Lotus

Chapter 2

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dimmer light of the large cave. When they finally did, I saw that the room had been decorated by a wide variety of plants, many of which I didn't recognize. This was probably supposed to make the new dragons feel comfortable and welcome, but that and the fact that there were more dragons milling about in there than outside caused me to stop right in my tracks, turn around, and start heading outside again.

Nope, nope, not happening. I'm not going to do this. I'm going straight home, right now, and no one is going to stop me! 

Unfortunately, Walnut did just that, grabbing me by my tail and pulling me back in. "Kamala, calm down. It isn't as scary as you think it is. Just take another deep breath, and stop fidgeting with your talons." I huffed, then forced my talons to stop the nervous habit. It was annoying how often he told me to do this, but I guess it was for the best. He was always looking out for me. "Good. Now, why don't we talk to someone? You'll feel a lot better once you know some of the dragons here."

I hated how right he was, and that made me protest when he started dragging me over to a sepia-colored MudWing. I was just about to kick Walnut when he opened his mouth and introduced us to the dragon.

"Hi, I'm Walnut, and this is my friend, Kamala. We're just tr--"

He was cut off by the MudWing, who started talking almost twice as fast as he did. " Oh my goodness, I'm so excited to finally meet you Kamala! I was just thinking that you're the only dragon in my winglet I haven't met yet, and yet here you are, walking right up to me!" She laughed a little at that, then continued on. "I'm Sienna, and it's fantastic to meet you!"

I was completely stunned by how much this dragon talked. None of the RainWings I had ever met were this friendly. Granted, I hadn't met very many to begin with, but still. It took me a few moments to process all that she said, and even then, I was only able to spit out a feeble "hi" back. I smiled slightly, and she took that as a cue to continue rambling on.

"I can't believe I'm here right now! When they told us that Jade Mountain Academy was accepting new students for this year, I had no idea that they would consider me to go! There are so many MudWings that are so much smarter and more talented than I am, and yet they chose me, even though I'm a bigwings, and have my siblings to take care of. I guess that's part of the reason Bemire, my brother, was invited as well. Oh, I'm just so excited to be here! I've already been around the school a couple times, and it just keeps getting better! Have you guys seen the school yet?" She looked back and forth between Walnut and I.

It takes me a moment to realize that she stopped talking, waiting for an answer from us. I fumbled around for something to say, deciding on whatever came to mind first."No, we just--"

She didn't let me finish, blurting out her next thought. "You haven't?! Really?! Well, then, I'm going to show you around. Where should we go first? Ooh, we should go to the sleeping caves!" She started off quickly down a large hallway. 

"Well," said Walnut. "This is my cue to say goodbye for now. I need to find Chive. Have fun!" He began walking in the opposite direction Sienna went.

"Wait, Walnut! Don't leave!" I called out as I felt the panic of being left alone start to seep in.

"You'll be fine, Kamala. You're with Sienna." He then seemed to notice the desperation on my face, and he sighed, walking back to me. "Look, I know it's hard to be around other dragons, but it's a part of life. You can't hide from everyone forever." I scowled a little at that, and he smirked a bit. It then melted into a more natural smile as he continued. "This is the perfect opportunity for you to show everyone that you're a normal dragon, just like them." He started to walk away again at that. "I believe in you!" In a moment, he disappeared into the crowd of other dragons, leaving me staring at the spot he was standing only moments before.

The volume of the other dragons chatter seemed to increase, momentarily enveloping me in it's tight grasp. My heart started pounding from nervousness again, but I took a deep breath and let it out, smoothing the tension out of my muscles and blocking out the noise.

"Kamala?" It's Sienna, who finally realized I wasn't following her and came back to get me. "You coming?"

I nodded a couple times, then followed after her, allowing her to lead me deeper into this new, crazy world.