The Burning Landscape

== Warnings! ==
The Burning Landscape contains mature themes such as death, blood, violence, and fire, as well as expressions of self-loathing, admittance of abuse, severe anxiety issues, self-harm and possibly eating disorders. Viewer discretion advised.
== Dragons Of The Burning Landscape ==
=== Art Credit: Lyrebird.RainWing ===
Jade Winglet
NightWing: Answerseeker (Male)
SkyWing: Skyrus (Sky/Hive/Sand; Male)
IceWing: Frost (Female)
HiveWing: Bluejacket (Female)
LeafWing: Chinaberry (Female)
SilkWing: Aphrodite (Female)
RainWing: Apple (Male)
MudWing: Squelch (Female)
SandWing: Coyote (Male)
SeaWing: Deep (Male)
Gold Winglet
NightWing: Crux (Night/Sky; Male)
SkyWing: Peregrine (Male)
IceWing: Phoebe (Female)
HiveWing: Cicada (Female)
LeafWing: Sandbox (Female)
SilkWing: Atticus (Male)
RainWing: Sunshine (Rain/Sand; Male)
MudWing: Fawn (Female)
SandWing: Echis (Female)
SeaWing: Beluga (Male)
Silver Winglet
NightWing: Artseeker (male)
SkyWing: Toucan (Sky/Rain; Male)
IceWing: Snowling (Female)
HiveWing: Darner (Male)
LeafWing: Golden (Female)
SilkWing: Dove (Female)
RainWing: Attractive (Male)
MudWing: Snake (Female)
SandWing: Arizona (Male)
SeaWing: Angelfish (Female)
Copper Winglet
NightWing: Muse (Female)
SkyWing: Flicker (Male)
IceWing: Snowdrift (Male)
HiveWing: Bee (Female)
LeafWing: Oak (Male)
SilkWing:  Lunar (Male)
RainWing: Blossom (Female)
MudWing: Swamp (Male)
SandWing: Hyena (Male)
SeaWing: Ocean (Female) 
Quartz Winglet
NightWing: Darkscales (Female)
SkyWing: Apollo (Male)
IceWing: Moscow (Female)
HiveWing: Sting (Male)
LeafWing: Azalea (Female)
SilkWing: Darkling (Male)
RainWing: Glamorous (Female)
MudWing: Crawdad (Male)
SandWing: Lizard (Female)
SeaWing: Tuna (Male)
Jasper Winglet
NightWing: Starweaver (Night/Silk; Male)
SkyWing: Cassiopeia (Sky/Night; Non-binary)
IceWing: Coniferous (Ice/Leaf; Male)
HiveWing: Honey (Female)
LeafWing: Foxglove (Male)
SilkWing: Bella (Female)
RainWing: Silver-Rose (Rain/Night; Female)
MudWing: Arboreal (Mud/Rain; Female)
SandWing: Aloe (Female)
SeaWing: Shoreline (male)
== Chapter One ==
Cassiopeia was practically giddy with excitement, their tail lashing as they dove from the clouds. Their darker-scaled brother dipped below the cloud-cover as well aiming for the double peaks of Jade Mountain. Cassiopeia touched down mere moments before their brother, although they were the faster flier. Crux kicked up some dirt with his talons as he dug his claws into the earth. 
  “Can you believe it, Crux?” Cassiopeia released a breathless sigh. “We’re really here!” Their eyes glimmered with excitement. Crux touched his temple gently, overwhelmed with the amount of mental voices crowding his head. He prodded Cassiopeia’s shoulder and they pulled a Skyfire shard from their bracelet, passing it to their brother. Crux grasped the stone gratefully as Cassiopeia beckoned for their brother to follow as they paced towards a large cave opening. Crux poked his shoulder again and pointed to a table set beside the entrance, where a slightly purple NightWing stood. The marble tabletop was scattered with many many untidy scrolls. “Hello!” The NightWing trilled. “I’m Fatespeaker, what’re your names?” 
