Chapter 3

Soulstar looked around at the many dragons in the room, so many of them she knew, but so many were also unfamiliar. She gave Tsunami her full attention as class started.

"Alright, everyone, welcome!" Tsunami started, "I'm sure you all know me and I'm sure many of you know each other, but just so we're all on the same roll…I mean page. How about we introduce ourselves?"

Soulstar was confused as Tsunami corrected herself, wondering why she changed her words.

"I'll start," the SeaWing said, "I'm Tsunami, yes, the Tsunami from the dragonets of destiny, though I'm sure you all knew that."

"Woah, really?" asked the SanWing, Xerocole, "Our first class is with a dragonet of destiny? Awesome!"

"Yeah, sure…" Firefly mumbled to herself.

"Ignore her, guys," Crane rolled her eyes, "I'm Crane, and my parents are Clay and Peril. Yes, the Clay and Peril."

Tsunami gave her a suspicious look as Crane repeated her words. Soulstar leapt up to introduce herself.

"Well, if we're talking about the dragonets of destiny, I'm Starflight's daughter! Wait, did all of us end up in the same winglet?" Soulstar looked around at all the familiar faces around her.

"Looks like it," said the vibrant blue SeaWing named Plankton, "I'm Tsunami's son."

He smiled at his mother who gave him a smile back.

"And obviously, I am Princess Firefly," Firefly piped up, "Daughter of Queen Glory."

The other dragonets in the room were looking at the four of them in utter shock as they heard who their parents were, except for Xerocole. Soulstar's climate stepped forward.

"I'm Xerocole, I'm actually Sunny's half brother," he said, "My mother is Queen Thorn and my father is King Smolder."

"Is anyone going to question why everyone here is either royalty or the offspring of a dragonet of destiny?" asked the SkyWing sitting next to the IceWing.

They all glanced at each other before looking at Tsunami who was laughing nervously.

"Heh, guess you figured it out," she chuckled, "We had a lot of special dragons joining the school this year, so we decided to organize you all a bit better. So, yes, this winglet, the Ruby Winglet, is made up of royal dragons and the offspring of important dragons."

"Except for me!" Bumblebee exclaimed, "You guys are all so awesome! I'm boring by comparison. My name is Bumblebee and I'm a HiveWing from Pantala. I wish I could say I was related to someone cool, but I'm actually an orphan."

Soulstar only just noticed that there were eight dragonets in the winglet. It was strange to see a dragon with four wings and rings of black and yellow scales covering them. A few dragons who were next to her instinctively scooted away from the HiveWing. Bumblebee looked at them with confusion. Tsunami cleared her throat nervously.

"Ahem, yes, well, it doesn't matter. I think it's a great opportunity for important people to establish connections with other continents! Yes?"

"Maybe if they weren't all…you know…zombie eyed?" Plankton said.

Tsunami growled at him as Bumblebee dropped her gaze. Everyone else in the room cringed.

"What? We were all thinking about it!" Plankton glared at the others.

"That doesn't mean you should!" Tsunami scolded, "Plankton, you are in a lot of trouble for that mister!"

"No, stop!" Bumblebee interjected, "It's okay…I get it."

They all exchanged surprised glances as Bumblebee sighed.

"I can't speak for the rest of my tribe and their actions, so I'm not mad, don't worry," she explained, "All I can say is that I never was controlled by the breath of evil. Cricket, my guardian, took me from the Nest in one of the Hives before I could be infected by Queen Wasp."

Soulstar could feel the tension in the room relax.

"Oh…sorry," Plankton shrunk a bit.

Tsunami was still fuming at her son, but backed off a bit. She glared at the rest of the winglet.

"Don't any of you say anything like that again about Bumblebee. She hasn't done anything wrong," she ordered.

They all nodded earnestly, except for Plankton and Firefly.

"Now then, how about we finish our introductions and then start class?" she sighed.

The SkyWing nervously stepped forward.

"Right, I'm Cliff, Queen Ruby's son," he said.

The IceWing stepped forward next.

"I'm Mink, I'm Queen Snowfall's sister…" she said, quietly.

They both then sat down quietly and the room began to get awkward again. Soulstar thought about saying something, but Firefly beat her to it.

"So…what now?" she asked Tsunami.

"Um, well, this is a Tribal Studies class, so we just talk and learn about each of the different tribes," Tsunami explained, "How about we go around the room and ask people what tribe they are and what they can do? Plankton, you start."

Plankton jumped at his mother's command.

"Oh, uh, well, I'm just a SeaWing. I've got a powerful tail and I can live underwater…I'm also okay at fighting thanks to my mom," he glanced at Tsunami.

The SeaWing princess sighed and nodded before turning to Soulstar. Soulstar chuckled nervously.

"Uh, I'm just a NightWing, heh…and I might have a slight ability to read minds," she shrugged.

Everyone in the room stopped moving yet again. Soulstar laughed.

"Hah! Wow, your faces are priceless!" she giggled, "Don't worry, I can't read your guys' minds that well. I'll never be as good as someone like Mooonwatcher. I can only read minds when I'm touching someone."

A few dragons breathed a sigh of relief and a few of Soulstar's friends snickered at the others too. Bumblebee was giving her a moony-eyed look. Tsunami turned to Cliff.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I'm a regular old SkyWing, but something interesting is that I technically have two moms since Ruby is also Tourmaline," he shrugged.

Mink stepped forward next.

"I'm an IceWing…I can use frostbreath, but besides that, I've got nothing special going on," she stepped back.

Xerocole nodded at her and then stepped forward himself.

"I'm a SandWing, but don't worry, SandWings know how to avoid accidentally scratching people with their tails," he curled his tail up to demonstrate, "Also, I'm not sure if it applies, but I can wear the Eye of Onyx."

"You? You can wear the Eye of Onyx?" Firefly gave him a skeptical look, "Isn't it supposed to only be worn by those worthy of ruling the kingdom?"

Xerocole nodded.

"Yep, but when I put it on, nothing happens," he smiled innocently.

Firefly looked at him with new interest as Tsunami continued on. She nodded to Crane who nodded back.

"I'm actually not a full MudWing, as you can see. I'm half SkyWing," she said, "I don't have my father's fireproofing, nor my mother's firescales, but I can breathe fire all the time and I can hold my breath for more than two hours. I also have three siblings with the same abilities."

"Wow, impressive," Cliff said, "I bet your SkyWing blood is helping with your breathing."

"You think so?" Crane asked him.

"Maybe," Cliff shrugged.

"What about you?" Crane asked Firefly, "You haven't said much."

Firefly sighed.

"Fine. I'm a RainWing and NightWing hybrid," Firefly said, "I have RainWing venom and NightWing fire. I can also camouflage like any other RainWing."

"Wow, really?" Soulstar said, "That's so cool!"

"Cool? No, I am amazing!" Firefly smirked.

Everyone felt a little unnerved by her confidence, but Tsunami turned to Bumblebee, who was last.

"Me? I'm a HiveWing. Most HiveWings have a huge range of toxins and stingers…I'm not sure if I have any," she shrugged.

"You haven't even tried?" Xerocole wondered.

"I have, but I haven't found anything," Bumblebee said.

"Then how about we try to find some in this class?" Tsunami suggested, "We could use the RainWing venom training room."

Firefly growled in annoyance.

"But that's only for RainWings!" she hissed, "No one else can go there!"

"All the school facilities are meant for everyone, Firefly. Even for dragons from Pantala," Tsunami soothed, "Now let's go!"