Hello ladies and gentlemen! Happy new year everyone. Hope you all had fun over the holidays and didn't get in too much trouble.

Holidays aside, let's get straight to it!

Cheers to chapter six!

After eight days and nights of nearly nonstop flying, the only breaks being to hunt for food lest they starve and resting on the third and sixth nights, the small group of dragons had finally made it to their destination just before noon of the ninth day.

The wild lands.

Dragons of every color soared across the skies, their hides glittering like jewels as the sunlight reflected off their scales. Vast forests of enormous trees lay below the cliff faces of the mountains dotting the landscape, begging the younglings to explore their secrets and test their instincts with hidden dangers. Through the great green canopies beneath them, Fiori and the young dragons could catch glimpses of deer bounding about under the trees and see flashes of colors from scales as dragons hunted for their meals. What caught their eye was what lay dead ahead. It was that of the largest cave in the area within a massive mountain standing alone amidst the others. It was-

"Behold," Stargazer said with his thunderous voice rolling through their minds. "The Great Sapphire Cave. Its caverns boast more than just sapphires though. Many other gems and fine jewels make up the depths within, such as pure crystal, flawless diamonds and the clearest natural quartz you will find in these lands. Within those walls is where I reside. Welcome, younglings and future queen! Welcome to our sanctuary! Welcome to our home!"

With his welcoming speech finished, Stargazer unleashed a thundering roar that drowned out all others and echoed across the air and land for miles. Every dragon fell silent and, turning themselves to face their leader, let loose with a responding chorus of roars. The air itself seemed to vibrate from the intensity of the welcoming calls, and the ground below shook from the violent tremors stirred up from the chorus. Hundreds of dragons began converging on the group, flying and augering through the air in pure bliss and freedom. The younglings with the group were in shock, their jaws hanging open, completely awestruck at what they were seeing.

"Someone please slap me." Szen murmured in wonder, his eyes taking in the sights around them. "This feels like a dr- ACK!" The ash-gray male yelped and was cut off when a dark blue dragoness of roughly the same age flew past and smacked him across the face with her tail. Glaring at the female, who glared back teasingly, Szen was about to reach out with his mind and converse with her when Stargazer grabbed him firmly by the neck. Szen thrashed around in the dragon's grasp as his pride withered away while everyone laughed at him. Velikashaar was laughing so hard, in fact, that he failed to notice the tree that was in front of him…

Until the white dragon flew face-first into the trunk with a strangled yelp.

"Ebrithil!" Szen roared. "Let me go! Let me go, damn you! Release me!"

The ancient dragon merely chuckled, remembering when he was young and instinctual like the young one in his grasp. Stargazer merely looked down at Szen, who was seething in anger and embarrassment, before speaking. "Your goal in being here isn't to flirt with the females, Szen." The crystal dragon said sternly, as if the ash-gray male beneath him was nothing more than a hatchling being chided for a simple mistake. "It is to learn of our customs, to cherish our traditions and uphold our ways of life. Yes, you will have plenty of time to go out and explore, try new things, maybe pick up a hobby or two. But you will not impregnate any females here so long as you remain a student of mine. This extends to ALL of you. Control your hormones and think with your brain, not your penis." He broadcast that final bit to the other males in the group and immediately noticed Des pointedly ignoring many of the males her age who were striving for her attention. Nudging Fiori with a mental prod, she too saw the young dragoness refusing to even acknowledge the wild young males' existence and the pair smirked.

Des was a natural. Now, to put her to the test…

Stargazer looked over at Hydra, the orange male, to see he was gliding along a wind current that Stargazer personally enjoyed using. It allowed the dragon flying through it to simply glide along as it was a natural permanent tailwind. The orange dragon was looking around at their surroundings with a bemused expression on his face. He seemed content, at ease. His posture was relaxed, not an etch of worry or concern could be found in his outward appearance. Stargazer looked over at Fiori and she gave him a devilish grin.

"Hydra?" the red dragoness asked the youngling. He looked over at her, his head tilted in confusion, and she broadcasted her speech to all. "After doing some serious thinking about it on the flight here, I remember Des telling me something the day after we left. I believe she told me she had some mild interest in you, but I don't recall correctly. Maybe if you ask h-"

"WHAT?!" The dark green female shrieked. "Excuse me, but you realize that I can hear you, right? Hydra, I never said anything of the sort and Fiori knows it! She's lying!"

Stargazer smirked inwardly.

Now it was time for him to play his part.

Giving a rumbling growl in his throat, he caught their attention and he looked Des in the eyes. The glare he gave her made Des feel like ice was forming over her spine, sending shivers along her back as terror worked its way into her mind. When the crystal dragon spoke, it felt like he was pouring lava into their skulls. The words seemed to brand themselves into the minds of the group.

