Sleeping Dragon bring me the horizon

She was falling. Everything that she had ever imagined and experienced swirled about her her world as she fell into nothingness. She could not tell where she was, what she had been doing, or where everybody else was-- all she knew in that moment was free falling. That was until she awoke. Her heart was pounding as her head shot up. Despite seeing her familiar surroundings, the smallest Goufa took a moment to realize just where she was and to realize that she hadn’t been falling-- it had all been a dream. She could not shake the feeling for the life of her nor could she forget just horrific it felt.

She remained laying, her body shaking and she looked to her sleeping family with tears in her eyes. Letting out a whimper, the girl let out a pitiful, “sis awu”, seeking comfort in whoever was out there to give it.

The stormchaser had found it rather difficult to nap. Her mind was occupied with thoughts of the outside world and the light that glittered in through the opening of the den. Every so often, she would close her eyes and her breathing would slow until it became drawn out. The pup’s limbs would begin to relax for a brief moment, but it was only fleeting. With a restless twitch, she would come back to life and would rise from her resting spot to move ever so slightly to the right. Once she had deemed this a suitable place to stay, Thyri would lower herself to the den floor again and attempt the elusive nap. Even though she had found the perfect spot for her tiny body to slumber, it had seemed that the fates had another idea.
 
The sound of Freyja rattled her baby blue eyes open and she peered curiously at her sibling from where she lay. There was a nonchalance about the child that would have been infuriating if she were not so young. Spreading her maw in a gaping yawn, Thyri slowly rose upward and padded toward the little moon. With a supportive flag of her tail, the stormchaser lowered her head so that she could peer into Freyja’s eyes. “No no…” she cooed to her sibling with a small smile.

She wanted out of the feeling. As her fear grew, despite the fleeting sense of vertigo, she closed her eyes tightly. She had never had such a dream and it had spooked her and she wanted nothing more than to jump up and run to Gyda’s side. Yet, she could not do this. She was frozen in place with the fear of falling running rampant in her mind. She knew very little in the art of calming herself down, but somehow closing her eyes helped her in that moment. She remained frozen in place until the presence of another was suddenly before her and crooning caressed her kindly. Opening her eyes to the stormchaser, Freyja looking up with wide eyes.

“S-Sis,” she whimpered quietly, her heart slowing as she looked upon her sister’s loving gaze. “F-Fir rawn, sis…” She lowered her gaze to her paws then, shiver coursing through her being as she layed.

Freyja was scared. At her words, the stormchaser blinked at her in disbelief.
 
It wasn’t that she had never felt fear herself before, because she was a child and there were times that she had experienced truly crippling terror. She was a bold character, though. Even though she was still small and had few months on her life, Thyri was intent on showing that she was far more capable than others would presume. She was the thunder fighter. Her mother had bestowed the name on her for a reason, and it was not to cower in darkness to be swallowed by fear. Beside this point, though, the child did not want her sister to feel the crippling dread that had spread through her.
 
Lowering her small body to the earth so that she could sit beside Freyja, the pup peered carefully at her with an intent expression. “Frey,” she breathed quietly, hoping that her words would rouse her sister. “Ste yuj.” Because they had to. They were born from great blood and though they were too young to understand it at that time, Thyri knew that they needed to be stronger than those around them. They could not fail.

 

Ste yuj. She blinked at her sister’s remark, her frown deepening as Thyri looked on with gentle eyes. She wanted to be brave in that moment but she was falling short in the bravery department. Her head fell to her outstretched paws and another whine seeped from her dark lips as she attempted to rustle up some bravery from within herself. Thyri was always the brave one when it came to everything. She was the one to explore the most, to lead whenever the puppies played-- she was practically made of confidence! Freyja, obviously, was not.

“Ha?” she whispered frailly, a tremble meeting the end of her question. How could she be brave when she felt so afraid?

Thyri pulled her head back almost indignantly at the query that was offered to her. She maintained the eye contact that she had with Freyja, but she could not understand how she was intended to answer such a silly question. How was she supposed to be strong? By just doing it… by taking her fears and swallowing them until she could turn those terrors into fire and breathe them back into the world like a true dragon was intended to do. Thyri might have been young, but she knew that her sister was not weak, and so the stormchaser rose to her paws and moved to stare Freyja directly in the eyes.
 
