Ash

Okay so this one definitely isn't short like I thought it was gonna be so I wasn't able to finish it last night but I hope you think it's worth it :) Not really edited but I don't think there are too many mistakes.....

******

"Did I wake you up?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "Nah I couldn't sleep, I was drawing," he says.

"Can I see?"

Jax reaches around behind me and grabs his sketchbook. I take it and look over the unfinished blue flowers. "What are these?"

"Coal blossoms, haven't you seen them before? They grow all over the volcanoes in the winter time."

"I usually spend winter near the witches' territory," I tell him, handing back the drawing.

"Why there?"

"The witch queen turned it into a sanctuary of sorts, everyone there has their own problems so they don't bother anyone," I say.

"Yeah Queen Syrra is a pretty amazing, my brother is lucky to have her as a mate," he remarks. "This winter though you should stay in the Circle."

"Why?" I ask.

He shrugs. "I think you'd like it. Most of the dragons don't like the snow so they stay inside even though it's still pretty warm thanks to the volcanoes," he says.

"I'll probably have to anyway, your mother wants me to be a trainer for the juveniles when we get back."

"That's great! That's normally what I do when I'm there—well that and I assist the healer on occasion."

"Why would dragons need a healer?" I ask.

"Well they can heal on their own for the most part except when their dragons get hurt too bad. When their dragons are severely injured then they heal like a human," he explains.

"Oh," is all I say. I've only ever shifted twice in my lifetime. The very first time when I turned 14, and then again to prove to Jaxon's mother that I was a Fury dragon a few years ago.

"Do you think you'll be able to get back to sleep?" Jax suddenly asks.

"Doubtful," I mutter.

"Well you should at least lie down and try to get some rest. Your wounds aren't bleeding again, are they?"

I lift my shirt over my head and gingerly touch the red-stained bandages. The blood on them is dry—a few days old. "No it's good, it doesn't really hurt anymore either," I sigh.

"Okay good, you can use my legs as a pillow again if you want," he says, shifting so that he is sitting with his back against the wall.

"Aren't you going to sleep?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "I want to finish this drawing. Plus we've just been lounging in this cave for like a week so I'm not really tired," he chuckles.

"Yeah true," I mutter, laying back down on the floor with a pile of shirts under my shoulders and Jax's legs under my head.

I stare at the ceiling, listening to the sound of his pencils lightly scratching the paper.

"We should start moving again tomorrow, we're out of bandages and if we stay out here too much longer your wound could get infected," Jax says.

I clench my jaw, swallowing hard. "Yeah okay," I mumble.

It's silent aside from the pencils for several minutes. Then suddenly a red flame sparks above me. I frown, glancing up at Jax but he is focused completely on his drawing.

I look back up at the ceiling and watch the glowing red flame start to spread. It crawls across the ceiling, forming intricate designs on the stone. "Jax are you doing that?" I ask, my eyebrows furrowed.

"Doing what? Oh that, yeah it's not on purpose but I do that sometimes when I'm distracted," he says, glancing up at the flames, "or intensely focusing on something."

Well that's not terrifying at all.

*******

The wind whistles in my ears but there is no other sound. The birds aren't even around anymore—desperate to leave the mountains before the first snow comes.

I let out a sigh as I look down again. The rock ends just a few inches from my feet, dropping into a canyon that goes down so far I can barely see the bottom.

How long do you think it would take to fall to the bottom? I ask and my dragon growls.

Too long.

"Ash? Are you okay?" I hear Jaxon ask softly.

I try to respond but my mouth is clamped shut. I stare down into the canyon until it all goes blurry and shifts out of focus.

"Ash? Baby are you okay?"

I blink a few times to bring everything back into focus and swallow the lump in my throat. "No, not really," I admit.

"We need to get to the Circle and then you can rest. We'll be there by sundown if we keep moving. You can even stay in my room if you want, it's a hundred times comfier than a cave," he tells me.

"Can I just stand here for a while?" I mutter.

Jax sighs. "Well you're sitting for one thing, and two, the longer we procrastinate going home the harder it's going to be."

I don't remember sitting down, I think with a frown.

Do you remember getting here or even waking up? Cassie sighs.

No.

"Okay," Jaxon sighs, "I will carry you if I have to but I know you can do it, come on." He slides his arms underneath mine and starts lifting me up.

I grit my teeth to hold back a groan as I plant my feet under me and stand up on weak legs. I instantly regret it.

The ground sways beneath me and I stumble forward. Jaxon pulls my arm over his shoulder, holding me up. "Close your eyes and take a deep breath."

I do as he says, clenching my jaw as I wait for the nausea and dizziness to fade. It eventually does but my head still throbs and my body is filled with fatigue.

"How do you deal with this when you're by yourself?" Jax asks.

"I walk until I pass out or just can't move anymore and then I start walking again when I can finally bring myself to get up," I sigh.

"Sounds pleasant," he mutters as he starts walking forward, half-dragging me along.

I make a noise, letting out a heavy breath. "Like this is better," I grumble. My feet feel like lead and each step is exhausting.

Jax sighs, adjusting my arm on his shoulder. "I know this sucks and I know you want to go to sleep forever and just forget about everything but we need to get home. If your wound starts bleeding again or gets infected then we're in trouble cause I have no more supplies."

"Maybe it should get infected, then I could just die and not have to go back," I growl.

He sighs again. "That's the spirit."

