Peril ran her claw along the edge of one of the wall panel, trying to count the little branches on one of the trees engraved into it. Of course, she didn't care about wall art at all. It's just that there was literally nothing better to do while waiting to see Queen Ruby. At least her guards aren't as belligerent as Scoria's, she thought. Yawning, she sat down on the floor and curling her tail around herself. It had been an hour since they'd told her to wait outside, and her legs were getting tired of standing.

Right then, the door swung open, and she had to scramble backwards. The servant opening it shouted as well, jumping in the other direction, and they both took a moment to calm down. "Er… the queen will see you now," said the servant, quickly recovering her decorum.

"Finally," she grumbled, and walked in past them. The throne room was mostly empty these days, with only a small honor guard flanking the queen's dais. Ordinarily anyone who wanted to meet with the queen would've lined up inside, but since Peril was late and also a firescales she'd been told to wait outside. Ruby looked up as she walked in, and smiled wearily.

"Ah, Peril. Good afternoon." She paused expectantly. Despite her misgivings, Peril bowed her head. Neither of them were smiling after that. "What was it you wanted to speak with me about?"

"I, uh…" Remember, Peril, you're trying to be careful. "Can we speak more privately? I've learned some disturbing things that are best kept private."

Ruby cocked her head. "Really, even from my guards?" Peril nodded. "...Alright, we can speak in my quarters. Not like they'd be any more protection than you are." One of the guards raised a talon to interject, then glanced at Peril and slowly let it fall. Ruby chuckled, and stepped down from her throne, leading her towards a blank section of wall.

"Uh, what's…" she started, then stopped as Ruby pressed her claw into the wall and a section of it swung away on silent bearings. She never would've guessed there was a door there; the cracks between the wall paneling and the door were basically invisible, covered up by moulding.

"Servants' entrance, but also a nice shortcut out of here." Ruby clarified, and led them through a dark back tunnel, which was lined with doors and little peepholes. The only lighting came from small pieces of glowing rock, placed along the tunnel every so often and casting the whole place in a sickly shade of green. Peril was glad when they finally reached Ruby's room and emerged back into the normal decor of rich warm colors and expensive metalwork.

"Here we are, then," said Ruby, hopping up on her bed and letting Peril take a nearby marble bench. "What was it you wanted to tell me?"

Clearing her throat, she tried to think of the best way to phrase things. "You know about my encounter with General Scoria and her mate last night, yeah?"

"As does everyone who was there, yes."

"Okay, harsh. Anyway, this morning the HiveWing diplomat, Anopheles, asked me to fly to Scoria's estate and meet with her privately. Which I did."

Ruby reclined slightly, tail flicking back and forth lazily. "Well, what'd she tell you?"

"Quite a bit. Apparently, she's not as loyal as you might have suspected. In fact, she wants to get rid of you, because you're not 'strong enough' or something."

"I'm aware of that, though it is good to hear more confirmation. There are some advantages to having a mother as controlling as mine; you end up knowing a lot of spies."

Peril cringed, remembering all the times Scarlet had seemed to know what she was up to before she did. Were the peepholes around back then too? "...yes. And, er, she wanted me to, y'know… do it."

"Kill me?" Ruby asked, narrowing her eyes but not lifting her head from the cushions.

"Well, challenge you, but… yes, if it came to it." Ruby's claws bit into the bedspread and Peril lifted hers in front of her defensively. "I would never-"

"Of course not." The tension vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and Ruby sighed. "I suppose the doctrine of Soror Avita could apply, yes. If one were to assume that I wasn't a proper heir."

"Wait, how would that work?"

The earring still stuck in her ear jingled slightly as Ruby brushed a claw against it. "Well, I wasn't exactly born to Queen Scarlet, was I? Still, I could always take the earring off. Unless someone found a firescales to kill me first, I suppose."

"Uh…" The bench under Peril suddenly felt very cold. She drew her wings in, shrinking down towards the floor.

"Don't be so worried, I understand the situation. It's unfortunate that you got dragged into the middle of this as soon as you returned to my kingdom; it wasn't my intent. Do you think you can avoid Scoria?"

Peril straightened, letting confidence show through her posture."What's she going to do to me? I'm a firescales; no dragon alive can make me do something I don't want to."

