Zain awoke to the sun shining through his curtains. He groaned. Why hadn’t Nyx woken him up yet? He felt around on the bed, hoping the man was still asleep next to him. But when he wasn’t there, memories of the night before flooded in. Nyx went to meet the mysterious letter-sender. Right. And he hadn’t come back yet like he promised.

Worry gripped his heart in a tight hold, and breathing suddenly became hard. He wanted to get up, but his body refused to cooperate, and instead he broke out into gutwretching sobs. Where was Nyx? Where?!

“Praah! Prah prah praah!”

The crowing and the sound of metal and other heavy objects hitting the kitchen floor pulled the redhead momentarily out of his misery. Hurriedly he wrapped a bathrobe around himself and went on his way to see what their pet dragon was doing.

“Apollo! Quit making so much noise!” Zain couldn’t help but snap at the small creature. He didn’t want to, but he was just too frustrated with the whole situation. He sighed and started cleaning the dragon’s mess while Apollo hid in his box on top of the fridge.

The distraction cleared his mind just enough to function slightly normal again, and when his stomach started rumbling, Zain decided to make breakfast for himself.

# # # #

With some much needed food in him, he now felt bad about scolding Apollo. Next to the still lingering feeling of missing his boyfriend.

Zain put the dishes in the sink to clean up later, and eyed the scaly creature sitting in its makeshift nest. He was looking down at him with wary and yet also curious eyes.

“Sorry Apollo for yelling at you. Nyx didn’t come home yet, and I’m worried. The tracker isn’t hurting, so I know he’s physically okay, but I’m still worried.”

Apollo crowed chirpily, and Zain took it as him accepting his apology.

“I just… don’t know what to do, you know? I want to trust him, believe that he’ll come home eventually, but it hurts him being gone. It hurts!”

The small dragon soared down from the top of the fridge and landed heavily on Zain’s shoulder. His claws dug into his blades for balance, but they weren’t hurting. Apollo cooed and rubbed his feathery face against Zain’s in an attempt to comfort him.

“Thanks Apollo, you’re the best.”

The rest of the day the redhead tried to calm his nerves with baking. He wanted to become just as good as Nyx and the intricate instructions of the recipes gave his mind something to focus on. By the end of the day Zain had made three batches of cookies, two pies and one cake. He spend the rest of the night cleaning the kitchen with the occasional nudge from Apollo to remind him to eat or drink something.

When it was time for bed, the pet dragon followed Zain into the bedroom and headed for the bed. The creature curled up on the comforter and the human slipped under the covers next to him.

While Apollo wasn’t Nyx, Zain was still happy to have him close by. The feathers on his head were soft and comforting, and Apollo’s gentle breathing made Zain feel at ease. Nyx would get back, one way on an other. He just had to trust him.

# # # #

When the human was deep asleep, Apollo gently blinked open his eyes. He was waiting for this moment. Master’s soulmate was hurting and despite his effords to comfort, he knew the two couldn’t be apart for too long. Their bond would weaken by the day, and eventually snap if they didn’t reconnect soon. Apollo had noticed their special bond from the day he had been summoned. It was a shame he couldn’t speak Human, otherwise he would give them his blessing.

Apollo silently flew to the window. It was closed with a latch, but with some skillful manoeuvring of his beak and occasionally his claws too, he managed to open it. The night’s air was chillingly cold, but he would manage. The dragon fire within him would keep him warm.

He flew in circles around the town, making his rounds bigger and bigger when nearing the edge. He was looking for Master’s unique heat signature, something only his kind of dragon could do. Many witches and magical creatures wanted a Pygmy fire dragon as their familiar, but as their race was stubborn and proud, many dragons rejected a summoning. Only those they deemed worthy they would serve.

Half an hour later there was still no sign of Master. Apollo was nearing the borders of the town and wondered if he should venture into the woods. It had plenty of hiding spots, perfect for hiding a magical creature or two.

The dragon soared through the moonlit sky, dodging trees along the way. Then he arrived at an old abandoned mining field and there were dark vans parked close to the entrance. Suspicious.

“So, who was that guy the boss wanted to see?” A man spoke to his colleague while heading for one of the vans.

“Hm, something about his brother? I don’t know. I don’t care, as long as I get paid.”

The other grinned. “Only here for the money, huh? You’re missing out, dude!”

The rest of the conversation was cut off as the two closed their car doors and drove off. Apollo came out of his hiding spot, heading for the mine’s entrance. And sure enough, he could sense a faint trace of Master’s heat signature.

He would find him and bring him back to his soulmate, he would make it happen.