Tidebringer

background credit - Ibrahim Rifath
T I D E B R I N G E R
I don't want to be judged for my weakness. I want to show everyone that I'm no different from them, that I'm just as capable of doing what they are, that the world should see me as a dragoness who rose above all else without any regard to her eyes. Yet, I can't shake the feeling of loneliness that keeps me up at night, the silent voice of truth that tells me all I want is for someone to love me for who I am, and tell me everything is alright when I am not.
Is it wrong that I wish to stand tall on my own, yet constantly wish for someone to hold me up?
Is it wrong that I want to be strong, yet can't help but feel so weak all the time?
There's something about the early morning when you're the only one awake. The golden bars of sunlight rippling across the floor, the stillness of sleep that holds everyone else in their trance. Except for you.
Tide pads through the house silently, eyes blurry but lucid. Her talons itch to play something, to coax the lovely sound of music out of a simple ordinary object. She misses the magic and the way it entranced her, like a moth to a lantern. Harmonies filling the air as warmth built in her heart.
In her half-asleep daze, she finds the harp. Tide plucks one string, then another, then another. Soon, there's a quiet melody floating in the air, calm and serene and heart-wrenching.
For the first time in a while, Tide feels hope.
She finishes her very first improvised song with a flourish, the notes still echoing off the walls, and whirls around. “Dad! Did you hear-"
But there is no one there, just as it has been for days.
No encouraging voice to compliment her, no color-shifting wings to tuck herself under. No gentle soul that loved his daughter with all of his heart.
The music fades.
∘ ∘ ∘
intro credit to stardust
all lowercase is intentional
Tidebringer 	Tidebringer
 	
Background Information	Background Information
Art By 	rose
Creator 	essence, where the original idea goes to crystal
Aesthetics 	islands, seashells, the seaside, small rivers, dark rainy days, glass windows with raindrops, graceful underwater creatures, a lamp beside books, tear stained pages, a forest canopy during rain
Attribute 	hurt, insecurity, doubt, buried pain, a persistent longing for comfort, sorrow
Element 	water
Theme Animal 	freshwater fish
Theme Color 	light green / cyan
Theme Song 	
“Can't Forgive"
MBTI Personality 	INTP-T
Character Information 	Character Information
Age 	8 D.Y / 17.5 H.Y.
Gender 	female
Pronouns 	she/ her
Orientation 	demisexual pan
Occupation 	science author, marine biologist
Tribe 	rain / sea
Other Names 	tide
Goal 	get over her pain, to genuinely feel love again, learn to heal, continue studying about interesting aquatic creatures, to possibly reunite with her sister again
Residence 	sanctuary
Relatives 	treetop (biological father, deceased), reef (biological mother), kurante (biological older sister), cucumber (adoptive mother), soryo (adoptive mother), flare (adoptive younger brother)
Allies 	family, kurante, rain
Enemies 	acts like it's mostly everyone, her mom
Likes 	biology, animals, nature, freshwater, seaweed, coffee, spices, music, companionship, new ideas, creativity, discoveries, working out a mystery, finding solutions, solace, reading, understanding, sleeping in, quiet mornings, sundays, seashells
Dislikes 	her disability being brought up, a lot of times herself, reminders of her past, saltwater, memories of her old home, being poked fun at, the thought of being forever unloved, pain, meat, rotting smells, death, being perceived as weak, jewelry, gemstones
Abilities 	longer two fangs with a venomous bite, good breath holding (about 1 and a half hour)
Weapons 	anything goes. mainly her wit
Love Interests 	rain
Quote 	which part of shut up do you not understand?
A P P E A R A N C E
Go look in a mirror before you insult me.
In a town filled with so many hybrids, it's probably not a strange sight to see Tidebringer.
The moment you lay your eyes on her, you'd know she's both RainWing and SeaWing, even if she is missing crucial features of her tribes, namely the gills and frills. Her stature slightly resembles a RainWing more, but that's not what you'll notice. What you'll immediately see is that despite being a year into adulthood, she is still much smaller and shorter than the rest of the dragons bustling on the streets, and this is sorely obvious in a crowd. Putting her size aside, she is still considered a rather common looking hybrid.
A light, fresh green shade coats her main scales, the color of a meadow, almost like a symbol of life that came with spring. A few parts of her body are covered with a few darker green scales, which are the left side of her face, along her limbs, and lining the frame of her wings. Tide's SeaWing heritage shows obviously through the bioluminescent spots that start from her neck and continue all the way down to her tail on both sides, with all of them being light sky blue. They are the closest things resembling actual glowstripes for her, except that she couldn't light them up at her own will, and they always glow faintly in the dark. Instead of the SeaWing webbing on her back, a row of messy, dark forest green spines is there, and oddly enough, these appendages can be moved at her will. When they are rigidly straight up, it's usually a sign that she's using her full attention. None of her features are capable of changing colors, despite the RainWing blood that courses through her veins. Her tail still somewhat look like a regular SeaWing's, except it has none of the usual strength and muscle.
Despite her general body shape taking after a RainWing, her wings still bear more resemblance to a SeaWing, their membranes a gradient of soft, pale mint green and lush canopy green. Due to the lack of usage, they don't look as sturdy and strong as a normal dragon's, and most of the time they hang limply by her side instead of spreading out gracefully. Her pair of curved horns share the same color as her wings. But what's noticeable about her colors isn't on her wings or her horns - it's her underbelly. Like an flowing water, the stream of blue gradients that is her underbelly has almost all the qualities of real liquid. The light blues weave into each other fluidly, creating a perfect illusion that almost makes the little hybrid look like she is wearing a river on her, which just happens to be the source of her namesake - as it makes her look like a dragon capable of harnessing the power of water. It is probably the only thing about her that's undeniable beautiful, or at least, that what Tide thinks of herself.
