Oh, my litttle flashlight

aww thank you!  I'm as pleased to hear that from you as Dante is to get it from Osprey!  I stalk all of Osprey's story threads, I love them so!
This is gonna be a slower thread, I have a hard time typing the stories on my phone <3 but yay for fluid timelines! at least this shouldn't break anything

He grinned as she once more came to the exact same conclusion as their hero.  "This was as he thought as well, for the choice seemed obvious.  He could either trust this bird or continue to wander in circles, perhaps for eternity.  'Alright, bird, I seek the dragon who dwells within these woods.  Do you know where I should go to find him?'  The bird cocked it's head, appraising him."  Birdlike, he did the same to Osprey in illustration.

"'If you're sure...'  Caius gave a single, firm nod.  He couldn't waver now, not when he had come so far.  'Follow me.'  The bird took wing, a yellow blur amongst the trees, and Caius was forced to jog to keep up.  The little creature was agile and used to darting amongst the trees, whereas the wolf was constantly tripped up by roots and stones even after his long stay within them.  The woods were only kind to their own, after all, and the bird was indeed an enchanted creature."

Here was the turning point, so Dante paused a beat.  "After a while, though Caius did not realize it, the way became easier.  His path was not impeded by so many obstacles, as though the trees no longer wished him ill. Still he focused on the bird above, it's wings churning, the motion almost hypnotic.  And slowly he became engrossed in the flash of those colorful features, pulled in until they were his only sight."

"What Caius had not stopped to consider was that the dragon was a powerful creature and had dwelt long in that forest.  None had dared oust him from their midst, and in fact, many were keen to stay in his favor.  This bird was one such individual, for he did not see it worth the risk to challenge a creature so much stronger than itself."  Dante's sister had always enjoyed stating reasons for the bird's betrayal.  Perhaps he had a family who he did not want harmed?  Or maybe the dragon had done him a favor, and he was in its debt.

"Through his fog, though, the wolf noticed that something felt off.  Perhaps it was Jupiter, or perhaps it was his own instincts, but he cast the stupor aside just in time to come to a skidding stop at the edge of a massive cliff, water rushing by through the rocks below.  His guide was nowhere to be seen, having fled when the enchantment broke."  His favorite of his sister's theories, for it contained the most intrigue, was that the bird had known all along what would happen.  It seemed the type of tricky, offhand thing that a spirit guide would do.

"At first he cursed the bird, but then he realized that it had done him a favor after all.  Because though the trees would lie, water always ran true.  And by following the river, he would likely reach the heart of the woods.  Gathering his courage once more, he continued on, this time allowing instinct to keep him to the water's edge.  Somehow he knew this would take him to his foe.  His instincts were correct, and before long, he found himself standing at the mouth of a large den, an intense heat radiating from inside.  Our hero's final challenge was before him."  Here Dante paused again, though there was nothing really for Osprey to contribute at this point in the story.  He liked to pace his tales so that they were not too hard to listen to, and the climax had been reached.  Now would come the showdown between dragon and wolf, and he needed to remember how the tale went.  It had been so long, but still he could hear his old storyteller's voice in his ears, a fond recollection from a time long since gone.