Glorious Politics

AN: First off, Happy Easter!

Second, a small announcement: I'm leaving on vacation this coming Wednesday and won't be back until the following Wednesday/Thursday. Normally, that would mean next week's chapters wouldn't be updated (I'm not taking my computer), but I decided to go ahead and get all four chapters finished for posting this week. I'll post the normal two today, and the other two will be posted sometime tomorrow. That takes care of my absence next weekend and commemorates the holiday all in one!

Also, a few people suggested I flesh out Veneno's character a bit more and find a believable background for her. Well...I did that. And it's dark.

WARNING: References to past rape, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and prostitution. Once past that part, however, there's some wholesome Glory and Thorn mother/daughter bonding, so for this one, the good comes with the bad.

AN: I do not own Wings of Fire. Sobek, Mistral, and Veneno are my OCs.

Chapter Thirty-Two:

"Rise and shine, Glory!" The Rainwing Queen groaned as she slowly opened her eyes, her vision taking a few seconds to focus properly. Anemone was standing in her doorway with a tired yet amused grin. As expected, the stuff they had to go over took most of the night, and if the faint rays of dawn's light were any indication, Glory had only gotten about three hours of sleep.

"Why so early?" she grumbled, standing and stretching. Her joints popped, and a sigh of relief quickly turned into a full-blown yawn. "Aren't we just teleporting there?"

"Nope," was the unexpected response. Last night, it sounded like that was the plan. What changed? She didn't even have to ask before Anemone explained. "Thorn made an executive decision after we went to sleep. We're taking a sizable task force with us...for some reason. Something about how a physical show of force was better than a magical show of force? I don't know."

It sort of made sense. If Ruby was scared of Anemone using her magic against her Kingdom, it might not be the best idea to remind the Skywing Queen that an enemy force could simply appear inside her city without warning. The other thing that Anemone said caught her attention, though. "I take it she stayed up all night?"

"Yep, though you couldn't tell. Something tells me Thorn is used to this sort of thing." Glory nodded in agreement. As an Outclaw, she probably had more than her fair share of sleepless nights. "Anyway, we're leaving in just under an hour. Winter and Bloodwalker are both ready to go. Veneno's going to be in charge of our personal guard. Oh, and Mistral wanted to talk with you before we left. By the sound of it, he was angry about something...again."

Of course he was...and she had a good idea what it was about, too. "Where is he?"

"Sparring with Winter in the Arboretum. I guess they had so much fun yesterday that they wanted another round." She shook her head in exasperation. "I'll never understand Icewings, I swear. Any other tribe and those two would still be trying to kill each other."

"Well, let's not jinx it." Sparring was better than whatever yesterday was. As long as they weren't fighting for real, she couldn't care less what they did in their free time. "What about Greatness? Is she here?"

Anemone stood aside just as a call of, "I'm out here!" reached her. Glory walked past the Seawing to see the Nightwing sitting at her desk. Two Sandwings were on guard next to the door with an additional pair standing watch outside. Through the window, she could see another walking along the walkway that went around her pavilion. "Thanks for getting me out of that cell. I may still be a prisoner, but I'd take house arrest any day of the week."

"Hopefully you won't be a prisoner for much longer. And make yourself at home while I'm gone." Greatness smiled in appreciation. "You've been cooperating for Thorn, right?"

"Yeah, I've told her everything I know. Speaking of which...has she spoken with you about it?" Glory shook her head. Greatness frowned and appeared as if she wanted to say something but shook her head. "If it was up to me, I'd tell you, but she explicitly told me not to tell you anything."

Glory shared a look with Anemone, but the Seawing looked as confused as she herself felt. "Why?" Greatness glanced at the Sandwings before motioning for Glory to step closer. She did, and Greatness wrote something on a scroll, making sure to block the Sandwings' ability to see what she was doing. There was a single word on the scroll, and Glory understood.

There was a leak.

Someone in the Sand Palace was leaking critical information to the cult. Knowing Thorn, Glory could guess that the Sandwing Queen was compartmentalizing everything she could to try and find the source. The more dragons who knew a secret, the higher the chances were of that secret spreading. As long as Thorn was in control of who knew and who didn't, she could figure out who the leak was a lot easier.

