The day was a warm and lazy one; perfect for the plans made for it. Damon stood with arms crossed over his leather armored chest. Eyes scanned over the lavender fields that surrounded Kirika Lake. A gentle breeze stirred the flowers to release their scent through the air. Damon could admit that it was one of his favorite flowers, and thankfully it seemed like an uneventful day. Blue skies above were marred only with a few small clouds. He let out a light sigh of relief as he thought about how enjoyable of a day it would be.

The phoenix then glanced down at Astrid as she sat in the flowers enjoying one of her books. She was a pleasant person to protect and rarely gave him much to concern over. ”What are you reading today?” he finally asked. It was rare for Damon to interrupt her entertainment to ask a question. Most of the time, the bodyguard remained silent in a corner saying nothing for hours. Since it was such a nice day, he genuinely wanted to interact in some sort of capacity.

Damon had given credit that Astrid had done well during the trials within the ziggurat. Previously, they had not left the White Mansion before that. After seeing that Astrid had the ability to handle herself quickly on her feet, Damon felt confident that small trips outside the walls would be good for her. This time they would take it slow instead of potential death. A field of lavender flowers surrounding a lake seemed like a good option.

”Are you enjoying the trip, Lady Astrid?” This question now surprised him as it came forth. Knowing that he was relaxed enough to pose such an inquiry began to tell Damon that he was relaxing too much.

After the trials, Astrid seemed more confident in herself. She had more use than she originally had thought. Damon had been a good source of that confidence in herself. She wore a light sundress as they were out in the open Ignis heat. She was surrounded by lavender in full-blown as she had a book open in her lap. Her bi-colored eyes flickered up to Damon as she thought about the best way to answer. “Today?” She mused as she put a marker in and closed the book to look at the cover. “It is a set of stories surrounding Sularia. Rumors and some truths.” She smiled up at Damon. “I wasn’t born here so I like to read the stories.”

Instead of reopening the book she tilted her head back and felt the breeze on her face. It fluttering her long brown hair and she smiled up at Damon. “I am. This was a good idea, Damon.” She knew that the lavender flowers were a good source of relaxation and it looked to be good for Damon as well. “It’s better than being stuffed up in the mansion… One of the twins is always bringing soot in the house and the other is leaving needles about.” She sighed a bit. “It’s also Ignis season so there are suitors everywhere.”

She sounded relieved to be with Damon at that point. Flowers moved softly to the side near her. There was a pale face with blue eyes that looked at her. Astrid squealed and fell over. “Hi Astrid!” A much smaller angel came out of the flowers and looked up at Damon. “HI!” She waved. The other angel was in a sundress of purple.

“CRYSTALINE YOU SCARED ME!” Astrid was holding her chest.

Crystaline had long white hair and even larger white wings than even the larger half angel next to her. “It’s such a beautiful day!” She was barefoot much like Astrid. “Tag!” Crystaline ran over and touched Astrid before a heavy gust of wind hit the group and Crystaline had taken off and was up in the sky. It looked so effortless.

Without thinking, Astrid threw her book. “CRYSTALINE! THAT IS CHEATING! You can’t just start a game of tag!”

“I just did!” Crystaline fluttered about in the sky before she took off with another gust of wind magic. In an instant, Astrid’s wings sprung forth and she was taking off after the smaller half angel. “Get back here!”

“Crystaline!” A boy with black hair and white tips ran out. He was catching his breath. “CRYS!” He called up as he looked up in the sky. The look of worry seemed to melt in his eyes as he watched the two play.

“I’m okay!” Crystaline swooped down near the lake and felt the water on her fingertips. Astrid swooped and followed her about.

“WIND MAGIC IS CHEATING!” Astrid called out.

“EVERYTHING IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR DEAR COUSIN!” The yelling continued as Crystaline went high into the clouds. Astrid hesitated for a moment as she looked at Damon. Though the concern only lasted for a moment as ser need to win ultimately won out.

The two angels played in the clouds as they ruthlessly popped out and tagged each other.

It was a perfect day for a flight. The blue skies and small puffs of cloud gave evidence of the continued lovely weather that the area was to be afforded. Powerful almost translucent wings beat the air to propel the creature as well as its rider forward. They flew high away from the rest of the world below, though not far enough where the scenery could not be enjoyed. It was a lazy flight that the pair were enjoying on that afternoon. Out of habit, the rider reached back to check the bags that were attached to the riding gear on either side of him. Gloved hands ran across the full satchels to ensure that the contents were still there. He knew that they were still full, but his anxiety when making shipments was always on the higher side when making his way towards the White District.