"Are you accusing my future Queen of falsehood while under my protection? What proof do you have?"

Fiori was barely containing her mirth, but her eyes said it all. They glistened and sparkled with amusement as Des's brain functions ground to a halt. While the young female spluttered, the spell was broken as Stargazer and Fiori lost it, laughing their tails off at how convincing they had been.

"Y-you should have s-seen your faces!" The red female stammered out, her speech broken by the intense laughing fit that her and Stargazer were going through. "Your e-e-expressions were priceless! Oh my… that was something. Star, that was good."

Said crystal dragon simply smirked and continued flying, turning the group toward a smaller mountain with several caves dotting the face. After they had all landed, the crystal male explained why they were there. "This is where you five will reside during your training." He said. "If you require Fiori or I's assistance and wisdom outside of your educational time frames, you can always find us within the Sapphire Caves." Stargazer paused and looked down, leveling Szen and Orca with a glare. "Do try your best to not annoy us with pointless questions, however. We welcome questions but frown upon nuisances." Straightening once more and pointing a talon toward a slightly larger mountain to the southwest, he said, "That is where the guards reside. If you need Ornex's or Mester's assistance or help, look for them at the top of the mountain. That is where their dens are."

As Stargazer looked the younglings over, he could see how exhausted they were even if they tried hiding it. After the adults gave him the feeling of acceptance to his idea, he spoke, "I understand you all wish to begin, but you need to rest. An energized mind and body can absorb more knowledge than a weary one. Rest. Your lessons begin in 3 days. On the fourth sunrise, Mester will guide you all to the training grounds. Do be sure you are awake at dawn. I don't need to hear the cries from one of you rolling down the mountain just because Mester or Ornex had to wake you up."

As the adults took to the skies, the younger dragons looked around their new homes before settling in.

To say they slept like rocks was an accurate comparison.

Fiori

Fiori was in awe as her and the crystal dragon landed at the mouth of his- no wait- their cave. Stepping inside, she couldn't believe her eyes.

It was massive.

The ceiling reached hundreds of feet above her head, and massive stalactites of crystal, diamond, ruby, sapphire and even emerald stretched to the floor. As she made her way deeper into the cave system, Stargazer following along silently behind her, the red female began picking up on a surprising sound to be coming from within a mountain. As they went deeper, down into the depths of the cave, the sound got louder and as Fiori stepped into a clearing, she froze in shock.

There, in front of her, was a waterfall.

"Welcome to what the outsiders call the Falls of Wisdom." Stargazer said quietly. "They also named the small lake below the Pool of Knowledge." He snickered. "Don't ask. I really do not know why humans enjoy naming everything they see. To me it's just freshwater. To them, it's magical."

She stared at him then looked at their surroundings. The female noticed the ground beneath them gently slanted downward, like how humans would make those accursed spiral staircases. Good heavens Fiori hated those things. This spiral was noticeable, yet comfortable to maneuver around. She took note of how easy it was to walk down and smirked when Stargazer had to keep his head lowered to avoid hitting the bottom of the ramps.

When they reached the pool below, Fiori took a drink from it and looked over at the crystal dragon.

"It really is just water," Fiori deadpanned, causing him to chuckle.

When the pair reached the massive area where Stargazer normally slept, Fiori noticed the enormous elevated dias-like shape on one side. As she made her way over to it, her instincts flared up and she stopped. The red dragoness looked back at Stargazer, seeing him making himself comfortable on the other side of the room. Noting the uncomfortable expression on his face, Fiori realized that he was essentially sacrificing his comfort and home for her. Snorting to herself, she felt a bit… off. As if she was intruding. Walking away from his sleeping area, she laid next to it instead.

"Stargazer," Fiori began. "This is your home. Go lay on your bed. It is yours after all and I am still just a mere guest here. I will take the floor until we both fully feel comfortable around one another." The male was about to give a retort when Fiori snarled and snapped her jaws shut, effectively silencing him. "This was not a question or suggestion. You will lay on that bed or I will drag you up there myself."

Sighing in defeat and acceptance, the crystal dragon dragged his sore and tired body onto his bed, laid down and almost immediately began snoring. Fiori smirked to herself as she succumbed to the calling of sleep.

Things were definitely going to be interesting between them.

Aaaand they have arrived! Wooohooo! No casualties either! I'm not evil enough to kill off main characters less than ten chapters into a story. It kinda dampens the mood and kills the momentum in my opinion.

Also! Badass Fiori!

Anyway…

Feedback is always welcome but shit posting is not accepted. Don't like the story? Then don't read it! Simple as that.

Until next time,

Stargazer out.