  “Cassiopeia.” Cas replied, giving a small smile. “And this is my brother, Crux.” Crux offered a shy wave. “Lovely to meet you!” Fatespeaker exclaimed. “Let’s see, let’s see.” She rustled through her scrolls. “Ah! Cassiopeia you’re in the Jasper Winglet and Crux you’re in the Gold Winglet.” Fatespeaker passed them each a scroll. “Sleeping caves are down that way.” She pointed to an entrance deeper into the roots of the mountain. Cassiopeia trotted off followed nervously by Crux. Massive caves were lined with several beds. “Looks like the entire Winglet will be in one cave.” Crux observed quietly. “Oh here’s mine.” Cassiopeia looked up at a word carved above the entrance to his Winglet’s cave. They gave their brother a comforting nudge as he continued down the hall. Cassiopeia went eagerly into their cave, spying a comfortable looking rock-ledge bed. They climbed onto it and tucked their wings against themself, tail hanging off the shelf of rock. A golden SilkWing with mint green and pale forest green wings paced into the cave, looking nervous. Cassiopeia scanned their scroll before calling out to the SilkWing. “Hello!” Cas’s voice echoed through the large space. “Bella right?” The SilkWing offered a shy nod. “You’re Cassiopeia I presume?” “Yes!” Cassiopeia flashed a grin. A large, mostly golden HiveWing strayed in after Bella. “Evenin’.” She said, “The name’s Honey, you’re Cassiopeia and Bella, yes?” The two nodded. 
   Cassiopeia glanced at the entryway to the cave and leapt off their ledge, pacing towards the scroll racks. They began to look through them when they noticed a small dragon curled in the shadows of the cave. “Hello.” They said, tilting their head. The small dragon crept out from the shadow, her wings materializing from their camouflage. “What’s your name?” Cassiopeia inquired of the shy hybrid. “Silver-Rose, but please call me Rose.” Her voice was muted. She climbed into a hammock and peered over the edge at Cas. A SeaWing stomped into the cave, looking grumpy. He flung himself in the pool near the back of the sleeping area, vanishing beneath the surface. “That’s Shoreline.” Honey pointed out. Cassiopeia nodded and went back to looting through the scrolls. A bubbly hybrid bounced into the cave. “Hello!” She chirped loudly, and Cassiopeia noticed Rose’s visible flinch. “I’m Arboreal!” Honey grinned and shook Arboreal’s talon. “Mind if I take the mud puddle?” Shoreline emerged somewhat from his pond. “Don’t see anyone else volunteering.” He grumbled, vanishing once more. Arboreal shrugged and bounded into the mud puddle smiling broadly. Arboreal’s brown and green scales glistened with a muddy exterior as Shoreline’s slightly yellow body was stark against the clear mountain pool. A SandWing came into the cave, a calmed air about her. “Hello.” She yawned, rather sleepily. Her paled amber scales were specked with flecks of black and she had black markings on her wings. “I’m Aloe.” Honey nodded. “Aloe’s a cool name.” 
    A LeafWing strolled into the cave after Aloe, a bored demeanor most prominently featured on his face. His dark chartreuse wings were flecked with pale orange and he had a lime green underbelly. “Are you Foxglove?” Honey asked him. “Do I look like anyone else?” Foxglove snarled slightly. “I’m taking the moss bed, deal with it.” Cassiopeia blinked, a scroll clutched in their talons. “Grumpy ain’t he.” Cas chuckled. Everyone looked up as the cave chilled a few degrees. A mint green hybrid with baby-blue spikes stood in the center of the sleeping area, looking awkwardly out of place. “Coniferous. I’m Coniferous, but call me Connie.” “Howdy!” Honey replied, shaking his talon jubilantly. “Welcome to the Jasper Winglet.” 
  “There’s only one member left.” Cassiopeia said, rereading their scroll. “Starweaver.” 
