Day 31: Picking up the Pieces
Sentence: Writing
Sentence: Writing
Khepri was working again. He was always working, but with the news of Falcon's death, he had yet another project added to his already full plate. Nevaeh found that he had less and less time for her, and that irritated her. He seemed to be slipping further and further away, and while she knew part of it was from the accusations being flung around, she was growing more and more frustrated. She still visited the forge most days when she wasn't working, but he was almost too busy to even talk to her. Falcon's circuitry was far too delicate a pattern for his large hands to work with.
She supposed things would be different if they were actually official, but if the time hadn't been right before, it definitely wasn't right now. If this was going to keep up, she'd have to take a leaf out of her sister's book and move on.
Just as she turned to leave, her tail brushed a vase, sending it to the ground, shattering with the impact of hitting the ashy ground. Nevaeh cursed. She had grown a lot since her first days in the forge. She turned to pick up the pieces. She may be angry, but she wasn't rude.
"I'm sorry, I know that was a gift from Larkin," Nevaeh grumbled, not really expecting him to respond.
"It's fine, it was bound to break sooner or later," Khepri grunted. "That's why metal is such a good material, it's far more difficult to damage."
Suddenly, Nevaeh couldn't take it anymore.
"What's happening to us?" She asked, whirling to face the snapper.
"What do you mean?" Khepri asked quizzically, not looking up from his work.
"I mean look at us! We're barely speaking, and when we are, we're snapping at each other! We never do anything anymore, you never come to see me! And when I come to see you, you're always working!" Nevaeh exploded. "If you don't like me, just come out and tell me!"
Khepri dropped what he was working on. "You think I-" He shook his head. "Vaeh, it's not you, I promise. It's just, everything's getting to my head. Everyone from the palace things that I killed Topaz, they've come in to question me several times already. I thought-" He swallowed. "I thought maybe you thought I did it too."
"Khepri, I know you, you wouldn't even harm a fly," Nevaeh snorted. "You honestly think I'd be coming around here if I thought you killed my best friend's dad? Khepri, I like you, like I really like you. I don't care what anyone else says or thinks, I just want to be with you."
"You- Really-?" Khepri seemed at a loss for words. "Nevaeh, I-"
He was interrupted by a pounding at the door.
"What is it?" Nevaeh hissed, irritated that their moment had been disturbed.
"Open up, sister dearest!" Heaven cooed in a sing-song voice. "Playtime is over!"
"Go away Heaven!" Nevaeh growled.
Heaven opened the door anyways, and strode inside, Ulf in tow.
"What is all this about?" Nevaeh demanded, instinctively moving to protect Khepri. Heaven began circling her sister, wearing an annoying grin on her face. With the entrance of both a gaoler and another imperial, the forge seemed incredibly small.
"Khepri, you are under arrest for the murder of King Topaz, King Jett's orders," Ulf growled, moving to shackle Khepri. Nevaeh blocked him.
"But I didn't-!" Khepri protested.
"Yeah! Khepri didn't do anything! You can't do this!" Nevaeh growled.
"Nevaeh," Heaven shook her head. "I know it was all fun and games when we were kids, but this is serious. You can't frolic with a criminal and expect there not to be consequences. Give up this act, we all know he did it. Who else would it be? If you honestly believe this snapper in innocent, then you really are naive."
"I am not naive!" Nevaeh spat.
"Say what you will, the facts are what they are. I'm afraid this unfortunate affair has come to an end. It's time to grow up," Heaven said, shoving her sister to the side. She was surprisingly strong, considering Nevaeh was the bigger of the two, and Nevaeh felt heat on her wing as the forge fire singed her skin. Heaven held her sister in place, eyes gleaming, until Nevaeh begged to be let go.
While she was still getting to her feet, Ulf moved to shackle Khepri. In a horrible twist of irony, Nevaeh recognized them to be the snapper's own handiwork. She was unable to do anything as the gaoler dragged him away towards the prison tower.
"You know this isn't fair! You know it wasn't him Khepri would never-!" Despite herself, Nevaeh couldn't help but feel embarrassed as warm tears began to pour down her cheeks. She hated crying in front of her sister, and the way Heaven looked at her, as if she was weak.
"Nevaeh, you know you can do better than him," Heaven sneered. "If you were truly intelligent, you would set your sights higher, not letting yourself be a slave to your emotions. It was fun for an affair, but you must've known at was never going to last."
Nevaeh couldn't take it anymore. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she sprang at her twin, and the two tussled on the forge floor, not caring about the way the remaining pottery shards dug into their skin. Heaven had a strong bite, but Nevaeh had the size advantage.
Once their anger had run dry, the two imperials broke apart, breathing heavily and bleeding slightly from various scratches. Nevaeh wouldn't meet her sister's gaze, she just turned to go.
"I'm moving out. I don't want to see your face anymore," Nevaeh growled.
"Come on, after everything, are you really going to turn your back on me over a boy?" Heaven asked.
"I'm not turning my back on you because of Khepri, I'm turning my back on you because you've made it very clear you care of nothing but yourself," Nevaeh snarled. "Can't you think of what other people must feel for once?"
"See, this is what I'm talking about!" Heaven scoffed. "Emotions just get in your way! What useful purpose do they serve!"
"If you don't know the answer to that, then you've obviously never really loved anything," Nevaeh sighed, then she left her sister alone in the dust.
