We stopped a short way away from Kyros's room. Topaz came out carrying Katja and came over to us. "Session is over isn't it?" Katja asked us.

Reina nodded. "Alright... we are going out for a while. Will we be back at it tomorrow?" Katja asked.

"We must. He will have his time but right now we have a kingdom to put back together." Reina said as she looked up at me.

Katja nodded. "Then I'll see you then." Reina nodded. Katja gave her an odd bow from Topaz's arms while he also bowed.

I watched him walk off until Reina tugged on my arm. "Come on let's go and hold the children." Nodding I let her drag me away. I feel so numb. Kyros has always been there and now he's gone.

Before I really grasped where I was Reina pushed me into my chair by the fireplace. "We will do whatever it is you need, my dear to help you through this."

I looked over at Reina as she hovered over the sleeping children. "My gem." She looked up at me with those beady black eyes drawing my mind back to when she fell out of the bushes in front of me. "I need you."

She looked down at the children then nodded coming over to me and climbing into my lap. I held her close stroking her soft fur. Her warmth in my lap made my world a little less dark.

As it always did strokeing Reina's fur made her start grooming. She started with her paws, then moved to her head. Next came her ears she pulled at them to get behind them. Finally, she took my hand and started to groom me.

"This is what I needed." I said softly making Reina's eyes open wide again and stop what she was doing.

"A groom?"

I chuckled. "No... I needed love."

She sighed. "It doesn't feel real... I watched him go but..."

"I feel the same."

We both lapsed into silence, not wanting to voice the words that would make it real. Our friend is gone. I don't know what to do.

Reina's warm paw touched my chin. "There are no words for the loss you have suffered."

"I knew him longer yes... but it's not just my loss. A loss to the world, another light put out by the humans."

Reina sighed. "The last light." She said softly. "I will make a troop to find these lights to teach them the histories. The history that you gathered will guide them into the future. That is what he gave his life for."

My chest felt heavy with her words. "You always know what to say."

"It comes with being a Gold Dragon. The only person I can be weak around is someone who needs me to be strong right now. So I hide behind my gold scales until he can be strong again."

I pressed her into my chest wrapping my wings around her. "Hide within the safety of my wings my gem. No one will see any weakness there."

She stroked my chest and morphed. I looked down at her as she passed her face into the soft scales of my chest and cried. Her tears fell quietly and with them went my sorrow too.

All too quickly the new life we were fighting to build called Reina to hide behind her gold scales again. I let her go to our children and I watched as she quickly changed from being the woman that had lost a friend to, the one she tried to be outside our home. She became the woman that I fell in love with as soon as she touched our children. All the dragon fire slipped back under her skin like the fur of her Rat form and she was just Reina again.

We had flown further than we had before. I did know what he was looking for, a new place to find a wealth for us. We didn't even need to talk about needing to fly away. He knew I needed to be away from my duties as an elder and the only place I can do that is out here.

Topaz turned and circled a tall mountain. I saw the dark entrance he was aiming for as a blackness against the perfect white snow. He always thinks of everything. I thought fiddling with the soft fur he'd wrapped me in for this flight.

I looked up at the underside of his chin. What would I be like if it was Topaz in that room? That room felt cold when he left it. Mum saved his life and so I owe him more grief than I can give him right now.

We landed in the soft snow and Topaz offered me a torch. I took it in one hand as it burst into flame. He walked in silently the small light of the torch not really penetrating the darkness around us as his soft thudding footsteps led us deep into the dark.

He set me on my feet and laid out a thick fur on a rock near the wall he would dig. I sat on it as he made a small fire next to me. Unlike all the other times, he fussed over me, playing with the fur wrapped around my legs and offering me something to go around my shoulders. I took it but didn't put it on. After a moment he stood walked to the wall and started to scratch at it.

Is it me that doesn't want to talk or him? I wondered staring at his back.

"I can not stop thinking about when he was looking for Kyanite." Topaz said softly.

"What about it?"

