Mother and son padded out to the edge of the cliff where they watched the fiery sunrise over the earth. The first moments of daylight washing over their bright red scales and dousing them in warmth and a comfortable feeling. The sun put a spotlight right onto Venus' face, making her yellow eyes look like gold. She looked down at her son, a mesmerizing expression played on his face. She couldn't hold back a soft snicker.
"When you are king, this will all be yours," she stated, craning her head back to peer over the village that sat happily on the cliff below them.
Birch, the fire planet dragon leaped into the air and bounced on his paws.
"Mother?"
"Hmm?"
"Can I meet the other planets?" he asked, tilting his head up to his mother.
Her face hardened. "No," she said firmly.
Birch could see the anger and fear play behind his mother's eyes as she stared down at the buildings below them. He didn't understand why he was never allowed to see the other planets, let alone talk about them. He had been scolded many times for attempting to bring up the conversation. It's not that his mother didn't like the other planets, he knew that much from eavesdropping. However, she seemed troubled whenever they were mentioned.
He matched his mother's gaze at the village below them. Fire planet dragons, water planet, and earth dragons were all exiting their homes to start the day. When he turned back to his mother, she was gone. He looked up to see her soaring through the sky back to the mansion they called home.
Birch stretched his wings and spread his limbs apart. He had never actually flown before, nobody was ever there to teach him. His big leathery wings reached out and then up towards the sky. He took a deep breath, the smell of grass and maple filling his nose. He leaped off the edge of the cliff, watching the trees rise above him. He furiously started to move his wings up and down but could feel himself starting to tip until he started to tumble down the side of the cliff. Rocks jabbed into his back, he could feel a stinging pain on his leg. Dirt and sand kicked up into his eyes. As he was rolling, he could see the ground coming closer and closer. He squeezed his eyes shut and tensed to brace for impact but not before someone picking him up and taking back off into the sky. The rolling and screaming had stopped and now he was once again above the village. The wind rushed around the young dragon. His heart pounding in his chest as he panted.