Yet, there's another part of this little dragoness that is fascinating - her eyes. At first glance, they are deep, dark sapphire blue, a common color among both of her tribes, but here's the interesting part - they change color under certain situations. When overwhelmed by emotion, be it positive or negative, a glint of teal could be seen in her eyes instead of its usual blue, and in the case where she's either sick or extremely worn out, Tidebringer's eyes turn into a much paler shade, like the tips of the waves lapping against the shore, unlike the vivid color that they usually are. No one is entirely sure why this happens, and even the dragoness herself does not know of this. 
You will notice that Tide is almost never alone out in public - her most recent companion had always been a teal IceWing - and this is a huge hint to the one feature she wants to hide away the most. Upon closer inspection, you'll realize that her gaze... never truly falls on anything. When spoken to, her expression would come off as weird and hard to read, as her eyes would be blank and seemingly stare into nothing, never falling on the dragon she's replying to. Alas, that's all because all she could see is a blur, a mosaic of colors, a permanent veil over her eyes that once gave her the view of this beautiful world. Even without any proper function, her eyes still manage to look... tired. Sometimes slightly sunken when the exhaustion came from staying up late, or not being able to catch enough sleep. 
If you could somehow read Tide's expression, the best way to describe it would be indifferent, perhaps you might get a scowl or frown in return if you strike up a conversation outside of business with her. Yet, as much as she tries to look intimidating, you couldn't ignore the fact that she slouches almost constantly, her non-existent gaze forever pointed to the ground. She might give off an unfriendly vibe... but unmistakably, there's an aura of unshakable sadness, like the feeling you'd associate with a rainy day, that she carries wherever she goes. 
P E R S O N A L I T Y
I don't think you understand that I want to be left alone.
Like all dragonets, Tide was never who she now is. In fact, if you've known her since she was young and seen her now, you'll hardly believe that she's the same dragon.
In her younger years, what was most prominent about the little hybrid was her curiosity. Tidebringer almost never stopped asking questions, constantly wanting to explore, discover and analyze everything in the world around her. She would inspect everything with great detail, often spotting out things that most would miss, and combine that with her natural intelligence, it's easy to just label her as one of the star students you would see in your class.
It wasn't just that though - most importantly, Tide was like any other dragonet of her age back then, living with a happy family, playing with other youngsters, and despite her introversion, she truly enjoyed all those carefree moments she managed to spend with others. Even if she wasn't as outwardly sociable as many others, Tide could still be frequently seen hanging around other dragonets, laughing and chatting away, or sometimes engaged in a silly game of chase.
That was who she was, a happy, excitable, playful and energetic little dragonet, just like any other.
Those traits are now long gone in the dragoness that she has become.
You wouldn't want to talk to her - Tide would snap at anyone who tries to engage in a conversation with her, even if they were doing so out of good intention. She seems averse to social and physical contact, firmly sticking to her personal goal of avoiding as many dragons as possible. Even when she has to speak, she does so reluctantly, and it'd better be important or she'd chew you out for wasting her time. She appears to not care about any of the dragons she does talk to, often delivering her speech bluntly and with little care of what the rest may feel, shrugging it off as none of her business. Her voice is often edged and hardened with sarcasm and bitter remarks, and when she wants to strike a sensitive nerve she most definitely can.
Sure, at first glance right now, you'll think she's made of nothing but meanness - maybe you'd assume she spent too much time in bad company, or simply went down the wrong path... but that couldn't be farther from the truth.
Tide is aware that all of that she shows to strangers is just a facade, something to hide her true self that she believes has been broken and too far gone to repair. If you pay closer attention, you can see the occasional hint that she doesn't always mean what she does or says. She might be blunt - but it's just in her nature to not sugarcoat her sentences and prefers to deliver them as they are, especially if they are the truth. The hybrid is not asocial and neither does she truly hate everyone - she simply is too afraid of getting hurt, too afraid of showing weakness, resulting in her shutting herself completely away. Her dry and seemingly hurtful remarks are never born from the truth - it's just a reflection of how pessimistic she had become, and how much hurt she has been bottling up. Every time she says that she doesn't care about any other dragon, it takes all of her effort not to break down from telling an outright lie.
If it isn't made clear yet, Tide has huge trust issues, both in herself and others. She is independent by nature - unwilling to show even a moment of vulnerability to others, and deadly stubborn when it comes to admitting weaknesses. Yet, as hard-headed as she tries to appear, she is ironically sensitive, especially towards her disability, and it's almost a reflex for her to aggressively yell at dragons who ever so blatantly point it out. Maybe she just doesn't want to be underestimated for being weak because of her lack of sight... or maybe one part of her admits that she is weak for being unable to move on from her past, which results in her getting defensive way too quickly. Perhaps it's even a mix of both, her disability a wound that never even closed up to become a scar in her soul. This causes the hybrid to basically have no self-esteem - it usually comes in small jabs, minor self-depreciating comments that she makes in between her other salty remarks, but on some days, the feeling can grow so strong that she just hates everything about herself, wishing that she could be a different dragon, both in the past and the present. In Tidebringer's eyes, her figurative view of the world is just as broken as her actual vision, a gloomy, bleak environment is now what she regards her life as. 
It sounds ironic for a dragoness like Tide who seems to actively avoid socialization, but in her heart, she is overwhelmed by loneliness. As much as she hides away her true self, it sometimes still seeps through the cracks, like light rays flickering into a pitch black room through a slightly open window. Part of her is still that young little dragonet, cherishing every moment of companionship she could get, treasuring every little act of kindness she ever receives. Part of her still wants someone to laugh and cry and share everything with, and most importantly, she wants someone to understand, someone to empathize with her pain and terror, someone to hold her on sleepless nights. No matter how many times she has told everyone the opposite, those who truly see past this prickly hide she wears would see nothing but a sad dragoness who, despite her claiming to dislike physical contact, is touch-starved and craves company. 