Still, if Greatness made a point to mention it, there must be something important in the information she gave to Thorn. She'd ask about it, of course, but something told her Thorn would be keeping a lid on it for now, not because she didn't trust her own daughter but because if Glory knew, there was another potential way for the information to leak. It was better to keep everything in the Sand Kingdom until the culprit was found. Besides, Thorn knew far more about espionage and counterespionage than she did, so she'd trust the Sandwing Queen to do what she had to.

"Alright, then. Take care of my Kingdom while I'm gone." Greatness nodded with a slightly forced smile. Glory knew that Thorn would only assign dragons she trusted to watch Greatness, but still...if the Nightwing was worried, maybe she should leave Bloodwalker behind to keep an eye on her, too. Winter would be around, and so would Veneno. That decided upon, she turned to Anemone, "Let's go see what the Icewings are doing, I guess."

"You think we could grab breakfast there? Then, we could have breakfast and a show." Glory snickered but otherwise didn't respond as they left the pavilion.

The activity in the village was considerably lesser than last night, though there were still dragons out patrolling. Most of those were just Nightwing militia, though the new Sandwing garrison was pulling their weight, too. In fact, there seemed to be a lot more than the initial group she saw arrive with Thorn last night. Another group must have come over for the 'task force' she wanted.

Speaking of the Sandwing Queen, she, Veneno, and several other Sandwings were holding counsel in the Arboretum away from everyone else. In this case, 'everyone else' referred to the small group of dragons watching Winter and Mistral spar. The atmosphere was a lot less enthusiastic when compared with last night's fight. Mostly because they weren't actually fighting. They were just sparring. A small group of dragonets were off play fighting to the side, as well, and there were a few other groups of either militia members or Sandwing soldiers who were training.

Glory couldn't help but whistle, impressed by the amount of activity this morning. "Been a while since so many dragons came here to train." In fact, the last time real, formal training happened here was just before the Nightwing Exodus right after she became Queen. The Rainforest just hadn't needed a standing army after the War. The militia was a volunteer force. Any training individuals had when called upon was what they themselves did in their free time.

When the small crowd recognized her, they parted to let her through, and she and Anemone sat on the sidelines and watched the Icewings. At first glance, it appeared that Winter was losing, but after a few seconds, she realized this wasn't an actual fight. Mistral was pressing an attack, and all Winter was doing was blocking or dodging his attacks. Winter was practicing his counters.

But, of course, they were doing so at full speed with claws fully bared. "Are you two trying to kill each other again?"

Mistral paused in his attack and quickly stepped back from his opponent. "Break," he said, and Winter nodded, sitting down and regaining his breath. Mistral, however, walked towards them, and Glory couldn't help but stare. The moisture that had built on his scales from the workout accentuated his muscles and made him look positively radiant, as if covered in diamonds. For an Icewing, she couldn't help but notice how hot he was in that moment. "Icewings train as they fight: for real. And with real consequences. Every mistake comes with a wound, and every wound, a lesson. If you don't wish to get hurt, your only choice is to learn from those lessons and improve."

When Glory didn't immediately respond, still in awe at how sparkly he was, Mistral raised an eye ridge and Anemone snickered, elbowing the Rainwing to knock her out of it. "That's intense, isn't it Glory?" And seeing as how neither dragon was wounded, it was even more intense.

"Yeah, right...intense. Sorry. I'm...still waking up." He didn't look too convinced, but he didn't call her out on it. Rather, he just stood there expectantly, waiting for them to explain why they'd interrupted his training. "I hear you wanted to talk to me," she finally spoke.

He grunted. "I did. I was originally going to yell at you for releasing her without any punishment, but Winter convinced me otherwise. Now that I've had time to work off some of that frustration, I want to calmly ask why?" Despite what he literally just said about asking calmly, the question came out as a soft growl.

