Wings

Sunlight sprinkles through newly grown leaves of the forest’s sturdy branches. Fresh new smells pierce the nostrils, as shimmering scales break through the leaf’s shadows. Reptilian talons crackling the earth’s surface breaking the silence of the serene mountain, as a frightened deer suddenly tangles between large triangular fangs. Membraned wings flap in excitement while lunch is secured. Glistening puddles on the earth’s floor reflect a magnificent and shiny creature. One that has been told in old folk lore for centuries. A dragon.

Midgardsormr is the last of his kind. He had not felt the souls of his kin in what felt like forever. He often frolics below the blanket of trees on these warm days, and today’s events have sprawled out normally. As he gnaws on the last of his meal, a high-pitched cry in the distance spikes the inside of his ears. He quivers in shock, as he has not sensed humans in several weather cycles. Midgardsormr sits up, focusing on this new sound. A moment passes, and the sound is still poking at his senses. He decides to quickly glide through the sea of trees toward the crying.

Upon closer inspection, a small human has entered the forest’s curtains alone. Midgardsormr lands his talons in front of this tiny screeching creature, knowing it would not harm him. As he stares into the child’s small eyes, the tears stop. The child’s fixated eyes gaze back, and giggles with excitement while reaching its pudgy hands towards Midgardormr’s face. Instead of pulling back, he decides to allow the child to caress his rough scales. As they intermingle their bodies, their souls amalegate. Pure fulfilling emotions swirl through his mind as their foreheads interact. It is a warm and inviting feeling. One that would make Midgardsormr believe that they would meet again another day.

Midgardsormr broke their embrace as more human sounds crowded his ears. “Maggie! Maggie, where are you?” A feminine voice screams a few yards away from where he stands. He looks up, frightened that more humans might see him. He jumps around some foliage nearby but keeps hidden from the opening in the trees. An older female human fumbles through the tree’s curtains, accompanied by a taller male and two smaller kin. They keep yelling “Maggie!” with frantic concerned looks on their faces.

Licking Maggie’s face to indicate his departure, he glides several yards away out of sight from the child. Its high-pitched cry emerges once more as the earth is sliding under his feet. Engulfing himself in a bed of bushes, he turns his head to look back. The female human, who must be her mother, picks up Maggie from the ground. They embrace and smile. His swirling magical eyes watch the humans gather, pack up their things, and exit the forest. The serenity of the secluded woodland permeated his ears once more.

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Water sprinkles upon the daycare’s windows as Maggie scribbles in a book on an old wooden desk. The yellow pencil glides across the rigid page, filling the blank white paper with a sketch of a dragon. She often doodles these creatures, not fully understanding why. They have been a passion for her since birth. Fantastical stories of these creatures fill her mind, and often keep her in a joyous mood throughout her monotonous life.

Sighs and giggles of toddlers break the room’s silence. Maggie just put them down for their nap after a chaotic lunchtime. She has been patiently waiting for her coworker to arrive for their afternoon shift. Anxiety has been cloaking her mind today, the results come back from Thomas’ important career changing test. He recently decided to join the air force and become a pilot, and this test will decide his fate.

The landline rings, Maggie abruptly jumps out of her chair to grab the phone and bumps the sketchbook off the desk. She positions the phone to her ear. Her coworker is running late but promises they will arrive soon. Trying to calm her anxieties, Maggie closes her eyes and massages her temples after hanging up the phone. The window’s glistening reflection catches her gaze on the fallen sketchbook. Recollecting her book, the new page opens to a sketch she drew of the Hoh forest from when she was in middle school. She recalls the time when Thomas was her classmate, and when he noticed her drawing it, he excitedly displayed the cool rock he had found when hiking there with his dad. This sparked new conversations and interests, and they quickly became a couple.

The squeaking of the opening front door jolts Maggie back into reality after she had been reminiscing those fond memories. While her coworker settles in, Maggie packs up her things and heads out to Thomas’ house. Dark clouds drench the dreary sky, and rain continues to drizzle on her black umbrella. The drive feels quick as Maggie’s anxious thoughts fight in her mind. Thomas explained prior that he would have to move out of state for this program, and she had been fretting on this idea. They have been comfortably dating for several years now, and change worries her.