Even in this state, Tide has her strengths. She retains all of her abilities as a young dragonet, still being just as observant, hardworking and rather ambitious. She puts passion into her job, and shows a great interest in biology, something she isn't afraid to pursue. When she has a goal in mind, Tide is determined to put in everything she has, invest all of her time and energy until she achieves it. Encouragement and indirect support are not of utmost importance to her - the vision of her success is all the drive she needs. She isn't one to slack off either, making sure that she's serious on every project she works on. In fact, this sternness that she outwardly maintains is one of her main ways to continuously maintain her facade, simply appearing to outsiders as someone interested in nothing but work business. She is very creative, and isn't afraid to improvise or change her train of thought when her current plan isn't working, and nothing pleases her more than successfully working out a solution to a problem all on her own. 
And no matter how far she buries away the true self she thought she had lost long ago, flashes of who Tide used to be still surfaces every now and then. Sometimes, an act of kindness can unexpected cause her to freeze, and for a moment her stony expression would drop away to reveal a soft smile; while not producing an outward reaction upon finding a surprise gift meant for her, her heart will involuntarily jump with joy; and when someone manages to break past her walls and tear down all the masks she wears, Tide just doesn't have the strength nor the courage to admit that being loved and cared for is what she wants most. 
Tidebringer is aware of her own flaws, and some part of her still whispers to her at night that her facade is nothing but a futile attempt to keep others away from her life when what she desires is the opposite. She wants to heal, to learn to love others normally again, and to start seeing what she wants others to see in herself. Perhaps, now that a few dragons had successfully gone past the initial barriers, that might not be as hopeless of a goal as she once thought it was. 
The road to mending a wound, both physical and emotional, is never easy, and hers is no exception. 
Yet maybe, just maybe, she is slowly but surely on her way. 
H I S T O R Y
Silence is a kind of peace. It stops you from asking stupid questions.
Possible trigger warning: Tide's history contain an incident of violence and non-descriptive injuries.
The moment Tidebringer opened her eyes for the first time, she was surrounded by music.
When she climbed out of her egg, a warm pair of arms immediately scooped her up, and she was brought into a lovely, warm atmosphere with 3 pairs of eyes gazing upon her, two full of love and affection, and the other curiosity and joy. Her parents had instantly settled upon the name, Tidebringer, due to her underbelly's coloration that made her look like a spirit capable of harnessing water powers. As soon as she gazed upon her parents and her older sister, who had been playfully plucking the strings on their father's harp, she heard a soft lullaby that her father hummed to welcome her into this world.
Tide grew up in a family full of love. Her RainWing father, Treetop, was an adventurous and playful soul, her parent who constantly encouraged both her and Kurante, her older sister to have fun in life and be themselves, as long as they didn't hurt anyone. Reef, her SeaWing mother, had always been the backbone of their household management, and though she was not as carefree as her husband, the care and love she shown for both her daughters was obvious. As soon as Tide was capable (and it was pretty soon, she learned how to walk and speak pretty quickly) of taking care of herself, she willingly helped out her parents, and delighted in making them happy. Of course, this was the same for Kurante, her playful, sometimes rather loud older sister, whom she had quickly grown to love and adore, despite their slightly different personalities. 
Tide's early dragonethood was as perfect as it can get. Days went by quickly, joyful moments spent with both her family and her small group of friends (most of which she knew through Kurante) at school. She was quite the clever student, and her grades were often significantly better than her sister's, but what interested her most was science, particularly biology. Even outside of class, Tide spent long hours studying about aquatic creatures that lived in the same sea as she did, often reading them while laying beside the shore. Of course, when she wasn't too busy satisfying her hunger for answers to her questions, she would play with Kurante, and she especially loved listening to both her sister and father play the lyre and make music together. While not as into music as Kurante, Tide frequently hummed and sometimes sang songs to the tunes Treetop played, and supported Kurante as she learned how to play the lyre from their dad. Her mom would often join in on these activities, singing together with Tide as they prepare meals in the kitchen, as well as having weekend family gatherings where they enjoyed laughing and having fun in each other's company, surrounded by music that matched their moods.
She was happy, and everything was well and looking to be even better.
But just as her family thought their life couldn't get better, fate took a turn for the worse.
To put it shortly, Treetop fell ill. And it wasn't any sickness - it was a well-known dangerous disease, one that could rarely be treated and often spiral out of control easily. While her father was admitted to the hospital, Tide spent almost all of her time there, speaking even less than usual as the worry filled her little heart. It pained her to see her father's scales colored sickly pale green and white almost all the time, compared to the vibrant sunshine gold and green he used to wear on a daily basis. And what was worse was how Treetop was still trying his best to stay happy and positive, just to keep them in high spirits, despite it almost being an unspoken truth that he would most likely not survive. No matter how weak he was, the expression on his face every time he spoke to his family was still one of a genuine smile. When she read her books or did her assignments by his side, he would constantly still encourage and praise her, telling her to pursue her dreams and she'll definitely get there.
His positivism convinced Tide - enough that she prayed daily to any god that may answer her, any deity that might bless her father's kind soul so he'll remain with their family, that he'll get the chance to see both her and Kurante become strong, happy and successful dragonesses and get the chance to tell them himself that he's proud of them. In the rare moments where she's at home, she could feel the atmosphere change without her dad's presence - the air was heavy and rigid, and she knew both her mother and sister were very much worried as well. Tide leaned a lot on her sister for support in that time, and together they would send their prayers hopefully every night, wishing and wishing that the most important figure in their life would be restored to his lively self.
But as much as they both tried, their prayers fell on deaf ears.
After a few long, agonizing months, Treetop passed away. Tide had almost thought it was a nightmare at first - almost wanted to believe she just slept for too long in a state of worry, but logic firmly rooted her to the ground and made her see that this shouldn't come as a surprise. And sure, it was not. What she did not expect was the sudden wave of crushing despair and loneliness that filled her heart, yet at the same time hollowing it out, making her chest feel emptier than ever. For a few days after the announcement was heard, Tide couldn't muster the energy to speak without breaking into tears.
And neither did the rest of her family. 