- Are you satisfied now? I cannot imagine that anything would fall when I am flying. It never has. Only when you do not secure the cargo properly. – There was a sarcastic hint to the mental voice that the rider got. L’van rolled his eyes underneath his riding mask. The sheep skin lining throughout his leather riding gear and his special helm and goggles to keep warm while flying at such heights. ”That happened one time….years ago. You couldn’t leave that alone could you?” L’van’s voice was muffled slightly from behind the helm, but the communication was clear for the mind-bonded pair. The white dragon chortled while shaking his angular head.

– There is a lake below. It is Kirika Lake, and it is hot. I want to take a bath. – The dragon began to loft from side to side in protest to his rider in order to get his way. Beneath his helm, L’van’s brown eyes were rolling once more in agitation. The dragon wouldn’t go against his rider’s commands, but he would be annoying about it for a long time. ”Fine, but if you are going to take a dip, Naurth, it will be a full bath. Sands and everything. You literally asked for it.” L’van gave his mount a small swat on the leather hide neck of his bond, though he was grinning.

Naurth dipped his wings slightly to come closer to the earth, but his descent halted into a hoover quickly. The dragon rarely made extreme movements so this had L’van grasping at his riding harness. ’What the heck, Naurth?” The dragon made mighty sweeps of his wings to keep the pair aloft as his head motioned towards what had cause him to stop. L’van followed his dragon’s jeweled eyed vision to see two women with angelic wings flying through the skies to play what looked like a game of tag. They were giggling at their small game, and L’van couldn’t help but shake his head with a chuckle. It looked like they were having a great amount of fun. He was kind of jealous that he wasn’t a part of it. – I would win, - Naurth commented.

”You have larger wings, and I would like more experience in the sky. Don’t mess with the girls.” L’van watched closely and his eyes began to track one specifically that caught his attention. He didn’t get to spend much time admiring as an arrow crossed his path only a hairs away from his helmed face. ”By the shell!” he exclaimed as Naurth quickly pulled away into a barrel roll. As the pair pulled away from the archer that was below, the rider could hear man’s voice bellow instructions towards the flying angels.

He shifted over the side of his dragon and saw that the archer was putting them in his sight again with his arrows. ”WAIT!” L’van put up his arms and directed Naurth to land a distance away. The dragon folded his wings against his sides and kneeled down to allow L’van to dismount. He removed the helm to expose his face to show that he meant no harm. The archer still had his bow and arrow was trained on the center of L’van’s chest. A glare was plastered on the green armored man’s features. L’van’s brown eyes grew wide knowing that if he made one move that it could possibly be his last. What surprised him was the non-aggressive behavior of Naurth towards someone trying to attack his bond. – He is just protective of his protectee. He is doing his job, - the dragon replied simply.

”My name is L’van, rider of Naurth. We are just here to get him a bath. Absolutely no harm is meant.” The rider strapped the helm to his belt and took off his gloves to tuck them there as well. ”Truly, we are just passing by on a delivery to the White District.”

Damon had crossed the space to put himself between the dragon and rider and his ward. There was not a flinch in his eye nor a lack in the muscles that flexed as he aimed his bow at his targets. No words came forth in answer towards the newcomer. All L’van could make out was the man ordering the women to get behind him. ”Move quickly, Astrid. Stay behind me.”

The girls were going full throttle in the skies. Crystaline was much faster than Astrid but Astrid had her smarts. Astrid could cut Crystaline off and there were giggles everywhere. It was the dragon that caught Astrid’s eyes. It wasn’t one of her grandmother’s. She knew all of them well and this one was an unknown to her. “Come on Crystaline.” She could hear Damon now as they were being yelled at to come down from the skies.

Astrid landed first and Crystaline landed behind her looking at the boy who had been on the dragon. “Coming,” Astrid answered Damon as she went behind him and peeked out from behind Damon’s shoulder. Green and Blue eyes watched L’van easily.

“He said that he was going to the White Court.” Crystaline crossed her arms and marched out in front of Damon. “You will answer to me.” The littlest angel of the group had the most presence as the wind picked up to show she was quite serious about her inquiry. “What do you want with the White Court? I am Crystaline, Heiress of the Purple Court.”

Crystaline’s blue eyes moved from the dragon to the boy as she looked back to Astrid. “Was your grandmother expecting anyone?”

Astrid shook her head. “I am unsure. I don’t normally keep up with what Grandma has in store for the day.”

