Chapter 5~

Ride

From down bellow, pedestrians aligned the streets, while several police cars surrounded the building from which Estelle had landed on. The residents of said apartment looked out from their windows, while a news crew had arrived to report the scene.

The creature's ears flickers anxiously at the sound of the constant high pitched wailing, the frightened screams, gasps and murmurs of the crowd, as well as the constantly shifting helicopter lights that hovered over her and the princess. Estelle made certain the people kept their distance from the animal, who snapped her jaws every so often whenever one of the officers even so much as dared to inspect her. The only human she allowed to be near her the entire time was Estelle, and even she wouldn't allow anyone else to come near her unless the ambulance had arrived. Estelle narrowed eyes in a way that mirrored that of the creature at the officer's constant asking if the princess needed anything.

After the ambulance had finally arrived on their helicopter, the crew were…more than startled to see the wounded unidentified creature. The paramedics weren't sure how to take this large animal to the palace, even with the ones who possessed wands, one levitation spell wouldn't be enough to rise this beast off the ground. They would need more wand users in order to complete this feet. They also did not have a gurney big enough. Thankfully, one of the crew members knew of a growing spell and made the gurney into the perfect size to carry the creature. More and more paramedic wand users were called, and using their combined magic were able to place the beast onto the flying contraption.

Estelle remained by her side the entire way back. The officer had alerted Queen Luciana of what had happened. When Estelle asked what her mother had said, the officer only gave her a look of discomfort. Estelle didn't ask anymore questions after that and returned her attention back to the creature, who continuously whimpered in fear. The electric lights above and the strange contraption she had been placed on felt very strange and foreign to her. Estelle could feel the creature's heart pounding heavily inside her chest, as if it were about to pop right out.

Estelle took a wet rag and placed it over the bullet sized gapping hole on the membrane of her wing, wiping away bits of the already dried blood that caked the surface. Her injured leg had been bandaged. Whenever the creature became anxious, she immediately relaxed when Estelle either whispered into her constantly twitching ear, or placed her hand over the surface of her scales. Estelle had noticed that the scales shimmered like pure garnet stones, while the pink part of her body had a soft furry surface.

Once they had arrived at the palace, the creature was taken to the queen's throne room. Luciana promptly rose from her chair once the doors had opened and the creature was levitated before her. It was lawed that every animal that came into the boarders of the city would first be presented to the queen, in order for her to decide the proper usage and outcome of the creature. This had been the law since Estelle suggested to instead save innocent creatures rather than kill everything in sight. Before, the dead animals and whatever remained were given as offerings to the queen, and she would decide which carcasses would be used for either decoration, or be prepared as food for her subjects.

Estelle desperately hoped her mother didn't plan on harming the creature. She remained by the animal's side as Luciana descended from the small stairs towards the beast. The animal became aroused, its teeth partly visible and a sound that resembled an angry growl vibrated in her throat. Estelle rubbed the creature's chest in hopes of calming her down. Even if her mother believed her to be a threat, Estelle would not allow any harm to come to the creature.

Luciana wore an austere expression, even when it seemed the creature was threatening her. She turned to face her daughter. "So, this is why I had to cut my meeting short?" she asked, her voice calm and composed, yet cold and forceful at the same time. "Why did you bring this creature here? From what I heard, she attacked our police force."

"She didn't attack until she was provoked." Estelle firmly stated, gripping her fists tightly. The creature's ears flickered upon seeing this. Her emerald green eyes gazing up at the queen and her said ears pressed back against her head.

"Did she hurt you?"

"No. She didn't even try."

Luciana studied the anatomy of the beast. There was no mistaking the wings, spikes and horns, though the middle one coming from its forehead was a feature she had never heard of before. "I have heard of dragons." she said. "They are known to be one of the most deceitful creatures out there. They are the reason many of our huntsmen did not return. I thought we had killed the last one ages ago."

