"Okay. With this there's only one more mushroom to find," said a cheery voice directed to absolutely no one.

The owner of that feminine voice was a happy dragoness by the name of Ember, who stored a small blade made for herbalism inside a thin leather bag suspended just above her front legs.

It had been a year since the defeat of the Dark Master known as Malefor by the paws of two legendary dragons who worked together to end his reign of terror, never giving up hope of saving billions of lives. The pink dragoness exploring the jungles outside of the Dragon City was one of many who were thankful for their determination and bravery during the dark years of constant war and suffering, inside and outside her hometown.

Spyro and Cynder were the world heroes who had prevented the innocents from breathing thick and polluted black air from the constant explosions of the war machines commanded by the forces of Malefor.

Instead, they could now breathe clean and peaceful winds that gave hope for a better future, a time of great achievements for all the races of living beings in the world.

And now, the citizens of Warfang were preparing everything for celebrating those new possibilities. It was a big festival in commemoration of victory, of being alive to lead this new age of prosperity.

"I sure hope I get to take a bath after I return to Warfang. These things pack quite the smell," Ember said to herself yet again, cleaning off a concentration of black spores on her claw that had a strong and unpleasant scent.

Every citizen had a job to do on this eventful day. Some were responsible for ordering the ornaments throughout the entire city, which proved to be excruciating work. Others were responsible for venturing outside the walls of Warfang in search of certain materials, in order to make this first celebration perfect in every way possible.

Ember was responsible for bringing back a list of mushrooms and herbs for the moles specialized in the cuisine, and these moles were far from simplistic creatures. They demanded only the most pristine specimen of ingredients for them to work with. All the fruits had to be in the right season to be harvested. All the herbs had to be in top condition to be used. The water had to be crystal clean and the prey freshly caught.

Ember didn't mind the demand and slight arrogance of the moles. The pink dragoness was always willing to help when necessary, especially when it involved her friends that were going to be the center of the festivities, even if they didn't want to be reverenced like semi-gods. Ember just assumed it was another over-exaggeration from her purple friend.

"I don't know why Spyro wouldn't want us to celebrate his victory. Besides, it's a party! Nobody says no to that, especially me," Ember talked to herself with a small chuckle. She raised her paw filled with spores to hold her laugh and almost joined her mouth to the remainings of the mushrooms she had been harvesting for the last hour. Thankfully, she didn't make contact with her claw, but the scent grew stronger on her nostrils.

"Blegh! I should really clean this up…" Ember stuck her tongue out in disgust, the smell so strong it hurt her nostrils.

"Oh, that reminds me... The last item on the list are blue herbs." Ember remembered the list of items given by one of the impatient moles from Warfang preparing the meals for the night.

"Good thing there are still some in the shallow parts of the lake nearby," Ember told herself once again, but this time her happy tone was slightly changed for a bit of concern. With a last shake on her leather bag after storing the mushroom, she opened her bright pink wings and flapped them. In less than a second, she was already on her way to a lake she knew about to finally collect her last item on the list. Feeling the wind on her entire body, she couldn't help but get anxious about the upcoming festival. The bouncy dragoness always loved to party with the friends she held dear to her heart, which also included the heroes of which this festival was centered around.

"Should I get more jewelry? It's been a while since I used that golden tiara…" She was lost in her thoughts as she continued to fly towards the body of water. Her mind kept drifting about the upcoming event when she suddenly remembered her childhood friend.

"Flame sure seemed blown away when I used it for the first time. I still remember his adorable hypnotized face when he said how beautiful I was." She giggled yet again at the memory with a blush forming below her blue eyes.

Flame was a bright red dragon with golden wings and was the same age as Ember. They both grew up together during the attacks of Cynder, back when the same dragoness was known as the Terror of the Skies. They looked after one another, learned how to fight and use their fire breaths quite efficiently when the apes were causing havoc nearby.

They both had unfortunate destinies during the war. Flame and Ember had to grow mentally prematurely thanks to the situation everyone was in during the time. Regardless, they were glued into each other like trees in the ground. They turned out to be good fighters during the grublin invasion in Warfang, defending the other corners of the city at the same time Spyro and Cynder were fighting the Golem. They had small injuries but proved to be capable enough to watch each other's backs and still fight with bravery.

Even with all of this constant combat and the risk of losing the conflict to the Dark Master, Ember never lost her signature bouncy behaviour. She boosted morale even in the worst case scenario.

