He Who Trailed the Sun

The letter had come in a bout of confusion, the rider passing Tobias a weather worn envelope with furrowed brows.

"Paid me seven jeweled necklaces for this to be delivered within the day," the rider explained gruffly. "Nearly cost my horse 'er life."

He said no more, shifting his filthy boots back into the stirrups and riding off. Tobias could hear the faint jingle in his pockets as he faded into the distance.

Once he was sure the rider had gone, Tobias ripped open the letter feverishly. A sun born grin spread across his lips, cheeks aching painfully as he drank in the words before him.

I mustn't waste my ink for there are many more things I must tend to this morn, yet I am shakily spending these words on you. Without you, Toby, I fear I would not even be able to muster the courage to ask this simple question. And yet here I still am, cowering behind a paper. I suppose I should not hold you in any suspense, so... here it is.

Tobias Leander Foxworth, will you do me the honor of marrying me?

Much love, Cirilla.

(If the answer pleads no, return a letter. If yes, return to me.)

The way he near wept upon her smeared ink. Cirilla, his love, his one and only. She had been bedridden ever since a plague had washed through her village. He had longed to ask for a hand in marriage, to present his undying love to her under the soft sway of her canopy. Yet fate was cruel, keeping him locked up all the way across the land.

Well, he was not locked up per say, much instead tied to a farm by debt. Hauling hay and feeding foul until the coins were repaid.

That debt no longer mattered.

Tobias looked around. The owners of the farm were still asleep inside their comfortable home, nestled in a quilt and relaxed in the silence of dawn. It was perfect.

Within minutes he had saddled a horse, grabbing merely a sack of fruit, stale bread and a half-filled flask for his journey. The sun was slick as it rose on the horizon, a trail of gold in its wake.

Tobias would trail that sun, follow it all the way to Cirilla.

So, he rode, following the pale paths that had been carved into the soft countryside. Hour after hour he continued, horse kept at an abusing gallop. He could not wipe that lovesick grin from his face, the wind drying his lips and tangling his dark locks.

Tobias could not wait to have Cirilla in his arms once more. The warmth of her touch, the plushness of her body against his, it was enough to drive the man mad. And her voice... he craved its sweetness like the gods craved their wine.

His mare began to slow, her steps turning to a trot and then a walk. The reins pulled with her as she looked around, suddenly wary of the path they had stumbled through. It was rocky and thick trees grew grand around them, a blanket of leaves threading the sunlight above.

"Alright there, girl?" Tobias ran his palm up and down her neck soothingly, looking around as well. The trunks ran deep, a dark wood behind them full of shadows.

His horse reared up as a growl echoed through the wood. Tobias cried out, trying to grip onto the horse's neck but it was no use. He slid off with a thud, ass hitting the ground with painful force.

He could only watch helplessly as the horse sprinted away; his supplies still attached to the saddle.

That dread fled in a moment's notice, replaced by gut-wrenching fear as the growl grew closer, heavy steps cracking sticks and shaking branches. Tobias could feel the ground tremble under his palms as he forced himself into an upright position.

He had no weapon. No spell. No magic nor poison. That was it, he would die before he could reach Cirilla, and he had only just begun the journey.

Louder and louder still, leaves shaking, echoing thuds, a nauseating heat. His eyes widened to the size of the moon as the creature emerged in all its hideous glory. A dragon the size of a bull heaved its way through two trees, lumbering towards Tobias.

His eyes squeezed shut. It was the cowardly way to go, but none else would see him. As the dragon's heat grew closer, unbearable and rank, Tobias filled his mind with images of Cirilla. Her ruffled dresses, the way her smile lifted more on the left than the right, the awful flit of her singing voice--

His body nearly lifted off the ground as the dragon laid its body down before him with a thud, head nestled to the ground several inches before his boots.

Tobias was rendered speechless.

The dragon huffed another breath, steam wafting over the startled man. He coughed and waved his hand through the air, panic etching his features.

The creature had red scales and a stout snout, horns curling wildly behind its head. behemoth wings pressed into its sides and on its back... sat an oversized saddle.

Tobias looked around, peering into the wood once more. Not a rider could be found. He had heard about them before, of course, wild riders that scoured the skies on their ferocious dragons. They were hero's and thieves, rare among these parts of the land.

One thing was certain about dragon riders though, and that was that they never abandoned their dragons.

Never.

Tobais took a choked breath as he realized that this dragon had sat before him, wanting a new rider. Whether his previous one had died, fallen off or been eaten it did not matter. He could reach Cirilla in half the time on a dragon.

So, with careful steps, Tobias moved around the creature. It was calm as he climbed onto the saddle, breath carrying him up and down in soft movements. His fingers shakily grasped the reins.

"Simple, this should be simple," he muttered to himself. "Just like riding a horse."

He whipped the reins, and the dragon hopped to its feet. Tobias yelled, leaning forward as much as his physically could as the dragon started running. He couldn't understand what was happening or how something so large could move so fast. And yet before Tobias could even think to whip the reins once more, the dragon stumbled out of the wood and lifted into the air.

The dragon rumbled, a sound that reverberated through its body as deep as thunder, almost a laugh from the fantastic creature. Tobias peaked an eye open at the sound. His jaw falling open as the world around him turned to sky.

Clouds as large as castles surrounded them.

The dragon's wings had spread out, vast and scales, a sight that Tobias had never even known to dream of. From this height he could see villages of plenty below, streams and rivers blurring to veins of the earth.

The sun gleamed high above, a doorway to the heavens leering down at them as they flew.

He pulled the reins, the dragon turning with his motion as he guided them towards the very sun that hung above. It would lead them to Cirilla, and he would marry her right beneath it.

Only a few hours later did he spot the small house of his lover. He guided the dragon down, a slight pang to his heart at the thought of ending such a ride. The thrill was something he had never imagined. Surely, he could take Cirilla up with him, holding her tight as they raced through the skies.

They landed on the lush grasses, ground shaking as the dragon's weight settled. Tobias slid off its back with ease as the creature laid down once more, loyal and waiting to a rider claimed.

Tobias raced inside, a bright grin on his face, but he was greeted with silence.

"Cirilla?" He called, slowing his steps as he peaked into her bedroom. The quaint room was as it always had been, walls covered in dried flowers, desk messy with crumpled letters and spilled ink, a sturdy bookshelf spilling stories in the corner. And right in the center of the room, pressed against the wall was Cirilla's bed, its orange canopy dulled from age.

He walked closer, brow furrowed as pain began to weave its way through his lungs.

There she laid, Cirilla, her cheeks flushed and eyes lidded. She was frail, body trembling slightly even in the warm day.

It dawned on him just then, why she had sent the letter with such urgency. Why she had even asked him to marry her.

"Love?" He whispered, kneeling beside the bed.

She turned her head with a small smile, cold hand reaching out to his.

"Toby," her voice was sweet as dew, calming as the breeze. It squeezed his heart in a vice grip.

"I flew a dragon to get here," he took her hand in his, a breathless laugh on his lips.

"Where did you find one of those?" She smiled, warm as ever.

"That does not matter now."

He settled his other hand upon her cheek. She leaned into it, a tear slipping down between his fingers.

"Cirilla--"

"Don't say it. I know, I know..." her voice broke in a whisper.

"I came here, just as you asked."

"So, you do want to marry me?" Her eyes grew heavier, falling and opening over and over. Her love was here, there was no more reason to fight, no longer a need to push against death. Not when his eyes shone with so much love, enough to carry into the afterlife.

Tobias felt his throat tighten, eyes glassing over,

"I do, Cirilla, I do.