Forest of Thorns

==== Blurb ====
Llano Academy should have been a safe place where the dragonets of Pantala can learn and make peace with each other. When Maple, a young LeafWing, finds a thousand-year-old prophecy predicting the end of the world as she knows it, though, she reluctantly throws away any chance of safety and decides to go with some of her new friends to find a vengeful queen. As they slowly unravel the mystery, their confidence begins to fade. Can they really stop what was fatefully written down hundreds of years ago? Or will Maple and her friends fail before they can do anything?
DO NOT EDIT anything that is not a spelling error, and DO NOT STEAL any characters or plot ideas. However, if you want to make your own fanfiction about a Pantalan academy, feel free to. 
Llano academy is part of a schooling system that spans Pantala. It is for four-year-old dragonets and is located near Beetle Lake and the mountains. The other schooling areas for other age students are located on the northern half of the continent. This schooling system is an extension of Jade Mountain Academy on Pyrrhia.
== Prologue ==
Dark eyes watched the Hive queen as she paced. As uncomfortable as the rocky caves were, she lay easily on the cold outcropping. 
“Where is he?” The Hive queen demanded. 
“I don’t know,” her sister cowered. The dark eyed dragon watched unflinchingly. She was glad it was not herself under the Hive queen’s glare. 
“You are in charge of knowing the guards’ schedule,” the Hive queen said sternly, angrily. “You are supposed to know these things.”
“I’m sorry,” the dragon murmured. The youngest of the Hive queen’s sisters, she was also the smallest, and the most easily threatened by the queen. No, the dark eyed dragon reminded herself. We are all easily threatened. She is the weakest, so the most punished. 
“I’m sorry,” the sister said again. “He is supposed to be here now.”
“Well, he’s not,” the Hive queen hissed, and she lashed her poisonous tail. 
Stone grated on ancient stone, and an orangish dragon stumbled down the crumbling steps. 
“I- I’m sorry, my queen,” he stuttered. 
Four pairs of eyes watched for his next move. Noticing this, he fumbled in his hidden leather pouch and produced a crisp, folded, white sheet of paper. The Hive queen snatched it up quickly, her malicious eyes tracing the words embedded in ink. A slow, evil, toothy grin spread across her face. 
“Wonderful,” she growled, vengeful happiness creeping out of her mouth. A sister handed her a small pot of ink, and the Hive queen dipped a claw in and wrote something in her queenly, dark way. 
The dark eyed dragon watched this. She only let curiosity worm its way so far into her mind though, before she squashed it as simply as stomping out a bug. All will be answered. 
The Hive queen thrust the letter into the chest of the nervous orange dragon and he stumbled backwards, before bowing and exiting the dark caves. 
The Hive queen turned towards her three sisters. “Wonderful,” she grinned. “We will be free soon. Two full moons, and then we will have our revenge.” The Hive queen flung out her wings, and excited, gleaming dark eyes watched. 
The Hive queen tipped her head up, a cackle building deep in her throat. “Let the reign of Queen Wasp begin again!”
== Part One ==
=== Chapter One ===
Traitors. They're all traitors. 
Maple was a real LeafWing. Her family had stuck with Queen Sequoia all since the Tree Wars, and what did she get for it? Ha. I'm finally getting settled into the LeafSilk Kingdom, and then Mom's like, ‘Hey, you know what? Let's send my only daughter to a random school with a bunch of untrustworthy dragons who will probably hate her as soon as they see her. That'll totally work out.’ More like she wants to get rid of me so I won't get in the way of her and Castor. 
She’s just like dad.
Maple’s leaf-shaped tail twitched angrily. The room she had been assigned to was built out of treestuff from the Hives, giving it a dusty smell. Someone had brought in leaves, and they covered the floor, with flowers strung along the ceiling. Under most any other circumstances she would have loved it. 
Outside her room, voices burbled happily, sending a wave of sadness to smooth over Maple’s anger. Why can’t I be happy, like them? Why does it feel like everyone wants to push me away? 
An elegant blue snout poked into her room, then darted out again. “It’s a LeafWing!” A dragon whisper-shouted, and another dragon shushed her loudly. 
Maple stood up and walked to the doorway. Outside there were two SilkWings, the blue one who was about her age, and another who was older and a sunset orange color. 
“Hello!” Quipped the blue dragonet. “Do you go here too? Oh, that’s a stupid question. Of course you do. What’s your name? Mine’s Peacock.” 
Maple blinked, overwhelmed. But underneath all the questions, she could see that the SilkWing was trying to be friendly. She could be my friend. “Maple,” she said finally, and Peacock smiled. 
The orange SilkWing enveloped Peacock in a hug. “Good-bye, caterpillar,” she whispered sadly, then walked away. 
“‘Bye, Pearl!” Shouted Peacock. Pearl looked back and smiled before walking out the main door. 
“Well, now that we have that over with, do you want to see my room?” 
“Um, sure,” answered a confused Maple. “Is she your mom?”
“Three moons, no!” Giggled Peacock. Her green scales glimmered in the flamesilk light. “She’s my sister. My mom couldn’t come today, so she took me instead.”
Maple gazed around the circular room, thinking. Seven doors lined the walls, with six of them leading to personal rooms. A few dragonets lingered with their family members, or had already started talking to fellow students. 
“Don’t you just love it?” Asked her new friend, and Maple was startled into her surroundings. They had arrived at Peacock’s room, and now the owner was beckoning her inside. It was so different than Maple’s. While her’s was decorated with colorful plants, Peacock’s had silk tapestries on every wall, images of butterflies in flight and shiny multicolored beetles. Bright yellow, green, and blue blankets were piled in a corner, and a stained glass window in the same colors bathed the room in light. 
“I know, right?” Commented Peacock. “I love it. How did they know green was my favorite color?”
“Peacock?” A voice from outside said unbelievingly. 
The SilkWing poked her head out the door. “Oh my gosh, Longhorn? I haven’t seen you in ages!” Maple followed Peacock, confused. “My mom worked for his parents in Jewel Hive!” She explained. “But then we went to go live in the LeafSilk Kingdom, and you stayed in the Hives, didn’t you?”
“Yeah,” said Longhorn. The HiveWing had mango orange and yellow scales with some black on his wings; the kind of black that would sometimes give Maple nightmares about claws and teeth descending on her.  “I missed you though; remember Hopper? She…” Maple didn’t stick around to listen. It seemed obvious that her new ‘friend’ didn’t care about her.
Maple walked stealthily back to her room, but once sitting there doing nothing for a while, decided that being outside would be better. As she passed through the large central room, she noticed that Peacock and Longhorn were no longer there. Not that it matters to me. 
After leaving the building, a warm wind greeted the LeafWing, and she opened her wings. It was strange, she reflected. Living in the Poison Jungle, and then the LeafSilk kingdom, the dragons rarely got any wind. It was unusual, but welcome. 
Glancing around at the surrounding buildings, Maple could see three that were probably for classes; she was only interested in one though, and that was the Literature room. She dashed over and slunk in the door. Inside, a few flamesilk lamps were lit, giving the room a cozy feeling. An entire wall was lined with bookshelves. Another held writing and bookmaking supplies, while a third seemed to contain worksheets and textbooks. Some pillows were stacked in a corner, and a long table was placed in the front of the room. Maple wandered over to the shelf in the back, and pulled out a book at random. The title was The LeafWing Split: Sequoia and Linden’s Fatal Disagreement. Intrigued, she flipped it open. Perhaps one of the most recent pieces of the LeafWings’ past took place about fifty years ago, directly after the Tree Wars. But how did this historical moment really affect the tribe? 
Finally at peace, Maple enjoyed the book. 
Later, Maple lifted her eyes from the page to see a light green figure gazing down on her. 
“How is it?” He asked.
“Good,” she answered. “Sequoia’s side was obviously right though.”