As much as she desired to admit it, Ember never really wanted to believe Flame had any stronger feelings for her. It was obvious to everyone that the red dragon who grew up with her wanted to impress her and make her smile because of the strong love he felt for the pink dragoness. But something always clicked in her that made her think Flame deserved someone else entirely, or that she didn't want to disappoint him by being someone he didn't know, someone who wasn't the Ember he always thought he knew.

"Maybe I should be more kind to Flame. Every time he comes to talk to me, he's always trying to call me cute and funny. I guess…" Ember's heart weighed heavier inside her chest. She didn't know what to say to Flame. She didn't even know what she felt towards him. Maybe Ember saw him as a brother, or just a friend she considered worth making happy. There was even a chance that she loved him enough to go a level further and start officially dating him. The poor dragoness was so lost on her own feelings towards Flame that she almost missed the lake that was supposed to have the blue herbs she was searching for.

Slowing her speed in mid-air, Ember lowered her position towards the muddy terrain of the lake.

"I'll have time to think about this later." She said in a more guilty tone this time. "Oh Flame, I just hope I don't make you hate me forever. I like you, but… why is it so hard for me to know my own feelings?"

At Warfang, the situations was feverous. Decorations were being placed in every alleyway with purple and black colours to symbolise the legendary duo, and the Guardians made sure to invite everyone from the nearby regions. From the Valley of Avalar to the Swamp where Spyro was raised, everybody was welcome to enjoy their victory over Malefor. The event would still take two days to start, but the citizens were in such a rush, it seemed like it was going to start in less than five minutes.

As for Spyro and Cynder themselves, they were not feeling very comfortable with the knowledge this event was for them in some way. The two young dragons never liked being addressed with worship, and this whole celebration, to them, had to be more centered into victory, not into seeing them as "heroes." Even if they were, they weren't fond of the idea of everyone putting crowns on their heads.

They still helped with the organization regardless.

"Where are we supposed to store these barrels of flour?" asked Spyro, lifting a barrel that was barely double his size and using his wings for advantage.

"Idor said to store them in that deposit house over there," answered Cynder. She too was carrying a barrel of flour the same size and weight that Spyro was. Seeing how she wasn't able to go far with it, Cynder had the idea of using her wind breath to carefully lift the barrel without sweat. She passed her purple companion, looking smugly at him.

"Hey! A little help would be appreciated!" Spyro said with struggle but gave a chuckle at his companion. That wooden barrel was draining his energy, sweat visible on his forehead.

Cynder, however, just laughed at his miserable attempt while she entered the deposit house. The place had only thin rays of sun passing through the cracks of wooden windows for illumination.

The house was pretty small for a place that stores things. It was dusty and filled with all sorts of food and supplies, from spices to grains and fruits. The flour-filled barrel was carefully landed in a spot right next to a big sack of grains by the black dragoness. She ceased her wind breath and looked back at the doorway, waiting for her purple drake to arrive. As he finally showed his tired body with the wooden barrel, his growls and sighs caused Cynder to fight a bitter battle against her own struggles to hold her urge to laugh. Try as she might, she could hold it no longer.

"Must be a treat to have the elements favoring you, huh?" Spyro said between his efforts and huffs. The barrel was almost at its destination and the purple dragon had had enough of the teasing from his black dragoness partner.

"Oh, you're doing fine there, hun," Cynder teased yet again. She always found him cute when he was pretending to be angry. Seeing his adorable face when she teased him in all the possible ways made her smile way too often through the course of one year.

Spyro and Cynder barely had any time to know each other during their quest to end Malefor's tyranny. The world was at the edge of total annihilation, and time was against them

Once it was all over, and both of them had returned to Warfang, they finally had time as friends. The dragons had met many new friends and familiar faces in Dragon City. They had never seen other dragons of their age except for themselves, but ended up meeting a bubbly and cheery pink dragoness by the name of Ember and a red-scaled dragon with a strong desire to prove his worth to everyone named Flame.

In the first week of their glorious return to Warfang, Ember pretty much tackled the purple hero and was screeching for everyone to hear it. Apparently the pink character was quite the fan of Spyro and she just couldn't stop her enthusiastic speech to him, let alone loosen her grasp around his neck. She was also a fan of Cynder in a way, but she sure didn't slam into Cynder.

Thankfully for them, Flame had come along and calmly unwrapped her from Spyro's body, allowing oxygen to enter his lungs. Flame had apologized before introducing himself and her long-time friend to them, but he was still laughing slightly at Spyro's attempt to regain posture. After the awkward first impressions, however, they started sharing histories of their time as freedom fighters of Warfang, shared what was there to do in the city and helped them get used to life in the Dragon City.

