Hello and welcome to the final chapter of Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Yes you heard that right, it is indeed the final chapter. (What a crazy ride we've been on, am I right?) But I do have a little surprise for you guys which I'll announce at the end of the chapter, so stay tuned for that. Before I begin, I would like to thank everyone that's reviewed, followed and favorited this story. It has really encouraged me to finish a story for once, so again thank you.

So last time, Spyro and Cynder leave Malefor's fortress after their ordeal with Gaul and proceed to head back to the Artisan Valley however Spyro was forced to face Malefor when he sees Ignitus injured. Cynder later joins in the fight and ultimately gets stabbed in the stomach, supposedly killing her. This causes Spyro to lash out and kill Malefor using the 'true power of the purple dragon'. Afterwards, he holds Cynder in his arms and finally confesses his feelings just as she starts to fade away.

So what happens next? Let's find out, shall we? Enjoy!

(Chapter 12: Crazy Little Thing Called Love)

Two Weeks Later…

(CYNDER's POV)

Darkness. That's all I could see around me, a never ending abyss of an empty space.

Where was I? I couldn't feel any of the space around me, I couldn't even see my body. I felt like a head floating around, helpless and unable to do anything…

Was this where the ancestors go after they leave the world? Do they just have to float around in limbo for all of eternity with only their thoughts to keep them entertained? I never really thought about what the afterlife would look like but I expected it to be more… brighter? Like a paradise perhaps? Who knows…

But something felt strange about this place. I could hear voices, it was faint but they were definitely voices. I could even feel something touching what I think is my paw. It felt familiar… like I touched whatever's touching me before. This was odd considering that I was 'floating' in dead space.

The voices then became louder, turning into a whisper. It was just one voice now, sounding very soothing but also very sad. I couldn't make out what they said but I could hear the vague sound of someone crying.

Spyro…? Was that Spyro?

Sudden flashes of memory came flooding into my mind. Being tortured by Gaul, Spyro and I fighting Gaul, Spyro and I fighting Malefor, being stabbed in the stomach. Not the best things to look back on when you're in limbo.

Then a pleasant memory came into view, a memory that made me feel warm inside. The kiss that Spyro and I shared before he went off to face Malefor.

"I love you."

"I love you."

"I love you."

Those three words kept repeating over and over in my mind, getting louder as I thought about it more. While these words made me the happiest dragoness in the realms, I couldn't help but feel sad at the same time. I realise now that I couldn't tell Spyro the exact same or in fact not being to hear Spyro say those special words to me in person.

Poor Spyro, I couldn't imagine what he was going through right now. I was his only friend and I left him on his own again. He shouldn't be on his own, especially not after what happened with Malefor.

I'm sorry Spyro… so sorry that I couldn't be there. Ancestors, please help him in having a happy life… he deserves it after all.

()

My eyes slowly started to open as if I had been asleep. I must've been asleep for some time since I was struggling to keep my eyes open, guess they were getting used to moving again.

As my eyelids were waking up themselves, I looked to see where I was. I realised quickly that it wasn't the battlefield near the city of Warfang. Come to think of it, I actually had no idea where I was… so how did I end up here?

I was in a decently-sized room which was very bright and very clean. Sunlight shone through the right side of the room, the thin material covering the massive window not helping to block it out whatsoever. The walls were painted a very plain white, a nice change from the cold, grey stones that I'm used to seeing. Besides from a few chairs, a desk and what I think is a television screen, nothing else seemed to be going on in this room. It kind of reminded me of my room back in Malefor's fortress except it was bigger and less gritter.

Only one question went through my mind. Where am I?

I fully opened my eyes to see a short, furry creature wearing a white fabric over his or her body. The coat seemed a little too big for the creature as I couldn't see anything besides their head. The creature didn't notice that I was awake, it was preoccupied on looking at a thin piece of wood with a smaller white sheet attached to it. I couldn't really tell what was scribbled on the white sheet but if the creature was so interested in it then it must be important.

Should I say something? They might get scared. I am supposed to be asleep, right?

I tried to shift around on the bed that I was lying on but for some reason I was too weak to even sit up. Every limb in my body just felt limp as if I had no feeling in my bones. No wonder I couldn't feel anything when I was in the deep abyss.

A sudden thought then occurred to me which made me slightly panic. I couldn't be paralysed, could I? Almost immediately, I attempted to wiggle my claws on all of my legs to see if I could move them. After a minute of moving my claws back and forth successfully, I took a sigh of relief. Oh, thank the ancestors…

As I was checking to see if I was paralysed or not, the small creature had placed the piece of wood that they've been holding on a table nearby. They then turned around to face me and their eyes automatically widened with utter shock, a paw landing on their chest.

"Oh my!" The creature exclaimed, a feminine voice coming out of her mouth. She was clearly not expecting me to wake up any time soon.

"Uh… hi?" I greeted awkwardly.

The creature blinked rapidly before scurrying towards me and examining some equipment on my left. "Well, good morning Ms Cynder." She greeted me, sounding out of breath. "Do forgive me for acting so startled, I just wasn't expecting you to be up so soon."

"Um… that's okay." I assured her. "But perhaps you could tell me where I am?" I then asked.

The creature gave me a quick confused glance before regaining her composure. "You're in the infirmary, young one." She answered. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Nurse Braya." She also introduced, doing a small bow.

"How long have I been out?" I wondered, having no need to introduce myself since Nurse Braya already knew my name.

"Two weeks."

I blinked, absolutely perplexed by Nurse Braya's answer. Did she really say two weeks? I mean, I know I was injured pretty badly but surely two weeks is a bit much isn't it?

"What?! Two weeks?! How come?!" I started to panic, my eyes widening and my heart began beating at a quicker pace.

Nurse Braya shushed me so that I wasn't going to make her job more difficult by having a mental breakdown. "Cynder, calm down…" She told me softly. "You've just been in a coma…"

I raised an eyebrow, calming down slightly. "What's a coma?"

"It's when you stay unconscious for a long period of time. It's usually brought on upon severe illness and injury." Nurse Braya explained, retaining that calm and soft tone. "You lost a lot of blood after your encounter with Malefor. Thankfully you were brought here in a quick amount of time otherwise you would've died."

I laid there in silence, trying to take this information in. I've seriously been out for that long? I put on a brave face and nodded in understanding so that the subject could be dropped.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, which made both the Nurse and I jump in utter surprise. The Nurse immediately darted around to face the door and after a few seconds, she turned back towards me with a smile on her face.

"It seems you have a visitor…" Nurse Braya said, walking to the door. I literally just woke up, would I even be allowed to have visitors at this time?

My heart then began beating faster when I thought about who could be at the door. "Is it Spyro?" I wondered, eyes lighting up.

Nurse Braya opened the door and shook her head. "Close… but no."

Instead of Spyro, a huge red dragon came through the door. The dragon was bigger than the door so they had to bend his neck down to fit through. The dragon had red scales with dark red spots on the back of his neck, his shoulders, his hind legs and most of his tail. His horns were curved and were almost the same colour as Spyro's except it was more orangey. Alongside with his reddish pink frills that were on his shoulders and his cheeks. He also had dark red spines that ran down his neck to his tail from the top of his head, which also reminded of Spyro for some reason. He had an orange scaley underbelly and his wings were dark red with light orange membranes.

As soon as the dragon walked in, I immediately recognised him. Ignitus? What was he doing here? Last time I saw him, he looked completely battered and possibly on the verge of death. But here he is now, standing right in front of me. Must've used some Healing Gems after the battle with Malefor…

I tilted my head slightly. "Ignitus?"