After the funeral, at which Tide had buried her snout under her older sister's wing for the most part as it went on, nothing was ever the same again. She could no longer find the warm, bubbly and homely feel in where she lived. All the positive energy that she once felt when she stepped into her home seemed to have evaporated into cold smoke. The sun rays that once greeted her warmly every morning now felt like piercing spears of fire that discouraged her from waking up. The music that surrounded her house, that accompanied their now non-existent laughter... was gone.
Difficult times passed by. There were many occasions that Kurante had gently shaken her awake from her nightmares while they slept, before the both of them would hold each other with tear-filled eyes. When asked about her condition, they had to lie that they were alright, that they were slowly moving on, when it was ever so obvious that they weren't. It took a lot of time, a lot of sleepless nights, before both Tide and her sister could even find the courage to rebuild what had been lost in their father's passing.
Unfortunately, her mother couldn't find it in herself to do the same.
It was sufficient to say that everyone in her family had changed since the incident. Kurante's usual enthusiasm and energy seemed to die down by a lot, and she busied herself more often with household chores as well as homework in the times she usually used to socialize with others. Tide herself worked even harder than before, knowing that she didn't want to disappoint her only parent left, and continue to make her dad proud even if he physically wasn't there anymore.
Reef, however, was affected in ways that couldn't be compared to the sisters.
The SeaWing, in her grief-stricken state, quit her current job and managed to get one that had granted her a much higher income. This meant that she was often away from home. Away from her daughters, the only emotional support she has. The loneliness that followed her husband's departure festered and grew along with the ache in her heart, all the while she was forcing herself to work hard to provide for her family, so much that it consumed her entirely.
Tide noticed it first. In the rare times where their mother was home, she hardly spoke to them. Reef's eyes never looked caring, protective or lively anymore. At first, she had been appreciative of Kurante's efforts to help her, but now she hardly shows any emotion towards either of them. She became impatient, snappy and most of all, incredibly distant, and both Tide and her sister failed to connect to her again. Once, she even yelled at Kurante for attempting to play the lyre in her presence, calling what the melodious sounds she once loved as noise pollution. Tide could see how much that hurt her sister, who was trying desperately to help, and it pained her along with it. Neither of them dared to tread near their mother without fear anymore, as she would have random outbursts of anger usually directed at her daughters.
It eventually escalated to that fateful night that changed both Kurante and Tide's lives.
Kurante was speaking to her mother, who looked irritated, which had almost become a norm in their house. This time, however, instead of only responding with short sentences in an annoyed tone, she outright snapped and yelled at Kurante. The words she spoke to her older sister still haunted her to this day - she had told her to leave and never return, and told her that she will not be welcomed back. And much to her horror (and somewhat relief too), Kurante did exactly as she was told.
Her older sister, her pillar for support in such a dark time, the only dragon around that she could still feel herself around - grabbed the lyre, the instrument closest to her heart, and flew out of the front door. Away from their mother, who had became another dragon, nothing like the kind dragoness that they had known. Away from their home, the place where all the good memories with their father were made.
Away from Tide, the one dragon who needed her comfort the most.
As she gazed hopelessly at the fading turquoise form that is her sister, and turned back to look at their barely fazed mother, something in Tide snapped as well.
The little dragoness, who had almost never raised her voice intentionally in her entire life, yelled at her mother. The anger and fear had gotten the better of her, and she stamped her foot down as she confronted the older SeaWing. She called her out for being so insensitive, so unreasonable, and told her that Kurante and her were both only trying to help. Tide remembered snarling to her mother, in these exact few words, “I hope you realize what you've done."
It might have been the biggest mistake of her life.
In short, the fight she started instantly spiraled out of control. Instead of only arguing back, Reef herself let out feral screams, and in a swift, unexpected moment, she lunged at her own daughter with her claws outstretched.
A flash of cerulean. A swipe of claws. A look of pure, undiluted rage.
That was all Tide remembered before she started seeing pain.
The world blurred around her as she heard violent screaming, and tears flowed down her ravaged eyes as she realized that she was the one who screamed.
She didn't know what her mother did next - if it wasn't for a few pairs of talons that had grabbed onto her before she passed out, she would have very well believed that Reef murdered her own daughter.
Yet, thanks to a few kind saviors, she did not.
Tide remembered almost nothing about what happened after she woke up. She heard dragons talking. Offering their sympathy. Crying, although she didn't know for who. She knew enough to understand what the words “orphanage" and “adoption" meant. 
But what she did remember was that sinking, stony feeling in her heart every time she opened eyes to see only blurs of colors, fragments of what her vision used to be.
She could not see.
And she never will again.
Life turned from a colorful story to a dull, monotonous song.
Tide remembered being sent to the orphanage, the shocked gasps that everyone had when they heard of what happened to her. In the time she stayed in the place for dragons who had lost their family, she felt no pain regarding the loss of her mother. She was no longer her true family, the moment their father was gone. Treetop had been the only one that kept them together, the only foundation that she and her lost sister built their joy upon. She was orphaned long, long before her estranged mother was taken away from her.
While she was with the other orphans, she made no attempt to socialize. She spoke minimally, only responding to her caretakers, who tread on thin ice around her. Unintentionally, she became a lot like her mother, snapping at others for no reason and shutting herself away from the rest, but for an entirely different reason. At least, to her, it was. Tide did not feel like she was succumbing to insanity. Life was just so bleak, and hopeless, now that she had no one to love, nowhere to go, no way to resume what she had loved doing most - observing and investigate everything with her own two eyes. No matter how many times others have told her that her eyes look relatively normal, that their true blue was vastly undisturbed after her treatment, she failed to see past herself as a useless, crippled dragonet who could no longer even contribute in her favorite field. Her self-esteem deteriorated, and at one point she feels like an empty, hollow shell, filled with nothing but a hatred for the one who took away her sight, her dreams, and her wonderful, loving family.
Tide thought she was hopeless.