"I don't think she's a dragon, mother." Estelle said, "Well, at least not entirely. Yes, she breathed fire but--"

"Then she is a dragon." Luciana interrupted, her lips pursing and stared daggers at the beast. "Or at the very least of the dragon family. All the more reason she should be sentenced to death."

Estelle swiftly placed herself in between her mother and the dragon-like creature, outstretching her arms to block her mother, who took only one step forward. Her brows furrowed. "No! I won't let you do that!"

Stripes hid behind Estelle's legs, nodding his head as if he were agreeing with his owner, but Luciana payed no heed. "Estelle…"

"I told you, she didn't hurt anyone! She didn't hurt me!" the young princess turned around, removing stray strands of the creature's mane from her forehead. Luciana's eyes partly widened, though the rest of her face and body remained still, she noticed the way the creature's eyes softened upon Estelle's touch…the same had happened when she found Stripes all those years ago, as well as the result of many creatures that turned out to be innocent. They were immediately soothed by her touch.

Luciana became irresolute. Every bone in her body told her to eliminate the creature right then and there. There was something about the thing that made her skin crawl and her hands wanting to clench into fists just by being near it. The creature's eyes were large, and admittedly beautiful unlike anything she had ever seen. Luciana willed herself to look up at the paintings of the Arions above her head, silently asking them for some assistance on the matter. When nothing came to mind, Luciana wanted to yell at her daughter and make the final decision, no matter how angry she became.

Still, seeing Estelle affectionately petting the creature, who became so at ease in her presence made Luciana think twice. Perhaps this was another sign of the Arions in regards to what made Estelle so special. Maybe, this was just part of another test she had to complete. Who was she to question the will of their gods? Their beautiful gods who represented all of the most wonderful aspects of humanity and their virtues. More than anything, her mission was to follow their example, which she had done all her life.

"Guards!" Luciana's voice rose, causing Estelle to flinch and the beast to whimper in fear. The queen quickly adjusted the volume, having unleashed some of her kept up anger in the process. "Take this animal to the prison chambers." she said in a more tamed manner.

"What? Mom!"

Luciana rose her hand, commanding her daughter to be silent. "She shall sleep there for tonight. Place her in the corral in the garden meadow by morning. Gag her as well, just to be safe."

Before Estelle could utter a word in protest the creature was already being pushed away by the guards. Estelle's hand remained on the creature's side, only to have it slip right off once she was out of arm's reach. The creature let out a desperate whining sound, its mouth wide as if she were crying. Estelle felt a stab in her chest. Seeing the creature being taken, while still in her frightened and injured state, cased a fervid flame to ignite within the princess. Her fists clenched even tighter than before, her nails digging into her skin. She sucked in her lips as tears already threatened to roll down her cheek.

"Mom, you better not harm her!" Estelle warned, her nostrils flaring while barring her teeth, almost in a similar manner as the creature. "She didn't do anything!"

"You will not raise your voice at me, young lady!" Luciana's voice finally rose to its full extent. She had kept her composure the entire time the guards were present, but now that it was just her and her daughter she had no more reason to withhold herself any longer. She calmed down before speaking again. "I assure you, no harm shall come to the creature. But we can not allow her to use her fire breath on anyone else. I only spared her because you seem to have some kind of power over her. She listens and obeys you, much like how our royal pets do. We shall keep her as a form of study. I believe this could serve as a great cause for our people."

Estelle stared at her mother in confusion. "Obeys me? What are you talking about? All I did was…" Estelle stopped. She wasn't entirely sure what had happened. All she knew was that she felt an immediate compassion towards the creature, and seeing her injured and frightened was as painful and unbearable to handle as much if she were someone of her own flesh and blood. Estelle…didn't understand why. Was it…was it that she did have some kind of secret power? The power to sooth even the most ferocious of beasts? Was that what led her to the outside gate all those years ago?

Her thoughts halted when Luciana placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Get some sleep. I promise, she will still be there once you wake up tomorrow."