   “Present.” A voice mused from behind Cassiopeia, starling them slightly. “Ah, hello, you made me jump.” Cas chuckled. “Sorry.” Starweaver replied. “My parents say I have the tendency to sneak up on people.” He gave a faint smile. “Well everyone’s here!” Frog chirped from his puddle. Cassiopeia nodded and selected a scroll from the shelf. They climbed back onto their ledge and began to read, burying themself in the palaces of paragraphs, the countries of consonants, the villages of vowels. They felt a gentle poke. Rose was sitting quietly next to them, her wings pressed fearfully against her back. “Cassiopeia?” She inquired, her voice hushed. “Your brother is Crux, yes?” The rest of the winglet was chatting, unconcerned with Cas and Rose’s conversation. Cassiopeia nodded. “He’s a mind reader, yes?” Rose’s silver teardrop scales glinted in the fire-globe light above. “Yes.” Cas replied, slightly confused. “Oh…makes sense.” A shimmer of pale pink rippled through her scales. “Thanks.” Rose climbed back into her hammock. Honey yawned and padded to her leaf bed, curling up. “You think we can turn the lights off?” She asked. Cassiopeia peered at their scroll once more with a nod. They stood on their hind legs and tapped a fire globe. The light immediately dimmed to a comfortable sleeping brightness. “Perfect.” Honey’s murmured reply was barely audible as Frog had begun snoring. Cassiopeia rested their head on their talons, draping their tail over their snout. They drifted into a deep sleep, before slipping into a savage nightmare. 
== Chapter Two ==
Cassiopeia tossed and turned on their ledge, clutching their head as the vision burned through their mental eye. Jade Mountain was on fire, burning, the mountain peaks alight with crimson flame. A darkened shadow looked over Cassiopeia and spoke in a hissing tone, though the hybrid couldn’t understand what the dark dragon had said. Cassiopeia awoke from their nightmare with a jolt, and rubbed their eyes. A bit of light was trickling down the cave hallway from the main entrance, informing Cas that it was morning. They stretched their forelimbs and lashed their tail, and glanced around. Rose awoke as well, Cassiopeia knew by the slight jerk of her hammock. There was an audible snort as Arboreal snored loudly, earning a chuckle from Cassiopeia. Rose peered over her leaf-hammock and blinked at him before glancing at Arboreal with a weak grin. “Gooooood Morning!” Honey trilled, pulling herself to her talons. 
    Foxglove snarled. “Unpleasant morning to you too.” Honey replied. Starweaver unwrapped his wings from around himself, and dropped from his leaf-woven pod. Bella’s butterfly wings shimmered as the fire globes illuminated the many shades of green. The glow flowing through the appendages cast shards of emerald light onto the cave floor. Aloe’s pale wings unfolded as she looked over her barbed tail at them, a slight smile curling her facials. Rose jumped violently, tumbling out of her hammock and flinching closer to Cassiopeia. “Ain’t you a jumpy one.” Honey strolled over to Rose as the hybrid tried to tuck herself beneath Cassiopeia’s ledge. Honey shrugged and trotted off, scanning the schedule written on a chalkboard pinned to the wall. “Oooh.” She mused reading the list. “First we have something called ‘winglet room’. I wonder what that is.” Bong Bong Bong. A gong echoed through the caves, startling any dragons who weren’t awake into an upward position. Arboreal stumbled out of her pond, blinking sleepily. “Morning.” She greeted, yawning. Cassiopeia lashed their tail and leapt from the ledge. “Well c’mon, we don’t want to be late.” They stated, scanning the schedule list for the cave number before trotting out. They were followed hurriedly by Rose, who seemingly had a tendency to cling to the one she’d spoken too. “Here.” Cassiopeia said, pointing to a cave with the number 1C engraved over the top. The Jasper Winglet filed in, Foxglove taking a place in the shadows, his dark wings wrapped around himself. Rose seated herself near to Cassiopeia, Shoreline seemed in a better mood now and took a spot by the wall, Starweaver settled for the middle, Arboreal next to him, Coniferous against the left wall with Bella next to him, and Aloe sleepily in the front. A large purple and violet hybrid was seated in the front of the room, her spiked tail wrapped around herself. “She looks like a SkyWing IceWing hybrid.” Rose whispered to him, accidentally brushing his Skyfire band. She froze and pulled away. The dragon rose with a friendly grin on her face. “Hello Jasper Winglet!” She greeted the assembled students. “I’m Miss Violet, your Winglet Room Teacher. In this class you’ll have time to catch up on schoolwork before classes and get your last minute socialization out of the way before really learning.”  