Wings Of Fire: Closing Eyes (Prequel To The Last Day Series)

Agate - 3

     One could say Agate's favorite color was pink, judging by her room. It was big and airy, with billowing white curtains and pale pink walls and peach-colored wood floors. She had jars of fireflies hanging from her ceiling and a big vase of warm-colored roses by her door. On her desk, and shelves, and any other surface she could find, she would fill with the pretty rocks she was named after, agates.

   Agate loved rocks. Especially warm colored ones. Any surface in her room was overflowing with agates, tourmaline chunks, jasper, and other random rocks. She had a small chest full of small rubies and garnets, and a few opals.

    Her room was very clean. Her house was always quiet, and so was a good part of the neighborhood. Her mother, a SkyWing, was very kind and respectable. She was a slightly redder color without Agate's markings and just as tall as she was. Most dragons mistook them as sisters. Agate's father, Jasper, was long dead. He had died when a building in the Sky Kingdom had collapsed during construction when Agate was newly hatched. She had no connection to him, but her mother missed him very much. There were many pictures of him around their house- a handsome dark red face with peachy eyes and underscales, just like Agate.

    Agate was waiting in the park with Bloom- who was feeding the birds, Blackbird, and Crab. They were waiting for Exo, Epiphyte, and Splinter to arrive, and Agate could see dragons setting up tents even though it was very early in the morning. The sun had hardly risen and the city was mostly quiet. 

    "I can't wait for the fried pineapples this year," Crab was saying. "They were amazing last year!"

    Agate scoffed playfully and threw him a grin. "Fruit eaters. I don't get it."

    "Hey! I eat meat too!" Crab said, splashing his tail in the fountain, sprinkling Blackbird, who gave him a disgruntled look.

    "And fruit is awesome, by the way," Bloom said. She held up a talon and admired it as a wave of reds, greens, and oranges shimmered across. "Mangoes are my favorite."

   "We're going to make you try some fruit this year." Crab said with a nod.

   "Ew," Agate said, wrinkling her nose. She turned her head as the last three dragons arrived, with Exo in the front, to her surprise.

    Agate didn't really have anything personal with Exo, she had just heard about her from other dragons. According to those dragons, she was loud and unpredictable, and definitely could not be trusted. Deep down, Agate regrettably felt like she agreed with them. Emotions are said through the eyes, and for Agate, if that dragon didn't have eyes, then either that dragon didn't have emotions, or like the dragons said, couldn't be trusted.

   Agate felt guilty about thinking this. Even though she agreed with the dragons, she knew it wasn't right. But there was something about Exo that Agate just couldn't shake, and it made her very uneasy.

    "Hi, guys," Exo said, her orange scales catching the sunrise beautifully. She was wearing her hat today, and a chest satchel, and a translucent black cape. Splinter and Epiphyte touched down, both grinning at their friends.

     "Hi, Exo," Crab said. "Hey, guys." He walked over to Epiphyte and Splinter and bumped their wings. Exo turned her head in their direction, her ears perked and twitching, scowled, and turned to the fountain and trailed her hands in the water.

   What was that?

   Blackbird watched with impassive eyebrows and turned to Bloom, who was chasing the birds and leaping around. Agate didn't have that much energy, although she wished she had.

    "I'm excited for the sparing tournament," Splinter said, flexing his claws. Every year, on the festival, there was a tournament in the city Colosseum (where many other events, and hardly any killing ever took place) that involved filling it with different little environments, like small harsh deserts, blizzarding tundras, deep jungles, water, and just rocky patches. It allowed dragons from each tribe to show off their skills and experiment with their natural abilities.