by Katie Cherry
Her heart rate picked up at the thought, and she placed a hand on her belly again, looking down at it. It was definitely too early for her to be showing, but she couldn't help it. Pregnant! Just wait until she told Rhys! "Oh! I have to- I have to go! I have to get my backpack and text Rhys!"
Chuckling, Mala uncurled and got back to her feet, shaking a little to get the dirt off of her scales, like a dog shaking water out of its fur. "Well, let's go then, your majesty. I'm sure you'd like your King to join you here as soon as possible. Afterward, we can take you to the river to let your feet recover in its clear, cold waters. Its magic will also speed your healing."
"There's magic in the water?"
"There's magic in everything here thanks to Makuahine, but yes, the river has especially potent healing magic in it," Mala replied with a smile.
"Oh, right. Sorry, this will all just... take some getting used to," Myra murmured, feeling a little embarrassed. Glancing back down at her feet, she could already see small improvements to the skin. Not enough to walk, but enough to give her some relief and confidence that it won't take long to be healed completely.
Considering how to get back to where she'd set up camp, she was drawn to the thought of returning to her new full-dragon form, but eventually decided against it. She wanted to check and see if she could still pull out just her dragon wings, like she had done to get there in the first place. With a thought, they whooshed out, stretching from her back, just as they used to. Breathing a relieved sigh, Myra wrapped one around for examination. The tiny red scales that lined the wings were now joined with even smaller amber-colored ones, adding a golden shimmer to the brilliant crimson. The leathery part of the wings were still their usual crimson color, which Myra was secretly glad about. As beautiful as these amber island dragons are, she'd gotten a little tired of that being the only color dragon to see. The more color she could hold onto, the better. Besides, she didn't want to forget where she'd come from. She loved her life before she came here- she had no intention of leaving it behind.
Shifting on the ground to move to her knees, avoiding letting her raw feet or lower legs touch anything, Myra looked up to see the entire group of dragons watching her expectantly, clearly waiting for her to lead the way, intent to follow her every move. Myra sighed. "You know, you can go and do whatever you normally do. You don't have to follow me around."
"We want to follow our Queen," one of the dragons slowly replied, not quite meeting her gaze.
"Okay, that's great in principle, but please, don't shadow me everywhere I go. I'll lose my mind if you do that," she half-heartedly joked. "I need some alone time."
"As you wish," the dragon hesitantly acknowledged, bowing his head a little before lifting his wings to take off. One by one, the others followed suit, until finally, only Mala was left standing beside Myra.
"Do you want me to leave you as well?" she asked.
"I just really want to make a phone call," Myra replied, lifting off the ground with one flap and hovering in the air in front of her dragon friend. "But believe me, we'll be spending a lot of time together to help me get this whole island-dragon-Queen thing figured out," she chuckled.
"I would love to assist you with anything you may need, my friend… my Queen," Mala solemnly said, dipping her head in a small bow before taking off after the others.
As much as Myra had grown to like Mala and the others, she felt immensely relieved to be alone. It felt like the first time in weeks, and despite her new responsibility as a Queen, it felt like a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. As she flew back toward her little campsite, she let her mind wander to thoughts of Rhys, which she'd hardly had time to do at all the past couple of weeks. She hadn't exactly fulfilled her mission to stop the dragons from entering the world, but she had bought them all time. The time would be used to figure out how to safely arrange for the dragons to enter the world, but the Elders didn't need to know that yet. All they needed to know was that the crisis was averted. She'd figure the rest out later.
But, now that she'd managed to secure everything, she was finally able to allow herself to miss her fiancé. His deep, considerate blue eyes, his heart-melting dimple, his comforting arms wrapped around her in near-daily hugs. The ache of missing him grew in her chest as she flew. Plunging down into the trees, she hovered just a couple of inches over the ground, sparing her feet the pain, and quickly dug through the backpack, desperate to find her phone.
As soon as the phone touched her hand, she hit the button to call Rhys. It rang only twice before he answered. Before he could say anything, Myra blurted out the words that were ringing in her mind and pulling at her heart. "Rhys, get your butt to Hawaii. Now."
