The day was rising into the city of Warfang. The sun was coming out from its hiding place and spreading its light and warm over the lands beneath it, and all of Warfang was starting to wake up.
There were many people who were already in the streets as they were going in with their lives, and taking care of their own business, minding their own lives as they did their jobs and perks. Some of them were actually heading home to sleep, getting ready to face a new night ahead of them once they have slept.
Some other people were just waking up and getting ready to face another day, and they were already eating and making everything to prepare themselves to a new day ahead of them. Including a very peculiar young dragon, who was just waking up as the sun was entering his window and hitting his face as he was in bed.
All of his scales were jet-black in color, save for his underbelly, which was golden colored, and his wing-membranes were of a crimson-red color. His body was slightly muscled for his age, and his tailblade was shaped like a lance, and it was of a golden color, just like his underbelly, and just like his horns, which projected backwards from his head.
He groaned as he used the mattresses to cover himself and hide his face from the strong light of the sun beating down in his eyes. He tried to sleep, but the light went through the cloth covering him and it was making it hard for him to get himself to sleep. It soon was proving very difficult to get himself to sleep again, but luckily, it seemed to become easier, as it seemed that a shadow had put itself between him and the light coming from the sun.
The young black dragon was ready to go back to sleep, when he hear d a familiar voice calling him.
"Spyro."
The black dragon, Spyro, groaned slightly as he squirmed under the bed, knowing whose voice was that and he already knew what it was about. The voice continued to insist.
"Spyro, darling. It is time to wake up." The gentle voice called to him lovingly, and Spyro soon saw himself pulling to covers away from himself to look up at the one who was calling him.
He saw a very beautiful adult dragoness, who had scales as black as his own. She had white colored wing-membrane, and her slender horns, underbelly and sword-like tailblade, and she had a very slender and beautiful body, and her smile was very gentle and kind, and her eyes, of a soft shade o lavender, looked at the young dragon's, which were of a regal purple color.
"Morning, mom." Spyro said to his mother, and she smiled at him, as she said back at him.
"Good morning, my little star."
Spyro was actually able to smile at this, and he started to get up. He yawned his mouth wide and showed off his teeth as he let the sleep leave his body slightly as he stretched his body, and he blinked tiredly, looking up at his mother, who smiled down at him.
"Well, it is your first day at school." She said to him, and Spyro looked back at her in silence for a few moments, and he nodded. He said nothing, for he knew that there was nothing to be said, and they both left the room, Spyro making up his bed and walking in direction to the bathroom.
The bathroom had a big pool in the ground, which served for the dragons to bath. Spyro entered into the water until the point that he could still stand on his feet, since Spyro was not the best swimmer. He used the time to dive a little into the water and rub it over his body, along with the soap, and he rubbed his scales and his body until they were reflecting the light in them as if they could almost shine. It is, if the black color was able to shine.
Once he was feeling clean, Spyro walked out of the water, and grabbed out a towel and dried himself as quickly as he could. The water was cold and it was very good to wake him up in the morning, but that didn't meant that the purple dragon was going to like it. He was quickly to dry himself up and quickly walk out of the bathroom, as he could soon smell the scent of what would be his breakfast.
The black dragon soon was walking in direction to another part of his house, and he met his mother cooking food for herself and for him too, and it was roasted sheep. Spyro liked sheep, and he loved the taste of it. Usually, he would be very eager to eat it, however, today, he was feeling slightly nervous, and so, it was robbing him of part of his appetite. But he still wanted to taste the sheep that his mother was going to prepare for him.
"It is ready." She called him with a smile, and Spyro was quick to jump into the table as his mother served to him a good piece of sheep, as well as a cup of dragon fruit juice to help him swallow it down. Spyro knew that he was being served his favorite things today, and he knew that it was to help him star the day well as there was a new kind of challenge ahead of him.
Today was the first day that Spyro was going to a school with other dragons. Spyro had been taught at home for most of his life. He currently was on his thirteen years old, and he had never been in a school before. He would continue to study in home if it was the option, however, Spyro had arrived to a point of his development that he needed to go to a school, so he could learn the things that his mother could not teach him on her own, and also, so he could have a interaction with other dragons his own age, which was very important to his development at the age he was then.
Spyro was scared over the new prospect of going to a school, for he never had this experience before. However, he was told a lot about it by his mother, and he had somewhat of a good idea of what to expect from what he was going to face. Still, it didn't changed the fact that he was entering into a unknown terrain, and it was more than enough reason to leave him worried a lot, almost enough to make him lose his appetite, but Spyro forced himself to swallow the food and drink down his juice.
"So, nervous?" Asked his mother, who smiled at him, and Spyro was actually able to smile back.