"Tell me more about the magic district," Jett asked, eyes wide with curiosity.
"I'm telling you, I don't want to talk about it," Scoril mumbled, looking away. She hadn't been able to get the image of Falcon's body out of her mind. And now she was alone, only just barely able to control her magic. She began to shake with the effort of keeping everything under control with all the emotions churning within her, and she shut her eyes.
"Hey, I'm sorry. I just want to learn more about my kingdom. You don't have to talk about it if it upsets you," Jett said. Scoril took a deep breath, a little more calm than she had been before. Calm, that is, until Jett spoke again. "I'll just go there and see for myself."
"No!" Scoril's eyes flung open. "You can't! It's too dangerous!"
"Since when have I cared about danger?" Jett smirked. "It's not like you have to come along."
"No, if you're going, I'm going, that's how this works, right?" Scoril asked, trying to disguise how afraid she was.
"Right," Jett smiled. "You're such a good friend."
Friend. The word rang in Scoril's head. It should make her happy. Jett made her happy. But there was something deep within her that sank at the word. Still, the king didn't seem to notice. He had begun going over his grand plan for exploring the magic district. As he went on, Scoril found herself listening less and less.
Returning to the magic district was the last thing she wanted.
The moment the eggs had started to move, Age had called for her mother. Now, the three of them stood over the nest with baited breath. It was time. Age was about to be a mother. Beside her, Accident was quivering, both from excitement and nerves.
"What if they don't like me? What if all they want to eat is broccoli and I can't feed them my favourite rabbit recipe? What if-" Accident rambled.
"Accident, they'll be fine," Larkin soothed, amusement in her blue eyes. Age would have laughed, but she had her own worries.
What if they all disappear? Age remembered her parents telling her of her siblings, who disappeared in a flash of light soon after they hatched, and remembered how Jett's brother had also disappeared. What if the same thing happened again? And what is whatever took them took all of them?
Suddenly, there was a loud cracking noise, and the first hatchling, a tundra, emerged from his shell. Age immediately scooped him up and began cleaning the fluid out of his fur.
As the tundra gasped for air, taking his first breath, he was engulfed in a flash of light, and suddenly, her arms were empty.
"No!" Age screamed, feeling tears form in her eyes as she became aware of how empty the air felt without him. Accident looked up, her own sorrow mirrored in his eyes.
"Age, your other two still need you, focus on them," Larkin said, drawing her attention to the two remaining hatchlings. Age had been so engrossed in caring for her firstborn that she hadn't noticed the other two break from their shells. They were also boys, a mirror and another tundra.
"They're beautiful!" Age breathed, taking in the sight of her two remaining children. See them snuggle into each other, she could almost forget her horror at losing their first. Almost.
The tundra squirmed around, his eyes not yet open. He found his brother's leg, and began chewing on it.
"Look at that little bonegnasher," Accident cooed. He seemed to have forgotten his anxiety.
"What are you going to name them? Do you have names picked out?" Larkin asked, eyeing the couple with a look of utter joy.
"The mirror is going to be Bahat," Age breathed. It was a word she had come across in one of the library's language books. It meant flawless.
Accident nodded in agreement. "And the tundra is going to be Benjamin."
"Bahat and Benjamin, those are perfect names," Larkin smiled. At the sound of his name, Bahat raised his head and opened his violet eyes. Benjamin, however, did not respond.
"Hey Ben," Age cooed, nudging the tundra. He, not yet having opened his eyes, was searching for his brother. She didn't understand why he wasn't responding. Unless-
Age remembered reading in a hatchling book that the naming of a hatchling was a very sacred process. It bound the name to the dragons soul, and it took magic to change it to something else. Perhaps the tundra had reacted to another name, something else he had been referred to shortly after his hatching. Age eyed Accident and Larkin nervously, realizing how strange this was going to look.
"Hello Bonegnasher," Age said. The moment the name fell from from her lips, her son turned to face her, letting out a squeak of excitement. He began to move, full speed, towards his mother. Age scooped him into her arms and tugged him close, licking him while he mewled excitedly. Age looked up to meet Accident's gaze. He was looking rather guilty.
"Oops."
@CleverDual @HauntedWhale @Disillusionist @AlchemyFox @Tirtouga678 @catmeow1 @Leopardmask @Midwinter @chantric @Dynami @ShinyDecidueye @tigressRising @FallenEclipse @Stitched @Willnotgogently @Sabariel @MisterMylez @Skystrider @Starongie @icetail0912 @myriadofstars @Aetherstorm
I've been meaning to give Khepri and Nevaeh some serious attention for so long now, but things kept popping up. As you can see, I hadn't forgotten about them.
Also, my B generation is here! I cannot believe the name the randomizer gave Bonegnasher. I was going through, having named Bahat and being very satisfied with the results, then the first name for the next hatchling was Bonegnasher. Which, as you would guess, is one of the last things Age and Accident would willingly name their son.
On the plus side though, it gave me the perfect opportunity to explain my own personal headcanon for how naming works in the world of flight rising, with renaming scrolls and everything. This isn't the first time I've had this sort of thing happen, but its the first time its happened in writing!
Anyways, Bonegnasher is my heir (how could he not be?) and the eldest child is available for anyone who wants him. You have until he's grown up to claim him, or else he's getting exalted. I know he's not the prettiest thing to look at, but he is Age and Accident's son.
