Burning Love
Prologue
The bright stars shined with the blue moon in the night sky. No one was awake. Nothing made a sound, except for one loud scream.
It echoed in through the palace corridors, but it didn't disturb anyone. It came from a young girl named Shonen, princess of the Dragons Warriors. Cold sweat covered her body. She got out of bed and went to the window. She examined the stars and the placement of the moon. "It's midnight." She thought. She went back to bed, and thought about that nightmare. That nightmare has haunted her for months now. It was always the same thing.
In her nightmare, a terrible black dragon was chasing her. She was running in complete darkness. When all hope seemed lost, a door appeared ahead of her. It seemed far away. It opened, revealing a bright light. As she ran toward it, she could feel pleasant warmth. ; However, the dragon was still chasing her. She was getting closer to the light. Then a male figure appeared at the door. He was partially bald with only ponytail at the back of his head. He wore the armor of a Fire Nation soldier. He held his hand out to her. Just when she was about to grab it, the dragon swooped down and grabbed her. The dragon carried her away from the mysterious figure. It held her over its mouth and dropped her in. Then all went black. That was when she woke up. After that nightmare, she tried to stay awake but couldn't. This time, she slept without dreaming,
Morning finally came, and she was as giddy as a schoolgirl. Today is a very special day. It was her 14th birthday! She's now a teenager! She quickly got dressed in special kimono and ran toward the dining hall. She pictured her stepmother and 13 half-brothers all prepared for her birthday. She also pictured delicious food, like lots of Ramen Noodles, roast duck, and tons of sushi. Just thinking about this made her mouth water.
When she entered the dining hall, the unexpected came to be. Her family was just having their usual breakfast. They didn't seem to notice her. She didn't even receive a birthday greeting. She approached her step-mother, who was drinking herbal tea, and asked, "Mama, do you know what today is?" Her mother looked at her with a confused look on her face. Then she shook her head.
Shonen didn't even bother asking her brothers. She knew they've forgotten her birthday, too. It was the same thing every year. Her own family forgets her birthday no matter how mush she reminds them.
She went back into her room and stayed there for the rest of the day. In her room, she took out some parchment, a bamboo paintbrush with black ink, and 14 small candles. She laid the parchment on the floor and started painting. She drew a circle and wrote "Happy Birthday, Shonen" inside it. She placed the candles around the circle and lit each one. She waited until it was at least a minute to midnight.
When it reached that time, she said, " I wish my family could just give me at least one gift." Then she blew the candles. A few seconds later, her mother came in. she was holding a small, Chinese box. She gave it to Shonen, and said, "Happy Birthday, child." She smiled at her and left the room.
This was literally a last-minute gift. Shonen opened the box and inside was a small cup filled with a silver, thick liquid. Next to it was a small piece of paper. It read: "Today, you're a teenager. Tomorrow, you're a dragon." She quickly drank the liquid, even though it tasted bitter. This was the Dragon Initiation. She just drank dragon blood. She knew she'll receive new powers and her fire bending will enhance greatly. Not only that, her appearance will change. She went the mirror and examined her current appearance. She was fairly short. Her short, black hair with red highlights was pretty messy, and she may be 14, but she still has a flat chest. She quickly went to bed and hoped for the best.
It was finally morning. When she woke up, she noticed her bed was small and her kimono didn't really fit her. She quickly ran toward the mirror, and noticed big changes in her appearance. Her hair nearly reached her thighs. She was taller by a foot. Her hips were much wider. Her waist got thinner, and she's no longer a flat chest. She grew up. She's finally a full-fledged Dragon Warrior!