"I guess it would be strange if I wasn't." Spyro said, smiling to his mother. He knew that she was maybe as nervous as him, for she had been taking care of him for a very long time on her own, and she didn't left him alone for too long ever since he was a little hatchling. She was worried for leaving him on his own for what would be most of the day, as any mother would be about her own son. Still, she knew that it was needed so he would have the development that he needed to grow. However, Spyro knew that she was nervous for leaving him on his own for the first time in a very long time, even though she was forcing herself to put a smile and a brave face on herself so she would pass the impression to her son.
Spyro knew that she did everything for him, just like any mother would do, and that was why he admired her so much. He was scared that, for the first time in a long time, he was not going to have her by his side to help him when he needed at the moment, still, he was going to see her again at the end of the day. He was not as scared, for he knew that she was going to be there for him at the end of the day.
Spyro soon was finishing his eating, and soon, he was his mother were picking up the last things that were needed for the day. She picked up a bag that had some books, and also some food that was packed for Spyro and that he would eat during the day. After that, mother looked at her son, and she said, "Okay Spyro, lets get going, we don't want you to be late at your first day in the school."
She made her best to look positive, even though she was afraid for her son, and Spyro knew it pretty well. This only made him admire her even more, for she was willing to put on a smile and a brave face so she would help him be brave too. And even if Spyro knew that she was forcing herself to smile, it had the desired effect, for he was willing to be brave for her, due to all the effort that she had for him.
So, with that, mother and son walked out of their home, and they both took flight, going in direction to their new destination as they both flew side by side. They soared through the skies as they both were very close to each other, two black dots in the middle of the blue morning sky, as they both were heading to their new destination.
During their trip, Spyro had time to think again on all the worries that he had, and in all the challenges that maybe were waiting for him in this new experience. He had quite an idea of what to expect, but he was ready to face it. Spyro was ready to face this new kind of challenge that laid ahead of him, and that could prove to be a very difficult one.
Said that Spyro felt insecure and scared would be redundant, for it was a sure thing that anyone facing this new kind of challenge, being in the same position that Spyro was, would be very scared over the whole new experience. Spyro, however, was willing to take the risk and to jump headfirst into this new challenge, and take the danger that came with it.
He looked at his mother, and he could see in her eyes the worry that she felt for her son, and he knew that she only cared about him and wanted him to be okay. He knew that if she believed that he was not going to be okay, she would be unable to focus during the whole day, and that was why he needed to be brave now, to let her know that he was okay and that he was going to be okay through the whole day. He needed to be strong for he too was worried about her, and he wanted her to be okay too, and to don't worry about him. He wanted for her to know that he was fine and that he was not in trouble, so she would be okay during the day. He needed to do it for her.
As they both flew, they soon were approaching their destination. It was a big building, made out of stone and marble, raising with majesty into the North District of Warfang, with several windows and a very big yard for it, and in the main front of the place, right under the main entrance, there was the words written in the dragon language, which were read: Warfang High Academy.
The two dragon flew in direction to the entrance, and many other dragons flew to the same direction, all form the more varied colors, showing their many different elemental affinities, and many of them being young dragons, around Spyro's age, companied by their parents or alone, all of them coming in there for the same reason as young Spyro: to study and learn what they needed for their future.
They both landed into the front gate, along with several other dragons, young and adults, and they both looked at each other, as Spyro had his bag into his shoulder, as he looked up at his mother, who smiled down at him. "My little boy." She said as she leaned closer and nuzzled him, "You are growing so fast."
"Mooom." Spyro said, blushing under his black scales as he was receiving a show of affection like that in front of other people. He felt uneasy being treated and talked to as if he was a little boy in front of so many strangers. Anyone his age would feel the same way with their mothers acting like that.
She broke it after a few moments, and as soon as she did, she heard someone calling.
"Elva!" The m ale voice called, and she looked over, to see another dragon approaching her. This one was a black dragon just like her and her son. This one was a male, and he was bulky and strong, and he had jet-black scales and a underbelly which was white as bone, as well as his wings, which were ripped and with thorns, and they seemed unable to carry him in flight. He had a mask that looked like a skull from a dragon, and which covered his face, but it was possible to see his eyes, which were red as blood, and his horns, which protruded from under his wing. His tailblade was shaped just like a scythe, and it looked the kind of thing that would be able to slice a dragon's leg clean out of his body. He seemed to be the kind of dangerous looking dragon, however, who knew him, knew that he was a good person to be around.
Elva, Spyro's mother, smiled as she looked at the approaching black dragon. "Exedra!" She said, and he smiled back at her, and he come closer. Spyro looked up at the black dragon, who he also already knew as a good friend of his mother. "Hello, Mr. Nightwing."