Glory just sighed. "I'm not sure if you've noticed, Mistral, but I don't have any dragonets. I don't have any sons or daughters to hold the fort while I'm away, so Greatness is basically my heir to the throne, like Blaze is for Thorn. So unless you want to be left in charge again..." He huffed and shook his head, looking away for a moment. "And she's under house arrest and constantly watched by no less than five Sandwings, so I wouldn't say she got out with no punishment. Is that a satisfactory answer?"

"Yes," he nodded. "I still don't like it, but I'm beginning to learn that very little changes your mind once it's made up." Glory shrugged with a small grin. "I also wanted to inform you that I'm going with you to the Skywing capital." The flutter in her heart was replaced by a spike of jealousy when he continued. "No doubt Snowfall will want me there, regardless of what happens." And here she thought he wanted to come just to support her.

"That's going to be awkward, isn't it?" Anemone muttered. "What happens if Snowfall sides with Ruby? You and Glory would technically become enemies, wouldn't you?" Mistral studied Anemone for a moment before nodding. His expression softened when he glanced at Glory, who was purposely trying to avoid his gaze. She hadn't even considered the possibility of her and him becoming enemies. He'd become such a close friend and a normal part of her everyday life that it felt wrong to think of him as anything else. "What happens if Queen Snowfall orders you to, like...forcibly detain her or something?"

Why did Anemone have to keep talking? Well, she knew why. Anemone was just trying to figure out where his loyalties were. But why did she have to keep talking? All it was doing was to remind her that his tribe came first. Yeah, she may be his friend, but that wouldn't matter if his Queen and future wife ordered him to do something about her. "If Snowfall orders me to detain Glory, than I would do as my Queen commands." Yeah, she expected nothing less. "But..." But? Why was there a but? "If she ordered me to do something else, something...worse..." She risked a glance up at him to see that he genuinely felt uncomfortable about the possibility. "I think that would be an order I could not follow. I am not the kind of dragon to turn on his friends."

Glory sighed in utter relief and gave him a small, affectionate smile. She just really wanted to hug him in that moment. In fact... "Can I hug you?"

He raised an eye ridge again at the unexpected question but shook his head. "No."

"Would you be mad if I hugged you, anyway?" Before he could answer, she just reached up and wrapped her arms around the base of his neck, her head resting between his shoulders. She felt him tense and heard him growl softly, but he didn't immediately push her off.

Even if she wished she could hug him for a whole lot longer, she didn't want to push her luck, so she released him after a few seconds. The crowd around them whispered amongst each other, and some giggled, but she paid them no mind. Even Winter was watching them in interest. She could see how he was gritting his teeth together to stop himself from growling, and in the end, he glared down at her. "Don't do that again."

He stalked away after that, leaving a number of confused dragons behind. Glory wasn't much of a hugger, either, but she'd never growled at anyone who tried. Winter approached her and shook his head. "I did try to warn you. The only time he allows any sort of physical contact is in the sparring ring."

An idea hit her upon hearing that, and a quick glance at Anemone confirmed she was thinking along the same lines. "You can't do it to soon, though," she warned. "I think patience is going to be your best friend when it comes to dealing with him...unless you want me to enchant him?" Both Winter and Glory glared at her in anger for even suggesting that, and she shrugged. "Just a suggestion, but you're probably right. Patience, it is."

Winter just sighed. "That's not what I meant, but you do what you want. For once, I'd actually like to be proven wrong."

Glory smirked in victory before remembering her earlier decision. "By the way, do you know where Bloodwalker is?"

The Icewing looked around the area before shrugging. "He was around here somewhere, but that was earlier. I don't know where he is right now. I'll keep an eye out and send him your way if I find him." Glory nodded and bid Winter a farewell for now. Although, a few seconds later, she heard him yell out, "Found him!"

Both Queens turned just in time to see Bloodwalker stop in front of them. "I was in the crowd about three dragons down. I was practicing my ability to blend in."

Anemone looked confused. "Why though?"

"If even Glory couldn't spot me, any dragon that tries to attack her definitely won't be able to, either. Anyway, what's up?" Glory explained that she wanted him to stay behind and keep an eye on Greatness just in case. While he wasn't happy about it, the fact Winter, Veneno, Mistral, and Qibli, from the sound of it, would be with her, gave him enough reassurance that she'd be fine without him.