Chapter Nine
Obviously that was a less-than tactful way to begin, but she was burning with the need to see him.
"Wait- what? What happened?" Rhys quickly answered. As he spoke, she heard rustling in the background, as though he'd broken into a run.
"Oh- sorry, I'm fine," she quickly amended, and the sound of movement slowed. "It's an extremely long story, but I've reigned the dragons in. The danger is passed. I just miss you."
"Then why aren't you just coming home?" he asked, confusion deepening his voice.
"Because... there are some things I need to tell you and show you, and this is the best place for it," she slowly answered. "Just- please hurry over here. I miss you and seriously... there's something I need to tell you. Something big."
"Okay. I think the soonest I can get there is tomorrow morning. Is that okay?"
"Whatever you have to do," Myra replied with a relieved sigh. He'll be here soon. "I should probably go now, but I'll see you in the morning. Right?"
"Right." She could hear his smile on the other end, and her heart ached. She needed him by her side. "I'll see you soon. Love you."
"I love you too." Hanging up was difficult to convince herself to do, but finally, she did. Breathing out a sigh, she held the phone in her hand, staring down at the black screen with a happy smile. After a moment, she shook herself out of it, tucking the phone back into her pocket and lifting her gaze once more. She still had a lot of work before her.
*****
Myra spent the rest of the day soaking her feet in the water and thinking. After a while, Mala and Kukane joined her at the side of the river and helped her brainstorm. By the time the sun set, her feet and legs were almost entirely healed and only a little tender. Even better, they had a plan.
Myra slept fitfully that night, too excited to see Rhys in the morning, and too anxious over what his reaction might be to her transformation, her new position as Dragon Queen, her newfound longevity, her pregnancy... and her plan. Too much could go wrong with any of the revelations. She knew he loved her, but it wouldn't make it any easier on him to hear what she had to say.
Finally, the sun came up, and Myra with it. Her feet and legs were now completely healed, though the pants were still half-burned. Ditching the old, dirty clothes, she grabbed the last clean pair and, after quickly washing herself in the river, put them on. Throwing her hair up into a ponytail, like she had every day for the past two weeks, she ran, barefoot, to the edge of the island closest to Hawai'i. The air was a little chilly so early in the morning, but she wasn't bothered. In fact, she hardly felt the cold at all, likely due to her new status as a full dragon. They practically had fire in their blood. She'd probably never really get cold again.
After about half an hour, she managed to convince herself to sit down to wait, but still watched the island resolutely, waiting to see Rhys approaching.
Two hours later, she finally saw him piloting a small, one-person boat toward her. Leaping to her feet, she ran to the water's edge, waving her arms. Catching sight of her, he adjusted his trajectory. Within minutes, he reached the shoreline, leaping off the back of the little motorboat. He nearly tripped when he landed in the sand from his haste to get to her, but she was close enough that she was able to reach out and catch him, then pull him in for a hu
g. As his scent washed over her and his arms tightened around her, she felt herself fully relax for the first time in weeks.
He pulled her in so close it almost hurt, but she was happy about it, and responded in kind. Hardly able to breathe, she smiled, her face pressed hard against his chest. "I missed you so much," she mumbled.
"I missed you too," he said, his voice a protective growl. "We are never doing that again."
"Definitely," Myra replied, though she frowned a little. As Queen of the island dragons, she would need to live on Awahine. Would Rhys be willing to move onto the magical island with her? Would he be willing to be their King? "Um... so I really have a lot to catch you up on."
"Talk over breakfast?" he asked, finally releasing her and pulling off his backpack. Reaching in, he pulled out two wrapped breakfast sandwiches. Myra's stomach growled in appreciation. As much as she loved fruit, she had missed non-tropical foods.
"Absolutely," she agreed, accepting one of the sandwiches and leading him further onto the island. Once they sat and started eating, Myra began. "So... remember how I said these dragons wanted me to be their Queen, fulfilling some prophecy, by marrying Kukane?"
