Today was the day. Shard flew through the cold wind, picking up the currents. He made his mind clear as fear pricked his mind.

-------

"Promise me you'll be careful?" Polar asked Shard.

He rolled his eyes. "Uuuugh. YES. I'll be careful." Shard mocked.

Polar scoffed. "You BETTER be. Or else I'll kill you myself." He said and adjusted Shard's earring.

They stood outside the gates of the army base, snow falling around. Polar was the only one there (not that he expected anything else) to see him out.

And he was a nervous wreck.

Shard? No.
Polar? Yes.

Shard grumbled. "Yeah whatever."

Polar smiled slightly and looked scared. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'm scared. For you."

Shard was not used to someone being scared for him. He didn't know what to do. Polar had been so kind and friendly to him. In just 3 days, this dragon meant the world to Shard.

Polar was still sighing when unexpectedly, Shard hugged him. He looped down at the dragonet in surprise.

"Thank you. I will be careful." Shard said and then quickly let go and went back to being angry.

Polar laughed a little. He couldn't tell him, sadly. "No need to thank me. We all need someone to look after us."

Shard nodded, face ice cold.

"Maybe some dragons."

-------

With his mind clear, he had room for....other thoughts.

Talia.

What he had done.

How he could never go back.

The months of-

Shard stopped his trail of thought. Those were too painful to remember. Too many mistakes. They HAUNTED his mind. His heart.

His training had distracted him from it all, and now he had nothing but the pain in his wings to stop him from thinking about it.

Shard shook his head and glided downwards, towards land. He could just take a break to stop these thoughts. He HAD been flying for 2 hours...

Shard dug his talons into the icy ground, sighing with mental and physical exhaustion.

"Hello?"

Shard whipped around, eyes darting. Who said that?!

"Show yourself!" He barked, trying to see through the blizzard.

He heard a cold laugh. An all too familiar, cold laugh. He slowly turned around.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

"No....I thought you were....I...." Shard stumbled. She looked horrible. Bandages all over her wings and limbs. Bruises. But still the same cold, sharp ice white eyes.

It was Talia.