Lotus

Chapter 1

This is a new beginning. You have no idea what's going to happen, so make the most of it. I repeated the words of my father over and over in my head, trying and failing to calm my nerves. I knew they were supposed to be helpful, but I couldn't help but feel pressure that I had to get this right. I started rubbing my talons together, a result of a bad habit I had picked up several years back. A few moments went by, then an aqua-colored tail tip rested on top of my claws, stilling them.

"Relax, Kamala," said Walnut. A very down-to-earth dragon, he had been my closest friend for what seemed like ages. He had a very mild personality, causing everyone that met him to like him instantly, since he gave them no reason not to. What I liked most about him, though, was that he was one of the few dragons that didn't care about my heritage, which most dragons had a hard time getting past when they first met me. "You have no reason to worry. Everything here is going to be fine."

My nerves spiked up once again, causing me to start rambling. "What if it isn't, though? There are so many uncertainties, and anything could go wrong. We might be sent back home a week after we start, or we might be caught in a massive rockslide that destroys the school. Or worse, we could even end up not learning anything at all!" I huffed a little, then started my anxious habit again.

Walnut sighed, then stopped my talons again. "Look, you really need to--"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence before we burst out of the jungle and into a small clearing at the base of Jade Mountain. It towered high before us, the bright sun causing small parts of the deep gray rock to sparkle like a night sky. Woah, I thought, craning my head back to see the top of it. In the distance, I saw dragons of all colors and sizes flying in and around it. They looked so peaceful up there, gliding as if they didn't have a care in the world.

"You coming?" I jumped slightly, startled by my jolt back into reality. I realized that Walnut was in the air again, waiting for me to join him. After a moment's hesitation, I took off and joined him.

We flew closer to the top of the mountain, where the entrance of the school sat. Many dragons were wandering around outside of it, causing my anxiety to spike up a bit. I had never been around so many dragons before, especially ones that weren't RainWings. Though having lived in the rainforest my entire life, I rarely left the shack I lived in with my father, Almond. I never really liked to be around others, especially because of the criticism I would often receive due to my IceWing looks. Almond, fortunately, understood this, and allowed me to help him with his patients instead. He was one of the best RainWing healers, teaching me everything he knew about that art. He allowed me to help whenever I could, which eventually led to me meeting Walnut, after an accident with poison dart frogs. We became good friends, and I started going out into the rainforest more often, hanging out with him and a few of his other friends. None of that prepared me for what I was experiencing at Jade Mountain, though, being surrounded by several very unfamiliar dragons.

"Breathe, Kamala," Walnut muttered, and I do, sucking in as much oxygen as my lungs can contain, then letting it all out slowly, soothing my tense muscles. "There you go. Now, have a good look around, and see that there's nothing to worry about here."

I opened my eyes, just realizing I had closed them a few moments before. I saw Walnut standing to my left, bright aqua with a small grin on his face. I then started looking around me at the other dragons. There were two black NightWings, one with a slight purplish tint, walking into the academy together. Above me, a teal SeaWing was flying in slow circles, eying the dragons below him. On my right, I saw a dark red SkyWing, talking to one that was an even darker red. This one was looking right at me, though, seeming to not hear the words the other spoke. He had a slightly curious look on his face, but was snapped back into a more neutral one by the other dragon getting his attention again.

Odd, I thought, but after a quick moment, I pushed it to the back of my head when I saw a small, beige SandWing huddled under a small tree near the entrance. She had her eyes closed tightly, and she seemed to be muttering. I realized that she was just as nervous as I was, and was trying to calm herself down. Whatever she muttered seemed to have worked, because she opened her eyes a few seconds later, sucked in and let out a deep breath, and scurried into the school.

The fact that someone else was just as worried as I was made me feel a little better, and gave me a small boost of confidence. Walnut looked at me and asked if I was ready, and I nodded. Together, we walked through the main entryway of Jade Mountain Academy.