Speaking of Qibli, he was talking with Thorn and Veneno when she and Anemone arrived. "Nice of you to join us," Thorn greeted them. "Sleep well?"

"Not as long as I'd like." The Sandwing Queen chuckled at Glory's response.

"Might want to get used to it, though. All of us are going to be operating off of precious little sleep for the next while," Veneno responded grimly. The good mood was successfully killed by that reminder.

"Spread the word," Thorn ordered the older Sandwing. Veneno nodded and went to do just that. "Are you two ready to go?"

"Ready as I can be," Anemone shrugged.

Thorn looked to Glory for her response. "Just say the word. Oh, and speaking of...Greatness mentioned something about some potential trouble?"

Thorn glanced around before nodding grimly. "She didn't say anything more than that, I hope." Glory shook her head, and Thorn sighed in relief. "Good. I'll tell you more when I fix the problem, but no matter what happens, Snowfall needs to be on our side. I don't care what kind of deal we have to make with her."

"Sounds big," Anemone pointed out. Thorn nodded again.

Glory hummed in thought at that. If Thorn was desperate to have Snowfall on their side, then whatever Greatness told her had something to do with the Icewings as a whole.

A few minutes later, after the conversation had switched to more lighthearted topics such as how Qibli and Moon's marriage was faring, Mistral arrived with three satchels. One was around his neck, but the other two were tied together and draped across his shoulders. Those were the two that he held out to Glory. "Here, you get to fly with these."

Qibli and Thorn stared at the Icewing as if he'd lost his mind, demanding a Queen to carry his baggage. Glory just took the strap and they immediately dropped to the floor. The unexpected weight had taken her by surprise, mostly because he hadn't appeared to struggle to carry them at all. She was able to lift them, but they were heavy. "What's in here!? Rocks!?" She set them down and opened one to see what was inside. Sure enough, they were filled with rocks. "Just...Just why though?"

"You said you wanted me to train you, so this is where you start. You need to build up your strength and endurance, and carrying these during a long flight will help you do just that." Glory glanced at Thorn, but she just shrugged. "Feel free to admit defeat at any time, and we'll let the Nightwing take over."

That was a challenge.

He didn't think she could do it.

She'd show him! "Help me get these on." As Thorn picked up the twin satchels, Glory's glare never left the Icewing's face. He watched on with the faintest trace of a smirk as the weight settled on her back, and she had to brace herself, so she didn't collapse under it. It wasn't so great that she wouldn't be able to walk or even fly, but it was definitely a noticeable increase. She wasn't sure how long she'd be able to carry them before they became too much, but she did know one thing...

She was going to be sore tonight.

Needless to say, she garnered a lot of strange looks when the troop gathered in preparation to take off. Thorn wasn't carrying anything. Neither was Anemone. Yet here she was carrying two loaded satchels. They couldn't see what was inside, obviously, but she imagine they'd all be openly gawking if they knew those bags were full of rocks.

It was only twenty minutes later, and her legs were already starting to burn, mostly because Mistral made her walk in a circle rather than just stand or sit idle. Takeoff was interesting, too, and not just because there were a hundred something dragons lifting off in a short span of time. The rocks made it harder to stay aloft since her wings were used to carrying her rather low weight—and usually over short distances. With the additional weight, she had to beat them faster and harder to stay in the air, but she only discovered that after she nearly faceplanted into the ground.

Like usual, Thorn was the tip of the spear. She took point and lead the entire group from the front. Qibli and Anemone flew beside her, and all of the Sandwing, Nightwing, and Rainwing troops flew behind them. Glory, however, trailed in the far back. Mistral stayed on her left wing, Winter stayed behind and below her—in case she fell to her death—and Veneno, surprisingly, kept to her right wing.

