"Eis, what's the deal?" Yerba demanded. "Why did you snap at him like that?"
"What's my problem?" Eis shouted. "What's yours? Why are you trying to defend him like this? Don't you realize how important this is? I would think that I have a perfectly reasonable explanation as to why I am so frustrated!"
"Of course we know how important this is," Yerba said. She paused and then admitted, "Okay, so maybe we've been goofing around a little bit, but that doesn't mean that we don't understand. So maybe you do have a good reason to be angry with us, but please hear us out first."
"Hear you out?" Eis echoed, outraged. There was no, no excuse for goofing off. That was what her parents always told her. Work came first and you could play later.
But of course, all SandWings didn't think that way. She remembered her mother telling her about just how dumb the SandWings were. Of course, they must be. What sane dragon would want to live in a dry desert where the sun is scorching their scales all the time? Eis couldn't understand it.
She would expect such idiotic behavior from Yerba, too. Yerba was immature, irresponsible, and almost certainly stupid.
"Yes, hear me out," Yerba said in a dangerous tone. Before Eis could react, Yerba stabbed her venomous tail toward her face and Eis flinched. Yerba's tail barb was just inches away from Eis' face. "So you better listen before I do something I'll regret."
Eis froze up. You idiot! her brain was shouting at her. Mother and Father wouldn't want you to just stand there. You need to stand up for yourself. Do it so they won't be disappointed in you again. But Eis could believe that Yerba would stab her with that tail at any moment. Yerba definitely seemed loud and rough enough to just murder Eis in cold blood.
"I—Eis, are those bags under your eyes?" Yerba asked.
No, they're not, Eis wanted to say. She bit back the words, since she knew that Yerba would probably insist on it anyway. "Why do you care so much?" Eis snapped at her.
"Eis, I know how much this must mean to you," Yerba said. "It's important, I understand, but look at you! You look like a walking corpse for moons' sake!"
"I do not!" said Eis indignantly. "I look perfectly fine!"
"What?" Yerba said. "Did your parents raise you like this or what?"
It was true that Eis felt exhausted, but it was a feeling that she grew used to. She remembered hours upon hours trying to memorize whatever her parents wanted her to memorize, like history and posture she had to stand in and hunting techniques and all the rules and laws of their tribe.
She spent day and night trying to make sure that she could remember everything well and that she could also be able to perform any physical and mental activity to the best of her ability. Things like "Stand straight, keep your wings to your side, and put your chest out" and "Make sure that your voice could be heard and understood clearly. Don't stutter" were basically drilled into her head right now.
Eis liked to believe that she was a quick learner, but according to her parents, she wasn't quick enough. Now that Eis thought about it, nothing ever turned out right for her on the first try. No matter how carefully she would try not to make a mistake or how much she studied it beforehand, she always got something wrong on the first try.
Of course, that was something that was her fault. Had it not been for her parent's suggestions, she probably would already be at such a low rank right now, which would be shameful for a princess like her. Her parents would surely be eternally disappointed in her. They often warned her about royalty who dropped down to such a low rank and about how they had to live with shame for the rest of their lives. Eis didn't want to be like that.
Stop thinking about that, Eis thought to herself. Just focus on the conversation at hand. Make eye contact and make your voice loud and clear.
"My private life is really none of your business," Eis growled at her. "You don't need to know any details about my life and what I do with it! So just leave me alone about this, okay?"
"Eis, when was the last time you slept?" Yerba asked. Her voice was gentler this time and she moved the tail barb away from Eis' face. "Because I don't know about you, but plenty of dragons snap a lot easier when they're tired."
"Oh yeah?" Eis asked. "And I'm sure that you get plenty of sleep, too. I bet that a dragon like you just wants to go off partying all night and not getting any work done! That's what you would do, isn't it?"
"Eis, I'm...a more responsible dragon than you think I am," Yerba frowned. "I don't think about doing that once while I'm at school, I promise."
"How do I know you're not lying?" Eis demanded.
"Because then I'd be just as tired as you are," Yerba said. "If I didn't know you well enough, then I would've assumed you were out partying all night."
"How dare you!" Eis said. "That is not remotely true!"
"I know it isn't," Yerba replied. "So come on, Eis. Tell me what your feelings are exactly and I'll try to help."
"How can you, of all dragons, help me?" Eis demanded. She didn't think that Yerba could be that kind of dragon for her.
Yerba shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "I might end up surprising you. Just give me a chance, Eis."
