Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday! Ready for the big switcheroo? Because I'm pretty sure several characters are not.
Today's dragon of the week is Gabrial from Chris D'lacey's The Erth Dragons. Yeah, apparently D'lacey has another series taking place in the world of The Last Dragon Chronicles. This one takes place in the early days of Earth, when a Wearle of dragons from Ki:mera first come to colonize it. I only just started it, but I can already tell that it's more coherent and consistent than The Last Dragon Chronicles. Gabrial is the main character, a young blue dragon who loses his status at the beginning due to a fatal accident that happens during a courting flight. I like the way the dragons' society is shown so far in this book, but we'll see how it turns out.
Anyway, enjoy!
On Friday morning, Ruby made her way to the stalls. It took a few minutes to find the one that had Mudslide's name written on it. Her nose wrinkled as the scent of dirty hay hit her. She opened the door and peered in.
Mudslide was curled up in a ball in the corner of her bed, green eyes narrow as they stared at the door. She was shaking and covering her snout with her paws, clearly trying to block out the smell that filled the entire stall.
"Oh, you poor thing," Ruby cooed opening all of the windows before turning toward the litter area in the far corner. Wet, filthy hay was everywhere, spilling over the edge. It obviously hadn't been cleaned in days. Ruby took a picture with her Scroll before seeking out a shovel.
By the time she was done, a half hour had gone by. She also ended up cleaning and refilling the food and water dishes by the door, which were also dirty. Mudslide hadn't moved, other than cautiously removing her paws from her face. She sniffed the air, which now smelled of fresh hay, and tilted her head. She knew this person. She had seen her partner asserting his dominance over her, as well as several others. What was she doing here?
Where was Cardin? Had he finally forgotten about her? A sharp pang of fear went through Mudslide, and she whined quietly.
Ruby brushed off her pants as she turned to the earth dragon. "Hey, girl," she said, walking over. She stopped short when Mudslide flinched away from her, growling softly in the back of her throat. "Easy," she murmured. "Easy."
It wasn't easy keeping her voice even. In less than an hour, Ruby had all the evidence she needed that something was very wrong with Mudslide. Besides the filthy stall, she wasn't acting at all like how a well-socialized dragon should act. Her eyes were wide as they stared at Ruby, and she let out a defensive growl every time the small human tried to get closer. Has he just been shutting her away as soon as classes end?
Thankfully, Ruby knew how to deal with difficult dragons. She still remembered how scared and fierce York had been when he first arrived at her father's broodery. Remembering what Taiyang had done then, she sat down in the middle of the floor, making herself as small and unthreatening as possible. "It's okay, Mudslide," she said softly. "You don't have to be afraid of me. I'm a friend. Do you think you can come over here?"
Mudslide's tiny ears twitched. This human had a nice, gentle voice, similar to Tank's partner.
Ruby smiled. "You're a good dragon, aren't you? You're not so big and mean, right?" She reached into her pocket, taking out an apple. "Do you want a little snack? How's that sound?"
Mudslide perked up, salivating when she saw the bright red apple in the human's hand. Was she offering this to her? When was the last time she'd gotten a whole apple? She honestly couldn't remember. Slowly, cautiously, she stood up.
"That's it. Come here. Forward," Ruby commanded.
Blinking at the familiar command, Mudslide padded forward, stopping short of the small human. Her large nostrils flared, taking in the crisp scent of apple and the welcome background of fresh hay.
Ruby held out her hand, remaining perfectly still, even as Mudslide eagerly snapped up the apple, scraping her palm with sharp fangs in the process. Poor thing never got a treat in her life, she thought. She stood up as the earth dragon chewed. "Good girl." She checked her Scroll. "It's almost time for class. Why don't you eat some food?"
At the mention of food, Mudslide looked at her food dish. The food actually looked appetizing for once, and wasn't contaminated with the scent of her own filth. Eagerly, she walked over and devoured everything.
Watching the earth dragon licking the bowl clean, Ruby opened the door and clicked her tongue. "Come on, Mudslide. Time for class."
Mudslide took a drink of water before padding over to the small human. As they exited the stall, she caught a glimpse of her partner. Her eyes lit up and her tail thumped against the ground. He hadn't forgotten!
