Sunrise, Sunset

Chapter 1: Rescue

Myrrh sprints across the field, as she tries to outrun the group of soldiers chasing her. But they've already taken away her dragonstone, and so she doesn't have the power to run any faster, and they're starting to catch up to her.

"No, get away! Please!"

One of the soldiers laughs. "Heh heh, you're too valuable to lose! Once Grado has a real dragon at their disposal, we shall be unstoppable!"

As she continues to run, a ranger jumps out of nowhere and blocks her path. He lifts her onto his horse and brings her to the captain of the pursuing soldiers.

"Help me! Anybody! Please help me!"

"Save it! No one can hear you here! We're the only ones around!" The captain begins to tie her up. "Now hold still. We have to prepare you for delivery to Grado!"

Not having any strength left in her, she has no choice but to submit.

After Myrrh is gagged and tied to a tree, an old man teleports in out of nowhere. He has sinister eyes and an almost in-human appearance. The captain smiles, and he begins to converse with him.

"Shall we ready her for transport? We've already sent the messenger off with the dragonstone. Now, all we have to do is bring this lovely prize to Grado."

"Ah, excellent... he will be pleased. Get ready to move out. I need to get some things done... be sure to leave quickly." He shifts his head. "I sense someone approaching."

The old man teleports away, leaving the soldiers bewildered, but after a minute, they begin preparations to leave.

Suddenly, three men jump out of a nearby bush, thrusting their lances at anyone nearby. Within a couple of minutes, all of the soldiers are dead, except for the captain, who is lying on the ground severely wounded. The leader of the men steps closer to him.

"What are you doing here? Why did you send men to ambush us? And why is this girl tied up?" He pushes the lance to the captain's throat. "Answer me, if you value your life!"

He merely laughs. "It doesn't matter. Nothing you do can change fate! Grado will rule! Bwa ha ha... ARG!"

The lance wielder stabs the captain, and he dies on the spot. He then instructs his other men to search the camp for any remaining soldiers as he unties Myrrh from the tree.

Finally safe, she begins to cry, and gives him a big hug.

"Oh, thank you so much! Sniff... I don't know what would have happened to me if they took me away..."

"Don't worry, they're all gone now," he reassures her, rubbing her back slightly as he speaks. "What did those men want to do with you?"

"It's... a long story. Can I tell you a little bit later?"

"Of course you can. Do you need to be taken back home?" He looks around. "I don't know if you should go back by yourself..."

"Oh no," she says, worry returning to her face. "I live very far away from here... once again, it's a long story..."

"No no, that's fine; take as long as you need. I won't leave you here alone."

Just then, he thinks of an idea. "You look pretty worn out. Do you want me to carry you for a while?" he says, smiling.

"N-no, that's fine," she stammers. "I'll be okay..."

"It won't be any trouble at all." He looks at her with worry. "Are you sure you're okay?"

She thinks for a moment. "Well... maybe just for a little bit."

He lifts her up into his arms and she wraps hers around his neck and shoulders. "Thank you very much, um..."

"Ephraim."

"Ephraim... thank you. My name's Myrrh."

"Well, it's very nice to meet you Myrrh! I hope we can get well acquainted with each other."

"I hope so too..." She stifles a yawn.

Ephraim laughs. "You can go to sleep if you want, Myrrh."

"No no, I really... shouldn't..." All of today's events have been too much for her, and within an instant, despite her best efforts, she falls asleep in Ephraim's arms.

He smiles to himself as he carries her through the forest.

Ephraim finally finds his two companions, Kyle and Forde, sitting by a fire roasting some meat for dinner before sunset. Still holding Myrrh, he sits down on a log across from Kyle and quietly asks for some. Kyle hands him a stick with some meat on it, and Ephraim begins to hold it over the fire.

"Who's this young lady?" Kyle whispers.

"Her name's Myrrh. She was taken captive by the Grado soldiers for some reason."

Forde snickers. "She's looking pretty comfortable there, wouldn't you say Kyle?"

Kyle just rolls his eyes. "She's a young girl. She's probably only 13; seriously Forde, what goes on in that twisted mind of yours?"

"Hey! You said it, not me!" Forde suddenly looks to his left with intense interest. "Oh look, trees!"

As Forde continues staring at the trees for no real reason, Myrrh begins to wake up, rubbing her eyes. When she looks around and notices she's still on Ephraim's lap, she blushes.

"O-oh, I'm sorry Ephraim. I... didn't think I would sleep that long."

He laughs. "That's fine, Myrrh. I don't mind."

Forde, still staring at the trees, suddenly begins to giggle uncontrollably, and everybody looks over in his direction. After a good minute, he stops laughing. Kyle gives him an evil glare, and then breaks the silence. "Um, okay. Ahem, my name's Kyle, and... this is Forde."

"Ah, yes! I'm Forde! Just... ignore the little laughing fit I just had. I was thinking of something I said earlier today."

"...All right then. My name's Myrrh. It's nice to meet you." She smiles. "Are you Ephraim's soldiers?"

"So you're really a dragon, huh? Part of the Manakete tribe?"

Ephraim looks with interest at Myrrh's wings, as she spreads them out for him to see. They are standing outside of the Frelian Castle, waiting to be let in to see the king with the rest of the group, who are waiting closer to the entrance.

"Yes, but I can't actually transform into a dragon without my dragonstone, which those Grado soldiers stole." She sighs and quickly closes her wings. "I guess these wings look a bit out of place on me when I'm in human form... that's why I had them hidden. I was afraid people would judge me..."

Ephraim laughs. "You don't need to hide them Myrrh. Actually, they look kind of cute on you." This causes Myrrh to blush and to open her wings again, and Ephraim decides to change the subject. "Well, since you can't defend yourself, I'll make sure that you stay safe. Stay close to me, okay?"

"Thank you, Ephraim. So you don't mind if I stay with you guys?"

"Not at all. In fact, you can help me when I tell my story in the castle, okay?"

"I'll... try. I'm very shy."

He holds out his hand. "Don't worry, it will be fine." She willingly takes his hand and smiles.

"Thank you... Ephraim."

Author's Notes

Hey, this is important to the story; when Myrrh hides her wings, that means having them completely out of sight... somehow. I don't know if they morph into her body or what, but they're not there anymore; this is generally true in Myrrh's in-game portrait. When Myrrh is rescued by Ephraim, her wings are hidden; that's why no one was aware she was a dragon until Myrrh showed Ephraim her wings. When she closes her wings, that means they are just folded up, not hidden.

If you know me at all, I think you already know where this is going. But if it's not evident, this is going to be a romance fic about Myrrh and Ephraim, and it will be five chapters long. Fics involving Myrrh in general are basically non-existent on this site, and a good chunk of them are depressing, or at least to me. And again, if you know me at all, I think you already know what I have to say about stuff like that. I won't repeat it here, though. I quote it enough on my profile. :p

I hope you guys enjoy this submission! Feedback is always appreciated! I like hearing what you guys have to say!