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I shake my head. “Dragons aren’t like people. They don’t discriminate.”

He lets out a shaky sigh. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess it’s just… hard to let go.”

“Aye,” I murmur. “I know it is. But she deserves the chance to be a normal dragon among her own kind.”

A sad smile forms on his lips as he looks down at her. “Yeah. She does.”

I give his shoulder a soft squeeze before we continue upward.

A series of switchbacks winds up the mountainside, cutting through towering trees and jagged stretches of gray stone. The air grows cooler with every step, carrying the sharp scent of pine and damp earth. Above us, the peaks loom impossibly high, their rocky faces disappearing into the clouds.

Maple trots along on all fours, her little claws clicking against the stone trail. Her prosthetic wings are folded neatly against her sides.

I look up toward the mountain peaks.

Somewhere beyond those clouds is where Maple belongs. Where she’ll find others like her. Where she’ll have the chance to live a happy, fulfilling life—all thanks to Micah.

As I watch him lead Maple along the trail, warmth and admiration flood my chest. I’m so hopelessly weak for him, I feel like I could crumble at any moment.

I force myself to push those foolish feelings aside and focus on the task at hand. Daydreaming about Micah is pointless, after all. Would someone as intelligent and beautiful as him really be interested in a troubled behemoth like me?

We climb up the mountain for another hour.

The trees gradually thin as we ascend, giving way to exposed stretches of gray stone and stubborn alpine shrubs clinging to the mountainside. The trail grows steeper, and my legs begin to burn with every switchback.

Micah, meanwhile, grows quieter.

He’s still holding Maple’s rope, but his steps have slowed considerably. His breathing comes heavier, and every so often, he pauses to push his glasses higher on his nose.

“You doing alright?” I ask.

“I’m fine.”

I raise an eyebrow.

He sighs. “I’m a little tired.”

“That’s what I thought.”

We find a flat patch of ground beneath a cluster of alpine trees and stop for a rest. Micah collapses onto a fallen log, stretching his legs out in front of him.

I set my satchel down and pull out the food we packed.

“Lunch?”

His eyes brighten. “Please.”

Maple immediately perks up at the sound of my voice.

Micah laughs. “You heard that, didn’t you?”

Her tail thumps against the ground.

He reaches into the satchel and pulls out a strip of bacon.

“Here you go, sweetheart.”

Micah tosses her the bacon, and she snaps it out of the air before swallowing it with one bite.