Darkness Falls

[Dragon]

Hurt...

Dragon hurt everywhere that it was possible to hurt, and in some places where it wasn't possible, too. He drifted in and out of consciousness as he laid on the couch, occasionally muttering--always the same thing. Danger. Kinley. Stay away. Danger.

In his fevered dreams he was still battling the reapers, still desperately trying to save Kinley's life. He was dimly aware of movement around him, and voices, but in his jumbled-up mind, he imagined that it was Kinley and Tim. "Kiney... danger..." he repeated, over and over, as he staved off attack by imaginary foes. The ink dragon tattoo had repaired most of his superficial wounds, but the deeper ones were infected by poison and by the evil, dark energy that the reapers possessed. They weren't mere flesh wounds, easily mended.

Some time later, as a wave of consciousness overcame him, he cracked open his eyes with great effort. Kinley was rushing through the door, looking harried and anxious. Dragon groaned, a throaty, hoarse sound. "Kiney..." He reached out a feeble hand.

"He's hanging in there," said a worried-sounding, young voice. "Did you get a potion? Can I see it?!"

[Kinley Sima]

"Yeah," Kinley said, distracted by the way Dragon looked. Strangely, the ink-like blood substance seemed to have mostly disappeared. Did it move across Dragon's skin the same way that tattoo on his back did? No time for questions. He lifted the potion so that Kero could see it but he didn't hand it over for scrutinization. Right now, it was more important that he get that potion inside Dragon. He pulled the cork stopper out, then paused, looking over at Tim.

"He drinks it, right?"

He assumed that was what one did with a potion but for all he knew, he might have to sprinkle it on him or bathe him in it. Kinley knew nothing about magic or potions!

[Dragon]

"Awww!"

"Yeah he has to drink it. All of it, so don't spill any!"

"Can I keep the bottle when you're done Kin?"

Voices eddied in and out, sometimes clear, other times faint. Dragon tried to keep his eyes open--if this was it, if this was really the end, he wanted to get one last good look at Kinley.

[Kinley Sima]

"Oh. Okay."

No pressure or anything. Kinley looked down at the bottle and tried to keep in mind that it all had to go inside of Dragon. Hopefully it tasted as good as it looked. Experimentally, he took a sniff. It didn't smell bad but... that didn't mean much. Shampoo didn't smell bad but it sure didn't taste good. Not that the potion smelled like shampoo or even like perfume--though it sort of looked like a perfume. It smelled earthy, just like the house full of plants. Hopefully it didn't taste like dirt or anything.

"Dragon," he said gently, trying to hold his head in a way that would comfortably suit drinking. He tipped his head a little forward and held the bottle in the other hand, ignoring his brother's incessant questions. Who cared what happened to the bottle at this point? All that mattered was keeping Dragon's eyes open and keeping him awake so that he could ingest the potion. All of it.

"You have to drink this, okay?" Kinley said, moving the bottle to Dragon's lips. "All of it. Okay? It'll make you better, I promise."

[Dragon]

Ah... Kinley... He was coming closer. Dragon tried to shift closer, as much as his battered body would allow. He reached weakly for Kinley's hand with a trembling hand of his own, but couldn't quite muster up the strength to lift his arm. So he laid there, letting Kinley tilt his head and bring something cool to his lips.

Drink, he said. Dragon would have drunk poison for Kinley. He would do anything for Kinley, really--even fight against the Master, tooth and nail. Obediently, Dragon opened his mouth and let the liquid trickle down. He tasted something earthy and something a little floral--not too flowery, but it tasted nice. It was like a refreshing breath of air after heavy rainfall--but condensed into liquid form.

"OOOOOHHH!" gasped the young-sounding voice from earlier. "He drank it! Now what?! Is he gonna be okay??"

"He'll be okay after he rests up a little," Tim said. "I think we could all use some rest, actually... Andy, you and Kero can share your room, right? Kin... I'll help you take Dragon upstairs to my room."