Exedra smiled, and he looked down at him, "Hello, young Spyro." He said, greeting the young black dragon back, and he looked at him and back to his mother. "So, it is his first day in a school." Exedra said, and Elva nodded at him, and they both knew pretty well what that meant. They already had that discussion many times, as well as other of their friends, and they all decided that it was the right time.
They knew full well the reason why Spyro never went into a school with other dragons before, and they knew that this step was a big one, and that it could lead to some results which could not be good. Still, they knew that delaying would only make things worse, so they have all decided that young Spyro was finally ready to try this next step, even with all the troubles that could come with it.
It was needed.
They both sighed, and Elva said to Exedra, "I hope you and everyone here treats my little boy right." She said, and Spyro looked up at her whining "Mooooom." He was blushing beneath his black scales once again, and Exedra could only chuckle at it, and he said "Don't worry. We will make sure that Spyro gets okay while he is here. We all will take care of him."
Exedra gave her a smile as he said that, and that was good to assure Elva, who looked at the black dragon. Spyro, on the other side, felt his face heating even more into the as he felt like he was going to have babysitters during all day he was at school. That was enough to make any teenager feel very embarrassed as it seemed that there was going to be people in there watching over him the whole day as if he was still a hatchling who hadn't even learned to walk yet.
"Well, I the classes will start in half an hour, and I think we both need to get going." Exedra said, and the two other black dragons nodded at him. Exedra was a worker of the school, he was a teacher. He taught people about the use of the Shadow element and about the applications that it had in life. Also, he taught about history, specifically, the war strategies used in the past over the years into the great wars form which dragons took part. With the past they had, the dragons needed to k now this basic information over the past wars so they would be ready if the need of them ever arose again. Even though Exedra himself hoped that most of what he taught on his classes would never be needed again.
With that Elva smiled, and she said to them. "Take care, you two." And with this, She took flight and she son was disappearing from view, while Spyro and Exedra both waved bye to her, and Spyro promised to her that he would be okay.
As soon as she was out of sight, however, her calm smile melted into a face of concern, for she knew the reason why Spyro never went to a regular school before, and that was more than enough to leave her worried.
Below, Exedra looked down at young Spyro, who looked at his departing mother. He knew that the young dragon was apprehensive, what was understandable, and he knew that he was nervous about what waited for him. Still, he was there, and he was ready to face the world. Exedra and the others would be there to help him along the way.
Exedra only hoped that the young dragon was really ready for what was coming for him.
"So, I guess we should get into the school now. I have to get my next class ready and you cannot be late for yours." Exedra said, granting the young dragon to look up at him, and say, "Yes, sir!"
And with that, both Spyro and Exedra started to all in direction to the gates of the school. As they walked, Spyro noticed that the younger dragons were looking at him, pointing and whispering among themselves. Spyro imagined that it was because he was walking by the side of a professor, and they were both black dragons. This could lead some dragons to talk among themselves and to wonder why they were walking together. Spyro simply shrugged at this and continued to walk.
Exedra, however, knew that there was much more reason for them to be whispering among themselves and pointing at Spyro. He knew that reason well, and he felt a knot in his stomach because of that. As they walked inside, Exedra could only feel glad that Spyro seemed not to notice that the adults were also looking at him and whispering juts like that…
Once they were inside, Spyro could look at the school in which he would be studying. Since Spyro was taught at home most of his life, he never saw a school, but he often heard what it was like. Now that he was there, he was seeing it for real for the very first time in his life, and he felt amazed.
That place was huge!
The hall seemed to be a very big one, with lots of stairs leading to other places, and some hallways, which surely lead to the several different rooms. The place was decorated with a huge insignia that was surely the emblem of the school, which consisted into thirty-two dragons, each one of one elemental class, all of them holding a shield, in which were read the words: Teach the Young, Ensure the Future
Spyro was marveled at that place, and he could forget his worries and his fears for a while, and he could just stay there the whole day, admiring the beauty of that place, when Exedra's voice called him back to reality.
"Uhum!"
Spyro looked up surprised as the black dragon cleared his throat. The black dragon was smiling down at him as he said, "I believe you have a class to go to, ain't I right?"
"Oh! Yeah, right!" Spyro said, and he looked around. He didn't knew where to go. Exedra, luckily was there for him.
"Lots, huh?" He said, and the young black dragon once more blushed beneath his dark scales, and Exedra could only chuckle at him. "Don't worry, it is pretty normal for the newcomers. Let me see your grades."
