Chapter 7 - Farewell

Farewell

A firm bump woke Sayuri from a peaceful dream of her old home back in the cave. She missed the way her fur slid on the cool ice and the soft wisping of the wind through the cave. She looked to see what had bumped her. Nall was rolling about in his sleep. 

"No more fish please, I'm stuffed." Nall mumbled in his sleep.

Sayuri walked to the playground, placed her front paws on the railing and gazed off into the distance. The unfamiliar terrain further heightened her homesickness. 

Sayuri heard a bellowing voice from inside. "Let me out of here!" 

She followed the screaming to discover that Taben's Peak had a prison. The boy who had taken her from her home was banging on the bars and demanding to be released. She couldn't help but walk by and rub the situation in the boy's face. She walked in front of the cell and sat down. For a brief moment she stared at him, wondering how he would react.

"You! You're the reason I'm in this mess. You wretched beast, when I get out of here, that stomach wound will look like a scrape." He tried to kick her, but she was just out of his reach, frustrating him further. He banged on the bars as hard as he could. The rattling echoed through the empty room. 

Sayuri casually got up and walked away. She walked back up to Nall's room, where Nall was still sleeping. Ruby met her outside the door. "Good morning Sayuri."

Sayuri whined softly and rubbed her head against Ruby's.

Ruby looked concerned. "You sound upset. Is something wrong?"

Sayuri looked toward the playground and whined again.

"You're homesick?" She asked.

Sayuri nodded.

Ruby sighed. "I can't say that I blame you. There isn't a day that I don't miss the days I adventured with Hiro. Let's wait until Nall wakes up. We can talk to him about it."

Sayuri smiled softly in agreement. She was glad that she decided to remain friends with Ruby. Somehow, between Ruby and Nall, she had regained a piece of herself that she thought was lost forever. She drew great comfort in this, and would miss these two greatly.

"Let's eat some breakfast, I'm starving." Ruby suggested. 

Sayuri yipped and followed Ruby down the hall.

Nall was soon awake, and joined the two for breakfast. They ate quickly, and sat around the entrance for a while, gazing into the distance.

Ruby cleared her throat. "Um...Nall?"

Nall glanced at Ruby, who continued without waiting for further reply. "Sayuri told me she was feeling homesick. Is there anything we can do about it?"

Nall turned to face them. "The Dragonship Destiny is still waiting at the base of Taben's Peak. No doubt Ronfar is explaining the situation to Leo. I could ask them to take you back home, but you would have no way of returning."

Sayuri whimpered.

Ruby looked at her with a concerned face. She turned to Nall, looking distraught. "She said that it may be fore the best. She doesn't belong here."

Nall turned to Sayuri. "I doubt there will be anything left there for you, are you sure this is what you want?"

Sayuri nodded sadly.

Ruby started to cry. "You can't Sayuri. You have become my closest friend. I don't want to lose another one."

Sayuri brushed her head up against Ruby. 

Ruby began sobbing harder. 

Nall nudged Sayuri's shoulder with his paw. "We are taking that boy to the Destiny. If you want to go, now is the time."

Sayuri nodded sadly. Nall transformed into his human state and walked into the prison area. "It's time to go. We are taking you to a place where you can't hurt anyone anymore." Nall unlocked the door.

The boy charged straight at Nall, throwing a hard punch as he passed. Nall evaded it, grabbed his hand, and slammed the boy into the wall, pinning his arm behind him.

Standing directly behind the boy, still holding his arm, Nall moved his head closer. "If you try that again, I will do to you what you did to Sayuri."

The boy stopped struggling and cooperated while he was taken to the Destiny.

Leo stepped away from the helm. "This isn't a passenger ship, nor is it a ferry."

Nall chuckled. "Sorry, special circumstances. Besides, he isn't a passenger, he's a prisoner. The passenger is behind me."

Sayuri walked nervously up to the deck. Seeing Leo, she darted behind Ruby, shaking.


Leo kneeled down to Ruby. "Is this the one Ronfar told me about?" Sayuri began shaking harder under his piercing gaze.

Ruby nodded.

Leo stood up again. "Well, I suppose she wants to go home if she decided to come here."

Sayuri nodded timidly. 

"Well, let's get you home than." He said, taking the helm.

The Destiny started moving. Ruby turned to Sayuri. "Don't worry. This ship can travel over both land and water. We'll be there in no time." 

Ruby flew up and sat on the railing on the side of the deck, and watched Sayuri run excitedly from one side of the deck to the other and back again. These antics sparked a laugh from her, which quickly turned into a deep sadness. 

Nall flew up the stairs in his dragon form and took a seat next to Ruby. "I know you are sad, but please try to be happy. Sayuri is going home. She is happy, let's not spoil it for her."

