A Beautiful Nightmare {Book1-}

Chapter One

At the age of two...

"Okay, now just hold that pose for just another six hours," Starseeker said with a higher tone of voice.

The look of uncertainty she wore made little Moondrift frown as she tried to pose properly.

"Like this?" She choked, straightening her back even more than it already was. "Or...l-like this?"

She stretched her tail out as straight as a thin stick. Sweat poured down her scales, not only from the intense tension in her body, but from the excruciating heat of the NightWing Island.

Moondrift grunted, feeling intimidated because of her scary uncle glaring at her and shaking his head.

"She's pathetic," Nightfall spat at his sister. "She can't even hold a pose for that long. Admit it, Starseeker."

The NightWing shook her head at him. "No. She is perfect. She's only two, what can you expect? A fully trained assassin?"

Nightfall scoffed coldly. "The only perfect thing about her is her beauty." He gave a pleased look at that thought. "Bet she could charm her way out of any situation, this one."

"Oh, shut it, Nightfall." Starseeker snapped. "It doesn't matter how beautiful she is, as long as she can defend herself and fight back like a good dragon."

"Right," Her brother said thoughtfully. "A good dragon that kills others."

Starseeker scowled at him, then turned back to Moondrift and smiled warmly.

"Now, let's try that again, shall we?"

Moondrift groaned.

She looked at the other NightWing dragonets, who were happily wrestling with each other and harmlessly nibbling their ears. She smiled at that, but wished she could have friends to have fun with.

All she's done for the last two years of her life right now was train, sweat, get hit, kill. She hadn't been enjoying it; she's always been so shy and weird.

Not just acting weird. There was something about her scales that always seemed strange to every dragon. There were stars all around her body. No one knew why, but dragons still found it fascinating.

She flicked her whip-thin tail and tried to pose once more, sighing.

***

When training was done, Moondrift dragged herself back to her room, flopping on her bed.

She coughed at the smoke that filled the unhealthy air. How could she possibly live like this?

She tiredly looked up, glancing at what was in front of her. Moondrift sighed happily at the sight of her secret stash of musical instruments that she stole without anyone noticing. A woven drum laid at the back, with a silver flute lying on top of it. Her eyes turned to the two golden tambourines on the ground next to the drums.

No one ever knew she kept anything from anyone. From what Moondrift had heard in those negative minds, it was all, she doesn't belong here. She's part IceWing, why won't the queen let us kill her in the lava? and That strange dragonet...always poking around things that aren't her business. She needs to be disciplined more. She's better off in the Ice Kingdom.

But what mostly irritated her were the thoughts from her mother, Oh, she's doing terrible. This was a bad idea after all. Maybe I should have just run away from here and somewhere else where no one would bother us. I don't want her to be an assassin, killing others, I hate it. Oh moons, I think she heard me.