Yet, she was proven wrong. About over half a year later, two SeaWings walked into the room, and their arrival once again snapped Tide out of her reverie. As usual, she paid no mind to their entrance - how would she even look at them anyway, to convince them to take her like the rest had? How could any parent replace her wonderful father, who stood by her side and supported her every decision, who filled with house with music that spoke of unconditional love?
She didn't know that the two closest dragons to fit that description would soon be Soryo and Cucumber.
Tide remembered soft, gentle talons holding hers, telling her sweetly that she'll be getting an actual home. Another light, bubbly tone reassured her that she would be loved and cared for. She assumed that they would have known about her little problem, given her blank stare and the information they could get from the caretakers, but neither of them brought it up. Call her hopeless, but Tide could almost see their smiles, genuine and warm, through the cloud that forever obscures her vision.
And for some reason, when she followed the SeaWing couple home, and was brought into a loving warm house by the seaside, the walls she kept up around her heart during her time in the orphanage broken down, crumbling and falling down her face as tears the moment she embraced her two new mothers.
That didn't mean it was easy. Many days, Tide still woke up in a cold sweat in the dead of night, tears gathering in her eyes as violent flashbacks of the physical trauma she had been through flooded her mind. These restless nights had made her resort to sleeping with Soryo, her loving, protective mother who would reassure her and gently tell her everything was alright. Her mother who had been the one who stretched out a guiding talon to the lost dragonet in the orphanage from the very first day. Her mother who never ceased to spoil her with gifts, who taught her how to live with her disability, who was never selfish with her compliments that chased away the dark cloud in Tide's heart.
However, what - or rather who truly helped Tide to heal was Cucumber, her other mother that she sometimes labelled as silly and a bit loud. The SeaWing helped her own adoptive daughter through her job as a therapist, and surprisingly, she was extremely helpful and patient, and took everything Tide told her seriously. Her occasional playfulness and affinity for jokes, while being deemed by Tide as annoying at first, became melodious sounds that she associated with her voice. Over the time, she had gained a new respect for both of her mothers, and the feeling of love made itself known to her again. This was evident when her mothers adopted another young dragonet - a Night/Sky hybrid named Flare, from the very same orphanage that she was from. Much like her, her new brother was introverted, unlike Kurante, and surprisingly wise for his age. He was a good listener, someone that Tide felt very comfortable talking to, and she soon grew to love and appreciate him a lot, even actively helping him get over his frequent nightmares from the past, and taking care of him whenever his disease weakens him. Soon, Tide thought that she was accepted, and she found that smiling when she woke up wasn't that hard anymore.
Until, of course, she grew up.
Her mothers told her at dinner one day that she was ready to move out. They told her that they were proud of her, and knowing her interest in biology, they managed to find a solution that would still allow Tide to pursue her dream job. She almost felt like it was a dream when they said they managed to afford a home in another town -Sanctuary, which was specifically designed to fit her needs, but the longing in her heart flared to life and told her that it wasn't.
But if the longing was merely a spark of flame, the rest of her heart responded like a wildfire.
For a few days, Tide was upset. She couldn't help it - why would she need to leave her safe, warm, loving home after she had found it? Why would she need to say goodbye to the only dragons in the world that cared about her? Why did her lifelong dream of becoming a biologist involved taking away the time she had with the one family she now had? Why was she going to lose what she had when she had already lost so much the first time?
She almost didn't want to go - almost thought of forfeiting her ambitions just to never leave what she thought was a safe haven.
It took a lot of coaxing, reassuring, and hugs to convince Tide that she couldn't tether herself to her family forever. Flare played a great part in this, saying that their relationship wouldn't change no matter how far she moved, and her mothers, while being tearful while saying this themselves, firmly convinced her that she would want to be her own dragon, that she was more than capable of carving her own path in life.
It took a lot of strength, but Tide mustered up enough courage to finally nod and prepared to say her teary goodbyes.
Her family had escorted her all the way to her new home on the day she moved out. Everyone cried - even Flare, who rarely showed his emotions to the public, couldn't contain his tears as he hugged his sister goodbye, promising to see her again. Tide promised to send them messages and communicate with them through a new set of devices she was given in her new home, and even though she couldn't see them, she could tell that they were having an equally hard time saying farewell as she was.
But it didn't make their departure any easier.
The days in her new home went by in a blur. She started taking biology lessons without leaving the comfort of her house. Tide's brains and natural affinity for the subject made her learning progress, which was done through a device called a computer, incredibly quick. Her teacher, Allure, had no troubles communicating with her and Tide had little trouble understanding, as she seemed to have already caught on her disability. For the first few days, she had been too preoccupied with catching up with the knowledge she had missed, and the thrill of learning something she loved again after being away from it so long had took her mind off the fact that she was alone.
However, those feelings quickly caught up to her. She interacted with no one except Allure, and very soon Tide reverted her personality back to when she was in the orphanage, bitter and cold, appearing to hate and reject everyone else. Not that she ever left her home, considering that she would have no idea how to navigate through the town without help, and of course, asking for help was out of the question for someone like Tide. She didn't need anyone - no matter how much the painful feeling in her heart reminded her that she really was alone.
But the crushing loneliness didn't last long either, as company would soon arrive without her notice. After two weeks or so of Tide sustaining herself with the food and supplies her family had prepared for her, she had only begun to worry about how would she get more herself before she heard a knock on the door at the end of her lessons.
Tide opened the door to find a teal figure standing in front of her - not that she could make out what tribe the dragon belonged to, nor what expression were they wearing. Stonily, the hybrid asked what was the other dragon here for. Her surprise visitor, who soon introduced herself as a female IceWing named Rain, told her that she was only bringing her supplies and that she was actually informed of her arrival by Allure. Tide was initially distrustful of her, and skeptical as to why would a stranger be kind, but shrugged it off and realized that she would probably be the least likely target of someone wanting to take advantage of her. Even if something did happen... was it all that bad to a dragon whose life didn't have much meaning?
That was probably the last time she would ever hear of Rain anyway.