“You think so?”
“Yes! Who would just abandon their queen like that? I think they were just being cowardly. Running away from something they couldn’t control.” Maple stared at the other LeafWing, waiting for a response. 
He thought for a moment, then admitted, “Maybe. But if the LeafWings hadn’t fought back, then we would still be trapped in the Poison Jungle, and Wasp still would have been ruling Pantala. Sometimes it’s a good thing to fight for what you want.”
Maple surveyed the lime green dragon from horns to tail-tip. “You’re a PoisonWing, aren’t you?” 
He smiled. “Yep. My name’s Oak, by the way. Your’s?”
She struggled with wether to tell him or slap him across the snout. “Oak isn’t a PoisonWing name,” she finally answered. 
“It’s actually Poison Oak. My parents were a bit more loyal to Queen Sequoia than they would like others to know.” Oak grinned. 
“My name is Maple,” Maple blurted. It would be nice to have a friend here- one who won’t start ignoring me the moment another dragon appears, she thought, and an image of Peacock popped into her mind. 
“That’s a pretty name,” Oak replied. Suddenly, a deep bonging noise filled the room, and both LeafWings poked their heads out the doorway. “I think that means that we have to go listen to a bunch of old dragons,” Oak joked, and Maple giggled. They both walked over to where a few other dragonets had gathered, in front of three full-grown dragons: a LeafWing, a HiveWing, and a SilkWing. Maple noticed Peacock sitting next to the HiveWing named Longhorn, and tried to sit as far away from the SilkWing as possible. 
“Welcome, dragonets,” declared the tall, thin HiveWing. “We know that this is new to you, so we decided to start with telling you how this school works, then give you your schedules. Classes will start tomorrow. Rule number one: DO NOT LEAVE SCHOOL GROUNDS WITHOUT PERMISSION. We know that the outside world is interesting, but we would prefer you to not go on dangerous adventures while we try to find you. Rule number two: no using your powers against other students…” Maple zoned out for the rest of his seemingly endless drawl. 
“Thank you, Leaf-cutter,” interjected the LeafWing. “My name is Sycamore, and I am going to be your geography and history teacher. Now your schedules…” Maple listened this time, waiting attentively for her name to be spoken. Finally, Sycamore listed off, “Maple: Math, Geography and History, Literature. Peacock…” He continued, but she wasn’t paying attention anymore. Math, Geography, Literature, she repeated in her head. 
“Okay, students,” finished Sycamore. “It’s getting dark, so you should get to sleep. Classes start at the gong. The rules and your schedules are in the books on your shelves.” A bout of murmuring from all the surrounding dragonets started up, but Maple didn’t feel like talking. Turning around, she said good-night to Oak, then trudged to her dorm.  
“Maple, wait up!” Panted a voice behind her. A familiar voice. 
The green dragon glanced behind her, only to see Peacock. “I can’t talk right now,” Maple replied coldly, continuing towards her room. “I need to sleep.”
“But Maple please, I-”
“Good-night, Peacock,” Maple interrupted, and she stalked into her room. 
She had went to her room to sleep, but sleep was a long time coming. 
=== Chapter Two ===
Bong, bong.
Maple awoke and scrambled to the door. I’m going to be late for my first class! Yelped her mind, and she raced out the main room, across the lawn, and into the classroom. Arriving, she skidded to a stop, bumped into a desk, and knocked a book and an inkwell onto the floor. She snatched it up. Luckily, it was capped. 
“Are you okay?” Asked her classmate. Maple glanced up and smiled- Oak was in her first class!- and nodded. 
“If you’re quite finished with your shenanigans, I would like to begin teaching,” said the math teacher, the lean HiveWing with the droning voice from yesterday. “Now, of course we will be starting with page one in your books. Please complete the first three problems.”
After what seemed like hours, Math was finally over. Geography, I have that next. With a HiveWing or a SilkWing. 
The history room was right across from the math room. On her way in, Maple bumped into a ruby-red HiveWing. The HiveWing shot her a glare and snarled, “Watch where you’re going, tree hugger,” then stalked off to the math room.
“Somebody’s grumpy today,” Maple muttered. 
The geography room’s walls were covered in maps; anywhere that wasn’t had bookshelves and scroll nooks or, on one wall, a massive glass window that let in most of the light. A smooth slab of wood seemed to be what they were supposed to be writing on. There were no desks, unlike in Math. A younger adult LeafWing stood in the front of the room, studying a map of Pantala. He glanced backwards and flicked his tail to acknowledge Maple’s presence, but otherwise ignored her. 
Feeling awkward, Maple sat down near one of the wood tablets and waited. Talonsteps made her look up to a dragon blocking the light. Golden talons led to golden arms led to a golden dragon standing proudly, gazing about the classroom. He was wingless, but strong-looking, as if he could take on a bigger dragon in a fight. And by the expression on his face, he would do it without hesitating. 
Inside, Maple was a bit disappointed that Peacock wasn’t her SilkWing. But they weren’t friends, if they ever were, and she was too mesmerized by how the bright blue on the new dragon’s underbelly complimented his gold scales. 
“Hello, dragonets!” Said the teacher cheerfully. Sycamore, I think. “We’ll be diving right into our first unit, maps, today. Since you are probably more familiar with Pantala, we can start with that. Just label any landmarks or villages that you know of.” He gave each dragonet a slip of paper. The dragon-shaped outline of Maple’s home continent was shown, along with the remaining Hives, some forests, and bodies of water. 
In between writing down words and racking her memory for what she knew, Maple kept glancing over and over the gold dragonet. Finally, he seemed to feel her eyes on him and shifted his head to look at his fellow student. And he smiled. 
Maple looked away quickly. She doubted he actually had any kind feelings towards her. His grin had been more of a smug, satisfied look than a friendly hello. 
Maple tried to continue working, but thoughts of confusion and worry were intent on not letting her work. So when the class was over and Sycamore asked for their maps, Maple guiltily handed him her half-completed worksheet and raced out of the room. 
At the same time, the red HiveWing from earlier came storming out of the Math room. Leaf-cutter can do that to dragons, Maple thought with a snort. All her humor disappeared, though, when she realized that the fuming dragonet was heading to Literature too; same as me. 
The HiveWing stomped ahead of Maple, lashing her tail as she went. The LeafWing stepped back to avoid getting scratched by what seemed to be a stinger on the tip of her tail. She could have killed me and probably wouldn’t have even noticed!
Maple, now in a bad mood as well, followed her in. She sat down as far away as she could from the HiveWing, which wasn’t very far considering the close quarters. She wound her tail around her talons, the leaf-shaped tip resting on her front claws. 
A purple SilkWing stood by the table. She was a little older than Maple, probably around nine or ten. 
“Hello. My name is Velvet. I grew up in Vinegaroon Hive. I was a weaver for a while, before Cricket and Luna came and asked me if I would like to teach at their academy. Now I teach Literature, basically reading and writing. I would like to learn about you. Please write down what you would like me to know about you. When you are finished, you may read.” The SilkWing, Velvet, passed out pieces of scroll and ink. 
Maple tapped her claw on the paper, thinking. Finally, she wrote, My name is Maple. I grew up in the Poison Jungle under Queen Sequoia with my mom. Then we moved to the LeafSilk Kingdom. Now I go to this school. I like to fly and read. Feeling sufficient, Maple brought it up to the large table in the front of the room. Then, crossing the wooden floorboards, she arrived at the wide bookshelf in the back. She read the titles on the binding; Guide to the Savanna; Tapestry Making for Beginners; The Lost Dragonet. 
“Wait,” Maple whispered to herself, “What…” One of the books had nothing written on the edge. It looked ancient; the dye was faded, and the pages, when she pulled it out, were ripped and deteriorating. The ink was still readable, though. 