Spyro nodded, and showed him the piece of scroll which showed Spyro's classes and the room in which they would occur. Exedra took a quick glance at it and then he nodded at it. "Right, Natural Science, Room B-708… That hallway." He said, as he pointed at a hallway in the extreme left of the entrance hall, "Fourth door at your left."
"Thank you, Mr. NIghtwing." Spyro said, and he picked back the scroll, and he hurried to get to his next class before the bell would ring and signal the start of it. Spyro could be a newbie to the thing of going to a school, but he knew that arriving late to his first class in his first day was not a good way to start at all.
Exedra looked at the young black dragon who rushed to his class, and he was able to smile at him. However, his smile weakened when he saw that, as Spyro passed, some drgons pointed at him and whispered among themselves, and by the look in their faces, what they were talking about was not a good thing. And also, Exedra was able to hear a few adult dragons near him whispering.
"It is that boy?"
"I guess so, he arrived here with her."
"How do they let him study in here with our kids? It is dangerous!"
"They decided that he was just another kid and that he deserved to study."
"I hope they do not teach him to fight, Ancestors help us if he ever starts to become like his father."
Exedra had to bite back a snarl and a very nasty answer that he was ready to give these two dragonesses. He knew that there was nothing that he could do about it, and that was exactly what worried him the most. Exedra could only sigh and go his own way, he needed to get his next class ready before the bell would ring. And as he walked, he could not avoid feeling worried and also sorry for Spyro. The boy was still young, even though he was nearly a teenager now, and he was still learning to deal with the world around him. As he went Exedra sent a silent pray to the Ancestors, and prayed for them to protect Spyro, and to give him the strength he would need to pass by this…
B-702… B-704… B-706… B-708!
That was it; Spyro finally found the room in which his first class of the day would happen! The door was big and made out of metal and wood like all the others, the words B-708 printed into it with what seemed to be some golden metal. There was no way of mistaking which room was that.
As Spyro looked at the door, he could feel another rush of the familiar feeling which was a mix of apprehension and excitement coursing through him. He felt like behind this door was something that could change his life forever, and that once he entered, he would be in a totally unknown ground, and that he would not be able to turn back.
Spyro spent a full minute simply looking at it, before he gathered all the courage that he could from inside himself, and made the decision of dive in this new and mysterious thing head-first. So, with that decision clear in his mind, Spyro raised his shaking paw, and he grabbed the doorknob, and he turned it, making the door click as it opened, and Spyro finally took the first step in direction to the unknown.
Spyro was greeted by the sight of a big-sized room, with a set of windows in the side, all of them circular and with curtains. The side end of the room was with a big orange crystal and a blackboard that was surely where the teacher was going to show the students what he was going to show.
The middle of the room was filled with desks, which served for the young dragons in there to rest their things and to support their books and other objects as they were studying or copying what the teacher was explaining. And Spyro could see that there were already some young dragons in there, and that they were talking to each other. There were dragons of several colors, and so, they had several different elemental affinities.
Spyro knew that he had never seen so much dragons of his own age in a same place before. Spyro felt again that sense of excitement into being around dragons his age, and maybe he could finally make friends. However, he was still nervous, for he rarely dealt with dragons his own age before, and the prospect of dealing with them scared him a little, Spyro was a bit shy in that matter.
Spyro walked inside and the door closed behind him, scaring the young black dragon slightly, but however, Spyro continued to walk slightly. He looked at the other dragons in there, who seemed to absorbed in their own things to notice that he was even there. That was until one grey-colored dragoness looked his direction, and she gasped.
As soon as that happened, all the dragons stopped what they were doing, and now they all were looking at the young black dragon who had just entered into their class.
Spyro could feel all the eyes of these dragons in him, Spyro felt the nervousness return to him all at once, as he looked around to all of the dragons who looked at him. They all looked at him as if they had never seen a dragon like him before, and that was enough for Spyro to get nervous. The young black dragon even wondered why people were staring at him, but he could do nothing about it. Instead, he only gathered a little courage in him, and he spoke, "Huhhhh, hi?"
After that, the young dragons continued to look at him with wide eyes, as if he was a creature of another world. Spyro felt nervous, and he decided to just go walk to a place for himself.
Spyro walked, his claws tapping into the ground as he walked. He could feel that the dragons still had their eye on him, and he also could hear that now they seemed to be whispering among them as Spyro walked. They were looking t him and whispering. Spyro might not have much experience into interacting with the others his own age, but he knew instinctively that this kind of thing was not a good sign.
Spyro walked through the place, until he found an empty desk, and he put his bag in the ground near it as he sat on his haunches, his head turned in direction of the desk and the point where the teacher would be during the class. Spyro could still feel the students whispering whatever was that they were whispering, and it was making him nervous.