Gravel crinkles beneath the tire treads as her car enters the driveway of his family home. The rain is dancing off the shingles of the old rickety rambler. Maggie grabs her things and runs inside the front door, hardly knocking. Her entrance abruptly stops as Thomas tightly hugs her, with a paper in his hand and a big grin on his face. “Maggie, I passed my test!!!” he exclaims as he plants his paper in her face. “Wow dear, I am so happy for you!” tears are now decamping from her eyes, she wipes them with her sweater’s sleeve and kisses Thomas on his rigid cheek. In a swift moment, Thomas also grabs something from his pocket and drops it in Maggie's hands. She slowly opens up the box with curious, cautious eyes. “I wanted to give you and I promise rings, so we can always be connected while I am away.” Thomas softly whispers, he also has tears sparkling in his golden green eyes. They exchange rings and hug once more, excited for the upcoming events about to take place.

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Hot sunrays poke at Maggie's nape as she follows the earth's natural paths. Trees whistling their songs breaking the mountain's stark silence. The familiar trails soften under Maggie's worn hiking boots. She's no stranger to these woods. The Hoh Forest felt like a second home to her after Thomas departed over a year ago for his new career.

Maggie's fingers glide over the tree's mountainous barks and sticky amber sap. As she strides over the saggy roots, she feels like Thomas is hiking beside her. They've taken this path a few times together, but after his leave, these woods kept inviting her here countless times. Maggie's thoughts overfill with the hopes that Thomas would call or text more often. It is rare to hear from him these days.

Maggie's silver wristwatch glistens in the sunlight. At a quick glance, she notices the hands are 2 notches down from when she started. "Time for a break" she mumbles

to herself, lowering her worn green backpack to the muddy earth below. Her bottle’s icy water gushes between her breaking lips, cooling her down. Maggie sits on a tree trunk,

feeling the soggy sweat puddling on her back. She takes another swig of water and munches on her crunchy protein bar. "Has it been 3 weeks since Thomas contacted me?" Maggie ponders, gazing at the stark blue sky. Her anxieties dissolve as she pats herself on her cold moistened cheekbones. Snatching some tissue from the front pocket of her bag, she stands up while searching for a restroom spot.

Fallen leaves crunch under Maggie's treads while she dances around the foliage. The perfect spot is behind a nearby tree, away from sight of the main trail. As Maggie does her business, blue suddenly empties from the sky. Clouds are filling in seconds, and the sun has been driven away. The cold jabs at her arms, forcing a quick shiver. She runs, swiftly grabbing her backpack to quicken her pace.

After what felt like minutes, the familiar turns are gone. Maggie decides to backtrack to the restroom spot, however could not find it. Her map quivers in her hands. She’s lost. A rigid peak hovers over her head, grasping Maggie's attention. She attentively climbs atop to spot familiar landmarks. As she wobbles to the edge to peak ahead, a shadow pokes at her peripheral vision. Looking back to find the culprit, her footing fractures beneath her, causing her to fall and blacks out.

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Maggie blinks, feeling moistened stone beneath her fingers. As she sits up, her muscles scream with every notion. A cave enters her vision as she adjusts to the low light. Her eyes fly around the room, however are halted by what seems to be large, fiery yellow eyes focused at her. A low hum of the creature before her glues her to place. “Hello? Who and what are you?” she yells defensively. There are sounds of large feet hitting the ground, and the sound of something sliding behind them. More light abruptly comes out of the creature's front. “There's fire coming out of its mouth!” she screams, hiding her face. Feeling warmth close to her arms, she notices that instead of being scorched by the fire, its tendrils lick the sides of the cave causing torches to gleam.

She could now see more than just a pair of eyes. A reptilian face, with horns, frills, and a whip-like tongue are close to her now. And attached to this face was a snake-like body with arms, legs, wings and even a tail. Reality sets in and she realizes it’s not just any creature. It’s the fantastical creature she fell in love with even before any memories she harbored. It’s a dragon!