At first, the only noise to be heard was the sound of a hundred wingbeats and the air rustling the leaves far below. The silence, however, only made it all the easier to focus on the weight dragging her down and the burn already forming in her wings. In an attempt to distract herself, she decided to strike up a conversation with Veneno. "So...Veneno...why keep your existence hidden? You said it was to protect Thorn, but Qibli doesn't care. Neither does Sunny, for that matter."

"Personal experience." Glory just stared at the Sandwing, unsatisfied with that answer, until Veneno sighed. "Why should I tell you?"

"Because you adopted Thorn, and Thorn adopted me, so that basically makes me your granddaughter," she instantly responded. "And I genuinely want to know the dragon that raised my mom."

Veneno studied her for several long minutes before replying. "It's a long story."

"It's a long flight." The Sandwing huffed, and a trace of amusement flashed across her face.

"For being adopted just recently, you remind me an awful lot of your mother." Glory gave her a genuine smile at the praise, and she huffed. "Alright, fine." Veneno sighed one last time before beginning her tale. "I grew up an orphan in the Scorpion den at the height of Vulture's prime. It was a dangerous place for cold-blooded criminals, and even more so for a dragonet alone in the world. I didn't have anyone to rely on, so I was...taken advantage of more than once. When I was six, I thought I found someone that would rescue me from that life. He was seven years older than me, but I didn't care about that at the time. I just wanted someone to protect me. We were together for just two months and had sex every night. He wanted a dragonet, but...it turns out I'm sterile. Once we figured that out, he dumped me back on the street."

"That's...horrible...What kind of dragon is that heartless?" If Mistral and Winter's expressions were any indication, they were likewise appalled.

Veneno, however, just snorted. "Go to the Scorpion Den and look around. Chances are most of them are that way. But what happened stuck with me. I didn't have the means of supporting young, no food nor shelter, yet the thought of never having a dragonet of my own...it broke me. But it also meant no accidents would happen. So I...sold myself to anyone willing to pay." The Sandwing was quiet for some time after that admittance, but Glory didn't press her. The sort of life and trauma she'd been through was horrendous, and it took a special sort of dragon to accept that and still be able to live a happy, fulfilling life.

"I found Thorn's egg abandoned in an alleyway about a year later. I was originally just going to let it be—it wasn't any of my business—but I didn't. Since I couldn't have a dragonet of my own, that was probably the only chance I had of getting an egg. Being a prostitute wasn't the most glamorous or stable job in the world, but I had money enough for the both of us." She sighed. "So I took her egg and cared for it, watched her hatch, raised her..." She smiled wistfully. "It quickly became apparent that dragonets were a pain to raise. I often thought of her as a thorn in my side."

"And that's how she got her name?" Veneno nodded, still smiling.

Her smile, however, began to fade again. "She saw a lot of things no dragonet should ever have to witness, especially when it came to me." Tears began to form in the Sandwing's eyes, and she bared her teeth, her gaze locking on to Glory's. "I never hated myself more than the day she saw me being used by a client three times my age just so we could have food the next day."

Glory just shook her head, tears beginning to form in her own eyes. She felt horrible for pressing now that she knew the truth. "Veneno...you don't have to continue. I-I'm sorry for even asking."

The Sandwing nodded, looking away. "I guess we'll finish story time later..." With that, Veneno flew away up to the head of the group. From her position in the back, she could see the older Sandwing share a few words with Thorn, who looked behind her and watched Glory for a few moments before returning her gaze to the front. Thorn bumped her wing with her adopted mother's and silence reigned in the back for several minutes afterward.

It was Mistral who finally broke that silence to voice what the three were thinking. "No one really knows much about Thorn's past before the Outclaws. If Veneno was telling the truth, and I have no reason to doubt her word, I have to give Thorn credit for turning out the way she has. I respected her as a good Queen before, but now I respect her as a great dragon with an even greater heart."

"And to think I complained about my own dragonethood," Winter muttered guiltily.