[Kinley Sima]

Did it work? Breath stilled, Kinley watched with anxiety building in his chest. Anything was possible when it came to a potion. For all Kinley knew, he had just administered poison. How could he trust some random guy that Tim knew? The thing was, though, that he did. Because he trusted Tim; they were friends. Tim wouldn't steer him wrong. Most of all, he wouldn't go around killing dragons when he said that he was one.

"How long does it take to work?" Kinley asked, as he trailed his fingertips over Dragon's cheek. Poor Dragon. He looked so defeated and beaten. Kinley couldn't ever remember feeling so tenderly toward anybody in his relatively short life. Crazy, knowing that he had only just met Dragon but it felt like somehow there was a lifetime between them. He wondered if that stuff about past lives had any merit. If humans also were reborn or if Kinley was something he just wasn't aware of yet. How did a person know? He had so many questions for Tim but he didn't want to sound like Kero.

He hesitated. "Do we have to move him?" The couch didn't seem like such a bad place to stay and what if they hurt him more by carrying him up the stairs?

[Dragon]

"I don't know how long it takes, but I'm sure it won't be... like weeks." Tim sounded doubtful, though, and Dragon was too out of it to assure him that he was feeling the effects of the potion even at that moment. "And I thought you guys would be more comfortable up there but... maybe you're right. It's probably a bad idea to move him right now."

Dragon lifted his head slightly to look at Kinley. He still hurt, but he felt a little better and a fraction more energetic than before he drank the potion. It was strong magic; he felt it coursing through his very human body. "Kiney..." He didn't know many words and he couldn't say what he wanted to say to Kinley before he--if he--passed on.

So he looked to Tim instead, since Tim could understand him. "Tell Kiney... I love him."

Tim stared at him for a beat. "Uh." He cleared his throat. "Kin. Dragon says... uh... that he loves you..."

The young-sounding one gasped loudly. Then-- "Oooooooohhhh! He can't! Mom's gonna kill you guys if she finds out!"

[Kinley Sima]

"Yeah."

It would probably be less jarring to just keep Dragon where he was. Kinley totally understood where Tim was coming from--it would definitely be more comfortable upstairs in a bed. But it wasn't like the couch was a hard, stiff one. It was comfortable enough and besides, Kinley was terrified that if they kept moving Dragon around, he was going to end up worse off. Kinley didn't want to think the word itself but it didn't look good and he didn't like the way Tim's tone sounded when he talked about the potion. They ran off to bring it back but they weren't potion brewers here. None of them knew if it would actually work...

And what if it worked too late?

Kinley shifted slightly to make himself a little more comfortable--he felt like he was going to be on the couch for the long haul, too--and he looked at Dragon as he spoke his name, waiting. Except Dragon looked at Tim and said something in a language that clearly wasn't any language Kinley had ever heard before. But he heard his name in it! And he saw the way Tim hesitated.

What? What was it?

He loves you.

Oh.

Oh.

Kero ruined the moment and Kinley shot him a glare and shoved his shoulder. "Shut up."

But she so would. She didn't even trust Kinley spending time with Tim. Kinley could only imagine what she'd say about all this. And... well, Kero was there when his mother caught him in the office with Dragon. She was pissed. It didn't matter in the moment, though. She wasn't here and she quickly faded from his mind when Kinley looked back at Dragon. Resting his head against the back of the couch, he lightly brushed his thumb over Dragon's cheek. He seemed paler than normal but his eyes were still bright. He didn't even bother going through Tim when he said, "I love you, too."

[Dragon]

"Okay kids, time to go upstairs," Tim said as he pushed the other two up the stairs--one protesting volubly in the humans' language that Dragon didn't understand. "No, get up there, and stay up there. Let's go."

He wasn't really listening to them, anyway. He was looking at Kinley, and turning his cheek into Kinley's hand, and gazing into his eyes. Dragon didn't need Tim to translate this time; Tim didn't even bother. That look in Kinley's eyes was all the answer that Dragon needed and he smiled, though weakly, in response.