Ruby's eyes narrowed. Of course Cardin had waited until right before class to get Storm. She led Mudslide over, leftover rage fueling her. "Hey!" she called.
Cardin turned around, sneering when he saw Ruby. "Try not to ruin my dragon with your wimpy methods, okay?"
Ruby's eyes blazed. "You're ruining her by not taking care of her. I just spent a half-hour cleaning her stall!"
Cardin snorted. "Are you a Rider or a stable hand?"
"Being a Rider means taking care of your dragon." She pointed a finger in his face. "You'd better be nice to Storm today, because if I get even the slightest hint that you hurt her, you'll be sorry."
Cardin folded his arms. "What? Are you going to try beating me up?"
"Nope!" Ruby said. "I'll let Yang and Pyrrha do whatever they want to you, then build a house of cards with whatever's left." She felt a definite measure of satisfaction at the glimmer of fear that went across his eyes. "I'm glad we understand each other. See you later, Storm!" she called, then turned to Mudslide. "Come on, Mudslide. Forward."
Mudslide hesitated, looking from Ruby to Cardin. When her partner turned away from her with a huff, she sighed. Her wings drooped down to her sides as she turned and followed the smaller human toward the arenas.
"Easy, girl." Ruby reached out to scratch behind Mudslide's ear, only for the dragon to recoil with a sharp growl.
Mudslide's head was still bowed as they reached the earth arena. Instinctively, she snarled at the nearby dragonets.
"Stop that," Ruby said firmly. "You don't have to be so grouchy."
"Hey, Ruby!" Sun called over. He was standing next to Pit, who looked mildly confused, but mostly bored. "How's the monster?"
"She's not a monster," Ruby asserted. "And her stall was filthy."
"I'm not surprised. Cardin isn't the type to get his hands dirty unless he's punching someone in the mouth," Yang said as she entered the arena, gently tugging a petrified Zircon after her. "Look at this! He flipped out when Sage didn't show up. I had to get a halter and lead line to get him up here!" She shook her head. "Chill, would you? You know who I am."
Zircon couldn't stop trembling. Where was Sage? Why was the loud girl taking him to the arena? His tail lashed back and forth as he looked around. None of the dragons were with their partners. What did this mean?! He noticed Mudslide standing by Ruby and nearly fainted on the spot.
Pit sighed, walking away from Sun and gently nudging Zircon's shoulder. It was okay. Storm had told him that this was only for a day. It was another exercise.
Zircon whimpered, shaking his head. He wanted Sage. Where was Sage?
Pit rumbled quietly in the back of his throat. Sage was with Fang, who would absolutely be on his best behavior today. Pit had heard them leave together.
Zircon swallowed loudly, looking around. If Pit was calm, he supposed he could be calm. But what if Fang bit Sage? That would be awful!
While Zircon was fretting, Weiss arrived with Twiggy. The runty earth dragon was walking very slowly, looking around and letting out small warbles of distress.
"It's okay," Weiss assured her. "Nothing's wrong." She shook her head as she approached. "She was looking for Jaune the entire way here, poor thing." She scratched the dragon under the chin and hummed softly, which caused Twiggy to relax slightly.
Mudslide's ears twitched at the nice sound, even as she growled in Twiggy's direction. This was the dragon that Cardin especially wanted her to show dominance over. She had to be consistent.
Twiggy quickly hid behind Weiss, edging closer to Zircon and Pit. At the same time, she wanted to run over and drag Ruby away from Mudslide. What if the nice human got hurt?
Ruby lightly bopped Mudslide's nose as the earth dragon continued to growl. "Stop that," she said firmly.
Mudslide blinked, wrinkling her snout and glaring at Ruby. Why was the small human telling her to stop? She was only doing what she was supposed to. She snarled, blowing a hot puff of air in the human's face.
Ruby glared, her silver eyes glinting in the sunlight. "Don't even think about it," she said firmly. She locked her gaze on the earth dragon's green eyes, not blinking. After a minute, Mudslide sighed and looked away. "That's it," she said, immediately changing her tone to a gentle, soothing one. "Good girl." She patted the side of Mudslide's neck.