“Speak quickly Dragon Rider. Why are you in our Oasis?” Crystaline had seemed so playful before this moment but she was protecting those that stood behind her. “If your answers appease me I will let Astrid take you to the White Court herself. She is the Granddaughter of the Queen of the White Court. However, if your answers do not appease me… I will summon the best of the Purple Court to escort you out.”

Astrid managed to put her hands on Damon’s and give him a smile. With Crystaline there, it didn’t really matter whether Damon was on edge or not. “Crystaline will take care of it.”

The slight movement in the flowers had given away the presence of Crystaline. Damon shifted his heels in the dirt, but he could already tell that the newcomer was one of the Rosenites. Brow lifted as the white haired angel tagged his ward to begin a game that he knew was only going to heighten his stress. The two girls began a game that ended up in the skies high above him. Damon frowned deeply as he took several steps to follow their progress across the blue heavens. What had helped him feel better was that Astrid hesitated and looked to him to see if he was okay with the chase. There was no response from him, and it was then that Astrid had taken off. He was able to watch from below, and a call of the other angel’s name. Damon reached for his flaming bow as a young boy came running after Crys in a slight panic. The reach was halted upon realizing that there was a relationship between them.

Game continued higher and higher through the clouds. Damon moved along with them from below to keep a good visual on them, but it was when his blue eyes caught sight of a large white dragon with a rider that his bow was unslung. Arrow was notched and released instantly as a warning shot towards the intruder. This was exactly what Damon had been worried about. ”Astrid! Chyrstaline! Come down immediately!” His voice was rough with his nerves peaked as he went into fighting mode.

As the dragon and girls landed, Damon kept his notched bow trained on the intruders. He watched as the rider dismounted and did what he could to expose his features to show no ill will. Despite that, Damon was not about to allow anything to keep him from being on high alert. The guard shifted so his form was completely between the dragon and Astrid. He listened as Crystaline spoke and frowned slightly as the small angel marched out with arms crossed. ”Astrid will not escort anyone,” Damon clarified. The touch of his ward on him did not make him settle. ”She can speak as she wills, but you are to remain behind me. I will not let anyone near you, and that is final. Words do little when it comes to altercations.” Years of training and experience were being put into play. Damon had not had someone he truly worried about the safety for years. Astrid was a good girl, and she was still naïve to those that would do anything besides be kind.

It was then that Damon focused on the dragon and rider that he saw that the rider made a couple of steps backward. Dragon tilted his triangular head to the side and cooed gently at Astrid as his jeweled eyes whirled colors of blue and purple. L’van reached out a hand and touched the leather hide of his companion. ”I am here to deliver some supplies. Riding straps and gear for some of the younglings, I believe. Truly, we mean no harm and Naurth just wanted to take a dip in the lake since it was warm out. We were just going to take a small break.” The rider smiled as he shrugged slightly in an attempt to come off as more relatable. ”You ladies looked as if you were doing the same with today’s lovely weather and your game.” He shifted backwards again until he sat upon the dragon’s leg that had been shifted as a seat. – I am itchy and need to bathe. – Naurth was fairly done with the interaction and merely wanted to go to the water. ”Please, I need to get him bathed and rubbed down as his hide is beginning to bother him. We will stay away, I promise!”

Damon looked over at Crys and then back at Astrid.  "You keep over to the water, then we may have a deal.  I am not the heiress of the Purple Court though."

“Okayyyy…” The girls answered as they swooped down to him. Astrid wouldn’t put that kind of stress on Damon.

Crystaline looked back at Damon. “Very well. Then I will call for someone if she cannot.” Astrid gave a deep frown.

“Alright,” Astrid replied up to Damon as her eyes trailed back to the dragon rider. Was he that much of a threat? She didn’t know. The dragon cooed towards her and Astrid had a blush across her face since he noticed her. She would have thought Crystaline would have been the one he would have noticed. That was just her confidence speaking volumes. “We just had a group of hatchlings reach an old enough age to start being trained…” Her voice was low as she spoke up. “He isn’t lying about that.”

Finally, Crystaline dropped the attitude and her magic died down. “We were. Playtime doesn’t come often enough for me so I jested my cousin into a friendly game of tag.” The half angel would remain friendly until she needed a reason not to be. That was how she was trained by her mother.

Once Damon spoke up Crystaline nodded to him. “Very well. You can bathe your dragon in the waters. I will fetch someone from the White Court.” Crystaline took off and Colden left with her. Finally, Astrid let out a sigh from her lips as she felt the stress of the confrontation melt away.