Glory remained silent, her thoughts awhirl with this new knowledge. She'd known Thorn for over a decade, and not once did the Sandwing make her believe she had a troubled dragonethood. After hearing what she'd really been through, it would be easy for dragons to expect Thorn to end up like Scarlet, sadistic and insane, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Thorn was tough but fair, hard on crime but not heartless. If a dragon stole money or food because they had no other choice—perhaps they were starving or had dragonets to feed—she would punish the crime, though it wouldn't be near as severe as someone who stole for sport. Oftentimes, she'd even offer the desperate dragon a job and a way to support their family.

Now she knew why.

And it's simply because she had been in that position before. She understood what it was like to have nothing and to have no one lift a single talon to help. As Queen, Thorn now had the means to help others, even more so than when she was just the leader of the Outclaws, and she did so, so that others wouldn't experience the same horrors she did. There were still a lot of dragons who wondered why the Eye of Onyx chose Thorn to be Queen. If they knew about this, that doubt would instantly disappear. To experience so much bad and yet turn out so good...

It was almost unheard of.

There wasn't much said after that. Mistral occasionally asked how she was faring with the extra weight, but she always told him that she was fine no matter how badly her wings burned. During their thirty minute meal break at midday, the Icewing allowed her to take them off and rest for a while, which she refused to do. Now that her wings had the chance to recover, she'd be fine. Besides, she was pretty sure he was challenging her again.

During the break, Glory noticed that Thorn was actually avoiding her. It hurt, at first, but Mistral told her that she probably just needed time. She hoped he was right.

Anemone and Qibli joined her and the Icewings during the next stage of the trip, though both were relatively quiet, as well. "Thorn told us to give her some space for a while. You have any idea what that's about?" Glory shook her head at Qibli's question. Something told her that he didn't know about Thorn's past, either, and it definitely wasn't her place to tell.

About an hour after they took flight again, Glory was starting to struggle to stay aloft. Her wings were burning so much that they hurt to even move. Mistral took the initiative to fly just above her and empty the satchels of rocks. The relief was instant, and it was such a massive difference that she actually went straight up and smacked into his belly. She apologized profusely, of course, but he never said anything, even avoiding her gaze for a while after the incident.

She also noticed the slightly blue tint to his cheeks immediately afterward. That little detail brought back the memory of what happened on the Nightwing island. She'd kissed his cheek after he saved her life, and he'd just smiled awkwardly, yet she'd hugged him earlier, and he actually growled at her. Those two reactions were inconsistent, and she spent the next little while trying to figure out why. What had changed?

Winter's warning of him trying to push her away was the first thing that came to mind. Mistral already knew she had some level of attraction towards him, so was he trying to distance himself from her? For the first time ever, she actually envied Moon's ability to read minds. She really wished she could know what he was thinking about the whole thing.

Mostly, that was just a way to distract herself from thinking about Veneno's story and Thorn's past. There were still a few questions left that weren't answered, but she was honestly scared to hear the answers. And honestly, she wasn't sure she even wanted to know the full truth.

They stopped again just under an hour before sunset. Dragons set about creating small campfires to group around, eating the rations or fruits they'd taken from the rainforest rather than spending time hunting. Her wingmates for the day were the only ones who gathered their campfire that Qibli so graciously lit for them.

The other groups were considerably less varied. Here or there, the different dragons mixed and mingled together, a Sandwing chatting with a Nightwing or a Rainwing sitting with a group of Sandwings. Mostly, though, the Sandwings stayed in separate groups from the Nightwings and Rainwings. And while her two tribes were more likely to share fires, there were still a few Rainwing and Nightwing exclusive groups in the clearing. The sight made her a little sad. Despite all the years of peace that they'd lived through together, her tribes still weren't completely comfortable around each other. Sure, the holdouts were considerably lesser than even five years ago, but they still existed.

It was just another thing to bring down the mood. Or maybe her mood was so low that the smallest things just made her even more upset. She'd been staring into the flames, thinking about everything that was worrying or upsetting her—the upcoming summit, the cult, Mistral's incomprehensible behavior lately, Thorn's past—while the others either sat quietly or talked among themselves. Mistral and Winter were talking about potential leads on Sobek, which was another thing that concerned her. Qibli was telling Anemone about some of his past assignments, and the Seawing seemed surprisingly interested.