Estelle nodded her head and turned around, pushing the large doors, exiting the throne room. Stripes trailed close behind. Once the doors had closed, Luciana took a moment to clench her fists. She picked up one of her throne pillows, and digging her sharp, long purple nails into it, she tore it in half. Clunks of cotton and silk fabric fell slowly onto the floor as the queen hung her head and got down on her knees, praying desperately to the Arions for forgiveness. However, once she looked up again, seeing the beautiful faces of her gods immediately relieved her of her transgressions. She got back on her feet, placing all of her trust that the Arions would knew exactly what do to in regards to everything that has just happened.

She trusted them with all of her heart and mind, and that was what gave her the peace and joy to sleep soundly that night, and every night afterwards.

*(~)*

His eyes widened in alarm, clenching his chest as he groaned in pain. With an outstretched hand, he held a handful of his beautiful black muck, bits dripping through his fingers before dipping his elongated fork tongue into it and took a large pile of it into his mouth. He licked his lips, savoring the addicting taste. His lair was filled with holes, all pouring in the slimy, black sewage that came in so many colors, all tainted with a dark tone. Nothing delighted him more than staring and eating the muck to his heart's content.

However, just now, he saw what he feared to admit…a bright silver color, transcending into white. No wonder he felt such a sting in his chest earlier. But, thankfully, it didn't take too long for it to become gray once more. Sometimes, it would show signs of whitening, but it was very short lived, and grew more of a darker shade as the years went by. It wasn't entirely black, but he knew it would be soon enough.

Unfortunately, today the sting felt alarmingly different. It didn't just feel like a needle piercing his chest, no. This time, it felt almost like the very tip of a dagger was hovering over him, digging two times deeper than normal. Not deep enough to stab him, but enough to cause him to squirm.

The sludge that poured out, with traces of dark purple color that made it nearly impossible to distinguish between the two, satisfied his pain in an instant. Whenever he feared the silver color would turn entirely white, the dark purple sludge would pour over it. The two mixing together was more delectable than anything he had ever tasted. With the right amount of time, he knew the two sludges would one day merge together as one.

He drooled at the idea, for that very same day was drawing near.

*(~)*

The sunlight peered through the open window of Estelle's bedroom. Stripes outreached his body in the form of an arc, yawning as he awoke. He felt a tiny itch at the back of his ear and scratched it with his hind leg. He blinked several times before scurrying towards the sleeping princess. Estelle's blue hair was loose and unkept, traces of her lighter colored bangs hung over her forehead, though her star birthmark was still perfectly visible.

Stripes gently patted her shoulder with his paw. When she didn't respond he proceeded to lick her cheek. This was enough to make the princess's eyes flutter open. She instinctively covered her face with her blanket once she felt the sun's rays reach her eyes. It only took a few short moments for her to adjust before yawning and stretching out her arms. The events of the previous night flooded her mind and she sprung from her bed at rapid speed. Estelle quickly changed into her normal day cloths, her signature blue shirt with the one shoulder gray purple one underneath, and her long corset cape that reached the back of her knees. Her hair was once again styled into her signature over the shoulder braid.

Estelle dashed for the door until she heard Stripes screech out to her in alarm. He stuck his head underneath the princess's bed, his long tail moving swiftly across the floor, and pulled out an emergency kit with his mouth. Estelle slapped her forehead at her own obliviousness.

"Good thinking, Stripes." she petted his head in gratitude, placed the kit into her shoulder bag and turned the knob.

Estelle rushed down the palace corridor, the run's rays seeping through the glass windows, illuminating the elegantly detailed tapestries that adorned the hallways, as well as portraits of long deceased ancestors of the royal family line. The guards startled when they saw the princess run pass them at incredible speed, nearly tripping over one of the servants, carrying a tray of waffles with maple syrup, a bowl of strawberries and a tall glass of apple juice.

"Princess, what about your breakfast?" she called out, trying to regain her balance while sustaining the silver tray. Droplets of apple juice flew off, landing on the floor.

"Just leave it in my room, Scarlett!" Estelle called out, running backwards for a moment before dashing again towards the door. "I'll get to it, thanks!"