Spyro felt someone eyeing him still, and he looked to his side, to see one dragon with white colored scales looking right at him. He had very much the same look that the other dragons had, and he was staring at Spyro in a way that made it unnerving.
"Hi." Spyro tried, but the other dragon only looked at him without saying anything back. Spyro then decided to dare a little more, and he offered his paw. "I'm Spyro."
The dragon recoiled a little, and then, moved his own desk away, moving it to far from the black dragon. He then looked away, as if he should not look at Spyro for too long. Spyro could only look and blink at him, and he could not help but wonder what it was about, for he really didn't had a clue.
That strange air continued for a while, until their professor arrived. It was a light-green dragon of the nature element called Mr. Gloomwing. He proceeded the next half an hour or so explaining the basic concepts of the natural world, and of what they were going to deal in general over these classes. He seemed to be quite a good person, and Spyro actually had a very good feeling over him. Spyro thought that he was going to like that teacher.
However, Spyro was able to completely focus on the class, for he still had the constant feeling that he was being watched. Spyro knew that the dragons around him were still looking at him. Every time that he turned his head to look at how was looking at him, they would turn their heads away from him. Also, Spyro could still hear their whispering, as if they were talking about him by his back, and the black dragon had the strong feeling that whatever they were talking, he was pretty sure that he was the subject.
This thought somewhat concerned Spyro, and he passed the whole class looking at the sides and over his shoulder, as if he could practically feel the people around him talking about him and casting glances. This lasted for all the while of the class, when Spyro finally let out a relieved sigh as the bell rang. However, his relief was short lived as he remembered himself that he had another classes during the day, and that one was just the first.
His next class was math, with a mist dragon as his next teach, and in that class, Spyro had very much the same reception as the first, in which the dragons kept looking at him and whispering among themselves over him. Spyro was hoping that this was not going to become a pattern.
It went on with the class, as Spyro could swear that it was getting worse, and he could swear that it was getting more insistent. Spyro now had the constant feeling that the dragons not only kept looking at him, but that they were almost scowling at him. This feeling made the young black dragon feel very uncomfortable at this, as he felt like he had done something wrong and he just didn't knew what it was.
This sensation was only worsened when, in the following class, Spyro felt something hitting the back of his head. It was a screwed piece of scroll, put into the shape of a ball. The teacher seemed not to have seen it, and Spyro looked around to see where it came from, but he was unable to find the direction from which the scroll had came.
Spyro unfolded it, and he heard the following phrase: You don't belong here, evilling.
Spyro blinked, and he looked around one last time, as he tried to pinpoint where it had come before hitting his head. What did the scroll meant? Why would someone throw this at him? And what did they meant by saying that it was not his place?
Spyro was having this feeling like someone thought that he was not welcome in there.
In the next class, which was ancient history, Spyro had this same feeling, but stronger, as the teacher, a bulky ice dragon named Cyril, who had icy-blue scales and purple colored underbelly and wing-membranes, as well as details in all over his body, and also, he had some markings in him that resembled to be frozen areas, which mad perfectly clear what his element was, seemed to don't like Spyro. Spyro just had this feeling that the ice dragon didn't liked him, as the blue dragon gave him glares all the time, and at one given moment, when Spyro raised his paw, to show that he knew an answer that the teacher had asked, the ice dragon ignored him, as if he was not seeing him.
Spyro felt intimidated by this, and he even tired to answer the question aloud when no one else said, and his answer was a scowling from the ice dragon.
"Young man, do you like talking without being called?" He asked in a very cold tone, as cold as his own element. "Maybe you feel the need to make it seem like you know everything. We,, considering that you just arrived in this school, I guess that first you should learn to talk before you decided to put yourself among the adults. Oh, and for interrupting me, you earned yourself a detention today."
As soon as he said that, there was a burst of laughing from the other young dragons of the class, and Spyro could only sit dumbfolded in his place, and he could just wonder what he had done wrong.
Spyro felt relieved when he knew that the next period that he had was lunch, and that it was a time he could eat and not worry about classes anymore. That was good, Spyro needed to relax, for he never imagined that classes could be so tiring. He didn't remembering the classes that he had with his mother at home being so tiring. At least his mother didn't do to him what that ice dragon did.
Spyro was still wondering what he had done to make the ice dragon so angry at him, for the way he looked at him, it was almost as if he wanted to attack Spyro. This feeling made the black dragon very nervous and sent shivers down his spine to the tip of his tail. He just hoped that he didn't had another class with the ice-blue dragon too soon.
