8

Jupei's POV

I woke up the next morning and saw the other guys laying around still sleeping. I get up and go into the bathroom. I wash up and I suddenly feel a strong pull. I close my eyes and ask my dragon what is wrong.

Your mate misses you. Can we please go see her.

I smile but know that I can't leave yet. The guys wanted to fly for a while and then go on our dates that we promised yesterday. My dragon slightly protested waiting but he also wanted to be free for a little while.

When will we show our mate who you hide. I want her to see me as well. I am better looking than you. Bigger too.

Why don't you just go to sleep. I growl at him. My dragon is very egotistical and often we fight but we are very close to each other. He has saved me many times when I was younger. I still remember the first day we joined together. It was the most painful experience and I almost died.

FLASHBACK

I stare at the dragon egg. My mother and father have been waiting for this moment since I was born. When people of our race have children it is sacred to the whole race. Not many children live through the bonding process. The parents decide not to tell the children how hard the process is so as to keep their spirits up. As I look at my brother in his egg I realize how excited I am to meet him in a couple of hours. The Dragonian race is very unique. Our mothers give birth twice. One is for the human child and again for the dragon side of the child. The egg can only be born when the mother is in her dragon form. It takes up to eight days for the egg to be born after the human child is born.

"Momma. When will bwather come out of wis egg?" I ask.

"It won't be too much longer Jupei. Just be patient." She replies

I am impatient just like any kid and my dad laughs at me. I am the first child in our village to go through the bonding at only four years old. My dad says it is because I will have a strong bond but I have no idea if that is true. My brother's egg starts to crack. I am smiling brightly now. His egg is being violently cracked open now that he can finally come out. I giggle at his enthusiasm and at the sound of my voice he breaks through and stretches his wings. It looks like he is going to take flight but he doesn't have the strength yet. My father and mother are laughing now. I smile at him and I suddenly hear his strong voice in my head.

Hello Jupei, my name is Quavex and I am pleased to meet you.

(Name pronounced as Yayvex).

He reached out his head and blew fire across my knuckles. I yelped at the heat but realized there was no pain from it. He was just saying hello. I reach out and feel his scales. They are hard if rubbed across the grain and soft when following the pattern the scales are laid out in. He wraps his forked tongue around my pinky finger. I laugh because it tickles. My mom taps my shoulder. I turn to face her and see she has fear in her eyes but she doesn't show it in her body language. She takes my hand and I know that it is time for the bonding ceremony. I smile at everyone but none smile back. They have stern faces and some have pity in their eyes. My brother walks beside me he comes up to my knees. There is a circle in the middle with candles lit everywhere. My mom stops and picks me up. She gives me a crushing hug and then my dad does the same.

"Be strong Jupei. Come back to me and your mother." He chokes out.

I see a tear escape and I lift my tiny hand to wipe it away.

"Down't cry daddy. Swodiers never cry. " I say.

He laughs and puts me inside the circle. In normal tradition I have to walk to the center by myself. My parents have taught me very well and Ii do not hesitate. The clan leader addresses me and I turn to face him.

"Jupei Haik, and dragon Quavex, please begin the bonding ceremony."

I turn to my brother. We close our eyes and I bridge our minds. He binds our souls with his fire. I start to sweat but continue. The next step is to link energy waves. This is our predestined power and only the human half can bridge the two powers. This is the most difficult part of the bonding. Everything has to go right or both of us could die. I slowly reach out my power while his lays dormant. As soon as my power gets close to his it will fight. That is when my brother has to have control so it doesn't kill my life force. I have started to mix our powers when I am attacked by his power. I scream in agony but pulling out now would obliterate me. I quickly finish the bond and my dragon disappears from the circle. I feel him enter my body and I pass out. There is significant damage to my body both inside and out. My dragon makes quick work of healing my heart which has stopped. He lends energy and I start to breath again. My ribs are splintered and Quavex mends them back together. He sighs in relief when everything inside is fixed. I hear screaming and feel my body being lifted. I am enfolded in arms and I moan slightly. The screaming stops but I feel water droplets splash against my face. I am slowly gaining strength and I open my eyes. My parents are looking at me. Both have tears streaming down their faces. I hadn't noticed that my skin was severely burned. The whole village was in shock that a four year old boy had survived the bond and they cheered. My dragon shifted within me and I groaned. It was still painful to have my skin moved.

End of Flashback

I still have scars from that day and a tattoo of my dragons name. It was payment for scaring him and making him work on the first day of being joined. I also remember when I met the others. I was only fifteen and they were there to meet me. We were all rare cases and had all gone through traumatic bondings. They spoke English like I did since no one could understand our native languages.

Hey when are we going to see Mattea. Lets go now!

So pushy. I went back into the living room to see everyone else was up as well. They say good morning to me and I tell them that I am ready to go. We walk out of the nest and onto the large landing area. We change forms and fly to the same stream as yesterday. I can already feel her presence waiting for me. What a great way to start the day.