Ignitus smiled and nodded his head. "Good morning, young dragoness. It's good to see that you are awake…" He then turned to Nurse Braya. "Could you give us a few minutes, Nurse?" He asked.

Nurse Braya was hesitant at first but she ultimately nodded. "Sure. But just call if something happens…" She said before walking out of the room, leaving Ignitus and I alone. It was then that Ignitus changed his mood entirely, he looked down at the floor in guilt. But what could he be so guilty about?

"Look, Cynder…" Ignitus muttered. "I wanted to apologise for everything that transpired over the past 12 years. Ever since the night that you were taken, I have only myself to blame…Ever since the night that you were taken, I have only myself to blame... Malefor distracted all of us guardians to leave the eggs unprotected, but I was the one that went back. I should've stopped Gaul. I could've. But I didn't. He knocked me out and I failed. And because of that, you were captured and raised under Malefor, and hundreds of eggs were smashed…"

Ignitus then took a deep sigh before continuing. "For the past twelve years I hated myself for not staying back and protecting the eggs. It hurt believing only Spyro and a few others had made it out alive. I'm happy and super grateful that you're still alive too, but it hurts knowing that you went through all that you did. It was my fault you were taken, and that countless other lives ended before they could even begin. For that I'm sorry. I hope you can accept my apology, Cynder."

I laid there in silence as I let all of Ignitus' words sink in. He's truly been beating himself up over me being taken? I mean... at least he tried to save me, right? Unlike that lie that Malefor told me which involved the Guardians wanting to smash my egg instead of saving it. I couldn't be mad at him, it wasn't his fault that I was taken. It was Malefor's, Ignitus was mainly trying to save me.

"Apology accepted…" I said with a smile.

Ignitus looked up to me, a sense of relief in his face. "I'm glad you could forgive me, Cynder…"

I nodded silently. As I thought about Ignitus' words, I couldn't help but think about Malefor and Spyro. My mind immediately raced back to the battlefield where Malefor crumbled to dust. There was something about Spyro that was different, he almost became a younger version of Malefor in a way with the darker scales and all that power he possessed. Not to mention all the anger that Spyro had. The way Spyro killed my former father was quick and brutal (you could also say a little anticlimactic if this played out as a movie or something.) It got me worried… I didn't want Spyro to become like Malefor, I don't think anyone would anyway.

"Is something the matter, young dragoness?" Ignitus wondered, snapping me back out of my thought process.

"It's just… something that happened to Spyro just after I got wounded." I answered. "His scales got darker for some reason…"

"Hmm…" Ignitus pondered, taking a minute to think about what I said. "It would seem that young Spyro had unlocked the power of Aether."

"Aether? What's that?"

"Aether is the true element of the purple dragons. It surpasses all of the elements of the Dragon Realms as its strength is equivalent to suns, gravity and the righteous might of passing comets." Ignitus explained. "However there is a delicate line of balance needed to fully control the power of Aether. If used correctly then you get Light Aether but if a purple dragon gets corrupted by an unusual force or loses control of their emotions, then you would get Dark Aether. The latter being what happened to Spyro unfortunately."

My heart suddenly started to beat faster. "Unfortunately?! Is he alright?!" I asked, sounding slightly panicky.

Ignitus waved his paw to calm me down. "Fine, fine. He's absolutely fine." He assured me. "He actually stayed here overnight as a matter of fact…"

"Wait, Spyro was here?"

Ignitus nodded. "Yes and he would've remained here if I didn't tell him to get some fresh air." He then raised his eyebrow. "Didn't you see the rose he left for you?"

I gave Ignitus a confused look. "Rose? What rose?"

Ignitus gestured towards the bedside table on my right. I turned to see one singular white rose sitting in a glass vase that was filled halfway with water. The rose was slightly slanted to the left and a couple of petals were resting next to the vase.

This rose looked familiar. It looked like one of the roses I saw near the portal in High Caves. No, scratch that… It was one of the roses from High Caves minus the thorns. Man, I remember that day like it was yesterday…

"Pretty and deadly… I like it."

"Yeah, kind of like you…"

I immediately started to blush as I thought about what Spyro said on that day. I can't believe that Spyro went back to High Caves just to get me a rose. He knew that I was fond of them… he remembered.

I could've laid there and stared dreamily at the rose all day but Ignitus coughed slightly to indicate that he was still in the room. I quickly snapped back to reality, my blush deepening from embarrassment as I turned to Ignitus.

"Oh… um, sorry…" I muttered, chuckling to myself so I would feel less embarrassed. "So, uh… when is Spyro getting here?" I then asked, trying to change the subject.

"Should be any minute now." Ignitus answered, gazing at the clock that was hung above my bed.

Suddenly a series of frantic knocks came from the door, causing Ignitus and I to turn towards it. My heart started to race again. Was that Spyro? Please let be Spyro.

"Or maybe perhaps right this second..." Ignitus then murmured, rolling his eyes as he walked to the door to see if it was actually Spyro or not. As Ignitus opened the door, my heart skipped a beat. Ok, ok, calm yourself Cynder… if it is Spyro, just stay cool. He'll just be as excited to see you as I am to see him.

"Hello there, young dragon." I heard Ignitus greet. Shit, it is him! Stay cool, stay cool. "I trust that getting some fresh air did you some good?"

"Yeah, I suppose so…" I heard Spyro mutter before he yawned loudly. He must've been tired from staying in my room, that's if he even slept at all. "How's Cynder doing? Any changes since I've been gone?" He then asked.

"Why don't you come see for yourself..." Ignitus suggested. Even though I couldn't see his head, I could tell he had a little smile on his face.

Ignitus stepped aside to let Spyro into my room. Sparx, now fully recovered after disappearing during the battle with Gaul, came in first and flew not too far from Spyro but was still zooming around the place. When Spyro came in, I couldn't help but stare at him. He looked very clean and perfectly healthy, not an inch of dirt, blood or even dark energy was not seen. I would've at least expected a bandage or something but no, it was like he wasn't even in a fight. Unlike myself…

At first, Spyro didn't notice that I was awake. He even looked me straight in the eye and he still didn't realise. I wanted to laugh but I managed to hold it in as Spyro took a second glance towards me when he saw me blink. He then stared at me for a second before I blinked again. That's when his jaw slightly dropped and his eyes slowly widened. Okay, now I think he realises.

"C-Cynder?" Spyro stammered, unable to get the words out.

I smirked. "Hey purple boy…"

Spyro's eyes started to well up. "Oh my ancestors, Cynder!" He cried out, immediately racing to my bed where he jumped onto his hind legs and nuzzled me affectionately. I easily returned Spyro's nuzzles, feeling the wetness of his tears when I brushed up against his eye.

"I was so worried about you!" Spyro continued to cry out. "I thought I lost you!"

"I missed you too, you big goof." I chuckled as Spyro's nuzzles started to tickle me. I know I only saw him a few minutes ago in my perspective but that doesn't stop me from missing him during that time.

Ignitus cleared his throat, once again indicating that he was still in the room. "Spyro, give her some space…" He muttered.

Spyro immediately stopped nuzzling me and turned to Ignitus, an embarrassed look on his face as he slowly backed away. "S-Sorry…" He stuttered before turning back to me. "So… how are you feeling, Cynder?" He asked me.

"Alright… just a little tired." I replied, the tone of my voice backing up what I was saying. "But I'm glad I'm alive."

Sparx muttered something mockingly towards Spyro, bumping into his head. Whatever Sparx said, it made Spyro frown in annoyance. His face even turned red, so I'm guessing that it was something humiliating.