Pit, Zircon, and Twiggy looked at each other, eyes wide. What was this? Was their bully actually stepping down to Ruby? What was going on here?
A shadow passed overhead, and Ragnar landed with a thump. Dragonmaster Ozpin slid from his dragon's neck, giving the class an appraising look. "I see that everyone was able to get their temporary dragons out here. Raise your hands if you had a difficult time." Almost everyone raised their hands. Ruby wasn't one of them.
Ozpin nodded. "That is to be expected. Your dragons are used to beginning and ending the day with you. Making adjustments can be difficult. However, there are times when one has to be flexible. Imagine a situation that calls every Rider and dragon to arms. What if one Rider is sick while another dragon is injured? There is no time to get a dragon used to the sudden presence of a different Rider. Lives are on the line."
Ruby raised her hand as a thought occurred to her. "Sir, if teaching dragons how to interact with other Riders is so important, why aren't dragons matched with other Riders when their partners are killed? Wouldn't it make sense, instead of retiring a perfectly good dragon or trying to make a Rider bond to a new egg?"
"An excellent question, Miss Rose," Ozpin said. "Indeed, there are many who advocate for reassignment of Rider-less dragons, particularly to other Riders who have lost their dragons. Unfortunately, there is a difference between having to make a change for a short amount of time and having to adjust to an entirely new Rider for the rest of one's life. There have been cases in the past of dragons becoming unresponsive and disobedient when given to new Riders. Since there is a ready supply of eggs and Dust, the Council believes that it makes more sense to give Riders a new, untainted dragon." His lip curled with distaste, despite his efforts to keep his expression neutral.
"There are cases when a Rider or broodery owner specifically asks for a dragon they are acquainted with. If I am correct, that was the case with your father and Tempest." He inclined his head respectfully at the mention of Tempest.
"Yep," Ruby said. "She's very well-adjusted, too."
"So I've heard," Ozpin said. "Now, on to today's lesson. Since you are with unfamiliar dragons, we will keep things simple. The arena has been changed to one of the most basic obstacle courses. In fact, it's merely a larger version of the first obstacle course the Earth Riders ran on their first day of lessons."
Ruby looked at the course, which consisted of towering rock walls, a hot stretch of sand, a mud pit, and a collection of brambles and thorns. What kind of powers do the groundskeepers here have? she found herself wondering. They keep the courtyard beautiful, and are able to change the arenas in one night!
"Would anyone like to volunteer to go first?" Ozpin asked.
Weiss, of course, raised her hand. "Come, Twiggy," she said, briskly walking toward the course.
Twiggy hesitated, curling her tail around her paws. She was supposed to do these exercises with Jaune. Where was he? Was he sick?
Weiss, realizing that Twiggy wasn't following, snapped her fingers. "Twiggy, forward."
Twiggy jumped, whimpering at the sudden sound.
"She doesn't respond to snapping," Ruby called over. "Remember when you practiced commands on Storm?"
Weiss nodded, feeling a little irritated with herself for forgetting Twiggy's temperament so easily. Softening her voice, she tried again. "Twiggy, would you please come over? Forward."
Twiggy's ears twitched and she slowly stood up. She was used to obeying Pyrrha's commands, as well as Ren's and Nora's on occasion. She supposed this would be okay. When Pit chirped encouragingly, she finally padded over to the wall. At least she knew how to do this course.
Weiss walked alongside the course as Twiggy easily climbed over the wall. When the earth dragon hesitated by the sand pit, she patted her neck and hummed quietly. This seemed to embolden Twiggy enough to quickly dart across the hot terrain. When they got to the mud pit, Weiss grimaced, realizing that her outfit would likely be stained. She was used to wearing lighter colors, as Specter was generally just as determined to remain clean as she was.
What she wasn't prepared for was the end of the mud pit, where Twiggy got out and promptly shook the mud from her scales, spattering her temporary partner from head to toe. The corner of Weiss's mouth twitched, but she otherwise maintained a calm attitude as she guided Twiggy through the brambles.
When she returned to the others, she could tell that they were struggling to keep straight faces. She glared at them, silently daring them to say anything.
Of course, Sun couldn't resist. "Hey, Weiss. You know you got a little something right here." He pointed to his face, his gray eyes glittering with humor.
