Jade Mountain Academy discussion

This is for ME ONLY! here I will put stuff like important information about my characters, writing, updates about me- stuff like that! Nobody else should comment here! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED lol

(plz give me credit if you use this, I'm starting to actually like my template.)

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--||- _Pictures:_ -||--

BIT BY BIT

Darkling walks down a narrow alley in the Scorpion den. I wish I could fly right now, he thinks, but refrains so nobody will hear the buzzing of his four hivewing wings as he flies. I’m almost there, just another minute- But his thoughts are cut off short.
“Hey!” Yells a voice. “What are you doing back there?!” He hears talons walking towards him.
He looks behind him and sees an Icewing, tall and thin. “I could ask you the same question.” He says, squaring his shoulders. The Icewing growls at him.
“Maybe you should come with me.” He hisses, flexing his serrated claws and opening his mouth slightly. I can’t win a fight against him. Not right now. Not without exposing myself- he probably already has his frostbreath ready.
“Okay.” He says, walking up to him confidently. As he gets closer, he realizes how many different colors are in the Icewing’s scales, and how deep his dark blue eyes look. “So what brings you to the Scorpion Den, stranger?” He asks, following the Icewing out of the alley. I’ll have to visit my spot later, he thinks.
“None of your business.” He replies.
“Well, may I at least know my captor’s name?” He asks.
“Snow Leopard, but you will call me Snowy.” He says, turning his head to look at Darkling.
Darkling nods, and continues following Snowy.
They soon arrive at a nicely sized hut with three other Icewings inside. One is almost as graceful-looking as Snowy, and the other two are… pink? He can barely contain a chuckle. A pink Icewing? How embarrassing! He shuffles his talons as one of the pink Icewings turns around and glares at them.
“Snowy!” She hisses, tucking her wings around herself. “What are you thinking, bringing another dragon in here?!” The color pink had never looked so threatening as she looked over Darkling with menacing lavender eyes. “And a filthy hybrid, too! Are you the dumbest dragon to have walked Pyrrhia?!” She shrieks.
The other pink Icewing turns around and sees Darkling and Snowy. “Look, brother, I don’t care HOW HANDSOME you think this HYBRID TRASH is, don’t bring him here to snicker at us!” She yells.
He snarls at him, and Darkling looks at the older Icewing (that seems to be Snowy’s dad) in surprise. He’s not going to stop them from fighting? He wonders.
Snowy growls at her but looks at the older Icewing. "Father, I found him lurking. he just looks like some filthy criminal up to no good. What should I do with him?" He asks.
"I don't care. Just find out what he was doing, and teach him not to do it again." He replies, sounding very bored.
"Ehem," Darkling speaks up, "I wasn't doing anything. I was heading back to my house." He says.
There isn't a response for an uncomfortably long time.
"I'll believe that when scavengers fly," Snowy finally responds, breaking the silence. "Come on." He leads Darkling out of the hut and back towards the alley.
What is he going to do? Should I use my power? No, I need to wait for the right moment. I could just put a simple protection spell on for now- yeah, that'll work. His mind tumbles. Enchant the talon ring I'm wearing to protect me from injury, he thinks. He feels cold and a little sick for a moment, but it passes. they get to the alley soon enough.
"So, what were you really doing back here?" Snowy barks, his breath cold on Darkling's snout.
"Well, if you must know, I was going to my secret hideout." Darkling replies. No use in lying. I can tell he won't buy it. He thinks, sitting down.
"Oh really? Well, why don't you take me there?" He says, spitting the words out like he was annoyed at Darkling for wasting his time.
"Whoa, okay, chill out. Don't get cold talons, getting there is a breeze." Darkling laughs, buzzing his wings and getting up again to begin walking further into the alley. Snowy follows closely behind, his eyes darting everywhere, examining every nook and cranny and pebble and lump of grass. Darkling holds his breath as the entrance gets nearer. Three moons, I'm stupid. Why would I take him here, he's going to find out about my powers. great.
"A trick. I can't believe I was moronic enough to fall for that..." Snowy trails off as the walls part in front of Darkling's talons, revealing a roomy cave with a peaceful pond in the middle. It has a nice, dim, greencast light even though there aren't any windows. I felt sick days after making this- it took so much. I wonder if all animus dragons feel like that when they do things like this?
Snowy looks around, tapping a claw in the water and poking around the walls. "What is this place?!" He demands. "How did it get here?! HOW DID YOU DO THAT?!"
Darkling laughs at his reaction. "You're the dumbest Icewing I've ever met. Well, the only Icewing I've met, but still, you're not bright." He giggles.