"Yes, Spyro was quite dedicated to getting you back to the Valley." Ignitus translated for me. But if that was the translation then why was Spyro embarrassed? There had to be more to what Sparx said...

I brushed off what Sparx said for now and turned to Spyro. "You brought me here?" I wondered.

Spyro nodded. "Well… I couldn't let you die, now could I?" He answered with a smile.

I smiled back as I gazed into his eyes. I would've given him another nuzzle or perhaps a kiss on the cheek if I didn't feel so limp right now.

"We'll let you get some rest now, Cynder…" Ignitus said, signalling to Spyro and Sparx that it was time to leave.

Spyro gave Ignitus a look of disappointment. "But-"

"Cynder needs to get her strength back and she can't do that if she doesn't rest…" Ignitus interjected calmly.

Spyro went to open his mouth but ultimately closed it again, seeing no point in arguing with Ignitus. Spyro then lowered his head in disappointment. I knew how he felt, I was disappointed too but deep down we both knew that Ignitus was right.

"Hey… don't worry about me." I assured him, Spyro looking up to me when I spoke up. "I'll see you later, yeah?"

Spyro gave a small, sad nod. "Right, yeah… of course." He mumbled as he and Sparx began to follow Ignitus out the door. "I'll see ya later…"

Spyro hesitated for a second when he got to the door, glancing back at me for a brief minute or two before he headed out of the room. As he left, Nurse Braya came shuffling into the room. She didn't even acknowledge Spyro as he left, maybe she was just used to him in that type of mood every time he left. Who knows?

The Nurse made her way towards some machinery that was on my left. I'm guessing they were helping me to stay alive since they were connected to me. The Nurse then started to fiddle around with some of the wires and gazing at the machine screens every so often, checking to see if everything was okay.

"Don't worry, your boyfriend will be able to come back to visit tomorrow." Nurse Braya assured, leaning over to check my heartbeat with some strange metal cylinder.

My eyes widened, my face turning red. "Who? Spyro? H-he's not my boyfriend…" I said, slightly embarrassed.

Nurse Braya raised her eyebrow. "Really? Forgive me dearie but from young Spyro's actions during the past two weeks, I assumed you two were an item…"

"No, w-we're just friends."

The Nurse then wrapped the strange metal device around her neck and gave me a look, as if I was lying to her. "Friends, huh? From the way you were staring at him, I would suggest otherwise." She said.

My blush deepened. Ancestors, I wasn't being that obvious was I?

Seeing that I wasn't denying it straight away, Nurse Braya merely smiled at me. "If you like him then maybe you should tell him…"

As Nurse Braya walked off to check on another patient that she had, I laid there in silence as I contemplated what the Nurse had said. Sure I could tell him but it wasn't exactly as easy as it sounds. There was still so much I don't know about Spyro yet and there was so much that Spyro doesn't know about me, not that there's much to know about me anyway.

I guess I need to think about this a little more…

()

Four weeks have passed, that was the amount of time I needed to regain my strength after waking up according to the Nurse. Four weeks wouldn't seem so bad if I wasn't so bored all the time. Every day, it was the same routine over and over again: wake up, eat, watch TV on the screen opposite me, eat again, rest, eat for the third time then go to sleep. It became really old very quickly.

But there were parts of my day that weren't all bad. Since I had no idea about anything in the Dragon Realms or had any education whatsoever besides fighting and the elements, all of the Guardians came in and tutored me for an hour or two every day. Well by all of the Guardians, I mean only two. Volteer would teach me how to read, write and do math. Reading and writing was fun and quite easy once you learn it, math… not so much.

Then there was Cyril, who was in charge of teaching me the history of the Dragon Realms. Ancestors, he was so boring. He would just ramble and ramble till the point that it became static in my head. After every lesson with Cyril, I'm on the point of exhaustion… mental exhaustion. I couldn't remember what he was talking about half the time since I would doze off then wake up a minute later and suddenly he was on another topic. Glad I don't have him tutoring me as much as Volteer does.

After tutoring comes my favourite part of the day, when Spyro comes to visit. Spyro usually comes in the afternoon after running errands for Ignitus and some of the Dragon Elders in the morning, errands that involve going to a different realm. Despite that, he's always on time. Not once has he been ever late. Makes me wonder if he has a time machine or not…

Spyro stays with me from the afternoon till the evening, sometimes later if Nurse Braya allows it. During this time, we would talk. He would tell me about his day and I'll tell him what I learned (or how much I learned) from Volteer or Cyril. Sometimes he would bring a horror movie and we both lay in my bed to watch it. It's something that I'll always look forward to.

As much as I want to tell Spyro how I felt, I liked how our relationship is going at the moment. Every day, my friendship with him is growing stronger. I don't know if it was because both of us haven't had a friend before or maybe it was something more, I wasn't too sure.

"Why are you going in the sleeping bag?!" I heard Spyro shout at the dim-witted teenager that was being chased by the hockey mask-clad killer. "You know he's going to catch you!"

Today, Spyro brought the seventh installment of the Slasher Camp series since I haven't seen it yet. Back home, I only had the first four so it was a big surprise that there were more than four movies out there. I always thought they ended the series after the killer was repeatedly hit with a machete by some kid named Tommy. But boy, was I wrong. Spyro even told me that the Slasher Camp series did a crossover with A Nightmare at Dream Weavers. I mean, how cool does that sound?!

Spyro then chuckled as the killer killed the teenager by bashing her against a tree while she was in the sleeping bag. "Never gets old…" He said to himself, a giant grin on his face.

Ancestors, he looks so cute when he's happy…

"Cynder, did you see that?" Spyro asked me, making me snap out of my daze.

I blinked, a deep blush on my cheeks. "Huh? Oh yes, very bloody…" I said, trying to sound like I was paying attention but failing miserably.

Spyro gave me a concerned look. "You ok?" He wondered. "Do you want me to get the Nurse?"

"No, it's not that…" I quickly answered, looking away from Spyro. "It's just… it's nothing really."

Spyro grabbed the remote for the TV and paused the movie. "No, it's not nothing. What's wrong?"

I looked back at him. "It's nothing… Just thinking about finally leaving this room." I lied. I hated lying to him but I couldn't exactly tell him the truth either, well not yet anyway. Now doesn't seem like the best time to tell him.

Spyro smiled, believing my lie. "Not long now. Tomorrow, in fact."

Wow, tomorrow? I never thought this day would come. I spent so long in this infirmary that I've felt like I was never going to leave. Tomorrow was when my life was going to start anew. No Malefor, no Gaul, just a life of peace and tranquility.

Starting from tomorrow, everything was going to change.

()

"Keep those eyes closed…" Spyro told me as he led me down a corridor.

"How much further is it, Spyro?" I wondered, my eyes still firmly closed.

"Not long now…" Spyro answered. It was about a minute until I felt Spyro stop in his tracks. "Okay, you can open your eyes now…"

And so I did. What stood in front of me was a standard wooden door. It looked very similar to the door that went into my old room but instead it was much cleaner and lacked any scratches from the Apes. The door didn't have any lock or doorknob either but, according to Spyro, that was because the Temple was well-guarded so locks weren't necessary.

"Welcome to your room." Spyro said as he sat on his haunches.

I reached my paw out to the door, hesitating as my claws were nearly touching the surface of the wood. I instinctively turned to Spyro, who gave me a reassuring gesture to tell me that it's okay to open it. Taking a deep breath, I rested my paw on the door and pushed it open.