Stripes hurried behind his mistress, already almost out of breath. Even for a mammal on two legs Estelle could run as fast as one on four. It was downright unnatural, even by animals standards. Estelle hurried down the spiraling row of stairs to reach a wooden door in an old storage room, filled with gardening tools such as rakes, shovels and many more garden supplies. Peaking her head out, the sunlight entered the dark room and a couple of yellow colored butterflies flew by.

Estelle stepped out, walking underneath an arch made entirely out of roses and strolled along the long white trail of stones and soft white dirt that made faint crushing sounds as she went. The path outstretched farther ahead to reveal a stunning garden meadow, filled with an assortment of flowers and wildlife. Luciana didn't wish to have too many animals roaming around, of course Estelle knew it was mainly because her mother simply didn't find all of the animals as attractive or cute and cuddly as she found Stripes.

The main creatures she had allowed to live in the castle were the stags and deers. A few stags resided in the country with Howl, but these deers and stags had a different outlook to them. Their legs were as long and elegant as a showgirl's, their noses bright white with pink hues, long pointed ears that outstretched over their heads and tended to flop or bend the tips at times. Their furs came in the color of gray, white, yellow and turquoise, with elegant patterns that looked like ocean waves, and patches on their legs that resembled bubbles. They also had long beautiful manes outreaching from the back of their necks, much like the creatures from Howl's paintings, only thiner and not as long or flowing. Their tails were short and fluffy like cotton balls, which looked so adorable when they shook. They mainly preferred eating carrots or any other vegetables, fruits and flowers that grew in the meadow. They especially loved the apple trees. When they were done, they would spit out the seeds and from there a new tree would prosper.

The males, especially the stags, had long, brown antlers where birds often sat on and chirped their lovely songs all day long. The antlers gave the impression they were wearing large majestic crowns, probably another reason why Luciana favored these animals so much.

Estelle walked along the path near the wooden fence, overlooking the deers until she saw the corral not too far off. The corral had been placed there for whenever any of the fawns were in labor so they could have their child peacefully without distractions. It was also used to place any rouge deers or stags that started fighting over a mate, or whenever one misbehaved. Estelle saw the creature laying on her belly, her body rising and lowering, indicating she was breathing normally.

Estelle leaped over the fence and rushed across the meadow. The deers and stags immediately spotted the princess and rushed on over to greet her. While Luciana mainly kept the deers as mere accessories to look at, Estelle enjoyed interacting with them. They were very friendly towards most humans, but for Estelle, they were instantly drawn to her, so much so that whenever she arrived they would completely forget about everybody else and pay all of their attention on her.

Estelle used her wand to levitate a few apples from the trees nearby and handed each one to the deers, who caught them in their mouths. As they ate Estelle then approached the corral, seeing the creature slumbering in a curled up position. A muffler covered her mouth, but holes were punctured allowing her to breath through her nostrils. It had powerfully strong straps, which prevented her from being able to claw her way out. Not that she could, considering she didn't have any claws.

Estelle felt Stripes scratching at her boot, making high pitched growls in distress. Estelle placed her index finger over her lips, shushing him. She didn't want to disturb the poor creature's slumber. Estelle tried looking for the hole in her wing, but the task proved to be difficult due to both wings being tucked in. One slightly moved in reaction to a small butterfly hovering over it.

Estelle didn't see any food either. The ground in the corral wasn't made of grass but of the same white sandy rocks that made up the pathway into the meadow. Estelle became irritated, but at the same time she wasn't that surprised. The guards may be the best security Luciana could hire, but they were still no trained hunters. Either that or they didn't know what kind of food to give the creature. Not that it would matter on account of her mouth being covered.