Also rising to a crouch, Ruby scratched her chin. "Quite so. Now, I can't have her arrested as long as she's hiding out in that ironwork monstrosity she calls a house. Do you know of any associates who might be aware of her plan?"

"Anopheles-"

"-has diplomatic immunity and possibly some kind of fiendishly toxic venom, so he's out of the pen."

"Okay. Scorch is Scoria's mate and probably knows something about the plan, but I dunno how much. Isn't he just downstairs in the hospital, though?"

Ruby whispered something unprintable. "Not anymore. He was moved just this morning, on the personal request of, who else, General Scoria." She flopped back down to the bed. "Ugh. Is there anything else you heard that might be actionable?"

"Well, Clay did some snooping for me while I was in the meeting, and apparently I'm not Scoria's only plan. Someone or something else is her backup, but we don't know much about it apart from that it needs to be fed and kept under guard." Peril scratched her neck. "Does that help?"

"Not especially. I'd imagine she thinks she's got another heir, but who knows. Could be one of Blister's dragonbite vipers, too. Always a popular choice for regicide." Ruby shrugged.

A flicker of flame crossed Peril's claws. "How can you be so relaxed about this? Your life is at stake!" she shouted, then blushed and covered her mouth.

The queen took no offense. "It's part of the job, dear. We all have to die someday, and I'll likely bite it earlier than most. At least I can do some good before I go."

"That's morbid." Reminds me of how I used to think. Who cares about the winner, as long as it's a good fight for Scarlet?

"I suppose it is," replied Ruby, looking truly concerned for the first time. "Stay away from Scoria, okay?"

"Of course, but-"

"I'll turn a blind eye to any 'accidental burns' that may befall her cronies, okay? Don't kill any of them." Ruby stood up and began moving back to the servants' entrance. I guess we're done talking, then. Didn't really accomplish much. The hidden door clicked open and they plunged back into the tunnel beyond. "Also, congratulations on mating with Clay."

The rocks wobbled beneath Peril and she fell, sprawling in the tight confines of the tunnel. "W-what does that mean?"

"Well, I'm not sure why else he'd be following you around, unless you were carrying his eggs. That's the usual SkyWing way, at least, though maybe MudWings are different." Ruby extended a claw to help Peril up before realizing her mistake and pulling it back.

She pried herself off the floor unaided, and tried to explain: "We-we're close, but we're not that close. Clay and I stick together because we're… in love with each other? Isn't that usually how these things go?" Probably not the best time to explain that Clay would carry my eggs, either.

"Oh, I see. Mating for love…" she said, in the same tone one would say "talking to scavengers", and shook her head sadly. "Well, if anyone could make it work, a dragonet of destiny could."

Peril huffed, forgetting for a moment that this was the queen. "What am I, chopped cabbage?"

Her claw already on the handle of the throne room door, Ruby paused and let out a bark of laughter. "You too, yeah."

Something came to Peril, very suddenly. "Actually, you shouldn't worry about me becoming queen."

"Oh?" Ruby took her talons off the handle, which was a relief. The last thing Peril wanted was to discuss this in full view of everyone. "And why is that?"

"Well, I'm…" Stars, it really doesn't get any easier, does it? "I wasn't born female."

"Wait, how does that work? Did someone put a spell on you?" Leaning in, Ruby checked her for suspicious jewelry.

"No, I have a natural female mind, or soul, or whatever, but a male body. It makes me really uncomfortable to be called by male pronouns or seen as a male though. Still, if it came down to it I think I could make the case that… what are you staring at?"

There was a short, sickening silence. "I see it now, yes. Hah, to think I'd been fooled. Once you know, you barely look female at all."

The tunnel dimmed even more as smoke streamed off of Peril's scales. "Did you even hear what I said? I am a dragoness!""

"No, you're a drake who likes being called a dragoness. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but some of us have to be preoccupied with reality, and the reality is that you're not a dragoness and you never will be. I suppose Scoria had no trouble believing you, though."

Is she implying that I'm only trans because it'll help me be queen!? "No she didn't but that's not-that's not the point, okay?"

"Sure it isn't. Well, it's a relief to hear that I really don't have any other competition right now." Ruby turned away from her and pushed through the door. She'd hopped up into her throne before Peril could get through, and stared down imperiously at her.

"You're missing the point! Just because I wasn't born the same way you were doesn't mean I don't deserve respect!"