As the light from the corridor slowly leaked into the room, I couldn't help but feel happiness in my heart. The room wasn't much, it was smaller than my room back in Malefor's fortress which I didn't mind at all. The floor was wooden much like the door, it felt so much nicer to walk on than the cold, bumpy stones that I was used to. One window was placed in the middle of the room, it was much larger and could carry more light in if the curtains weren't drawn. A bed was placed in the corner however it was much larger and more put together than my old bed. It had an actual frame rather than just having the mattress on the ground.

Next to the bed was a sturdy and basic desk around about the same height as the bed. To be honest, I wasn't so sure what to do with that. Finally, to the right of the room was a bookcase which was yet to be filled with any books.

"So… what do you think?" Spyro questioned as I stared at the room in front of me.

Only one answer came into mind. "I love it."

Spyro's eyes widened, oddly surprised by my response. "You do?"

"Of course I do!" I said, wrapping my paws around him in a tight embrace. "Thank you, thank you so much!" I exclaimed as I swung Spyro from side-to-side.

Spyro chuckled when I eventually released him, blinking a few times to regain his bearings. "Well, I'm glad you liked it. But that's not quite it yet..."

"Uh?" I gave him a blank look. What did he mean by that? Is this not my room? Then why did he show it to me then?

"Oh right…" Spyro muttered, realising that I had no idea what he was talking about. "What I mean is that I'm not finished showing you around yet…" He then clarified.

Wait, does that mean…?

Spyro gave me a smile and started to head down the corridor, his tail swishing at a face pace. "Come on, let me show you around the Artisan Valley."

(SPYRO's POV)

Exiting the Temple, I led Cynder into the main area of the Valley. The twin suns shone brightly in the sky, a light cool breeze flowing through the trees and the grass. Business was booming in the marketplaces, at least one or two dragons gazing over what to buy in each stall. It seems that every dragon in the Valley was here, now able to walk freely through the land now that Malefor and his forces were long gone.

Seeing that a lot of dragons were around, Cynder stopped in her tracks as a nervous expression grew on her face. I turned towards her when I noticed that she wasn't walking next to me.

"You ok?" I asked.

Cynder nodded, still visibly nervous as she started to wrap her wings around herself. "Y-Yeah… There's just…" She took a breath before continuing. "A lot of dragons here…" She muttered.

"Hey, don't worry… they won't bite." I assured her, slowly approaching her. "They're just normal dragons going about their day."

"But do they know about me?" She wondered. "You know, being the daughter of you-know-who and all?"

I shook my head. "Trust me, they don't. Only the Dragon Elders, the Guardians, Sparx and I know." I replied. "Ignitus thought it was best not to tell anyone so you could get a fresh start."

While Cynder slightly felt more at ease when I said that, I could tell that she was still a little uneasy about walking around a massive crowd especially when you consider that she's only lived with Malefor most of her life. I don't blame her, I wasn't exactly the biggest fan of crowds either.

Then an idea shot into my head. "Ok… how about we just walk around for a bit and if at any point you feel like you're not coping, we'll go straight back." I suggested calmly. "How does that sound?"

Cynder thought about this for a while, her eyes gazing around the Valley until she eventually nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good." She said.

I offered to drape my wing around Cynder, to which she happily accepted. I then led her into the markets. There were a few dragons that would gaze at the pair of us but they were more looks of gratitude rather than suspicion. That is certainly a change from before Malefor was defeated, I'm guessing they don't think of me as the next Dark Master anymore. I then looked towards Cynder, who still looked a little uncomfortable and tried to hide herself in my wing.

"Spyro… they're staring…" She hissed. Never have I seen her so nervous before, not even when she met the Guardians. I've seen her battle Apes, Gnorcs and Grublins yet the one thing that truly scared her was… fitting in.

"It's ok, Cynder. They're just happy to see us." I assured her. "We did save the realms after all."

"Still… I don't like it." Cynder said, her eyes darting all over the place.

I sighed. I knew that Cynder was going to be uneasy around the other dragons and I'll have to blame Malefor for her lack of social skills. I couldn't be annoyed or irritated if Cynder's not coping well because it wasn't her fault. This is exactly how I would react if I lived in a fortress all my life. But I've got to be patient and not put Cynder in a situation she wouldn't be comfortable in. Hence why I'm just taking her around the market instead of a party or something.

When I heard the faint sound of my stomach rumbling, I suddenly had an idea. I just hope Cynder goes along with it.

"Why don't we get something to eat?" I suggested. "Maybe that'll settle your nerves…"

Cynder's facial expression softened to a more calmer demeanour. "Sure, I can eat." She agreed. "Know any places?"

I smirked. "Oh, I know just the place."

()

Cynder and I walked away from the centre of the markets, crowds slowly started to die out the further we got. Cynder was beginning to feel more settled once she saw that there were less dragons around, which was a start I guess. We eventually came across Alvar's meat stall, which was the only stall in the market that didn't have a dragon nearby. Alvar was stocking up lamb on the stand when we arrived, having not noticed that we were standing opposite him.

I cleared my throat to get Alvar's attention. "Morning, Alvar!" I greeted him.

Alvar averted his gaze away from the meat and glanced down at Cynder and I, where he gave us both a welcoming smile. "Well, if it isn't the saviour of the realms!" He chuckled before taking notice of Cynder. "Oh and I see you brought a friend with you…"

"Alvar, this is Cynder." I introduced, gesturing to Cynder. "I'm just showing her around."

Alvar rubbed his chin in curiosity. "Cynder, ay? I could've sworn I heard that name before..." He said as he went deep into thought before he snapped his claws. "Oh yes, I remember! She's the girl that you li-"

"Like to watch horror movies with, you know it!" I immediately interjected, my face turning red. I then chuckled nervously before giving Alvar a death glare as Cynder gave me a strange look. Luckily Sparx was having an afternoon nap right now otherwise he would have taken the mick out of me for that sudden outburst.

"It's… um… nice to meet you, Alvar." Cynder spoke up nervously, slightly intimidated by Alvar.

"And it's nice to meet you too, Cynder." Alvar said with a smile. "How are you enjoying the Valley so far?"

"It certainly beats my old home, that's for sure…" Cynder replied, looking around at the trees behind Alvar. "At least here, the air's fresh and clean." She then commented, giving as little detail about Malefor's fortress as possible.

"The freshest in all of the realms!" Alvar said cheekily before resting one of his forelegs on the stall. "So what can I get you two?" He then wondered.

"Just two pieces of fish, thanks." I said as I reached out to grab a few Gems to pay Alvar… wait a minute…

My face instantly froze. Shit… Sparx usually carries the Gems with him and my stupid brain was thinking about Cynder too much to remember to take them with me. Urgh, what am I going to do?

Cynder saw that I was looking distressed and turned to me. "You alright, Spyro?" She asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

"I left my Gems back in my room…" I grumbled, frowning at my own incompetence.

Alvar rolled his eyes. "No need for gems, what you've done for the realms is payment enough…" He said as he passed the fish to Cynder and I.

While Cynder snatched the fish instantly, I merely just stared guiltily at mine. That's the fifth time I've gotten something for free after defeating Malefor. I know that they were just thanking me for saving the realms but I couldn't just let them give stuff away to me for free. They have businesses to run, they could be poor for all I know! It just didn't seem right…

I sighed and reluctantly grabbed the fish with my maw, knowing that I couldn't refuse due to my lack of Gems. I then thanked Alvar and walked off with Cynder towards a tree nearby that was out of the way of any crowds and was nicely shaded, two things that both Cynder and I appreciated.