“Come on Damon,” Astrid took hold of his arm and tugged him gently. “I’ll show you my book.” Her bi-colored eyes slid over L’van once more before she tugged again. “They won’t be that hard to spot from the flowers…” She found her book and seated herself while she patted the ground for Damon. “Look,” She opened the book to a picture of a woman. “That’s my grandmother Willow, the very first Rosenite. She doesn’t leave the castle a lot and she doesn’t get involved with politics unless necessary. She looms over everything to make sure it's in working order. The magic of Arri chose her to lead this place.”

Astrid was attempting to distract him the best she could but even her eyes kept going up to the boy and his dragon. She was sure that he was around her age or younger. It was hard to tell with timeless folk. Even most people missed her age due to how young she looked. “Oh, Damon!” She pulled a feather out of her pocket and smiled at him. “I caught this from a phoenix when it was flying… I think it was Arcus Angela’s rainbow phoenix…” The feather was iridescent white that shined like a rainbow in the light. “Here.” She tucked it into his leather and chuckled. “I caught it when I was chasing Crystaline.”

She opened her bag to look through what else she had and she noticed that there was some soap. Her eyes flickered back up to the dragon rider. “Don’t panic… I don’t think he is a threat.” She pushed herself up and carried the soap. “Besides if he tries anything bad I know you are fast with your bow.” She gave Damon a confident smile as she made her way over to L’van. “I have some Sularian soap that you can use on your dragon… I heard they like it when you scrub them with it.” She blushed a bit as she held it out to him. Her dress got a bit wet from going into the water to give it to him.

“My name is Astrid,” she felt awful about Damon being so protective. Though she probably knew he had heard her name from Damon before. “Is this your first time to Sularia?” Astrid peeked around L’van to get a better look at his dragon.

L’van was slightly surprised at the interaction he was in at the moment. On his previous deliveries, though they were few, he had no issues on his drop offs. What was different was that there was a body guard this ridged with his security duty. It was clear that his ward was the woman behind him instead of the smaller angel that claimed to be the heiress to the Purple Court. L’van knew little about the other courts since he kept his interactions with the dragons and their bonds. The rider now knew he needed to expand his education in order to keep his head from being speared. ”Thank you!” he cried out towards Astrid with hands up and a large grin. ”Look, I really am just doing as I was told to do. These harnesses are of exquisite quality. The White District would only use the best!” He let the large grin remain on his face. Now there was some momentum working in his favor as Crys appeared to relax. Of course, L’van did not see any lax in the guard’s face even has his bow lowered slightly.

”Well, I am glad you were able to find some time to play. It is regrettable that Naurth and my arrival had to cut that short. I apologize for that. We really didn’t mean to break up the little time that you have.” Naurth lifted his head as L’van stood up from his perch on the dragon’s leg. ”I thank you for the permission. He is in need of a good scrub down since he is still growing.” He turned away from the guard and his ward when they left to go find a book that had been left behind. L’van checked over his shoulder at the winged girl that pulled on her protector. There was no helping the small smile on his face. – I need my bath, - Naurth said with now irritation and a nudge in his rider’s back to bring his mind back to task.

The rider chuckled and shoved the large soft nose of the white dragon as they walked down to the water’s edge. Trained movements worked to undo the riding harness that was wrapped about the dragon’s neck. It was a series of complex buckles, and yet there was no restriction to the beast. The bags that held his deliveries were carefully put aside to ensure they were not going to get wet. Rider’s gaze turned back to the pair that were in the flowered field a short ways away as the dragon waded into the water.

L’van saw the guard keeping a wary eye on him from time to time. Damon was a cautious man, and a protective man. The phoenix listened as Astrid showed him different things in her book about her grandmother, Willow. He allowed himself to glance down at the book as Astrid showed the picture. She looked familiar and was sure that she had been present when Nymph and Cole had been on ‘trial’ of sorts. When she tucked a feather in his armor, Damon smiled lightly. ”Thank you,” he responded. When she got up to leave, Damon had to hold himself back. ”I will hold here…for now.” His blue eyes watched her walk down towards the water, though there seemed to be a slight bounce in her step. Damon glared at L’van’s back.