"Yes... please don't tell me you agreed to such a thing," Rhys froze, mouth agape.
"No- no, I didn't," Myra quickly hurried to assure him, "but I did... become their Queen. A different way."
He stared at her, but she couldn't quite tell what he was thinking. "You're... the Queen of these new dragons?"
"Um... yeah. And I'll tell you more about how that happened, of course, but first... I need to show you what happened because of it."
"What happened?" he asked in concern, raking his eyes over her body.
Swallowing, Myra stood and backed away a few steps. Closing her eyes, she focused on turning back into her new full-dragon form. Heat exploded from her heart once again, and as it coursed through her body, she felt the changes take place. Opening her eyes, she looked at Rhys in trepidation, still scared to see his reaction.
He jumped to his feet, dropping the remainder of his food into the sand. At first, his stare held utter shock, but it slowly transitioned into amazement. "You're beautiful," he finally said, his voice quiet. Once she felt he'd seen his fill, she returned to her human form, shrinking before his eyes.
"Thanks," she whispered. "I'm sorry... I just really wasn't sure how to break it to you without just showing you."
"Break it to me? How did you think I'd react?" he chuckled, reaching out and pulling her in for another hug. "You're beautiful in whatever form. I'm not upset that you can turn into a full dragon now." He pulled back a little and gave her a curious look. "Can you still look like the rest of us? With just the wings?"
Nodding, she let her wings show and extended one to him for him to examine. She shivered at the feeling of his hands gently running over the tiny scales and leathery skin. "That's amazing. Honestly... I'm a little jealous. You seem to get all the luck with the dragon upgrades," he winked.
Blushing, Myra found it difficult to stammer out her next words. "U-um... well... as Queen, I do need a King..." His blue gaze was unreadable, so she coughed awkwardly and pressed on. "W-will... you marry me?"
At this, Rhys laughed out loud. "Of course, silly. We still have our wedding planned for in a week. I'm still marrying you no matter what."
"Promise?"
He paused, considering her. "Do you honestly have even more to tell me? Good heavens, you're definitely never leaving my side again," he teased. Taking her hand, he pulled her down next to him in the sand until they sat side-by-side. "Alright, go for it. What else do you have to tell me?"
Myra bit her lip and glanced down at her belly, where her free hand rested once more. Meeting Rhys's gaze, she whispered, "I'm... pregnant." His eyes slid down to her belly as well, and a mix of emotions filled his countenance. "It's yours," she continued, her voice stronger now. "Of course."
The blue of his eyes danced behind the tears welling up in front of them. "Seriously?" he whispered.
"Really," she replied, smiling now. Reaching out, he pulled her face to his, crushing her lips in a deep, emotional kiss. When he pulled away, his voice cracked, but he was smiling as well. "I can't believe it."
"I'm glad you're okay with it," Myra admitted. "I was worried... I don't know. That you wouldn't be ready for it."
"Oh, I'm not," he chuckled. "But I can get there."
"Oh, one more thing before I forget," Myra exclaimed, straightening as she remembered she had a plan she had to tell him about. "We need to have the wedding here."
*****
The next week passed in a blur of wedding preparation. The clan was super excited to have the wedding in Hawaii, though it ruined some of the plans they'd made. Bonnie was especially curious when Myra had told her to invite her parents. "You'll see," was all Myra said about it, and, finally, Bonnie agreed to do so. Afina was equally curious when Myra had instructed her to get the Elders and Dragonkin to agree to come to the wedding as well, but after a few days, she reported that she'd convinced them all to come.
Meanwhile, Myra had a call to make herself.
"You're getting married?!" Harper's squeal was loud enough that Myra had to pull the phone away from her ear. "Are you serious?!"
"I'm serious," Myra laughed. "And it's in Hawaii. In six days. I know that's not a lot of warning, but-"
"Oh, we're coming!" Harper firmly declared. "I would not miss your wedding for the world."
*****
The island dragons were, surprisingly, very cool about having so many people come to their island. "We trust in our Queen's plan to bring magic back into the world!" they would declare, big smiles on their scaly faces. "Whatever it takes!"
