Stand By You

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Keep your eyes out for a new dragon! :D

Qibli PoV:

Qibli led the way back through the halls back to his sibling's room, keeping half an eye on Winter. The IceWing was trailing after him, his wings drooping and tail dragging. His steps were sort of staggered and uneven, like he was physically unstable. He wasn't exactly sure how long the IceWing had been in that hallway, all Qibli knew was that he'd been there long enough for it to mess with his head. He only hoped that Winter wasn't about to pass out from heat exhaustion. Maybe I should get him some water, Qibli thought.

Once they reached Rattlesnake's room - he called it hers since she was the one who claimed it, mostly - Flame perked up.

"Hey, can - um, Winter, are you okay?" asked Flame, changing what he was saying mid-sentence.

"I'm alive," the IceWing replied flatly. He walked over to near the middle of the room and sat down, his wings flopped untidily at his sides.

"That's not very reassuring," Flame pointed out, eyeing Winter with concern.

"Maybe this will help - I'll be right back," said Qibli, turning and retreating out of the room again. He heard Flame start to call his name, but he didn't turn back. Where would Vulture keep the water? Qibli wondered. Kitchens, probably. Or that food cellar that we freed the scavengers from. He wasn't exactly sure where they were, but he had a general idea where they'd be, so he twisted around and hurried to where Vulture kept his food stash. Qibli was lost in thought, remembering when he'd come here before Thorn had saved him, and then again with Winter. He was so distracted that he didn't even notice the unfamiliar SkyWing until he crashed into him, sending them both toppling to the ground.

"Oof," the SkyWing gasped as he hit the ground.

"Ack- sorry!" Qibli yelped, scrambling to his feet.

"Oh, it's fine..." the SkyWing said. "You seem in a hurry."

"Yeah, kind of," replied Qibli. "I'm just trying to find some water."

"Well, I'm Hurricane, its nice to meet you just trying to find some water," the orange dragon said with a straight face.

"What?" Qibli asked, confused. Then realization of what the other dragon had said sank in. "Oh."

"Haha, you should see your face!" Hurricane laughed. "Sorry, it was too funny to miss. What's your real name?"

"Oh, I'm Qibli," he told Hurricane.

"Hi Qibli," the SkyWing replied. "Need any help with that water?"

"Mmm, sure," Qibli agreed. If anything then I can find out why there's a random SkyWing in Vulture's compound. he thought. He started off toward the cellar again, although this time he decided to walk.

"You from around here?" Hurricane asked conversationally.

"Um, no," he replied, quickly assessing how much he should tell this dragon. "I'm from Jade Mountain Academy."

"Oh! That's why you seem familiar!" Hurricane exclaimed. "I'm from Jade Mountain too!"

"Huh, really? I haven't seen you around..." Qibli said in slight surprise.

"I'm new, I just got there about a week ago," the SkyWing explained. Had we left by then? Qibli wondered. (Another good question, Qibs. lmxo) "I met some dragons called Moonwatcher, Kinkajou, and Turtle - have you met them?" Qibli let out a snort.

"Yeah, I know them," he said. "They're my best friends."

"OH, you're THAT Qibli!" Hurricane said. "The one with Winter the IceWing, right?"

"Um - define 'with'," Qibli asked, blushing slightly. Hurricane started laughing.

"Well, I meant 'traveling with', but when you put it that way..." he replied, chuckling.

"W-what do you mean by that?" Qibli half-demanded.

"I think your face is saying more than I am," Hurricane pointed out, amused. Qibli groaned, ducking his head so Hurricane couldn't see him blushing. Thankfully the SkyWing then dropped the subject, leaving them to walk in silence.

~timeskip brought to you by Thisle the SandWing by WolfQueen~

Qibli led Hurricane back to Rattlesnake's room, each carrying pouches of water. (don't ask how it's staying in it-)

"Who's that?" Flame asked as they walked into the room, nodding to Hurricane. The scarred SkyWing was sitting near the center of the room with Winter tucked under his wing, leaning on his side.

"This is Hurricane," Qibli said, flicking one wing toward the orange dragon. "Hurricane, this is Flame," he pointed to the other SkyWing, "and Winter," he then indicated the drowsy-looking IceWing.

"Ah yes, you two," Hurricane said, a smile tugging at his mouth.

"Why do I not like the sound of that?" Flame asked.

"Hmm, let's just say... I've been talking with Kinkajou," the other SkyWing said playfully.

"Mmrf," Winter grunted, lying down and burying his snout under his arms. Qibli shifted the pouch around his neck, then remembered why he'd brought it and headed over to the limp IceWing.

"Are you alright?" Flame asked, looking into his eyes. "You look exhausted." Qibli passed him the water, then as the SkyWing offered it to Winter he took a deep breath and mentally checked himself over. He was exhausted, both physically and mentally.

"When was the last time any of you ate?" Hurricane asked, his playfulness gone.

"I ate yesterday," Flame replied promptly. "But I don't know about these two." he turned to Qibli expectantly.

"I can't remember," he sighed. "Three- four days ago?" 

"I'll go find something," Hurricane said, ducking back out of the room again.

"You should probably sleep, too, after you eat." Flame told Qibli.

"But I can't," he said. "We've got to get to Thorn's palace and help her recover the treasure - the IceWings have probably attacked her by now- we have to get it back from Vulture-"

"Qibli," Flame said firmly, cutting him off before he got too much more riled up. "You're not going to be any help if you try and go back like this. You'll collapse halfway there, and you're tribe is built for desert travel - Winter won't make it a quarter of the way there." the IceWing snorted disbelievingly, but Qibli knew that Flame was right.

"But..." he protested, still not ready to give in, even though he was too tired to find an argument.

"Even if it's only for a few hours, you. need. rest." Flame repeated.

"Oh, alright," Qibli sighed again. He slipped under Winter's already outstretched wing, curling up and tucking his snout under Winter's shoulder. Qibli almost instantly relaxed, letting out a content sigh before sliding into sleep.

ALKLJAGHKHASKFHKE. It's done. I know I said that I wouldn't put this out until I finished the Lunatail oneshot and my reveal, but I was completely uninspired for what to write in the oneshot, and I'm having trouble finding a picture for the pet reveal. I apologize if it wasn't quite up to usual standard, but tbh I'm kind of tired rn.

Also, I introduced a new character; Hurricane the SkyWing! However, I would like to make note that this is not my character - it is @Random_Man88 's oc! I didn't mention it at the beginning so then it would be a sort of surprise for you (and Qibli) to find him.

Well, I think that's it for now! As usual, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please comment any tips/errors/thoughts you have/find, and have a great day/night!! Take care of yourselves! Love ya! <3

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