Cassiopeia nodded before raising a talon. “May I ask, Miss, what tribes are you?” Violet grinned. “I’m glad you asked,” She checked her list. “Cassiopeia, I am an IceWing SkyWing with weak firescales.” “Fascinating.” Cas mused quietly, scribbling on a scroll. “Anyway,” Violet clapped her talons. “Feel free to enjoy the rest of this class to enjoy yourselves.” Foxglove scoffed with a mutter. “I was sent to learn…” He huffed then retreated into a corner to read a scroll. Rose glanced around then dismissed herself to write quietly at a small table. Bella stood awkwardly in the corner as Honey started to converse with the much less grumpy Shoreline. The pale amber SeaWing seemed to have improved mood wise in an impressive way. Cassiopeia watched their Clawmates noting small movements such as the way Foxglove held himself. He seemed as if he relied on a rearing-type movement in combat. He looked as if he’d rear and then strike out with his front talons, using his tail flat against the ground for a balance. Cassiopeia was almost as large as the LeafWing, if it came to it, they could easily beat Foxglove. But they wouldn’t, unless the LeafWing threatened Crux, he would be safe. Cassiopeia shook out his wings slightly, Coniferous seemed to be sitting somewhat awkwardly by himself. Cassiopeia strolled over to him with a cheerful grin. “Hello,” They said. “Connie was it?” Coniferous nodded quietly. “It’s a nice name.” Cas replied. “Where do you live?” Connie shrugged. “I move around, but mostly in the Ice Kingdom.” Cassiopeia grinned again. “I enjoyed the Ice Kingdom when I explored it in my youth.” Connie chuckled. “Youth’? How old are you?” “Fourteen but I feel much older.” Cassiopeia replied. “When you travel as much as I do, so see a lot more, a lot younger.” The gongs rang again. “What’s next?” Connie questioned as Cassiopeia peered down at their schedule. “History.” Cas replied, stretching slightly as they got up. 
   “Oooh!” Honey exclaimed. “It’s double-history, with the Jade Winglet.” Rose let out a relieved sigh and Cassiopeia glanced at her. “Oh, Answerseeker is in the Jade Winglet, he’s my half-brother.” She whispered. Her scales were a deep purple with flecks of dark blue and hints of red around her feather-like ruff. Honey’s forked tail vanished around the corner as Cassiopeia slowed to walk next to her. She was a nervous dragonet, and couldn't be more than five years old. She’s twitchy, Cassiopeia thought, looking at her from the corner of their eye. Might have an anxiety disorder, like Crux. The two continued in silence, before they reached the history classroom. 
== Chapter Three ==
Cassiopeia swept through the cave entrance, their tail catching slightly on the rocks. “Ow.” They winced slightly before hearing the whispers of a conversation near the back of the cave. They glanced towards the murmuring dragons spying a HiveWing-Like one, and a NightWing. “No I know, but it’s okay.” The NightWing took the HiveWing-like dragon’s talon. “It’s okay.” The HiveWing dragon sighed and glanced down, he nodded. Cassiopeia watched curiously before Honey tugged them away to sit near the front. Cassiopeia curled their tail over their talons, looking up expentently. Cassiopeia’s mismatched eyes became squinted as they tried to spot Rose, who’d camouflaged herself slightly. They inched towards her. “No need to hide.” They said, tail twitching against the cave floor. Rose nodded and materialized again, her scales turning docile shades of pink. She wrapped her long prehensile tail around herself, concealing her NightWing talons. Cassiopeia looked at her curiously. “Father doesn’t want my NightWing part to be known.” Rose explained quietly, a slightly panicked look in her eyes. “Don’t tell him I mentioned anything!” Cassiopeia nodded. “I won’t.” The hybrid’s eyes narrowed with concern. Was Rose alright?  A scarred SeaWing entered the cave, climbing onto a raised stone section. He smiled slightly. “Hello class, I’m Webs, your history teacher.” Cassiopeia studied the SeaWing’s scar, it looked as if it was from a SandWing tail barb. Not a direct stab but a slice, about as wide as the venomous weapon SandWing’s possessed. They wondered how a SeaWing seemingly as dull as a History teacher had gotten an injury like that. 