It didn't take long for them to end up becoming friends. Every so often they could be seen flying top speed in the skies of the city, walking down the streets and laughing between their conversations. Cynder and Ember even shared secrets like the dates the black flier had had with Spyro the last night.

The most important thing that happened in the post-war era with Spyro and Cynder was their relationship taking a big step forward. Spyro had heard Cynder saying something when they were at the core of the planet, right after he unleashed all of the powers only a purple dragon could wield. His companion who was a major asset on the destruction of Malefor, the one who gave him support through all his journey, said those three magic words and this was the fire that ignited their love.

Both of them became much more comfortable beside each other. Cynder showed her more sympathetic nature to her mate, proving to have a sarcastic sense of humor but also having a kind soul. She was far from being the terror of the skies like everyone believed she was. Thankfully, those thoughts of suspicion were buried in time. Deep down to where the Dark Master was forever trapped. Now Cynder was seen as a hero, a complete opposite of her former self, and both her and Spyro couldn't be more grateful for all the support and kindness they were giving to her.

Even Sparx, the dragonfly who had never given her any break and was constantly crawling on her nerves, was seeing her more like a friend. Even better, he saw her as family.

As for Spyro, he also opened himself up to his lover. All the tension and concern were results of the duty he had as the dragon of legend. But after it was all over, he returned to the same way he was when he lived on a swamp with his family of dragonflies.

He also always made sure to make Cynder laugh. Imitating someone or something, making fun of the guardians or remembering the things he had made as a child. Even if it meant being the target of her sarcasm, which he gladly returned on the same caliber. They weren't just lovers. They were what some may call "best lover friends." And so far, none of them both wanted anything more than that.

Back to the store room, Spyro was gasping for air after finally putting the wooden barrel on its place of destiny. He faced his back to the container full of flour and sat down, relaxing his body on the side of the barrel.

Meanwhile, Cynder looked at her partner and shook her head in disapproval. But Spyro knew too well what was about to come. "So the all high and mighty purple drake can't take on simple pounds of flour?"

Spyro sighed, already familiar with her sharp tongue. He would be lying if he said it didn't make him love this side of her even more, however.

"Yeah, well, at least I take the challenge." Spyro told her with a grin forming on his lips, then closed his eyes and put his right paw on his chest, his face looking up proudly in an attempt to look like one of those theater actors he and Cynder had seen in Warfang. "I, the great purple saviour of this world, will carry as many barrels of flour as I can, and won't rest until every breathing creature can have enough to bake their own desserts. Even if it takes my life!"

Cynder burst out laughing yet again. She was trying her best, but her best was no match for her partner's attempt to be an actor with such a forced accent she didn't even know where it was from.

"Oh yeah? You know what? Fine. You keep on saving everyone's dinner, while I keep waiting for Ember to return. In my house, with my cushions, and a cold drink," was all Cynder responded with between her laugh. She wasn't sure where he kept this side of his for so long, but knew this was more pleasing than the adamant side of him during the conflicts against the grublins.

"Wait one damned second! I didn't finish yet, my assistant!" he continued, still forcing that stupid accent. He held Cynder's paws, forcing her to look at him yet again. She rolled her eyes, but the smile was never worn down.

"Assistant? Oh, for the love of-"

"Even I, the Legendary Purple Baker, can't continue my destiny without my right paw, the best assistant one could ever hope for. This gorgeous silhouette with soft paws who makes my heart melt is the lady that helped me all this time to fulfill the needs of all citizens!" Spyro couldn't stop incorporating the new character he just made up on his head. He didn't care he was acting like an imbecile. As long as Cynder was smiling, he would keep doing it.

"Aw…" Even if that was pretty much a performance from the purple dragon, Cynder knew that those compliments were real as day. "And what can I do to help, oh Legendary Baker?"

"As my assistant, thou shall verify the flour." Spyro was swinging his tongue like a flag on the wind, his mouth full of stereotype in each word he was saying. He proceeded with this fake behavior, taking a big chunk of flour from the barrel with his right paw and presenting it to Cynder.

"What do you see here, my lady?" He was prepared to prank his companion by blowing the flour on the black scales of her face. He was even more anxious when he saw her getting even closer to his paw with a mountain of white fuzz.

