New chapter! I've been rolling them out recently, haven't I? As always, sit back, listen to your favorite song, and enjoy.

Winter led the interesting duo around the cave that he and his friends called home. The strange SkyWing named Sky (of all things), and perhaps the most interesting out of the duo, was a scaven—no, a human, he remembered—named Wren.

"So, humans actually have a form of social structure?" Winter asked, looking down at a scroll held in one of his talons, covered in scribbles. He looked up to see Wren nodding.

"Yes," she replied. "While it varies from village to city, they're almost always like your queens, except for us, males usually rule instead of a queen."

"The village I... left... had a leader called a chief, which is pretty much just another word for king," Wren explained.

Winter nodded, intrigued, as he wrote down her answer on his scroll.

Wren thought for a moment, balancing on Sky's back as they walked down the hall. "So, may I ask, why are you so interested in humans?" Wren asked the IceWing.

Winter looked embarrassed and paused. "Well, at first... I thought you guys were cute," he said, causing Wren to look annoyed and start to protest, but Winter continued, "But later on, I learned that scaven—humans, I mean—were more than we'd thought, so I started studying your kind in my free time back in the Ice Kingdom."

Wren stayed quiet after that, finding his response acceptable. Winter looked back at Sky. "So, how did you somehow learn to speak dragon?"

Wren seemed reluctant to answer, but Sky spoke up for her. "She found me as a baby and helped me grow up," he said happily.

Winter stopped and looked at the human. "You... found him?" he asked, confused.

Wren nodded, glaring at Sky. "I found him as a baby in the mountains. I figured his parents tried to save him, since their home was burning."

Winter was getting more confused by the second. "Burning?" he asked. "But almost all SkyWing homes are made of stone and almost never burn."

Wren shrugged. "Well, it definitely was burning, and a whole lot of dragons were making a fuss about it."

Winter looked back at Sky. "Do you remember any of it?"

Sky frowned and shook his head. "Not much. I just remember coming up out of some water, and Wren was there."

Wren looked a bit offended. "Look, if you think I kidnapped him—" she began, but Winter interrupted with a snort.

"No, I doubt you'd ever be able to pull that off," he said with a smirk. "It would be almost impossible for you to climb up the mountains the SkyWings live on and make it back down with a baby dragonet."

Wren frowned but nodded. "I waited a while for his parents to show up, but they never did."

Winter stayed silent at that. This dragonet was about the same age as him, so his parents had likely lived around the same time as Scarlet...

Winter shook his head. "While all that's interesting, I know Starflight had some questions he wanted to ask you as well," he continued as they rounded a corner and entered the library.

Wren and Sky spotted the blindfolded NightWing sitting in a corner, looking as though he was staring off into space, yet smiling.

"What could he want us to look at? He's blind," Wren whispered. Suddenly, Starflight's head turned as if he were looking right at her.

Winter chuckled. "Trust me, he isn't as blind as he might seem."

Wren grew even more confused as the NightWing opened his mouth. "Hello again," he said. "I trust Winter was pleasant?"

Winter snorted, turning and leaving the library.

Wren jumped off Sky's back and landed on the floor, almost shivering as she watched Starflight's head follow her. "How can you do that?" she asked.

"Mm, we all have our secrets, don't we?" Starflight said, smiling as he stood up from the desk and pulled a wooden chest out from underneath it. Wren watched as Starflight pulled various objects from the chest, most of them unrecognizable to her, though some she did recognize—mainly the human-sized scrolls.

"A couple of years ago, while the war was still going on, my friends and I were tasked by Queen Glacier herself to explore an abandoned temple and grave site, hoping to learn about our past," Starflight said as he dug through the box, looking more blind this time as he struggled with a frown.

He pulled out a few more objects and set them on the desk. "We managed to read some things about the place, but there were objects and writings we couldn't interpret. A lot of it was actually scavenger-sized stuff."

Wren realized where this was going. "And you want to see if I know what any of it is?"

Starflight nodded. "This is an opportunity I can't pass up, especially since Glacier specifically requested it. And I'd love to understand it myself."

Wren nodded back and glanced over at Sky. "Think you can give me a lift up onto the table?"

Sky nodded, gently picked her up, and placed her on the table. She walked forward. "Anything you want me to start with?" she asked as she reached the pile of items.

Starflight nodded again. "The strange objects. Those might take less time than the scrolls and other papers."

Wren walked up and picked up the first item, a large metal object with handle-like bars sticking out, shaped like a big stick. She studied it for a while but then shook her head. "I have no idea what this is, or actually, what many of these items are."

Starflight visibly deflated. "Nothing at all?"

Wren continued examining it, turning the strange metal object around in her hands, and then spotted tiny writing on it. "I don't know what this is, but it does have some writing on it."

Starflight perked up, looking curious. Wren nodded and continued. "It says, 'Remington Model 870.'" She shook her head again. "I still have no idea what this is," she said, setting it aside and picking up another item. "A lot of these have similar tiny writing. This one says 'Colt M4A1.'"

Starflight nodded, grabbing a scroll to jot down notes.

Meanwhile, Sky was getting bored, looking around the room. His attention was caught by movement at the door as a golden-colored SandWing walked in.

"Starflight, I noticed we had some visitors?" she said happily.