"Well, I'm sure smarter than anyone egotistic enough to challenge me!" He remarks, but I don't miss the split second of relief that crosses his face as he slides into the cold water.
"Hmm. It must be miserable for you here, in the desert." Darkling observes.
"Luckily I leave in two days." He replies, lashing his tail under the water.
"Oh. So, why'd you come here in the first place? Unless I'm not important enough to share that information with." He jokes, sliding into the pool next to Snowy. He shivers, there is a noticeable difference in the water temperature right around the Icewing.
Snowy sighs. "You're making it really hard to keep the important Icewing secrets I've been trusted with. And you still haven't answered my question." He says.
"Oh, yeah, that. Can't you figure that out? I'll give you a hint; it's the only thing that lets a dragon part stone with his talons that easily."
"You're an animus."
"We have a winner!" Darkling laughs, splashing Snowy.
"Why are Sandwings- or whatever you are- so messy?" He asks blatantly, stepping out of the pool and shaking himself off.
"I'm a Sandwing-Hivewing, and I'm messy because you're too clean," Darkling says, getting out and laughing as Snowy tries to find the exit. "Leaving so soon?" He asks.
"You really want me to stay?" He says, not even looking at Darkling as he answers.
"I never mind company. Come back tomorrow? Surely you can remember where this is." He asks, opening the exit and showing Snowy out. The Icewing gives him a suspicious look.
"Sure..." He replies slowly. "Then good day, I suppose. See you tomorrow." He leaves, and as soon as the stone closes again, Darkling jumps into the pool. Who did I just meet? Why did I just reveal my biggest secret to him? Why did I invite him back? UUUUGGGGGHHHH!!! He thinks dramatically, ducking his head under the water. He feels as if he's about to melt. He'd never made so much as one good friend, yet he manages to be nice to a moody Icewing who's leaving in two days? He grabs a lizard that bends down to take a drink from the pool and eats it.
After a while of sorting out everything, he gets out and walks towards his house. it's small, barely big enough for him. "I'm back!" He calls, listening to his voice echo off the mud walls. He looks out the window at the sky. It's nearly night time, so he takes a quick drink and curls up on his sleeping mat, falling asleep as soon as his head hits the ground.
The next morning, he goes through his usual routine, walking about in the busiest streets and buying a few trinkets that might end up being useful. Definitely not swiping a few that are too expensive. When he's done with that, he heads over towards his spot. He's probably not gonna come. He's probably like, a prince or something. too good to be hanging out with lowlives like me. But, as he turns the corner into the alley, there he is, scratching at the stone.
"STUPID LYING WEASEL! I SHOULDN'T HAVE TRUSTED THAT BRAT! I SHOULD'VE KNOWN HE'D BAIL! AAA!!!" He yells, pounding on the stone.
"Jeez, sorry I'm late," Darkling says from behind him, holding out a bag of fried lizards towards the Icewing. "Want one?"
"You eat one first. there could be poison." He says scathingly, and is clearly annoyed when Darkling laughs and tosses one in his mouth.
"See? no poison. Now you try one." He says.
Snowy reaches into the bag and eats one. "I don't know how you eat that without making a face. It's revolting. Now come on, I want to look around that little animus cave thing of yours." he says, swallowing the lizard and looking wistfully at the rest for just a moment. Darkling sighs and opens the stone, stepping in and sitting on a mat near the entrance. "I thought you weren't coming." He says, rubbing dirt off his sandy yellow scales.
"I also thought you had ditched." He replies, sniffing the walls.
"I assure you, there is nothing strange about how the walls smell." Darkling teases. In the greenish light of the cave, the Icewing looks almost teal, and the dark spots all over him look black instead of navy. He was actually quite handsome, unlike Darkling. The hybrid's wing membrane looks fleshy and gross, and he is too short and blocky to be attractive. The only good-looking part about him is his ice-blue eyes, which he'd enchanted to give him exceptional vision in both day and night time. Ok, now I say it to myself, enchanting eyes sounds weird. He thinks, blinking a few times. Bleh.
"Well, surely there is something strange about this place! It was created by an animus- Oh, yeah, you, wait, how are you an animus?" He asks, looking at Darkling.
"Well, my great-great-grandmother was an animus and something reactivated that gene, maybe the fact that my dad is a Hivewing. I dunno." He says, taking the ring off his talon and placing it next to him.
"Does that have an enchantment on it?" Asks Snowy, staring greedily at the ring.
"Uh, yeah," Darkling says, not sure whether he should've lied or not.
"What is it? Uh- can I wear it?" He asks, starting to sound a bit more like a small dragonet than a dignified Icewing.