"Oh, shut up!" Weiss snapped, causing her three friends to finally burst out laughing.
Mudslide snarled at Twiggy, who was sitting far too close. She lunged toward the runty dragon, closing her jaws just short of her face, feeling immensely satisfied when Twiggy retreated.
Twiggy whimpered, running over to Pit. Why did Mudslide have to be so close to them today?
"Mudslide!" Ruby moved to stand in front of the growling dragon. "That's not nice!"
Mudslide stopped short. The small human was scolding her again. She was so confused! She shook her head and sat down.
Ruby's gaze softened. "You poor thing." She gave the earth dragon another pat.
"Miss Rose, would you like to go next?" Ozpin asked.
"Yes, sir!" Ruby replied. "Come on, Mudslide. There's a good girl."
Mudslide padded slowly after the small human, pausing at the bottom of the rock wall. She knew this exercise, at least. She was already starting up it when Ruby said to climb. What surprised her was the praise and the pat on the head she received when she got to the bottom. That was strange. Cardin usually hurried her right to the sand pit.
Ruby guided Mudslide through the course, and was honestly surprised at how well she could do everything. When they reached the end of the brambles, she took another apple from her pocket. "Good girl, Mudslide! Good girl!"
Mudslide's eyes widened. Two apples in one day?! She snapped it up, licking Ruby's palm a few times to make sure there wasn't any juice left.
Ozpin was staring at the two. That's the fastest she's ever completed this course… Shaking himself, he smiled. "Well done."
A few more people went up before Yang finally decided to get her turn over with. She took the halter and lead off of Zircon, who sat on his haunches, wrapping his wings around himself while whimpering helplessly. "Come on," Yang urged. "You're fine. Let's go."
Zircon stared at the course with wide eyes. There was no way he was doing this without Sage!
Yang groaned. Jeez, how is he still such a scaredy cat? "Come on, forward!"
"Sage always talks really quietly to him," Sun said. "Right in his ear. That might help."
"Okay…" Yang sighed. She walked back over to Zircon and patted his shoulder. "Hey, buddy. I need you to work with me. You'll be back with Sage tomorrow, I promise. The sooner we do the course, the sooner you can rest."
Zircon's ears perked up a little. "Sage tomorrow," he understood. He would be with his partner tomorrow? He supposed that was okay. "Course" was another thing he understood. "Buddy." "Work." "Rest." Slowly, he stood up.
Yang smiled, feeling a small amount of pride at getting through to the skittish dragon. Maybe I got some dragon whisperer abilities too. "Forward," she commanded.
Slowly, hesitantly, Zircon padded after Yang. She was loud and bright, but she wasn't bad, he supposed. She was a lot like Sun, when he thought about it. He could listen to her if it meant seeing Sage tomorrow.
"Okay, buddy. Climb," Yang said into his ear before stepping back.
Zircon took a deep breath as he eyed the wall. He and his partner had come out several times now to tackle these obstacles. He had done it with Sage to catch him. Yang looked just about as strong… Scrunching his eyes shut, he started to scramble up the rocks.
Yang watched as Zircon climbed up and down the rock wall. "Good boy!" she praised. "That's a good boy!"
Zircon chirped in response to Yang's enthusiasm, hurrying to the sand pit. The hot sands were every bit as horrible as they always were. When he got to the mud pit, he dipped his front paws in, let out a sigh, then slipped in. When he got out the other side, there was some mud on his snout, which he shook off.
Splat!
Yang's eyebrow twitched as she felt the mud in her hair. Be cool, Yang. Don't think about how long that'll take to wash and comb out. "Good job," she muttered.
When she approached the others, Weiss was smirking. "Yang, it seems that you have something on-"
"I will punch anyone who says anything," Yang said flatly.
Ruby nodded. "It's true. She will!" Thankfully, Weiss didn't say anything else.
Sun was one of the last people, leading an incredibly relaxed Pit through the course with ease. Honestly, he probably could have just pointed at the course, and the earth dragon would have done it flawlessly on his own. Those few extra days of age really do make a difference, he mused. "Good job, Pit."