The IceWing gave her a wary look, and then she sighed. She guessed that she can't ignore her like she wanted to. She knew that her parents probably wouldn't be pleased if they ever learned that she was talking to a SandWing like this. They warned her about SandWings and how greedy they were, and she knew that Yerba could easily use brute strength on her if she wanted something of hers.
"Fine," Eis muttered. "It's just that I feel as if I'm the only dragon who actually cares about this. Every time I turn around, all of you are just wasting whatever valuable time we may have left." Eis felt as if that they didn't even care about the dragon who could lose their life because of this.
But then again, there was another reason to it. Investigating a possible murder and actually stopping it would be amazing, and it would surely impress a lot of dragons. Eis could seem like a heroine to them. A hero was something that Eis always wanted to be. She wanted to be the best dragon that she could be and she wanted other dragons to look at her that way.
She especially wanted her parents to look at her that way. Eis understood, from personal experience, that it was hard to gain their approval. She was hoping that maybe this could finally get them to see just how hard she's been working and how great she could really be.
Maybe then, they could look at her the way they used to back when she was just a year old. They would look at her with the love and affection they used to give her and they would realize that she had not 'degraded in quality' or anything like that. She was still the loving, successful daughter that they surely always knew. And once she was succeeded with this, then they'll start treating her like that again.
...Wouldn't they?
For some reason, Eis felt as if that this wouldn't go the way that she wanted it to...but still, she had to try, right? Especially if no one else will.
"Alright, Eis," said Yerba. "I promise that, really, we're trying to focus on the case as much as possible. And it's great that you're taking it seriously! There's nothing wrong with that but...well, it's just that you're kind of...to put it in a friendly way, mean."
"And what do you mean by that?" Eis asked.
"Not friendly, uncooperative, likes to chew other dragons out for no reason, the usual," Yerba said.
"Excuse me, but if what you meant by 'chewing other dragons out for no reason' was about Robin, then I'll have you know that I did not 'chew him out' for no reason," Eis said. "In fact, I believe that I had every right to do so! He was just lazing around with you guys when there is something important going on!"
"Actually, he was planning to go do some more investigating tonight," Yerba said. "He had a plan for what he wanted to do for that, but you cut him off before he could tell you anything about it."
Eis opened her mouth slightly, and then she closed it. She tried to ignore the small worm of guilt that was now squirming around in her stomach. Was that really what he was going to tell her before she shouted at him?
But still, surely she was still justified in berating him, right?
"Eis, please, you shouldn't do that to your friends," Yerba said.
"Friends?" Eis scoffed. She didn't want to show Yerba the growing feeling of guilt that she felt. "I didn't come here to make friends!"
"Then what did you come here for?" Yerba asked. "You don't strike me as the type who would just leave her home behind just to come to a place full of dragons from other tribes."
She thought about it. What Yerba said was true. Eis was actually quite wary at first of arriving here, and she definitely missed the Ice Kingdom. She missed the snow and the beautiful palace she lived in and the way that everything there seemed so wonderful and pretty without going overboard. But there was certainly something that she wanted by coming here.
"Okay, so maybe I did come here to become friends with someone," Eis admitted. North didn't count. He wasn't a bad dragon, but he got on her nerves a lot.
"Then why are you acting like this to dragons who actually want to get to know you?" Yerba questioned. "It's not going to be the end of the world to even try to open up to them more. They all want to get to know you, me included."
"Well, it's just a skill that I was never taught," Eis replied. "Befriending other dragons has never been at the very top of my priority list, see. I usually have more important things to do than that."
"If that's the case, then now you have time," Yerba said.
"What about the mystery?" Eis asked.
"Eis, when was the last time you've slept?" Yerba questioned. Eis felt her heart drop at that. She was afraid that she was going to ask her that.
"So...it may have been a while since I've slept," she answered. It wasn't as if she could just sleep easily knowing that a dragon could just pop out and murder someone else at any point in time. "What happens if I'm sleeping? I could probably miss something that would be very critical to solving this mystery."
"Look, Eis," Yerba said. "It's probably best if you slow down, even for just a little bit. I know that this is important. I understand why you're so serious about this, but you're not going to help anyone if you wear yourself out like this."
"But—" Eis began.
"No," Yerba interrupted. "You're going to get some rest whether you like it or not. You have to. I'm sure that you just don't want anyone to die while you know that it might happen, and I understand. It's not wrong to want to help others. In fact, it's great! But taking care of yourself isn't bad, either. It's okay to take care of yourself and make sure that you're alright. It's not selfish and no one is going to drop dead the moment that you slow down."
