The protection of the trees was welcome after the harsh and biting wind ripping through from the north. It had grown even colder into late autumn, and the final dregs of fiery leaves were leaving go of their grips on the branches of beech and birch and rowan. Although a creature of air, Aurha was also an animal of fire, and she didn't care for the bare trees or the snow she could smell on the horizon, not a day away. The gale above had become so strong she had struggled to ride the currents, and was forced to drop to the ground. It made hunting even more awkward than it was already.



At the onset of winter, many animals had gone into hiding amongst the deep thickets. In the last week she and Hanorh had hunted separately, ranging far and wide in search of scarce prey, avoiding the tempting target of livestock in nearby valleys. All the copper drakka had eaten in the past week were a few scrawny rabbits, and pickings would only get slimmer as the winter progressed. The birds had flown south, and Aurha desperately wished to join them, but leaving her territory would leave it open for other dragons, and a fight would break out if she wanted it back. Nature warned against battle, and so, the dragons stayed.



Leaves swept lazily past Aurha as she stalked like a cat through the silent forest, alert to the slightest sound of prey. She looked to the stormy sky and hoped that her mate was all right, and fared better than she. He had not fully recovered from his fight with the rival drake, Skyar. It had left marks on her too, deep scars that would always mar her left flank.



There was a sound on the wind, drowned by the trees, but Aurha caught it with her sharp dragon ears. Human singing. The voice sounded familiar, and the copper followed it to a clearing. Aislinn was there, singing soft melodies to herself by a stream, her horse tethered to a tree not far away. It whinnied in alarm when it smelled the dragon lingering in shadows. Aislinn looked up too, drawing a short dagger from a sheath bound on her hip.



'Who is there?' she called.



'Still, Daughter of the Celts, it is only I,' replied Aurha calmly, pacing into the middle of the clearing, ignoring the plaintive cries of the bay mare.



'You startled me, my lady,' Aislinn said, sheathing the dagger. The dragon noted with a deep scowl that the carved handle was made of dragon horn.



'Why are you out here in the wild so late in the year, Aislinn?'



'To think,' she replied. 'It is harder than I thought it would be to live with Freyne. He cares for nothing and believes in no one but himself.'



Aurha listened patiently to all her friend said, wondering what it would be like to live like Aislinn. It had nearly come to pass; the grey drake Skyar would have killed her if Hanorh hadn't come to her aid. Aislinn had no champion so strong, and she was sorry for it. 'It is cold,' she said finally, moving closer to the young woman to share her warmth.



'It is,' Aislinn admitted. 'The snows will come soon.'



'In a day or so, then things will be even harder for us.' Aurha was looking again at the sky, even darker than before, her face creased with concern for Hanorh's safety.



'What is this cut?' Aislinn asked, tracing the line of Skyar's claws with her delicate hand.



'Nothing to worry about,' the drakka assured. She had suddenly noticed something about Aislinn: her shape had changed. 'You are with child,' she observed with a little surprise. She had suddenly noticed more the stirrings in her own belly.



'Yes,' Aislinn replied sadly. 'The first child of King Freyne of the Saxons. His lineage is secure, and when his son is born, he will teach him how he rules, and I fear he will grow into a tyrant like his father.'



'There will be hope for him if he is taught the Old Code,' Aurha suggested. Aislinn shook her head.



'The king has no time for the Old Code, he says he is above it.' A growl rumbled in the copper's chest. Nobody was above the Code, especially the not the king.



The two sat in silence for a while, each gripped by their own thoughts. The wind struck mournful notes of song through the trees, carrying away warmth and the last of autumn's leaves. The message was clear: Winter was on its way, and it came on swift wings.



Aurha's stomach grumbled when she looked at Aislinn's mare, now still but covered in sweat. It smelled good and reminded the drakka of her hunger. She privately hoped that there would be territorial skirmishes between the humans, because battle meant carrion, which meant possibly the best source of food for the winter. In the past, during hard times, dragons had made pacts with human warlords, to fight in return for food. Several of these warlords had lost their lives for not honouring the deal.



