Bakugous PoV

I didn't really know what to think of everything Miss Farney had just told us. But I didn't feel like she was telling us fairy tales. She had spoken with conviction and seemed to seriously believe in her mission. Red and I walked silently for a while along a small trail that led along the edge of a mountain and went steeply uphill. I looked at him from the side. A deep crease had formed between his eyebrows, suppressing the cheerful expression I liked so much about him.

"Red, I know that's a lot, but you shouldn't let it put you under pressure," I finally said when his silence became too much for me.

Red didn't really seem to hear me, but stubbornly went on. "Hey," I said a little harshly and grabbed his hand to force him to stop. "You have no responsibility to these people! You don't have to do anything you don't want to do," I said upset.

The half dragon opened his mouth in surprise, overwhelmed by the violence of my statement. "How can I say no?" he asked quietly. "What if I am the only one who can do it? Mediate between the cultures?" He looked deep into my eyes as if he were looking for an answer.

I swallowed hard before I answered. "You don't know if you are the only one. This order will certainly have protected some half dragons. After all, we didn't find many on our missions," I replied quietly as well.

Silently we went a little further. I felt that Red was thinking feverishly, and I didn't really know how to help him. Finally, he stopped and looked at the landscape around us. Hesitantly he began to speak. "Ever since I left the home, I have strived to flee to these mountains. And since I met you, I have only held on to this wish even more. What if all this was a mistake?" He looked uncertainly at the floor.

"Red," I said almost whispering. "We have just fled the kingdom, and not without reason. We couldn't stay. Now don't start questioning everything." I took his chin with thumb and index finger and forced him to look me in the eye. His big eyes widened a little as I smiled gently. "You deserve to find your peace. We deserve it. Don't forget for what we took this all upon ourselves."

I took his face in both hands to clarify how important my following words were to me. "I love you, Red. I love you so much and we wanted to flee the country so that we could live here together. In peace and without being hunted."

His facial expression became soft when he heard my words. I bent over to kiss him. Deep and intense, as I had done far too rarely lately. Red sighed into the kiss and took the upper hand by driving his tongue through the gap in my lips. I was only too happy to devote myself to him and let him explore my mouth.

Breathing heavily, we broke away. Red laid his forehead on mine, one hand still buried in my blond hair. "I love you too, Kat." he said quietly.

"You don't have to make a decision here and now," I said after a while and looked deep into his eyes. "But no matter what you decide, I will stay with you. Whether we go today or settle here forever. I will not leave your side." I grinned at him mischievously. "Surely you need a fully trained dragonslayer," I said to lift the mood a little.

Red laughed. "Yeah, that'll be good if we have to negotiate with the dragons." He also grinned at me. "But what do you want to do without your iridescent dragon blade?"

I groaned. "Mina will kill me if she ever finds out about it," I said shaking my head and detached myself a little from him. I already heard her telling off. She would certainly not forge a new one for me. I became a little melancholic when I thought that I would most likely never carry such a weapon again.

"I'm sorry I left it behind," he said ashamedly, looking away embarrassed.

"Oh, Red, stop apologizing for everything," I said sternly. "You have accomplished a damn wonder on this battlefield. I am so infinitely grateful to you, Red." I put one hand on his cheek and gave him another short kiss.

"I couldn't have lived without you," he replied with a sad smile, revealing his pointed teeth. "You can't imagine how terrible it was for me to hold your lifeless body in my arms." A tear ran down the half dragon's cheek as the memory overpowered him.

I swallowed. No, I could hardly imagine what it was like for him. But just the idea that the situation was the other way around brought tears to my eyes. I quickly blinked it away and smiled timidly as I stroked my thumb over Red's cheek to wipe the tear away.

I kissed him again and we immersed another moment in our togetherness. Then we sat down on a rock at the edge of the abyss. The sun was about to set and bathed the mountains in front of us in a reddish light.

It was beautiful to look at. During our little march from Miss Farney's house here we hadn't covered too much distance, but still we had come so far that the little wooden house was no longer visible. We were almost at the summit and the mountain formed a small plateau. I liked this place.

"We should build our own home here," Red said dreamily as he watched the spectacle of nature before us. "We can live here. In peace and quiet. Just the two of us. Just like we always imagined."

That put a smile on my face. "That sounds like a plan." To build my own home here with Red sounded perfect to me.

I reached for his hand and he smiled at me for a moment. How much I loved that honest smile. When he openly showed his cheerful nature and did not hide what was behind his soft lips.

Then he turned forward again and looked at the landscape. I watched the half dragon smiling from the side. His red hair shimmered almost golden in the orange light. He was beautiful. I enjoyed being all alone with him here and hoped that this moment would never pass. And yet I knew that sooner or later Red would give in to the Order's call. Sooner or later his good nature, striving for justice, would demand it from him. But here and now we could rest. Here and now only counted just the two of us.