As for where everyone was, Anemone was pressed right up against Glory's right side, the two lying on their bellies. Even if she didn't know why, she could tell that her Rainwing friend was upset about something, so she was doing what she could to comfort her and silently tell her 'I'm here'. Winter and Mistral were on the complete opposite side of the fire and a bit further away. Being Icewings, the cool night air was much more desirable than the fire's warmth. Qibli was sitting down on the right side of the fire from Glory and Anemone's position, gesticulating wildly as he told his story.

Their fire was a bit further away from the others to give them some space away from the troops. As long as their superiors were nearby, they'd stay on their best behavior, but with some space, they could cut up a bit more and relax better for it.

It was well past dark by now, and all through the process of setting up and eating, Thorn had still avoided her. In fact, she and Veneno had a fire all to themselves on the exact opposite side of the clearing.

No one, then—least of all Glory—expected Thorn to just suddenly appear out of the darkness between Qibli and the Icewings. She looked up from the fire in surprise to see that her gaze was locked onto hers, and her expression was carefully neutral. "All of you, leave," she ordered. "I would speak with my daughter alone." Glory and Anemone immediately sat up, and the Seawing gave a quick squeeze with her wing before walking off, nodding politely to Thorn as she passed. Winter and Mistral walked away without a word or a glance back. Qibli, however, looked between his mother and Glory in confusion before Thorn looked to him impatiently. "Now, Qibli." He eventually nodded, walking away after a short hesitation. Thorn watched them walk away for a short moment before walking over and sitting where Anemone had been moments before with a heavy sigh. The Sandwing draped a wing across Glory's back, and then, after a long pause, spoke quietly, "I hear you learned some...upsetting things about me today."

"I didn't know..." Glory whispered. She looked down when she felt Thorn's claws gently rest atop hers, her larger claws clasping between hers from above. Thorn's tail also draped atop hers, and she leaned down to press a kiss against her daughter's head.

"I know you didn't..." she whispered. "You shouldn't be burdened with the horrors in my past, though." Thorn raised her head again and looked down at Glory as the smaller dragon looked up at her. "She shouldn't have told you."

"But she did." Thorn looked away with a soft sigh. "Why do you not want anyone to know?" Was it because she was ashamed? Scared of being judged? Those were the two answers that made the most sense to her, but they turned out to be wrong.

Thorn didn't answer at first, her expression indicating she was waging some internal war. Finally, however, "I don't want anyone to think differently of me. I don't want to be pitied or have my rule called into question over things that happened thirty years ago." Then, she frowned. "I asked her never to tell anyone, and that was a promise she had kept until now. The fact she told you is surprising enough, but to talk about it in front of Mistral and Winter? What was she thinking?"

Glory could tell that the last question was meant to be rhetorical, but she answered it, anyway. "She said that I reminded her of you."

Surprisingly, Thorn smiled genuinely at that. "I guess I'm not the only one who sees the similarities." Glory blinked in surprise at the comment, and Thorn gave her an affectionate smile. "Every time I look at you, Glory, I see myself. Sunny is definitely her father's daughter. She has Stonemover's lighthearted nature and sense of humor, at least before Morrowseer drove him away and he turned himself into a statue. And though Qibli calls me his mother, I get the sense that he doesn't fully believe it. He knows who his real family is, even if he's nothing like them. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love them both. I loved raising Qibli as if he were my own, and I was overjoyed when Sunny found her way back to me. But you just remind me of me."

"How?" She didn't think she was too like Thorn. They were both Queens, and they had similar morals, but that's about all she could see.

Thorn sighed, her good mood seeming to fall again. "Because you didn't have anyone, either." Glory furrowed her eyes at that but let her explain. "Sure, you had the other dragonets under the mountain, and you have Jambu, and you had Grandeur for a time." The mention of her grandmother had Glory looking away. She still missed the old Rainwing even if they never really got to know each other all that well. "But Sunny says you were the outcast growing up. The guardians didn't want you there. And apparently Rainwings don't do parents, so after Grandeur passed, all you had left was Jambu, who doesn't seem to take anything seriously." She couldn't fault her for that conclusion. Jambu was a carefree dragon through and through. "Despite all the dragons you lost or didn't have and the hard time you had to endure as a dragonet, you still turned out alright. Just like I did. You have a tough spirit and a good heart, Glory."

