This is the story of a little silkWing who is almost at her metamorphosis day, but when her parents come in contact with the chrysalis and she needs to leave her home to a new strange continent, will she have to grow her wings without her family?
Honeycomb had been two years old when she had seen a HiveWing for the first time. At her school, in Wasp hive, a small class of dragonets had come for a field trip that was well funded by the administrators. She didn't understand why they had to pay so highly for a small class, and why they all left so abruptly, along with all the HiveWing teachers that were escorting them.
Little HoneyComb had scampered after the group to get a good look at them. They had varying patterns, but all resembled the same dragon tribe. One dragonet was a crimson red with black speckles along her spine and tail. Another was yellow green with black stripes on his wings and claws. They were eerily silent as they stood there, unmoving. She had ducked into a small cubbyhole that was used for snacks or schoolbooks, angling her neck to peer at them.
What's wrong with them? She wondered. Why are they just standing there? She slowly crept out of her hiding spot, careful not to bump into anything or creak a floorboard, until she was next to one of the dragonets among the group. This one was a pale orange with black wings and spattered black scales down her neck and spine, her head staring out one of the windows.
Slowly pacing, she saw her eyes were dead white, as pale as the faces of the moons. She shrieked in terror, and the dragonet whipped her head around and hissed at the little SilkWing. Honeycomb bolted out the door, her claws scraping the floor as she bumped against the tables. She heard the faint buzzing of their wings as they left the building, no sounds as they descended the levels.
Now she was five years old, her metamorphosis day was in the coming moon cycle, and she was still hung up on the mystery, she knew that hey were being controlled by someone, but who? Surely not the SilkWings, they had no natural weapons. She flexed her claws and sighed, the silk webbing of her bed gave a soft twang as she adjusted herself and curled her tail around her body.
She heard soft grunting next to her, and peeked open her eyes to see her brother, Dragonfly, twitching slightly in his sleep. He was three years older than her, and had his wings already. His scales were a shimmer of bright caterpillar green faded with darker greens and teals mixed together. His wings were a green so pale they almost looked yellow at times, with splashes of white scales across his snout and down his spine.
He had been assigned to work between the Hives, traveling back and forth to deliver important messages to mistresses, and sometimes HiveWings of the royal bloodline. He would come home every night exhausted and wind blown, but full of stories for her to listen to as she fell asleep. He loved his work and his life, and was more than happy to do the extra work if it meant he got to stay with his family. She felt the same way, Honeycomb was there when he came out of his cocoon, his face alert and enthusiastic to now have wings of his own.
Queen wasp hadn't partnered him with anyone yet, he was too young still to have a mate. Honeycomb remembered the nights he'd spent showing her all the different weaving she could make, he even made her a soft pale blue blanket, saving all his earnings to buy the dye for her fifth birthday. "Hey," she whispered to him, "wake up sleepyhead, your dreaming." "Hmmmmm.." he moaned sleepily, his tail flopping over to the other side of his wings. "Come on, you don't wanna be late for sunrise!" His eyes lifted heavily, giving her a warm smile that spread across his cheeks. "No I do not!"
He tumbled out of his hammock with his wings spread wide to help him balance, making the web wobble under his talons as she hurried after him. He stopped briefly in the kitchen cabinets to grab an assortment of fruit, stashing it in a small woven pouch that thumped against his neck as he went by. Honeycomb darted out the door onto the web bridges that connected the Hives. The morning was still and quiet with a gentle breeze that made the web sway back and forth.
It was still dark out when Dragonfly came out to join her, letting his wings flutter open to catch the wind. "Alright, hang on" he said, spinning moon colored silk from his wrists and wrapping it around her back and shoulders. The makeshift harness was strong enough to hold her in the sky, as her brother beat his wings and lifted off with her in his talons. She gasped as she felt her talons leave solid ground, clutching the silk tethering her to Dragonfly. He leaned over and brushed her snout with his. "It's ok! Your not going anywhere," he reassured her.
"I still don't like it" she shuddered, closing her eyes tight. "Once you have wings, it won't be so bad," he said calmly. They ascended up the levels of the hive, flying higher and higher until they landed on the leafy rooftop. Honeycomb cut herself loose and sat near the edge of the grass patched top, Dragonfly came to join her, twining his tail with hers and resting a wing on her shoulder. Iridescent green scales overlapped with shimmering orange/pink scales, watching the sun peek over the horizon. "This is my favorite part," Honeycomb said softly, the clouds were beginning to reflect the sun in a wave of orange and yellow and pink tufts, matching the color of her own scales.
Dragonfly leaned his lead on hers for a moment, letting her enjoy the bright colors in the sky. He noticed the small shapes of dragons in the distance starting to wake up for the day, flapping wings and climbing dragonets on their way to school or work. That'll be me soon he thought regretfully, checking the time. He stood slowly to stretch his arms and legs, and Honeycomb looked at him with dismay. She knew what time it was, "your leaving already?" "I'm sorry," he said guiltily, "you know I have to." "I know." She looked down at her claws.
He wrapped his wings around her, "I'll be back tonight in time for dinner" he said, she hugged him back. He passed a talonful of strawberries and a few mangoes to her, "I'll try to find you some books today" he said warmly. She stood with him as he started to lift off, "you sure you don't need help?" He asked her, "I can make it down the old fashioned way." She replied with a wave, watching him go. She hated seeing him go, but she knew it was for the best, they weren't exactly the wealthiest SilkWing family in the Hive.
Their mother and father rarely saw them, they had jobs similar to Dragonfly's. They travelled between the hives doing construction work on the web bridges, often staying away from home to finish their work. Their mother lived in YellowJacket Hive before she moved to Wasp Hive to have her eggs, where she met their father. It was always Honeycomb and Dragonfly alone, he usually looked after her (well, as much as he could) and made sure to spend time with her after long work days.
She missed him terribly when he was away, but she busied herself by managing her stall in the market, selling fruits that grew in the small garden in their home and taking delivery jobs for other HiveWings. Dragonfly also helped by giving her jars of his own silk to make all kinds of things with, which helped with being lonely. She looked out at the horizon and let the morning sun warm her face, thinking of the day she would have wings and silk of her own.
-End of Chapter-