Pit snorted once, bobbing his head at Sun. This one smelled more like Blake than the others. Did it have something to do with the tail he had? It was like Blake's extra ears, but wasn't hidden beneath cloth during the day.
The lesson ended with Ozpin encouraging the students to seek out their partners and their partners' temporary trainers during lunch to exchange notes. Ruby almost laughed out loud at the thought of comparing notes with Cardin.
I'm definitely checking on Storm, though, she thought. Clicking her tongue at Mudslide, she led the earth dragon to the courtyard to walk around for a bit, then to her stall.
She stopped by Storm's stall on the way to the cafeteria. "Hey, girl. Are you okay?" When she opened the door, Storm practically tackled her to the ground, licking her face and whining. "Storm! Ow! You're too heavy for this! Off!"
Storm backed away, her fins flattening guiltily. She chirped a quiet apology as she waited for her partner to stand up.
"Easy, girl," Ruby said. "Did Cardin do anything bad, or has he been relatively okay?"
Storm tossed her head, growling as she pawed at her left head fin, trying to tell her partner what had happened.
"Your fin?" Ruby touched it gently. "Is it hurt?"
Storm shook her head, pawed at her fin again, and tried to mime grabbing something with her forepaw.
"Grab?"
Storm bobbed her head, then pawed at her fin.
After a moment, Ruby let out a gasp. "Are you saying he grabbed your fin?!"
Storm snorted and snapped her jaws together, pawing at her fin and shaking her head once.
"He…tried to, and you bit him?" Ruby's heart sank. Considering what she knew about Cardin's family, that could lead to a lot of trouble.
Storm leaned in and snapped her jaws shut inches away from Ruby's arm.
"You snapped at him?"
Storm nodded, warbling happily. She was getting better at communicating with her partner. It was a good thing Ruby was so smart.
Ruby shook her head, anger boiling within her. "Don't worry, girl. I'll go talk to him. Try to hang in there for the rest of the day, okay? And don't actually bite him. That's very important."
Storm let out a long sigh, but nodded.
It was easy to find Cardin at lunch, as he was complaining loudly to his teammates. "And then the stupid reptile tried to bite me!"
Ruby stopped next to the table, her eyes narrowing. "In self-defense!"
Cardin stood and turned toward her, scowling. "There you are! Your dragon is insane!"
"She is not! You shouldn't have tried to grab her fin. Don't you remember Doctor Oobleck's anatomy lessons? The ears and fins on a dragon are super sensitive!" She suddenly remembered when Mudslide had recoiled from her when she tried to scratch her ears. "Do you pull on Mudslide's ears too?!"
"Yeah. It gets her to move quicker, and she isn't a whiny baby about it!" Cardin snapped. "Unlike your wimp of a dragon." He paused. "Wait, what makes you think I touched its fin at all?"
"Storm told me," Ruby replied, folding her arms.
Cardin let out a laugh. "Nice try, but none of the freshman dragons are talking yet."
"She didn't have to. If you're smart enough, you can figure out what your dragon is saying without words."
Cardin's eyes narrowed. "Listen, shrimp. One word to my dad, and your wimpy dragon can be sent straight to the pits. If it doesn't behave, that's what'll happen. And you'd better hope you don't somehow ruin my dragon with your hippy crap, or you might be going there too."
Ruby swallowed loudly, but refused to back down. Instead, she raised her voice a little. "Is that a threat, Cardin?" she asked loudly, aware of her friends watching from a table a few yards away. "Because that sounds a lot like a threat!"
As predicted, Yang was at her side within seconds, eyes burning red as she glared at Cardin. "You messing with my sister?" she growled. "Because I will gladly rip you apart and feed you to Fang if you are!"
Russel and Sky edged backwards. Dove became very interested in his food. Cardin, meanwhile, sneered, even as a shadow of doubt flickered in his eyes. "You don't scare me, blondie."
"Cardin…" Dove muttered. "She's not the only one…" He glanced toward Pyrrha, who was in the process of standing up and edging closer.
Cardin noticed this and finally decided to back down. "Whatever. You're not worth it. Today just needs to freaking end!" Picking up his tray, he walked off. Sky and Russel shared uncertain glances, then followed. Dove started to stand up, then plopped back down again with a dejected sigh, poking at his food.