Ruby sniffled as one last tear fell from her eye and ran down her cheek, landing on the platform below them. She put on a half-serious smile and looked at Nall. "I am happy that she's happy. I just wish she was happy with us."

Nall sighed. "I know you will miss her, we both will. But we can't let our emotions bother her. You know she doesn't deserve it."

"You're right. Let's make sure her last few hours with us are pleasant." Ruby agreed. She gave Nall a light kiss on the cheek before jumping down to Sayuri to play.

The Destiny rumbled along until the air grew cold, and it started snowing. There was a slight lurch forward as the large vessel came to a stop. Leo approached the two playmates. "This is as far as I can go. You will have to walk from here. I will be waiting for you, don't take too long."

Nall and Ruby nodded and disembarked with Sayuri. Nall laughed as Sayuri and Ruby pounced each other in the semi-deep snow. Nall was concerned that Sayuri may open her wounds, but knew that Ruby was careful and wouldn't let it get out of hand.

They finally arrived at the entrance to the cave. Ruby's eyes began tearing again. "I will miss you Sayuri." She rubbed her head against Sayuri's. Ruby pulled back and licked Sayuri's face. "Best of luck to you." Ruby turned around and walked away slowly, the smile fading from her face. The increasing cold winds blew her bow about and chilled her body.

Nall just looked at Sayuri, unsure of what to say. "Sayuri, I...I'm glad I met you. I know we had a rocky start, but I'm glad I could come to call you my friend."

Sayuri stepped closer to him. Nall was unsure of what she wanted to do, and backed up slightly. Sayuri moved faster, and pushed him into a long kiss. Nall relaxed and closed his eyes. Nall could feel his body becoming warmer as the kiss went on. He pulled back. "I'm sorry. I...I...goodbye Sayuri." He said in a panic. He turned around quickly and ran to catch up with Ruby.

Nall let out a deep sigh as they walked back toward the Destiny. "I hope she's happy here."

Ruby, trying to keep her spirits up, just nodded in reply.

They said little as they boarded the Destiny. The deep snow, seemingly friendly on the way to the cave, now felt frigid and unwelcoming. The gentle beautiful snowfall had now become an unyielding blizzard. The only sound to break the silence was the occasional gust of wind, which caused Ruby to shudder and wonder how Sayuri ever managed to live in such a desolate place. The beauty she had so easily recognized on the way there, she could no longer find, despite her efforts.

Ruby walked into the dimly lit halls of the Destiny and disappeared from view. Nall approached Leo. "We are ready to leave." He turned toward the cave as the Dragonship turned around. "Goodbye Sayuri."

Sayuri walked around the cave. The evidence of the Brutal attack had disappeared, probably by scavengers looking for the next meal. The blood had washed away, and the cave looked as if the whole tragedy had never happened.

Sayuri laid down, the sound of dripping water and the wind blowing through the mouth of the once familiar cave filling her ears. She put her head down to go to sleep, but quickly pulled it back up again. She looked around. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, she stood up. The cave, once seeming a myriad of shades of light, now just appeared to be rock and ice. The warming laughter of her family was replaced with the cold howl of the wind. This was no longer her home. A sharp cold breeze blew past her body, causing her to shudder. The landscape she had once loved seemed barren and desolate. Sayuri felt alone again. She walked to the front of the cave and let out a howl, which was caught by the wind and swept away into nothingness, lost to the night. 

She didn't understand. This wasn't the home she had when she lived with her family. Then she realized it. ‘Family.' She had been so desperate to return to what she had once lost that she hadn't realized that she left behind the one thing that made her old home feel welcoming. She ran as fast as she could to where the Destiny had been, finding only the fading evidence that it had once been there. She was alone.

Nall found Ruby sulking in an empty room. "May I join you?"

Ruby just turned and shook her head.

Nall stepped in anyway. "You shouldn't isolate yourself like this. You are not the only one who is sad that Sayuri left."

Ruby turned away from his friendly gestures. "Please leave, I wish to be alone."

Nall sat down several feet behind her. "I'm not leaving. Misery loves company, and we are both miserable."

She turned to him. "I don't think-"

Nall interrupted. "Good, don't. You'll depress yourself further."

Ruby gave a mildly amused smile and approached Nall. She brushed her head against his, leaning it against his shoulder.

Nall moved around to her side, putting his paw on her shoulder. Ruby wanted to brush it off, but he suddenly pushed her over. She became upset, but the tension was eased when Nall started laughing.

Nall walked around behind her. Ruby stood up and pounced him, pinning him on his back. It took all of her strength to keep a straight face.

