Missing

Chapter 1

In a peaceful village in the Brecon Beacons, Kestrel Wylde sat on her bed, reading an encyclopaedia. It was late at night and she had trouble sleeping after her sister, Einaris, went missing, three months ago.

Her sea-blue eyes scanned over the words of the page she was on as she devoured the information. She glanced to her right, one of her drawings lay on her desk. She shut the book and placed it on the shelf. Sighing softly, she stood over the picture, head lowered. It showed her – grinning – and a dragon beside her.

She was often called a daydreamer or lost in her own world. She hadn't really got many friends – no special ones anyway. She got along with most people, but Einaris was her only true friend. The only one she felt she could talk to.

As she swept her blonde hair behind her ear, Kestrel stared out of the window.

A moment passed.

She needed some time to think clearly.

*****

After changing into suitable clothes, she hesitantly pulled her favourite dragon toy from her bed and placed her inside the backpack beside her bed. She felt better with it for some reason.

Slinging the backpack on her shoulders, she tip-toed down the stairs as quietly as the brown, carpeted steps would allow it.

She double-checked to make sure her notebooks and pencils were still in the backpack.

Quietly, she unlocked the heavy, wooden door and stepped out on to the damp grass, the half-moon causing the droplets of dew to glitter, like stars in the night sky. The Welsh countryside stretched far into the shadowed forest in the North, and the woodland round her house was chirping quietly in the dark. Kestrel breathed in the chilled air, filling her lungs. She nodded to herself and set off to the woods behind her house.

In truth, she hadn't been out of the house like this before, but an overwhelming impulse to go to the woods dragged her forwards.

*****

About half an hour later, a rustle came from an ash tree to her left.

Whipping her head round, hoping – wishing, it was Einaris, but it wasn't.

There was nothing there.

Another crunch of leaves came from behind her.

Kestrel squinted, trying to make out the shape in front of her.

A fox? Pine Marten? Otter? There was a river nearby. She could hear the constant pattering.

The figure's eyes glowed a soft blue in the dark. And it padded softly closer to Kestrel inquisitively, tilting its head in the way Kestrel always did.

Kestrel copied and sat down on the leaf-blanketed ground.

The creature drew a few feet away from Kestrel and the moonlight bounced off its snowy scales, revealing two elegant wings and large ears.

Its body was slender and agile, its feet and spread claws quietly passing over the leaves.

Apon its forehead and neck were beautiful, rich purple feathers, shading into blue at the base. This was the same for its Microraptor-like tail, with feathered plumes at the end which it swished gracefully. Kestrel sighed in awe as its curious blue eyes, streaked with a pale gold fell in line with hers. The creature sniffed her face with its inky-black nose.

Suddenly, it blinked and gestured with its head for Kestrel to get on its back.

Kestrel shook her head, how was this happening? - The dragon in front of her resembled her dragon in her drawing exactly. Her imaginary dragon. Perhaps she'd seen it before without noticing but her brain had filed it away. But how could she forget such a majestic animal. On top of that, it was a real live dragon. A dragon. In Brecon. Well, if they were to live anywhere... She thought.