Wings of Fire: The Kingdom of the Sea | ✔️

~ The Kingdom of the Sea: Chapter 10 ~

The next morning Hare was woken up early and was brought to the queen's pavilion. The guards who were escorting her led her to the Council level. Queen Coral was just landing with Anemone, Tsunami, and Orca. Tsunami and Hare greeted each other, Hare couldn't help but notice that she was wearing a beautiful pearl necklace that was similar to the one Queen Coral was adorned with. Anemone smiled at Hare while Orca shot her a hostile glance.

There was a large table surrounded by pools, each labeled with something different. Queen Coral sat in the largest one that was labeled QUEEN. Two pools sat beside her, each labeled PRINCESS. Orca sat on her mother's left while Anemone sat on her mother's right. Two extra pools labeled GUEST sat beside Orca and Anemone.

Tsunami and Hare stood to the side awkwardly as everyone else settled into their designated spots. Shark sat in a pool called DEFENSE and a dragon Hare didn't know sat in one labeled COMMUNICATION. The new dragon looked a lot like Shark. She bowed and dipped her wing.

"Good morning Your Majesty," she said.

"That's my cousin," Tsunami whispered to Hare. "She's almost as insufferable as her father. Her name is Moray."

"She looks like she'll make me want to rip my ears off," Hare whispered.

Tsunami let out a loud "ha!" , causing the room to go quiet for a moment. All eyes went to the two dragonets. Tsunami and Hare looked at each other awkwardly. The noises started up again soon after. Tsunami shuffled her talons in embarrassment.

"Oh dear," Queen Coral said, noticing them standing to the side. "Tsunami, come sit beside Anemone. Hare, you can sit beside Orca."

Hare felt her throat tighten. She wanted to object, but how could she? How could she accuse the queen's daughter in front of all these dragons? She'd look insane.

Hare did as she was told and settled in the GUEST pool beside Princess Orca. She didn't even glance at her. She just tried to make herself as small as possible and scooted to the edge furthest away from Orca. Tsunami shot her a confused look, but Hare just looked away.

Whirlpool flew up and sat in a pool labeled MAGIC & PUBLISHING.

Magic? What kind of magic does he work with?

Lagoon, the dragon who'd been assigned to feeding the dragonets, sat in a pool marked AQUACULTURE. There were other pools labeled WAR, TREASURY, JUSTICE, and HUNTING. One pool was empty. It was marked DRAGONET CARE.

Small turquoise dragons were running around with trays filled with food. They placed the trays on the table as they passed. Every tray was filled with seafood. Hare winced. She didn't mind fish here and there, but would she be able to eat an entire meal of ocean creatures?

Three large bowls containing some form of salad with octopus tentacles were on the table. Tsunami reached forward and pulled one of the tentacles from the bowl. She took off a small bite, looking thoughtful as she tasted it.

All of the Council looked at her. Tsunami didn't seem to notice until she went to get another one. That was also when she seemed to notice that no one else was eating yet.

Coral smiled and clapped her talons together. "It's alright. Naturally I forgive my long-lost daughter. She wasn't raised among us, how could she know? I give you all permission to eat."

The Council members each took their share of food and ate in silence. Hare hesitated, then grabbed a talonful of crabs and two tentacles. She could feel Orca watching her every move.

"Pearl, report," the queen ordered after a little while of silence.

An elegant pale green dragon swallowed a crab. "All your jewels are safe," she reported. "No one will dare touch them."