"Spyro, could you cook this please?" She asked me as we sat on our haunches.

"You know that you can eat it raw, right?" I chuckled as I grabbed Cynder's fish, blasting each side of it with my fire element for a few seconds before passing it back to her.

"I know, I just… prefer it when you cook it." Cynder said, blushing slightly.

"Oh… am I your personal oven now?" I scoffed, pretending to be offended.

Cynder looked at me with a cheeky grin. "Oh yes, definitely."

"So that's how it's going to be, huh?" I wondered in a mockingly tone as I took a bite from my fish. "Perhaps I could use your wind element to help cool me down…"

Cynder gave me a mischievous smirk before opening her maw slightly and releasing a gust of wind towards my face. The force of the cold breeze made me drop my fish from my mouth as my face froze in utter surprise, my eyes now blinking faster than usual.

"There. You feel cooled down now?" Cynder wondered in a 'serious but not serious' tone, a cheeky look on her face.

"You're funny, you know that?" I said sarcastically, my eyes narrowing.

Cynder took a bite from her fish. "And don't you be forgetting that, purple boy."

As soon as she turned away from me, my eyes immediately gazed at her tail where I hatched a troublesome plan. I grinned devilishly at the thought of what I was going to do. I discreetly opened my maw and shot a small jet of flame near Cynder's tailblade. As soon as the flame hit her tail, Cynder literally jumped from the sudden heat.

"Ow! Hey!" She exclaimed, glaring at me.

I stopped myself from completely cracking up with laughter. "Oh I'm sorry Cynder, there was a spider on your tail. Thought I get rid of it for you." I said, sounding as genuine as I could.

"Oh, you're asking for it now!" Cynder mockingly threatened, getting into a pouncing position.

Cynder then tackled me away from the tree and we began to playfully wrestle each other, rolling around on the grass and laughing while doing so. Thanks to her training with Malefor, Cynder always gained the upper hand in terms of pining me to the ground. I mean I could pin her down for at least two seconds on strength alone but even that wasn't a match for Cynder's skills.

Cynder was able to prove that by coiling her tail around my hind leg and flipping me around, holding my chest down with her forelegs. We both looked at each other, breathless from all the wrestling around. We then both blushed at the realisation of what position we're in as it mimicked the same position we were in during our time in Sunrise Spring.

"I win…" Cynder muttered.

I chuckled nervously. "O-Okay, you got me…"

As we stared into each other's eyes, I could hear some snickering in the distance. I mentally face-palmed, I knew exactly where that snickering was coming from.

I turned to see Eruptor and the Skylanders watching us from a suitable distance. Eruptor was the only one that was snickering while the other Skylanders just stood there, unsure whether to laugh as well or tell him to stop. When will Eruptor learn? Does the fact that I had enough of his nonsense not process in that small brain of his?!

I rolled my eyes and grumbled under my breath. "Oh great, the Skylanders…"

Cynder turned her head around to where I was looking and raised her eyebrow. "Who are they?" She asked.

"Those guys there." I replied, gesturing to the Skylanders. "They're part of a programme where you can learn skills to survive in the other realms as well as elemental skills if you were a dragon. They also stop the odd petty crime here and there."

"And I'm guessing you're not in it?"

I shook my head. "Nope."

Cynder looked confused as she got off me. "Why not? It sounds like something you would do…"

"It's not the programme that bothers me, it's who's in it that really chaps my scales." I murmured, getting up from the grass.

"Did you guys have a falling out or something?"

"No, I was never friends with them in the first place." I answered. "I tried to make friends with them when I was little but they just batted me away… all because of my stupid scales." I then mumbled angrily.

"Hey, your scales aren't stupid ok?" Cynder assured, placing her paw on top of mine. "They make you… well, you."

I smiled at Cynder's comment. I would've liked to tell her how I felt right then and there (despite already kissing her back in Warfang) but I was unable to as the Skylanders were making their way towards Cynder and I.

"Well, look what we got here…" Eruptor spoke up as he approached us.

"What do you want, Eruptor?" I questioned, sounding disinterested.

"Nothing, just here to ask you something…" Eruptor answered, looking as innocent as possible before looking over at Cynder. "What are you doing hanging out with her?"

Cynder glared at Eruptor when he emphasized the 'her' part. Why was he targeting Cynder all of a sudden? Can he just let me be happy for once in my life?

My eyes narrowed. "Who I hang out with is none of your concern…" I said, trying to keep my temper in check. "Just go away…"

Eruptor gave me a smug look. "Would it be my concern if I find out you were hanging out with the daughter of Malefor of all creatures?"

I could see Cynder's eyes widen in astoundment with a hint of fear. I was surprised too, Ignitus clearly told me that Master Eon wasn't to be told about Cynder's true origins. Not that we didn't trust Master Eon or anything, we just couldn't let any of the Skylanders find out. Especially Eruptor.

"How did you know that?" I wondered. "Master Eon wasn't supposed to know…"

"Well now he does, one of the Elders told him." Eruptor explained before snickering. "Guess he missed the memo…"

Cynder and I didn't respond, we were both clearly pissed off. One job, the Dragon Elder had one job. Don't tell Master Eon. Clearly he couldn't do that, could he?

Eruptor chuckled, satisfied with us not responding. "Do you know what's sad, Spyro?" He asked me. "The only friend you've got is a freak like you."

Cynder stepped in front of me, unfazed by Eruptor's insults. "Hey asshole, who are you calling a freak?" Cynder taunted. "Why don't you look in a mirror sometime?"

Both the Skylanders and I's eyes widened at Cynder's comeback. Jet-Vac was in the back holding his breath from all the tension while everyone else just looked just utterly surprised that someone other than me stood up to Eruptor.

Eruptor, meanwhile, wasn't as tense. In fact he looked really, really angry. If he had actual hands then they would be clenched into fists. "Wh-I?! Why, you-!" Eruptor spat, raising his club-like hand above Cynder.

Before Eruptor could do something to Cynder, I immediately stepped in between Cynder and Eruptor. My wings were spread so that Cynder was protected from any projectile attacks.

"Don't. Touch. Her." I muttered angrily. I then felt an anger rise through me, a similar feeling as I felt when Malefor stabbed Cynder, something that was buried deep down inside of me waiting to burst out. Was this the true power of the purple dragon that Malefor talked about?

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it, Lame-o?"

I scowled at Eruptor, nearly on the verge of growling as purple lightning started to flow all over my body. The Skylanders stepped back cautiously, confused to what was happening to me. Even Eruptor looked afraid… good, this'll teach him to mess with me!

Then all of a sudden, Cynder stepped in front of me. What was she doing!? I meant to be protecting her from these guys!

"Spyro? Spyro, look at me." She told me, looking as cautious as the rest of the Skylanders. "You need to calm down, okay?"

When she saw that I was still focused on the Skylanders, Cynder immediately grabbed onto my paws and that's when I looked at her. "Listen to me Spyro, they're not worth it…" She said, squeezing my paws. "Don't do this…"

As I looked into Cynder's eyes, I saw that they were full of fear and concern. Guilt soon flooded through my system. As much as I wanted to blast Eruptor with the power of the purple dragon, I knew deep down that Cynder was right. If Cynder had gotten in the way between Eruptor and I at the wrong time, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I couldn't bear to see her get hurt again.

I took a few deep breaths, the purple lightning around me slowly dying out as I calmed myself down. "You're right… I'm sorry, Cynder." I mumbled, my head looking down at the ground.

