Prince Christopher was never one to back down from a challenge, and as he squinted up at the barren, ragged mountain before them, he still felt no fear slithering around his heart. He was worried, yes, but he wasn't scared. He sat atop his high, white horse, adorned in the golden and steel armour complete with his kingdom's icon, and smirked as he felt the breeze gently caress his cheek as it rolled in off the moor. Beside him, his best friend, Jill Valentine sat atop her black horse with white highlights, her large, mage-like hat covering most of her messy, short brown hair as she hummed to herself. Her tongue was sticking out as she flipped through her cookbook of spells.

"Find anything of use in there?" Chris asked her.

Jill shook her head, a dark frown troubling her pretty features. "I might need a fallen tree log - could turn it into a really long and sharp spear. Oh! Or I could find some rocks and turn them into projectiles?"

"An ambush might serve us better," approaching quietly on Chris' other side was one of his most loyal guardsmen, Sir Leon Kennedy. "We could sneak in and attack at night?"

Chris hummed as he tilted his head and stared at the jagged top of the mountain just a few miles away. Its top was shrouded in dark, heavy rain clouds but he swore he could just make out a swirling, dark shadow swimming beneath.

"He's waiting for us," Chris muttered, and that finally brought Jill's attention to the incredible view in front of them as she lifted her head from her cookbook. "I can just see him, up there, in the clouds." Chris pointed.

"Of course he is," Leon huffed. "He didn't swoop down just to snatch her up and eat her, he's planning something."

"That's why we should go in there and kill him," Jill glanced at Chris with the reigns eagerly in her hands. "Before he starts doing something else."

"Not yet," the prince soothed their desires as he pursed his lips. "If my sister is still alive, then I wish to speak with this dragon."

"Are you mad?" Leon squinted at Chris, which earned him a raised, brunette brow, so he corrected himself and looked away as he apologised. "Forgive me, my lord, for I did not mean to speak ill of your being, however, my query still stands."

"No," Chris raised his head a little higher with a smirk. "I'm not far-gone yet, Kennedy. I simply wish to know this dragon's intentions is all."

"Then how do we get all the way up there and ask him?" Jill asked as she stared at her friends.

"Mm," Chris sat atop his white horse and stared at the rigid mountain in the distance.

In the distance, the midnight-black dragon sat atop the spire of his barren mountain.
Nothing grew here, only shrubs or the occasional tumbleweed. The rocks were sprawling with orange sand and the dark, grey skies had not lifted in centuries.
Wesker thought that it was a horrible home, yet a perfect home for him. With no luscious life and terrible, looming weather of a constant thunderstorm, not a soul would dare to travel all the way out here to bother him.

Yet one did.

Some strange creature who confessed themselves to being a 'Travelling Merchant'.
The Merchant had whispered lies to him ever so eagerly like a child with a toy; pretending to enjoy the enrichment of having such a beast to commune with during one stormy night. The two had briefly spoken before the Merchant's departure by morning and Wesker had learned the tale of two Redfields.

One was a noble and strong prince who sought to greater this dead land for his people.
The other was a fiery, young maiden who could cause quite the chaos with her short-temper.

Wesker had meant to steal the prince and hold him for ransom - not that the great beast had ever needed, let alone wanted, monetary value. But he figured it a much safer choice to steal the son of an ailing king just for mere entertainment.

Instead, he had snatched the wrong one.
That wasn't such a big deal because half of the tales had lied.

Claire Redfield did not breathe fire like he did - so she was not a Dragonborn. However, she was masterfully gifted in the arcane arts, and with her sharp temper, Wesker wondered to himself if looks alone were enough for a human to be laid by morning.

Unfortunately, he took very little interest in any human affairs, so he did not know what exactly was preferred in their mates.
He on the other claw, was much happier to stay and rot in the darkness that he had chosen to call his 'home'.

He sat outside, atop the mountain, shrouded by the mist as the storm brewed just above him.
The redheaded girl was hidden away deep inside his lair and if she had dared to find her way out, Wesker knew that the storm would wash her away before he ever even bothered to make a move to keep her trapped atop the mountain.

Amber eyes were squinting just past the thick darkness of the clouds as he heard the neigh of horses echo up the mountain's skin.

"They're here," he growled quietly to himself, and with a slight grunt, the massive beast rose to his feet and stretched out his impressive, bat-like wings. His entire body was as black as the clouds that he had been hidden in for a very long time. The only colour emerged from his eyes, which many had called it akin to 'staring into the depths of Hell'.

"They're planning something," he hissed as he carefully climbed down off his perch. Usually, he would've heard a battle cry by now. "I don't trust them."
He growled as a dark frown creased along his scaly face, with a flick of his long yet powerful tail, he pushed himself off the mountain's peak and soared high up into the stormy air.

