Start of Chapter 04.
Orian's PoV
As the Days went by, Dain and I got along. He would ask me questions and I would answer, sometimes I would be the one asking the questions and he answered them. There was still that sting of pain from the bond with our mate, the loneliness and numbness still continued to be felt. That worried both Dain and I as it has been many years, but one thing that reassured me strongly was our love's scent, lingering strongly in the wind.
Dain had asked me before why the pain we felt from the bond very slowly became weaker while their scent had become stronger. I could tell by the urgency in his voice that he was very worried, I would not blame him. When his father had deemed us "safe" to be awoken and had awakened us, Dain and I drowned in the sheer agony that our beloved felt. Though it was not as strong as it was before, it was still strong enough to be put asleep again.
I had told Dain that the reason for the sting of pain and loneliness was getting weaker, why the feeling was going away, was either because they are healing or are slowly reaching the end of their life. He became depressed for a while when he heard this, I tried cheering him up by saying he's probably going to be fine considering the fact that his scent was still strongly lingering in the air.
That seemed to bring him back… that was good.
Dain's PoV
The seasons have been going by quicker than I thought they would, I believe time is sped up here. I noticed that Orian would sometimes fidget a bit while talking, maybe he has some sort of anxiety… I mean I do too, but back to the point, the seasons changing was one of the only ways of telling how many years passed (besides asking Orian). By the time snow fell again I believe Orian and I have become close friends.
I jogged up to Orian and asked him again what exactly this place was, and he finally replied with.
"This place is our abode, my spiritual plane and yours, this could also be your so-called happy place. Time is irrelevant as it can pass quicker or slower as you please, but the time spent outside of here is spent the same."
Curious, I asked "Are there people? Anyone besides us?"
Confidently Orian replied "No, no one is allowed here or is here at the moment. Although you can bring other people in (only spiritually though) if we both allow it to be so. You can physically enter this abode and so can our mate, though only if permission is given to them from one of us."
We talked a bit more before sleeping. I don't know how much time has gone by, but I do know that our love's scent was getting weaker and the feeling of pain with separation and loneliness was very faint.
They needed us, needed help. I talked to Orian about this and he said very darkly and slowly. " It is your father that is keeping us here till he deems us safe, but we could try to look through the bond to find out where he is?"
Thinking on what Orian said, I decided to take a nap. Over the years I've noticed that I have been picking up on Orians habits. I asked him about this, all he said about it was that he was just rubbing off on me. I asked why and Orian replied
"We are reflections of each other, although we are separate souls we reflect different parts of one soul. One way to think of it is The Yin and Yang symbol, In Yin there's a small part of Yang and in Yang there's a small part of Yin. We reflect each other and are different while being part of the same soul."
I was confused, I mean I thought soul mates were our other half of our soul and what did he mean by one soul? I asked him these questions.
Orian pondered on how to say the answers in a way Dain would understand.
He sighed before answering "You may not understand what I mean, but I will still try to tell you. A Dragon Shifters soul is one soul, but it consists of two parts, they are reflections of each other that hold bits of the other side. Whether you notice or not, we each had small parts of each other's 'personas or egos' even before we met."
"And about our mates. Mates are not our other half. They are simply put, the best possible option for our love, the healthiest option. Of course we can choose someone different if we love someone else, And that special meeting is more of an awakening or an eye opener that this person is the best possibility for us, for our likes, and situation."
He humft and grumbled "Now please leave me be and go practice the bow as I told you you should. You, always asking questions you should know the answer to, is very distracting when I am trying to gather enough spirit energy to regain another form. Aren't you going to the forest now?"
Grumbling in response I say I know and shuffle away to pick up my bow and arrows before heading to the forest to hunt some game. Despite his short temper and stubbornness, I do believe he does care, he just… has trouble showing it. I've gotten quite good at using the bow and arrow, and sword. (courtesy towards Orian of course) and he has told me about the spirit world.
He described it as a vast world with much lusher vegetation, as there weren't people there to tear down trees and cause multiple problems. There were floating islands and tall, tall mountains whose peaks could not be seen and would require you to fly, just to reach the top. Orian said that his clan lived more up north in the winter wonderland of those frosty peaks.
Intrigued, I asked him if he'd seen the Northern Lights or if there were any there, Orian had said "Yes, there are Northern Lights. I remember that night very clearly, It was… extravagant… otherworldly. The way the lights refracted and shone in the deep night sky was stunning, breathtaking even. You'd wish you were there if you could have seen what I saw. Of course I would remember that night.
It was if time had slowed down as I watched the stars dance in the sky with the lights that warped in the night, blanketing the sky as the fresh snow slowly fell down. I remember it so clearly… wouldn't you? I mean the night I got to see the Northern lights wasn't just any night… we joined on that night, Don't you remember that night of us meeting?"
Dain realized what Orian was talking about, of course he remembers! How could he not!...
I spotted a deer as the memory faded away. I knocked my arrow and aimed, I waited a bit steadying my arm before firing. Swoosh.. thump…. I missed… really?!?! Stupid deer getting scared soo easily, uhhgg. I grabbed the arrow and the one bird I managed to catch and then moved farther into the forest.
I heard the nearby bushes tussle. The air had a smell like… fire, no, more like ashes. The bushes moved again and I knocked my arrow, aimed and waited… and waited.
Nothing… how strange. I slowly walked towards the bush, quietly peeling apart the leaves to see. There was a Firebird!! Though it looked like (and smelled like) it was going to return to ashes before awakening again. Realizing what was happening, I reached for the bird but it got startled and took off.
*sigh* I should probably head back and nap… man I'm tired. I headed back to the big tree, still marvelled by how grand it is. I set down the birds I caught in the small hut before walking back down to the roots of the tree.
I laid myself in the soft grass that blew in the wind, I stared at the crown of the large oak tree; peering at its leaves. It was misty as the light refracted within the air. I made myself more comfortable against the bark of the tree before my eyes slowly drifted closed. Orian was probably somewhere else, either hunting or sleeping… maybe.
My consciousness slowly faded away as I fell asleep.
I awoke that morning to a comforting warmth besides me, it wasn't Orian (I knew that for sure), and I haven't allowed or we haven't allowed anyone in our abode... besides our mate.
Quickly I look over to see who it is… I saw a young boy, he looked around 15-16 years old with round almond shaped eyes, droopy with sleep. His eyes were a piercing yet dark light gray that held a small hint of madness, which were looking around lazily. His long raven rich black hair was blowing gently In the breeze, framing his face perfectly. He felt ethereal.. young, yet respectfully ancient.
He had large wings. The color, a mix of brown and grays that seemed so soft to the touch, curled around the both of us as his head laid itself on my chest. I felt content as the world slowly faded away, as I closed my eyes and hugged him in turn. The warmth stayed by my side and wrapped itself around us. It felt nice, like sunbathing or taking a nap mid day in the bright sun, basking in the sunlit warmth.
His scent surrounded me. The warm honey and oats with a wift of hazelnut and a dash of my pine swirled in the air and lingered in my mind as I opened my eyes.
I was puzzled, all I saw was the ceiling of the confinement room. I should be in pain, why aren't I in pain?!. I was starting to get anxious. I should be in pain!? But all there was, was his scent, my beloved's scent.
Chapter 04. End