With a sly grin Estelle pulled her wand from her boot. Magic sparkles emitted from its tip, only for Stripes to cock his head curiously. His brown eyes darted back and forth from Estelle to the slumbering animal. The furry creature gasped as he watched Estelle slowly, and steadily, unbuckle the straps around the creature's mouth. With her levitation, Estelle slightly lifted her head, careful to not wake her up, and removed the muffler from her mouth. Stripes bit on his claws the entire time, but let out a heavy sigh of relief, his eyes dropping as a result and he laid his belly onto the soft grass.

The creature did not stir as Estelle took the muffler, placing it around one of the wooden pillars of the fence. She levitated a few apples from the trees and stacked them into a pyramid near the animal. One of the apples rolled down, colliding with the creature's elbow. The animal stirred and attempted to return to her slumber, until she noticed the uncomfortable feeling on her face had suddenly disappeared. This slow revelation, added with the gentle nudge from the apple was enough to awaken her. Estelle didn't know if to leave or stay, Stripes was on the side of leaving. Just because the creature had not harmed her last night he doubted she would be on friendly terms now.

The beast's eyes fluttered open, her head flightily jerking upwards in alarm before easing herself. She moved her jaw, the fresh scent of nature filled her nostrils unlike before when she had to breath through those holes, and even the muffler itself had a terrible smell. She wondered if the humans ever cleaned that thing. The creature spotted the apple that had assisted in waking her and stared curiously at it until she saw the rest of the apple pyramid beside her. She blinked several times, her ears flicking until she took notice of the princess outside the gate.

"Hey. Sleep well?" Estelle asked. She honestly didn't know why she had asked that, it's not like she would have been able to reply.

The beast stared at Estelle with its bright green eyes for what seemed like an eternity. Estelle wasn't sure if she was imagining it, but the creature smiled softly to her before picking the apple into her mouth, devouring in mere seconds.

The beast then tried lifting up its injured and bandaged leg. Estelle gasped softly, staring at her with great remorse. The sound of the loud gunshot echoed in her ears. The princess flinched and winced at the sight of the creature struggling to stand. The wound was mainly on the upper half of her leg, but placing pressure bellow her knees caused the creature to loose her balance and was forced back down to the ground.

On impulse, Estelle leaped over the fence and approached the creature. "It's okay, it's okay." she whispered in a soothing voice. "You're going to be fine." Estelle traced her hand over the bandage and pulled the kit out from her bag.

As a huntress-in-training, Estelle was also educated in medical care. After all, a hunter is never truly a hunter without being able to tend to his or her own wounds. The cotton was completely dry with blood stains, so all Estelle was going to do was replace it with a brand new one. From what Estelle remembered, the gunshot didn't penetrate her skin entirely last night, so the hole wasn't as deep, yet looking at it still made her heart ache. Estelle poured a bit of a white creamy substance on her two index fingers and gently rubbed it on the creature's wound. She stopped for a short moment when she spotted what appeared to have been sparkly particles on the surface of the creature's skin, now coded with the cream. It was very brief and Estelle quickly regarded it as simply a trick of the light.

The creature let out a soft whinnying sound, her muzzle hovered over Estelle's cheek, tickling her. The princess laughed and gently petted the surface of beast's nose with her clean hand. "You're welcome."

The creature tried standing up once more. Estelle quickly got on her feet, watching in hesitation as the creature managed to regain some strength in her legs, now able to stand straight and still. She blinked before tentatively taking one step forward, followed by another, then another, and then another. Before long, the creature galloped all around the corral, her long slender tail wiping along as she went, her wings tucked to her side as she shook her head, her long pale pink colored locks bouncing.

Estelle was enthralled by the creature's movements. Images of Howl's paintings flashed before her eyes and a wide smile grew on her face. Stripes's ears perked upwards in awe, watching the creature move before stopping in front of the princess. The creature smiled, her emerald green eyes sparkling like their namesake. Estelle wiped her hand clean from what remained of the cream and tentatively rose her hand up and placed her palm on the surface of the creature's forehead, feeling the soft scales against her skin. The long pale pink hair tickled the surface of her hand and her fingertips collided with the curved horn on her forehead. Estelle had never seen anything like it before, but the exterior somehow felt familiar, yet she couldn't place why.

