She couldn't breathe.
It had all been a mistake. She hadn't meant for this to happen. It was just like Dipper had said, she was going to get better. She was going to be cured. None of this was going to happen.
It had happened so fast, too. One moment she had been clenching her wings to her sides, chasing after a deer that would soon become her late night snack and trying desperately to see in the darkness. The moon had been obscured with clouds that night, and the rain poured down as heavily as the moonbeams would have if it had been better weather. The constant waterfall made the muddy earth slippery, and despite the gigantic claws she possessed, she slid with every stride.
Then it had happened. The deer turned sharply, and the dragon had unable to stop in time to properly follow it. With a loud screech of frustration and fear, she had scrabbled to get a hold of the ground and her head had connected with something. The instant she touched the thing, she heard a loud snapping noise and she whirled around.
Blinding pain suddenly tore apart her wing. She let out the loudest scream she had ever managed in her life as her entire body smacked against the ground, trapped. The creature whipped her head about, desperately trying to see what had caused her such agony.
A large stick, attached to some sort of strange contraption, was embedded deep inside her wing. Sickeningly it had gone all the way through and had actually gone into the ground underneath her appendage. Sticky blood trickled down the stick in a fast-moving river, and the more she struggled to get free, the more deep crimson was released.
It was a trap. A trap unlike any she had seen or set before, but a trap nethertheless. And the worst part was that she couldn't escape.
She screamed again and flapped her free wing, spraying muck and pebbles everywhere. Her feet tore at the ground, adrenaline making her head spin and her limbs flail. Suddenly she was full of energy that would only be wasted as she fruitlessly fought to get free. The pain felt as though it were numbed, and all she could feel was the blood coursing through her fried veins.
The worst part at the moment was that the adrenaline didn't fade for the entirety of the first hour. All she could remember of the time was her red-tinted vision swirling wildly as she moved, the only thing on her mind escape. Everything in her body had been charged with the chemical, and she couldn't stop endlessly crashing, clawing, crying out. It was all a blur, impossible to pick out any specific moment.
After about an hour and perhaps ten minutes, she finally felt herself growing dizzy as the adrenaline subsided. She slumped to the ground. Blood coated the dreaded stick from her attempted escape, and she came to conclusion that the loss of energy wasn't the only loss making her feel faint. The creature blearily looked about, beginning the longest, most agonizing wait she would ever have to stand in her life.
The second hour was definitely the worst. Over and over again, the terrible thought of death overtook her mind and she found herself truly crying, crying over the loss of her life that hadn't happened yet. She couldn't see any other signs of life around her, which seemed good and bad at the same time. Nothing was going to bother her, but at the same time, she needed someone. She just needed someone to tell her she was going to be ok.
The third hour was painful and fearful. Around twenty minutes after the moon would have ascended to the top of the sky, she heard a rustling at the top of the ravine she was currently crouched in. She stared upward in surprise and slight horror when she realized it was a wolf. The other animal did not stay long, however, and retreated as soon as it realized what species she was. Even it's not hungry enough to eat a wounded pile of scales.
The fourth hour seemed shorter than all of the others. The moon flickered into view once, though very briefly and very faintly. Another few wolves appeared, as though seeing what all the fuss was about. She had continued to cry out throughout the night, letting out a call every few minutes. At this point, her throat stung.
The fifth hour was a bit more interesting, if she could find the middle of the night interesting. A far larger wolf appeared at the top of the cliff. He was very tall and had a slightly different color of fur, and the creature realized that he must be the alpha. Unlike the others, he was bold, and he scaled down the cliff easily to get a closer look at the gargantuan reptile.
As soon as he got within five feet of her, she let out a warning growl that shook the ground. Wolves had given her nothing but trouble recently, and if the alpha dared to stray closer, she would have no mercy. Despite the angry deterrent, the large wolf shrugged it off and took another few steps.
She lashed out, jaws snapping and throat aching as she roared in anger. Her claws struck the alpha's flank, tearing a gash in it that could cripple a human. The wolf remained for a second, eyes blazing as he perceived a challenge, but was quickly warded off as she lunged for him again. The dragon instincts within her took over for a second, making her run after the wounded alpha as he retreated with his tail between his legs. However, the stick in her wing painfully reminded her that she wasn't going anywhere.
Compared to the fifth hour, the sixth hour almost seemed as though it did not exist. The moon climbed lower in the sky behind the clouds. Her wing ached after her attempt to chase after her aggressor. More blood pooled around the dreaded contraption that held her captive, reminding her that she needed to stop moving or her time would run out even faster.
The seventh hour was agonizing. This was when the flies seemed to notice the wonderful raw wound in their forest, untouched by any other parasite and dripping with blood full of nutrients. They bit at her skin and sucked down her fluids, and no matter how much she moved, the more she did it the more flies came back. They were an insatiable crowd, intent to return until nothing remained of her but a bloodstained skeleton.
During the eighth hour, she finally passed out. The pain was making her head ring, and every inch of her begged for some sort of release from the agony. A few beetles were eating away at her now, attracted by the massive amount of flies. The blood pounded in her head, and as annoyed as she was by it, part of her was desperately hoping it wouldn't stop.
She woke up around the tenth hour. The sun seemed to be rising behind the massive amount of cloud, filling the clearing she was confined in with a weak light. She cried out as loud as she could. More animals were out now that it was day, making there far more potential rescuers.
As the eleventh hour passed, she realized something. Dipper knew her identity now. He would most definitely come looking for her today, maybe even with the help of his sister. There was still hope. She beat her good wing against the ground and gave the loudest screech she could, hoping that no predators would find her and decide she wasn't too big a meal.
