You know the feeling that makes your stomach knot up in anxiety? The one that sends shivers down your chest, and gives your heart a little skipping sensation? The one you can never get under control?
Fatespeaker hated that feeling.
Standing next to Starflight with her wings twitching involuntarily, Fatespeaker cowered over and tried not to focus on it as she half-listened to what Tsunami was saying. Or rather, shouting. Quite aggressively, to be honest.
"Can't ANYTHING just go to plan today?! First the Earthquake, which was like, WOAH -"
"T-Tsunami -" Riptide stuttered.
"-Then SUNNY had that freaking outburst - which, by the way, Squid TOTALLY deserved and I'm super proud of Sunny, but like, SUNNY?"
"Tsunami." Riptide repeated patiently.
"And then THIS."
She was referring, of course, to the state of nervous panic the Queens were in after their meeting. Glory had been pacing up and down what was left of the head table, fretting over the health of her subjects, and leaving Nightstar's confused calls of 'mama?' unanswered. Ruby and Coral weren't being much better, arguing over their decision to stay in the LeafSilk Kingdom. From what it seemed, Cliff and Auklet had failed at calming their parents down and had now resorted to comforting each other off in a secluded corner. All in all, things weren't going swimmingly.
In other words, the dragons were a complete mess.
"Tsunami." Riptide persisted. Finally, his girlfriend turned to him. Starflight nudged Fatespeaker's shoulder and they both snickered a little - Fatespeaker herself tried to ignore the shivers of delight his touch gave her.
"Riptide, what?"
His claws pointed to a little yellow dragon, who was standing meekly in the mouth of the cave, onlooking the group. Sunny. She gave a thin, strained smile and ambled wobbily over to them - upon closer look, Fatespeaker could see her eyes were red and puffy from crying.
"Oh." Tsunami greeted awkwardly, like she hadn't just been talking about her. "Sunny. Hi. We were just talking about you."
"I heard." She sniffed.
"Ah. Right. Yes. Well." Tsunami took a deep breath.
"No no, it's okay Nami. I'm not mad, really. I'm fine." Her voice came out as more of a strangled squeak. Fatespeaker's eyes darted over to Starflight's and they met, unsaid tension passing between them. Neither really wanted to be here for this confrontation. Starflight quickly broke away (regretfully) with the excuse of going to help Azalea in the sick bay, and Riptide followed soon afterwards as Tsunami approached her almost-sister nervously.
"Yeah, I'm going to go play with Prince Nightstar." She pulled away rapidly.
Nightstar, it appeared, did take her words completely seriously and lauched himself onto her leg the second she was in range. "AUNTIEEE FATESPEAKERRRRRR!" He cried blissfully. Fatespeaker winced as he crashed into her, and tried not to fall back into the walls. She gave him a half - grin.
"H-hi, Nightstar."
"Mama's not hearing me and I boreddd" He complained. "Auntie Starlight gone get mango and dada shouting at all royal uppity sniffers."
"All ... Royal uppity sniffers?" She fought to contain a laugh as Nightstar started garbling again.
"Striker Silking friend 'way with his mamadada but not meeee.... Auntie Fatespeakerrrr, I'm booooorreeddddd."
"I-I'll play hide and seek with you later, okay?"
"NO. NOT 'KAY. You play hide seek wi' me NOW."
Fatespeaker sighed. "Nightstar, I really can't right now, I'm busy. Please let the adults just do what we need."
"Nnnnno." Nightstar harrumphed. "YOUUUU said you were play wi' me so PLAY. You needa CHILLLLLLL."
"No, I really do not!" She protested, beginning to verge on anger. And what was she doing, getting bossed around by a Dragonet? GLORY's Dragonet at that! "I'm perfectly FINE, Nightstar, I don't need to - ow - What are you doing?"
The purple-black Dragonet looked up innocently as he clung to her chest, wrapping his forearms around her. "Huggggg." He murmured, snuggling closer.
"I -" but Fatespeaker didn't have much to protest against. Strangely, his warm presence was making her a little more relaxed.
"Alright, Nightstar." Fatespeaker smiled as he disentangled from her. "I'll play with you right now. I just need to tell Auntie Starlight where we'll be, okay?"
"OKAYYY!" He grinned. "But no be long! Rush rush hurry!"
"Rush rush hurry I will." She winked. Barely seconds later, though, Tsunami's striking voice suddenly caught her attention. "Three Moons, Sunny, just go talk to him if it matters that much to you." She was sighing. Fatespeaker couldn't help but listen in.
"Do you think I should?"
"Honestly? No. But you know me, I'm an aggressive wreck."
"Or, as Glory would put it, you're not a mushy ball of forgiveness like Clay." Sunny giggled.
"Exactly." Tsunami backed away with what Fatespeaker could've sworn was the trace of a smile.
But before she could keep watching, a sky-blue dragon pulled her attention away, and Riptide was standing at her side, looking onwards at Tsunami with a little amused smirk on his snout. "Funny how we're attracted to these Destiny Dragons in all their glory, isn't it?" He joked.
Instinctively, Fatespeaker's gaze flickered over to where Starflight was now hovering over the field hospital, indicating at lines in a book in front of Azalea. "I - uh - wait, we?"
Riptide shot her a sympathetic smile. "I can see it, you know. I'm pretty sure we all can."
"A-am I that obvious?!" Fatespeaker flustered, her face turning as red as a cherry. Riptide shrugged.
"I mean, I'm not sure there's anyone we know who doesn't know, I'm afraid."
"Except Starflight..." She muttered dejectedly.
"And maybe Clay." Riptide amended. "Hey, you'll get there." He assured, thumping a claw against her shoulder. "We'll help you - Peril and Deathbringer and I. I'm sure Starflight loves you deep down, even if he can't realise it."
Somehow, this only made Fatespeaker feel worse. "I'm not sure anymore..."
"He does. Trust yourself, Fatespeaker." Riptide grinned. Easy for him to say, when his love life basically played out into his claws exactly how he wanted. "Besides," he continued. "We have more important problems at hand."
"We do?! What?"
Fatespeaker followed Riptide's gaze down to Nightstar standing indignantly on the dust.
"HELLO - OO? THAT IS NOT RUSH RUSH HURRY!"
"We're coming." She laughed.
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I'm going to be sad to see Nightstar grow up, to be honest, but at the same time I can't wait for his book :]
Getting to about halfway within the next few chapters! And next chapter will be from the PoV of....
SQUID! (Yaaay!)
~ Star out
YOU ARE READING
CounterPart
Fanfiction'' Give me 5 chapters to change your mind '' Barely three years after the events of book 15, a large group of dragons including the Destiny Dragonets and the Jade Winglet are invited on a tour to Pantala... Sunny herself can't wait to see her Pantal...
