𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐤𝐲𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐞𝐢𝐫 - 𝐐𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐢 𝐱 𝐎𝐜

Chapter 9

                                                             𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕

I wanted to rip his tail off, which I should have done at the prey Center when he had threatened my clawmates but oh well  I thought with a light hiss.

As far as I could see, no one noticed Moon's expression of terror besides me before she managed to fix her face. Except maybe Qibli, who made a worried face that clearly said in a sappy way: Is she all right? Winter's such a moonlicking crocodile, picking on them for no reason. Okay maybe not exactly that but something like it.

Kinkajou, also, glanced at Moon and put a pitying look on her face, Poor thing, she isn't going to enjoy that, I sighed.

"Maybe we could talk about the war instead," the RainWing suggested. "I want to know what Queen Thorn is like. You've been inside the SandWing stronghold, haven't you?" she asked Qibli.

"Wait, I'm confused about the NightWings, too," Turtle said before Qibli could answer. "Is it true they don't have powers anymore? Just because they moved to the rainforest?"

"I heard a rumour that they never had powers," Winter chimed in, obviously glad that someone agrees with him. "That they made all of that up and they've been lying to us for thousands of years."

"But what about the dragonet prophecy?" Umber challenged, flicking his tail. "About my brother and his friends ending the war? That was clearly real because look it came true"

"What if they're lying now and they secretly do have powers but don't want us to know?" Turtle asked.

Moon shifted uncomfortably and stared at the half-eaten fish in her claws. She also slouched a bit to make herself smaller, and looked to the side, away from everyone else. I looked at her pityingly.

Oh, snail droppings, Tsunami cursed in a very quiet whisper. I could only hear snatches of her quiet debate with herself and I looked around to se I was the only one looking at her. I heard her say, I told Starflight — about this ——-never remember — story. And why should —- have — To —-  the NightWings' ——— the worthless —- of —-? Who ——- prophecy —- real, now that —-—— is over?

"It doesn't really matter, right?" she hedged. "The war is over. There are no more prophecies. We can do whatever we want, which includes ignoring the NightWings if we want to." She glanced over to Moon, who was sat close to Kinkajou, tail laced tightly around herself.

"No offense."

"It matters if they were manipulating us," Winter hissed. "Do they have powers or not? Or did they when they lived in their secret location? If so, were all of them psychic, or just a few? And how did they lose them?" He shook his head, his icicle-sharp spikes clattering faintly. "There are thousands of dragons who are still terrified of the NightWings - they deserve to know the truth."

Tsunami looked calm, but I could see her squirming on her talons slightly, a small twitch.

"Well, nobody's sure what the truth is," the SeaWing said finally.

"Nobody's sure?" Winter swept one glittering, pale blue wing toward Moon. "We have one right here. This is all about understanding other tribes, isn't it? Can't we ask her?"

"She doesn't know anything," Kinkajou jumped in loyally. "She wasn't raised with the other NightWings; her mother hid them in the rainforest. She's been told all the same lies as everyone else."

I thought perhaps Moon looked like she loved Kinkajou at that moment more than any other dragon I'd ever known.

"Oh." Winter gave Moon that look again, the one like she had shifted her scales and turned out to be a different dragon than he'd expected, or possibly a particularly large cow and not a dragon at all.