Eis blinked at her. That wasn't something that she heard everyday. Really, she was pretty sure that she never heard anyone say it to her before. And she did have to admit to herself that Yerba had a point. She couldn't perform to the best of her ability when she's tired, can she? Besides...Mother and Father weren't here, right? They won't find out about this.
Alright, she quietly decided. Maybe just a small nap or something, and then I'll get straight back to work. Or maybe I should take a longer break...would Mother and Father like that?
It wasn't as if they were here right now, were they? Here, Eis wasn't in their presence. They weren't watching her every move to make sure that she did everything right.
So maybe she should take a longer break.
"So take as much rest as you need," Yerba said. "Take a nap, do something relaxing, just basically do anything that would relieve your stress. And after that, you can go ahead and work things out with Robin. Try to come to an agreement if you can."
"Fine," Eis sighed.
"And, uh, sorry about threatening you," Yerba said as she looked at her barbed tail. "Force of habit."
"Force of habit?" Eis questioned suspiciously.
"You don't need to know about my dragonethood," said Yerba with a nervous chuckle. "But hey, if what I did made you uncomfortable, then I'm really sorry, and I'll stop if you want me to."
"Oh, yes," Eis snorted, rolling her eyes. "That would actually be highly appreciated."
Eis spent the remainder of the day relaxing. She laid back and decided not to put so much effort into everything that she did. She kept up this attitude even when it was night and the moons rose high into the sky.
Most other dragons were sleeping. Others were doing some late night studying in the library or clearing their thoughts in the art cave. Eis was one of the few dragons awake at this hour, but she had other intentions in mind.
She knew Mother and Father would feel displeased with her decision to take Yerba's advice, but it was only if they ever found out about it.
Obviously, Eis was quite determined to make sure that they don't hear about this. Or else they'll never let her live it down about how she was lazing around as if she was a mere RainWing, no less admit to being wrong to a SkyWing.
Worried thoughts started to fill her mind. Would they throw her out of the palace if they caught her like this? It wasn't as if she relaxed and took a break all the time. This was only just one time, and it was certainly rewarding, but still...
It was true that she did feel so much shame in it, but surely Mother and Father would understand that she just didn't want to work herself to death, right? After all, they still needed her. Didn't they? Eis was pretty sure that there was still so much she could do for both them and her tribe.
Slowly her worry ebbed away. It should all be fine in the end. She was still going to work hard and she was going to make them proud of her, just like they used to when she was younger.
She had promised herself that her cooperation with Robin, Yerba, Dolphin, and Stormseeker was only a temporary deal. Eis didn't like them much at first anyway. Robin and Dolphin were both clumsy and annoying, Yerba was far too talkative, and Stormseeker seemed unreasonably mysterious to a suspicious degree that Eis wasn't quite sure if she trusted him.
But at the same time, she felt as if she had also grown to quite like them. Or maybe she just ended up growing used to their company. The latter was probably true, but what Yerba had said stuck in her head.
It was hard for Eis to believe that there were other dragons who wanted to get to know her, especially since she's been trying so hard not to get so close to any dragon outside of her tribe. And in the case that she was ever forced to cooperate with them (just like right now), she would keep the relationship strictly professional and nothing more.
And here she was, actually thinking that she liked these dragons.
Not that it was a problem, of course. Eis just had to wait longer, and then once the school year is over and she's free to go home to the Ice Kingdom, she can forget all about them and move on with her life.
But first of all, Eis had something that she needed to make sure that she did first before she could ever get the chance to leave. It was going to be hard for her, though. She didn't need to apologize to anyone (who weren't her parents, at least) often, and she didn't like to. But she supposed that she might as well do this, or else she'll have to live with that irritating feeling of guilt for the rest of her life.
Eis knew that if she couldn't do it now, then she probably couldn't do it ever. So she steeled her resolve and strode out of her cave.
As she began to make her way toward Robin's cave, she took in her dark, yet peaceful surroundings. She personally liked the academy better during night, when everything was quiet and she was allowed to think her thoughts without there being much chance of anything interrupting her.
Of course, there were also dangers lurking in the dark. Eis thought back to the SkyWing that she and Robin had seen roaming these mountainous halls not too long ago, and she wondered if he was back here again.
Eis made a mental note to herself to try and keep an eye out for anything suspicious while she was on the way toward Robin's cave. She was hoping that she'd be able to find something helpful on the way there, even though she prioritized her talk with Robin first.