Her clan was a little more dubious. "Why exactly are we inviting normal people to the wedding- and on an island filled with dragons?!" Jasper hissed as soon as they landed on the shore. "We still need to be cautious. We can't just go around parading our dragon sides!"
"We're not," Myra assured him. "We're revealing a part of ourselves, that deserves to be known, to those closest to us. Those whom we trust. From there, we'll have to see, but I think the time of dragons living in the shadows has come to an end. For better or for worse," she finished, fixing him with her steely gaze. Shrinking away from her, he backed away, mumbling. They'll see, Myra thought to herself, watching them unload the wedding stuff from the boat they'd rented. This will work.
I'll keep us all safe.
*****
Finally, the day of the wedding arrived. Myra was terrified. Not only was it her wedding day, arguably the most important and exciting day of her life, but it was also time to test her theory. Time to put it all on the line.
The humans would be arriving within minutes. Rhys had just left to pick them all up from the main island, Hawai'i. The plan was for him to explain what's going to happen as he brought them to the invisible dragon island and have Mala greet them when they arrived.
Myra really hoped they wouldn't freak out.
Watching the boat approach, she bit her bottom lip and held her breath. A chorus of gasps erupted from the boat as it crossed the magical border, bringing the island into view for them for the first time. "Here we go," Myra muttered to Mala, who stood at her side, shifting anxiously from foot to foot.
The boat came to rest on the shore, but no one moved, staring at Mala with wide, terrified gazes. "Hello. My name is Mala," the dragon began. "Welcome to our island. Let me assure you- you are perfectly safe here. We mean you no harm. We hope, by the end of the wedding, you will come to see us as friends and allies."
Still, no one moved. Frowning, Myra stepped up, forcing them to look at her instead. "Come on. The wedding will be starting in a couple of hours. Let’s get you all seated." No one made a move to leave the boat, though, until Myra walked up, took Harper's hand, and dragged her from the boat. One by one, the others reluctantly followed, keeping an eye on Mala as they did so.
Harper seemed to reanimate at Myra's touch. "
Rhys told us about the dragons on the way over, but... wow. It's... um... a little much to take in."
"Understandably so," Myra nodded. "Sorry to scare you with Mala, but I don't think you would have believed us without proof."
"I'm still not sure how much I believe it, honestly," she chuckled, tossing her hair over her shoulder. She'd dyed it purple, much like the color she'd forced upon Myra two years ago. Myra couldn't help but smile at the reminder.
"Well, I can provide further proof," Myra offered, which drew the gazes of Daniel and Bonnie's parents. Myra recognized the exhaustion in the mom's eyes, and hoped they would open their minds and accept the solution to her pain.
"How?" Daniel asked.
Stopping, Myra turned to fully face them all, Rhys walking up to stand beside her rather than tagging along at the end of the group. "I grew up with chronic pain and debilitating fatigue. Long story short, I discovered it was because of my dragon blood. Dragons have survived for centuries by blending in with the humans, which also produced a mixed breed. Unfortunately, for most of us, we grew up not knowing anything about the dragon side of ourselves. The sides clashed. Relief could be found by removing the dragon magic, though, or by embracing it and transitioning."
"W-what does that mean, exactly?" Bonnie's mom asked, her eyes gaining a small glimmer of hope.
"We can explain further after the wedding, but for now, allow me to just show you," Myra replied before smoothly releasing her wings. After a second, Rhys did the same, the brilliant sapphire color contrasting perfectly with her red-gold ones. As they did so, everyone scrambled backwards, gasping, their hands going to their hearts or their mouths.
Harper recovered the fastest, lowering her hand from her mouth and bravely stepping forward. "C-can I...?" Myra nodded, moving one of her wings to reach toward her. She reached out slowly, clearly still afraid, though that slipped away soon after touching the wing. "Holy crap, this is amazing! This is so seriously cool, Myra! I didn't know you had wings!! That is so much more exciting than colored hair!"