Kinley loved him too.

That knowledge alone filled Dragon with an incredible sense of peace. He sighed, softly, contentedly, despite the aches and pains. "Kiney... beeyootiful." Kinley was the most beautiful human that Dragon had ever met. Granted, Dragon had only met a handful of humans, but amongst them, Kinley was the clear front-runner.

Dragon reached for Kinley's hand and curled his fingers around Kinley's fingers, squeezing a little. "Kiney... kiss?"

[Kinley Sima]

Funny how the whole world had a way of disappearing when he looked at Dragon. It did, though. All the sounds around him were dampened, all the colors seemed to dull, except where Dragon was. There, the colors of his hair, his eyes, his skin, they all seemed to stand out. Kinley wasn't the head-in-the-clouds type of person. Between him and Kero, he'd say that Kero was the daydreamer, the one who fantasized about a different world and magic--all those beautiful things. Kinley felt like all that had vanished with Kaiden for him. Instead of feeling young and whimsical and free, he felt trapped by the confines of the real world.

But, to be real, Kinley had never been that kid. He'd always been grounded by reality. He worked hard for whatever he achieved and his head was always there, in the game, in the dance, in the moment. Now, it felt like it had been pulled into the clouds. Every second with Dragon was like a daydream. A feverish, unreal dream. He liked it. More than that, he liked Dragon. Loved him, even. It didn't matter how young he was or how long they'd known each other. Everything slotted into place when they were together. His eyes couldn't seem to move away from him when he was around. He felt restless inside. Fluttery, like thousands of butterflies had set up resident in his chest.

The feeling only strengthened whenever Dragon touched him and he leaned closer instinctively, unconsciously. Kiss. The word never sounded more beautiful than when it came from Dragon's lips. Just like the way he said beautiful. The way he said Kinley's name. It was all so... him. An electric thrill shivered down his spine and he smiled. He was still scared. He still felt like Dragon could slip away any instant. But he smiled because the feeling inside was so joyous that it was difficult--impossible--to ignore.

Instead of answering verbally, Kinley leaned in the rest of the way, so that his lips met Dragon's.

[Dragon]

Ah... Kinley. Kinley... There was no one like Kinley, who made Dragon feel the way he did. Love was a powerful emotion that bound two beings but what Dragon felt almost transcended that. The feelings that he had for Kinley, the humans had no expression for them. Love was the closest approximation but Dragon knew, deep down, that it was so much more. It was the intertwining of two souls. It was the joining of two fates, melding into one.

Dragon closed his eyes as they kissed, letting the warmth and the sweetness envelop him. His grasp on Kinley's fingers tightened as something clenched in his chest; an ache, a throb. He loved Kinley far too much to let death claim him and he would try his best to fight to hold on, but... there were no promises. Dragon didn't know if he would make it, even with the potion that Kinley administered. But he knew that it was all worth it. The moment Kinley looked in his direction, the second that Kinley touched him, he had no regrets. He would do it again, and again, and again—no sacrifice seemed too great to get Kinley to kiss him this way.

"Kiney..." Dragon smiled at him as they parted, his voice a low whisper. "Kiney." He breathed the name like a prayer, like a song. It was a beautiful name for a beautiful soul. For a beautiful face, a beautiful smile. Beautiful eyes. Dragon reached up and brushed a thumb under his eyes, as if wiping away tears.

"No." He repeated the motion again. "No, Kiney. If Dragon go..." Don't cry for me.

[Kinley Sima]

"Dragon," he echoed, his voice equally soft in response. He felt his cheeks heat up a little as he toyed with some of Dragon's hair. Dragon. What an impersonal sounding name for somebody like Dragon. He was a Dragon, this was true. But... it would be like Dragon calling him Human. I have to think of a nicer name for him. Too bad Kinley was no expert in the naming of things. His last pet--a fat, round hamster--had been named Hammie. Not much better than Dragon but he refused to call him Draggy. That was even worse!