Yet, the IceWing proved her wrong.
Ever since that day, Rain had continuously stopped by the hybrid's house, either telling her that she was bringing some food, or just saying that she came to check on Tide. Of course, she was incredibly annoyed, and tried more than once to tell the teal dragon to leave, but with no success. No matter how her inner voice rejoiced with every visit, she outwardly tried to act as coldly towards Rain as possible. Yet, it did nothing to stop her advances. Despite being an IceWing, Rain was one of the warmest souls that Tide had recalled meeting. She often brought her little gifts, offered to help Tide through small gestures, and never once mentioned anything about her disability. Tide refused to admit that grew to enjoy her company, even as her stays slowly grew longer with each passing day. She slowly grew less hostile towards her visitor, giving her longer responses when spoken to, and at one point, Tide even allowed her to sleep over at her house when she could sense that Rain was too tired to return home.
Of course, trying to keep a cold facade around such a warm, caring dragoness like the teal IceWing was a terrible idea to begin with. It was because Tide didn't listen to what logic told her, that on one night all her walls broke with Rain as the only witness.
She didn't recall how it happened, exactly. Perhaps it was the storm outside the window that reminded her so much of the night she was took away from her real mother. The night that reminded her of the source of all her pain, insecurities, and everything she has lost. The weather might have simply reopened all her old wounds, when she was so blatantly reminded of the time where she and her now lost sister, hugged each other tightly among the pile of blankets whenever there was thunder and lightning. The sadness, trapped like an ugly beast in the cage that was her heart, finally couldn't contain its roar of sorrow and escaped, causing her to cry for the first time she had been away from her adoptive parents.
And Rain was there, softly holding one of her talons with her own while wiping her tears away with the other. She had put one wing around the hybrid, whispering softly to her that everything will be okay. She managed to coax Tide into admitting all the pent-up feelings she has, and even the fact that she was only acting mean to shield this vulnerable side from everyone. Rain admitted of a physical weakness herself - her one defected right hind leg, even though Tide couldn't visibly see it - she understood Rain was telling the truth. Never once the IceWing had belittled her for it, and she had slept by her side through that night, telling her that she could trust her. 
Somehow, Tide did.
Without any troubles, she started letting Rain in. It got harder and harder to push her away out of reflex, and she even began to show outward signs of appreciating her kindness and empathy, such as reciprocating her gestures of affection, and she could feel the flares of passion she had for things she loved come up more often. The canvas of her life that had once been drowned in dull, monotone gray had now brightened up as the teal IceWing slowly brought more and more colors into view. Despite not actually being able to see her properly, Tide could sense Rain's presence better than anything else, for she was the one dragon who helped her get back on her feet, the one who believed that she could do it when she herself could not.
Maybe one day she could even learn how to truly forgive from Rain.
Of course, to other dragons, it still wasn't that easy. Tide still couldn't be as open and free around other dragons besides Rain, even though the IceWing is slowly encouraging her to interact more with her friends. Her facade was still there, though it's getting weaker, peeling away in layers to reveal her true self. Despite her initial reluctance, the hybrid finally got the courage to try, to face the world, as the dragon she wants to be, even with all her imperfections. According to Rain, it only made her stronger, at least in her eyes. At the very least, she had dragged Tide out of her shell, stopped her from shutting the world out, and slowly, but surely, begin to rebuild the self-esteem that she had trampled on for so long.
And with Rain basically integrated into her life, as she too now studied marine biology along with her, and has already agreed to be her work partner, Tide couldn't feel all the more confident. She was regaining all her bottled feelings, freeing them from their metaphorical prison, now actively communicating with her adoptive family by writing letters to them, started accepting more and more dragons into her life, and finally, finally feels like she could be free, happily being in a job she had wanted since young despite her disabilities. 
While her old feelings were rekindled, so did new ones start to brew. She knew that there was no dragon outside of her family she would grow to trust more than Rain, but soon the feelings of happiness that came with the IceWing's presence turned into something... different. It became elation, in a form of a warm, tickling and bubbly feeling in her heart, and whenever the two shared any form of physical affection, even a simple wing brush, the warmth extended deep into her soul.
Tide might be in love, and even Flare is catching up to that, often sending a few teasing remarks in his letters to her after she expressed her confusion of these feelings for the IceWing. She isn't sure what to do about it - completely oblivious that Rain returned her feelings. And there's this tiny shred of self-doubt that still tells her that she wouldn't be good enough for a dragoness that was as amazing as Rain. The one who didn't sympathize but rather understood her, the one who provided the support she wouldn't seek from anyone, the dragoness who made her learn not to just survive, but to live again.
Rain, the on dragoness she adored more than anything, the one her heart yearns for.
One step at a time, though. She was still healing, still trying to improve, still working her way to be a biologist she knew her dad and her adoptive moms will be proud of. 
Maybe, just maybe, she'll finally find her own happy ending... and maybe Tide might just find it with Rain by her side, something she wants more and more as the days passed by.
A B I L I T I E S
Just because you don't understand sarcasm does not mean I'm heartless. Now stop wasting my time.
As a hybrid, Tide doesn't possess many of either tribe's abilities. In a way, she is almost like a MudWing - able to hold her breath for up to 1 hour and half despite not actually being able to breathe in water. She is a fairly good swimmer, given her lack of fins and webbed talons. She still has two longer fangs that show her RainWing heritage, and while she cannot actively shoot venom from it, the same corroding venom can be transferred into whatever she sinks these fangs into. Tide herself has an immunity to said venom, but it is unsure whether hers differ from a normal RainWing's. 
Over the years, Tide has learned to master the art of balance - she almost never trips nowadays, and has a very keen sense of her surroundings without sight. She still exercises regularly with some help, so her stamina isn't the worst, and she definitely isn't out of shape at all. She actually has incredibly sharp senses when you exclude her sight, and it's surprisingly hard to trick her just because of her lack of vision.