"Yeah, sure. It just has a protection enchantment, that's all." Darkling says, tossing it to Snowy. The Icewing puts it on slowly, eyes narrowed with a huge grin on his face. "That doesn't look very pro-" Darkling begins, but Snowy cuts him off.
"Shut up, I'm allowed to get excited."
Darkling laughs at him. I wonder if I could make myself immune to the ice wall defending the Icewing kingdom... wait, what am I thinking? Wonders Darkling.
Snowy stares joyfully at the ring, then takes it off to give it back to Darkling. "Here you go."
"Huh? No, you can keep it. I have plenty of other stuff. And with a head as big as yours, you might need some protection.'' Darkling teases, pushing the ring back towards Snowy.
"Really?!" He asks.
"No. I was kidding." Darkling says sarcastically, grinning.
Snowy straightens himself out. "Thank you. I appreciate your gift very much." He says, though Darkling can tell he is trying hard to keep the excitement out of his voice.
"No problem," Darkling says. "So... you're leaving tonight, right?"
"Yeah."
"Well, don't tell anybody about me, ok? Just say you found the ring on the ground or something." There is a muffled noise outside, like yelling. Snowy's face drops.
"That... sounds like my family. I'd better go." He says tentatively, getting up and looking around for the exit.
Darkling gets up and opens it. "Well, have a safe journey." He says.
"Thanks," Snowy says, walking out. the stone closes behind him with a soft bang noise, leaving Darkling alone in the closed-off cave.

How did I find myself flying desperately towards the Icewing kingdom, away from everything I know and love, holding a sacred animus-touched piece of Icewing history? I don't know. Darkling thinks to himself, exhausted from flying so much. I don't know why I'm chasing after an Icewing I barely know. I don't even like him that much! But I guess he's my only friend... He falters in the air, dropping a few feet before he regains control of himself. How long had he been flying for? He couldn't remember, but it had to be around a day. He really should stop and rest... but he can see the Great Ice Cliff on the horizon. Just a few more hours.
He finally makes it to the cliff, and he puts on a bracelet. The Gift of Diplomacy. He thinks. I can't believe myself. I used my magic to steal an ancient animus object just so I could see an Icewing. Pitiful. He thinks bitterly, holding his breath as he crosses the wall. How was he even going to find Snowy?
He sits down, cringing from the cold, and draws a square in the sand with his claw. He picks up a small twig. I enchant this twig to draw a simple map of the Icewing kingdom in the square I've put in the snow, then mark where Snow Leopard lives and the easiest, quickest to get there. He thinks, then watches as a point is drawn remarkably near where he is. Not believing his luck, he hugs the ice cliff and walks towards his destination. Whenever he sees an Icewing, he ducks and tries to cover himself a little bit with snow, and he isn't caught. Every dragon here is too busy sticking their noses in the air and being important to notice a small hybrid sneaking around.
He sees the house, a tall tower of ice that is a mansion compared to Darkling's mud hut, but about half the size of most of the surrounding buildings.
He almost takes to the air, but his wings would've made a buzzing noise that ant Icewing would find too annoying to ignore. He peeks his head into a window, sees that nobody is inside, and climbs in. Oh heck, what do I do now? He thinks, frantically looking around. Find Snowy's room. Surely they have their own rooms. He decides, then heads up the staircase to the second floor. he pokes his head in the first bedroom. There are two sleeping couches, and way too much purple stuff. Surely this couldn't be Snowy's room. The next bedroom had only one sleeping couch and a whole ton of mirrors. Like, three mirrors on each wall. and a small scroll shelf with a few lonely-looking scrolls on it, but that was it. the next one looks almost identical, except it had a lot of picture frames with knives stuck in them and- Darkling catches a silver glint from the corner of his eye. He steps closer to investigate, and sees it is the ring he gave Snowy. Upon further inspection, he sees that all the portraits are of Snowy and another bored-looking Icewing, except Snowy looks cheerful and carefree. From what he can tell, at least, through all the pock-marks and knives stuck in it.
He hears the door open downstairs and ducks behind the scroll shelf. Am i going to be discovered? he wonders, shivering. talons climb up the stairs...
the door closes. He looks carefully out from behind the shelf and is relieved to see Snowy.
Darkling slides a scroll off the shelf, letting it fall to the floor. When Snowy comes over to pick it up, he makes it float out of his talons. Snowy stumbles back, terrified, then he realizes what must be happening.
"Are you in my HOUSE?!" Snowy whispers, glaring at the floating scroll.
"Maybe." Darkling whispers back, poking his head out from his hiding place.
"You're crazy! How did you even get here? The Cliff!" He says, walking over to the shelf where Darkling's hiding.
"The gift of Diplomacy." He shrugs, holding up his forearm to show Snow Leopard the bracelet.