"Whoever said I didn't respect you? I'm just stating facts. As I expect you to do the next time Scoria pesters you. Man up, and all that."

"Agh! You don't get it!" Peril shouted, and the guards leveled their spears at her, looking a bit confused.

Ruby sighed. "You're acting like a dragonet." Peril's tail left flaming trails in the air as it whipped back and forth, and she growled at the queen. "Okay, I think you need some time to cool off. Guards, get this drake out of here."

Now the guards were giving Ruby their confused looks. "Uh, what drake? I only see Peril." A low hiss echoed from the room. In Peril's limited experience, Ruby had never looked more annoyed than she did now. "Fine, whatever." Spears lowered, they began to push toward Peril. She blew a cloud of smoke from her nostrils. "C'mon, I don't want to stick ya," said the one on the left, raising her spear a few degrees.

Taking a moment to center herself, Peril turned and left. It was only when she was outside that she realized the guard had followed her out. "What, am I not allowed in the hallway either?"

The guard laughed. "No, I just wanted to apologize for the queen. She's been under a lot of stress lately, and Scoria's plot was a big thorn in her side. Any chance to get rid of it would excite her."

Peril drew her wings in and huffed. "Well, as long as she's happy."

"I believe you, at least." The guard moved in to pat her on the shoulder but between the scorching heat and Peril's even-more-scorching glare she thought better of it.

"Why?"

"Well, you're trans, right?" She nodded, and the guard continued. "So am I, I think. I never told anyone before, but my parents didn't much care either way, and after they died it was easy to fill out the paperwork 'incorrectly'. I'm Gannet, by the way."

"That's… kind of a lot to take in."

Gannet blushed, taking a few steps back. "Sorry, I'm just… It's exciting, you know? I didn't think there was anyone else."

Neither did I, come to think of it. I wonder how many others there are, deep in hiding? "Well… there are others."

"Yeah, it's cool! So, uh… see you later?" Gannet asked, glancing down the hallway awkwardly.

"Maybe at the coronation, if I can make it. You're definitely gonna be there, of course." Chuckling at her own joke, Peril took a few steps back.

"Ok, see ya then!" Gannet turned back to the door, but waved at Peril's tail as she stepped back through the throne room door. Peril stared after her for a second, then turned and left, still confused.

Clay was staring blankly at a scroll when she pushed through the door, making it a few steps inside before flopping down on the floor with a piteous moan. "Hi Peril!" he said, hastily setting the scroll down and moving to lay next to her "How'd the meeting go?"

She rolled over to meet his eyes, and they gave her a little warmth. "Argh, it sucked. Ruby couldn't care less about Scoria's plot."

He frowned. "Wait, what? But her life is in danger!"

"Apparently it comes with the territory. That's not even the worst part, though."

"Oh? What was?"

She scratched her neck with a wing. "Well, I tried to mollify Ruby by telling her that I was trans, and she didn't like that. Or rather, she really liked that, she just doesn't care about any part of me but my nethers. As long as it makes me unable to rule, I'm a man in her eyes."

There was no hesitation before Clay covered her with a wing, pressing tight against her and twining his tail through hers. "That's terrible!"

Her eyes watered, but she set her jaw. "It's annoying, is what it is. I don't care about her opinion, but as long as she doesn't think I'm a girl I'm not gonna get any help dealing with Scoria's pestering. Plus, who knows what she'll tell Cliff." She'll probably keep him from seeing me, since I'm so "childish". Wouldn't want any bad influences on the little prince.

"Even still, you deserve respect whether or not it benefits her. Maybe Starflight and I can talk to her about it, help her see the light."

"Maybe…" There's no way that would work. "What were you reading when I came in, anyway?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

Clay reached behind him, claws scraping on the stone as he felt around for the scroll. Eventually he got it, and brought it in front of his eyes again. "Learning to Play the Harp with Limonite. Er, Limonite is a name, I'm not playing it with a rock. Apparently he was a famous harpist." Shrugging, Clay set the scroll back down. "Not a very good teacher, though."

"I didn't know you wanted to play the harp! How long have you been trying?"

"About forty minutes. I went down to the library while you were talking to Ruby and this one jumped out to me."

"Because of the trick you pulled with those wires, when you were locked up?"

He nodded. "The very same. I don't think the harp is for me, though. Maybe I'll try drums; that's what a lot of MudWing musicians focus on, according to Limonite."

