A/N: Welcome to all my readers! This is my first Kiesha'ra story, but I love the series, so I decided to try my hand at this world. So far, I haven't read Wolfcry, but I don't think anything that happens in this story will affect it at all, or vice versa. Please, read on, and enjoy Dark Moonlight.
Summary: One-shot. A serpiente dreams of what she can't have.
Dark Moonlight
White scales ripple over my skin, moving and flowing much like the tides.
I stare at them, half-mesmerized by this reminder of my second form. I have seen such skins in black, brown, gold—but it is not a snake's comfort that I long for now.
The rustle of the wind in the trees sounds too much like the rustling of feathers for my taste, and the longing to feel the silky shafts contrasting my own smooth scales is almost too much.
As the white scales surge once more and then recede into human flesh, I drop my arms back to my sides, too tired to resume the journey home.
Home. Nothing waits for me there now.
Nothing waits for me, a disgraced serpiente with the dreams of an avian. Although Wyvern's Court encourages serpiente and avians to mingle, there are certain lines that the older generation does not want crossed.
The snapping of the plants around me is an alarm, and before I can think I have slipped into my second form, coiling tightly as my hood flares.
It is true. I am one of the distant cousins to the Cobrianas, although I am not a king cobra, but one of the smaller species.
A sharp raven's call just barely stops me from spitting venom in defense; a hoarse voice calls out of the night: "Kenu?"
Slightly disgusted with myself for not realizing who it was sooner, I change back, not caring if my strange sapphire eyes give away all my mixed-up feelings.
It doesn't matter. He'll understand.
A dark shape overhead blots out the round disk of the moon for only a moment: Nikodas.
He lands beside me, blending into the night shadows before he hops forward to watch me.
I return the gaze, and he seems to realize that I win this game; a cobra's stare is more powerful than his will ever be. He gives a low croak, and I smile at what must be a curse in raven tongue.
Feathers fade to be replaced by human skin, and I watch them go with a sharp pang of longing. He crouches beside me for a moment, and then settles to a sitting position, brushing dark hair out of eyes that seem silver in the moonlight.
"You shouldn't be out here."
Neither of us are night creatures; he knows that as well as I, but he has come to find me in the middle of the night out of concern for my safety. Such is the strength of an avian friendship.
I can picture Wyvern's Court: In the darkness, all is peaceful as avian, serpiente and even falcon sleep together, taking comfort in the warmth of a community Nest.
I never belonged there.
At my sigh, Nikodas reaches out to stroke my white-blond hair, overcoming most of his reserved avian instincts to comfort me. But it is not comfort I seek tonight—neither avian nor serpiente.
"Are you planning on going back?" His tone was light, but I was in no mood for joking, although I appreciated his efforts.
Nikodas sighs, and settles into the sand beside me, watching the water as it creeps closer to our bare feet. Suddenly, the silky ebony of a wing flutters at the edges of my vision. I turn to find my avian friend examining his wing closely, pulling the dark feathers away from each other ponderously.
Wondering what he is doing, I hiss in surprise as he yanks one long feather from where it is anchored in his wing. Red blood wells and seeps for a moment, littering the sand. It continues until Nikodas clamps down on the wound with one large hand, keeping himself from losing any more blood. Cleaning the shaft he has just pulled, he offers it to me silently.
I find that my fingers shake as I reach for it, but I don't want to break the spell that was woven between us by speaking.
The long streak of ebony is soft against my fingers, as soft as any serpiente dancer's sheer costume. The feather dances in the wind, trying to escape my grasp.
Much as the avian world has eluded me.
Nikodas tugs the feather from my grip, and wordlessly, I let him, still trying to figure out what he is thinking. I notice as he pulls away that the wing has receded into human flesh, and my scales have disappeared again.
Slowly, as if he doesn't want to frighten me into shifting again, he gathers strands of hair together, dark brows knitting together over sun-bronzed skin. As he begins to braid—he has too many younger sisters that demand this service—I relax, comforted by the smooth movements next to my right ear.