   Webs raised a talon and pointed at the HiveWing-like dragon from before. “You, what's your name?” Webs inquired. “Skyrus.” The dragon growled. “Skyrus, help me pass out these scrolls, everyone gets one.” Webs handed Skyrus a sack. Skyrus’s icy exterior melted momentarily as he took the sack, and Cassiopeia glimpsed extreme anxiety and fear of messing up in the dragon’s eyes. Skyrus handed the scrolls out to the assembled dragons, his talons lingering a moment on the NightWing’s. There was an unusual connection between the NightWing and Skyrus. Just as Cassiopeia was puzzling over the mystery, Rose leaned towards them and whispered, “That NightWing, he’s Answerseeker, my ha—my brother.” Cassiopeia nodded and turned his attention to the scroll with ripped edges. He studied it. A History of the Scorching? Fascinating. Cassiopeia began to read ahead. “You young dragon.” Webs pointed at Cas. “What’s your name?” “Oh, I’m Cassiopeia.” They replied. “Will you read the first paragraph?” Webs asked, a webbed talon tapping against the stone. Cassiopeia nodded.
  “In the beginning Pyrriah was overrun with scavengers. But then dragons came from unknown places, presumed Pantala, considering the genetic similarities between tribes. We began to eliminate the scavengers, burning their towns and establishing kingdoms and distinct tribes, separating bloodlines as well.” Cassiopeia finished. “Thank you, Cassiopeia.” Webs flicked an ear. “Anyone else want to read?” Cassiopeia listened intently for the rest of the class, although a headache began building in the back of their head. The class finished and they were dismissed for a lunch break. Rose also seemed somewhat disoriented, and she was frequently rubbing her temples. Cassiopeia twitched their wings closer to their body, wincing. They knew what was coming. “I’ve got somewhere to be.” Cas muttered to Rose, and they hurried off, the headache building. They’d barely made it into their sleeping cave when the vision burned through their mind’s eye. 
Jade Mountain….burning
Crux…burning
Fire fire everywhere, the horrific scene of destruction. And above it loomed that same shadow, above it barked in that same voice, that angry angry voice. Vocals hinted with insane rage, a snarl laced with pure hatred. Cassiopeia could feel the heat burning their face, the flames licking their scales. An unfamiliar face flared at him amidst plumes of black smoke. A golden mask melted from over the dragon’s eyes, revealing pools of pale, blind amber. The misty-eyed dragon melted into gray smoke and Cassiopeia awoke, their breathing ragged. They panting heavily for a moment before getting up, their wings flattened against their body. They paced out of the cave, emerging into the entry hall, which was bare except for a pale white form on the floor. “Rose?” Cassiopeia gasped before seeing the telltale silver band of scales around her back right limb and the silver teardrop scales by her eyes. “Rose!”
== Chapter Four ==
Cassiopeia ran to the small hybrid’s aid, crouching next to her and gently poking her shoulder. “Rose! Rose!” They whispered frantically, eyeing the colors pummeling themselves across her scales. Pale green and white, fear and pain. Cassiopeia nudged her again, she also possessed the teardrop scales, like Crux. She must be a mind reader at the least. Rose’s breathing was distorted and ragged, coming in short violent gasps as she muttered incoherently. Cassiopeia’s talons twitched as they reached for Rose’s shoulder once more. She twitched awake, and her ruff flared, exposing jagged claw scars. Cassiopeia pulled back watching the other tensely. Rose sat up her scales fading back to their typical darker shades, though finds of pale green and white remained on her ears and ruff. She touched her neck self-consciously before glancing around and noticing Cassiopeia. She jumped and immediately yanked her talon away from her scarred scales. “What happened?” Cassiopeia questioned as soon as Rose had gotten back to her talons. “Oh…just an anxiety attack…I get those sometimes.” Rose lied. “It was a vision wasn’t it?” Cassiopeia inquired, tilting their head. “What no!” Rose exclaimed, flapping her wings awkwardly. “I’m a horrible liar, aren’t I?” Cas nodded. “How could you tell?” She asked. “You had one the exact same time I did.” Cassiopeia replied. “Oh.” Rose replied, wrapping her wings around herself. She