Darkness Falls ~ Book 1 ~ A Wings of Fire Fanfiction

Chapter 4 ~ Patience

~~~Peregrine~~~

Peregrine glared at the rising sun, wishing she could stop its movement with her eyes. It had only been an hour since her mother had informed her of her new mission; take the rest of the villain dragonets on a trip down to the Sand/Sky border for some time to get to know one another.

As if.

Snorting angrily, Peregrine smacked her tail against the balcony floor, causing a satisfying thunk as her scales landed heavily on the dark stone.

"Your highness?" a nervous voice announced from the balcony doorway.

The SkyWing princess turned around, lifting her snout majestically to glare down at the messenger. "What is it?" she hissed, smoke wreathing her face.

"It's time for you to meet the others in the great diamond," the messenger squeaked, flinching away as if he'd been burned.

"Very well," Peregrine replied. "Lead the way." She followed the other dragon back into the dark castle, keeping her wings spread to make her more formidable-looking to any observers. She would never admit it to anyone, but the place made her nervous, because anything could be hiding within its shadows, but also because it was virtually impossible to keep from getting lost. 

Fortunately for her, the walk to the main doors was short, and soon she was back outside, standing in an open courtyard wreathed with moon vines, climbing roses, and morning glories. The stone tiles were cold beneath her feet, and she unconsciously shivered, her eyes narrowed.

"This way," the messenger directed her, as if she needed directions to the great diamond. 

"I can go myself," Peregrine snapped, stalking away. "Go back to my mother and tell her I'm with the others." She didn't look back, but she knew he was scurrying back to the castle like a frightened mouse.

The great diamond looked as stunning as ever, with its glass sculptures lining the walls surrounding it. She'd heard a rumour that the sculptures were a reminder of the glass festival held in ancient times, one King Darkstalker was hoping to recreate. The stone underneath her feet felt instantly warmer, and she almost sighed in relief, but stopped herself before she could perform such an act of weakness.

"Peregrine," she heard someone hiss, and whirled around to face a menacing-looking HiveWing with a tail-stinger poised to strike.

"Pantalus," Peregrine replied calmly, her ear flicking backwards in annoyance. "How nice to see you again."

Queen Wasp's daughter barked a cold laugh. "Indeed. How nice."

"Come on, you two," a new dragon said in a semi-teasing voice, his black eyes glittering in a humoured way. "This isn't a time to fight. We've been sent on a mission together."

"For a reason I still cannot see," Pantalus growled, her black and orange striped scales glimmering in the light as she moved. 

Peregrine rolled her eyes and let herself relax. "Nice to see you again, Scorch," she replied, less tense then she'd been with Pantalus. 

The son of Queen Blister nodded at her slightly, his black-diamond pattern making him seem like he was half snake. "Same to you."

"Where are the others?" Pantalus asked, annoyed. She glared at their surroundings, as if the others would suddenly pop out from behind the sculptures.

"Deathfire and Shatter said they'd be a bit late," Scorch replied. "And I haven't seen anyone else yet."

"I'm here," a NightWing said as she floated down beside them on vast black wings. "Good to see you. Peregrine, Scorch."

"Hello." Peregrine bowed slightly to the daughter of King Darkstalker. "I assume you will be leading us today." 

"Yes, I will," she replied, landing gracefully.

"Good to see you, Shadowhunter," Pantalus greeted suddenly, her voice almost friendly for a change.

"It's good to see you, too," Shadowhunter responded, smiling.

"They're here!" Scorch announced, pointing his tail in the direction of an IceWing and a NightWing, walking side by side into the diamond.

"Where is everyone?" Shatter, the IceWing asked, not bothering with formalities.

"Not here, obviously," his companion, Deathfire growled, surveying the area grimly. 

"They'll come," Peregrine replied impatiently. "They'd better."

Deathfire, the son of Morrowseer, sat down and lashed his tail, and Shatter, the son of Queen Icicle began searching the sky with a cold gaze.

"This is hardly proper," a new voice announced in a disgusted way. Peregrine turned to see Tigershark, the son of King Whirlpool walk in, followed by two more dragons.

"Tigershark. Baobab. Sandstorm." Shadowhunter nodded politely at them, but Peregrine could see a flicker of annoyance cross her face. It was well-known that she disliked Tigershark, mostly because of his disrespect for her father.

"Now we're just missing Panther," Shatter pointed out, quite obviously, if you asked Peregrine.

"Nope, you're not," a disembodied dragon told him, and the SkyWing princess could almost hear the RainWing grinning. "I was the first one here."

Shatter frowned sourly, and then went back to staring at the sky. Peregrine couldn't help but smile slightly at that. Panther, King Chameleon's daughter, was one of the best RainWing camouflagers she knew. 

"Great. Now that we're all here, we should probably get going." Shadowhunter glanced around the group, as if daring anyone to disagree with her.

Peregrine shrugged and lifted off, floating above them on her vast wings. The other followed, and together they faced north, beating their wings to propel themselves towards their destination.

As they flew, Peregrine began going over her plot. Our parents think they're so great, do they? she thought. Let's see what happens when their dragonets overthrow them. But not yet. I'll have to be patient. And I will. They won't even know what hit them. For now I'll wait.

A/N

What do you guys think? Do you want Peregrine to overthrow Queen Scarlet, or not? And who is your favourite villain descendant? Please comment!!!