Yang glared after the three while Ruby looked at Dove. "Aren't you going with them?"
Dove shook his head. "I…I really don't want to…"
Pyrrha walked over. "Ruby, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Ruby said.
Pyrrha glanced at Dove. "Would you like to sit with us?"
Dove blinked up at her. "I…" He stared at their table. "Can I?"
"Of course." Pyrrha smiled kindly, waiting for him to stand up before leading him back to the table.
Ruby blinked at Yang, who shrugged. "She's way too nice. I keep telling her." They returned to the table, where everyone was looking uncertainly at Dove.
It was Scarlet who lifted the awkward cloud. "Hey, Dove. You can sit here. How's Nimbus been treating you?"
"Um, fine. Are his eyes always like that, though?"
Ruby followed Yang to the other end of the table, where she sat down between her and Weiss. The others smiled at her before gradually returning to their conversations. Most of them were taking Ozpin's advice and comparing their experiences with their dragons.
"So, how is Mudslide?" Jaune wondered. "Has she tried to bite you yet?"
"Not really," Ruby replied. "She seems really uncertain and scared. I scolded her for trying to bite Twiggy, and she got really confused. She's definitely not a bad dragon."
Jaune sighed. "She deserves better."
Blake nodded. "There are no bad dragons, only bad Riders. I'm sure of that."
"Definitely," Ruby agreed. "Get this: Storm tried to bite Cardin!"
"What for?" Sun asked.
"Cardin tried to grab her fin," Ruby replied, feeling another flash of anger. "That's what I was talking to him about. He threatened to get his dad to send her to the pits if she tries to bite him again."
"Why that little!" Yang snarled. "I should've decked him!"
"I'm going to tell Ozpin about this," Ruby promised. "He wants to find a way to get Mudslide away from him, or get them both some counseling." She lowered her voice as she said that part, aware of Dove at the other end of the table.
"At least he's doing something," Blake sighed. "Most people would just look the other way and say 'Oh, it's their dragon, so it's not my business.'"
"So Sage," Yang called over, changing the subject. "Any other tips?"
"Zircon performs best when he feels safe," Sage replied. "If he feels that you'll protect him, he'll be content. Show that you're strong, but don't be overbearing."
"Don't be overbearing?" Ruby let out a laugh. "Good luck with that."
"Hey!" Yang ruffled her sister's hair. "Don't go insulting your mighty protector!"
"I would never think of insulting Pyrrha!"
"Oh, now I'm wounded. My feelings are hurt." Yang put a dramatic hand on her forehead. "I may never be the same. Oh, the emotional scars!"
"You poor thing," Ruby said with a giggle. "How can I ever live with myself after hurting the feelings of such a delicate flower?"
"Damn straight, I'm a delicate flower!" Yang huffed. "My heart is, like, super fragile, okay?"
"Uh huh."
After lunch was their Friday lecture with Doctor Oobleck, who was talking about recent developments in dragon history.
"Initially, it was only sickly hybrids that were culled," he was saying, zipping to one side of the classroom. "However, after the establishment of the Council, and several reports of hybrids losing control and attacking less powerful dragons, it was decided that they all had to die." He zipped to the other side, sipping his coffee. "Riders from the Council's inner circle were sent out. People were encouraged to report where a hybrid may be hiding. Eventually, they were all killed. Since then, the creation of dragons containing more than one element has been strictly forbidden."
Ruby hated hearing about the Purge. The thought of so many innocent dragons dying just because of the mistakes their breeders made was just sickening. She raised her hand.
"Yes, Miss Rose?"
"Didn't their Riders fight back or try to hide?"
Doctor Oobleck nodded gravely. "Oh, yes. As you would imagine, the partners of these hybrid dragons were enraged at this new law. Some went rogue, though most of them were tracked down. There was one instance in Mistral where thirty Riders whose dragons were culled committed mass public suicide by setting themselves on fire." He shuddered at the memory of seeing that on the news. "For a short time, there was an organization dedicated to attacking the Council and anyone else who supported the law: the Draconis Warriors. They were all arrested or killed during the last days of the Purge."
Blake hesitantly raised her hand. When Oobleck nodded at her, she asked: "Were hybrids really more unstable than single-element dragons?"
