Friendship in the Far South

Nacen blinked, and she refocused her thoughts back to the present. "Has your frost magic recovered? I'm still failing that cold bracelet affinity test."

Raising his head, Harkwin exhaled a tiny jet of frostbreath, which immediately created a puff of condensation in the humid greenhouse air. "Yeah, my magic seems to be back. Is yours still not back?"

Nacen opened her jaws and tried to exhale frostbreath, but all she did was look slightly silly. Nothing came from her mouth but air. "Huuh...! No, that's still not working."

"I'm sure your magic will come back soon too," Harkwin assured her.

"Hopefully so. No reason why it shouldn't," Nacen agreed. "But still... After all that we've been through, you're just going to go back into the cold? Into... all that?" She gestured towards the outside, where the sky was grey and the snow was falling.

"We're explorers of the far south! Cold is part of the job description," Harkwin replied. "Surely you're going to return to work eventually?"

"Well, yes, but if at all possible that will be in a warm, safe research lab. I'm going to request to stay here in Central. Someone else can take care of Outpost 20 for the rest of the expedition," Nacen decided, though this was only part of the reason why she wanted to stay at Central.

Sure there were more heating and more living amenities, but it was also so much less lonely in Central Camp. Here there were so many other dragons—there was chatting and games during the rest hours, there were shared meals eaten together in the cookhouse, and there was also Harkwin, who she could see every night and morning instead of once a week.

Without it being said, Harkwin seemed to understand this too. "Oh, you can do that? Just... request not to be sent out to the outpost?"

"Normally I think the senior researchers wouldn't let someone shirk out of outpost duty, but I'd say that I've fulfilled all my live-in-a-tent responsibilities after that storm. I'm pretty sure they'll understand and let me help with the research work here," Nacen replied.

Harkwin nodded. "Sounds good."

Nacen shrugged. "Not that I couldn't do field work again. I mean, I could. I could definitely head back out into the snow and just... just go back to taking water samples from the hot spring or whatever, if I really had to. I'm not asking for pity, and I'm not saying I'm scared of the snow."

Harkin chuckled, sounding amused. "Hehe. Nacen, I never said you were scared of the snow."

"Good, because I'm not." Nacen stood up as a sudden impulse came to her. "You know what? I've been spending so much time huddled under a blanket in the warmth of the infirmary. Let's go out into the snow just for a moment. Maybe that'll get my frost magic running again."

Turning his gaze to her, Harkwin gave her a look of concern. "Are you... sure about that? This isn't storm cold, but it is still polar cold. If your frost magic isn't recovered, you're not going to be comfortable at all."

A daring grin crossed Nacen's snout. "Just for a moment! We've been indoors for days, ever since they flew us back here. Let's make it quick. We won't even walk about the camp, just step outside then right back in."

"Fine, fine..." Harkwin looked amused, but he obligingly followed along as Nacen went over to one of the double doored entryways which led in and out of the greenhouse. The two young dragons stepped into the antechamber which stood in between the warmth of the greenhouse interior and the cold of the outside. "Last chance to back out?" Harkwin offered.

"Hmm, nah. How bad can it be?" Nacen hesitated for a moment, then she shoved the door's push bar with her shoulder and stepped out into the far south. Instantly a wall of cold air slammed into her. "Ooh! Okay! That is cold. I have changed my mind and immediately regret this!" Nacen immediately spun around and quickly headed back in. Once again inside the greenhouse's antechamber, she hopped around and tried to shake off any snow from her paws. "So cold. So coooold!"

Harkwin was still standing outside. He appeared to be laughing, and he rolled a small snowball and tossed it at the door's window so that the snow splattered against the glass. Nacen stuck her tongue out at him. Harkwin then opened the door to come back inside, which made Nacen recoil back as a cold wind briefly blew in from the outside. "Hahaha, seriously? It was your idea to go outside in the first place!" Harkwin said, grinning widely.

Nacen flicked her crest fin. "In hindsight, that was not one of my better decisions. Brrr... so cold." She wrapped her wings around herself like a blanket, then changed her mind and decided there was a better way to do this. Walking over to Harkwin, she leaned against him. "Please hug me."

Harkwin smiled, and he did. His wings felt warm and protective as they wrapped around her. "You are hilarious, you know that? You silly, smart, funny dragon, you. Don't go outside till your frost magic is fully back!"

"Hmmmmrrr..." Nacen let out a rumbly pleased sigh. For that moment, it was just the two of them in this antechamber, out of view from the rest of the greenhouse and able to embrace each other. "That's probably good advice."

"Was this all just a plot to have me hug you? You could have just asked."

Nacen hummed, and she shrugged. "Hnng. It's a nice hug! Ok, that's enough. Let's go back—it should be dinnertime soon."

"Excellent. I'm feeling hungry," Harkwin said.

Turning around, Nacen couldn't keep a faint skip out of her step. She wasn't quite sure what she'd come all the way out to the far south to find—scientific discoveries, a boost to her career, or an adventure?—but instead she'd found a friend and more, and that was all the more valuable. She playfully bumped her shoulder against Harkwin's.

Walking side by side, the two young dragons headed back inside the greenery, where it was warm and safe.

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END