"I hear him," Jill murmured quietly as they tied up the horses. Chris glanced over at her, watching as she stared up into the ominous clouds above. She still hadn't dismounted yet, but he could see her long and delicate fingers wrapped tightly around her father's staff. Chris then followed her gaze upward and strained his ears to listen as he could just hear the distant flapping of giant wings somewhere high atop the mountain.

"I'll stay here with the horses," Leon puffed out his chest and balled his fists by his side with a stoic look. "In case something happens, whether we must retreat or fall back for reinforcements."

"I trust you," Chris nodded as he watched Jill slip off her horse with a grunt. "Let's go."

Jill nodded as she walked beside her long-time best friend and traversed up the narrow stone path towards the peak of the mountain. As they got higher and higher, the air became thinner and Chris could feel the hair on the back of his neck standing up as the electricity in the air crackled around them.

"I don't think I can go on," Jill panted as she rested herself against a sturdy rock wall, she was still holding her cookbook in one hand and her face was lined with sweat which made her hair stick to her forehead.

"But," Chris glanced at the mage before he turned his gaze upward. He was also exhausted, but the agony of his missing sister was driving him forward, as well as the curious yet annoyed anger he felt when he imagined confronting the dragon that had taken her. "Claire's up there."

"I know," Jill was trembling with exhaustion as she reached down to open her book and started flicking through some of the pages as she gasped for air. "Maybe... there has to be a spell here somewhere..."

Chris inhaled as deep as he could, but he only felt a sliver of oxygen drip down into his lungs.

"Feeling tired?" A deep, yet dangerous voice grumbled smoothly around them.

The pair's eyes shot wide open as they panicked and frantically looked around for the owner of that voice. A voice that had made the bones buried in their skin vibrate as they pushed themselves further into the mountain with their backs to the cliff face.

The beating of the creature's wings was more prominent and powerful now. Chris could hear it over the pounding of blood in his skull as his eyes desperately scanned the clouds all around them for any signs of movement. He saw a dark shadow slowly pass by them just a few meters away where the cliff dropped and there was nothing but air separating him and the ground below.

The dragon chuckled as it flew in circles around the mountain's peak, watching them with a dark smirk on its beak before it continued its jeering. "So this is the great Redfield that I've heard so much about? Fascinating!"

Chris frowned in anger as he unsheathed his sword and brought it up, ready to stab or slash at anything that dared to get too close to them.

"No, Chris, wait!" Jill panted as she turned and reached out an unsteady hand towards him.

"Tell us your name, beast!" Chris shouted into the thick, smokey-grey clouds as he nodded at Jill, hoping to buy her some time for whatever plan she had in mind. "What have you done with my sister!?"

Thunder rolled down off the mountain after Chris screamed and as lightning flashed overhead, the winds began to pick up but just out of the corner of his eye, he saw the dark head of the dragon rise above the cliff's edge before it was swallowed by the shadows once again.

"She's safe," the voice boomed in sync with the heavy beat of wings erupting from all around them. "And breathing."

"You still didn't tell us your name!" Jill raised her voice to be heard over the roar of the winds as it battered against them, flattening them further against the rock wall.

Chris reached out his free hand and quickly grabbed Jill's stomach as the ground suddenly shook beneath them.

The dragon had landed.

"He's close," Chris breathed as he tried to whisper to her as best as he could.

Jill nodded and turned her book around to show him a page detailing not a spell, but rather a unique idea.

"It's worth a shot," Chris shrugged, though he didn't know how he fully felt about it yet.

"I mean, why else is he all the way out here on his own?" Jill whispered back as she squinted against the wind. "No dragon lives alone. And no dragon steals people for no other reason than money. He would've sent a ransom to your father by now!"

"My name," the two went silent as the dragon's voice boomed again - just barely audible over the thunder that played after every flash of lightning. "Is Wesker."

Another flash of lightning and the Heavens broke.

"And I stole your sister, Claire Redfield." Wesker snarled as he leaned over the various rocky ledges, trying to relocate where the pair had gone.

"Why did you do it?" He heard the magewoman's voice twinkle from somewhere beside him, so Wesker turned his head in that direction and inhaled deeply to find her scent. He began to stalk towards the area in hopes of finding her as he answered.

"I wanted to see if the legends were true," he hissed as he slammed a foot down, making the mountain tremble beneath his power as he sunk his claws into the red dirt. His lips curled back to reveal, strong, white, serrated teeth as he continued. "If the Redfields were more than just spoilt children!"