Seeing that I was a little upset, Cynder lifted my head with hers and nuzzled me in comfort. I instantly nuzzled, cheeks going red from the embarrassment of nuzzling Cynder in front of the Skylanders.

Eruptor scoffed, interrupting the moment between Cynder and I. "Well, isn't this cute?" He said in an insulting tone. "You two freaks deserve each other. Wait till I tell Ign-"

Before Eruptor could finish his sentence, he was hit in the back of the head with a glass object. A hideous smell soon filled the air as Eruptor stood still from the shock of being hit in the back. Eruptor's eyes started to twitch as the smell reached his nostrils before he collapsed on the ground, revealing that Pop Fizz had hit him with one of his potions.

"That's quite enough of that." Jet-Vac said, walking next to Pop Fizz and folding his arms disapprovingly.

Both Cynder and I's eyes widened at the fact that one of the Skylanders just turned against their own. Why now have they decided to act against Eruptor?

"What just happened?" Cynder asked. "Did you kill him?"

"Nah, just a sleeping potion." Pop Fizz answered. "Should be fine in a few hours… or a day maybe. But either way, it worked!"

"Why did you do that?" I wondered, confused about why the Skylanders knocked out Eruptor.

Stealth Elf sighed. "Spyro, look… we're sorry about Eruptor. We should've realised how much of being a jerk he was to you sooner. We'll make sure Master Eon knows what he's been doing." She assured me.

I nodded my head slowly, still not entirely convinced about Stealth Elf's apology. "Thanks." I said. I then turned to Cynder. "Come on, Cynder. We should go."

As Cynder and I turned to leave, I could hear Stealth Elf call out to us. I initially ignored it and continued walking until Stealth Elf teleported in front of us, stopping us in our tracks.

"Hey, wait up Spyro!" She exclaimed, sounding breathless as if she had been running even though she obviously hadn't. She then took a breath before continuing. "So the other Skylanders and I have been talking and we were wondering if you and Cynder would like to hang out at the clubhouse sometime? Now that Eruptor is out of the way." She offered.

I raised my eyebrow. Was I imagining this? Was the Skylanders actually asking me if they wanted to hang out with me? Something didn't seem right about this…

"Why are you asking me this now?" I asked in a suspicious tone.

"Simple. You saved the world, dude." Pop Fizz spoke up from behind me. "That makes you cool in our book!"

I suddenly went still, my eyes widening as the anger that I hoped to leave behind slowly returned. Now I know why they dropped Eruptor while they could, they just wanted to latch onto the next coolest creature they know like parasites. That cool creature apparently being me.

That's it. I've had enough!

I looked at Stealth Elf, completely offended. "Oh, so you guys now want to be my friend because I saved the world?" I said angrily.

"That's not what we were saying…" Stealth Elf said, trying to defuse the situation. However I wasn't having any of it.

"Really?! It sure sounds like it to me!" I snapped.

"Look, I know we've not been on the best of terms…"

"Eight years!" I interjected, not letting Stealth Elf finish what she was saying. "Eight years that I had to live through your bullying! Even if Eruptor was the ringleader, you guys did jackshit! You guys just stood there and laughed as Eruptor tormented me into tiny, little pieces!"

"We're sorry, Spyro…"

I scowled at Stealth Elf, a hint of a growl coming out of my mouth. "No you're not. If you were sorry then you would've dropped Eruptor years ago…" I spat.

I then brushed past Stealth Elf, who was having trouble coming up with a response, and stormed off in the direction that I was originally going before. Cynder trailed behind me, staying quiet in case I had a go at her but she understood what I was going through.

And I was staying quiet because I didn't want to hurt Cynder… especially with my newfound power.

Whatever my new power is, it's a complete mystery. When I used it against Malefor, it felt like I was someone else. Like all my negative emotions had come alive and completely taken over my mind. All my thoughts were just urging me to kill Malefor and take his place. I could remember bits and pieces of my battle with Malefor but I wasn't exactly in control of my body. When I eventually regained control, Malefor was already dead and I was the point of collapsing. I had barely enough strength to get Cynder back to the Valley but if I didn't do anything then Cynder would've died.

I told Ignitus about how I felt a couple of days later and he told me that I had unlocked the Aether element, the supposed element of the purple dragon. He also warned me that I should never use it as it takes a huge toll on my body, both physically and mentally.

I could see the fear in Cynder's eyes when I almost attacked Eruptor. She was afraid of me, they were all afraid of me. It scares me to think that this could've been what truly drove Malefor to evil. He was constantly rejected until he snapped and rejected the world. Is that what's going to happen to me?

"You okay, Spyro?" Cynder wondered as she walked next to me.

"I'm fine." I grumbled, clearly not sounding fine at all.

"You're obviously not fine." She said with concern in her voice, walking in front of me and sitting on her haunches. "Tell me what's wrong."

I didn't answer Cynder straight away as I also sat on my haunches, looking away from her as I struggled to answer. I didn't want to scare her more if I say I'm becoming like Malefor.

"Spyro, I can't help you if you won't talk to me." Cynder edged closer to me and placed her paw on top of mine once again. "Do you feel guilty about what you said to the Skylanders?" She then speculated.

I slowly shook my head. "No, it's about what happened before with the my Aether element. Everyone looked so afraid of me." I explained. "You were afraid of me."

"I wasn't afraid of you." Cynder quickly denied. "I'm worried about you, I don't want you to do something you'll regret."

I looked down in sadness, tears welling up. "I just don't want to be like Malefor…" I muttered.

"You won't." Cynder assured me with a smile. "I'll make sure of it."

I smiled, Cynder's words making me feel better. Somehow she always knew what to say. "Thanks, Cynder. You're the best."

"I know." Cynder said smugly, leaning closer to me and giving me a surprise kiss on the cheek. "Just try not to worry about it, okay?"

I nodded in agreement, unable to talk from Cynder kissing me on the cheek. My cheeks went a deep red, which I was able to hide through my purple scales. There was something that I wanted to tell Cynder… well, not tell. More like asking her something.

I was going to ask her out on a date.

I've started planning this a few days after Cynder woke up since it wouldn't make sense to start planning something beforehand in the unlikely case that she died, lost her memory or other extreme possibilities that I didn't want to think about.

I didn't want to do the stereotypical first date and take her out for dinner. I knew that she wouldn't like being surrounded by the other dragons in the restaurant. I wanted a place where I could spend time with her but not have her pressured by any nosy dragons spying on her. That's when my mind immediately drew to the movies.

I don't go to the movies much myself due to the fact that I never have enough Gems to go. Ignitus would take me to the odd blockbuster here and there, the latest film in the Superhero Cinematic Universe being the most recent one. After I would finish my errands, I would head to the cinema on my way to the infirmary and see if there were any good movies on. Every day, there was nothing that would interest Cynder… unless she was interested in biopics or award-bait movies.

Then finally one movie came up: The reboot of the Slasher Camp series. I completely forgot that this was coming out due to the recent events that have transpired but from the looks of the trailers I've seen, it looked super cool. Once I saw Slasher Camp on the 'Now Showing' board, I immediately raced inside and bought two tickets. Luckily it was ages 13 and up otherwise everything I planned would've been up in smoke.

I took a deep breath and looked directly at Cynder, more than ready to ask her out. "Hey Cynder, could I ask you something?"

"Sure."

As buckets of sweat poured down my face, I struggled to get a sentence together. "Ok… uh…" I stammered. Come on Spyro, get it together. Just ask her! "S-so I've got two tickets to the new S-Slasher Camp movie a-and since Sparx isn't much of a fan, I was w-wondering if you…" I stuttered, rubbing the back of my head nervously.

