~Chapter 1: The Beginning~
POV: Titos & Callista
The sun was just rising on the horizon when Titos tapped Callista with his tail. She slowly opened her eyes, and he stared into them, admiring the beautiful, shimmering magenta color.
"Staring is impolite, you know," she whispered, smiling softly. Titos laughed and helped her stand, using his powerful forearms to lift her up on her feet. Callista yawned, then turned to Titos.
"We better get going. I'm going to lay these eggs soon and we still haven't found nesting grounds."
She looked at her slightly enlarged belly, then back up through the canopy of leaves. She was worried, but she didn't want to show it. Callista knew that even if they didn't find a nest in time, she would have Titos here to protect her and the eggs. They were strong dragons, and she knew it, but she'd been hoping that they would have found the perfect nesting grounds by now.
Perfection takes time, but I'm sure it'll come soon, she thought. Titos nudged her face, pushing her forward to start walking.
Continuing on the path ahead, she padded on four feet, her claws digging sharply into the ground after every stride. Neither of them spoke - they were on alert for other dragons who would love to kill unprotected strays. Not only that, but she was aware that her size was a lot smaller than that of others. Titos followed closely behind her, eyes darting back and forth, from side to side. Today was oddly quiet - the only noises they heard were birds sitting atop trees.
Suddenly, Callista felt something pinch her side. The pain was so severe that it made her trip and fall, but she couldn't get back up. She lifted her head as Titos flapped his wings and stood over top of her, protecting her in case something unknown caused this.
"Titos, I don't think anything attacked me - I think I'm -" She couldn't continue her sentence because another wave of pain shot through her. Titos knew what was going on - he had to find her a cave, or something, to protect her. Quickly, but quietly, he waved his wings through the air until he hovered just above her. He lowered himself to her, reaching out with all four feet and grabbing her softly. Without hurting her, he lifted her and pushed his way through the leaves and branches above their heads. Callista was now in so much pain that she was unable to talk, and all he heard was extremely heavy breathing.
This was dangerous - there were many dragons that flew, looking for weaklings to attack. Titos was the perfect target. Speeding through the sky, he was looking for a break in the trees that revealed a cave. As he was scanning the ground, he heard Callista scream - but it wasn't what he thought.
"Look out, Titos, the mountain!" She managed to squeak out before more pain shot through her whole body. The clouds were covering Tito's eyes, so all he could do was stop moving his wings. They fell at a drop too high to measure. He wrapped his legs even tighter around Callista's torso. Right before they hit the trees, he lifted his wings straight out, using the wind to slowly push him down through the forest. Callista was crying - the pain and fear was too much to handle. He wasn't sure if there was a safe place below, or if where they were landing was a predator, but they had to trust it - his mate was in pain. Titos, still holding Callista, slowly lay her on the ground. He wrapped his wings around her, frantically looking around for something - something - they could hide in. Suddenly, a large wind gust blew through. Titos saw vines on the side of the mountain blow, and an opening to a cave was revealed. Without saying anything, he turned to look at Callista, who was curled up in a ball, breathing heavily and crying. Using his massive tail, he lifted her up and slowly walked into the cave. Before entering, he looked around - what he saw was beautiful, not threatening. A bright blue stream flowed down the back wall of the cave, into a small puddle shrouded by daisies. In the very center lay a nest - untouched by any creature in a long time. The floor was covered in grass, so soft it felt like a pillow beneath their feet. Titos knew then that they were safe. Almost immediately after Callista curled up in the nest, her pain went away. They looked at each other, eyes gleaming. Callista laid a nest of 4 eggs - painlessly - a few minutes after she lay down.
Titos knew that this was meant to be. He sat around Callista, curling his body around her and staring out at the vines that led to the opening of the cave. They both fell asleep as the moon showed its face and reflected in the pool behind them.