Dear beloved dragonets, the letters spelled out, I see in my futures that there is much mystery surrounding my existence. So, my children, and grandchildren, and great grandchildren, I’m going to give you my story- the full, true, story.  
Maple gasped. Three moons. This was- this was written by Clearsight.
=== Chapter Three ===
The dying rays of the sun gleamed into Maple’s room. She set down the book that she had borrowed from the library and gazed out the window, set at the perfect angle to watch the sunset glisten over the ocean. She had spent most of the afternoon reading Clearsight’s book. It was so interesting. Everything about Darkstalker and Fathom, and then coming here and saving all the tribes… I knew that she had prophecies, but this is so much more than I thought. 
Maple turned the page. A small piece of paper fluttered down, almost like a butterfly. She picked it up delicately, careful not to rip it. More words were written on it. Another note from Clearsight? 
Maple scanned it. Yes, it is, but what does it mean? She read it again. 
I know this is too late to put in my Book of Prophecies, but I hope that someone will find it here. I have had a vision that probably takes place centuries after my time, due to how blurry and hard it was to see. Through the fog, I saw a wasp ripping apart a leaf and a butterfly’s wing. I hope that someday a dragon will make sense of this, but please, beware. 
“Maple?” 
The LeafWing jumped, startled. Clearsight’s prophecy fluttered quietly to the floor. She turned around to see- Peacock?
Peacock held up her talons. “Please, don’t leave. I just want to talk.”
Maple stared at her with expecting eyes. 
“I don’t know why you don’t want to talk to me anymore. You just left! Do you not like me?” 
Maple opened her mouth, then closed it again. Finally she confessed, “I thought you didn’t want to talk to me. You left to talk to your HiveWing friend and basically ignored me.” She turned her eyes to the floor, angry all over again. 
“Wha- no,” Peacock objected, her face wrinkled in confusion. “Longhorn’s my friend, and I thought you were too. I just wanted to talk to him because we haven’t seen each other in a while.” 
The two dragonets stared at each other in silence for what seemed like forever to Maple. She was vaguely aware of the sunlight slowly disappearing outside. 
“Hey, what’s that?” Peacock finally asked, pointing to the slip of paper that Maple had stupidly left sitting on the floor. Before she could object, the blue dragon had it pinched in her claws, running her eyes along the rows of words. Maple could see as her expression ranged from curious to confused to surprised, and lastly to suspicious. 
“Why do you have this?” She demanded. 
“I found it in a book,” Maple stammered. “Why- do you think it means anything?” 
Peacock looked at the LeafWing like she had a tree growing out of her head. “Do you not? It seems pretty obvious. The wasp is ex-Queen Wasp, and the things that it’s ripping apart are the LeafWings and SilkWings. Wasp is going to destroy the tribes.”
“Do you think so?” Maple wondered. 
“YES!” Peacock practically yelled, making Maple jump again. “And we have to stop her.”
“I can’t believe you’re making me do this.” 
“It’ll be fine,” Peacock responded. “Just let me get Longhorn and we can go.”
Maple hesitated. An adventure sounded cool, and she hadn’t wanted to be at this school anyways, right? Besides, stopping an evil queen from literally ripping apart two tribes sounded like an easy decision. But why did Peacock want to come, and with Longhorn? 
The SilkWing had already crept back into the sleeping rooms. A very loud crash escaped from the building, and Maple winced. The teachers don’t sleep in that area, but it still probably woke some dragons. 
A few minutes later, Peacock emerged, along with Longhorn- and then three other dragons followed. 
“What is this?” Maple hissed. “I thought we were just bringing Longhorn!” 
Peacock flinched. “We were, but… well, they wanted to come too.”
“Fine. So we all sneak off to Wasp Hive together?” 
“Yeah… it’s our best plan, since she and her sisters are imprisoned there.” She thought for a moment, then said, “We should probably walk. Us SilkWings can’t fly yet, and there’s less a chance of the teachers seeing and catching us that way.” 
“Okay,” Maple agreed, feeling as if there really wasn’t another choice; besides maybe running back to the LeafSilk Kingdom and staying there for the next century. 
Maple let the others step ahead of her, falling behind to watch the back. 
It only occurred to her, about an hour later, that maybe she had gotten herself into more trouble than she could climb out of. 
== Part Two ==
=== Chapter Four ===
Maple blinked, shaking off any sleepiness that still lingered in her mind. The sun floated high above the horizon. She yawned, and looked around at her still-dozing companions. Some of them I don’t even know their names. 
Maple studied the dragons that surrounded her, trying to remember what she knew about each one. Peacock, the optimistic SilkWing who got her into this mess in the first place. Oak, probably her only friend at the moment despite being a PoisonWing. 
Then there was the golden dragon. Maple was entirely willing to admit that she liked him significantly less now. He refused to sleep near the other dragonets, and made such a big deal out of gathering leaves for a nest so that he ‘wouldn’t get his precious scales dirty’ that Maple wanted to claw his snout. 
Firefly, the red HiveWing, was angry and snappish. I have no idea why either of them wanted to come. They only seem to be disliking it. 
Longhorn was different than the HiveWings Maple had met before. He was kind of shy, and stuck by Peacock’s side throughout the whole night while they had been traveling. He spoke softly, kindly. He was scared, though, and jumped whenever there was the slightest noise. 
The sun rose steadily, and when it was nearly directly overhead, Maple decided she had had enough. She stalked over to Peacock, placed a talon on her shoulder, and shook her. 
“AHHH!” Peacock yelped, waking up herself and most everyone else. “WHY would you DO that?” 
“Because it is almost noon,” Maple answered logically. “We need to get going.”
“Fine,” grumbled the SilkWing. “Just let me wake up first. PLEASANTLY this time,” she added, noticing Maple’s talon darting up to grab her again.  
The rest of the dragonets were yawning and stretching. The gold dragonet was moving slowly, though, and when he finally got on his talons he sat down and extended his arms and tail as far as they would go. 
“Arrgh!” Firefly roared. “Get UP slowpoke!” 
“I am not a slowpoke,” defended the golden dragon. “And my name is Swallowtail. You can call me that.” 
Swallowtail. I thought he would have a name like Gold Morpho or something. 
“We really should get going,” Peacock reminded them. She glanced up at the sun, now hovering above their heads and shining on the lake. 
Finally, finally, the dragonets set of. 
Four days later…
Maple soared, high above the savanna. The dragonets below her were like lizards scuttling around, and the faraway forests were a green line on the horizon. The LeafWing angled her wings to glide into another air current. Up here, flying in the crisp winds, Maple could finally escape the heat of the dry season. 
One of the dragons from below called out, and Maple’s wings tucked into a dive, flinging open at the last second to avoid crashing into the ground. 
“Time to keep walking?” She asked. The group had been traveling mostly at night, when it was cool and it took less effort to just breathe. 
“I know that it’s still hot out,” Peacock said, “but Wasp Hive is super close.” She was right. Maple could see the tall figure of the Hive, black against the setting sun. The sky was violently red, as if predicting bloodshed to come. 
“Wasp Hive means water,” Longhorn gasped. “The last time any of us had anything suitable to drink was back at that water hole three days ago.” 
“You only say that because you’re a HiveWing,” Oak scoffed. “You would be perfectly fine if you had drinken that water I gave you yesterday.”
“I was not going to eat GRASS! That is disgusting!” Longhorn shouted.
“During the dry season, we all drank water off of plants,” Maple offered. “If we were really desperate, we would chew them. I don’t see why you other tribes can’t do that.”
“Because it’s GROSS,” Longhorn said, as if that summed everything up ever. 
“Which is why we should get going,” Peacock interjected, stopping what was most likely descending into a massive yell-fest.
“Fine,” grumbled Oak and Longhorn at the same time. 
“I’ll fly,” Maple announced.
