Part 1: 

The egg was dark blue with black speckles covering it. It was warm to the tough, but with every passing second, the egg became hotter. Soon it became scalding hot.

Slowly the egg began to shake as the shell cracked and chipped away. 

It was finally time for it to hatch, not just the egg but it's the owner too. It was their time to look upon the earth and the life that they would live in. 

Each human was born at the same time that their bond animal was. The creature could be anything from a mouse to a firebird. The creatures were kept in a secret facility until their human turned 18 years of age. They would watch the animals and learn more about them until they released them to find their bond. No one understood how they found their owner, but they had a map in their head or a compass. Without fail, each creature would find its human, and they would never be separated until death.

The egg broke apart was two leathery wings pooped out, along with a small puff of smoke. A dozen men were surrounding the egg, guns raised in their hands as a little dragon crawled out of the egg.

Of all the creatures, the dragons were the most powerful. There was not much information on the dragons, and in history, there had only been three other dragons. The first belonged to a man who built the greatest kingdom. His dragon was a grey giant that had control over the ground. It could move stones and make plants grow. The domain was so grand that no one dared attack, especially since it was guarded by the dragon. The second dragon belonged to a war general. His dragon was much smaller but could breathe the hottest fire. They whipped out all their enemies and ended long wars. The last belonged to a fearsome man. His dragon was pure black, and they would attack anyone for anything. Many people regarded him as a tyrant and menace.

After the horrors of the last dragon welder, they did not want to take any risks.

They knew that at birth, the creatures were weaker and had not built up a strong defense, so this was the perfect time to strike in hopes of killing it.

If the creature was the die, the owner would lose something from themselves. It could be anything from an eye to even a leg. If the owners were killed, however, the creature would die along with them.

Knowing this, if they failed here, they would find the child and kill them. Regardless the men raised their guns as they all watched the dragon. The leader put his hand to his ear listening through the earpiece to the boss. He listened to whether they should continue with the plan or abandon it. Slowly the man lowered his hand before lifting his gun before nodding to the other soldiers as they opened fire.

The air filled with gunfire and the smell of fire before there was only silence.

~ 17 Years later

The young girl walked down the street. She had her earbuds in, listening to music as she walked home. She had just gotten out of school after what felt like a long day.

It was less than a day until her birthday. She would be turning 18, and it would be the first time she would see her bond. She was nervous about it, and everyone around her congratulated each other about it, which only caused her to grew even more nervous. Everyone made such a big deal about it, and she really did not understand why. All it was to her was an animal that she would have to care for. She would have to take care of this creature along with trying to take care of herself.

She finally arrived at her house. Walking inside, she saw her mother sitting at the table. There was a small box sitting on the table, and she could hear the quiet sobs of her mother.

Quietly, the girl snuck to the stairs before walking up to them and into her room.

Once she was in her room, she threw her backpack onto the floor before falling onto her bed and letting out a sigh. Her mother was not usually home this early, and seeing her crying over a box made her worried, but she did not want to get involved in whatever was in there.

It was just her mother and her. Her father had left when she was 5 and never returned. Ever since he had left, her mother was distant and not the same. Her mother worked long hours at work to make a living for them, and because of that, she did not often see her mother, but when she did, her mother was tiered and often grumpy.

"Amya, honey, it's time to eat!" Her mother's rough voice called up the stairs.

She groaned, rolling off her bed, standing up. She quickly took off her school clothes before throwing on some sweatpants and a black t-shirt.

Once she got downstairs, her mother was sitting at the table, her eyes red and puffy. 

Amya walked over to the table, sitting down. She picked up the salad bowl before taking some and passing it to her mother. Continuing to grab the food, they began to eat in silence, neither of them speaking.

"Are you excited for tomorrow?" Her mother asked, looking up at her.

Amya let out a silent groan, "I mean, I am not, not excited. I just do not know if I am ready." She replied, taking another bite of her food.

"Oh sweetie, I felt the same, but when my creature came, IO felt totally different. I felt as if a hole in my heart had been filled, and I was so happy." 

Amya smiled at her mother, thanking her before going back to her food. But even after what she said, she did not feel any different. She still felt as if things would be other and challenging because of it. She felt as if she wouldn't be happy, even when her bond came.

Either way, she did not want to make her mother worried around her, so she just smiled and tried to forget it.