"You stole the GIFT OF DIPLOMACY?!" The Icewing roars.
"Quiet, we don't want to be discovered!" Darkling tries to quiet him.
"But I do want you to be discovered! If my family was here, you'd already be on your way to the palace!" He hisses.
"But you're not your family! From what I can tell, you're way better than them!" Darkling says, flapping his wings.
"You don't know my family." Snowy spits, obviously hurt. "You have no idea how horrible they are!"
"I know I don't but can't you try to help me understand?"
"NO!"
"Why don't you just run away from it all? There's nothing stopping you." Darkling suggests boldly. Snowy doesn't respond.
"Why did you follow me?" He asks.
"I don't know. my gut just told me to. Maybe I thought I could help you. Maybe we just got along and I didn't want to leave you." Darkling replies truthfully.
"Are you really suggesting that I run away?" He asks, fiddling with the ring, which he must have slipped on before they'd left.
"Why not? I mean, I don't have anybody back at the Scorpion Den that would be looking for me- I could come with you!"
"Really?" He asks, standing up.
"Yeah!" Darkling stands up beside him. "We could go right now! Explore Pyrrhia together!"
Snow Leopard stares at Darkling for a long moment. "How do I know I can trust you?" He asks skeptically, letting Darkling know that he's been betrayed a few times too many. But there's no good response to this. I can't reassure him. He has to let himself believe that this is the right thing to do.
"You don't. You just trust yourself that you're making a good decision." Darkling says, and his eyes widen with surprise when Snowy leaps off the cliff and begins to fly.

As Snowy jumps off the cliff, his head is cluttered with thoughts. Why am I flying away from everything I have ever known and loved with a dragon I barely know? I don't even like him that much! But I guess he's the first dragon in a while that I think I can trust. He thinks, flapping faster. Why do I even trust him? He looks shifty, and he acts all secretive and mysterious and confident! The last time someone acted like that... He shudders, not wanting to go down that string of memories. It usually ended up with him curled up around himself, crying, and he could not show this dragon any weakness.
"Well, Snowy, where should we go first? The rainforest would be cool, or the Skywing's territory- or the Sea Kingdom!" Darkling suggests, doing loop-de-loops in the air.
"Sure, the Sea Kingdom sounds good. At least it will be cold." Snowy growls.
A sound comes from below them, splashing and screaming and some kind of howl-moan-chirp thing all at the same time.
"HELP! HEEELLLLLPPPP!!! I'M BEING CHASED! THE ORCA- CLOWNFISH- I'M GONNA DIE!!!" The voice screams.
There is a chubby green Seawing, flapping his wings to try and take flight and swimming at the same time. But the actions cancel each other out and he gets nowhere, making the gigantic Orca chasing him have a very easy time. He looks up to call for help again when he sees the two. "HELP ME! I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!" He cries.
"C'mon, Darkling." Says Snowy, ignoring the calls for help. "I can see no advantages in helping him. Fat, derpy, useless, willing to let a total stranger help him. None of those are desirable traits."
"Lep! We can't just leave him there!" Darkling protests.
"Yes, we can, actually. I'll show you, just keep flying." He assures, with an I'm-not-amused face when Darkling swoops lower towards the Seawing.
"Don't worry, we'll save you!" The hybrid calls, ducking lower and grabbing the Seawing's talon.
Snowy's chest clenches with jealousy. "Fine, they need my help. I doubt Darkling would use his magic on such a useless cause, at least I can agree with him there." He mutters to himself as he drops down and grabs the Seawing's other talon.
Darkling smiles. "I knew you'd come to your senses! Now on the count of three, pull! One... two... three!" He calls, and both dragons pull at the same time, yanking the Seawing out of the water.
They all go flying through the air, Darkling almost falling into the water.
Snowy is the first to regain full control of himself, spreading his wings to catch the air and then flapping to hover. He glares at the two other dragons.
The Seawing pants as he struggles to keep himself in the air. Darkling rushes over to help him and lets the stranger rest on his back. The hybrid's face goes pale for a second, but he perks right up and looks like he's completely full of energy.
Did he just use his magic? Does it make him feel sick? Why did he waste it on that stupid Seawing? Snowy wonders, bewildered.
"There's an island over there!" Announces Darkling, flying towards it with the fat green dragon still on his back.
Snowy follows and prepares to start questioning the Seawing. As soon as his talons hit the sand, he opens fire.
"So, Seawing, what is your name?" he demands.
"I'm Tadpole."
"What were you doing out there? You weren't near the Seawing Kingdom." Snow Leopard takes a menacing step towards him, hoping to get a reaction.
"I... Ummm..." Stutters Tadpole, muttering something inaudible under his breath.