Swallowtail glanced at her wistfully when she said that. What does that mean? Does he want to fly with me? Ha, yeah right.
“Okay, just don’t go too far ahead,” Peacock agreed. 
Maple leapt into the cloudless blue sky. She stretched her wings as far as they could go, relishing the chance to be away from the heat and the arguing dragonets below. 
Soon, Wasp Hive loomed on the horizon, a branchless tree swarming with dragons. Silk webs extended to the nearest two Hives, butterfly-like wings moving within them. 
Maple slowly descended. I thought I wanted to do this… but Wasp Hive is so big. Are we really able to stop Wasp?
“How are we supposed to get in there?” She asked once she landed. “Do we really think that the guards are just going to let in six wandering dragonets?” 
“It’s not very unusual for the tribes to be together now,” Peacock reasoned. 
“Not for four-year-olds with no adults,” Oak countered. “They would definitely not like that.”
Peacock wrinkled her snout. “Well, any other ideas?” 
“Storm the Hive,” Firefly said sarcastically. “Kill anyone that gets in our way. Imprison everyone else. Find Wasp. Deal with her.”
“And become famous,” Swallowtail finished. 
“Um…” Longhorn murmured.
“Any actual ideas?” Peacock asked. 
“We could enter through the top,” Maple suggested. 
Swallowtail waved his arms. “Um, hello? Can’t fly? No wings.”
Maple looked down, embarrassed. Of course, she should have known. 
“We could try to go in through the main entrance,” Oak said, shrugging. “Then we could get a room, and sneak into the prisons later.”
“Again,” Firefly sighed, “They aren’t going to let in a bunch of dragonets. Remember?” 
“I’m a bit bigger than than the rest of you,” Oak said. “I could pretend to be your caretaker or something.”
“I think it’s okay,” Peacock agreed. Slowly, everyone else said yes, until Firefly finally mumbled “Fine,” and they were on their way again. 
Oak sauntered up to the guards. 
“Your business,” one of them, a pale yellowish color, demanded. 
“I just want to take these kids to get a room,” the LeafWing answered. “They’re all excited to see the Temple of Clearsight.” Maple noticed Peacock nodding vigorously, and she plastered a large, childish grin on her snout. 
The guard studied the mis-matched group dubiously, then turned his focus to Oak alone. “Fine,” he grumbled, as if he wasn’t entirely sure this was the right decision. His partner, a red HiveWing with interesting black stripes along her spine, opened the door. 
They were in. Oak led them up a staircase, winding around and up to the higher levels. Maple gazed around in wonder at all her new surroundings. From the stories that her mom told her, Wasp Hive was a very strict, stuffy place. But now it seemed open and  carefree, dragons talking to each other with smiles on their faces. 
Finally, Oak arrived at a large wall built into the Hive, seeming to be part of a large room. A sign reading Hotel hung above the door. Peacock and the rest of the group followed him inside, with Maple last to let the jingling door close.
The dragonets were directed by a short HiveWing up a set of stairs, to a large room. 
“Here you are,” he said, and closed the door behind them. 
“It worked!” Peacock exclaimed, once they were sure the HiveWing was gone.
Oak grinned. “I know, right? I was half expecting him to lead us to a dungeon or something.”
Longhorn looked around nervously, as if waiting for toothy dragons to come jumping out it them. “Um… that’s not going to happen, right?” 
“Of course not,” Maple assured him, although she had her doubts. 
Firefly cleared her throat meaningfully. “What are we going to do now?” She asked, after the dragonets stared at her expectantly for a minute.
“Go find that son of a bug, Wasp,” Oak said cheerfully. 
Peacock yawned. “Maybe we should rest first,” she suggested. “I’m tired.”
Maple closed her aching eyes. She was glad someone else had suggested it first.
“I think we should go look now,” Oak argued. “No one would see us sneak in.” He nodded at the now dark sky, two full moons visible through a small, glass-covered window. 
“And maybe Wasp would be able to ambush us,” Peacock retorted. “Then what?” 
“I think we should go now,” Swallowtail said. 
“So do I,” Firefly agreed. She swung her head towards Longhorn. “What do you think?”
The orange HiveWing shivered fearfully. “I want to sleep first,” he stuttered. 
Oak took a step towards Maple. “Well,” he demanded, “what about you?” 
“We should rest,” she replied, trying to stay firm despite her thudding heart. 
Oak’s eyes flashed dangerously. “Fine,” he snarled. “But don’t blame me when we get caught!”
Maple flinched. Oak stalked off to a pile of blankets stacked in a corner and laid down. Firefly growled at Longhorn and sat near the window. Peacock laced her tail around Longhorn’s, glaring at the deep red dragon. 
Is this how it’s going to be now? Us fighting over little things like when to sleep?
Feeling betrayed, Maple flopped her tail over her snout, and forcefully shut her eyes. 
They never wanted to be my friend anyways.
=== Chapter Five ===
Blue scales. “Come on, Maple.”
Maple groaned, pressing her talons against her eyes. 
Peacock shook the LeafWing, and Maple sat up. 
“What?” 
Multicolored blobs formed into dragons in front of her. Firefly was angry, as always. Swallowtail looked bored, and a little annoyed. 
Longhorn was yawning tiredly. Oak was sulking in the corner where he fell asleep the night before. A spike of anger flared in Maple’s chest. He left me, she thought. Maybe not literally, but he left me. 
“We’re leaving,” Peacock said. 
“Now?” Maple asked. “It’s early.”
“Not really,” Firefly growled, nodding to the bright world outside the window. 
“We’ve wasted daylight,” Oak said roughly. “Let’s go.” He walked to the door without a glance at the others, then left the room. 
Peacock shrugged at Maple and followed Oak out.
After descending a level, Longhorn timidly spoke up. “Do you think we could get something to eat?” 
“And what would we buy that with?” Oak muttered sarcastically. “Did anyone happen to bring some scales with them?”
Longhorn ducked his head, embarrassed. At least we’re not starving, Maple thought, trying to be positive like Mother had raised her. Oak had been using his weak leafspeak to coax an occasional tree to give them something edible in the middle of the dry season, and Longhorn was a surprisingly good hunter, but the dragonets had been mainly hungry for most of their journey. 
The prisons, coincidentally, were at the VERY BOTTOM of the Hive. Which meant they were down many, many, stairs. 
“How are we going to get past the guards?” Peacock asked, once they had reached the point where the windows stopped letting sunlight into the halls. The air smelled slightly of blood and mildew and dust. 
“I’ve got this,” Firefly said confidently, shaking her head. “Go hide.”
“Why-” Swallowtail and Oak started to say together, but Peacock quieted them quickly. 
Maple looked around the dark corridor, lit dimly by fading flamesilk lamps. It would be easy to hide, as long as the guards didn’t look too closely. Maple chose an especially shaded corner, pressing up against the wall. 
Firefly’s silhouette slid over to where the tunnel opened into to main prison area.  Maple’s heart thumped in her chest, worrying that she would get caught. If they find us lurking around here- that’s not going to end well for any of us. 
“Guards!” Firefly screeched, and a bolt of panic shot up Maple’s spine. “Help!” The thudding of talonsteps on stone echoed throughout the hallway, and Maple prayed to Clearsight that none of them would get seen. 
A dark HiveWing whisked past, followed by two others, flapping their wings as if trying to move faster. 
“Come on,” Firefly hissed, after the noises of the guards had disappeared. Maple saw Peacock poke her head away from the wall, her antennae waving nervously. Slowly they all pulled out of the darkness and walked tentatively to Firefly. 
“What happened here?” Longhorn asked, clearly not expecting an answer. The halls winding between large, stone blocks were bloodstained and scratched. The floors had dust and scraps of old food and paper scattered everywhere. Every sound vibrated off of rock. It was creepy. 
“Doesn’t it seem a bit too quiet?” Longhorn asked again. 