Cynder tilted her head in curiosity. "If I what?"

I took a deep breath before answering. Unfortunately my answer came out much faster than I pictured in my head. "Iwaswonderingifyouwantedtocomeseethemoviewithme?!"

Unfortunately for me, Cynder looked at me in a confused way. "Huh? I didn't quite catch that, Spyro."

I gazed into her emerald eyes as I gulped and took a deep breath. Then I asked her again. "I was wondering if you wanted to come see the movie with me? Tonight?" I repeated, talking at a normal pace.

Cynder's expression changed from confused to that of utter surprise. She had that 'am-I-dreaming?' look on her face. At least she didn't blow this off as a friendly gesture. "S-Spyro, are you… asking me out?" Cynder enquired, making sure that she heard me right.

I squinted one of my eyes and slightly turned away, worried that Cynder was going to laugh or decline. "Y-Yes?"

"Like on a date?" Okay, so not an immediate no. Yet…

My eyes widened. "W-Well, It doesn't h-have to be if y-you don't w-want to. I-I just…" I stuttered, unable to finish my sentence as I looked away embarrassingly "Oh man." I muttered to myself. You blew it, Spyro, you absolutely blew it.

"I would love to, Spyro." I heard Cynder said, causing my already fast-beating heart to skip a few beats. Did she-? Did she just say yes?

I turned back towards her. "Really?"

Cynder nodded with a smile. "Really." She confirmed. "I would love to go to the movie with you, especially if it's Slasher Camp."

I chuckled slightly in relief. "That's great…" I said awkwardly. "So, um… the movie starts at eight-thirty. So I could pick you up at around eight so we can walk down?"

"Sounds good." Cynder said. "I can't wait."

My heart, at this point, was doing complete summersaults. I actually asked somebody out on a date, I actually did it. Just a couple of months or so ago, I thought I would never get to this stage. In fact, I accepted it. But look at me now, I just asked the most beautiful dragoness I've ever seen on a date.

Oh ancestors, I asked Cynder out… what am I going to do?!

()

After I showed Cynder the rest of the Artisan Valley, she went to her room to rest up for our date. After she closed the door, I went into full panic mode and quickly retreated back into my room which was next door (which Cynder reacted with a laugh when she found out that we were neighbours).

I slammed the door behind me, breathing intensely as possible thoughts about my date with Cynder ending badly entered through my mind. I raced to Sparx, still in the middle of his nap, and lightly but frantically poked him in the abdomen.

"Sparx! Sparx, wake up! This is an emergency!" I exclaimed, possibly having a mental breakdown at this point.

Sparx's eyes shot open as he jumped from my sudden appearance and flew out of his hammock before I could poke him more, waving his limbs up and down to tell me to stop panicking.

"Woah, woah, Spyro! Calm down, what's the big deal?" Sparx wondered through a series of buzzes.

"I just asked Cynder out!" I almost shouted out, trying to be not too loud since Cynder was just next door to me.

Sparx looked at me with a fed up look, rolling his eyes. "Really? That's the emergency?"

My eyes widened. "Yes!" I said, my voice almost squeaking. "I asked her out and now I'm scared that I'm going to make a fool out of myself!"

"Spyro, you're already a fool." Sparx muttered.

"Gee, thanks." I said as I looked at him in annoyance, my eyes narrowing.

"What I mean is…" Sparx clarified. "Just be yourself. That's all she wants." Who knew that Sparx could give out useful advice despite the fact that he hasn't been on any dates either. Must be from watching all of Terrador's rom-coms.

"Be myself?" I thought out loud to myself, turning to Sparx with a slightly confident smile. "I think I can do that…"

"Good, just stick with that advice and Cynder will be in your bed in no time."

"Sparx!" I shouted angrily, blushing like crazy at what Sparx said.

"Kidding, kidding." Sparx chuckled, buzzes coming in frantically to simulate laughter. "But seriously dude. Just be yourself and you'll be fine. Oh, and have fun."

"I will." I said, going to my drawers and opening it up to find something to wear. I should make an effort to impress Cynder, right? Don't want her to be disappointed.

And I think I know just the thing…

()

It was about five past eight as I stood in front of Cynder's door, tugging the black bowtie that was around my neck nervously. I found the bowtie lodged deep in the back of one of my drawers, only having worn it once for a social gathering a few years ago that I didn't enjoy whatsoever. It just seemed more appropriate for this occasion, it was either that or a multi-coloured scarf that would've constantly tripped me up if I wore it.

I reached out my paw to knock on Cynder's door only to retract it back to the ground hesitantly. Come on, Spyro, what are you doing? Just knock on the door. There's no need to be nervous, you've asked Cynder out already. Actually going on said date should be a piece of cake… hopefully.

I took a deep breath and knocked on Cynder's door four times. There was silence for a second until I could hear Cynder's footsteps behind the door.

"Coming!" I could hear her voice call out. She sounded cheerful, that's usually a good sign.

After she said that, the door opened to reveal Cynder. As soon as I laid eyes on her, I couldn't look at anything else. Cynder seemed more cleaner as her scales slightly sparkled from the torchlight that illuminated the corridors. The white border around her symbols were whiter than ever before, as if they were never dirty in the first place.

Everything seemed unimportant compared to Cynder's beauty. I could've sworn that my jaw was hung loose when I saw her open the door. I couldn't even say hi to her, all that came out of my mouth was "uh, uh, uh…"

"Spyro?" She wondered, snapping her claws to get me out of my daze. "You okay there?"

"Y-Yes, sorry…" I nodded, blushing slightly. "It's just… you look beautiful."

Cynder was also blushing as she looked down towards the ground. "Thanks. You're looking handsome yourself." She said, looking up towards my bowtie and adjusting it slightly. "I like what you're wearing around your neck. Looks nice."

"Y-Yeah, it's cool. Bowties are cool." I blurted out, chuckling nervously afterwards. "So you ready for the movie?" I then asked her.

Cynder nodded. "Hell yeah, I am!" She exclaimed, excitement in her voice as she and I started to walk down the corridor. "Can't wait to see how creative Jason can get. I wonder what's he going to do? Will he just punch some guy's head off or will he use something like liquid nitrogen? That would be so cool!" She then rambled, clearly fangirling right now. I smiled at her fangirling, I've truly found the right dragoness for me.

Cynder saw that I was smiling and blushed, an awkward laugh coming out of her maw. "Sorry… got a bit too over excited there."

"Don't be sorry. I think you sound cute when you ramble like that." I complimented her, causing Cynder to blush even more.

"Well… I…" Cynder stammered as she tried to come up with a funny insult before she gave up. "Shut up." She then finally said, causing me to laugh.

So far, so good. Let's see how this date goes when we get to the cinema.

()

After the movie, Cynder and I spent the time walking back to the Temple talking about what we liked about it and what we didn't like about it. I could tell that Cynder really enjoyed it, she was grinning her maw off every time someone was being killed. I personally was more scared of this version of Jason rather than the original one but that didn't stop me from rooting for him rather than the potential victims.

Cynder and I eventually made it back to the Temple, we made sure that we were extra quiet in case we woke up any of the Dragon Elders or even the Guardians. I don't particularly want a grumpy Cyril telling us to be quiet and ruin one of the best nights of my life.

"Thank you for taking me out tonight, Spyro." Cynder said as we reached our rooms. "I really enjoyed it."

I smiled. "No problem. I enjoyed it as well."