Tide's greatest strength lies in her brain - she is intelligent, and anyone who tries to challenge this would fail miserably. Her ability to think and work out solutions is what she uses daily to her advantage, and her job has shaped her mind to be incredibly observant and sharp. She is able to pick up things that most might miss and catch any mistakes or flaws no matter how diminished they are. It is a very bad idea to lie to her as well - Tide can read the tones of different voices well, and make sense of a dragon's way of speaking to know their intentions. She tends to think very scientifically, but at the same time her creativity allows her to make new finds in her field of work. Tide has also shown to be incredibly good at unraveling mysteries or discovering answers to cryptic questions, and she isn't afraid to make her own conclusions when necessary. She is also surprisingly smart at coming up with sarcastic remarks, and more often than not you will see her coming up with a lot of clever retorts. 
W E A K N E S S E S
You'll... stay? Even after you have seen how horrible I am?
When it comes to tribal abilities, Tide definitely falls on the short end of the spectrum. She has none of her two tribes' greatest defense tools - the spraying venom and the powerful, thick tail. She is unable to use camouflage due to her never-changing scales, and neither can she swim as effectively as a real SeaWing. The hybrid has none of the RainWings agility when it comes to climbing or tree-gliding, and water seems to slow her down more than help her in terms of transport.
Of course, her most glaring weakness would be her eyes. The physical trauma had left her essentially blinded, not being able to distinguish anything but blurs of colors. But even putting that aside, Tide is physically not the strongest dragon, and would likely lose in a fight of brute strength even if her eyes were intact. Her main physical weakness lies in her wings - even if she has mostly perfected getting along on the ground just fine without vision, Tide is absolutely no good when it comes to flying. Her wings tire out easily, and she could easily lose her sense of direction once in the air. This makes for a disadvantage, as dragons who fly can normally move faster than her.
Tide struggles to comprehend and fully understand emotions in-depth, despite having an affinity to detect them easily. She doesn't excel at handling feelings head-on, not even her own, and would usually try to ignore or brush them away like they weren't important. She's working on fixing this flaw. She also struggles to let go and can hold a grudge for very long, which obviously isn't healthy for her. Of course, she's trying to work that out, but it might take some time for her to get there.
R E L A T I O N S H I P S
I just wish I could see her again. No one could ever replace my sister - or my father, and that is something I'm sure of.
Treetop - biological father - incredibly positive 
To put it shortly, Treetop was Tidebringer's everything. He wasn't just her father, he was everything she associated with good memories - the warmth of a family, the kind words that came from an infinite reserve of love, and the music that weaved colors into her life. Tide doesn't recall a bad moment in her old home that was born in the RainWing's presence. He was always supportive of what Tide did, and someone that she wouldn't think twice to confide her feelings in.
Tide loved her father more than she could put in words, and misses all the times they had spent together so fondly. Sometimes, her heart still aches when she remembers that he's no longer around, and when days are dark she often wished that he would still appear and make everything brighter, somehow. She regretted not telling him that she loved him more often when he was alive, and she wished she could see him one last time just to tell him how thankful she is for everything he had given her.
His death had shattered her, but she's slowly putting the pieces back together, and still strives to make him proud wherever he is now. Tide wants to show her that she had become stronger instead of weaker from everything life has thrown her way to cripple her, something she knew he would want to see in his daughter.
Reef - biological mother - very negative/mixed feelings
Tide has honestly no idea how to feel about her real mother anymore.
They had a loving relationship, like any daughter would have with her mother. Tide remembered loving her mom equally as much as she loved her dad. She enjoyed helping her out in the kitchen, experimenting with different meals and adding their voices to the music that Treetop and Kurante would play on the lyre. 
However, since her father's death, that love was gone, seemingly evaporated as her mother's true self was swallowed by stress and grief she could not handle. Reef became the source of the house's despair and gloominess, despite her efforts to help. Tide could still remember the time her mother chased her sister out of their house, and of course, she could never forget how Reef was the one who had given her the lifelong disability and so many of her problems. She had essentially destroyed Tide, and she was forced to pick up pieces slowly to glue herself back together.
She doesn't know if the bitter resentment in her heart that was directed towards the SeaWing meant that she hated her mother - as there's a part of her that still stung with the long, lost memories of love and happiness she had as a happy family. Tide finds the task of forgiving her mother to be her life's greatest challenge, and it's something she's working on achieving. She doesn't know how would she feel about her when that happens - part of her is still angry and scared of her, grateful that both her sister and her were safe and out of her reach, but at the same time, there's something that faintly resembles hope - hope that their damaged relationship could be repaired some day, when both of them are ready.
Kurante - biological older sister - incredibly positive 
Kurante was Tide's greatest pillar of support in the darkest times of her life. Even if she was in the same pain, her older sister tried her best to help their household, all while still being the caring, loving sister she had been to Tide since she was born. Her naturally loud and outgoing personality isn't in any way similar to Tide's, but their chemistry was undeniable and she had always enjoyed Kurante's company, happy that she would play music and bring joy to her life.
Tide felt like a part of her was lost when her sister was forced to flee her home. She isn't angry at Kurante for doing what she did, instead, she felt immensely relieved and happy for her sister as she made the right choice and stayed away from harm. However, she misses her a lot, wishing that she could at least hear from her just to know if she's doing fine.
She desperately wants to reconnect with her lost sister, even if she literally has no idea where she is now. Tide loves and cherishes Kurante a lot, even if she had never outwardly showed it. She wishes that Kurante is happy and well, no matter where she had decided to settle down.
Soryo - adoptive mother - very positive 
Tide is eternally grateful for the light blue SeaWing for choosing her among countless other orphans back at the orphanage. Soryo might not be her real mother, but she acted just like a loving parent, and she was a key factor aiding in Tide's recovery. Without her, Tide might not have a second chance at a caring family again, and she is sure to express her gratitude more often, unwilling to make the same mistake with her father.
