The Dragon & The Prince - A Moceit Story

"The Draach Highlands"

 Weeks of isolation were slowly destroying Janus' will to live. Every day was exactly the same. He woke up as a dragon, went hunting so he didn't starve to death alone on that mountain, flew around the mountain range, and waited for nightfall in his cave. When night came Janus became himself again and could try to reconnect with who he used to be, despite the growing number of scales covering his once entirely human body. He would think about the life he had lost until he fell asleep. Janus usually dreamt of being reunited with his one true love, but some nights were restless and devoid of any sort of dreams. He hated nights without dreams. Dreams were just about all he had left in terms of happiness.

One day while Janus was circling the mountain, he spotted something very unusual. There were people hiking up the mountain. Janus quickly retreated back to his cave, uncertain of whether the hikers were simply going for a hike for fun or if they were interested in obtaining a dragon hide.

"There!" Patton shouted, pointing at the sky as a dragon flew overhead. Remus reached to aim his crossbow, but Patton stopped him. "I'll remind you, I don't want him dead. I'll only give you that reward if we can make it to him and reverse the curse."

"Boring." Remus whined like a toddler but put away his crossbow.

Patton looked at Virgil, who nodded knowing exactly what Patton was thinking. They all joined hands as Virgil began to cast the same spell they'd typically been using to speed up their traveling. They hurried after the dragon they had seen, following it to its cave.

At the same time on the opposite side of the mountain range, a small naval ship was looking for a place to dock. Aboard the ship was Roman holding his sword while he watched the Dragon Witch flying towards a peak and crawling into a cave. Roman tightened his grip on the sword as a very determined expression came upon his face. He waited until the ship was close enough for him to jump to shore and did exactly that. A couple members of the boat crew shouted for him to come back, but he didn't listen.

He was going to kill that dragon before it got the chance to run.

With Virgil's help, Patton and Remus were able to get to the mouth of the cave with relative ease. Of course Patotn had his love for Janus to spur him on, Remus had his love of reward to give him the drive to keep going, and Virgil had a need to redeem himself in Pattons' eyes and in his own.

Patton pulled himself up onto the ledge at the mouth of the cave, breathless from the seemingly endless climb. He laid flat on the ground while he caught his breath. Once Patton's breathing became regular again he lifted his head from the ground looking into the cave.

At first all Patton could see was darkness. Then he could make out a silhouette of a large figure just within the darkness. There was a pair of big yellow eyes staring back at him. From a distance Janus hadn't been able to recognize him, but now he was completely sure that Patton was really here. The only thing Janus wasn't sure about was why Patton was there. For all Janus knew he was here to kill him since everyone seemed to believe that he had been killed by a dragon. The thought of that made Janus take a few steps backwards into the dark.

"Janus!" Patton called after him, scrambling to his feet to run after him. While Patton ran after his long lost love, Virgil and Remus began preparation for the counter curse that would free Janus from his dragon body.

Janus stopped retreating in the cave when he heard his name called. Patton knew. He knew that he was the dragon. Janus had no idea how Patton knew, but it was clear that he did. The two of them stood face to face for the first time since Janus' disappearance. It was just a mix of emotions, Patton didn't know if he was going to burst into tears or start non stop smiling. He ended up doing both while clinging to Janus as best he could considering how much bigger he was in this form.

"I missed you..."

The dragon's yellow eyes were brimming with tears. They were a mixture of joyful and sorrowful tears. It was incredible to see Patton again. It was literally a dream come true. But at the same time it was painful to see what had happened to him in the time since they'd been apart. His once perfectly maintained appearance was in shambles. He was dirty from living in exile for so long, his hair a total mess and his clothes torn and tattered from having to run. Janus couldn't help feeling responsible for all of the pain Patton had to go through because of his disappearance.

The two of them gradually made their way back towards the mouth of the cave. Janus was a little apprehensive of Patton's companions but Patton explained that they weren't a threat to him. The four of them sat together explaining what had happened to the world while Janus was missing to him. Patton filled Janus in on what had happened in Parthenia, Remus explained the conspiracy regarding Dulcinea, and Virgil stayed quiet while he worked on the counter curse.

Even after being informed about most everything that had happened, there was one thing Janus still didn't understand. The last time Janus had seen Patton he was in the arms of another man. As far as he knew, Patton was still with him. Since Janus couldn't speak while in his dragon form he reached forward and carefully tapped Patton's ring with his claw.

Patton looked at his ring. It was the one that Janus had lost when he was transformed into the dragon. The coachman had brought Patton the ring and he had worn it every day since the coachman's arrival. It took Patton a moment to realize what Janus was asking. He smiled and put his hand over Janus'.

"I'm still yours and yours alone." Patton reassured him. That comforted Janus a great deal. But that comfort quickly vanished when everyone heard the sound of rocks clattering off the cliffside as if they had been knocked off. Someone else was coming up towards the cave entrance.

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