Spyro searched for a place to sit, and he noticed that as he came closer, the other dragons went away from him. Others sued him away, as if he was a bug that they didn't wanted near. It was almost as if some were scared of him and the other were angry at him, and Spyro could only actually wonder why.
Spyro ended up sitting in a place away from the other dragons, and he dug into his bag for the lunch that his mother had prepared for him. It consisted in some dragon fruit juice and a piece of lamb. It was a bit cold due to having passed so much time since the lamb was cooked and put into the bag. However, Spyro didn't minded, as he loved lamb, and he was glad to have a good piece of it to eat.
He ate and chewed gently at it, letting the good flavor fill his mouth and he drank down the dragon fruit juice to wash it down. Spyro was glad that he could eat his own food, however, it was being hard to fully enjoy his food, due to the feeling that he had into the classes being back.
Once again, Spyro had the feeling that the dragons around him were staring at him. He actually could see some of them whispering among each other and pointing their claws at him, as if he was a very strange creature. Spyro could only shrink over himself and hope that it was going to end soon. The black dragon only continued to eat his food as he felt the eyes all over him, as if they were evaluating him, judging him. Once again, Spyro caught himself wondering just what he had done for everyone to looked at him like that, as if he was some kind of animal from a zoo.
Maybe they thought of him as interesting? For what Spyro knew, black dragons were rather rare. Maybe it was it. But, there were black dragons among them too, and they looked at him pretty much the same way, as if he was some short of creature that they had never seen before.
Maybe it was because he was a newbie? Maybe it was the kind of treatment that the young newcomers received from the older students when they entered into the school? Spyro had already heard a little about it from other people. But it seemed that even the younger dragons were giving him that look. By what was happening, Spyro knew that he was not the only newcomer in the school, for he knew that many dragons his own age were there for the first time, and they also were giving him very much the same look as the older dragons were.
Spyro could only conclude that maybe he had done something and he didn't knew it. That was the only explanation for everyone to give him looks like that, and that even a teacher acted the way he did with him. However, Spyro didn't even the slightest idea of what he could have done that would have made people stare at him and treat him that way.
Spyro didn't had a single clue of what he could have done wrong. Maybe something that he had done as soon as he entered? But the news would have to run even faster than he imagined so everyone would already know and treat him like that. Spyro was puzzled as he tried to make sense of what was it with everyone treating him like that for no apparent reason.
Spyro continued to eat, and he was so absorbed into his eating and into his thinking that he didn't noticed an object flying in his direction. The tomato collided with Spyro's head, splattering its juice over him as it threw him back by the force, making the young dragon yelp as he feel to the ground, his lamb flying form his lap and landing on the ground as his juice splattered into the ground.
The next thing Spyro knew was that he was into the ground, and everyone was laughing. Spyro looked around, and he saw all the dragons around laughing and pointing at him. Spyro knew that someone had threw something on him, and he knew it was a tomato by the red juice that it had left spread into his black scales, making it stand out clearly.
Spyro looked around, as he could see all the dragons around pointing at him and laughing, as if he was some kind of clown. Spyro could only feel a sick feeling on his stomach as he knew that someone had threw a tomato in him on purpose, as if to mock him and make him look stupid. That was the only thing that Spyro could think about.
They were mocking him and laughing at his expense. Spyro could only whimper as he covered his face with his wings as he got up, but he could still hear the loud laughter of the other dragons. It was shaking him and making his insides tremble as if it was a particular earthquake into him. He felt his cheeks burning with same as he felt like he was being ridiculed and becoming laughing stock to everyone else.
Spyro was now about to start to fight his tears, when he suddenly heard a voice among the laughter.
"Hey, HEY! STOP IT!"
It was a female's voice, and as soon as it shout out powerfully, the others stopped laughing, and they all seemed to have gave up on laughing. "What is that?" The voice asked them, "Is this the kinder garden? Why are you acting like little children! Stop it and go take care of your own lives! Leave the poor thing alone! Cho!"
As soon as she said it, whoever she was, the dragons started to mumble among themselves, as they seemed to be dispersing, or at least that was the feeling that Spyro had. It would be hard to tell, since he still had his wings covering his head and face.
He could hear the sound of claws tapping the earth as someone was approaching him. He then heard the female voice again, but seeming closer and much calmer, as it was talking to him into a normal tone. "Are you alright?"
Spyro remained silent, and he continued with his wings covering his face.
"Come on, don't be afraid, they are gone." She said, and she sounded very gentle as she said that. Spyro felt a bit safer as that voice talked to him, very much as he felt when he was cared and his mother talked to him. Slowly, the black dragon put his wings down, and allowed himself to see and be seen.
