Wings of Fire One Shots - Slow Updates

Drabbles

This book is pretty much dead, but I'm bored

 The silver hair suited her, he decided.

Most NightWings had curly, jet-black hair, typically dry and singed from the volcano. Because of her mind-reading powers, and where she'd grown up, her hair was stick-straight, thick, glossy, and a shimmering silver. When he'd first met her, she'd only ever worn it down, covering her face, almost like she was hiding from him and their friends. Now, it was in a messy ponytail, done in a rush so that a few strands framed her face, and when she turned to beam at him, his heart skipped a beat.

"Earth to Qibli," he heard Kinkajou say, and then her hand was waving right in front of his face. He snatched it from the hair, and caught just a glimpse of her blindingly pink nail polish before she pulled it back, laughing. "You still with us?"

"I'm about 56% with you," he joked, a grin spreading uncontrollably across his face. When Moon laughed, he stood a little straighter, and smiled a little wider.

Maybe it wasn't the hair that suited her.

Maybe it was her happiness.

Peacemaker might have only been seven years old, but he thought he knew how the world worked.

Every day, his mommy would go to work, and Moon would come over and play with him. On nice days, she took him to the park or filled up his pool, and sometimes the kids next door swam with him. On days when it was too hot to go outside, she helped him make lemonade, and sometimes she read to him. Sometimes, she had to stay until he went to bed, because Hope was at a meeting or a fancy dinner, and they watched his favorite show, Voltron: Legendary Defender, together. She was there every day, and he thought he was her favorite person, like she was his.

One day, his mommy said the siding on the house was getting replaced, so she dropped him off at Moon's house instead. Moon's mommy seemed upset and argued with Hope in the corner, while Moon helped Peacemaker get himself a bowl of cereal. "What are they arguing about?" he asked her.

She handed him a spoon. "Good question. Can you sit at the table while you eat?"

He nodded and rushed to the table. "I brought the book," he said around a bite of Cheerios. "Can we read the next chapter?"
"After you eat," she promised. She made herself a mug of coffee, which Hope liked, too. Once, he'd tried a sip, but it was so gross. Moon seemed to enjoy it, which he thought was weird.

Not long after Hope left, Peacemaker and Moon were on the couch, and she read to him from the book he'd chosen: Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse. She was a good storyteller: she had a different voice for each character, and she told the jokes really well. "I have to go run some errands," said Secretkeeper from the door. "You'll be fine here?"

"Yep!" Peacemaker said happily. She laughed and left.

Moon was reading the part where Percy fought the Nemean Lion when they heard the car pull up in front. "Is it your mommy?" he asked eagerly.

"Why don't you go check?" she offered. He ran to the window.

"It is!" he yelled. "Who's that guy with her?"

Moon looked over his shoulder, saw who it was, and gasped. "What is he doing here?"

"Who?"

For the first time he could remember, she didn't answer. She just turned and ran out the door and down the steps, and threw her arms around the boy next to the car. Peacemaker huffed and followed much more slowly. As he got closer, he could hear what Moon was saying.

"What are you doing here?" she asked breathlessly.

"Your birthday's tomorrow," the boy answered with a grin. "Like hell I was gonna miss it."

"But-"

"No buts," he interrupted. Peacemaker thought that was rude, but Moon just laughed. "I'm here, yeah? It's a bit too late to tell me not to come."

"I love you," she said, and Peacemaker stepped back, overwhelmed. She only ever said that to him, whenever she was leaving. Not only was this boy coming instead of leaving, this boy wasn't him!

"I love you, too," he said, and kissed her. Peacemaker made a face, then jumped when Secretkeeper put a hand on his shoulder.

"Who's that?" he demanded.

Secretkeeper knelt next to him. "That's Moon's boyfriend from school," she explained. "His name is Qibli."

"But- but- I thought I was her favorite person!" he whined.

"This doesn't mean she doesn't care about you," Secretkeeper soothed. "Hey, I need someone strong to help me carry in the cat food. Are you strong?"

Peacemaker perked up. "Yeah! I'm super strong!"

Secretkeeper gave him the bag, and he carried it in the front door. He looked back at where Moon and her boyfriend were whispering to each other, still hugging.

I think I can deal with her liking him more than me.

Winter's dreams always went the same.

He'd be in his old room in the palace. He'd listen for the sounds of other dragons in the courtyard, but they never came. The silence made him panic, and he would run, run, run, trying to get out of the palace, but the corridors never ended.

Then the voices started.

This was the part of the dream that varied the most. Tundra's voice was normally first. "You're a disappointment, Winter," her scathing voice spat from the air. "Why can't you be more like your siblings?"

This time, Moon's was next. "You weren't good enough," her quiet voice said, echoing off the ice. "Not like him. Why couldn't you even try to get along with anyone?"

Then Icicle. "Moons, you're pathetic. You couldn't kill, even if it would save Hailstorm."

Hailstorm appeared, almost on cue. "You failed me, Winter. You failed your entire tribe."

Kinkajou: "You were so super mean to all of us. Just go away."

Qibli: "Of course we don't trust you with what happened to Darkstalker. Why should we trust you? You never gave us any reason to."

Turtle: "Just go away."

Winter woke up then, his heart pounding and his friends' words echoing in his ears. He drained a glass of water and leaned against the headboard, trying to slow his breathing.

It wasn't real, he reminded himself. They don't really think that.

Do they?

No, of course not. They were his friends, and all they did was remind him that he was stuck with them.

He wasn't sure why Dream-Moon brought up Qibli. He felt a little guilty about still having feelings for her, when his girlfriend, Lynx, was asleep right next to him. But she was his first love, and falling for her was the first time he'd felt... rebellious. That kind of thing left its own kind of mark.

Speaking of Lynx...

She stirred, blinked her eyes open, and squinted up at him. "Winter? You okay?"

He managed a smile and a nod. "I'm fine."

He laid back down and pulled her into his arms.

Yeah, he thought as her breathing evened out. I'm fine.