As the large lizard elegantly lays down on the rocky floor, a deep bellowing voice comes out of its mouth. “Hello little one, I hope you are unharmed. I know this is an abrupt meeting.” Maggie tries to move but her muscles are cemented together. “I know you out of all the humans in the world would know already that I would not harm you in any way. Please relax.” The dragon yawns as it stretches it's wings out across the cave’s structures.

Feeling the warm, calming aura of the creature, her body releases all tension. She scoots closer to place herself next to the drake, uncertain of its response. The dragon produces a sound, something best described as a chuckle. After settling in, she gazes at the dragon’s glowing eyes once more. “Have we met before? What’s your name, if that is okay to ask?” Unwavering eyes move towards Maggie, slowly turning into the dragon softly colliding its forehead with hers.

Memories, feelings, and thoughts rush into her mind, gushing like an ancient stream. Visions of small toddler hands reaching towards the dragon’s face. Maggie’s mother yelling her name, searching, and coddling her. Maggie’s body ages as she hikes through these woodlands. A golden glow from her chest turns to darkness as she walks. A crisp voice beckons her to reality once more. “Midgardsormr.” Opening her eyes, tears trickle down her cheeks.

“Do you understand now, little one? I’ve been waiting to meet you again. Your soul feels like it is fading away. A soul so interlinked with my kind, I’ve never felt one like it. You’ve kept faith in us even when the world moves on and calls us make-believe.” They’re eyes have unglued for a moment. As Maggie ponders these words, she notices the shine of his translucent scales and the rough textured horns atop his head. Their eyes meet again and Midgardsormr hums once more. “I am the last of my kind, little one. I’ve waited many thousand sun cycles for this day. My soul is fading away as we speak.” Maggie spikes up, firmly grasping the dragon’s side. “No, this can’t be! Is there something we can do!?” Her hands shake as she feels like this new world before her is shattering.

Nudging her face with his own, Maggie sits back down and wipes the tears from her face. “Like I said before, your soul is a special one.” he pauses for a moment and takes a deep long breath. “I know how to save my kind, to keep our legacy alive. It’s something new. Something we have not tried before. Obviously, the dragons are not part of this new world, so we must do something new to match it. I am giving you all my strength, all my power, all of my soul. Would you accept?” Maggie's scrunched face reflects off of the dragon’s scales. She nods.

They connect their foreheads again. Their souls embrace feeling like they are finding each other after a millennium. Visions of Maggie’s body forming into a dragon and taking to the skies. Purple swirling eyes are watching her, waiting for her to land. A small feeling in her peripheral vision of Thomas, shackled to those eyes. The warmth she felt kept getting hotter and forcing her sight back into the cave. Instead of a large reptilian creature standing before her, there were glowing pieces stuffed in the air, twinkling from the torch's flames. As Maggie blinks, the dazzling specs race to her heart, force her to the ground, and grab her consciousness into sleep.

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Reptilian wings pierce through fluffy white clouds. The earth races below as Maggie heads towards the university in her monstrous scaly body. Thomas has not spoken with her in ages. His words do not reflect their current relationship as of late. That 4-letter word keeps poking at her mind, but has never connected. The magical tingle in her chest urges her to come here after so many months of mental torment. As the shadows grow across the earth, Maggie plants her taloned feet at an old hotel near Thomas’ school.

Purple and silver spiders trickle through her dreams throughout the night. Maggie fumbles out of bed, and they disappear into dust. As she retrieves her clothes, she encloses her body with a forcefield spell, as well as a curse breaking spell on her promise ring. The unknown forces Maggie into high alert, she realizes that protecting herself is necessary.

Dry heat nudges her skin as the university beckons her. Entering the gates, Thomas invades her view. He is chatting with other males, dressed similarly to him. “Thomas!” Maggie blurts out without hesitation. Thomas glances at her, waves his colleagues goodbye and greets her. "Hey Maggie, sorry I haven’t kept in touch. Nice to see you.” Blank hazed eyes stare at her, as a smile is pulled across his face. “Hey Thomas!” Maggie's eyes water. “Let's have lunch and catch up!” She barely squeaks as she hugs him. “Oh Sorry I can’t today, maybe another time.” Thomas quickly responds,backing away from Maggie and abruptly running into the school’s doors.