He saw a beautiful dragoness who was his own age. She had purple colored scales, with maroon underbelly and wing-membrane. She had six horns decorating her head and projecting backwards in it, and she was wearing a silver colored necklace around her neck. Her eyes were green and they almost made Spyro remember of emeralds as he looked deep into them.
"Are you alright?" She asked, and Spyro could feel his cheeks heating up again, but now, it seemed that the reason was another. He could only nod at her, and she said, "You are still stained with tomato.
Spyro felt the shame returning, and he was about to hide his face with his wing again, but the dragoness talking to him said, "Hold still." She dug a claw into her bag, which was around her neck, and she pulled out a small handkerchief and she soon was passing it over his face, wiping away the juice.
Spyro could feel his face heating more as she was doing just like his own mother did to him when he was really young, and that let him slightly embarrassed. However, the black dragon, for some reason, didn't questioned or tried to stop her in any way, as she continued to rub his face clean with the cloth. Soon she was done, and his face had been cleaned of all the tomato juice that had stained him.
"Here, all nice and clean." She said to him, smiling at him as Spyro was glad that his black scales could hide the powerful blush that was on his face.
"Thank you." He muttered to her as he looked down, and he looked around, and he saw that really, most of the dragons had gone away. Some were still casting glances in his direction, but they were very few. It seemed that the purple dragoness was able to make them all scatter rather efficiently.
"Don't mind them." She said as she noticed him looking around. "Most of them are jerks, if they realize that what they do hit you then they won't stop. Just ignore them and they'll eventually leave you alone."
Spyro nodded, as it seemed that the purple dragoness knew what she was talking about, and so, Spyro could only agree with her.
The black dragon looked around, and he felt his stomach dropping as he saw the meal that his mother had prepared to him wasted. The lamb, which he had eaten only half, was into the ground, stained with mud and ruined. His juice splattered into the ground, and none of that food was still good to be eaten.
Spyro could only wonder what his mother would say if she heard that he had wasted good food like that. He felt his heart heavy and his stomach was still grumbling. Now Spyro was going to be hungry for the rest of the day until he arrived home.
The purple dragoness looked at him, and she saw that his food had been ruined. She looked at him, and she said, "Still hungry?" The black dragon looked at her, and he nodded, "Yeah, a little."
She looked at him, and she said, "Look, I have more food than I need in here, would you like to share with me?"
"Really?" Spyro asked, and she smiled at him, and that smile, for some reason, made his legs feel weak.
"Sure, come here, let's eat." She said, and she invited him to sit by her side as they both son were eating the food that she had with her. It was some chicken and some orange juice. It was not Spyro's favorite, about it was among them. Spyro also liked this kind of food, and so, he accepted, even because it would be very impolite to refuse.
The food was delicious, and seemed to have been made by someone who knew well how to cook. Spyro was glad that he was having some food and, truth to the purple dragoness' words, there was really a lot of food in there, maybe even enough to three dragons.
"'Better excess than lack', as my mom says." The purple dragoness said, as she ate along, and Spyro could only nod at her. He could only look at her as he noticed that she was a beautiful young dragoness. Also, Spyro had already heard a lot of purple dragons, that they were the rarest of all kinds of dragons, and that they were able to use all of the elements that a dragon could have. Sure, Spyro never saw much purple dragons in his life, and until then, he could remember only having heard about a few already, and among them was his own…
Spyro stopped himself, as he did not wanted to think about him. But as he did, it was like something had just clicked inside his mind.
Could it be the reason why..?
The purple dragoness looked at the black dragon, and she noticed that suddenly it was like he had thought about something that made him distracted. She looked at him, and she said, "Cynder."
"Huh? What?" Spyro said, as she snapped out of his thoughts, and he looked at the purple dragoness, who smiled at him, and she said, "My name is Cynder, Cynder Nightwing."
Nightwing?
That was when it hit Spyro.
"You are Mr. Nightwing's daughter!" He said surprised, and she smiled at him, "Yup, its me."
Spyro was surprised. He knew that Mr. Nightwing's mate was a purple dragoness, and he also knew that they had a daughter, but he didn't knew that she was a purple dragoness like the mother. Also, Spyro and Cynder and never met each other, and so, they were really meeting each other for the very first time.
"And, you must be Mr. Stargazer's son." Cynder said, playing the obvious captain. Indeed, Spyro's full name was Spyro Stargazer. That was his mother's last name, and that was the name that he had, instead of the name of his father, for pretty obvious reasons… Reasons that Spyro suspected that the purple dragoness already knew. If she was Mr. Nightwing's daughter.