A shape was moving against the shadows. Sometimes it caught the dull light and the glint of a scale flashed. The smell of a fresh kill whipped through the layers of air, filling Aurha's nostrils. She rose, ever cautious, her wings half-furled in readiness for flight or display. Then there was a laugh from the trees. A dull thud and a crack sounded as something heavy hit the floor and snapped a twig. Aislinn heard a series of low growls and groans, but the silver was speaking quietly to his mate.



'Do you not recognise me, Aurha?' he said. 'I would know you anywhere, my love.'



'The scent of blood, fogged my senses, my lord. Can I not leave you for five minutes without you getting injured?' she jibed coyly.



'Maybe I will eat this mountain goat all by myself,' he replied, stepping forward into the clearing, the prey hanging limply from his mouth.



Aislinn gasped at the silver drake. He was slightly bigger than the copper, with a broader head and larger muscles, a larger spur on the end of his thick tail. But he was just as graceful as his mate, and looked just as lithe. His scales shone even I the dim light of the dark day, and the only thing 9that appeared wrong was a slight limp in one front leg.



Aurha purred with delight, and flowed like water to where Hanorh stood triumphant with his kill. They rubbed noses, emitting puffs of smoke and arching proud necks. Hanorh ran his muzzle with a low growl down his mate's neck and along to worriedly examine the scar on her flank. She nipped him to tell him not to worry. He frowned and turned to Aislinn who felt compelled to bow to such a creature.



'Greetings, lady human,' he addressed her in a deep, growling voice, with a strange accent. 'There are men looking for you in the woods to south, and I come to find my mate before they do.'



'Then I must go,' Aislinn said, suddenly worried. She would be punished for evading her guards. 'Farewell, my lady, and thank you for your company. And farewell to you also, my lord, who honours me by speaking my language so eloquently.' She mounted her horse and passed under the trees, towards where mens' voices could faintly be heard calling her name.



Aurha snuggled into her mate, eyeing the goat avidly.



'You were very well spoken my love,' she crooned.



He chuckled. 'Go on, I can tell you haven't eaten yet.'



'What about you?'



'There was a herd of them in the mountains, and I took one for myself. Do not worry, Aurha, I am well fed.' Well assured, Aurha snatched the dead goat from the ground and swallowed it in three huge bites. It filled and warmed her, but she knew it was only for a while, and she was getting hungrier these days. The thought darkened her face for a second.



'I wish the stars would shine tonight,' she whispered.



But the clouds came down and covered the mountains in thick, opaque fog, and for three days and nights (not that it was easy to tell the difference) It snowed heavily, confining the dragons to their glittering cave. They had collected and dried wood and flamed on it to keep themselves warm and give them light, a trick learned by Hanorh from his parents.



The drakka would sleep for most of the time to conserve energy, and when she awoke she would look too the dim cave entrance and sigh heavily. She missed the stars and skies, as all dragons do when cooped up, and she grimly wondered how long this storm would end. And it wasn't just for herself that she worried, gazing at Hanorh who slept beside her.



The two dragons woke early one morning to see an unusual light through the cave mouth. Sunlight was filtering through the dissipating cloud; the storm was over. They went to the cave mouth and the lip of the cliff to see the changed countryside. The ledge was layered with black ice and the dragons skidded and slipped despite their sharp claws digging into the rock.



The world below them was white. Trees were bowed down like the Greek god Atlas with the weight of snow piled on them, and everything was pristine, silent, and undisturbed. Aurha smiled at her mate as an unquenchable feeling of freedom stole over her. A wild instinct spread her wings to catch the cold currents of air and she lifted away, laughing at the sky. Hanorh followed, overcome with the same feeling, and together they plunged and dived in mock fights and play, showing each other the strength and suppleness of their wings, all troubles momentarily forgotten.