“You’re just being paranoid,” Firefly scoffed, but she too looked worried. 
Oak was sniffing around the abandoned stone blocks. He placed a talon on a slab of granite serving as a door. 
“Don’t do it,” Peacock demanded. Her voice wavered.
Ignoring the SilkWing, Oak grabbed the handle of the door and tugged. The rock swung away from the wall.
The room inside was empty.
=== Chapter Six ===
They checked every room, every corner, every nook. They didn’t find so much as a scale. 
“How did Wasp just DISAPPEAR?” Swallowtail roared. 
“She didn’t,” Peacock said, digging in a scattered pile of papers. “They’re either being held somewhere else or they escaped.”
“Great,” the golden dragon growled. “We walked all the way here for nothing.”
Peacock gasped. “Maybe not nothing. Look.” She held up a tattered note, a curly talonwriting inscribed on it. Maple took a step forward. Was it another prophecy? 
“Well,” insisted Oak. “Read it!”
“Okay,” breathed Peacock. “It says, ‘we escape on the night of the two full moons. Midnight. Guards one, three and eight will help.’”
The vast prison was silent. Oak inhaled. 
“WHAT?!” He yelled, the word echoing off the walls, the volume multiplied until it was almost unbearable. 
“Shush,” Firefly hissed. “The guards could still come back.”
“There’s something weird at the end,” Peacock noted. “An ‘n’ and an ‘s’.”
“Let me see,” Swallowtail said, grabbing it out of her talons. 
“Hey,” Peacock complained, but she didn’t try to take it back. 
Swallowtail studied the slip for a moment. “There are dots above a couple of letters.” He was silent for a moment. “I think I know where they went.”
“Where?” Maple asked. 
Swallowtail looked up, his chilling icy-blue eyes gazing into her’s. “Wasp ran to the mountains.”
“How do you know?” Oak asked, genuine curiosity in his voice. 
“Simple,” Swallowtail said smugly. “The dots above the letters spell out ‘mountains’, if you add the ‘n’ and ‘s’ at the end.”
“Cool,” Longhorn gasped quietly.
He’s handsome and smart, Maple thought. But also very stuck up. Hmm. 
“So we go all the way back to the academy,” Firefly said, “based on some hopeful evidence?”
“Yes,” Peacock said. “It’s our best chance at this point.”
“Let’s go back to the hotel first,” Maple suggested. “I left some stuff there.”
The dragonets trekked back up the winding stairs, narrowly avoiding some suspicious guards. Soon, they came to the level where they had slept the night before. 
“I swear,” Peacock gasped, “after I get my wings I am never going to walk anywhere again.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” Longhorn said. Peacock smiled at him. 
Maple entered the hotel, the bells ringing cheerfully. 
“Just need to grab something from my room,” she told the HiveWing at the front desk. Maple took the stairs- MORE STAIRS!- up to her room. Underneath a pile of blankets, exactly where she had left it the night before, was a leather satchel. Clearsight’s book was stashed inside, along with the prophecy. Maple slung the bag over her shoulder and returned to the rest of the group. 
Not surprisingly, they were arguing. 
“We don’t have any scales!” Oak growled. 
“I am not not paying,” Peacock hissed, in the most angry voice Maple had ever heard her use. “Those dragons worked hard and I do not want to become fugitives for stealing!”
A few dragons glanced in their direction, and Maple quickly pushed the fighting dragonets into an alley. 
“What’s wrong?” She asked, thoroughly confused as to how they had been laughing and smiling minutes earlier. 
“This idiot,” Peacock said, gesturing to Oak, “thinks we should just run off and not pay back the hotel. EVEN THOUGH they would obviously just hunt down and arrest us.”
“EVEN THOUGH,” Oak mimicked, “we have NOTHING to pay them with.”
“Shut up,” Firefly cut in. “If it will make you two quiet down so we can leave, I will personally pay for the room. Okay?” 
“Okay,” Peacock agreed. “but please don’t steal anything.”
Firefly shook her head as if she couldn’t believe the SilkWing thought she would do such a thing. Crouching, she slunk out of the alley, hunching her shoulders and pressing her wings to her side. She whipped her head from side to side, glancing at passing dragons. 
Suddenly, the red dragon darted over to a rich-looking HiveWing. 
“Lady,” Firefly panted. “Please help me. I am starving, and need a place to stay.” The dragonet looked up at the confused elder with pleading eyes. “If you could only give me a few scales…” She trailed off and fell to the ground.
“Oh- oh my,” the older dragon said. She dug in her purse, took out a few shiny bits of silver, placed them near Firefly’s head, and hurried away. 
Firefly snatched them up. “There,” she finished. She tossed the scales at Peacock, who fumbled to catch them. “Now go pay the hotel before that dragon catches on.”
“That was amazing,” Longhorn breathed. “You’re really good at acting.”
Firefly only narrowed her eyes at the compliment. 
“Back,” Peacock panted. “Let’s go.”
“Finally, a good idea,” Firefly muttered. 
Down and around they ran, through the guard checkpoint, and across the savanna. The dragonets with wings flew, while the SilkWings ran as fast as their talons could carry them. 
“Hey!” Maple shouted to Oak. “Isn’t it supposed to take days to get there? What if Wasp leaves again?”
“Not too many days,” Oak yelled, his words whipped away by the wind. He hovered so the LeafWings could talk. “When we were traveling to Wasp Hive, we went towards the forests, in a curve.” He gestured with his talons, showing her. “This time we’ll try to go as straight as possible.” The lime dragon stared at the ground for a moment. “I’m sorry about last night, and this morning. I just wanted to make sure Wasp didn’t do anything horrible. I just want Pantala to be safe,” he said, and in his eyes there was true sincerity. “And when I found out that we just missed her-”
“It’s okay,” Maple consoled. “I don’t want her to hurt anyone either.”
“We should probably hurry up,” Oak suggested. “They are way ahead of us.”
The LeafWings winged their way across the sky. Maple understood Oak’s reasons for getting mad, but she didn’t. Dragons could get frustrated, but if they truly liked someone, they wouldn’t take it out on them. I want to find Wasp. I want to stop her. Yeah, I was down when we found out she wasn’t where we thought she was, but I didn’t act like a total jerk. 
Maple forgave Oak, but he was only a fraction closer to being her friend again. 
== Part Three ==
=== Chapter Seven ===
Two and a half days later, Maple was back where she started. Llano Academy was in the distance. Beetle Lake’s waters lapped at her talons. 
“It’s good to be back, isn’t it?” Oak asked. He didn’t seem to realize that Maple was still a little bitter towards him. He had been excited the past few days, probably because they were so close to finally finding Wasp. 
Maple gazed at the horizon, the hilly mountain range spiking against the sky. Somewhere. Somewhere in that vast, huge, mountainous… place.
“There’s some suspicious activity going on around the school,” Swallowtail said, sliding up to the LeafWings. 
“We’re not in a mystery novel,” Oak told him. “Save the fancy-talk for later.”
“But we could be, someday,” Swallowtail challenged. He stuck up his chin. 
“You?” Oak asked. “Yeah, right.”
“Oh my gosh, just stop,” begged Peacock. “You two have been arguing all day! Can you just stop for a minute?” 
Oak glared at Swallowtail for a moment, then stalked off into the lake. 
“It’s nearly time to go,” Firefly announced. “Hurry up.”
“Sundown already?” Peacock said, getting up. Firefly snorted, rolling her eyes. 
“I was thinking we could follow the lakeshore until the mountains,” Maple suggested. 
“Good idea,” Peacock agreed. “It would take us straight there, and past the academy. And we could cross the river, once we need to.”
“Thanks,” Maple murmured. 
“Hurry UP boys!” Firefly shouted. Oak splashed out of the lake, and Swallowtail came back from wherever he had been sulking. Longhorn walked up timidly. 