However, if she knew, than she said nothing, and they only continued to eat after Spyro told her his full name, and other than that, she only talked to him and gave him a few advices, most of them to ignore these jerks and so they would leave him alone eventually, and Spyro was glad that he had found at least one person that seemed to like him.
However, soon they were done, and she in time to go, and she bit him a quick goodbye, and she said, "The classes will start soon. You better go before the bell rings again." She smiled at him, and she finished, "I hope we can be friends."
The smile she gave made Spyro feel like his legs were made of jelly, and he could only nod at her, as it seemed that he had lost his voice, and soon, she was walking away, and leaving Spyro alone, before he too had decided to go, following her advice, and walking in direction to the school, aiming to get in time for the next class before the bell rang.
As he walked, Spyro could feel the other young dragons casting him glares and whispering among themselves as he passed. That was the feeling all over again, now, however, Spyro had a pretty good idea of what it was all about.
It was about his father.
Spyro felt stupid for not having deduced it earlier, and he even felt like it was obvious. It was not about him, but about his father. About what his father did before Spyro's egg was even laid. That was all about him and about nothing more. Spyro understood it now, and he understood that he was paying for his father's sins.
Evilling.
Yeah, Spyro should have realized it in the moment that he read that word. He should've know that his father's reputation was companying him, and that people were thinking that he was just as bad as his father was. They knew his story and they were already expecting the worse from the black dragon only because he was related to him.
Spyro now knew that it was because of his father that he was being mistreated and treated as if he was not welcome in that place.
However, it didn't made things any easier, for the whole situation seemed to be the most unfair for Spyro, and it only made him angry. Angry at them, angry at his father, and angry at himself.
Spyro was warned that this kind of thing could happen. He was warned many times in his past that people could assume bad things of him because of what his father have done long ago.
Spyro always felt a great spite in relation to his father, even if they had never been face to face before, Spyro, just like everyone else, heard the stories about what he did. And of course, everyone knew that he was his son. And since his father was no longer around to receive the punishment that he deserved, it seemed that people were taking it out into Spyro.
The purple dragon could only think on how unfair that was, and how much he wished that it was not like that. Spyro had never even met his father before! He was not like him! He didn't deserved suffering because of his father's crimes.
As Spyro was absorbed into these thoughts, he barely even saw where he was going, and so, he ended up bumping into some other dragon.
Spyro yelped as he had bumped into something that was big, and he almost fell to his rump, rubbing his nose as he looked in who he had bumped.
He looked up at the adult dragon in front of him. It was a male, and a slightly bulky one, of red colored scales, with light-yellow for his underbelly and a orange colored horns in his head. The dragon also had some fins in his face and down his back, and he had redder markings into his scales, seeming to be flames. His tailblade was shaped just like a flame, and it was orange, like the rest of his body.
The black dragon looked at him, as he looked at the adult who he had bumped into. "Sorry, sir, I was distracted."
The adult, however, didn't answered, only looked down at him with an expression that Spyro didn't identified at first, but it was one of seemingly surprise, and then, it was one that was like he was recognizing the young black dragon.
Spyro looked up at him, and he was having a very bad feeling about that look that he was receiving. "S-sir?" the black dragon tired again, and after a few moments, the red dragon looked at him as if he had finally recognized him, and his face was hardening.
"You…" He said, as his face seemed to distort into one of anger, and then, Spyro could see something burning into the eyes of that red dragon, and he recognized it as some short of blazing hate.
Spyro didn't needed to think much to know that this dragon also knew who his father was, and that now was directing his anger to him. Spyro was starting to grow greatly annoyed to that, and he would have made a speech that he never knew his father and that he had nothing to do with him, however, Spyro was unable to find his voice.
The way that adult was looking to him, was different from any look that anyone else had gave him today, even Cyril, the professor, who promptly put him into detention only for answering his question.
No, that look was worse, it had much more hate and hostility in there, and the blazing fury that the red dragons were known for. The way that the red dragon was looking at him made Spyro feel small and fragile, and he felt a deep sense of fear creeping into his heart as the red dragon took one step forward.
"You…" The word was filled with anger and hate that Spyro never had before heard in anyone else's voice. That was more than enough to make Spyro feel really worried. The black dragon was taking steps back as he looked at the red dragon staring down at him with the purest anger in his face.
"W-wait!" Spyro said, feeling overcome with the fear. "I-I have nothing to do with my dad! I never even knew him! I hadn't even hatched yet! I'm not like him! I'm not like-"
However, Spyro's explanation was cut short when the red dragon's mouth started to show an orange glow, as something was glowing inside his mouth. Spyro gasped as he widened his eyes, and before he could react, the red dragon opened his mouth, and flames jumped from it into a stream, in direction to Spyro.