"What is it?!" Snowy yells, though Darkling obviously doesn't like it. "Are you hiding something?"
"No! My mom killed my brother and I didn't want to die so I ran to find my other brother and then an orca chased me and then you came!" Tadpole yelps, throwing his wings over his head. "Don't hurt me!"
Darkling chuckles. "Lep's not gonna hurt you, he's just a grump."
Snowy growls, but a thousand tons of rocks drop into his stomach. His parents tried to kill him? That's way worse than what my parents did... was this all a mistake? Should I turn back and go home?
Darkling looks at Snowy sympathetically, and the Icewing realizes he must've been making a face when he sees Tadpole looking sorry for him as well.
"What are you looking at me like that for?" He hisses, wrapping his wings around himself.
Darkling turns to Tadpole. "Do you mind if I go talk to Leppy alone real quick?" He asks. Tadpole nods and Darkling motions for Snowy to follow him.
They walk into a small patch of trees that is surely out of earshot of Tadpole.
"Hey, are you o-"
"Yes, I'm okay! Jeez, I don't know WHY you're so WORRIED about me!" Snowy yells, lashing his tail and turning away from Darkling.
But the hybrid persists, stepping closer and politely asking to know if something is wrong. “Snowy, I know there’s something wrong. Can you tell me? It might make you feel better.”
Snow Leopard sits down. “Fine!” He barks. “I feel so- selfish. I ran away because my family hurt my feelings when that Seawing almost got killed by his own mother?” He sighs, remembering how they’d hit him and insulted him. But it was nothing compared to almost being killed! He sits down.
Darkling sits next to him and drapes his wings across his back, obviously holding in a shiver. “Snowy, what did they do to you? I can tell there was a happier, more carefree you. But someone killed him.”
Snowy turns his head so Darkling won’t see the tear sliding down his cheek. “Brumal.” He whispers. "Why did he leave me? He was the only good thing in my life- AND HE LEFT ME." Snowy brings his talons to his face, trying desperately to dry his scales. Darkling hugs him closer.
“Do you wanna talk about it?” He asks, ugly yellow and red talons shifting towards Snow Leopard.
“Brumal was my boyfriend,” he starts, feeling anxiety grab his chest. Now he’ll really hate you. You're such a MORON! Now he's gonna know you're gay and leave you. You'll be alone again! He thinks with self-hatred. “I loved him more than anything. He had a good rank, higher than my parents, and whenever they would hit or insult me, he would know and come over to help. But… One day, I went over to his house…” Snowy sobs, feeling words pile up in his throat. “That lying conniving son of a starfish was with another dragon!”
Darkling gasps, turning to face Snowy with an unreadable expression on his face.
“Lep, you should not be ashamed of leaving. You were obviously miserable there, and your parents… that’s abuse.” Darkling soothes, not even mentioning Snow Leopard’s fancy for male dragons.
Excitement wells up in his chest, He doesn’t hate me? Maybe I can trust him- Maybe he’ll be different! He thinks excitedly, wiping the last of his tears away. He wraps Darkling in a huge hug. “Thank you.” He whispers, feeling happier than he had in years.
“One more thing.” Says Darkling, taking a deep breath and pulling away. Snowy can see that he has a few damp spots on his face as well. The hybrid holds out his talons for Snowy to take.
Snowy takes them without hesitating, knowing that he would do anything for this dragon.
“Snow Leopard of the Icewings,” Darkling says, “I enchant you to have the gift of animus magic.”

The sensation flowing through Snow Leopard when Darkling said those words was beautiful.
Like he was being cleansed from the inside out, and he had never missed a single hour of sleep. He was the perfect temperature, and it almost felt like he was floating- carefree and happy.
Snowy takes a deep breath in, feeling exhilarated. Then he realizes what just happened.
He looks down at his talons to discover that they had a faint blue glow around them, and a few small poppies have bloomed in the grass around them.
"Darkling, what did you do to me?!" Snowy demands, jumping back.
"I made you an animus..." Darkling trails off as if just realizing himself.
"Why in all of Pyrhhia would you do that?!" Hisses the Icewing, flapping his wings furiously. "Aren't you worried about my soul? And yours? Three moons, that must've been a huge spell! Imagine how much that would've taken out of YOU!" He worries, anxiety filling his chest.
"Lep, I'm fine. And I know you will be as well. I trust you." Comforts Darkling, stepping closer to Snowy and smiling warmly.
Snowy takes a deep breath. "We should probably get back to the Seawing." He says, trying to distract himself. He really just wanted to stay here forever, alone with this amazing dragon, but he knew that wouldn't happen. He wouldn't LET himself do that, it is a soft and weak thing to do.