A few eventless days pass, but Maggie is eager to reach Thomas once more. The large clock tower chimes as leaves flutter across tree skirts. The mass of students exits the building holding food trays, indicating a lunch break. Glittering silver hair catches Maggie’s gaze. Beautiful shining strands trailing a woman’s body, who accompanies Thomas at a table nearby. Her purple irises swirl as she smiles, giggles and flirts with him.

Frustration overtakes Maggie. Her appendages move without her guidance, towards the couple. As their faces grow in her view, target her walking towards them. Before she can sit at the table, the woman bolts up and stands between her and Thomas. “Hello, you look new. Who are you?” Her bold vibrating voice pokes at her chest, causing it to tingle. “Uh hi, I'm Maggie. Thomas’ girlfriend of several years. Who are you?” Maggie crosses her arms holding her stance to confront the strange woman.

Her violet eyes burn into Maggie’s pale skin. “Hello, my name is Allison. Thomas and I are betrothed, so please vanish from our sight.” A deep breath escapes Maggie’s quivering lips, and her eyes close. The memories of Migardsormr prod her conscious. “Purple eyes, silver hair?” Maggie’s inner thoughts paddle through the dragon’s endless wisdom. Maggie opens her eyes to face this stranger, knowing there is magic within her. As Maggie is waving farewell, the name written on Allison’s bag shines behind her on the chair, reading “Allistoniana”.

Maggie clutches an aged book, exhausted after countless sleepless nights probing the library's resources. As she flips through the dusty pages, the words shimmer in the afternoon sun. “Allistoniana is the oldest witch of her kind. One that inhabits her family lineage of festering dragon magic to enhance their own. They usually harbor purple eyes, and have either white, or silver hair.” Maggie gasps, finally finding out who this woman is. “She's a witch!” she blurts out, immediately shushed by the other readers.

The next day, she finds the couple enjoying their breakfast at the busiest cafe in town. As Maggie sits at a booth across the room, a tall, blond server welcomes her.” Good Morning! Before I order, please give this note to that silver haired girl.” Maggie points to Allistoniana, with a big grin across her face and hope in her eyes. Maggie earlier that morning created a fake article depicting a dragon sighting in the Hoh Forest. There were many accounts of the dragon and a search party was planning to take on the challenge of catching the beast.

Maggie watches the server walk over and hand the note to the witch. After a moment, Alliostoniana gets out of her chair and exits the cafe. Thomas hardly reacts, his eyes glued to his half-eaten blueberry pancakes. In a swift motion, Maggie jumps over to Thomas and holds his hands with her own. “Thomas, please take a flight at sunset today, okay?” The promise rings sparkle simultaneously, transferring that curse breaking spell onto his, as Thomas nods and watches Maggie take her leave.

Something in Thomas urges him to follow Maggie’s instructions. His Cessna shines beneath the sun's waves of color. His eyes twinkle as his promise ring vibrates, signifying the witch's binding curse has broken. A large reptilian creature penetrates his view of the sky. “ Is that a dragon?” He questions as he starts to change his heading. Maggie senses his direction change and snatches her talons around the plane’s metal sturdy wings. Unable to proceed with the flight, Thomas curtly jumps out of the airplane.

Letting go of the metal bird, Maggie transforms back into her human form and glides next to Thomas. They clasp each other's hands as their bodies race towards the earth. “Maggie, I feel as if a cloud has lifted from my eyes, where have you been all this time?” His golden yellow eyes glisten like all those years ago. “I figured something happened to you; I’ve saved you from a witch's grasp!” Maggie sobs between each word. “Will you still be mine?” Maggie questions once more, yearning to hear his response. “Yes I will Maggie, forever!” Thomas gladly pledges, and leans in for a soft kiss.

That's when you knew that the pilot had fallen in love with the dragon.

Their souls were both intertwined with their hearts and wings in the sky.