Once they finished dinner, she helped her mother clean up the kitchen before going back to her bedroom, working on her homework. She worked on her math, then her English which she had to read. After she was done, she put all her supplies back into her bag and looked at the time.

The clock read 11:20. She had not realized it had been that long, but at least she was done.

Standing up, she went into her bathroom, getting ready for bed before laying down and falling asleep.

She woke up to her alarm blaring in her head. She reached over, hitting the off button before turning over and telling herself two more minutes. She let her eyes close before quickly opening them, knowing if she fell asleep, there was no telling when she would wake up.

Climbing out of her bed, she changed and got ready for the day. Tieing her hair in a French braid, she applied a little make-up before stepping back and looking at herself.

"Honey, it's time for breakfast," her mother said, knocking on her door.

"Coming, mother." She said before finishing up and grabbing her backpack, and heading down the stairs.

When she got down, her mother was sitting at the table both plates full of food. There were blueberry pancakes, with bacon and eggs on the side. Amya smiled before sitting down. She immediately filled her mouth with a bite of the pancake before thanking her mother for the food.

"Happy birthday, I have something for you," she said before standing up and leaving the room. When she came back, she was carrying a box and a small bag. She handed me the small bag first, telling me that it was from her before giving me the box and sitting down. "That is from your father," she said, tear surfacing in her eyes.

"Thank you," she said, setting them beside her, "if it's okay, I'll open them later."

Her mother only nodded before they finished eating in silence. They ate in silence, but Amya's head was filled with questions. She had tried so hard to ignore her father and to forget about him, yet here he was shoving himself back into her mind. She could barely remember what he looked like. Looking at the box, she felt that if she opened it, it would be as if she was telling herself what he did was okay. She did not want to feel as if she forgave him by accepting the gift he gave. She wished that he had just forgotten about them.

Once she finished eating, she put the gifts in her backpack before sliding her shoes on. Saying a quick goodbye to her mother, she left the house and headed to school.

Just like usual, she put her headphones in and listen to music on her way to school.

When she got to school, many of the students were already inside. The others were talking or heading in. She walked inside before heading to her locker, where she grabbed anything she might need for her classes. A few of her friends stopped to tell her happy birthday before heading to their classes. 

She continued down the hall heading to her class. She went into her class before sitting down, pulling out the presents she got. She opened the one from her mother, noticing a bracelet engraved with her name and a spot for her bond's name. With a smile, she slides the bracelet on before pulling out the box from her father.

"What's that?" A voice said from beside her.

Looking up, she was her friend Kim looking down at her, her eyes sparkling as she looked at the box. She stood right above her, glancing at the box as if she wanted to open it for Amya.

"It's a gift from my father," she said. Kim knew about her father and how he had left them.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, taking a step back. "Are you going to open it?"

"I don't know yet," she said, looking back at the box. She had thought about what it could be, but she found herself more inclined to open it and just figure it out with each thought about what it could be. 

Slowly she reached out and began to open the box. She lifted the lid as she looked inside. There was a small silver chain. Grabbing the chain, she lifted it out of the box. Resting at the bottom of the chain, there was a silver dragon charm. The dragon had little blue gems lining its wings that seemed to glow.

"Wow, that is beautiful," Kim said in amazement.

Why a dragon? She asked herself. She did not understand why her father had given her this. She knew nothing about dragons and did not care for them, so why of all the creatures did he pick a dragon.

"Here, let me help you put it on," Kim said, grabbing the necklace. Amya sat frozen as Kim placed the chain around her neck. The cold metal falling on her neck sending chills down her spine. The dragon charm sat on her neck as if it had always been there.

"It looks so good on you," Kim said, stepping back looking at her.

"Thank you," Amya said with a smile

"Sit down, class!" Her teacher called as everyone rushed to their seats before the teacher could. After taking attendance, the teacher began to teach. He was a strict teacher, but everyone knew that he just cared about them and wanted them to learn all they could.

Amya did not mind it though, in fact, he liked the way he taught. She found herself getting distracted thinking about her father again. She wondered where he was and why he had sent her something despite leaving them.

"Amya! Are you listening!" Her teacher called, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, sorry, I was just a bit distracted."

"Please pay attention now." He said as she nodded at him making sure to listen.