Sepia Winglet: Dusty Pasts

Chapter 3: Breaking the Rules

"Attention!" Cobra, Vulture's daughter, called. "I have the job list for today."

Everyone went silent.

"Some of you may know, but we have a new job, so no more breaks."

"Of course not." Heatstroke, a middle aged Sandwing with a bitten off tail, muttered.

Cobra pretended not to hear him. "The new job is watching my new dragonet Qibli, and today that job is going to Echo."

"Whoohoo," Heatstroke said, sounding not at all excited.

Heatstroke had tried to escape many times before. He had just about managed to do it too. He had even had his mate, one of the fourteen dragons, escape, but they hadn't seen him since. His name was Inferno. Sadly, he had not come back for Heatstroke like he promised, so Heatstroke had become more distant and grouchy through the years.

"Heatstroke," a voice spoke from the shadows. Vulture stepped into the sunlight, his gang tattoos dark against his pale scales. "Respect those who are higher than you." He gave Heatstroke a cold, hard stare.

"Yes, sir." Heatstroke replied, suddenly more tense.

"Good. Cobra, continue dear."

Cobra straightened herself, also seeming flustered that Vulture was sitting there the whole time.

"Right. Cloud is doing laundry, Sepia is setting the table, Fennec can clean the dishes..."

Sepia stopped listening and walked over to Cloud and Fennec.

"Hi guys."

"Hello, Sepia," Cloud responded glumly.

"What's wrong?" Sepia asked.

"He just found out that he has laundry duty, for the first time ever," Fennec whispered to Sepia.

"Oh! Well, it's not THAT bad. It's pretty easy actually."

"Oh I know, but his condition." Fennec said the last word so quietly that Sepia barely heard it.

"Wha-? Oh."

Cloud, a three year old Skywing, was thrown out of his family for being a disgrace. He was a soft, dragonet pink, but the real reason was that he had no wings. He was basically a giant pink lizard.

If Cloud was assigned laundry he couldn't do it, because he had to hang up the tablecloth, tapestries, and pouches. They had to hang them up way up high, on the laundry line. You'd have to fly fifty feet to get to the line.

Asking to switch was out of the question. They would be beat very badly by Vulture. But, if they didn't ask...

"Switch with me," Sepia said quickly.

"But we'll get punished!" Cloud cried.

"You'll also be punished for sure if you don't do your job. At least this way we have a chance," Sepia pointed out.

"I don't want you to get in trouble though."

"Me? In trouble? Wow, I have never gotten into trouble before. The thought is so scary," Sepia replied sarcastically.

Cloud laughed. "Okay, let's do it," he agreed.

Let's just hope we don't get caught, Sepia thought.