Ice at Midnight: A Winterwatcher Fanfic

❄️Chapter 12: Feelings and Fighting🌑

  Over the next couple of months, Winter could tell he and Moon were growing closer. He wasn't exactly certain how he felt about this yet, but one thing was for sure: he had changed, maybe for the worse. The old him would've stopped hanging out with her long ago, but this new side of him was stirring the pot, so to speak. He often found himself jumping at the opportunity to spend any amount of time with her, especially now that she was working on her own in the library most of the time after classes. Homework had really started to pile up lately, and everyone was feeling the heat, in more ways than one.

  Not like THAT, you perverts. I may have made a joke or two, but this isn't turning into a mature story; that's the last thing I want right now.

  It was mid October, and today was unusually hot for this time of year. It had to be at least ninety degrees, and the humidity only made things worse. It was a Sunday, and the heat of the day had just started. Going to the underground lake wasn't an option, since it was packed full of dragons, especially IceWings who needed to cool off. After the recent events of Winter standing up for Moonwatcher at the prey center, none of his own tribe wanted anything to do with him, excluding his sister. They were still on thin ice, but she had at least started talking to him again. 

  The SandWings were thriving in this heat, many of them sunbathing like RainWings outside, including Qibli. Meanwhile, the rest of them were hunkered inside their caves, taking advantage of any opportunity they had to reduce their body heat. Winter was suffering especially, not being able to even go for a swim with the lake the way it was; IceWings weren't built for these kinds of temperatures. At the moment, he was using a sheet of math homework as a makeshift fan, unfortunate enough for the sunlight to be pouring in through the window and onto his ledge. Icing it over was pointless, as it quickly melted and he didn't have the energy to be constantly doing so. 

  Moon wasn't doing so well either, her black scales absorbing the heat more than anyone else's. The only dragons worse off than the IceWings were her tribe, as dark colors tend to absorb more heat and faster than other colors. 

  It was so hot, in fact, that Winter didn't even notice that the sunlight had caught his homework on fire until Moon informed him.

  "Winter, your homework is on fire," she said in a monotone voice, making it seem like she hardly noticed. 

  He, on the other talon, hurriedly jumped to his feet, threw the parchment on the floor, and stomped out the small flames before they could cause any serious damage. It only took him five seconds, but he was panting by the end of it.

  "Thanks," he said, hearing his voice slur a little. He was starting to wonder if he might pass out from the heat, but considering the fact that Moon was drenched in sweat and had managed to stay conscious so far, he was probably a ways off from that happening.

  "We have to do something about the heat," the NightWing said, as if it weren't obvious. "I can't keep fanning myself with a piece of paper." Just as the words slipped past her lips, it began to burn as well. She shrieked, dropping it and stomping out the fire like he had. The brief period of time made it seem like she had just flown across Pyrrhia with no breaks, as drops of sweat fell from her brow to the floor. "What are we going to do?"

  "I'm not exactly sure," he admitted. "We should try to find someplace, or something, cold, but where on this continent would we find that besides in the Ice Kingdom?"

  He noticed Moon gazing at him with those incredibly green eyes of hers, feeling mildly uncomfortable for a moment.

  "I can think of something," she said, a hint of playfulness in her voice. He already knew what she was up to before she began approaching him like she did when she was stalking prey: on all fours. He'd seen her hunt enough to know when she was about to pounce, and now seemed like that time.