“We’re going to follow the lake,” Peacock declared. She began walking, the mud squelching beneath her talons. The other dragonets followed without question. They trust her. Do I? Maple looked down at her gold flecked claws. She can take us to Wasp. I know that. She’s smart, sensible- I want to be her friend, but only if she’s going to let me. And if Longhorn doesn’t get in the way. 
The sun slowly set, orange and pink streaking across the sky and reflecting into the water. Maple’s forearms began to ache. All the dragonets had been doing for the past week was walking or flying. It was almost too much. 
“There are lights on at the school,” Swallowtail said. “I think one of us should go check it out.”
“What, are you crazy?” Firefly hissed. “It’s probably just the teachers, and they would capture and basically imprison us!”
“No, because there are more than three dragons.” The gold SilkWing arched his back. 
“We should,” Maple blurted, before she could stop herself. 
Five pairs of eyes bored into the LeafWing’s scales. 
“I mean- we could- it would-” Maple inhaled, then started again. “If we know who is there, we could, like, gather information? Maybe they know if Wasp came through?” 
Swallowtail smiled, seemingly glad she had taken his side. Peacock frowned, looking confused. 
“I’ll go!” Oak instantly volunteered. 
“No,” Firefly and Peacock objected simultaneously.
“Personally, I think Maple should go,” Peacock pointed out. “She’s dark colored, small, and much quieter than some of us.”
“Hey,” Maple insisted, “just because I’m built like a twig doesn’t mean that I’m tiny.”
Peacock waved a talon at her, brushing off the comment. “What I’m saying is, you can spy on those dragons much better than anyone else.” The SilkWing thought for a moment, then added, “and she has wings. Which means she can get away way faster than us.” Peacock pointedly glanced at Swallowtail. 
“Okay,” Maple sighed. 
“We’ll wait here,” Peacock told her. 
As silently as she could, Maple crept off into the night. The darkness swallowed up her companions, and firelight grew in the distance. Long dry grass rustled ominously beneath her claws. A bug jumped on her snout and she silenced a yelp. 
The buildings of the school loomed up before Maple. They moons made them seem like large mouths, waiting for their prey to make the mistake of coming too close. 
Two shadows spoke in soft voices, near a corner. One of them held a flamesilk lamp. 
“I’m just so worried, Castor,” the smaller one said. “It’s not like her to wander off, and I-” she stopped, a sob in her throat. 
Maple stood shock-still, feeling as if she was going to have a heart attack. 
Standing in front of her, only a few tail-lengths away, was her mother.
=== Chapter Eight ===
The first memory Maple had was a blurry outline of two happy, green dragons. Ginkgo and Magnolia stood lovingly, embracing each other as their first and only dragonet came into the world. 
The second was of both her parents again, while they lived safely in the LeafWing village. Mother taught her daughter how to fly, while Ginkgo watched, expressionless.
Then, the day after she turned one year old: Mother yelling at Father for never being there. And Maple couldn’t help but remember the horrid face he made at his mate and daughter, and the scars he left them. 
Maple never saw Ginkgo again.
That’s why you’re careful, Maple reminded herself. That way you can’t get hurt.
I wasn’t careful enough with Mother. 
Mother didn’t care that Castor was a PoisonWing. She didn’t care that her daughter didn’t want to go to a school, alone. But apparently, she did care when Maple ran off to the other side of the continent. 
“Did you hear that?” Castor demanded, and Maple realized that she had stumbled backwards. 
“Maybe…” Magnolia said. Shadowed talons brushed away long grass, revealing Maple’s green scales. Magnolia let out a yelp. 
“SHH!” Maple hissed. “Please, I don’t want anyone to know I’m here.”
“Maple!” Magnolia gasped. She flung out her arms, squeezing her daughter. “You’re okay! I though you were gone.”
“I was,” Maple admitted, wriggling out of her mother’s embrace. “But I’m fine. I have some friends.” 
“Please don’t run off like that again,” Magnolia whispered. 
“I have to go soon. Please don’t tell.” Her mother pulled back. She stayed silent, waiting for Maple to explain. 
“There’s this… prophecy. It says that we need to find Wasp- the queen- and stop her before she hurts anyone.” Maple held back from telling too much. If her mother knew that Maple’s life was in danger, everything would be ruined. 
Magnolia stared at Maple. Her eyes were filled with emotions: confusion, worry, relief.
“I always knew you were special,” Magnolia murmured, surprising Maple. She had expected anger, or protesting. “After your father left, you didn’t fall apart. You’re resilient.” Maple’s heart beat loudly in her chest. “I love you, Maple. Don’t you ever forget that.”
Stop crying. STOP CRYING-
“I will always be there for you, and even if I love someone else too-” she shot a glance at Castor- “you are always to going to be my daughter.” Cool wings wrapped around Maple’s back. 
“Thank you,” she rasped, tears running down her jaw. The grass rustled, and Castor worked his way into the hug too. 
For a few minutes all there was to hear was the steady breathing of three dragons. Then Castor pulled away, picking up the flamesilk lamp he had set on the ground. 
“I think it’s time for you to go,” he said. “Didn’t you say you had friends waiting for you?” 
“Yes,” Maple admitted. “See you soon?” 
“See you soon,” Magnolia replied, and she clasped her daughter’s claws in hers before taking a step back. 
Maple turned to the savanna. 
“My little Maple,” she heard her mother say. “With friends. Who would’ve thought?” 
Peacock and the others were being very quiet; it was almost impossible to find them. Maple had asked “Are you there?” or “Guys?” way too many times to a bush or very scared antelope. But finally she bumped into something that yelped “Who’s there?” and whacked his wings into her face. 
“Oh, Maple,” Longhorn sighed. “It’s just you.”
“Wasp?” Peacock questioned. 
Maple shifted on her talons. Of course she forgot the one thing she was sent there for. “Um… no?” 
Firefly glared at the LeafWing for a moment. “You didn’t ask, did you.” 
“Well, you did say it was a spying mission,” Maple reasoned. 
“We also asked you to gather information,” Firefly retorted. 
“No one mentioned Wasp,” Maple said confidently. Oak let out a defeated sigh. 
“What if we’re doing this all for nothing?” Longhorn’s voice was alone in the darkness. “What if Wasp is still in prison, a different prison, and we ran away and went all the way across the continent for nothing?” 
Oak looked up, the three moons’ light glinting on his eyes. “We could go back. To Llano, I mean.” 
Is that what I want? To give up? Everything would be normal again. The images swam before Maple’s eyes; her, an ordinary dragonet, going to school; flying with her mom in the LeafSilk Kingdom, and Castor could be there too, they could be a family; dragonets of her own, someday. 
“We can’t,” Peacock affirmed. “Not with the risks. That prophecy was so clear-”
“What prophecy?” Oak demanded. 
“You didn’t tell them?” Maple cried. 
“I mean, I told you that we had reason to suspect Wasp and her sisters were going to escape…” Peacock’s guilty face was clearly outlined in the moonlight. 
“But- prophecy!” The PoisonWing sputtered, at loss for words.
“Why didn’t you tell them?” Maple asked Peacock, as the rest of their companions quietly raged around them. 
“I didn’t know if we could trust them,” Peacock explained. “I only went in for Longhorn, remember? I wasn’t going to jeopardize the mission by betraying ourselves first.” 
“Guys, quiet down.” Maple shushed the wild dragonets. “I found a piece of paper from Clearsight, and it said that a wasp was destroying leaves and butterflies. Peacock thinks this means that the old queen is coming to kill us all.” 
“If destiny is calling, then we are following,” Swallowtail announced. “We’ve got a HiveWing to find.” 
“We can decide what to do in the morning,” Oak said. “Right now, all I want to do is sleep.”
“Yes, please,” Longhorn sighed, laying down on the dry savanna grass. 