Cynder was wearing a confused look, eyeing that big pile of flour like someone trying to understand a map. That was, however, until she had spoken. "What I see…"

With her wind breath charged and her body trembling on the inside with anticipation, she let out a quick breath of wind and the flour flew right onto her lover's eyes. "Is a purple lad in the need of a shower now!" she finished half screaming, letting herself loose on laughter after seeing the shocked expression on Spyro and his paws wiping the white ingredient from his face quickly.

"Is the flour good enough, mister baker?" She kept on laughing and eventually she had landed on the floor with her lungs in dire need for oxygen. "Y-you should… you should see your face, love!"

Spyro was replacing his shocked expression with a more devious one. His face still had small bits of flour on his scales and his evil grin was forming slowly on his face with his eyes aiming at the black figure on the floor regaining her composure. Lowering his head to show more menace, Spyro was watching Cynder like she was prey now, and was walking at a very slow pace in her direction.

"Ha… That was a good one…" At last Cynder's laughter died down, but she was still lying on the floor. Once she raised her sights on Spyro, she saw a different image than the surprised face full of flour from moments ago.

"Uh… Babe? What is it?" She got a small lump on her throat when she laid eyes on her dragon. Putting more strength on her four legs to get up, Cynder was starting to understand what Spyro was planning to do. He had done this way too many times when she was laughing like this - giving her an excuse to laugh even more.

"Come here," Spyro said quietly, increasing his pace his grin becoming even larger.

"No… no!" Cynder was on all fours again and was making a run to the exit door. If only she was faster, Spyro wouldn't have tackled her onto the ground and locked her up with all of his body on her right side. With some bags of rice to soften the fall, Spyro had the perfect opportunity for his revenge.

"I'm gonna give you something to laugh at, lassie," he whispered in her ear. And so, with no place to escape from, Cynder returned to laughing uncontrollably until her eyes began to show tears. Spyro's paws were forcing her sides and he was giving her small but firm scratches, making her whole body tremble like a fish out of the river.

"STO-O-O-O-O-OP!"

It stayed like this for a whole minute.

"Enough… please… I'm gonna… pass out," was all Cynder could say with her oxygen stolen by the deadlock and the tickles from Spyro. She had her tongue hanging from her mouth and she was looking at the ceiling with her eyes half closed. The black dragoness was cursing under her breath for letting Spyro discover the weak spot on her body all those months ago. Ever since then, he would always tease her with this new-found entertainment.

Cynder's vision got a bit blurry thanks to the tears that had formed in her eyes with all the laughter. She cleaned her eyes with her left paw, but this brief moment was enough for Spyro to be on top of her this time. Wearing a kind smile and caring eyes, he surprised Cynder with his quick maneuver. He lowered the upper half of his body so that it made full contact with her curves.

Cynder welcomed his actions by purring with her head below his chin. She always felt so relaxed when feeling his muscles pressed on her like a blanket made from the best wool in the world. The heat from his body, the beat of his heart. Everything she could feel when embracing him made her feel like she was resting on the clouds. She never thought she would feel like this before. With another dragon was even more impossible to her. But there she was, enjoying every single moment with her beloved dragon. Hugging him and moaning with satisfaction.

"You're such a misbehaved boy," she said calmly giving him some small taps on his shoulder, as if she was just waking up.

Spyro was eye to eye with her now, both smiling with passion.

"And you are quite the cheater, lassie," he whispered back in the same tone.

The heat was increasing inside the storage house. The two lovebirds where radiating heat like a star, and it only got hotter when the dragons pressed their lips on each other.

Moans and sighs were all the sounds coming from the storage house. Spyro and Cynder had their entire bodies pressed on one another and their paws were firmly holding their partner's back. They always found time to share their love even during tasks, and none of them gave much mind if someone could see them. They wanted to enjoy every bit possible of peace.

It didn't take long, however, for their passion to be interrupted with a swing of the door and a gasp from the outside.

"Oh, for the love of-"

Spyro and Cynder broke their kiss, but still had their passion-filled expressions when they looked in the direction of the new open door that led to the outside world. There stood a red figure with golden wings and horns with no curves whatsoever. Flame slapped his forehead with his paw at the sight of his friends making out on the bags of rice that were supposed to be used on the celebration that week.

"Note to self: keep away from the rice," Flame murmured loud enough so the other two dragons could hear it. He moved inside the building with a basket held on his arm and inside there was a big quantity of vanilla flowers. Flame deposited the basket on the ground but made sure it was bent towards the wall so the flowers wouldn't fall.