He hissed with great disdain as the rain leaked down from his face and stained the ground, soiling the dirt so it would puddle and when the puddles were full, the entire mountain would flood.

Chris watched the lines crease in Jill's face as she focused hard, weaving her fingers together as little by little something began to form in her hands. When the lightning flashed again, his eyes widened as he saw the most beautiful, ruby-red rose delicately standing tall between her fingertips.

"Give him this," she turned to offer the magical rose to Chris. "You'll know what to say."

"Are you sure?" Chris frowned slightly. This dragon was about to kill them and Chris' only weapon against it was going to be a rose?

"Sometimes a king doesn't always need to spill blood to save the day," she offered him a small smile. "Sometimes he just needs to open his heart and see what's inside. This is your weapon, Chris. Trust me, it will be very powerful to you in a few moments, even if it just looks like a flower to you right now, this is going to save your sister. And that dragon."

After the pep talk, Chris felt slightly more confident as he sheathed his sword and carefully reached out to take the large rose from Jill. "Alright, I trust you."

"I know," she smiled with a shrug but flinched as thunder roared overhead and the sky continued to cry. Not too far off, they could hear the annoyed growl of the dark dragon echoing around them.

Chris gave Jill one last look before he turned and ran along the edge of the cliff and eventually popped around the side of the wall where the cliff face opened out onto a plateau. Chris' breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened as not too far away the dark, ominous shadow of the large dragon loomed just at the other edge of the platform. The rain did blur his vision a little, however, the prince inhaled deeply to swallow his fear and straightened up as he held out the rose. Even in the thunderstorm, it looked beautiful. Dashes of silver raindrops adorned its blood-red petals, and its evergreen stalk had wisps of water dripping down it. The wind barely seemed to shift it at all as he stared at it while walking toward the dragon. His confidence built with every bold step that he took.

"A rose?" Wesker leaned his head forward to get a better look, however, nothing could've prepared him for this. He couldn't tell if it was just a sword in the shape and colours of a rose because it was unaffected by the raging winds around them. Yet, he was also amused by the human prince's feeble attempts at whatever it was that he was trying to accomplish. Wesker opened his jaw to emit an evil laugh that danced with the thunder as it cackled around them.

"Yes!" Chris nodded as his free arm came up to shield his face from the harsh weather. "In exchange for my sister, I offer you this rose!"

"A flower?" Wesker dipped his head so he was closer to the ground where he could properly see the prince and the fabled rose. "A flower that is false in nature!"
The dragon snarled and lashed his tail against the mountain, the ground trembling with his rage once more. "Look at how the wind barely touches her, look how the rain makes her gorgeous, she of artificial life that holds no misery and therefore no beauty in the lack of her emotions."

"Look at her," Chris stuttered as the wind pushed against him harder. "Look at how blood red her petals are! Look at how tall and proud she stands! The wind will never touch her!"

Just as Chris said that Wesker narrowed his eyes down at the human as the wind gave one last, mighty howl before it disappeared off into the clouds and never returned.

"Look at her, this flower," Chris cleared his throat once the wind was truly gone and the beast could hear him in a normal tone now. "Look at her thorns and see how sharp they are! Such living beauty, that is either too scared or too ashamed of itself to allow others near it."

Chris panted as he examined the stalk between his fingers, noticing how blood trickled slightly from his thumb where he had accidentally pricked himself on one of her thorns.

"Look at how unforgiving she is," he breathed but glanced up as he noticed the dragon turn its head away and close its eyes. "How delicate others may see her, so touched by the world that even the rain will kiss her and never dirty her image."

After he said this, the rain began to ease off and a few heartbeats later, it stopped.
Wesker opened his eyes to stare up at the dark clouds in surprise before Chris spoke again, still advancing toward the great dragon.

"Look at how lonely she is!" He cried. "Look how even when the skies cry tears, she still stands tall and reveals her true colours!"

And then with one last rumble of thunder, the clouds began to disperse as the prince continued.

"And when the sun shines on her, look at how beautiful she is," Wesker begrudgingly looked down at the flower in the prince's hands as the skies cleared and sunshine began to warm their skin. "Her beauty, ever endless. Her strength is always known. Even if she dies, even if she was made by magic, she's here."

Wesker lowered his great head to growl softly at the prince as he asked: "What do you want, human?"

"I told you," Chris breathed as he stared up at the black dragon. "My sister in exchange for this rose."

"This flower is fake and will die." Wesker hissed.

"No," Chris shook his head and licked the rain off his lips. "This flower is so much more than what you see just in front of you. I come to you with an open heart, dear dragon. I offer you peace and blood only in the form of her petals. In exchange for the blood of my sister's heart and the beauty in her nature. There shall be no fighting today if you'll accept."

