Chapter IV: A Safe Feeling

Leinheart soon woke up early the next morning, but before he even opened his eyes, he noticed something odd. He was feeling a bit heavier than usual, perhaps because he was so relaxed. But then again, he never could relax. He opened his eyes and looked around, quickly noticing the figure that was Shadow sleeping soundly on top of him. It was a bit of a shock, and quite puzzling to see how comfortable she appeared to be. He tapped her nose a few times.

"Hey," he whispered,"wake up." After a few attempts, she finally gave a response, slowly opening her eyes. She almost immediately jumped when she noticed the situation, and felt embarrassed to say the least.

"I'm sorry, Leinheart," she said sheepishly. Her cheeks became rosy."I was hoping to wake up before you so you wouldn't notice, and.."

"Calm down, Shadow," he interrupted."It's okay. You don't have to act so nervous around me." She seemed to relax, and the rosy shade that filled her cheeks faded. Then she began to speak again, but in a low tone, as though still afraid.

"I just feel so comfortable around you. So.. safe." She looked away, and tried very hard not to make eye contact.

"You should." His response immediately caught her attention, and she looked at him once more. "You do belong to me now, so to speak. The brand on your leg is proof of it, and by dragon law, that means no one can touch you without my consent. Peasant or not, I'm still a dragon, and the laws still apply."

"Okay." It was the only response she could think of. "Do I need to start calling you master?"

"No. Do not think of me as such. I am not your master, I am your friend." She felt a sense of relief, and gratitude, but at the same time, it felt strange. It was rare for dragons to befriend other races, maybe even illegal. Yet for some reason, she felt a special kinship with him. Perhaps something more. Something deeper. Leinheart stood up and stretched, then continued."I need to get the shop ready. Will you be okay by yourself for a while?"

"I suppose," she answered. She watched as the dragon headed out. He looked at her one last time.

"I'll be back soon."


A few hours passed, and slowly at best. Shadow had found a book to read, but found it difficult to concentrate for some reason. Something else was on her mind. She gave a yawn, and was getting bored, and lonely. She decided to pay Leinheart a visit. She didn't think anything of it since the shop was next door.

She headed out, and as she headed for the shop, she looked at some of the city features. What caught her attention was a large building in the distance. It looked like a castle. At the top sat a dragon statue on each side. This must've been where all the higher powers stayed, perhaps even the so called 'Hierarch'. She finally reached the shop, and entered.

The air felt warm, and smelled a little smokey. She choked a little from breathing it in. She could hear a constant pinging that was the sound of a hammer smacking against metal. A glimpse around revealed a wall covered with weapons of all sorts, including swords, spears, and axes. Near the end of the room was a fireplace, next to it an anvil, and the familiar face that was Leinheart. The hammering sound came from him smacking a hammer against the sword that was sitting on the anvil. The blade glowed a bright red, which meant he had just removed it from the fire. He suddenly stopped, looked the blade over, then carefully dipped it on a container of water. The sword sizzled and rapidly cooled. Leinheart looked at it proudly, and wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

Shadow couldn't help but stare. She didn't notice before, but there was a lot of muscular detail. His body was all moist from the sweat, and gave him a very interesting glow. She could feel her heart fluttering upon staring at him, but quickly snapped out of her apparent trance, feeling a bit ridiculous for having such thoughts. But then she thought to herself, 'What's wrong with admiring a male for his features? It's no different when it's the other way around.' Leinheart could feel her stare, and looked towards the entrance where she stood. She nearly gasped when he saw her.

"Shadow?" She tried to hide herself, but found it futile as he stood and approached. "What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to see how you were doing," she answered.

"You're not suppose to be out on your own. If anyone saw you, they would kill us both." She looked down, and felt bad for have doing something so dangerous. Suddenly, he smiled. His action puzzled her. "That's probably my fault, though. I should have told you before I left." He returned to his post, and grabbed another sword from the fire pit. "Since you're already here, make yourself comfortable. It's gonna be a long day for me."


It had only been a few hours. Shadow sat against the wall, the only sound being that of the smith's hammer pounding against burning metal. She couldn't help but watch him as he worked. The heat was beginning to get to her, and was making it less enjoyable. She began to sweat, and pant. The stale air made it difficult to breathe. Leinheart could hear her pants. It distracted him from his work, and so he glimpsed over at her.

"Are you okay? I can take you home if you want." She tried to shake it off, then quickly answered.

"I'm fine, Leinheart. Really. I'd rather watch you work anyway. Your technique is.. well, interesting."

"You've watched a smith work before, then?" Her response puzzled him.

"Not really," she said sheepishly,"I don't know why it intrigues me so. It just does." He didn't know how to answer. He finally decided to return to work and forget about it.

"Okay, then. If the heat becomes too much for you, just let me know." She nodded in understandment.


She did her best to ignore the heat as the hours went by. She was about to speak, but fell silent when she heard someone enter. It was another dragon. Based on the clothing, she could tell it was female. She had scales that glimmered a dark, emerald green, as did her eyes. She had a rather gentle look to her, which was uncommon among the dragon kin. She approached the smith with a smile.

"Hello, Leinheart," she greeted.

"Jade," he answered. The name struck realization in Shadow, remembering the name that came up in his journal.

'So that's Jade,' she thought to herself.

"Do you need something?" Leinheart continued.

"I was just checking up on you. You haven't been around lately, and it's had me worried."

"I haven't felt like going out much lately," he answered with sad like tone. Jade's worry continued to grow. But she knew Leinheart well enough to not press him further. She glimpsed at her left and saw Shadow sitting alone in the corner. The pup felt a little nervous as she felt her eyes on her.

"What's with the pup?" she asked,"Is she yours?"

"Yes," he answered plainly.

"I thought you were against slavery."

"I am. But I have my own reasons for taking her."

"It's about what Zokorov did, isn't it?" He could only nod to answer.

"In truth, she's not really a slave. She's a friend." He glimpsed at Shadow, who slowly smiled at his gesture. Jade glimpsed at her again, then turned back to Leinheart.

"Well, I suppose your reasons, whatever they may be, are none of my concern. But please, just be careful."

"Don't worry about me Jade," he answered,"After everything the Heirarch's put me through, being careful is really the only thing I know." She nodded, and decided it was best to leave so he could return to his duty. Before she headed out the door, she looked at Shadow one last time. The stare was much longer and intent. It made her nervous, wondering what the dragoness must be thinking. Jade finally averted her gaze and left.