"Put like that...I guess we are pretty similar." Veneno did her best to raise Thorn since she didn't have anyone. Thorn did the same for Qibli all those years ago, and now she was doing it for her. "But..." she trailed off, unsure if this question was too personal or inappropriate. Thorn, however, nodded, letting her know she could ask whatever she wanted. "I know I don't know everything that happened, but I know enough to figure out it was bad. How did you come out of that alright and not end up like...like—"

"Like Vulture?" she guessed.

"I was going to say Scarlet." Thorn snorted, a humorless sound.

She nodded, though, and looked out across the clearing. Veneno, who was sitting by herself and staring into the flames, not unlike Glory had just minutes ago, was barely visible at this distance. She noticed Thorn smile fondly. "Because my mother raised me right." She turned and smiled down at Glory again, squeezing her claw gently. "You're right. It was bad back then, and a lot of dragons would become like Scarlet or Vulture. Veneno did the best she could for me in the situation, and though I saw a lot of bad, I also saw my share of good, too. I learned that there were a lot of dragons who suffered like we did, and I knew I never wanted to be the dragon to make them suffer. I'd help them if I could. That's why I made the Outclaws. Dune stealing Sunny's egg may have been the catalyst that created them, but the idea was there long before that."

"So you created the Outclaws to help others because you didn't want others to suffer?" She'd already figured as much, but she decided to ask, anyway.

Thorn nodded. "And didn't you become Queen for just that reason, because there were Rainwings held prisoner on the Nightwing island that no one else wanted to help?" The Rainwing actually gaped at that, not having thought of it in this context before. That's exactly why she'd become Queen, but she'd never thought to compare her reasons to Thorn's. The Sandwing smiled. "And now you see what I do. Now you see why I think of you as the daughter I never had."

Glory felt herself get a bit choked up at that, and she ended up burying her head into Thorn's chest as tears pricked her eyes. "I love you, mom."

Thorn turned and pulled Glory closer, wrapping her arms and wings around her daughter. "I love you, too, Glory." She leaned down and kissed the Rainwing on the top of her head again. "As if you were my own."

Glory smiled and pulled away enough to look across the clearing where Veneno was. The older Sandwing was watching them, and though she couldn't make out her exact expression, Glory had a hunch that she was smiling. "What about...grandma?" It felt a bit weird to call Veneno that, mostly because she didn't know the other Sandwing as well, but the smile that lit up Thorn's expression was worth it. "Is she okay?"

"She'll be fine," Thorn assured her. "She's one of the toughest dragonesses I know. But what about you? Are you going to be alright?"

She thought about that for a moment before nodding with a small smile. "Yeah, I think so. Will you stay here tonight? Please?" It felt like an odd request to make, but she was feeling a bit...clingy right now. Maybe it was the rampant emotions talking, but she just wanted to be closer to her mother.

Thorn pulled away without a word before settling down on her belly and opening up a wing in invitation. Glory snuggled into the bigger dragon's side, relishing in the warmth coming from both the fire and Thorn's naturally warm Sandwing scales. When her wing fell over Glory, the emotionally vulnerable Rainwing felt safer than she had in a long time. "Good night, Glory. Sleep tight."

"G'night." Breathing out a heavy, relaxed sigh, Glory was asleep within moments.

AN: Yeah, Veneno and Thorn's past is a bit heavy, but I imagine the Scorpion Den was actually a lot worse than what we see in the books, especially before the Outclaws came into the picture. I took a little inspiration from Omega from the Mass Effect series, which is actually a pretty good comparison if you think about it.

And actually, I was originally going to end the chapter right after Veneno's story but figured that was a bit too dark, especially for Easter, so I added the scene after to balance it out. My question is: did it work?

And I promise that the Mistral and Glory drama will get toned down a little bit in the next few chapters.

Until Next Time

AdmiralCole22