Dragons

Chapter Three

Shadra bounced next to her sister as the patrol set off.  “Our first Sharenight!” she exclaimed for perhaps the tenth time that night.  Inferna looked at her with sparkling eyes.

“I know!  I can’t believe it!”  They padded on in silence for a while, both lost in their thoughts.  Shadra wondered if she would meet any trainees from other hoards and shivered with excitement.

They reached the Lava Pools, which had seemingly been transformed from when they had visited them before.  Now, the clearing was filled with dragons of all sizes and colors.  Everyone was talking and milling around.  The two sisters were amazed, wearing matching looks of awe.  The patrol began to descend into the clearing.

“Wow,” breathed Inferna, the first of the two to utter a word.  She had known that there would be at least ten dragons from each hoard, but there were at least twenty more dragons than she had expected.

The leaders and deputies took their places at the Tallstone, a gigantic boulder that could fit five dragons comfortably and up to seven tightly.  Inferna gazed at all the dragons around her as Shadra did the same.  They had all different sizes, shapes, patterns, and colors.  One strange female didn’t even have wings.

“The leaders won’t start sharing news for a while.  You should talk to some other trainees, but don’t be too open,” Aria told them.  She and Scorpio were supposed to help them on their first Sharenight, but Scorpio looked distracted, like he was looking for someone.  Shadra bounded over to a group of trainees and Inferna followed more cautiously.  A little shy, she talked to Carolo, a trainee from her own hoard, first.  Her sister, on the other hand, jumped right in to the inter-hoard conversation.

Shadra chattered excitedly to Ocenia, a trainee from the Amethyst Hoard.  “I can’t believe I’m actually at a Sharenight!  There are so many dragons!  I didn’t even know there were this many dragons in the whole world!”  Inferna rolled her eyes, wondering how anyone could put up with Shadra’s chatter, but Ocenia was chattering right back.

“I know!”  The other trainee looked very excited, then recovered herself.  “Of course, this is my second Sharenight, so I’m used it by now…”  She trailed off condescendingly.

Shadra’s eyes narrowed.  “Of course, it won’t matter that you were a trainee before me when I’m made an attacker before you are,” she growled dangerously.  Inferna ushered Shadra away before the dragonesses could get into a fight.

“This is supposed to be a night of peace, remember?” Inferna hissed into her sister’s ear.

“Sorry,” Shadra mumbled sullenly.  She brightened up noticeably as two trainees from their own hoard, Kalem and Autumn, appeared next to the sisters.  “Finally, someone from the Sapphire Hoard!” Shadra whispered to Inferna.

“What do you think of the Sharenight?” Autumn asked, his amber eyes bright.

Inferna was instantly uncomfortable.  Autumn wasn’t too bad, but Kalem made her uncomfortable.  He seemed to think he was all that and more.  “Well, I think I’ll go talk to Carolo,” she whispered to Shadra.  Carolo had always been kind to her and Shadra, never making fun of them for being held back a year or emphasizing that they were behind in their training.

“Inferna, where are you going?  Don’t you want to talk?” called Kalem, noticing her escape.

“Oh, leave her be, Kalem,” Autumn scolded his brother.  He knew how uncomfortable Inferna was with Kalem, although Shadra was completely oblivious to Inferna’s dislike for Mr. “Tall, Dark, and Handsome”.  Her sister thought that Inferna and Kalem would become mates just because they both liked mirrors.

Shadra thought she saw a glint of some strange emotion in Kalem’s eyes as Inferna left, but it disappeared as quickly as it came.  She assumed that she had imagined it.  “I think this is great!” she chimed in, answering Autumn’s original question.

Autumn nodded, grinning.  “I can’t wait to hear Rivion announce that you and Inferna are trainees!”

“Thanks!  How are you liking the Sharenight, Kalem?” Shadra asked politely.  The jet-black dragon shrugged, looking distant.

“It’s all right, I guess.”  He glanced at the Tallstone.  “The leaders are going to speak now.”  He sat down and curled his tail over his feet.  Shadra and Autumn sat down beside him, Shadra trembling with excitement.

***

Inferna tried not to stare at other dragons as she walked by. They all seemed unfazed by the fact that all five hoards were at peace.

"Inferna! Over here!"  It was Carolo.  He had spotted her. "Come look at this."  Curious, she glided to where he was.  Copying him, she peeked through the bushes and saw a nurturer talking animatedly to another dragon, Scorpio.

"Why did you want to show me this?" she asked, pulling away from the hiding place.  She wasn’t about jump to conclusions – after all, this was hardly anything worth seeing.  Carolo shrugged, realizing that it probably wasn't the most exciting thing to see.

"Well, er... I figured, because he's your trainer, isn't he?  That you'd want to see it."  Inferna raised an eyebrow.  Sometimes, she thought, dragons can be so confusing.  But it’s the thought that counts – although she wasn’t quite sure what the thought was.  The two sat down to hear the leaders’ news.

The Ruby Hoard leader, Renya, was the first to speak.  "It was a hard winter, but I am proud to say that the Ruby Hoard is thriving.  I would also like to welcome two new trainees: Wintras and Flamel!"  Shadra cheered with the hoards for the new trainees.  As Renya stepped back, Fennel stepped forward, his green eyes mellow and his stance comfortable.

         "Since spring began, the forest has had an abundance of prey.  We have full bellies and are happy to announce that we have a new attacker.  Please welcome Brolino, fierce heart!"  The dragons cheered again, this time with more vigor.  Shadra suspected that many of the trainees at the Sharenight were cheering more out of envy than anything else.  Amira and Cristol also had good news to report, and then it was Rivion's turn.  Shadra gazed at him expectantly.

"Spring has been good to us, and the rivers are filled with fish.  We have recently given one defender his full name: Sunan, light bringer!"  Shadra, Autumn, and Kalem cheered loudly for their hoardmate, calling his name to the stars.  Shadra shivered with anxiety.  "And I would also like to announce two new trainees: Shadra and Inferna!"  Basking in the warmth of the dragons' cheers, Shadra met her sister's eyes across the clearing and smiled widely.  Inferna grinned back.  Finally, they really felt like trainees.  

Shadra noticed that the Ruby Hoard members were not cheering as loudly.  She scowled at them and began cheering her sister's name, her voice drowning out the rest.  She saw Inferna chanting "Shadra!  Shadra!" and knew that nothing would ever pull them apart.