Topaz turned with a rock in his hand. He stared at it, turning it over and over in his hands. "He was so desperate to find Kyanite to stop Reina's pain. He even had me flying him back to tell Reina he wasn't with the dead we had. He put himself in the way to save Kyanite on the wall... that's what killed him. He was a good man killed by those people!" The last he growled crushing the rock in his hand to dust.

"You're angry?"

He nodded looking at his hand. "There are so many good people that have died for no good reason."

"Come here." He came to my side kneeling in front of me. "It's over my Blue Dragon. As hard as it is to accept the loss of Kyros and all the others that we have lost. It's the same pain the other side will have. We feel it keenly because we care for Kyros. We care for him as much as those others care for the bodies we are sending to their homes."

I stroked the side of his face. "You're drawn to that memory of Kyros, mine is when he was trapped under the building with mum. Before you dragons swooped in he did his best to protect us. Unfortunately, he fell asleep and everyone dragged Mum out of the tent and started to beat her and hang her in a cage while she was unable to help herself. Then Kyanite landed. It was you who looked after my mum once Kyanite freed her from the cage."

Topaz growled happily and it echoed threw the cave. "You knew that was me?"

I nodded. "Kyros played a bigger part of our lives than you think. If he hadn't protected us we would have been long gone before you showed up. If he hadn't fallen asleep when he did the people wouldn't have been so bold to take Duha from Eric, to string her up in a cage. In short, I wouldn't have met you."

He took my hand from his cheek. "Without him, we would not have known how to repair a dragon's skin, or have the cage to carry wounded fast."

"Neither would we have the new Dragon armour. We owe him a lot and I will make sure every single person that died to allow us to be free will have full honours. You can't share that as the elders don't want it public knowledge yet."

Topaz nodded pressing his head to my chest gently. I stroked his horns. "You are special Katja."

I smiled patting his neck. "I'm doing my bit Topaz. It's all I can do at the moment."

He lifted his head meeting my eyes. "Thank you, Katja."

I frowned. "What for?"

He pressed his hand to the hard lump of our child. I looked down at the growing bump I had now. "For staying out of it. It could have been you out there."

I put my hand over his. "I had the same thought... only you were. I know you were following orders but... I still couldn't help but think about it."

He morphed and hugged me. "I was pulling people out of the fight and patching them up. Safer than Kyros."

I nodded and kissed him. "Not safe enough."  I whispered between kisses.

Growling he pulled back. "I am sorry."

He avoided my eyes making me smile. "Topaz." He met my eyes. "You were ordered to go and you went. I don't hold a grudge."

He gave me a soft smile. "I do not know who needed this more, me or you."

I chuckled. "I think we both needed to be here." He stood turning back to the wall and pulling rocks out of it. "In times like these, it's hard not to wonder what I would do if it was you laying there." Topaz stopped and sighed. "I think I would hide away as much as my mother would let me."

Topaz turned putting a rock down next to me. "I would not want you to hide. The world needs people like you Katja. Kind and thoughtful, strong and fearless. You stand up for those that can not."

"This will sound... wrong but, without you, I don't want to be out there."

He sighed. "I understand. Is there something I can give you?"

"Give me?"

He nodded. "I can not help but think about.... our child. Whenever there is death my mind always drifts to new life. With the war going on around us we have not been able to enjoy what's to come."

"And in dragon culture you give gifts." He nodded. "There is one thing I would like."

His eyes lit up like ice with the sun shining through it and I smiled. "Anything you want."

"You have given me many things Topaz but there is one human thing I would like." He knelt in front of me again waiting for my answer. "When humans are married they have rings."

"You want a ring?"

He frowned not understanding. "No a pair of rings. One for me and one for you."

Sitting back on his tail he looked at his hand. "That seems beyond my skill set."

"Yours would be. So you will make mine, then we go to the best Purple Dragon and have yours made like mine."

He chuckled. "You will start a new tradition."

I smiled picking up the rock he had brought over. "But we will be the first."