Starflight nodded and started to introduce them, but Sky wasn't paying attention; his focus was entirely on the SandWing before him, the rest of the world blurring away.

"SKY!" Wren shouted, snapping him out of his daze. Sky jumped at the loud sound and looked around frantically. "What?"

He looked back at the SandWing and noticed she was looking at him. "What's your name?" she asked.

"Sk-Sky," he said nervously.

Sunny smiled and nodded. "My name is Sunny," she replied warmly, then turned to Wren. "When Winter told me we had a scavenger who could speak dragon, I didn't believe it!"

Starflight smiled, then glanced back at Sky, frowning briefly before smiling again. "Sunny, why don't you find a place for Sky to rest while Wren and I work on this?"

Wren started to protest, but Sky spoke up before she could. "I would like that," he said quickly, cutting her off and confusing her.

Sky and Sunny left the library, leaving Starflight and Wren alone.

"All right, we can document those items later. Could you try reading one of the scrolls?" Starflight asked.

Wren, now slightly annoyed, nodded and picked up the nearest scroll. "'Top-Secret' were the first words she read aloud, looking up in confusion, which mirrored Starflight's expression.

"What?" they both said at the same time.

Starflight shook his head. "Well, they're certainly not top secret anymore, considering the people who wrote them are likely long gone."

Wren nodded and continued reading. "'Operation Halo Insertion,'" she read the title aloud, then opened the document. "'Commander Nightfall will lead Draconics Team One into Moon Base Alpha on a search-and-destroy mission. Requesting commission of...'" She paused and looked back up. "I don't recognize a couple of these words."

Starflight nodded, writing everything down with growing intrigue. "This is fascinating. Nightfall was one of the dragons buried in that temple."

Wren had questions but held them back, continuing to read. "A lot of these are just names of dragons or their roles?"

"Can you name some of them?" Starflight asked.

Wren nodded. "Demolition and Flight Commander: Jasper, Dragon Specialist: Hope, Designated Marksman: Shade, Stealth and Recon: Viper... and the last one just says 'redacted'?"

Starflight looked even more intrigued as she continued reading. "Interesting..."

"What is it?" Wren asked him.

"Almost all the dragons mentioned here were buried in that temple," Starflight answered.

"It sounds like they were part of some kind of war, and—wait a minute, it said Moon Base Alpha?" Wren asked, looking confused.

Starflight's eyes widened. "Could you open another scroll, please?"

Wren nodded, picking up another scroll, now just as captivated as he was.

Clay and Peril glided over the peaks of the Sky Kingdom, flying close together, their wing tips almost touching. Both stayed quiet, simply basking in the moment. The sky ahead of them glowed orange as the sun set over the mountains, the peaks casting long shadows behind them.

They spotted the kingdom ahead and began descending, gliding into the town below.

The village they landed in was familiar to them, as they had visited many times since moving to Jade Mountain. Many of the faces they saw were familiar, having spent many of their dates in this town—just like now.

Peril looked over at the MudWing next to her. "Come on, let's get to Igne's shop before it closes," she said excitedly.

Clay smiled, and they started down the streets, now familiar with them. They passed by many other shops and faces that nodded at the couple, recognizing them.

They arrived at a smaller shop with large glass windows on the front, even the door made of glass. When they opened it, they were greeted immediately.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite customer!"

"Hi, Igne," Peril replied with a smile, walking past glass sculptures, windows, and various glass objects. "Clay and I were out in town, and I need some more dyes for my glass."

Igne, a large, old SkyWing with many scars on his arm and greying orange scales, nodded. "Wait right here; I'll be right back," he said as he went into the backroom of his shop.

He returned with a few burlap bags and placed them on the counter. Peril went to pay, but Igne held up one of his talons. "Just bring me a couple more sculptures, and I'll consider that payment. I'm almost out of your sculptures; dragons around here buy them faster than I get them in," he said, motioning to one of the shelves. Peril noticed it was nearly empty.

Igne shook his head. "How you get that colorful sheen on the glass's surface, I have no idea. Dragons love it because it's so unique."

Peril nodded, smiling as she took the bags. "I'll make sure to bring some next time I'm here."

Igne nodded back. "You do that. Hope you young'uns have a good time," he said, waving them out the door. Peril blushed at his words.

Back on the streets, Clay took the bags from Peril, strapping them to his back. "Let me get that for you," he said, taking the last bag.

"Oh, what a gentleman," Peril teased.

Clay chuckled, and they continued walking, stopping occasionally to browse the vendors and socialize with familiar faces. Their day was winding down; the sun had now completely set beyond the mountains, and the stars were beginning to show themselves once more. They made their way toward the forest surrounding the village so they could safely launch into the air.

Clay checked the bags strapped to his back one last time but was surprised when he turned around, and Peril kissed him. "Thanks for carrying those. Love you," she said, kissing him again and hugging him.

"I love you too," he said, though a faint frown crossed his face as he felt a familiar object in his pack, one of the few items he kept on him. Was now the right time to ask her?

Peril pulled back, smiling as she noticed his expression. "What's wrong?" she asked, concerned by the frown on his face.

Clay shook his head, smiling. "It's nothing. Let's go home."

Peril nodded, smiling back. "I would like that. I want to try out some of this dye tonight."