No matter how old she grows, Tide will always appreciate her adoptive mother's affectionate gestures, and she knows she can never repay her for all the hard times she had helped her go through. She keeps in touch with her through letters, and she is determined to make her proud by doing what she does best. She loves her a lot, and thinks that she is as good of a parent as her real father was.
Cucumber - adoptive mother - very positive 
At first, Tide deemed her other adoptive mother as an overly bubbly dragoness that was sometimes a little air-headed with her jokes. But when the optimistic SeaWing had helped her deal with her self-esteem issues and cope with her trauma, the hybrid had a whole new view of her. She learned to love and respect Cucumber, and she had to admit that without her, Tide might still be unable to handle her issues alone.
Like Soryo, Tide always writes to her adoptive mother and would not hesitate to ask for her advice, as she had grown to trust her a lot. Cucumber also sometimes spoils Tide a little too much, even now that she's living apart from her family, her mom is subject to sending her gifts in large packages and cards written to her with a lot of kind, loving words and some of her bad jokes, that she had also grown to appreciate.
Flare - adoptive younger brother - very positive 
Flare is an empathetic dragon that Tide got introduced to when she was adopted by Soryo and Cucumber. While not related by blood, the two will always consider each other siblings. The other hybrid is surprisingly wise and patient for their age, and he is a very calm and collected listener. Tide knows to go to him when she faces any conflict because Flare would always be able to help her find peace and come up with a solution. He is slowly guiding her way to understanding emotions better.
Her adoptive brother is the dragon who usually receives her letters sent to home first and the one who writes most of the replies. Tide loves Flare and is somewhat protective of him, knowing that he too was orphaned, quite literally, from a horrifying tragedy. They have seen each other in their worst states and helped each other with their own worst nightmares, creating a bond that full of affection and often friendly teasing. Flare is also very perceptive and can easily read Tide, thus being very understanding and a welcome presence to his older sister.
Rain - love interest - incredibly positive
Before, Tide had tried to brush off Rain like any other dragon when she was trapped within the bitter storm in her heart, trying to mark her as another insignificant figure in her life. But the IceWing had somehow managed to work her way around the hybrid's walls, and the first to succeed in tearing them down completely. The kind, patient and gentle dragoness had not just willingly worked towards becoming one of her greatest friends, but had also became that someone that warmed Tide's soul every time she felt her presence.
Tide loves Rain very, very much, and she might not show it very well sometimes, but she is working on it, wishing that the teal dragon could understand just how much she means to her. In fact, she has fallen way, way beyond the typical platonic affection when it came to the IceWing, and she isn't sure what to do. Rain had changed her into becoming a better dragon, and she was pretty sure she couldn't live without her anymore, and perhaps, in some way, that's true. 
Little did she know, Rain feels the same way towards her, and her romantic feelings are more than just returned. For now, Tide prays that one day, she would be able to express these feelings vocally and take their relationship to the next level - not just as strangers who met by chance, not just as work partners, not even just as friends, but truly by each others' sides where they belong.
Frysta - friend - positive
The odd colored IceWing is a friend of Rain's, and one she introduced to Tide. At first she was a bit annoyed by how chatty and bubbly Frysta was, but when the IceWing showed her respect and revealed her kind and caring side, she wasn't all too different from Rain. Even though she couldn't actually see it, Tide admits that the candy shop she runs is amazing, since she could tell that it was really colorful from her visits (and the sweets tasted fantastic). 
She is still working on warming up towards Frysta, and she sometimes still finds it a little awkward when her quiet nature clashes with her tendencies to always make conversation, she is learning to appreciate Frysta as her friend, and doesn't mind hanging out with her occasionally. 
Daybreak - friend - positive
Tide feels a mutual acknowledgement for the dragoness who was very much like her - both being hybrids and having a disability, Daybreak's being her defective right wing that kept her grounded. Just like her, Day is much less of a touchy-feely dragon, and prefers to actually solve her problems instead of being wishy-washy about it. Because of their more down-to-earth natures, she found it easier to talk to Day, and appreciates the fact that the other hybrid knows when she doesn't feel comfortable speaking.
She is starting to feel more comfortable around Day, and is pleased to call her a friend. Tide respects her debating skills and logical thinking, and thinks that it'll be interesting to work out answers to problems with her, if they ever get such a chance.
T R I V I A
How is this in any way remotely related to science?
*Tide is the only OC I have fully completed that is not for a contest
*the theme song i used for Tide is called “Can't Forgive", which is fitting for her story
*she greatly prefers being called Tide than her full name, to her it just sounds better
*Tide is completely vegan and finds the idea of eating animals cruel
*she's a pretty big fan of sweet treats
*dislikes saltwater and the smell of the sea, it reminds her of the bad memories
*extra grumpy if she is woken up too early or just didn't get enough sleep for any reason
*she is currently only allowing surprise hugs from Rain, but don't get me wrong she loves them
*her current goal is to publish a well-recognized book about marine biology
*she dislikes it when the temperature is too high, thus enjoying nighttime more than daytime
*likes being read to, and she sometimes still asks Rain to do so for her
*if she shows her vulnerable side she's just a soft cinnamon roll who wants to be hugged
*due to her losing her closest parental figure at a young age, Tide likes the feeling of being cared for
*it is ironic that both Kurante and her performing partner have been to Sanctuary countless of times before, and Anima practically grew up there, but none of them has caught sight of Tide - yet
**this might be partially because of her tendency to always stay indoors and there's no way she could see even if her sis passed by, so there
G A L L E R Y
Trust me, no one would want an ugly dragon like me. Not even when I still could see.
please follow the amazing reference above by cloud when drawing her, thank you!
88732f2e2c5b1d3.png|by verglas 
Tidebringeraesbysby.jpg|aesthetic by sby! it looks amazing! :D
TidebringerRose.png|by rose
Category:Content (Light Fairy)
Category:Characters
Category:RainWings
Category:SeaWings
Category:Hybrids
Category:Females
Category:LGBT+
Category:Disabled
Category:Occupation (Writer)