Spyro and Cynder were already on the normal stand when Flame turned towards them. "At this rate, you're gonna contaminate everything," the red drake said with a huff coming out of his nostrils. "I'm surprised all of this lustrous adventure didn't end up on pregnancy yet."

"Oh? And where are you and Ember's misadventures gonna lead you, sir?" Spyro asked with eminent sarcasm in his tone and a frown formed on his forehead, getting Cynder to quickly look elsewhere, her sudden movement clearly indicating that Spyro was throwing salt on a wound. "Cuz so far, all I see is that it's gonna lead to the line proceeding and you with a broken heart."

"Yeah, ha-ha. It's not like I've been trying to bleed my freaking heart out for her for the last decade." Flame shot back with a mix of annoyance and sarcasm. It was true. Flame had been building his guts in order to confess to Ember his true feelings for a very long time. He wasn't sure what her reactions meant, however. She would either laugh it off, call him cute or give him a peck on the cheek, but never officially respond to him if she felt the same way or not. As if she was enjoying delaying it as much as possible.

"Come on, Flame. Don't be so hard on yourself. You just need to man up and straight up tell her," Cynder told him, seeing how frustrated his face was now. She gave him a confident smile to show she wasn't being sarcastic this time.

"I don't know anymore." Flame sighed and looked down, sadness starting to build up in his voice. "Why am I even continuing like this? I feel like I'm losing my time like an imbecile, following her like a cub and always breaking my face in the end."

None of the other two dragons had ever heard Flame speaking like this before. Spyro even felt sorry for what he had just said. It's true he had been trying to confess to her ever since they first met them a year ago, and that he told them he had been trying in a vain way before that. That would make anyone's patience run thin.

As a close friend of Ember, Cynder knew she never wanted to cause him any harm. She even asked her what the pink female felt for Flame. Ember told her how she wasn't sure how to tell him that she was afraid of not being what he expected or that she didn't know what she truly felt for him. However, Ember had told her that Flame was attractive in a lot of ways.

It was with this thought that Cynder decided to break the girls code and tell him this one thing to make him feel better. It wasn't right to tell him secrets, but the poor guy deserved it.

"Hey Flame." Cynder began after an awkward silence, her smile still sympathetic. "I shouldn't be telling you this, but Ember said to me she finds you really attractive."

Flame wasn't ready for this comment. He lifted his head again to look at Cynder and he saw her winking.

"Is this true or are you just saying that to make me feel better?" The red flyer asked, his surprised look still pretty evident.

"It is true, silly." Cynder chuckled at the sight of him. "It was two months ago, I think. She told me how your eyes are pretty, your body is well-built…"

She proceeded to tell him everything she could remember about that conversation she had with his crush. She then finished by telling him something she remembered that made her give a devilish chuckle at Ember in that day. She put on her most lustful face and talked like she was teasing her boyfriend yet again. "And to top it all off, she said you have a nice flank."

If his burning cheeks couldn't be seen before, now all of his face was hot-pink. Was Cynder really telling him the truth? Should he stop being so defensive and jet towards the offensive? He attempted to hide his burning face from both of them, but even a smile was pulling at his lips without him realising it.

This time, it was Spyro who spoke "I have to agree with her on that part." He said biting his lips and eyeing Flame's lower body.

When Flame heard this sentence coming out from his purple friend, his eyes went so wide that his pupils almost disappeared looking at him.

"The fuck!?" Flame jolted backwards, hiding his flank with his wings and looking rather scared at the purple dragon giving him hungry looks.

"Hey dude, relax! I'm just messing with you," he explained immediately afterwards, but it was impossible for him to hold onto his urge to laugh. "But really now. Cynder just told you all of that. The chances are all in your favor. Go get her, tiger."

"I… W-what if she says no? All of this would be for nothing…" Flame said slightly sad this time, but not on the same level as before.

"Seriously, Flame. Didn't you just listen to what Cynder said?" The purple dragon was determined to give Flame his much-needed confidence. He moved over Flame and grabbed his shoulder, giving it a small shake in order to make the red dragon face him. "If you don't, someone else will take your place. Is that what you want?"

"No," Flame said, much more firmly than expected.

"Okay, fine. I'm gonna tell her today. Right after she returns." Like a swing of a magic shaft, Flame was adamant and sturdy. Ember was going to hear everything whether she liked it or not. His nervousness eventually pinched his stomach, but his confidence took care of it and he was ready for anything.