So it did come as a bit of a letdown to her that she didn't find anything quite as useful or mysterious or interesting as she had hoped by the time that she came to a stop in front of the cave.
Well, it's either go back and try to find something I might not find or have that talk with Robin, Eis thought.
Eis was very tempted to just go back and investigate and leave that talk for another day. She couldn't see the harm in that.
But then again, Yerba also wanted her to work things out with Robin, and Eis was pretty sure that she wouldn't be pleased if she skipped it. But why should I care? Eis thought to herself irritably. She was a princess while Yerba was a lowly SandWing. Eis should be able to do whatever she wanted.
Not that she thought that Yerba would care, of course. If anything, Yerba struck her as the type who would do whatever she was in the mood for whenever she felt like it. Eis swore that that dragon had no sense of order and poise.
Still, Eis supposed that she, for some unfathomable reason, had to do it. Yerba was expecting her to. Or maybe she wasn't.
Oh, Eis can easily imagine it. Yerba thinking that she wasn't going to go talk and apologize to Robin just because she was overly stubborn. Hmph! Eis would prove her wrong!
The IceWing took a deep breath and then she went inside.
The first thing that Eis noticed were the sleeping dragons within the darkened cave. Yerba, Dolphin, Stormseeker, and Robin were all snoring away peacefully. It had taken Eis a moment to spot out Stormseeker, which didn't come much of a surprise to her as she knew that NightWings can camouflage themselves well in darker areas due to their black scales.
She headed over toward Robin's sleeping figure and she roughly prodded him in the side. Robin's eyes immediately snapped open and he was sitting up within seconds.
"Who's there?" he demanded, his head wildly whipping around. He laid his eyes on Eis and then he gave her a nervous smile. "Hey, Eis," he said. "Um, what are you doing here? I mean, if you want to yell at me more, then you totally can, just, uh, I don't really want that to happen even though it totally can happen, but just—"
"I didn't come here to yell at you, you idiot," Eis hissed. "I came here to...to apologize to you." There it was. Eis was apologizing to him, no matter how much she hated saying sorry to anyone.
Robin blinked at her. It was clear that he wasn't expecting that.
"What?" asked Eis irritably. "I'm not heartless, you know."
"Well of course not," Robin replied quickly. "But it's just that, you know, you seemed to be so sure about what you thought and all, and I thought you were right, and I wanted to make it up to you, and I wanted to go out tonight to find stuff but then I kinda wanted you and the others to come along too so I won't be alone, but I promise you don't really have to apologize! I mean, you were actually kinda right, I guess."
Eis wondered if there would ever be a time where Robin was smoother with his words, but what really caught her attention was the fact that he said that she was right.
"Right?" Eis questioned, raising a brow at him. She didn't think that he would say that after what she said to him. But now that she thought about it, she guessed that she should've seen this coming.
Robin nodded, smiling sheepishly. "I guess I was kind of distracted," he admitted. "But I promise that I won't be like that anymore! I'll devote more of my time to figuring this out, I promise! I'll work really hard!"
She slowly nodded at him. "Alright," she said. "But I guess that that still does not erase the fact that what I said to you was rude. So if you promise that you'll keep working hard, I'll try to be nicer to you. Okay?" she asked him.
Robin's smile grew wider. "Okay," he said.
"And...just to make you feel better, then I suppose that you are a...better dragon than I thought you were," Eis confessed. "But just know that I'm only complimenting whatever skill and talent you have. This doesn't actually mean anything."
This didn't seem to deflate Robin's mood. "Okay!" he said. "But I'm preeettty sure that you'll end up liking me later. Unless you're lying, of course, and you actually do like me right now."
He had said that in such baffling optimism that it was hard for Eis to believe that a dragon like him could possibly exist. Why was he so bright and happy all the time? Eis knew that if he kept this up, then it could end badly for him.
But yet seeing him smile like that at her made her feel as if there were bubbles in her chest. She had to admit that she couldn't imagine him frowning and being unhappy all the time.
So Eis surmised that she would have to deal with him like this for now. She already had herself to be able to keep him in line, and there was a voice whispering in the back of her mind that he could help her, too. It was saying that he could help her with his bright, positive attitude and his dazzling smile. He really wasn't like any dragon that she met before.
Then, before she knew it, she couldn't help it.
Eis smiled back at him.
Stop it! the logical part of her brain urged her. Don't smile back at him, for moons' sake! But Eis couldn't stop herself.
Right now, in this cave, her and Robin were the only two things that seemed to exist.