had numerous cuts along her wrists as well. “I better get going.” She muttered hurriedly, following Cas’s gaze to her scarred forelimbs. Cassiopeia caught her shoulder as she turned. “Rose, if anything’s going on in your life you ever need to talk about, you can tell me, I will listen.” The hybrid nodded. “I’m fine.” A well-practiced smile was plastered on her face, but he saw the hints of pale green swirled in with the dark purple of her ruff. She walked off quickly, her wings pressed close to her sides. Cassiopeia sighed, they were extremely worried about that poor little dragonet. There was something incredibly wrong with her life, the extensive scars, the fear of her father, her father not wanting to be her father…it was a situation. A situation Rose was keeping firmly bottled up. Cassiopeia flicked their wings, and went up the sloped cave and into the main entryway. A long rock buffet table was set with meats, fruits, assorted vegetables and fish. Cas joined their brother in a quiet corner. Crux passed Cassiopeia the Skyfire Cas had loaned him on the first day at the academy. Cas pressed the rock back into their band and went to retrieve lunch. They selected a large cow and brought it back to their sibling, slicing it neatly in half. Crux smiled weakly and nodded a wordless thanks. Their brother suffered with extreme anxiety, making him a selective mute when around too many unfamiliar others. Crux twitched his tail. The nervous hybrid also had a tendency to constantly need motion. He always had to be doing something with his talons, whether it was shredding a scroll, or tapping against the stone. Cassiopeia buried their nose in their half of the cow, feasting on the plump beast. They were finished quickly, leaving the almost picked-clean bones on the rock. They gathered the bloodstained bones and discarded them in the river, wiping their snout free of the crimson liquid as well. Rose came over nervously. “Mind if I sit with you?” She asked, clutching a papaya in her talons. Cassiopeia nodded and Crux watched the hybrid. Rose watched the nervous dragon calmly, an almost understanding look in her dark eyes. She nodded and settled next to him, curling her tail over her talons and biting into the papaya. Cassiopeia smiled slightly, the two could be mental-binding at least, them both being mind readers. They sat next to Rose and watched them. Rose was tiny, even for her age,  and small hints of pink appeared in her frill as she whispered with Crux. They were glad Crux and Rose were becoming friends. If Rose wouldn’t open up to Cas, she might to Crux. 
“Cassiopeia! Cassiopeia!” Honey shouted at him from across the cave, earning a flinch from Crux and Rose. “I’ll be back.” Cas flashed the two an apologetic smile before trotting over. “Yes?” 
  “Arboreal here doesn’t believe you can recite the entire Hybrids Constitution.” Honey pouted. “It’s just so so long!” Arboreal exclaimed, smiling. “I can.” Cassiopeia replied. “And I will.”
They paused and took a deep breath. 
“Hereby this day, the Hybrid’s Constitution will be signed into effect. This promise dictates all dragons of mixed genetics, whether a hybrid, tribrid or any over ‘brid’ will be treated with equal rights. They are not to be depicted as lesser beings because they contain parts of other tribes. They are to be symbolized as a union, a harmony between two or more different species of dragons. By all three full moons, this constitution promises dragons of mixed genetics equality and acceptance no matter their species.” They stopped and opened their eyes and took another breath before continuing.
  
“Signed by Queen Moorhen of the MudWings, Queen Thorn of the SandWings, Queen Glory of the RainWings and NightWings, Queen Snowfall of the IceWings, Queen Ruby of The SkyWings, Queen Sequoia  of the LeafWings, Queen Flutter of the SilkWings and Queen Stinger of the HiveWings and Queen Coral of the SeaWings. Signed in the SandWing kingdom underneath a singular full moon on the moons’ first cycle of the month.”
Cassiopeia finished and looked at Arboreal and Honey’s stunned faces. “Woah.” Honey exclaimed. “I mean your brother mentioned to my bestie that you could but I didn’t think it was true!” Arboreal nodded. “Impressive.” She admitted. Bong Bong Bong. The gongs echoed through the hall. “Time for…oooh music!” Honey trilled leaping towards the exit deeper into the caves. 
