Amber Yellow, Agate Brown

= Chapter 1 =
This is officially the WORST day of my life so far, I thought. And I wasn’t exaggerating. Two weeks ago, I was rejected by the best university in Pyrrhia, according to my calculations (even though I got accepted to the third-best, I still felt like I'd failed some test), and a day ago I’d confessed my love to Moonwatcher, whom I’d been crushing on since I first saw her. I like Winter, Qibli! She’d said. I’m so sorry, I’m really sorry!
“Moon, Moon, Moon. Some mind reader you are. You should know that ‘I’m really sorry’ just DOESN’T CUT IT!” I slammed my book bag onto the campus sidewalk in a rare moment of uncontrolled rage. Dragons within a 5 feet radius of me turned to stare, probably thinking This SandWing-what’s his name, Qibli? What’s he DOING?! But I didn’t care.
I was breathing hard, sweat running down my wings and back in little rivulets. It’s REALLY not like me to lose my temper like this. I need to stay in control, I need to be able to look around and see dragons that I can analyze, not two-dimension walking, talking paper cutouts. I need to forget about Moon.
“Qibli! What in the name of Darkstalker are you DOING?!” shouted a familiar male voice. At the use of Darkstalker’s name, I tensed up, folding my wings, and so did every NightWing and IceWing in the vicinity.
I slowly turned around to face the dark brown dragon on top of a pine tree, waving his wing at me. “Umber, I should be asking what are YOU doing? You’re making yourself look like a fool!”
He grinned at me and soared off of the tree, shaking sharp needles onto the dragons below and prompting them to elicit curses at Umber, who had landed next to me and picked up the heavy book bag.
“Geez, why is your bag so heavy? You’ve always been such a smart dragon, so I thought you wouldn’t need to carry around notes all the time!” I rolled my eyes and turned away from him, alternately turning red with anger and turning pink with embarrassment, or was it…shyness from being complimented by UMBER?
I KNEW it. Moon’s rejection is distracting me and making me go crazy over things a MALE dragon says! There was no way I was getting a crush on another dragon, least Umber, a male dragon. I shook my head like a wolf does after getting wet, and ended up making droplets of sweat fly in all directions, just like the water from the wolf’s hair. I am seriously going crazy. Regular me would never think like this, and regular me would never make that comparison.
But Umber reached out and grabbed my forearm, dragging me to the library to study, he said, and halfway there I couldn’t form a coherent thought about why I couldn’t form coherent thoughts, and why I couldn’t speak without stammering.
That’s it. I’m running away from this university and going someplace far, far away from Umber, and Moon.
We were nearly to the golden double library doors, and giggling dragons spilled out of them as we continued forward, Umber half-flapping, half-running and me sprinting.
I’d reached my fully grown stage a few weeks ago, and I hadn’t nearly adjusted to my new size yet, but I was glad for that when I flew away. Umber was considerably smaller than me, and even though he was bulky, I had strong, sinewy muscles.
I rolled into a ball and tripped Umber up, forcing him to relinquish my arm. Some of its normal warm yellow color leaked back in, and I beat my wings forcefully, creating a gust of wind that kept Umber down.
Flying into the midday sun, while class was in session, it was an odd sight for many dragons at the university, but I didn’t mind, I had my racing mind back to normal, and I was free.
Soon I was flying over miles of hunter green forest and the sun set, forcing streaks of vibrant purple and pink over the sky. My sharp eyes caught a pack of wolves galloping away from me, and a clearing not far away. An oasis in a forest, I thought.
I timed my landing to coincide with the first of the wolves, the leader of the pack. The battle didn’t last long, and other black-tinged wolves scattered. I gathered some twigs and set them on fire, throwing the wolf in there.
Was this the right decision? All I’ve been doing this week is running away from things I didn’t know. Am I that much of a coward? When Darkstalker attacked, me and Moon and Winter and Peril, we fought hard. Without my friends, I guess I’m nothing.
A rustle in the thorns, a flash of obsidian and silver scales. “You’re not nothing, and you’re not a coward, Qibli.” Spoke a high female voice. I jerked up and looked around wildly, my venom-covered tail barb pointing upwards, my claws sharp and ready.
“Who’s there?” I called. “There, there, there?” echoed back the forest.
“Why, don’t you even know your friend’s voice? It’s me.” I knew who it was, now. She stepped out of the shadows and into the firelight. Her silver scales reflected back some of the light, and her inky black scales seemed to absorb it all.
My wings unfolded and my tail curled, making me look as much a scorpion as my siblings did. She lowered her wings and cocked her head to the side.
“Moonwatcher.” I finally hissed.
= Chapter 2 =
Moon nodded yes. She stepped forward, and I inched backwards. I won’t lose myself like last time. I need to be in control. “Go back home, Moon. What are you doing here?” My voice sounded de-attached from my throat and body, and my body was acting independent of my brain.
“Looking for you.” She said simply, like she’d said 2 years ago to Winter at Jade Mountain. I inched further backwards as she crept forwards and sat next to the fire, her tail curled around her. Only then did I notice the slightly wet tear tracks beneath her eyes, and the puffy redness that surrounded them.
“Moon… what happened to you?” I wondered as I stalked forward and sat opposite of her.
“Winter rejected me.” She confessed. I reeled back in shock, never in a thousand years would I have thought that Winter would reject Moon. We all knew he liked, even loved her. The glances he gave her, and the way he acted around her offered the suggestion.
My surprise must have shown on my face, a rare thing, because she smiled and continued “He said he liked Kinkajou instead.” Double surprise! I thought, schooling my face into a (probably) contorted poker face.