”Try to not splash so much,” L’van complained as his arm went up to protect himself from the water. He had removed his shirt and boots to keep them from needing to be dried off as well. Lean muscles scrubbed a bubbling sand along the dragon’s hide which was greeted with a low moan from the beast. Naurth had waded in deeper so the rider could get underneath his arms where the peeling agitated him the most. – The girl comes, - Naurth warned. He turned his large head to look at the winged girl. L’van was bent over as Astrid joined. Head was turned to the side and up to see her holding out some soap. ”He does, in fact. I’m sure if you used some and scratched his eye ridge you would have a brand new friend. Naurth already said he likes you.” The rider smiled at Astrid while finally standing up straight. The girl was short, but there was a personality behind the façade she was putting on.

Naurth turned his large white head for Astrid to have easy access to his eye ridge. His eye was larger than the girls’ head and whirled with warm colors. ”It is good to meet you, Astrid. This is not my first time in Sularia. I have made only a couple of deliveries, so I am not familiar. Are you allowed outside of Sularia much? Or at all?” The rider nodded towards Damon subtly with a light chuckle. ”He’s pretty intense.”

Crystaline had fetched Toya of all people to come down to the lake. The queen made her way through the flowers but Astrid hadn’t noticed. The dragon queen sat next to Damon with a pipe in her mouth. “Damn kids look at them.” She took a few puffs from her pipe with her green eyes glued to both of them she then offered it up to Damon. “Look at them. Must be nice to be young. The boy is fine we were supposed to get a delivery today at some point.”

Astrid took some of the soap and helped L’van with his dragon. She was pretty skillful in cleaning Naurth since she helped with the small ones with her grandmother. “I am allowed to go wherever I want as long as I asked. If I whine hard enough I can even go to dangerous places like say… the ziggurat that was at the bottom of the ocean.” The half-angel gave him a smirk as she continued to clean.

“You know… You are supposed to tell me your name when I tell you mine.” Astrid tilted her head at him. “Your rider is very ill-mannered Naurth.” She teased the boy. “Sularia more than just the White Court which is probably where you made your deliveries. If I had to say… I would say the White Court is the most boring of them since its all blacksmiths and military.” At least for her.

“So… Where are you from?” Astrid tilted her head at L’van.

The guard’s jawline flexed as his teeth clenched while watching his ward with someone else he did not know. He knew that in order for Astrid to grow, she would need to get confident in the presence of others. What did help was that the young man was not a noble. Too many men were attempting for the hand of Astrid for her title instead of her heart. L’van was a good measure of her abilities to see what was available, though Damon was sure this would not be her selection. The phoenix let out an agitated sigh before taking a seat in the flower field. After watching for several minutes it was easy to tell that there were no malicious intents that would be had. Still, Damon’s phoenix bow rested across his lap while he observed.

”Greetings, Lady Toya,” he greeted politely, though a smile was upon his lips. He took the offered pipe and took a few puffs upon it and returned it. It was nice to be relaxed with one’s employer. ”I am glad that his delivery can be confirmed. He does not seem the kind to have ill-will, but I will never allow my guard to be down. Lady Astrid does appear to be intrigue for one of the first times I have seen her. At least more than when we have been at gatherings of the nobility.” Damon shrugged his shoulders and turned his eyes back to the pair in the water.

L’van had glanced over to see a woman join the body guard and had a feeling that he should be wary of his movements even more. - She is the Queen that the dragons of the White District look towards. That woman is also this child’s relation. – The rider scrubbed at a rather stubborn section. ’How you do you know that?’ he asked mentally in return. - Dragons talk.- Naurth settled into the water further and began to make bubbles with his nose for his own amusement. He cooed softly at Astrid for her diligent work on his aching hide. It had been a long trip for the pair.

L’van jerked his head back in surprise at her most recent expedition. ”You were one of the people that went there?! That is impressive princess,” he commented with a chuckle. He shook his head slightly in disbelief and was impressed. ”I heard that the trials were more difficult then what had been originally imagined. I think it was that they were not trials of physical feats. Am I correct?” With a great tug, he managed to get Naurth’s claw up to scrub along the cuticle line. The white dragon had a smug look in his eye as he knew that L’van was attempting to impress the girl with his extra care.

Naurth winked quickly at Astrid with her comment and gave a small chuckle. L’van froze in mid-scrub as he realized he had not introduced himself. Dear princess, I am truly sorry for the oversight! I am L’van, rider of white Naurth. And you are correct: most of my deliveries are to the White Court. We travel other locations for the entertainment of it…mostly those with airship docks for convenience.”

He ran his fingers through his brown hair to put in some sort of order. ”Us? We hail from the Kamien Mountains. There is our people…and dragons,” he amended with a slap on the dragon’s shoulder. ”We bond up at the dragon’s hatching. Dragons select their riders, and we are bonded for life.”