"You do have a beautiful voice. Maybe you could be a singer. Oh, I forgot to mention something!" Peril got to her feet very quickly, sending Clay sprawling. He didn't seem very upset about it.

"Yeah?"

"I met another trans dragon!" His ears perked up instantly. "One of Queen Ruby's guards, Gannet! She came to me after Ruby had her kick me out, and said that she was sorry for the queen."

"That's a strange interaction," he replied, prying himself off the floor and flopping onto a cushion.

"Oh, totally, but she also asked to meet me later, at the coronation. It's exciting, right?"

A smile crossed Clay's face. "Totally! I'd never met another trans person before you, and now another one a week afterwards? I wonder how many more of us there are?"

"We might've met more than than that and just not noticed. I'm pretty sure I've seen Gannet before, but it never crossed my mind that she was trans." It sounded like she might've gone through some effort to make sure nobody found out, too, which is interesting. I guess not everyone was raised like me. In fact, no one.

Clay scratched his chin with the rough end of the scroll. "Maybe! It'd be fun to find out. But I guess that's not very respectful of their privacy." Clearly, he'd learned his lesson from their argument last week.

"Yeah, I think we'd all prefer to stay hidden if we could." Peril frowned suddenly, eyes widening. "Stars, I hope Ruby doesn't out me to everyone." It pained her to admit it, but the thought of everyone knowing how she'd been born terrified her. Especially if Ruby were the one doing the explaining. Trying not to ignite the cushion, she sidled over towards Clay, and he leaned over to rest a wing against her.

"If it comes to that, at least we'll know who our enemies are. And you'll always have me." He paused, and caught her by surprise with a small lick on the cheek. She blushed red-orange, staring intently at the floor. Is it creepy that I still really like hearing that? "And the other dragonets of destiny, of course."

"Yeah. At least nobody's figured you out."

"Nope, not a soul. Surprising that Scoria didn't put the pieces together."

"I don't think you ever met, and she doesn't seem to care about MudWings much at all." She sighed. "This conversation just goes to all kinds of cheerful places, doesn't it?"

"Hrmmm… say, what time is it?" Clay asked, glancing up towards the sky before realizing that they were in a windowless room.

"A few hours after noon, I think. Dinner isn't til sunset, if that's what you're asking."

He made a show of shaking his fist at the sky dramatically. "Curse you, linear passage of time!" As the sound faded, he let out a chuckle, and she laughed too. It felt like it had been days since she'd gotten up, maybe weeks. "Well then, want to go for a walk or something? There's not much to do cooped up in here." He stood, offering his claw to help her up.

"That sounds nice, yeah," she replied, taking his talons in hers.

It was a long walk, but not very eventful. The palace sculpture gardens were pretty much always quiet, though today there were a few construction workers around putting up the new memorial. They managed to stay out of view of them long enough to fit in a few more licks, and one accidental innuendo that had left Peril blushing madly and Clay in stitches.

Then the sun was nearly set, a thin rain was pouring down, and it was time for dinner. Scoria, Scorch, and Anopheles were all conspicuously absent, and Peril was forced to have an actually enjoyable time. Clay got a place of honor due to his "savior of the known world" status, which meant she was rubbing shoulders-metaphorically, of course-with a number of interesting dragons. By the end of the night she'd heard more about SkyWing politics than all her time in Scarlet's court, but most of it slipped past her. It was amusing to watch the nobles bicker, though. Ruby didn't out her, either, which was a relief.

More important than the guests, though, was the food. Their plates had been piled high with thin-sliced bits of poultry and pork all atop a hefty slab of direbear, broiled hot and quick for a nicely scorched exterior. He even managed to get a few slices of it into her mouth without burning them to a crisp. If that had been all, it still would've been better than most of the meals she'd taken at Jade Mountain, but Ruby had gone all-out. Watered-down wine and full-strength spirits had flowed freely all night, mostly into Peril.

By the time they made it out of the feasting hall, there was only moonlight shining down through the palace's central shaft. Clay was stumbling slightly as they returned to their room, and she was stumbling more, bumping her wings on lanterns and hiccuping up ribbons of flame. Okay, so I might've overdone it on the brandy. Her thoughts came slowly, like dripping tar, and it was all she could do to keep focused on her lover's tail. A warm feeling suffused her, some strange feelings she'd been keeping locked away started to bubble up. She giggled. "Hey Clay… hey Clay, your butt…"

"What?" he asked, looking back at her with concern. "What's up with my behind?"