Darkling nods and starts walking away, but Snowy stays for a moment. Snowy, snap out of it! These feelings are DANGEROUS, you found that out the hard way. Don't fall for it again! He scolds himself, batting his sides with his wings.
So he follows Darkling back and sits down.
"Where'd you guys go?" Tadpole asks, looking at them.
"Lep was just upset, and I wanted to talk to him." Answers Darkling, shaking his wings.
"Why was he upset?" Tadpole buzzes, swishing his tail in the sand.
"I don't know, he wouldn't tell me," Answers Darkling, knowing very well that Snowy would not want Tadpole to know. "But I think it's best if we don't bug him about it."
"Okay. So, why are you two out here? How'd you meet? Why do you look so strange? I thought Hivewings didn't have a tail barb, only Sandwings. Right?"
"Well, I'm a Sandwing and Hivewing hybrid. My mom was a Sandwing, and my dad is a Hivewing. Me and Snowy met in the Scorpion den, and we're here because neither of us have any family."
Tadpole thumps his tail on the sand, sending waves of the grainy stuff flying everywhere. "Oh, so, pretty much the same reason as me." He says grimly.
"Pretty much." Darkling nods. Snowy realizes with a jolt that he doesn't know what happened to Darkling's family- did he leave his family? What did Darkling give up? Just to help me…
"Well, I guess we should be on our way." Says Snowy, getting up and turning around. "C'mon, Darkling!"
"Okay!" He responds, hopping up. "Hey- maybe Tadpole should come with us!"
Snowy freezes. I've had enough of that Seawing, hasn't he? Why would he invite him to come with us? Thinks Snowy, not responding.
"Yeah, I'd love that!" Chirps Tadpole, hopping up to stand beside Darkling. "So where are we going? We could check out the rainforest! I've always wanted to go there!"
"Sounds good! Leppy, you good with that?" Darkling asks.
"Sure." He growls, taking off.
They fly for days, stopping every few hours to rest (Courtesy of the chubby Seawing) and when nobody's looking, Snow Leopard practices his magic.
They land in a soft, grassy clearing. The Rainforest looks to be only a day in front of them. “You two, stay here. I’m going to hunt.” Announces Snowy, trotting off towards a sparse forest that is close enough.
“Okay, you have fun with that!” Shouts Darkling, flying in circles above Tadpole, like a bird of prey circling its target.
Snowy breaks into a sprint, charging at the trees. A pig runs in as well, fleeing from the dragon. It’s not gonna get away from me! Thinks Snowy, triumphantly holding up his talons. The pig squeals as it’s lifted into the air, and it shoots towards Snowy’s talons…
“Snowy, what are you doing?” Shouts a voice from behind him. He swivels around, the pig hitting his shoulder and freezing on the ground for a moment before scurrying away.
“Tadpole!” Hisses Snow Leopard.
“Snowy!” Mocks the Seawing. “What was that? I didn’t know you’re royal! How is nobody looking for you?” Tadpole buzzes, fidgeting his wings.
“I’m not royal!” He growls. “You need to forget what you just saw!” Wait… could I use my magic to make him forget about that? I mean, I might as well try… Tadpole of the Seawings, I enchant you to forget that you saw me using magic, and instead you saw me doing amazing at hunting. You are going back to Darkling to tell him how well I’m doing. Snowy thinks, holding up his talons. Tadpole looks at him weird for a moment… Then pivots to walk away.
“Well, bye bye for now! I’m gonna go tell Darking how great you’re doing!” Tadpole says, jogging back to their spot.
That worked. That actually worked. I can’t believe it! He picks up a few stones from the forest floor. I enchant these stones to each turn into a fat, delicious, large piece of prey. He thinks, looking on as the rocks change. He runs back with his haul.
Snowy bounds into the clearing with a triumphant look on his face, head held high.
“You look like you just ate a rainbow.” Notes Darkling. “Tadpole told me you were doing an amazing job at hunting!”
“He did?” Asks Snowy, grinning. “Well, he wouldn’t be lying!” He puts everything he caught down on the grass.
“So, Lep, I think that we should tell him today.” Darkling whispers.
“What? Really? Don’t you think that might… scare him off?” Snowy whispers back.
“I dunno. But it’s better we tell him than he finds out on his own.” Darkling shrugs. “Don’t you think?”
“Sure, sounds good. So, what, we just float some food over to him?”
“Hm… I actually hadn’t thought that far ahead. But sure! I’ll go first.” Darkling says, bumping Snowy’s shoulder and standing up. “Hey Tadpole, I have something to show you.”