“Why you afraid?” she asked her with an intense expression. Perhaps if the young child knew what was so frightening, she could do better to assist her silver-cloaked sibling. Fears were a large part of life, but it was the overcoming of fears that made them significant.

She watched her sibling carefully, hanging onto her every move with hope. What wisdom did she have to share? What tricks did she have up her sleeve? None, apparently. She shuffled back slightly as Thyri dropped to meet eyes, uncomfortable by the closeness and the intensity dancing in the younger dragon’s eyes. When Thri responded with a counter, Freyja froze in her place. Why you afraid?

Detaching her gaze from her sister, Freyja looked down to the ground with a frown. “I falleded,” she responded quietly as she placed one paw over the other, her uncertainty shaping her very being in that moment.

As the frail voice of Freyja fell against Thyri’s ears, the young girl blinked out of surprise at the response that had been offered. Her silver sister had fallen! Who had dared to lift her to an area where she would fall? They were children of the great Gyda and Gavriel; they were not destined to fall from anywhere. The stormchaser lifted her head upward and peered around curiously for a ledge that might have housed Freyja before her drop, but she could not locate a single perch. Once she had properly scoured the entire den, she turned her attention back to the little moon and breathed out a huff of a sigh. It was not done out of irritation, but understanding. The girl had fallen in her dreams as well…
 
“Get up… ‘gain?” Thyri then prompted with a hopeful expression on her young face. What other reason did they have to fall? So they could rise.

She watched quietly as Thyri scoured the den, seeking any sort of answers that she might find. Freyja waited in silence with baited breath, knowing she wouldn’t find her answers over there or anywhere. Trotting up empty handed, Thyri seemed to find the answer as she returned to Freyja and sighed. To this, Freyja looked to her sister and nodded. Yes, that’s how she had fallen.

When Thryi suggested what she should do next the girl stared on for a brief pause and thought about it. Sure, she could stand. But was she hurt? Would she not be able to stand? Discomfort spread across her face as she looked to her sister as her own fear coiled tightly around her drumming heart. “Can I?” Could she really? She didn’t even know if she wanted to at that point.

The question dumbfounded her for a moment. She even reeled physically to show that she had been surprised by the inquiry that had fallen from her sister's lips. Could she rise once more? The stormchaser's eyes narrowed on the slate figure of Freyja with a determined glower - at least an attempted form, as her face was still comically youthful. There was no anger there, but part of Thyri could not believe that Freyja would ask such a question. Flicking her tail upward and lowering her head toward the grey-cloaked girl, she offered a gentle nudge. 

"You try..." she prompted with a slight, encouraging smile. How could she know if she never made the attempt in the first place? 

You try. There was nothing more that Freyja could say-- the stormchaser had said everything that could be said. Though fear gnawed within her being, Freyja took her sister’s latest statement to heart, mulling it over for a moment before deciding that she had to take a stand. Her fear was slowly melting away and from this came a newfound sense of strength.

Slowly, she pushed herself unsteadily onto her legs until she was standing, holding her breath as she rose. Looking to her sister once she was standing, she exhaled softly and smiled for the first time that evening. “Did it,” she breathed, her tone filled with relief.

The little warrior trained her gaze on her sister with an intense expression. The way in which Freyja had made the attempt to lift herself was a powerful gesture. It was a sign that she was not weak, and the fear of falling could not hold her in the clutches of the earth. Her talons were sharp, but the fang of the wolf was far more powerful. As she stood once again, there was a flash of triumph between the two sisters. 

"Good, Frey... you strong, " the stormchaser said with a nod of her skull and a quick gesture of her tail. The moon child had defeated her crippling vision of failure, and the young dragon felt swelling pride for her kin. 

She smiled weakly at her sister’s compliment. Despite it all she did not feel strong in that moment, but she also did not deny the compliment. Then, without another word, Freyja reached forward to slip her muzzle beneath Thyri’s.

“Bed?” she asked then, locked in her embrace as she spoke. Despite her fear the urge for sleep had returned to her.

Thyri was far too young to realize that she was growing to be quite savage in her ways. She favored strength in her siblings, and was not fond of the rare moments of weakness that were shown. Still, Freyja offered a small smile in response to her remark and that was thought to be enough. The triumph was short lived as the silver-coated girl requested that they seek their bed. The stormchaser nodded her head and glanced toward the shared den with a mulling expression on her youthful features. Morning would bring new obstacles for them, and the months that would follow would be far more challenging.