He considered the question for a moment. "I once had the opportunity to study a hybrid during my early days. She was a water/wind dragon who could make it rain wherever she was." He let out a long sigh. "Such a waste. She was one of the first the Council got. Anyway, she exhibited higher mental functions than non-hybrid dragons. She was incredibly intelligent. If slight modifications had been made to her tongue and snout, she probably would have been fully capable of speaking as well as any human."
Blake frowned. "So…the hybrids were too smart?"
Oobleck nodded. "Yes. My theory, and this is only a theory mind you, is that they became smart enough to question why they were at the beck and call of creatures that were far weaker than they were. Add in the fact that they were much more powerful, and you can see how things would go wrong if one got angry at their partner or their fellow dragons."
After the lesson, Sun followed Blake toward the stalls. "You know, that makes sense," he muttered under his breath, making sure no one was nearby. "Pit's always been a lot smarter than the others."
"As long as he won't become unstable later," Blake said back just as quietly. She couldn't help but think of the White Fang. Had they created a successful hybrid yet? Who was its Rider? Would the dragons Adam was so determined to create turn on the White Fang one day? That would certainly be a nice bit of poetic justice.
Ruby, meanwhile, hurried to Mudslide's stall. "Come on, girl. Let's walk around a bit before dinner."
Mudslide was confused as she stepped outside. What was going on? Cardin usually put her in her stall once lessons in the arena were over. Why was she walking around?
She breathed in the chilly winter air, her ears flicking as Ruby patted her neck. This was…nice.
The two walked around the expansive grounds near the barns. Several others had gotten the same idea. Ruby noticed Ren walking with a very bristly Tornado and decided to approach.
Ren waved as she walked over. "Hello."
"Hey, Ren. How's Tornado?"
"Difficult," Ren said with a grimace. "He is incredibly aggressive! I don't know how Sky isn't covered with wounds, unless he's the only one Tornado doesn't bite."
"Did he bite you?"
"He tried." Ren glanced around. "Also, I noticed something about him."
"What?" Ruby asked
"Look at his fins," Ren said. "Don't touch them! Just look."
Ruby squinted as she looked at Tornado's head fins. She had never looked really closely at him before, due to his love of biting anything that came within range. Now, however, she could see that his fins were a bit droopy. The webbing looked almost shriveled.
"That's not good," she noted. Wind dragons needed their head fins to extract oxygen from the air when flying really high up. The fins passed extra air into small slots near the dragon's ears. They also were used to sense changes in air pressure and detect shifts in temperature.
"No, it's not," Ren said. "You'd think Team CRDL would be a bit kinder to other dragons, since they seem to have handicaps of their own."
As they walked together, Ruby watched Mudslide and Tornado interact. The larger earth dragon was letting out a long, ongoing growl that turned sharp whenever Tornado came too close. Tornado, on the other hand, was hissing and snarling at random, glancing around and occasionally snapping in his sister's direction.
"This really isn't good," Ruby said.
"Agreed," Ren replied. "I will say this: Tornado is well cared for. His stall was clean and his food and water dishes were full. I think his partner's bad attitude toward everyone else is the problem. Or, he could just be naturally aggressive."
"I'm glad they're not all being neglected," Ruby sighed. "I just wish there was more I could do for Mudslide."
"Honestly, I think you're doing plenty right now."
Ruby glanced at the earth dragon, who tilted her head and chirped nervously. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
At the end of the day, she put Mudslide to bed, giving her one last apple. "Goodnight, girl," she murmured, stroking the dragon's head and listening to her slow, rumbling purr. "I'm so sorry."
Walking out of that stall, feeling those green eyes on her, knowing that an uncaring Cardin would be returning in the morning, was incredibly difficult. She realized she was crying and wiped her eyes before going to Storm's stall. She had a feeling that Cardin hadn't let her out at all after lunch.
I will help you, Mudslide, she vowed as she opened the stall door and greeted her own beloved dragon. Somehow.
The next three chapters will focus on the other elements, obviously. I really had fun with these. CRDL is going to play a larger role in this fic than I had previously thought, so I'm glad that I can finally give them some development.
If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.
For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.
Peace out!