The creature's ears flicked, the two small golden hooped earrings captured the sun's rays, and the long multicolored braid dangled on the right side of her head. Estelle examined the colors, wondering how the creature managed to get her hair like that. There was no possible way she could have dyed it herself. Could she?

Estelle let out a surprised yelp when the creature suddenly pulled on her over the shoulder braid with her mouth before immediately letting go. It was a harmless, playful tug, but there was very evident strength in the gesture given that Estellewas yanked forward, nearly loosing her balance. The creature then gently shoved her to the side with her head, playfully leaping back, her cloven hooves trotting the ground and letting out a playful whinny sound.

"So, you want play, huh?" Estelle concluded, arching a brow while smiling in amusement. She turned her eyes towards the still locked gate. Seeing this, Stripes squeaked to get Estelle's attention, tilting his head towards the palace. Estelle only shook her head, smiling softly. "Relax, Stripes. Besides, where else is she gonna go?

Stripes pointed to the creature's wings, which one opened up, revealing the hole which had been made from the gunshot. The creature whinnied sadly, attempting to flap her wings. Her hooves managed to hover over the ground for a few short moments before quickly landing back. The creature's ears pressed back, indicating her sadness. Estelle examined the injured wing until she noticed the creature suddenly moved her front hoof over the ground, creating various lines which merged into a single shape.

Estelle stared in shock, her jaw hanging. Stripes shared the same reaction as the creature continued making the symbol on the ground. It was a drawing of her wing, with the single gapping hole in the center. Estelle dared to look back at her.

"You…you can…draw?" she hesitantly asked. Even saying it out loud sounded crazy. The creature nodded her head, revealing that she understood what Estelle had just asked her. She then carefully erased the hole on the drawing of her wing. Estelle cocked her head, trying to understand.

"So, it will heal on its own?" she asked rather unsurely, still questioning if wether or not she was dreaming all of this. After the creature nodded her head in reply, the princess took a step back, shaking her head in disbelief while rubbing her temples. Estelle looked over to Stripes, who shrugged his furry shoulders, his long, big ears pulling back.

The creature approached the gate, stomping one of her hooves onto the ground and nodding her head towards it. Estelle knew what she wanted. Stripes was still unsettled with the idea, after all, there really was no telling what this creature could do, even without her capability to fly at the moment.

Luciana did say dragons were deceitful creatures, but Estelle found nothing dangerous about the beast. Not to mention, she was clearly a highly intelligent creature who knew how to draw and understood Estelle at the same level as Stripes did. Estelle looked out at the garden meadow before her, and then back at the creature. She could tell by the longing look in her eyes how desperate she was to go out and stretch her legs. The corral was just too small for her. Gazing into her green eyes, Estelle could sense that same yearning as she herself felt at times whenever she was in the meadow, as well as that untamable desire for speed she got whenever she looked at Howl's paintings.

Her face morphed into a look of pure determination and unlocked the gate, allowing for the creature to gallop ahead in rapid speed. The dust around the corral rose upwards, and Estelle's braid billowed in the wind created by the creature once she dashed out with a wide smile. Stripes held for his dear life onto the fence, his hairs already standing on end and his stomach arched and trembled. Estelle wiped away the stray hair from her eyes and saw the creature running freely across the meadow. The dears who had been eating peacefully looked up, their long ears perking upwards in reaction to the new addition to their home. Many of them leaped away as the creature dashed on by, not attempting to harm to them, while others simply cocked their heads. This creature appeared to pose no real threat, and was simply enjoying her freedom.

Estelle couldn't contain her laughter as the animal pranced and galloped along. At that moment, it really did feel like one of Howl's own paintings had come to life. She could hear the wind whipping through her mane, her hooves crushing the ground as she went, and the lack of walls, fences and barriers granting her untold freedom it was…it was…

It was too much for Estelle to continue resisting.