Moon burst into giggles, and I couldn’t see what was so funny. The world after being rejected by a dragon you like isn’t exactly rose-colored, and there certainly isn’t much to laugh about.
“You-your FACE! It looks like you’re watching a condor being eaten by a cobra!” She doubled over, holding her stomach, and I threw a piece of burnt wolf flesh at her.
“What do you want?” I hissed. Moon looked at me like I had no brain. “Don’t you know, Qibli? You’re so smart, and handsome, maybe more so than Winter. A dragon like you should have already figured it out.” I knew she could see imaginary wheels clanking in my head as I tried to put the pieces together.
“You’re buttering me up…” I said slowly. “Why are you coming back now? You rejected me, and Winter rejected you…”
Click.
I got it now. Moon had fled wherever Winter had rejected her, and she’d come looking for me, knowing that I would give her a second chance. And I probably would have this morning, before Umber had come along, but now I wasn’t so sure.
I still liked her but I could sense my feelings had shifted, and not in her favor. It was like 30% of my feelings were towards Umber, and 70% were to Moon, when before it had been 100% for Moon.
A warm talon gripped my shoulder, I jumped in surprise. “You’ve figured it out, I assume.” Moon looked so vulnerable and shy, like she had at Jade Mountain before she met Winter. Her eyes were downcast, and she sidled up next to me.
I pushed her away, and she lost her balance, her tail threatening to dip into the fire. She pulled it back and stared at me, her eyes now resentful and confused.
“Why’d you do that, Qibli? Don’t you love me? Why would you push somebody you love next to a fire? Oh! So you don’t want me to be chilly? But your body heat is like the fire, except better because it’s YOU.”
“No. I don’t love you.”
Moon gasped and her face fell, then twisted into a sneer. “Maybe you ARE a coward, Qibli dear. Maybe you’re scared that I will hurt you again, but that won’t happen! Winter is probably off taking Kinkajou to dinner, not me.”
I rolled my eyes and sighed. “I’m not scared, Moon. You rejected me for Winter, but now that he likes somebody else you’re going to come running back to the dragon you rejected? I don’t think so, Moon. You’ve changed. You’re so cruel and conniving now, you’re not the dragoness I fell in love with!”
Moon reeled back and then dashed forward, slapping me across the face with her rough palm. I staggered back a few paces, but I didn’t make one sound of pain. Still smirking, she backhanded me one more time, and then swiftly flew away. The sound of her wingbeats echoed around me long after she was gone, and only when the echoes disappeared did I dare move.
The places Moon had slapped me were bleeding painfully, but I did have my feelings sorted out. I was certain I loved Umber and hated Moon. How dare she run back to me after she rejected me.
I had told Moon she’d changed, but I’d changed too. The absentminded way I was scratching my wounds proved it, I was only making it worse. It needs medical attention, the closest place to get it is at the university. Guess I’ll go back.
Before I could take off, I heard wingbeats again, coming from the general direction Moon had flew off in. Oh no. I needed to hide, Moon was obviously wrong in the head, but I COULDN’T move. My muscles seized up like when Umber touched me before, and all I could do was turn my head to look at the inevitably black-and-silver shape in the sky.
It wasn’t Moon.
It was Umber, flying at full speed towards me with Clay. “QIBLI!” he yelled.
‘Here!” I yelled back, waving my wings as fast as Umber was flapping them. Umber and Clay touched down in front of me, stirring up a whirlwind of dust. Umber ran forwards and wrapped his wings around me-A c-common sign o-of affection a-a-among dragons. I thought. After a short time, he released me, and I alternately missed the SandWing-like warmth of his wings, and hated my frozen-up-again body. Three moons, I’m not in the Kingdom of Ice!
“Where WERE you?! You just flew off and went in the direction of the forest! There are bears and wolves here! I-WE were so worried!” Clay nodded wisely, like the perfect professor he was. “You shouldn’t just run off like that, Qibli. You are a student at the university, and you have to have permission to leave campus.”
“THAT’S what you were worried about, Professor?” Umber stared at Clay with an incredulous look on his face. “I ran to Professor to get help to search for you after you flew in the direction of this forest, and she agreed to go-I thought she was worried about YOU! Like I was!”
He was breathing hard, and Clay was staring at them with his mouth open like he had never seen anything like this. “You… you were worried about me, Umber?” I asked.
Umber’s face features relaxed and then scrunched up again as he seemed to realize a mistake he made.
I reached a talon out to him. “Umber, it’s fine. You know, back when Darkstalker was still on Pyrrhia I was worried about you too, about whether you would survive. And you know what? You did.” I kept on talking, feeling very stupid and disconnected from my mouth.
“Qibli, would you please do me a favor?” asked Umber looking irritated. “W-what?” I stammered, internally thinking Uh oh! I did something wrong now he hates me forever this is horrible I knew this month was bad luck!
“Shut up.” He answered. And then he leaned forward and kissed me on the lips and I couldn’t think, couldn’t move, couldn’t talk or blush. I was a statue and when Umber finally leaned back and smiled, my nerves kicked in and I blushed a rather ungainly shade of orange.
Umber smiled more, looking quite satisfied with his work. Professor Clay was STILL gaping at us and we both turned and said, “What are you LOOKING at?!” in unison.
I looked at Umber and Umber looked at me. We laughed.
I guess I was wrong about this being the worst day of my life. I thought, closing my eyes and lifting my head. Even I’m wrong sometimes. But all I need to know now is that I love Umber and he loves me. That’s all and everything.
Category:Fanfictions
Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon)
Category:Content (Mango the Rainwing)
Category:Genre (Romance)
Category:Fanfictions (Completed)