Tadpole turns around as Darkling throws a stick at his face. It looks like it’s going fast enough to knock him unconscious (Which Snowy wouldn’t argue with), but it stops without so much as tapping the Seawing’s snout. It hovers in the air in front of him.
“Whoa! What was that? Was that… magic? SO COOL!!!” Exclaims Tadpole, poking the stick like he’s testing to make sure it’s real. “Darkling, I didn’t know that you’re an animus!”
Snowy crinkles his snout and summons the stick towards him. He makes it float above his head.
Tadpole flaps his wings wildly. “You too, Snowy? I thought only royal Icewings could have animus magic- ARE YOU ROYAL?!”
“No, kelp-brain, I’m not royal.” Snowy sighs, grabbing the stick and placing it on the ground in front of him. His stomach feels empty and shallow, but he doesn’t mind. He looks to Darkling for permission to tell Tadpole what happened, and the hybrid nods his head. “Darkling made me an animus.”
“Wow! I didn’t know you could do that! So cool!” Tadpole cheers.
“Ha ha, yeah, cool, what do you say we eat then continue towards the rainforest?” Snow Leopard drones, picking up a pig and beginning to eat.
“Sounds good, but it’s getting dark. Why don’t we stay here for the night and keep going in the morning?” Suggests Darkling.
Snowy looks up at the darkening sky, seeing that two of the moons have already risen over the horizon. “Okay, but we’re leaving early and only stopping once!” He announces, laying down after he finishes his food. He watches the stars blink and flutter, and tries to fall asleep as the moons climb up the sky.

"Get up!" Snowy barks, poking Tadpole's side.
"Okaaaayyy." Sighs Tadpole, standing up on weak legs. Why are we leaving so early? The sun hasn't even risen yet! How can that chunk of ice expect me to fly right now? Tadpole thinks grumpily. Well, at least I'll be able to see the sunrise for once.
Darkling is grinning as he carefully roasts a lizard. The hybrid chomps down on the crunchy thing and laughs through a mouth full of food. "I didn't know they had lizards here!" He exclaims. "They taste terrible!"
Tadpole cocks his head at Darkling. If the lizards were so terrible, why eat them?
Snowy growls at both of them. “Let’s go. We should be able to reach the Rainforest before nightfall.” He says, leaping into the air. “Tadpole, feel free to not come with us.”
“No, I think I’m probably gonna stay with you guys!” Tadpole shouts up at him. What’s his problem? I haven’t done anything! He thinks in defiance.
Snowy audibly groans, but Darkling is much happier about it. “Yay! I’m glad I won’t be stuck alone with Leppy!” He teases, though Tadpole notices Snowy falter in the air a little bit, as if the words had smacked him in the face.
Darkling takes to the air and beckons for Tadpole to come. “C’mon, Tadpole! We have to get moving if we’re gonna get to the Rainforest tonight!” He calls, and Tadpole jumps up to fly after them.
With a ton of effort, they get to the Rainforest before nightfall. Tadpole throws himself towards the ground and lays down under a tree, exhausted.
“Hey, kelp-face,” Calls a familiar, grumpy voice. “Get up, we still have to get to the Rainwing village. Or Nightwing village. Either works.”
“I think the Rainwings would be better. I mean, aren’t Nightwings a little bit grumpy? Oh wait no, that’s Icewings.” Darkling teases, poking Snowy’s side.
Snowy turns his head away from Darkling, but unknowingly exposes it to Tadpole. He’s blushing, and scrunching up his face like he’s mad. It’s all Tadpole can do not to laugh.
Does Snowy really like Darkling? That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard! Or seen or whatever that counted as. Hm.
Tadpole gets up. “I’ve never met a Rainwing before. I hope they don’t melt my face off.”
Snowy growls at him. “You’re the only one.”
“No, I’d also prefer that Tadpole didn’t get his face melted off.”Darkling chuckles, shaking his head.
“Let’s get moving!” Snowy orders, voice cracking as he flies into the trees. Darkling takes off after him, and Tadpole follows.
As they fly through the Rainforest, you’d think they’d hit some branches. Well, you’re right about that. At least for Tadpole and Darkling. But Snow Leopard… passes through them?
Darkling gasps as a branch goes right through Snowy’s slightly transparent body. “Three moons, you’re insane!” He yells.
“No, you’re insane,” Snowy protests, “I can’t believe you just let yourself get hit when you could be gliding peacefully along.”
“Do you really need to use your magic to do this though? Can’t you just, oh I dunno, freeze the branches off with your freezing death breath?”
“I suppose I could, but that’s not nearly as fun.” Snowy says, whirling around. “And also, I can do this-” He breathes glittering frost right at Tadpole.
“Eep!” He squeaks, covering his head with his wings. “Don’t kill me!” A wave of cold washes over him, and he looks up to see Snowy and Darkling laughing their tails off.