With a loud cheer, Estelle ran ahead, her blue hair whipping behind her as she caught up with the creature. The beast smiled and joined the human. The two ran across the fields, side by side. Estelle at first struggled to keep up but was astonished to realize, before long, they were neck and neck. The creature flashed the princess a sly grin, a grin Estelle returned. With her eyes set forward, she accelerated her speed at the same time her new friend did and the two raced across the meadow together.

Stripes was left baffled by the sight. Estelle and the mysterious creature ran over the flower fields and bypassing the various fawns and stags. Flocks of birds who were eating the seeds on the ground flew off once the two dashed their way. Estelle always knew he was fast, but to be able to keep up with a creature on four legs was astonishing to her. The creature let out a happy whining sound and galloped instead around Estelle, prompting her to come to a stop. She playfully shoved her with her head, careful not to poke her with her middle horn. The princess laughed and started to chase after the creature, both playfully laughing.

The creature playfully taunted Estelle who continued to chase after her, until Estelle tripped on a stone in her path and rolled down a small hill slope, the petals of the yellow tulip flowers getting caught in her hair and cloths. Splotches of of dirt now covered the lower half of her boots and pants, as well as the tail of her long jacket. She laid on her back when the creature came galloping down to inspect her. Estelle had her eyes closed and the creature sniffed the human, only to be taken by surprise when Estelle blew right into her nose, which made the creature sneeze. She whinnied in a form that came off as a laugh and Estelle ruffled her pale pink mane before getting back upright. The princess continued to laugh as she stroked the creature mane and nose, mesmerized by her emerald green eyes.

The creature whinnied again, as if attempting to say something to Estelle. The princess sighed in disappointment. "I really wish you could talk." she said. The creature flared her nostrils at Estelle's face before playfully nuzzling her cheek, encouraging her to run again. Estelle happily complied and ran alongside the creature once more.

Stripes managed to calm himself down a bit as he watched the two race one another. It was always wonderful to see Estelle so happy, and seeing her being able to just let go and frolic the way she was doing so filled his heart with delight. The creature ran up a few feet ahead of Estelle, looking back in her direction. The princess caught sight of a sly grin on her face.

Before she had time to properly react, the creature dashed forward back towards Estelle, prompting her to stop, only for the creature to narrowly pass her. The creature's teeth grabbing Estelle's shirt and pulling her along with her.

"Hey, what are you doing? Quit it!" she demanded, but the creature continued to yank on her short sleeve with her visibly sharp teeth. "This isn't funny! You're gonna rip it!" Estelle grunted as she tried to pull away, only for the creature to suddenly let go of the sleeve and scoop Estelle with her body.

"Whoa! Hold on!" Estelle cried out, causing Stripes to squeal in terror and cry out for help. His cries were overlapped by Estelle's cries to realize she was now on the creature's back…while she was still running, all the while whinnying victoriously as Estelle gripped the creature's long slender and scaly neck for her dear life. She knew she was running fast, but actually being on some other beast while she was going equally fast made her heart race, her body tremble and the entire world go by her in a blur.

And she was loving every minute of it!

Her previous fears were so brief that she had already forgotten them completely. She managed to adjust herself, both legs on either side of the creature's body, positioning herself on her back properly as if she were sitting in a chair. A scaly, and furry, and very, very fast moving chair. Estelle's earlier cries of protests converted into unconstrained yells of jubilance which caused even the most at ease fawns and stags to immediately leap in alarm. Their ears pressed against their heads, fearing for the well being of their mistress's daughter.

Thankfully, the broad smile on Estelle's face as the creature dashed forward was evidence enough that she was far from being in danger. The creature ran towards the small slope once again, but rather than sliding downwards like she did before, she leaped into the air, at a height Estelle had never seen a creature do before. She leaped higher than even the most happiest of stags during the spring time. This was almost as high as a motorbike during a motocross race, only rather than the sound of a revving engine, Estelle was hearing the booming sound of her rapturous howling for joy as she outstretched her arms, feeling the wind against her face as the creature spread out her wings, despite her injury. She could hear the sounds of the creature's triumphant sounds, which nearly overlapped her own sounds of joy.

