***
In the morning, Bo got up and packed food for the trip. He stored his cloak away as well, and when he was finished he looked toward the window. The day he’d awaited for more than six hundred years was here.
Bo went outside to listen to the birds. He sat in front of his cabin, his back to the graying, decrepit wall, holding Ryan’s hat in his hands. He regretted not keeping something of Olea’s as he stared at it, his heart aching with all of the things he had had to give up over the years. But before he could dwell on any of that for too long, Kian showed up with a beaming smile on his face.
Giving him a skeptical look, Bo asked, “Why are you grinning?”
“Because I feel like today is going to be fantastic, Bo!” Kian said, plunking next to Bo in the grass. He was a good head taller than Bo, sitting or standing. Bo didn’t look at him.
“Well…” Bo began, lifting his eyes from the hat and gazing out at the forest. The sun filtered through the trees, the leaves bright green with it. The ground below was like an ocean with the flowing light and shadows as a gentle breeze made the boughs above dance. “The day will certainly be nice here in Ireland.”
“You’ve got that right,” Kian agreed, gazing out at the forest alongside him with his warm brown eyes.
“It’ll be a nice day to say farewell,” Bo said, not wanting to say it.
“What?” Kian asked, stunned, flicking his gaze to Bo. “Today? Now?”
“Not now. This evening. I want you to see me off. Then I want you to burn the cabin. Take whatever you want from it first.”
There was silence for some time. “Okay,” Kian finally said. He then glanced down at the hat in Bo’s hand. “You know, I never saw you wear that hat once.”
Bo finally looked at him then, his hazel eyes clear. “That’s because it was never mine.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was a…a friend’s.” Partner doesn’t do him justice. “He died a very long time ago.”
“Who was he?”
“You remember that story your father said, when I asked him about his namesake?”
“The boy with the ruined face? That one?”
Bo nodded.
“So the reason you looked like you’d seen a ghost…”
“You remember it that well, huh?”
Kian scratched his head, embarrassed. “I was worried. Anyway, was all of that story true, then?”
“Every bit. The girl was an ancestor of yours. Ryan’s eyes were mismatched like your father’s. His human eye was the left one, and looked just like your father’s as well.”
“His ‘human’ eye? Was he a half-demon too, then?”
Bo nodded. “He was.”
“Are you going to leave that behind?” Kian asked then, nodding at the hat.
“I don’t know yet.”
Kian and Bo both stared at the gray hat for a moment. “I think you should take it,” Kian said at last, just as Bo decided for himself.
Bo shook his head. “I can’t.”
“Then…I’ll keep it for you. For the next time. Then you can take it back. Right?”
“Right,” Bo agreed.
With a sigh, Bo looked up into the trees and listened to the distant birdsongs. Everything felt so surreal, with the withering cabin behind, the peaceful forest ahead, a new country in the future, and a fully-grown Kian next to him. He glanced over at his friend and sighed, facing away again. “When did you grow?”
“Oh, just about every night since I was born.” Bo gave him a baleful glare, and he laughed. “You’re always too serious. One of us has to crack jokes, at least once in a while,” Kian yawned, stretching his arms out. “Ah,” he sighed, relaxing and looking ahead. “It’s still so nice today, too.”
“It is,” Bo agreed. Kian peeked at him and returned his gaze to the woods, stroking the brown stubble on his chin.
“You know, I look older than you now,” he commented.
Bo glanced at him. “You’re right,” he said, facing away again. “Old man.”
Kian laughed.
They sat there well into the afternoon, content to chat. As Bo looked up at the sky and saw fiery colors seeping through the leaves, he said, “It’s time to meet my transport.”
“Already?” Kian asked.
Bo nodded and stood, handing him Ryan’s hat. “Come on.”
Kian took the hat, and they walked along the path, over the bridge and through the woods to the field. They waited for a few minutes, turning to look at the sunset over the trees. Then, in the distance, they heard something like thunder. Kian scowled up at the sky and said, “Well, it seemed like a nice enough day.”
“It still is. I promise you, that isn’t thunder,” Bo said with a smirk, not taking his eyes off of the sky. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kian look at him questioningly.
Before long, Dayo was in sight, and Kian was standing dumbfounded as the unicorn dragon landed in front of him. He closed his eyes and braced himself as the draft Dayo created nearly blew him away, then went back to gawking. Bo laughed.
“Nice to see you again, Dayo!” Bo called.
Dayo rumbled upon spotting Bo and then Kian’s face. “Boelik,” Dayo said.
Kian started, obviously hearing him too. He stared at Dayo’s face, trying to determine if he heard what he did or not.
“And who is this young fellow?”
“Uh, I’m, er…Kian,” he stammered. “Nice to…meet you, I guess?”
“And you,” Dayo said, his rumbling laughter coming again.
Bo laughed with him for a moment before turning to Kian. “Well, Kian, I’ll be seeing you,” he said, hazel eyes shining.
“I hope so,” Kian replied, giving another quick glance at Dayo before turning to Bo. “I’ll visit you sometime. Where’ll you be?”
“I’ll be-” Bo started before Dayo interrupted.
“In America. I’ll come back and get you some time and take you out there,” Dayo offered.
Kian stared for a moment at the dragon before nodding. “Thank you,” he said. Dayo dipped his head.
“Then I guess I’m off,” Bo said.
“I’ll see you soon,” Kian said, pulling him in for an embrace. Bo patted him on the back.
“All right, but only if you don’t crush me first.” Kian let go and Bo gave him a smile. We will see each other again.
Dayo rumbled for Bo to hurry. “It’ll be worse if you dally,” he warned. Bo nodded to him, then grabbed his sack of supplies where he’d stored food and his cloak.
“Good-bye,” Bo called, mounting Dayo. He waved at Kian from above, and Dayo leapt off and away.
Kian waved as he shrank to the size of an ant, and Bo guessed that if he’d had Ryan’s vision, he’d have been able to see him waving still long after that.
“Do you regret leaving him behind?” Dayo asked as they flew.
Not at all, Bo replied. I know I’ll see him again. I only regret that I didn’t know how to reassure him of such like Olea could have.
“He’ll be fine. Maybe now he can find a woman to spend his time with instead.”
Bo snorted. I fear he may be a bachelor forever. He hasn’t talked of women since he was young.
“He may be taking after you.”
Dayo.
The dragon rumbled beneath him, flapping his great wings as they rose above the clouds. “Sorry. You did fall into that one, however. Anyhow, I’d be more worried about getting some sleep if I were you. We’ll be passing over an ocean. I hope you packed food.”
I did. How long will this take?
“About a day in whole.”
Are you sure you can still go that long without stopping?
Dayo snorted. “Positive. Now sleep, and by the time you wake I will probably be at the other coast.”
If you say so, Bo replied, cozying into Dayo’s fur before falling fast asleep.