**********

"I honestly wasn't sure if I should expect you within a few days or a few weeks," she says, jogging down the steps.

She rushes forward to hug Jaxon tightly, then reaches up to fuss with his hair. "You need a shower, and a haircut," she chuckles.

"Thanks mom I appreciate that," he snorts. "Where's Kaine?"

"Oh he's with his mate over in witch territory. They should be back in the next few days, Queen Syrra just had to sort some things out," she explains.

"Okay well I need to take a shower and get some rest and he probably does too," Jax says and I realize he is looking at me.

"Yeah I could probably use a shower," I mutter.

"Well Ash since you're going to be a Trainer I suppose we should get you a room here—" Queen Zari starts to say but Jax cuts her off.

"Uh mom, he can just stay in my room," he says quietly.

She smiles with a nod. "Yeah that's fine. You two get cleaned up and get some rest and I will have one of the healers stop by your room. Are you doing okay Ash?"

"I've had better days," I admit. Now I can barely keep my eyes open.

"I wouldn't doubt it. When you didn't show up for a while I had Kaine's mate check on you guys and I heard you were staying in a cave only a day or so from here. Did you go that whole way today?"

"Pretty much, I ran out of supplies and I was worried his injuries would get infected. And he's about to pass out—"

"I am not," I growl but he just rolls his eyes.

"Sure you're not. So anyway, mom I'll talk to you tomorrow, thanks for letting me come by the way."

His mother nods and they hug each other again before Jaxon comes over to where I sit on the floor. He pulls me to my feet and I lean on him as we start walking down the glittering black and red halls.

"Feel better Ash!" she calls after us.

"I think my brain is broken," I mumble, watching golden lines race across the floor and up the walls.

"I think you're just tired. So tired that you're borderline drunk," Jax chuckles.

He pushes open a set of double doors and my eyes widen. Inside it is absolutely gorgeous. My eyes immediately go to the huge window and the massive four poster bed. I feel energy start to seep into my bones as excitement fills my mind.

"This is amazing," I breathe, pushing off of Jax to stand on my own.

"I told you," he chuckles.

I wander into the room, my mouth agape as I look over the beautiful architecture. My gaze finds another door and I push it open. The bathroom is even better.

There's essentially a tiny pool in the floor, its water a milky blue that only comes from the springs beneath the volcanoes.

Before I realize what I am doing, I am lowering myself into the steaming pool, my clothes and bandages discarded on the floor. It feels smooth as silk and seeps into my pores.

"Do you like it?" A voice asks.

I just nod numbly, closing my eyes and letting my head rest against the glassy stone.

"Well get yourself cleaned up before you fall asleep in there, I'd hate for you to drown in the bathroom," Jax says.

"Yeah okay," I mutter. I clean myself off and reluctantly climb out of the soothing water. I dry my body and see a stack of clean clothes on the counter. "Jax are these for me?" I ask.

"Yeah they might be a little big but they're clean," he calls from the other side of the door.

I slip on the clothes, noting that the shirt is a little big like he said. In the room Jax is sitting on a couch beneath the window. He turns away from the view and looks at me as I step out of the bathroom.

"Well don't you just look adorable in my clothes," he grins.

I bite my cheek and scratch my arm. "Thank you," I murmur, feeling my face grow hot.

He chuckles a little as he walks over to me. "I'm gonna go take a shower, you should try to get some sleep, you look exhausted," he says, putting his hands on either side of my face.

I nod and smile as he leans forward to kiss me. I hold onto his arms, pulling him closer. He smiles against my lips before pulling away. "Go get some sleep," he says, kissing me on the forehead.

"Okay fine," I sigh.

He chuckles and steps around me to go into the bathroom.

Do you think he actually likes me? I ask my dragon.

You're kidding, right?

No I mean what if he just feels bad for me or is pretending to like me as a sympathy thing?

She sighs. Ash who kissed who first?

Well he kissed me first but—

And who said they wanted to get to know you and asked you questions only as long as you were comfortable with it?

Well he did but—

Who stayed with you through your nightmares and flashbacks and never once judged you or got mad at you for the things you did as a hunter?

Jaxon did but—

Ash that's the end of it. He wouldn't do all of those things if he didn't care about you, just remember that, she says.

I sigh heavily. Okay, I mutter. I climb under the covers of the bed, my eyes widening. The sheets are silk and the bed itself feels like a warm cloud.

I lay my head on the pillow and turn so that I can look out the window. As soon as I lay down I feel my eyelids start to grow heavy once again.

I close my eyes but just before I fall asleep the bed dips a little behind me. I turn to see Jax climbing in, wearing nothing but a pair of boxers. After weeks of lounging in a cave he still has toned abs and muscular arms.

"Ash are you going to keep staring or are you going to scoot over here?"

I bite my cheek. "Sorry," I mumble.

He chuckles and holds his arm out making me smile. I shuffle over so that my head rests on his shoulder. His arm wraps around me and I let out a sigh at the feeling of security that instantly sweeps over me.

I close my eyes as Jax kisses my forehead lightly. "Goodnight Ash, sleep well," he whispers.

His arm curls tighter around me and I smile. No nightmares tonight.

*********

Hey guys! I hope you liked this chapter, a lot of you guys said you wanted more Jaxon/Ash fluff so I hope this was sufficient :)

**BTW you guys should come up with a ship name for these two**

Whose POV do you want next? Taylor or Maia???

Please COMMENT and VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!