Finally, the thirteenth hour came.
Her throat was raw by now, her insides stinging with the massive trauma they were being put through. She was dehydrated beyond belief, and hadn't eaten anything substantial for quite a while. The animal was beginning to believe that even if Dipper showed up, she might not be alive for him when he arrived. Then she heard the noises at the top of the cliff.
Her heart leaped when she spotted the face of Mabel Pines peering down at her in horror. She flailed and screamed again, and felt as though all the hope in her body was flooding her veins when she heard a loud cry in response from Dipper. He was here. He had come for her.
The sound of skidding gravel and muck came from above, and she continued to hold herself up until she felt somebody's hands on her wing. Dipper suddenly appeared in her vision and she flopped to the ground in utter relief. His eyes were wide and frantic, but she would have given the world at this point just to see his face again.
The small boy crouched down and placed his hands on her muzzle, crying into his vest. As relieved as she felt, she couldn't help but experience the sadness and worry pouring off him in waves. It's ok, she tried to tell him, pushing her nose against his chest in what she hoped was a comforting manner.
Mabel and Soos began to shout communications back and forth with Dipper, which he answered. As much as she strained her reptilian ears, she couldn't understand the gibberish they seemed to be using still. However, as the other two spoke, she realized the boy clutching her muzzle seemed to be growing more and more agitated. Of course, she didn't exactly realize how much until he began to sob.
She would have given anything at that moment to be human so that she could give him a proper hug, and tell him in his own tongue that she was going to be alright.
Everything seemed to blur a bit as another human entered the clearing. She recognized him after a minute as Stan. He spoke to the others, much to Dipper's agitation. She couldn't exactly blame the boy for feeling angry. His uncle hated the supernatural, right? Maybe he was down-talking her or something.
Even so, there seemed to be a fire in the old man's eyes as he spoke. At one point he stared directly at her, his low growl striking fear into her heart. A low whine escaped her chest and she shivered. Even when she was a different species, as well as being far larger than her employer, he still had an air about him that made her feel small.
They continued to speak before the older man walked over to her trapped wing and began to try and pull the stake from it. Wendy forced her wing down, crying out a bit as Dipper left her to help. However, she could see in his eyes that he intended to come back. She could feel all four crowding around her, touching her and making her move until she felt as though something that didn't belong was freed.
Looking back, she realized that the stake was driven into the ground elsewhere. She wasn't in the trap anymore.
Dipper returned close to her head, pulling out a jar of foul-smelling liquid and beginning to shake it up. She would have asked what it was for if she could speak, but even an attempted growl of question would sting with her throat currently raw. Abruptly, she felt a ticklish sensation on her wing, and upon looking back realized that Mabel was covering her wound in medicine and bandages. She felt a sigh gathering her chest. Kid, you have no idea how good that feels.
Finally, the female Pines twin stepped away, and her brother stepped forward. She immediately knew that the group's focus was on him. She turned her head politely, though feeling a bit of confusion as one hand started to touch the edge of her mouth. After a moment she realized that he seemed to want her to open her jaws. She obliged and let her eyes slide shut.
A very foul taste suddenly hit her tongue. She opened her eyes and resisted the urge to gag as the liquid trickled into her throat. Dipper was giving her one of the most apologetic looks she had seen in a long time, and seemed to be murmuring some sort of comforting saying. With much difficulty and disgust, she swallowed.
All of a sudden, her body felt different. The liquid burned a fiery feeling into her throat and stomach, and she could feel it spreading like warmth from a hot drink. As she narrowed her eyes in confusion, she felt a sudden scratching in the itchy spot behind her horns. Mabel was kneeling at the base of her head, scoring her fingers over the uncomfortable area.
Wendy could feel a strange feeling in her chest, but didn't realize what it was until an almighty purr rumbled free. She had tried scratching that spot on small trees before, but nothing could match the feeling of the young artist's painted nails. She was resisting the urge to start beating her foot in the dirt like a dog when she suddenly felt the warmth grow hot inside her chest.
Mabel stepped back as something began to happen. The creature felt as though her entire body were melting, the bones molding and breaking while her insides became nothing more than a red mass. She was aware of the ground growing closer, of her tail melting into her skin, of the massive hole in her wing suddenly going into her back. She felt a prickling sensation on her head before she realized her horns were becoming hair.
The strange feeling of scales in her skin disappeared, and was replaced by the cold of the morning on her suddenly bare-feeling body. The reddish color faded into something she was far more used to, and the heat inside her felt as though it were finally dying down. Her claws molded into the nails she had been missing so much, both for safe scratching and swimming.
Suddenly, a blockage in her lungs disappeared, and wonderful air entered her system as she took a breath. She wasn't aware of the fact she was naked until Mabel stepped forward, helping her into an enormous sweater. A tiny bit of curiosity entered her as to why the older twin had it in her possession, but that didn't seem too important.
The other boys gathered around her, and she resisted the urge to just pass out when Soos lifted her off the ground. Another tingle of relief entered her as Dipper grasped her hand, reminding her that he was indeed there. However, the best moment was when she finally realized she could understand them. She could understand what they were saying.
"We should get her back home."
A/N: Well, I was walking in the woods in the other day and I suddenly wondered what it would be like to try and write the last scene of Dragon Pines from Wendy's point of view. I hope that nobody who hasn't read the story read this first, because this was like the biggest spoiler I could ever write. Anyway, if you disobeyed what I said in the summary and read it anyway, the original's on my profile. It would mean a lot to me if you reviewed it!