Swallowtail and Peacock huffed, but gave in to the night. 
Maple sat though, waiting in the warm, dark air. 
“You were right, Mom,” she murmured quietly. “I do have friends.” 
=== Chapter Nine ===
Slowly, Maple stirred awake. The cloudless blue sky sent the heat of the dry season baking into her scales. 
The splashing of water turned the LeafWing’s attention to the river the dragonets had settled by last night. Firefly stood knee-deep in the stream, scrubbing at her tail. 
“What?” The HiveWing growled. 
Maple looked away, instead studying the muddy beach. It was freshly disturbed, as if a dragon had swept the mud into flat plains and then whacked it with her tail. Maple glanced a Firefly again. Had she done it? Why would it matter?
The school caught her eye. 
“Peacock?” Maple said, shaking the wingless dragon awake. 
“Wha?” She mumbled. 
“We have to go,” Maple insisted urgently. “We may have been hidden last night, but dragons are definitely going to see us now.” She glanced again nervously at the treestuff walls. “We’re not that far away from the academy.” 
“Moons above, you’re right!” Peacock jumped up, looking very concerned. “Wake up, wake up!” She ordered, shaking and bumping all the others. 
“What is it?” Oak grumbled. He was usually cranky in the morning, Maple had noticed. 
“School! Teachers! See us!” Peacock tugged on Longhorn’s wings, then turned around to jab Swallowtail with her tail. “Come ON!”
Oak flung his wings out as if he had been hit by lightning. “We’ll then, let’s go!” He immediately started pushing Swallowtail to his feet, then gave Firefly a shove downriver, towards the mountains. 
With little more protesting, the dragonets were on their way. 
“So, I guess this means we’re going for Wasp?” Longhorn asked tentatively.
“I guess,” Maple echoed. She hadn’t even realized the decision was made. We just betrayed safety for danger. A new thought struck her, and she had to stop for moment, trying not to cry. I betrayed my mother for Wasp.
“You okay?” Oak said, turning back to Maple. 
“Yeah,” Maple told him, “Keep going.” She gazed into her reflection in the rushing river, blurred and distorted. Is this what Mom felt when she sent me to Llano? If so, I would never send my daughter. Maple splashed some water on her face, trying to breathe around the giant lump in her throat. 
After a while, when the others were quite far away, and the sun was high overhead, Maple finally stood. She let the wind take hold of her wings, guiding her into the sky. 
“Hey,” Oak said quietly when she landed. He didn’t say anything else- he left it at that, a friendly greeting, a comfort after a forest of thorns. 
The dragonets traveled long into the night, determined to get to the mountains. The only way to stop Wasp’s plans, Swallowtail had said, was to get her before she could start them. By early morning, Llano Academy was out of sight, and the Winged Mountains rose in the near distance. 
“How are we going to find Wasp and her sisters in that?” Peacock asked, incredulous. 
Firefly shrugged. “They’re all about a hundred years old. They couldn’t have really snuck anywhere.” 
With this little bit of information, the dragonets walked on. 
Soon, the ground sloped in the foothills of what was to come, and as the trail grew rockier and the tall trees that had survived even the Tree Wars started to disappear, the travelers only went slower. 
Longhorn stumbled to a grassy clearing and fell. “I- can’t- go- any farther,” he gasped. He rested his head on his talons, closing his eyes. 
Maple flopped to the ground also. “Please… rest,” she begged Oak, and for once he agreed, laying down a little way’s away. 
“I’ll keep watch,” Firefly volunteered. Surprisingly,  didn’t seem tired, even though they had been walking for the whole day and night. But the LeafWing’s mind was too full of fog to think about it too much, and she was asleep in seconds. 
She swam blurrily for hours through dreamy darkness. When Maple finally woke, Firefly was asleep, and Peacock was awake instead. 
“Good morning,” the SilkWing greeted happily. 
“Morning,” Maple echoed, yawning. “What’re we doing today?” 
“I don’t know,” Peacock said. “Maybe looking around here? Or keep walking.” The tone of her voice clearly indicated which of the options she would rather. 
“Do you think Wasp is hiding around here?” Maple asked, with genuine curiosity. 
The blue dragon fixed her gaze on a tree not too far away. “I hope so,” she finally admitted. 
Both dragonets sat in silence for a while, listening to the birds start to sing and the wind whistling through the trees. 
“How come you’re awake?” Maple asked casually. 
“It was really weird,” Peacock offered. “I woke up, and Firefly was gone!  So I stayed up until she came back, which was like an hour later, and I asked her where she was, and she said that she heard something and decided to see what it was.”
“Did she say if she found it?” 
Peacock wrinkled her nose. “No, I didn’t ask. She looked really tired, so I told her to go to bed.”
Maple processed this information. Something about it was off, but she couldn’t put a claw on it. 
Just then, Oak rolled over in his sleep and whacked Swallowtail with a wing, who yelped dramatically and then quickly shrunk himself down to look as if he was still unconscious. Peacock narrowed her eyes. 
“I know you’re awake, Swallowtail,” she called. “You’re not as good as acting as Firefly.” 
The golden dragon sat up, not a hint of remorse on his face. Maple grimaced as a subtle chill raced down her spine, her webbing standing on end. There was something wrong with that dragon.
“Why were you watching us?” Peacock asked, and Maple realized that Swallowtail had said something. 
The bright blue and gold dragonet only shrugged arrogantly, as if it was perfectly fine for him to be eavesdropping. 
Peacock rolled her eyes and growled softly, but let it go. 
=== Chapter Ten ===
“Don’t go too far,” Oak called. A raven crowed in the distance as if to enforce his point. 
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Maple said. “I’m just going for a walk. You don’t need to be so jumpy.”
“Well, there is a giant super-powered vengeful queen hiding out there, but if you want to get captured, go right ahead.” 
Maple shook her head as she walked into the brush. 
The forest was alive with life, although none of it showed itself to the dragon that strolled around the rocks and trees with careful steps. Squirrels dashed out of the way, and monkeys and birds yelped whenever she came within a few wingspans of them, causing the source of their fright to jump in surprise, thinking Wasp had found her. 
I can’t let her find me, she thought. 
And then there was the sound of claws scraping on bark, and the tip of a black tail- Maple pressed herself against a huge tree, heart thudding so fast she thought it would rip through her scales. 
But then the dragon came down, and black scales were actually blue, and this was a dragonet her own age. 
“Peacock!” Maple sighed. “You scared me!” 
“Sorry,” Peacock laughed. “I didn’t know who you were.” 
“I didn’t know who you were! Why did you come?”
“I wanted to go on a walk, same as you. It’s not everyday that I get to explore a mountain.”
“Well, we’re not exactly in the mountains yet, but sure.”
Peacock studied Maple for a little bit, a funny look in her eyes. “Are you angry at me?” She asked finally. 
“What, no!” Maple said, taken aback. “Why would you think that?” 
“I don’t know, it’s just like… like you don’t want to be around me, kind of. Like at school.”
“No, I- I don’t- its not you.” Maple stared at the ground. “Sometimes I feel like I can’t trust dragons-” Peacock’s face fell, looking injured.
“-not like that!” Maple cried. “I do trust you, it’s just…” She trailed off, unsure about how to continue.  
Peacock rested her talon on Maple’s, obviously trying to be supportive but only achieving in making her friend feel more like a horrible rotting bug. 
“When I was really little,” Maple started slowly. “I lived in the Poison Jungle. Me, my mom, and- and my dad. We were happy. But then- then he ran away.” Peacock’s face was pure shock and sympathy. “But its not just that. Before he left, he got really mad at my mom because- because she- I guess she knew he wanted to leave. So she yelled at him, tried to figure out why he didn’t- why he didn’t love us anymore.” Maple hitched in a breath, then whispered, “He hurt my mom. And me.” She traced a diagonal line over her chest. “It healed, but…”
“But you didn’t,” Peacock finished. Maple nodded, eyes stinging as she tried not to cry. 