"Huh?" Kinley uttered a sound of confusion. No? What...? What did that mean? His lips began to move, the question right on the tip of his tongue but it was stilled by the way Dragon kept moving his thumb beneath his eyes. Was he... was he crying? Kinley swallowed hard and reached up to slip his fingers over Dragon's. Nothing wet. Maybe his eyes were too emotional. They did feel awfully warm and salty but he swore! He never let a single tear fall right now! He'd been sucking it up like a man.

"You're not!" Kinley said fiercely as he leaned in and let their foreheads touch. Their noses touched, too. For a long moment, Kinley closed his eyes and just breathed him in. When he opened his eyes again, he caressed Dragon's cheeks. "You're not going anywhere. You're staying right here. With me." He kissed the tip of Dragon's nose. "Okay?"

[Dragon]

"Kiney... no..." Dragon sighed, tiredly, quietly. There was no mistaking Kinley's vociferous response, or what it meant. Despite the language barrier, they spoke a common language; they understood each other's hearts. The expression of their feelings could be communicated much more eloquently in the touch of lips to lips, in a glance, in the subtle emotions that passed through their eyes.

Although Dragon was no longer fading, he was still so, so tired. He didn't want to let go, but he didn't want to make empty promises, either. Hope could be cruel when dashed to the ground into pieces; saying something to make Kinley feel better now might come back to devastate him later, if Dragon lost the fight and succumbed to his injuries.

He arched his head so that their noses nuzzled gently. "Dragon... l—" Dragon tried to emulate the word he heard Tim saying earlier, his lips working to form the sound. "Loh... Loo..." A crease formed between his brows; he made an impatient sound as he thought back to the word Tim said, and then remembered how Kinley said it.

"Dragon... luv? Kiney." His hand slipped up to touch Kinley's temple, sweeping back the hair there to expose more of his face. Dragon smiled; a simple, happy smile. "Dragon luv Kiney."

[Kinley Sima]

Nothing Dragon could say would change Kinley's mind. Nobody was taking Dragon from him this time, Kinley would make certain of it! He watched him with a warm gaze, unable to tear it away from Dragon. The whole world really did melt away when he was around. Kero used to be The Most Important Person in his life. But then Dragon came along and he was trusting Tim and Andy with his brother while he stayed downstairs with Dragon. He needs me more right now. In a way, Kinley needed him, too. If anything happened to him...

"Kinley loves Dragon, too," Kinley said. He made a small heart motion with his two fingers, then put it over his own heart and then moved it toward Dragon's. Or wherever Dragon's might be--given that he was, well, a dragon.

He let his eyes close briefly as Dragon touched him and then he gently brushed Dragon's hair, too. In a soft voice, he said, "We should get some rest, Dragon. It'll help you heal."

[Dragon]

"Kiney luv Dragon." He nodded. This, he knew, and it was reaffirmed by the heart that Kinley drew, connecting it to Dragon's. In the human body, he felt it beating, thumping hard in response to the words and the gesture and the tender look in Kinley's eyes. Dragon smiled and arched up to kiss Kinley, no more than a soft peck of the lips.

"Yes," he whispered softly, ready to acquiesce to whatever Kinley wanted of him. Dragon settled back and tried to pull Kinley with him, to lay together on the couch. It wasn't quite wide enough for two people to lay side-by-side but if he wiggled a little, and maneuvered some limbs to wrap around Kinley... "Nnh... Kiney..." Dragon ended up wound around him like a clingy koala. He nuzzled his cheek against Kinley's, too tired to attempt any more acrobatics. For now, this would have to suffice.

"Dragon... luv Kiney..." It felt like the most important thing in the world to say right now, to let Kinley know just how he felt. Dragon murmured the words several more times, each slower than the last, quieter, until finally he dropped off to sleep.