“Okay,” Darkling admits, “That was pretty funny. But let’s stop before we give Tadpole a heart attack.”
Tadpole giggles nervously. “Yeah… that’s a good idea. Listen to Darkling.”
Snowy nods, and turns around to start flying again. His head is held up high, and he looks incredibly proud of himself.
Tadpole looks around as they fly. It’s relatively calm, the only noises are birds, monkeys, and Darkling and Snow Leopards talking way in front of Tadpole.
After a while of flying, getting lost, seeing a white or yellow tail flit from behind a tree, then catching up to his friends again, he sees a treehouse.
“Hey guys! I think we found the Rainwing village! Look, a house!” Tadpole calls. Darkling swirls around immediately and Snowy sighs.
“Finally!” Darkling says, rushing over to Tadpole. Snowy reluctantly follows, a huge branch snapping in half behind him as he flies towards the hut.
A Rainwing steps out, its scales a swirl of pinks, yellows, and purples. “Hello!” It calls. “Who are you guys- I’ve never seen a dragon from a different tribe!”
Tadpole shrieks as he feels a prick in his neck. Snowy crashes into Darkling and the two tumble to the ground.
The Rainwing groans, it sounds distant. Colors swim behind Tadpole’s eyelids, and then only darkness as they close. The Rainwing yells something, but Tadpole can’t quite make out what it is…
Tadpole opens his eyes, and is inside a different Rainwing building. “What is this place?” He asks, his voice a bit hoarse.
Three Rainwings step into his view, the one from before and two others. “This is the healer’s hut, silly.” Says one.
“And you’re here because someone gets too excited with the blow darts.” Says the one from before, staring at the only Rainwing who hadn’t spoken yet. “Anyways, I’m Lovely.”
“I’m Kiju.”
“And I’m Paradise.” Says the one that had apparently hit them with the darts.
Snowy stands up behind Tadpole. One of his wings, which is peppered with darts, hangs limply on Darkling’s back. Darkling doesn’t appear to have been shot at all.
“What is the meaning of this?!” Shouts Snow Leopard, hiccuping a small shard of ice. The Rainwings stare in confusion. “I DEMAND YOU RELEASE US!!!” He shakes a closed talon in the air. Lovely giggles and whispers something to Kiju, who starts laughing hysterically. Yellow and pink floods over their scales.
Snowy growls at them, but his knees buckle and he slumps back down. Darkling pats him on the back, obviously holding back laughter.
“Uh,” Tadpole rubs his neck and feels the dart, which hadn’t been removed. “Can I, uh, take this out?” He asks.
Paradise nods, and Tadpole takes the dart out. “Just wondering, but why are you guys here in the first place?” He walks over to Snowy and begins picking the darts from his wing.
Darkling carefully scoots away from Snowy. “Well, we’re all outcasts, so we decided to explore Pyrrhia!” He says.
Tadpole nods in agreement, and Snowy flinches a little as Paradise picks the darts out and puts them in a small straw basket.
Lovely looks at them with bright eyes. “And you wanted to come to the Rainforest?” He chirps.
Darkling nods. “Yeah! I mean, we’d already done three kingdoms, and the Rainforest is like, two in one!”
Lovely nods, and Kiju lashes her tail. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Which makes it super well-protected, but also more vulnerable to power-hungry queens.” She narrows her eyes at each of them, looking them over. “I think the only way to take it over would be to send in spies…”
Tadpole looks at her, confused. Why would she bring that up? It’s a strange thing to talk about. Snow Leopard growls at Kiju, and Darkling looks at her in surprise. Is there something I’m missing? Why do they look so shocked?
To his relief, Paradise and Lovely look baffled as well.
For a few minutes, nobody speaks. They just shuffle around awkwardly. “Uh…” Tadpole says, uncomfortable in the silence. “Can we go get something to eat?”
Lovely nods vigorously. “Yes, of course! I’ll guide you!”
Kiju snorts. “Can I take them instead?” She asks.
“Oh, uh, ok.” Lovely nods more slowly.
Snowy gives her a suspicious look, and Darkling doesn’t look that comfy either.
They fly out of the hut, and it only takes a few minutes to get to a large table full of fruit. Rainwings of all different colors and shapes and sizes were swooping by, grabbing pieces as they flew.
“The Rainforest is really beautiful,” Tadpole says with awe.
Kiju nods. “Yeah. We love our home to bits, I think it would take at least ten armies to drive us out.”
Darkling nods in agreement, “Yeah, you Rainwings are tough! Not even Darkstalker could defeat you!” He compliments. Snowy snorts and turns his head away a little bit.