There was an awkward silence between us. It wasn't because we didn't enjoy spending time together or anything, I think it was because we wanted to spend more time together. It was as if the date wasn't over. Maybe I should've planned to do something after the movie…

"Well… good night." Cynder muttered sadly as she went to open her door.

"Good night…" I whispered, feeling saddened that the date was over. Come on, Spyro… say something. Anything!

"Hey, did you want to come in for a bit?" I offered, gesturing to my room. "Night's still young…"

"What about Sparx?" Cynder wondered, turning towards me.

"Oh don't worry about him, he's a heavy sleeper." I replied.

"Well, alright then." Cynder said. "I suppose I can come in for a while."

I opened the door to my room and Cynder followed me inside. I was instantly shocked by the state my room was in with items of clothing that I tried on and pieces of rubbish scattered around the floor. I immediately started to grab some of the clothing and shoved them under my bed. Note to self, maybe clean up before you invite someone into your room.

"So this is your room?" Cynder queried as she looked around my room.

"Yep." I said as I popped my head out from under the bed. "Sorry about the mess, I don't usually have company over." I apologised quickly as I was frantically trying to make my room more presentable.

Cynder chuckled, smirking at me. "Don't worry about it, I've seen worse." She assured me.

As I continued to tidy up, Cynder made her way to my DVD and CD shelves. "Woah, you've got quite the collection of DVDs both big and small." She admired, looking up and down in curiosity. She bent down slightly to look at the small print on the CDs and started reading them out. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road… A Night at the Opera… Abbey Road. Odd titles for movies, don't you think?"

"Those aren't DVDs, Cynder. They're CDs, you listen to music on those." I pointed out, slightly amused by Cynder's mix up.

Cynder raised an eyebrow. "Music? What's that?"

My eyes widened. Oh yeah, I keep forgetting that Cynder isn't quite caught up on our culture yet. "It can be anything you can listen to really. It can be someone using their voice or just an instrument." I explained.

"I'll have to listen to them some time." She said before she turned and walked up to me. "Did you want some help tidying up?" She asked.

I shook my head. "No, no. I'm almost done."

Cynder rolled her eyes. "Spyro, you know you don't have to tidy up for my sake…"

"I know, I just want to." I said, looking down at the ground. "I don't want you thinking that I was a slob or anything."

Cynder sighed, placing her paw on my cheek. "You're many things, Spyro, and a slob is not of them. You're perfect just the way you are."

"Am I?" I questioned. "I have abilities unlike any dragon, I could kill someone if I lose my temper, not to mention that I'm socially awk-"

I was cut off by Cynder giving me a brief kiss on the lips, causing my eyes to widen and I immediately stopped talking. When Cynder and I separated, I stood there completely still with my face still a look of surprise.

"And… you kissed me."

"Sorry, that was probably too forward." Cynder apologised, looking down at the ground uncomfortably. "But as I recall, you kissed me first. Remember?"

I blushed as the memory of kissing Cynder before facing Malefor entered my mind. "Well, I… I thought I was gonna die. I couldn't leave without at least showing you how I felt..." I muttered.

I took a deep breath. This is it, no going back now. "Because I really, really like you."

Cynder looked back up into my eyes and smiled at me. "I really, really like you too."

I smiled back as we both lingered for another quick kiss, separating for a few seconds to stare at each other's eyes before going in for a much longer kiss. My heart started to beat at a fast but relaxing pace. It was the best feeling ever, even better than the kiss in Warfang since there was no danger to come. It was just Cynder and I, enjoying our moment together. Not even Sparx's snores could disturb us.

We separated from our kiss and leaned against each other's foreheads, both smiling at one another.

"So… are we-?" I started to ask.

"An item?" Cynder finished my question. "Looks like it." She answered.

"I love you." I murmured, finally saying the three words I had been wanting to say for quite a while. I know I said it as Cynder passed out but this time however, Cynder actually heard it.

"I love you too." Cynder murmured back.

Cynder almost pulled me into another kiss until Sparx made a loud snore as he shuffled around his hammock. His snores caused both Cynder and I to snap out of our romantic moment and dart our heads towards the source of the noise. Once we realised that it was Sparx, we both chuckled quietly amongst ourselves.

"Maybe I should go…" Cynder said. "Who knows what Sparx will think if he catches us."

"Aww, tired of me already?" I teased, giving Cynder a fake sad look.

Cynder smirked. "Ha, you wish purple boy!" She scoffed as she gave me a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

"I'll be here." I said with a smile. As much as I wanted to kiss her again, I resisted any temptation otherwise she'd never leave and Sparx wouldn't exactly wake up in the middle of the night and see us together.

"Good night, Spyro." Cynder said as she started to open the door.

"Night, Cynder." I said, sitting on my haunches and making a heart symbol with my paws which I gestured to Cynder to tell her that I love her without saying anything. Cynder saw this and gave me a cute little wave in response before closing the door behind her.

After Cynder left, a huge massive grin grew on my maw. A month ago, I was alone with no friends that weren't the Guardians, the Elders or Sparx. I didn't know who I truly was until now. Then I met Cynder, who by far is the best thing to ever happen to me. Sorry other moments in my life but Cynder's got you beat. Who knew that the dragoness that ran away to kill me so that she could impress her father would eventually become my girlfriend?

"There goes my baby, she knows how to rock 'n' roll, she drives me crazy, she gives me hot and cold fever, then she leaves me in a cool cool sweat…" I sang happily to myself as I climbed into bed.

I crawled into bed and gave one final look at my door before drifting off to sleep, thinking of the many adventures and mishaps my girlfriend and I will get up to. Hopefully it'll be for a very, very long time.

Love… it's a crazy little thing, isn't it?

()

(3RD PERSON)

Concurrent Skies. A dark, foreboding plan where hope goes to die. Sharp, powerful gems surround the place, the constant lightning storms making it grow in both mass and power. This place is home to the electric dragons, battling a never-ending war with Malefor's forces.

Nearby the old abandoned fortress was a cave made from icicles and other ice-related materials. Dead Apes, Gnorcs and Grublins surrounded the entrance but they were part of different parties at different times. All had one objective: hunt down whatever lived in that cave.

An ice dragoness emerged from inside the cave, her left wing mostly charred and burnt from the electrical storm. Besides from a few scratches, bruises and some dried blood on her body, she was mostly still alive and intact.

She looked up to the sky, the sun finally slightly peeping out of the clouds. She smiled at the mere sight of it, having not seen the sun in the 13 years she's been there.

It was as if hope had returned to her heart. Hope that her son had finally fulfilled his destiny.

That's it. That's the end of the story. I actually finished a story for once! I hope you guys enjoyed this story, I know I certainly did. Again, thank you guys for reviewing, following and favoriting this story, it truly means a lot to me. And as I was writing this, I managed to get 10,000 views on this story. A big milestone for me, so thank you all!

I would like to make a couple of shout outs to IllusionMaster17 and SKdaGamer. Thank you to Illusion for reviewing every single chapter in this story! It means a lot to me. I would also like to thank SKda for helping me out with this chapter, thanks for the advice man.

Now I know there might be some people asking this so I'll answer it now. "Is there going to be a sequel?" The answer is yes but I haven't got a full story yet so don't expect it to come out for a while. Plus I got a few other stories I want to do first, like a Space AU Spyro story for example.

But next month, I do have a one shot planned for this universe. It'll be set three years in the future so look out for 'The One' in the Spyro archive soon. I also might be doing a one shot from a prompt on the Spyro Discord server I'm on. So be on the look for that as well.

This is TARDIS1039, hoping everyone is staying safe during the coronavirus pandemic. Allons-y!