The way the creature moved, the indescribably feeling in her chest, her heart pounding so intensely she believed it literally wanted to burst right out of her ribcage. Images of the beautiful creatures from Howl's paintings flashed before her eyes. The emotions from when she observed the creatures and right now riding on this majestic, graceful yet incredibly powerful beast was uncanny.

"I can actually see them running across the landscape and I can feel the adrenaline. The same adrenaline I feel when I battle or cast spells."

The creature finally landed onto the ground, panting from exhaustion, but still leaping and stomping its hooves enthusiastically, all the while Estelle continued to laugh. Her hair was no doubt an unkept mess, but the thrilling sensation that overtook her when the creature dashed off was unmatched by anything she had ever felt in her life.

"That was amazing!" Estelle boldly hugged the creature's neck. "Man, you're seriously fast." the creature whinnied in reply, flipping her long pale pink mane. Estelle hoisted herself off of the creature's back, but once she did she nearly stumbled, still feeling rather lightheaded from her earlier experience. "Whoa, whoa." Estelle managed to stabilize herself, the world around her spun for a moment until she regained her focus. "Okay, I'm good. I'm good."

The sound of an unsuspecting ringing vibrated from Estelle's pocket, which sent the creature leaping back in alarm. "Oh, no, no, no, it's okay, sweetie. It's just my phone." Estelle pulled the said object from her pocket and demonstrated it to the creature. She slowly approached, her ears flicking an sniffed the strange contraption, only to reel back a bit when it rang again.

Estelle pressed the talk button and held the cell phone to her ear. "Hey, Dahlia. What's up?"

"Oh, thank the Arions you're still alive!"

Estelle looked at the creature, who tilted her head in curiosity. "Well, yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"We saw the news last night! You got attacked by some large monster! Are you okay? Did they manage to cage it? Please tell me you sliced its throat already."

Estelle groaned in frustration while face palming herself. "One: I was never attacked. Two: Yes, I'm perfectly fine. Three: No I didn't slice any throats, and Four: She's not a monster."

"She? Wait, how do you know it's a she? Hold up! Where do you have the thing?"

"In my mom's garden."

"WHAT?!" Estelle had to remove the phone from her ear, from felt it would blow right off at Dahlia's incredibly loads scream. Even Stripes and the creature cringed, their ears pinching from the noise. "You're actually keeping the thing?! What is it anyway? Was it a dragon?"

"Uh…I don't know, maybe. I've honestly never seen anything like her before." Estelle said as she calmed the creature down by caressing her bangs.

"Oh my Arion, girl you have got to show us!"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down there Ds. The poor thing was shot last night, I don't think she's really in the mood for anymore surprises."

The creature looked like she was about to nod her head, only for her ears to perk upwards and her eyes to widen in alarm. She suddenly started looking around, and even back at the corral, frantically stomping her hooves while whinnying in terror.

"Hey, calm down, what is it?"

The creature took in heavy breaths before returning back to the corral and drew again on the dirt.

"Uh, Dahlia, I'll call you back."

"Wait, Stelle, wha--" Dahlia was cut off once Estelle hung up the phone and observed as the creature created what appeared to be a square shaped object, followed by another with wave-like scribbles on it. Estelle squinted her eyes at the image. It didn't take very long for her brain to click.

"The book." she whispered to herself before speaking aloud. "The book that was in your bag!" The creature nodded her head while stomping her hooves, in her own way saying Estelle was on the nose. "Why were you carrying a book? Can you read too?"

The creature shook her head sadly before desperately stomping her hove beside the image. Estelle already knew exactly what the creature was trying to tell her.

*(~)*

Author's Note

I apologize for the long absence, but just letting you know the story is still in the works, just been side tracked with other projects, and I've been polishing the world of Lost Star. I really hope this chapter did not disappoint. Once again, constructive criticism is advised and well appreciated. Thank you, God bless *kiss kiss*