Page 81 of Ava's Legacy of the Dragons
Lilly's face fell, and the little dragon's eyes grew big as well. "You want to say goodbye?"
Smiling, she looked at the two. "Not to you, but to my aunt. I need to make sure she's really okay, tell her everything's alright, and then I'll come back."
Despite this explanation, Lilly got angry. "You're just saying that! I know how it goes. You won't come back!" She jumped up and ran away.
Ava followed her with her eyes and looked at the hatchling, who smiled at her."I know you mean it, Ava. I can read it in your heart. We will be connected forever."
Lovingly, she stroked his foot, which still looked innocent and playful. "Is it like this for every dragon guardian? Do they always feel a connection to the dragons that they've seen being born?"
The dragon child winked amusedly with its golden eyes."I don't know that, but I do know that our connection is something special. You know it too, Ava, don't you?"
Nodding, she stroked his head. He looked soadorable with his spikes, gleaming eyes, and short wings that were still too weak to carry him."Forever."Her gaze wandered back in the direction Lilly had disappeared, and she stood up. "I'll go check on her."
Marcus nodded understandingly. "Take your time. She was very worried about you."
Although it caused her heart to twinge, she was happy as well, for it proved that Lilly had dared to form an emotional connection.
She ran to the side room where Lilly had been staying with the dragon. But the girl wasn't lying on the soft bed. Instead, she sat in a corner on the bare stone floor, as if preparing her body for what she imagined lay ahead: a return to the harsh times of loneliness.
Lilly had drawn up her feet, rested her head on her knees, and wrapped her arms around her legs. When Ava approached her, she didn't look up.
"Hey Lilly, may I sit with you?"
The girl didn't react, but Ava sat down beside her anyway.
"A few days ago, when I was running through the king's capital city, fleeing his soldiers, someone saved my life."
The little one said nothing.
"At that moment, I thought it must have been a strong, fearless man, an underground fighter who could knock out my pursuers with a single punch."
Lilly let out a choked laugh, prompting Ava to put an arm around her shoulders.
"But it wasn't a man so strong and tall that he had nothing to fear. No, it was a fearless and unimaginably brave girl who didn't hesitate to help a stranger." She brushed a blonde strand from Lilly's face, causing the girl to lean almost imperceptibly towards her.
"I'll never forget that, Lilly. You saved my life. Mine and the little dragon's. But that's not why you can count on never getting rid of me. I'm staying with you because I love you incredibly. You have a place in my heart; you conquered it before I even knew it, and you've become my family."
Lilly looked up, her eyes red. Sniffling, she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "Family?"
Ava nodded. "Don't worry, I'll never try to replace your mother, but I want to be there for you. I don't have parents anymore either, and my aunt isn't my real aunt. But you know, through you I've realized that it doesn't matter whether you're related by blood or not. We belong together, we're there for each other, we love each other. Isn't that exactly what makes a family?"
Her eyes grew round. "You want to be my family?"
"If you want to be mine?"
Her face lit up with a radiance that could rival the rising sun. "Of course! But I thought you wanted to go back."
"I have to go back, that's true, because my aunt is probably worried. I want to let her know that I'm okay and make sure she's not alone. Then I'll come right back. Do you understand that?"
The girl nodded.
"If you want, you can come with me."
Lilly hesitated but shook her head. "A world without dragons sounds pretty boring. I'll accompany you to the border and wait for you there. Without me, you'd never make it past the king's soldiers anyway."
Ava smirked. "Good plan. Will you come back to the others now? There's still half a butter cake on the table that wants desperately to be eaten."
"Consider it done." With those words, the girljumped up and threw her arms around Ava's neck. "I love you."