"It's really nice… can I touch it?"

He stumbled, bushing redder than most SkyWings. "P-Peril! Stop it!"

She sidled up beside him, bumping her hip against his. "But it is! And it wiggles when you walk. S'cute."

Sputtering incoherently, he nudged her away. "At least-at least wait until we're in our room…"

"'Kay. Oh, there it is!" She grabbed him by one talon and dragged him along towards the door. He kept glancing back as they walked, trying to figure out if it really was wiggling. They burst in through the door and she was already trying to lick him before it was closed.

"Hey! Personal space!" He pushed her back, but she could tell that he was enjoying it.

"C'mon Clay, you know you want me. Why don't you-hic-get up on the bed and-"

Now he pulled away for real, his mouth set grimly. "That's enough, you've had too much to drink. I'm going for a walk, so you have some time to sober up."

"W-wait..." She reached out after him, but he kept heading for the door. Then his butt wiggled right out, and she was left alone. Before long, the strange heats and desires started to drain from her mind, replaced by embarrassment. Ugh, Peril, you horny dumbass. She pried herself up off the floor, rubbing her head. Well, at least we didn't do anything regrettable. Wait, what was that sound?

She rushed to the door, trying to make it out more clearly, and realized that someone was shouting outside. Wait, no, Clay was shouting outside! "Peril-mmmphph-help!" The sounds of a scuffle came through the door too, and she rushed out into the hallway. Clay was on the ground, about twenty feet away, and two SkyWings stood over him.

The smaller one looked over and screamed immediately. The way she flapped about in panic would've been hilarious if it didn't remind her of the arena so much. She turned to her partner, quite unconcerned with Clay: "Scoria didn't say anything about-"

"Quiet, idiot! You want to draw the guards?" said the other, slamming her foreclaw down on Clay's snout to muffle another yell. Seeing red, Peril tried to charge towards them. Her legs seemed to disagree, though, and she ended up on the ground before taking two steps. "She's hammered, see? Practically harmless." The number of dragons in front of her seemed to have doubled suddenly.

"Y-yeah. Just get the MudWing and let's go!" the first one replied, proffering a set of shackles. The other rolled her eyes before taking the cuffs and snapping them onto Clay's foreclaws. He tried to get up, snapping at her claws, but his bad leg buckled and he fell hard onto the tile. A slim blade snuck into the little one's claw, and she prodded him with it. "D-don't make me use this! You're coming with us!"

Even as Peril stumbled to her feet again, he glanced at her and shook his head. "Okay, I'll come quietly." They began leading him down the hallway, blade still drawn. Peril followed, her drunken slalom just about keeping up with Clay's shackled shuffle. Every time it seemed like she was gaining ground, they'd push him forward a little faster. The big one sneered at her once they made it out to the landing platform. The rain from earlier had become a wind-whipping, rain-pounding storm, but her low voice cut through it.

"Well, this has been fun." She set one claw on Clay's wing. "Get flying, MudWing, or I'll break your wings myself." He huffed and did nothing, and she tightened her grip. Thin trails of blood began to leak down from her claw tips. Finally, he relented, letting her lift her claw so he could take off. The smaller one darted into the night behind him, doing a few spirals around his bulky form just to drive home how hopeless outflying them was.

The big one's wings bent slightly under the wind as she stretched them out, ready to take off. Peril kept moving, but the crosswind was too strong for her to make much progress. "You get the point, right? We would've left you a note…" She roared incoherently, leaping forward and nearly getting blown off the platform. Her opponent chuckled. "Well, Scoria will be waiting whenever you're ready. Not sure how patient she'll be with your little lover, though. Eh, not my problem." The kidnapper let out another bark of laughter, then turned and took off into the night after her partner.

Peril screamed after them, trying to get into the air. Her wings couldn't deal with the wind right now, though, and she nearly fell right off the platform. By the time she was back on her feet, all three of them had vanished into the night. For the first time in six months, she was on her own.

Author's Notes: Things are getting hectic, aren't they? Don't worry too much, though, I'm sure Clay will be okay... well, pretty sure. It's all up to chance, isn't it?

As usual, your reviews are adored and appreciated. Keeping up a weekly upload schedule is hard work and y'all give me the motivation to keep going