DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN WINGS OF FIRE OR THE CHARACTERS IN THIS FANFICTION FROM THE WINGS OF FIRE SERIES; THEY BELONG TO THE WONDERFUL TUI T. SUTHERLAND. SNOWDROP IS AN OC, BUT YOU MAY USE HER. (just give credit and all dat good stuff :) PRINCESS NORTH IS ALSO AN OC, BUT I RETAIN RIGHTS TO HER.

Ch. 11

Sanctuary, Winter's shop, a few days later

A knock on the door took Winter's attention away from the statue.

"Should I answer it?" called Snowdrop from upstairs.

"I got it," Winter replied, moving quickly to the door. "Hello – Moon?"

The Nightwing was draped in a traveling coat which was dotted with raindrops. Sun and Lightbringer were by her side, but neither of them looked happy. Tears and rain dripped down Moon's face.

"Three moons – Come inside, it's raining," Winter said, ushering them in. "I have scones somewhere, and there's mangos on the counter – would you like seal or camel?"

The two little dragonets perked up at the mention of food.

"I don't mean to bother you," whispered Moon, pulling the cloak around her. Her stomach was round; it looked like she was due any day now. "I just needed to get away – and I took Sun and Lightbringer with me because I wasn't sure –"

"Slow down slow down slow down," he said gently, moving towards her. "Sun, Lightbringer, if you want, you can go upstairs. Just don't scare Snowdrop; commissions have started to roll in for her too."

"Can we have food first?" piped up Lightbringer.

"Lightbringer," Moon chided. "You're being just like – like –" Moon choked down a sob.

"Shh, shh," said Winter awkwardly. "Here – I'll get these two some mangos and then you can tell me everything."

Moon nodded, taking a shaky breath.

The two dragonets followed him to the little kitchen, where he peeled a mango with his claws at record speed and dumped it (not very elegantly) into a bowl. Sun took it gingerly, then ran off with Lightbringer. The two went into the corner of the small sitting room to eat.

Moon was sitting stone still on the couch, like any movement might send the moons crashing down on their heads. She flinched when Winter reached for her talons, then took it.

"Okay, what's going on?"

"It's – it's –" Moon's voice quavered and a fresh wave of tears tumbled down her cheeks. It was a while before she said, "It's Qibli."

Before Winter could respond, she continued. "He – he had an affair with Ostrich, and she's bearing his egg. I don't know why and I'm so confused – what am I supposed to tell Lightbringer? What do I tell Sun?"

"Slow down," he said again. "When did this start?"

"Two months ago," she replied, wiping a tear away. "I woke up one morning and he was using the skyfire again. He said something about there being a mindreading Nightwing or something who had been hired by Thorn – and I believed him, it was so stupid of me!" Moon started to cry again. "And before that, a few days before, I heard him thinking about Ostrich, and I didn't ask –"

Winter squeezed her talons. "Is there anything else?" he asked.

Moon nodded, taking another breath. "He – he started going out more and more, saying Thorn was sending him on regular missions to the edge of the Sandwing territory, so he'd probably be gone for a while. And the first time he came back after a few hours, but then the trips got longer – a day became three became a week… I tried to avoid it. I tried to get us out of the house together, all of us, like we were still a family. And then I went today to visit the market, and Ostrich was there, and she was already with egg, and I guess she didn't realize who I was or something, and she told me who the father was –" Moon's sob filled the room. It felt too loud, too painful in this enclosed space. Winter's heart wrenched in his chest.

"It's just – how do I fix this? How do I tell my dragonets? My next dragonet is about to be born soon – how can I raise another dragonet with him?" It was then that she finally looked at him, and Winter saw the heartbreak in Moon's emerald eyes. "Can you please just – let me stay? I don't want to go back there."

Winter's thoughts played out in his mind. He'd let her stay. He'd raise her dragonets like his own. Maybe they could mend what they had broken when they were still dragonets, young and naïve at Jade Mountain. Maybe someday there would be more dragonets, his dragonets. And Moon would love him again. Moon would love him. The one thing he always wanted was so close… if he just said yes…

What about Snowdrop?

And suddenly, he knew what to say.

"I'm sorry," he told her, "but I can't. I'd be no better than Qibli then, wouldn't I? You should talk to Qibli, work things out. Maybe something happened to him, maybe he's worried, maybe he's not himself. He must have a reason – maybe Ostrich offered him something he couldn't turn down. But if things still don't work out, I can help you get your own place, or if I can't, you could always go back to the Night Kingdom."

Moon nodded, a small smile emerging. "You've changed, haven't you?"

"I wouldn't say that." Winter paused, listening as Snowdrop's laugh bubbled down the stairs. Lightbringer and Sun were probably up there, and she seemed to be enjoying it. "The change found me first."

"Who was that?" asked Snowdrop as the two of them ate their portions of seal.

"Moon," Winter replied. "An old love."

"Oh." Snowdrop frowned at her seal. "It would've been fine if you had said yes, I mean, I'd understand, I don't deserve you –"

"Snowdrop," he laughed, taking her talons in his. "Everything I wanted with Moon I could have with you." He pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head. "I'd fly to the moons for you – why would I stop now?"

Oops, I forgot to mention the Moonibli dragonets; they're free to use if you give credit. (Honestly even if you don't I wouldn't care lol)

As for the super random "Qibli cheats on Moon" questions, which I'm sure will be inevitable: It was the most outrageous thing I could think of. Qibli is a sucker for animus magic (he almost accepts Darkstalker's offer) and he liked Ostrich well enough, so I just mushed the two into the craziest plot twist I could think of. Originally, I wanted Ostrich to offer him animus magic, but that bred more questions than it answered, so I just left it vague. It was honestly not the greatest thing to do with the plot (Qibli doesn't have much motive anyways) but it's super random and out of the ordinary, so I went with it. (hooray me)