"I suppose you were planning on using that?" Nall said, causing Ruby to look at the space between them.

Ruby chuckled lightly. "If you think you can handle it."

Nall smiled. "Ha! Try and keep up with me."

Ruby pulled her body forward, and eased it onto the pink protrusion that had appeared on Nall's underside. She made a surprised face when she realized that it had entered the wrong hole. 

Nall chuckled. "Want to try again?"

Ruby pushed her nose to his, "No, let's do it this way."

Ruby began moving her body up and down along Nall's underside. The feeling of him probing around inside her was strange, but she liked it, for reasons she neither understood, nor cared about.

Nall was enjoying this new experience as well. He began bucking his body in sync with Ruby's movements. 

Ruby loved Nall, more than either one of them could understand. She hoped he shared her feelings. She allowed her muscles to contract around him, causing him to moan happily. 

Nall began panting heavily. His bucking was draining his energy quickly. He could feel the pleasure building up. He held it in as long as he could, but it quickly forced its way out, and into Ruby's behind. He remained motionless as his secretions dribbled down his backside, rolled off the side of his tail, and collected on the floor. Ruby pulled off of him, causing more of the thick fluid to drain all over Nall's body. 

Nall just laid there, enjoying the sensation of his juices covering his body. He suddenly felt Ruby sitting on his stomach, causing him to look up. 

"We still have time before we get back." Ruby said suggestively. "Care to go again?" 

Nall couldn't find the strength to speak. He just nodded.

He felt Ruby enticing his member back out from its hiding place. After a minute, she had succeeded. 

Ruby returned to her spot on Nall's stomach. "You look tired, why don't you take it easy this round?"

Nall just laid there as Ruby eased her body onto him, this time finding the correct hole. She began moving her body up and down, slower than the last time. Nall just laid there, enjoying the sensation of his partner working him. 

Ruby raised her tail and curved it around towards Nall's anus. She slowly pushed it in, exciting a strange "ooh..." from Nall. She moved her tail in and out of his body, timing it with her movements. Nall squirmed happily. Ruby chuckled.

Ruby could feel the fluid from their last session between them. The sticky fluid stuck to her fur as their undersides rubbed together, messing their coats. Ruby slowed her movements further, feeling the sensation building up. She paused every second, allowing the feeling to ebb slightly before continuing. She eventually couldn't hold it in anymore, and a torrent of fluid covered Nall. ‘This is going to take a while to clean up.' She thought to herself as she continued milking Nall. 

She could see Nall straining, signaling the end of their fun. She pushed herself onto him as far as she could as she felt his fluids filling her for the second time. She held her position for a moment, absorbing Nall's fluids. She pulled off and laid on top of Nall. "Nall, I don't think Leo would appreciate cleaning up this mess, could you give me a hand?"

Nall made no response. He seemed to be in a half-zombified state as Ruby licked their bodies clean. The quickly drying fluids made their fur stick together, but neither of them seemed to mind as she meticulously groomed both of their coats.

Nall began mumbling "I love you Ruby..." He said before rolling onto his side. 

She finished cleaning the area and stood over Nall. "I love you too." She kissed him on the cheek before slowly walking out the door and headed for the top deck.

The Destiny soon approached Taben's Peak. Nall had recovered and joined Ruby on the deck. They both smiled and looked at each other as the Destiny pulled to a stop. They thanked Leo and disembarked. 
_______________

Several days had passed since they left Sayuri back at the cave. They both missed her terribly, but continued on with their lives as best they could. Taben's Peak seemed quieter and emptier without Sayuri there. Each day seemed dark and lonely.

"That fish was unusually good today." Nall commented on the way back from the river near Taben's Peak. 

Ruby looked at him and chuckled. "Yeah it was..."

Nall's smile disappeared. "You can't keep doing this Ruby. If you keep wallowing in the past like that, you will never see the good things in front of you. She isn't coming back. We'll have to live with that."

Ruby sighed as they boarded the elevator taking them up to the summit. "Yes, but I can't help but think feel that she had changed her mind somewhere and misses us."

The elevator reached the top. There seemed to be an unusual commotion. They dismissed the feeling and walked back to Nall's room. One of the children was standing outside the door. 

The young girl approached the two dragons. "You have a visitor. I hope you don't mind I showed her in." 

They looked at each other before darting past the girl and into the room.

They were greeted with the sight of Sayuri sitting on the floor in the middle of the room.

"Sayuri!" Ruby shouted as she ran to her friend. 

Sayuri barked happily and rubbed her head against Ruby.

They stayed like this for several seconds, each with their eyes closed, enjoying the moment. 

"Welcome home Sayuri." Ruby finally managed to say.