== Chapter Five ==
Cassiopeia trailed after the energetic HiveWing, their long, dark crimson tail brushing the dusted cave floor. They flicked their ears and twitched their large wings closer to their body. The sounds of water dripping down the cave wall and musical instruments reached their ears. They slipped through the entrance eagerly. Rose flinched slightly beside them, they knew it must be hard on her, all the noise that is. Cassiopeia narrowed their eyes, watching the small hybrid. She’d obviously been through something difficult, she was scarred…rather heavily too. Rose’s scales flickered slightly, their dark, calm shade of purple twitching to a slight pale green. Cassiopeia seized a string instrument and strummed it, wrinkling their snout at the tune. Honey chuckled as Cassiopeia tuned the instrument, before finding the right sound. They strummed up and down their talons sliding and lifting along the strings. Honey and Rose watched him, slightly amazed.
     “I didn’t know you could play!” Honey exclaimed her yellow scales sparkling with a few stray droplets. Cassiopeia flashed a grin and began to play a familiar tune, The Dragonets Are Coming. Honey seized a pair of rhythm sticks and began to click them together, while Cas kept tempo.  Cassiopeia swayed with the music as their talons plucked the strings, creating the familiar melody before the musicians arrived at the end of the song.
    “Wow!” Honey exclaimed gripped both sticks with one talon. “You’re so talented!”  The NightWing SkyWing flashed a grin. “Thanks.” They replied, setting down the stringed instrument. They crossed the room and tapped a drum with a talon, listening to the deep sound resonate off of the cave walls. They tapped it again, moving to a smaller drum that emitted a slightly higher sound. They whisked behind the drums and began to play, talons skipping from drum to drum. The beat seemed to resonate through their bones as they played. Honey continued to tap her sticks while Rose shyly picked up something that looked like a flute and began to play. At first her notes were muted and whispered, but they grew louder and more confident. 
   Cassiopeia paused to listen to Rose’s flute. The notes were haunting and melancholy, like the quiet whispers of rain on the breeze. She paused, nervous with everyone’s eyes on her. Honey studied the small hybrid.
 “What song was that?” The HiveWing asked. Rose shrugged hastily.
 
  “I don’t know.” Her wings flicked back. “It was just something I used to listen too.” She became closed off to the others and she set the flute back on the shelf. Cassiopeia watched her for a moment before turning their gaze away as the music teacher popped into the room. She flashed a wide, energetic grin. 
   “Hello!” The music teacher chirped. Her scales were a mixture of pink and purple and her four butterfly wings were a soft forest green. “I’m Beetle!” She looked around at all of them. Cassiopeia deduced she was a LeafWing SilkWing hybrid but her LeafWing part was hardly visible. The only tell-tales were the shapes of her scales and the coloring of her wings. She paced to the front of her classroom and fixed her spectacles, which were slightly askew. 
  “Anyway, I’m here to teach you how to read music.” She folded her tail over her talons and pointed to a shape drawn on a chalkboard behind her. It looked like a fancy ‘s’. “This is a treble clef, this is what you’ll use for most of your wind instruments, and the trumpet.” Beetle explained. She pointed to another symbol. “And this is the bass clef, used for low brass such as tuba and trombone.” Cassiopeia studied the symbols. They could play but they couldn’t read music. 
  “Now these five lines are the music staff. The notes are placed on here and that’s how we label them. If you want to remember the music staff just look at your talons, five talons, and four spaces. Perfect to remember.” She grinned. Suddenly a roar snarled from the hall accompanied by an ominous crash. 
== Chapter Six ==
Beetle rushed out into the hall. Cassiopeia peered out after her, there talon tapping the stone with concern. A dark colored LeafWing lay in a crumpled heap on the floor, bleeding from a long scratch along his tail. 
“Foxglove?” Honey asked, her eyes wide as she stared over Cas’s shoulder. 
“A stupid SandWing attacked me.” Foxglove snarled, pressing a talon to the wound.
“Is it a tail-barb wound?” Beetle asked, seemingly tempted to faint at the sight of the Jade green blood seeping from Foxglove. The LeafWing nodded. 
 
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