What a strange picture we must make! A pale woman with sapphire eyes and white-blond hair that is dyed molten silver in the moonlight. Nikodas leans towards me, a tall, lean, dark-skinned man intent on braiding my hair. A raven and a white cobra—twenty years ago, such a pair would have met on a battlefield covered with the smell of hatred and blood.
Finally, Nikodas finishes the braid, and I realize that the feather he had previously pulled was tightly entwined, a piece of dark moonlight in my pale moon braid.
Slowly, the day's events sweep over me like the cold surf that is lapping at my toes. Tears tremble at the corners of my vision as memory of the shame I caused, once banished from my mind, returns.
"How could I have done such a thing?" The question seems to be directed towards Nikodas, but he knows better than to interrupt me. I cannot help the tears that stray down my cheeks, but whether they are tears of anger or shame, I cannot tell.
"How could I have managed to shame all three cultures with one question?"
Earlier today, at Wyvern's Court, I had asked a simple question—a question, that in my mind, made perfect sense. I did not understand how the avians and serpiente of the Court could be averse to it, so I phrased my question boldly, as it concerned all three cultures: Avian, serpiente, and falcon.
The question came from my own longings and curiosities, and perhaps that is why the Court reacted in such shock, as forgiving and contemporary as it is. I am not what one would call a normal serpiente, although to the avian that makes me even more avoidable. But it is these differences that drew my dear Nikodas to me—indeed, he is the only one that has not begun to shun me yet, as even my own close kin, the serpiente, have begun to dissociate with me, afraid of what I seek.
As for the falcons, I did not mean to offend them, but they were merely there at the precise moment I asked my seemingly offensive question. They reacted with the proper amount of shock as the rest of the Court did, but it was quickly replaced indignant anger, as if I was not fit to question them.
I am merely a serpiente that longs for what every serpiente—after coming in contact with the avian world—has thought about at least once.
I long for wings of my own.
It is why I am so touched that Nikodas has chosen to give one of his feathers to me—he knows that I wish for wings to carry me.
In short, I wish to be wyvern.
What shocked the Court was that I had the audacity to suggest—in front of the full court—that the falcons use their magic to help us in this endeavor. The visiting falcon embassy, listing in on this court meeting, expressed their displeasure at the thought, backed by both the serpiente and the avian—in agreement for once.
So here I sit on this deserted beach, not sure if I even have a home to return to. Wherever I choose to go, Nikodas will accompany me, for he has made it quite clear that he wants to be my pair bond. I have not discouraged him—indeed, I quite like the idea of having an avian for a mate, and I would like nothing more for it to be Nikodas.
But before I look to the far future, I must look to the present. After my disgrace this afternoon, I don't know if I will be able to return to Wyvern's Court—the general displeasure of most of its occupants was made known to me.
Nikodas stands, spraying sand as he does, and I push all fearful thoughts away, trying to be strong and reserved like the avian. I lift my face to find his in the moonlight, and I make one simple request.
"Take me flying."
It is a request that I have made of him many times before, and he simply nods, shifting as I do. To my surprise and pleasure, the feather that he had entwined in my hair becomes a part of me, the tip of the ebony shaft embedded between two of the scales near my hood.
With the ease of long practice, I coil myself around his talons secure enough that I won't fall and he won't drop me during our flight.
As he ascends and I once more get used to the amazing feeling of flight, hope replaces my earlier despair. The longing that once consumed me eases slightly as I feel the wind toss the feather, but it merely sways in the wind, rubbing against my scales. For a moment, it seems as if I could fly.
Perhaps I will fly with wings of my own one day.
For now, I will be content to fly in the moonlight. I know that we are heading back to Wyvern's Court, but I am no longer afraid.
I am Kenu, white cobra and member of Wyvern's Court, almost-mate of Nikodas.
For now, that is enough.
A/N: What'd you think? Good, bad, strange? Please tell me what you thought of this little piece by pushing the pretty button down there! Please review!