"I had expected a fight," Wesker hissed as he flicked his tail, reeling his head back with slight disgust. "You mean to tell me that the Great Redfield goes around offering roses to all of the ilk throughout his lands?"

"No, dear dragon," the prince's voice softened as he squinted against the sun shining off of Wesker's scales. "I only offer you a rose. But I could offer you more?"

"I'm listening," Wesker grumbled quietly.

"I offer you my hand," Chris then held out his free hand, and side by side he was holding out both hands and the rose to the dragon in front of him. "Know that I do not mean in marriage entirely, but I do mean as a trustworthy friend, as a brother, and as a king."

"Hah!" Wesker scoffed. "Trust you? One of your kind? Again?"
The dragon snarled quietly. "I've already done that."

"Yes, and you were betrayed. By both kinds - human and dragon. But Wesker, great dragon, please! It pains me to know that you're out here all alone atop this great mountain. This mountain where it always rains and the clouds have covered the skies for centuries."

Wesker continued to growl as Chris spoke to him, despite the proof shining down on their heads. It was as if the Heavens were inviting him in through their gates, but he had to get through Christopher first.

"I will not keep you as a pet, for much like this rose, you are worth so much more. This rose does not deserve to die alone! And neither shall you, great dragon!" Chris pleaded. "Come with us, come with me. Back to our kingdom, you will be heralded as a great saviour of our people. You will never again feel the loneliness of rain, or be put to sleep by the sound of thunder, you will never fly alone and dance in the sky with lightning as your only partner."

"You mean to tell me that there are other dragons in your kingdom?" Wesker's voice soon lost its hostility as he became curious.

"Sadly," Chris shook his head. "No, great dragon... But again," he held out the rose. "I offer you my hand. As a friend, partner, brother, king. Trust me and should I ever break that trust, burn me. Burn me and my entire kingdom to the ground should I ever break your heart!"

A tense moment of silence whistled by them as Wesker stared at the prince before he sighed and lowered his head down carefully to look the young man in the eye. "I accept."

Chris felt the air being breathed back into his lungs as he smiled in relief upon hearing that the great beast had finally surrendered to him.

"You have pierced my heart with a weapon made of petals, with thorns as sharp as steel," Wesker grumbled softly. "In all my years, of all legends that I've heard, dear Prince, I have never expected such a conflict to greet me such as you did. Know that I will hold you to these terms and if you do ever break the heart that you hold so dearly now, I will burn everything that you dare to call yours. Would you like to see your sister?"

Chris nodded eagerly and Wesker spread his wings. Soon, he flew down the side of the mountain and reunited Jill with Chris before landing at the mouth of his lair. "She's inside."

"Why did you take her?" Jill asked as she squinted up at the dragon, Chris had sown the rose temporarily into his empty sheath on his other side before he headed deep into the cave.

"I heard the legends pass by here," Wesker remained outside with Jill as he began to explain to the magewoman. "From the tales, I beli... Hoped, that perhaps one of my kin had come to pass by me as well. I thought that Claire or even Chris, Redfield were of dragonkin."

"Wait, you thought that Claire could breathe fire?" Jill looked stunned.

"Yes," Wesker nodded as he blinked. "However, that prophecy has not yet been fulfilled. Princess Redfield is but a lady in the arts of magic. Do tell her that I am sorry."

"There's no need," Chris re-emerged from the mouth of the cave holding his sister's hands in his as they smiled.

"Why were you looking for a Dragonborn?" The female Redfield turned to frown up at her former captor.

"I had... Hopes," Wesker sighed as he looked down. "When I left my kind, I did not anticipate being betrayed by humans so easily. However, I had heard that if I ever did find a dragonkin, that perhaps I stood a chance of being accepted back into my old life. I know now that this is impossible. There hasn't been one in centuries, so I've rotted in this mountain."

"And now you're coming home with us," Chris puffed his chest out proudly, despite the suspicious glare from his sister and the baffled look that Jill also gave him.

Nonetheless, Prince Redfield flagged down Wesker who knelt before the future king and allowed him to carefully climb up his shoulder to take mount on Wesker's spine.

"Take Claire back down to Leon," Chris called out from above to the girls below. "There's only three horses anyway. I'll see you at home."

"Where are you going?" Jill pouted as she gestured to Wesker.

"To fulfill a promise I just made." The brunette grinned and for the first time in a long time, Wesker spread his wings as he felt happiness swirl in his deep chest.

After reassuring that they would reunite back at the palace with the girls, Wesker took off - careful that Chris was holding on as they soared into the skies above together.