“So I was careful. I didn’t trust anyone new, and I still don’t. Except you, I guess.”
Peacock rested her head on Maple’s shoulder, the LeafWing’s small frame shuddering as tears raked down her snout. 
“I will be your friend.” Peacock promised. “I won’t betray you. I will be there for you.” 
“Thank you,” Maple breathed. 
And then a dragon crashed through the trees. 
=== Chapter Eleven ===
Peacock and Maple both shrieked, sending hoards of birds escaping to the sky. 
Oak jumped back, wings flared. “Woah, I’m not going to hurt you!” He asserted. 
“Good!” Peacock panted. “I was worried!” 
“I am too,” Oak admitted. “Firefly’s gone.”
“What do you mean, gone?” Maple demanded, tears forgotten. 
“Gone as in, Longhorn and Swallowtail and I are looking for her but can’t find her so I came to you?” Oak said fervently. “Have you seen her, by chance?” 
Peacock shook her head nervously, and Maple could see her own fear reflected in the SilkWing’s eyes. She was certain they were all believing the worst- Firefly had been found by Wasp. 
Oak took off for the camp, and Maple and Peacock followed closely on the ground. 
“When did she disappear?” Peacock asked, once they arrived. 
“We’re not exactly sure,” Longhorn confessed, looking up from sniffing the ground. 
“Arrrgh!” Peacock roared. 
“I think we have to do an aerial search,” Oak said.
“We’ll look on the ground,” Swallowtail volunteered. 
The three winged dragonets flapped into the air, Longhorn’s thin dragonfly-like wings buzzing nervously. The trio split up, each going in their own direction, scanning the forest with sharp eyes.
Please don’t have let Firefly been caught. Please, Clearsight, we were just trying to fulfill your prophecy… 
Maple ended up soaring near the rocky mountains, crags and ledges jutting out at irregular intervals. She’ll be easy to spot from up here, she thought. But the chances that she’s all the way over in the mountains… its not very likely. 
But there… could that be…
Maple landed on a particularly smooth outcropping, with an inky black cave leading farther into the mountain. She could be imagining it but… Yes! A scale, pale yellow, with a pure black stripe along one edge. It had to be Wasp’s, or at least one of her sisters’. 
Which means I’m on the right track. 
Maple studied the mouth of the cave, indecisive. On the one talon, Firefly could be trapped in there. On the other, if she was in there, Wasp and her allies probably would be too. And wouldn’t it be better to grab the other dragonets before going in, for backup? 
On the third, if Maple snuck in by herself, she was less likely to be seen and more likely to avoid a fight. 
Fine. I’ll go in now. 
Carefully, the LeafWing slipped into the cave. There was no firelight, but mysterious glowing mushrooms lit up the vast area. Dripping water plinked softly from somewhere in the back of the cave. 
As Maple’s eyes adjusted, she could see that the room was deserted. But something had definitely been here- something big. Leaves and mosses littered the floor. Angry scratch marks decorated the walls. Smashed stalactites were strewn across the ground. 
“Woah,” Maple murmured. The word skipped softly about the walls, until it finally disappeared. 
Maple was about to go farther into the mountain when a scream shattered the air. 
Instantly, she spread her wings and shot back to the forest where she had left her friends. She was almost going so fast that she missed it, but she saw gold and blue scales and whipped around as fast as she could. 
She landed heavily on broken grass. Oak thumped down behind her only seconds later. Longhorn and Swallowtail and Peacock stood shock-still. 
Firefly was crouched in the center of a peaceful glade, except it wasn’t peaceful. Four huge HiveWings snarled in the opposite corner, tails lashing. 
Wasp was one of them. 
The old Hive queen made a deep, guttural, growling sound, and she lunged at Firefly. 
At the same time, an orange dragoness leapt for Swallowtail, claws outstretched. 
The clearing was chaos. Maple watched as Oak and Peacock faced off a humongous raspberry-red HiveWing, and Longhorn swarmed up the back of another, gripping her spines and scratching at scales.
Longhorn’s HiveWing thrashed her tail into Maple’s face, and, against all LeafWing morals, she bit down, the taste of blood filling her mouth. The HiveWing shrieked and threw Longhorn off, sending him flying into the bushes. 
Maple quickly let go of the tail, spitting out a scale, and rushed toward Peacock. There were only five dragonets left, and Wasp still had three others on her side. 
Suddenly a plant erupted from the ground. It ensnared the HiveWing Maple had wounded, and she screamed as the vine wrapped her up, poking her wherever a thorn touched. 
But then Wasp plummeted from the sky. When Maple glanced over, Wasp had left Firefly lying on the grassy floor, blood trickling from a scratch on her neck. Swallowtail lunged out of nowhere, landing on Wasp’s shoulder and climbing up it like a squirrel. Wasp roared and clawed at him clumsily. 
Oak was sitting on the ground, eyes scrunched closed. 
So he didn’t see the massive HiveWing looming up behind him. 
“Look out!” Peacock screamed. He opened his eyes at the last second, and scrambled away, but the HiveWing still smashed her talons into his side. Oak retreated to the trees, limping. 
The black HiveWing left Oak alone. She had a new target. 
Peacock was grabbed from behind. The HiveWing held up her claws, terrifying stingers slicing out. With a merciless swipe, she slashed them across the SilkWing’s throat. 
And lime green talons reached out from the undergrowth, dragging Maple in, and she screamed, struggling to get to Peacock, she needed help, she had to help her, she promised-
But leaves blocked her view until everything- the battle, Peacock, the trees- went dark.
== Epilogue ==
Wasp paced the dark caves, a snarl in her throat. 
“If you keep doing that, you’re going to make a hole in the floor,” Cicada called. 
Wasp whipped her head around, growling. “Say that to my face.”
Cicada worked her way into a messy bow. “Sorry, Your Majesty.”
Wasp continued pacing. The battle had been successful. It was funny, the way that happened, when one planned it beforehand. 
But it was not good enough. There was at least four dragons who knew she was around. They could easily gather others to stop the Hive queen. 
“Why didn’t we kill them while we had the chance?” Wasp hissed. 
“Excuse me, Your Majesty?” Vinegaroon asked. 
“Why didn’t we kill those dragonets!” Wasp roared. “They were literally given to us!” 
“I wish you would have let me come with you,” Bloodworm complained. “I would have crushed those beetles.”
Mantis glanced up from her book. “You could always kill the other two-”
“No,” Wasp hissed. “It’s better if they are alive.” She turned her head. “Are they alive?”
Tsese looked up from the dragonets, uncharacteristically concerned. “The HiveWing is fine. The other one… I’m not so sure if she’ll make it.”
“Well, be sure!” Wasp snapped. Tsese quickly started moving her talons, bandaging the blue dragon’s wounds. 
That SilkWing is too much like that other one… the flamesilk. Wasp’s wings twitched furiously. “I will be back,” she told her sisters. “Do not come to try to find me.”
She flew from the mouth of the cave, fuming. 
I can’t take it anymore… these dragons do not respect me. My sisters are not to be believed; I see the hate they give in every glance. The SilkWings are the worst… they had their own rebellion, and I didn’t even know about it! Or perhaps the LeafWings… and their idiot queen Sequoia… I knew I couldn’t trust her. 
Wasp’s claws were itching to kill. Spotting a hint of movement, she dove, snatching up an unsuspecting goat. She snapped its neck, imagining doing that to a certain traitorous HiveWing, or perhaps a couple of young LeafWings. 
“Soon,” she growled, ripping off a leg with her teeth. “Soon, I shall have my revenge.
“And then no one will betray me again.”
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Completed)
Category:Genre (Adventure)
Category:Genre (Prophecy)