Mira sat behind the fire Dragontamer, putting his arms around his waist. Much time had passed since the day in which he had gotten on Ruby for the first time and had found himself in that position, ready to go back home, and many things had changed since then!

A bittersweet smile appeared on his lips, but he forced himself not to think about things that could make him sad.

The dragons took off one by one. Ruby and Lutfi were the first, followed by Bosko and Illiya and, lastly, by Marat.

They never talked to each other again, Leif and Elin, after that day at the lake. Mira felt sorry for them, everyone did, but no one dared to meddle with them.

- Perhaps they'll make up and be close again during the competition, - Rorik had said about the matter. - We're a team, after all.

Mira forced himself to enjoy the view of the clouds above their heads and of the sea beneath them. From time to time he rubbed his face against Leif's back, or caressed his stomach. The blonde would put his hand on his for a moment, then he would go back to focusing on his dragon.

It wasn't a long trip; it still was morning when they arrived at the island where the competition took place, island just a bit smaller than theirs.

- See you at the square! - Leif yelled at the other Dragontamers, and they nodded. They flew away.

- Where are they going? - Mira asked, confused.

- To their places. Every team is divided by dragons.

They landed on a beach with black sand.

- It's because of the volcano, - Leif explained. Other fire dragons were napping on the beach, alone or with their tamers.

They dismounted. Leif extended a hand to his boyfriend and intertwined his fingers with his, after giving Ruby a fish.

- See you later, boy, - he said. They went to the building where they were going to sleep. All the fire Dragontamers seemed to know Leif and greeted him. He greeted them back, stopping occasionally to chat with some and introducing Mira to them.

Their room was small, it had just a bed and a closet.

- We won't spend much time here, - the blonde commented, after putting down the bag with his and his boyfriend's belongings. - Now close your eyes, I need to change my clothes.

Mira obeyed, then opened his eyes when Leif told him to.

He changed into a black fishnet t-shirt, with long sleeves, dark pants and black fingerless gloves on his hands. Around his waist he had a thick belt.

He was beautiful. The black made his light skin and blonde hair stand out, and the fishnet t-shirt didn't leave much to the imagination.

Mira stared at him with his mouth wide open.

- Do you like it?

- You're... stunning, - muttered the Dragontamer. Leif laughed softly.

- Really?

- Really.

He approached him and kissed him softly.

- Let's go. The others must be waiting for us.

Anywhere his gaze landed, Mira saw dragon festoons. The villagers greeted them like they were celebrities.

Rorik, Lynae, Elin and Yorick were waiting for them at the square. Rorik's outfit was simple, dark green; Lynae's was sporty, black, embellished by golden decorations; Elin's was really elegant but practical, light blue; Yorick's was light, taken care of in the smallest details, in the lightest pearl aqua color.

- You're all beautiful, - Mira said, amazed.

- Thank you, Mira, - Rorik and Lynae replied.

- Never as much as you, sweetheart! - Yorick replied, winking. Leif glared at him.

Other Dragontamers came to the square.

- Now there's the speech, - Leif explained to Mira.

A man took place at the center of the square and everyone fell silent.

- Dear Dragontamers! Thank you for being here reunited, today, to welcome the cold season. The first competition, the one about speed, will take place this afternoon, - he announced. The Dragontamers roared with enthusiasm. - The meeting place is the beach with black sand.

- How do you choose who participates? - Mira asked.

- The two fastest or most skilled at flying Dragontamers of the team participate, - Leif answered. - In this case, me and Yorick.

- And what is it about?

- It's about flying as many rounds as possible around the island in a certain time, given by drum beats. It's forbidden to block or hurt the opponents.

The boy nodded.

- How many rounds do you fly, usually?

Leif smirked.

- Many. You'll see.

They then had lunch in a pub and took a quick walk around the island. It was pretty, but Mira realized that he could never live there because he had grown attached to his own, to the beach where he had shipwrecked, to the forest where he had met Cloud, to Leif's house which was a bit his own too.

- Let's go back to the beach. The competition is going to start soon.