"Now we're talking." Cynder affirmed in a louder tone like a leader. "You go there and don't hold back anything."

All Flame did was nod his head with determination. Everything was already planned in his head on how he was going to do it. It had to work this time. It would work!

"Speaking of which, shouldn't Ember be back by now?" Spyro turned his head to look at Cynder, who shrugged at the question made by him.

"Strange... Where could she be?"

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

Ember was sitting right at the edge of the shimmering water from the lake known to have plenty of blue-colored herbs, only to find there were no herbs whatsoever in any place she could grasp. It wasn't totally true, though. There were indeed herbs, but inside the lake. They weren't that deep inside the water for a dragon of her age to have a struggle trying to take them.

"This is a joke… It has to be!"

Ember had her heart pounding her ribs from the inside like a hammer, her veins cold like ice. Her whole body was shaking like an abandoned hatchling lost during winter.

The reason Ember was so frightened to dive and get the herb was one that she kept to herself forever. Not a single living creature knew of the condition the pink dragoness had had for a really long time that made every fiber of her body get tense whenever she got near a deep body of water.

She was afraid of water. Or scientifically speaking, she had hydrophobia.

Whenever she was invited for an event or just to hang out with friends that involved pools, lakes, rivers or the ocean, she always found an excuse to not make a presence there or at least keep far away from the water. Nobody seemed to mind those decisions made by her. They all assumed she just didn't like swimming and it stayed that way forever.

And now here she was with a task impossible for her to complete. Just how exactly was she going to do this? Her fire breath sure wouldn't help her in any way. Now that she thought about it, no other element besides water could help her right now, seeing how water dragons had the unique ability to breathe underwater. It wasn't even that deep. Just a small stretch of her hind legs with her head still on the surface was sufficient to grab the herb. For Ember, however, this was out of the question. She would likely pass out just by floating on the lake.

"Should I just say I couldn't find these herbs? They could send another person to grab these… Oh crap." She was pacing back and forward with her eyes facing the dirt.

"I can just say there simply are no blue herbs anymore. Or maybe…" Ember paused her frantic walk when she took a quick glimpse at a big wooden branch next to a bush, giving her an idea "...Maybe I can use that to take the herbs off the ground and make them float."

"Thank the Ancestors for you, mister branch," she said with a nervous chuckle. All she had to do was maneuver the big wooden branch while flying above the lake, circling the piece of wood around the blue plant until it was disconnected from the dirt.

The branch was a little heavy, but Ember managed to get it with ease. She was flapping her wings to maintain a steady frame on the right spot. The circle was made and there were enough herbs inside it. Ember had to force the wood like a lever to make the herbs start to float, and so they did. Doing that, however, made her hind legs and tail go inside the water, making her heart almost burst into a frenzy of adrenaline. She screamed and bolted her way to the dry land, letting her branch sink on the lake, forever out of her reach as she watched in disbelief at her only chance at getting the herbs gone.

She was relieved to find the herbs floating on the surface, though. Her heart coming to a peaceful beat now and the adrenaline felt before was now gone.

"I should really tell everyone about my fear. That way they won't send me looking for these things the next time," Ember said to herself. She took flight yet again and grabbed the floating herbs from the water, shuffling them on her bag.

"Seriously, what exactly do they need these for? I've never heard of any food made with such a thing…" The pink female drake was ready to flap her wings back to Warfang when she noticed something she was sure wasn't there before. It was a shack that seemed abandoned for years. "Huh? Where did that come from?"

The shack was just some feet away from the lake, surrounded by trees and rocks. The roof was made of straws and had big holes in it. The first thing Ember thought was that it was a place used to store goods from a tribe of cheetahs. But even so, if it belonged to someone, it wouldn't have looked that dirty and abandoned.

Curiosity took the best of Ember and she walked to the place that made her mind twitch with anticipation. She really should've been returning to the Dragon City; however, the place was hooking her like small defenseless prey, almost like something was calling her.

She stood at the entrance of the shack, her eyes almost in a trance and her mouth open as if she was trapped in hypnosis. The door was missing and the inside had nothing besides a thin wooden table.

Ember entered the shack. Whatever the thing calling her there was, she was about to find out. She even completely forgot about her task and even forgot the bag of mushrooms and herbs she was carrying.

Now Ember really was in a trance - her mouth drooled when she was inside of the shack.

And now, it was only her and a table in a dirty shack.

She had no idea of what was about to happen for the next hours.