He growled happily so loudly that it echoed off the walls. "Then I must make you the best ring I can."

He stood going back to the wall. I pulled a hammer out of his bag and started to crack the rock. It was nice to work together like this again. He brought me rocks and I split them finding the gems and precious metals within.

Topaz turned back to me after hours of work. "I can hear your hunger over my work. Let us stop for food."

I nodded putting my hammer down. Topaz put another log on the fire and then used his tail to sweep all the discarded stones away. Next, he pulled some food out of his bag and offered it to me. The box he offered me had all my favourite things in it.

The children shifted underneath me and pulled at me. Kyanite finally broke out of the strange internal world he had disappeared into when I squeaked. "Are they biting you my gem?"

I frowned as he came closer. "Yes, why have you changed language?" 

He stopped halfway to me then shook his head coming the rest of the way. "I was thinking about Kyros. I guess it put my mind into this state."

He sat on the bed strokeing my back. "Do you want to talk?" I asked as the children shifted again.

He shook his head catching Ruby as she started to crawl away. Her scails shimered as she moved. I sat up and chuckled as Kyanite had to catch her bother before they leapt off the bed. He silently watched as I corralled the eepers away from the edge of the bed. "When will they open their eyes properly?" He asked softly.

"Soon. Would you show me how to stop the Dragons from trying to jump off things?"

He shook his head. "I'm not in the mood to fly."

I could see how broken he was. His shoulders sagged and he was hunched over. Not the tall proud man, the straight-backed way he always sat before. I sighed climbing off the bed and taking our Jasper from him. "Then I will do it."

He frowned at me and then tried to stop me but it was too late. I held Jasper over my head and started to run. He growled and I felt his little wings flapping. I couldn't help but laugh at his little growls. When I saw Kyanite's face as I made it around the room he looked a mix of perplexed and amused. The flapping became harder and I felt him get lighter in my hands. I stopped running and our son rawed letting out a puff of smoke still flapping. I was holding him but let him pull my arms up. I opened my hands and he flapped hard lifting him out of my grasp.

Kyanite stood coming over and holding his hands out. Jasper flapped hard to make the short distance to Kyanite's arm and as he cort the small Dragon he smiled. I moved to the bed in time to stop the other three from falling off.

I turned and saw Kyanite standing there as a human. "I suppose this is your way of telling me life goes on?" He asked.

"No. He's been trying to fly a lot. I wanted to give him something." Kyanite smiled as I picked up Ruby and redirected the two rats. I started to run with our daughter as he took charge of the two on the bed. I felt her flapping harder than our son had so headed towards the bed stopping short from the bed. I let her go and she flew to her dad. "That's.. like... their first... steps." I said breathless.

Kyanite smiled at me. "It is... Reina?"

"Yes?"

He met my eyes. "Can we get away for a few days after...."

He trailed off looking at the door. His attention was brought back to the children in his arms when they started fighting. I took Ruby from him. "If you want to my dear. I will sort it out sometime. Maybe we could dust off our waggon."

Kyanite smiled. "Good plan. I think I will make some of my little statues to sell. We will have to take Eric."

I smiled. "Do you think he would like that?"

Kyanite nodded. "It might be the best thing for him. We can't leave him alone."

I sighed picking up the two rat eepers and carrying them to their cot. "If we leave it a week or two these two will be seeing and hearing."

Kyanite lost his grip on Jasper and I moved close to catch him as he slowly fell his little wings flapping. "We will need the cage on the cot now."

I chuckled throwing him up and following him until he landed in my arms. "We will but it will be worse when those two rats start moving about more."

He smiled coming over to me as I put Jasper in the cot. "We have so much to do. A kingdom to put back together and children to raise. Do you think we will have time for a break?"

I nodded putting the cage over the cot now Kyanite had put our daughter in there. "I hope this doesn't sound calis but, we have time bought with the blood of our friends."

Kyanite nodded holding me. "I know my wife will make a fitting memorial to them all."