Shiroku

A Skydancers head rested on an old OakTree. Her tears had stained the poor splintering bark leaving only an outline of a wet mark from hours of crying in the dark. She had no need to light a candle. Her source came from the full moon illuminating, casting down upon her body, after she sat there for hours immobilized. She turned her head to face the bright moon besides her scraping her face against the rough wood.

'Seven times... Seven times I've become pregnant only to lose the Egg ...' She thought in despair.

This time... it had hurt the most out of all the others, the skydancer wrapped her arms around the bundle in her arms. She shut her eyes tightly blocking out any light, holding to the darkness and her bitterness.

She could remember her mates last words clearly.

"Don't worry Ajisai! Our time will come to have a baby and we will finally be able to call each other Mama and Papa." He cradled his wife's chin in his hand pulling her face away from the ground. "So don't give up on me just yet... We WILL have our family, and our small dango shack will be complete my love..." He told her with tenderness, his eyes reflecting the words he spoke.Ajisai's face lifted and she smiled at her husband, pressing her hands gently against his. "You are right Mu... I just have to be patient."

Ajisai's patients was tested. Her first laying ended up with her sprawled over the floor bleeding, an oviduct prolapse. The Last one nearly killed her. The Egg had Broken Inside her, The Effects of a nasty whack during a Raid on her clan. The Clans Nurse Spent nearly Four hours Clearing Out the Debris from within her. All the While saying how lucky she was, nothing got infected, or else she woulda died.

"All that nasty gunk getting into the lacerations would have resulted in Egg Peritonitis" He said. "most certainly"

Oh how she wished the infection killed her. So she wouldn't be standing here, half her feathers gone, Beak broken clean in half, and a huge shiner on her right eye that had it swollen shut, all the while holding a Bundle against her Chest. The cause of her Agony.

Her last hope at joy

The snap of a twig caused her breathe to hitch, and she broke out into a run again, the angry yelling and growls of her attackers not to far behind. She was exhausted from all her running.They would catch her soon. But not before she got her Bundle to safety. She refused to let them get it.

She paused briefly, looking around. She dropped her bundle quickly, and It wasn't long before she felt the unwelcome shooting of pain.

---

In the cool, clean air of the early autumn morning the forest was a beautiful place. The sky was filled with nightly birdsongs, and every which way one looked up it was framed by a fiery explosion of reds, oranges and yellows from the leaves of the tall trees, brightened white by the moonlight. It was just the sort of place that many sought out at this time of year as a natural refuge. A temporary retreat from the stress and grime of city life. A lone figure crunched through the leaves and undergrowth. The forest fell silent as a frisky blackbird chirped the warning of his presence gliding in and out the shadows. Soft, fresh, minty moss smothered fallen trees and the treetops were full of quiet life. Leaves were dripping sullenly with rainwater from a previous storm. The bird’s joyful singing had halted to silence and small paw prints of a young animal could be seen planted in the wet mud where the moonlight shinned dimly through the treetops, illuminating the forest floor.

The smallest of a rustle could be heard in just a moment as the Wildclaw peeked out of the rough dark green leaves, his bright eyes glowing out of his hiding place to spy on a deer foraging in a clearing. Night hunting was the best hunting, he could see better in the dark then any other creature. Letholdus crouched low to the ground, bunching up his muscles then he sprang out of the brush with a roar like a lion, and tackled deer to the ground. In only a few seconds it was over, it’s blood glistening on the ground.


An alarming cry cracked the silence like an urgent alarm whistle whilst he was eating… The Dragon suddenly stopped. His head cocked to the side on alert. Scanning his surroundings for the pitiful cry. There it was again. The sound wailed for help again. He immediately responded, making his way towards the direction of the calling abandoning his kill completely. The whisper of his feet padding along the soggy leaves that carpeted the damp ground. Past all the familiar smells of the forest. Behind the stench of the saturated soil and the scent of waterlogged plants, another smell beckoned him. The cry echoed through the forest again. His stride became longer and faster till he was almost running. His glowing Red eyes taking in his surroundings until the call got closer and louder and clearer.

He skidded to a halt before the clearing, his coat camouflaged against the dark trees. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he searched the clearing frantically for the sound of the cry. He took a tentative step, sniffed for Danger. There was a faint stench of Blood in the air. He chanced a slight sound, a little barking call; He didn't dare walk into the middle of the open space, but he paced along the edge of the wood, softly calling to whoever, hoping to his maker no one called back

A weak call stopped him. His ears pricked and his eyes roaming the ground. Another sound; it was behind him, not in the meadow. He swiveled around and began walking slowly through the trees. With the wind creating a slight breeze from behind him trying to catch a scent was useless.

Something stirred in the brush just ahead. With silent steps he approached the nearly motionless form. He couldn't breathe. His limbs refused to move. She was splayed on the ground, her back legs at unnatural angles while her front legs were curled beneath her stomach where blood flowed at an alarming rate. One of her Antennae flicked to him. Her sides rose as she began panting, thinking that he was her attackers, come to finish her. He couldn't even remember moving when he was suddenly by her.

"Are you alright miss ?" he asked as he walked around her and inspected her wounds
Whatta question, dummy He chastised himself, of course she wasn't . From the looks of it, she had been mauled. The smell was familiar, but...no it couldn't

Why would

"No," she weakly answered as her body heaved up and down from the lack of oxygen that she was getting.

"I will help you," he said as he pushed her legs up with his snout.

"No," she quickly said with every last strength she had, "go! Their getting closer!"
The Wildclaw looked around but saw nobody. He could feel it though, someone was coming. "What about you?" he asked her.

"I'm done, Please take care of it, I beg of you" She pleaded, her doe eyes moving over to stare at a hydrangea bush. He could almost feel her smile; Female Skydancers when being patient always had a sincere smile, it was how they got their point across, never a raised voice or even a slight reprimand. Somehow he didn't think that they knew that was how they managed to persuade dragons so easily. Their lack of wanting to force a choice and instead trying to reason was what he loved about Skydancers. Such nobility and elegance.

Letholdus walked by the hydrangea bush. He rifled through it with his snout for anything of interest—Growling low in his throat, he shifted bits of branches and leaves aside until he found what the skydancer was thinking more about then saving her own self

It looked like an egg, round and green and yellow with grooves etched deep into its shell. Rolling it over with one claw, He sniffed at it, and the leather bagging it was wrapped in. Cautiously he stuck his claws out and grabbed the egg. It was small. Smaller then a Guardians egg, yet larger then a Nocturne, and light weight.


Letholdus turned to question her about the egg, to ask who she got the strange egg from. But he notice too soon that that wasn't gonna happen


She was staring at him, a smile plastered on her mouth. But her spirit left her body a while ago, and all he could do was to hang his head, a slight moment of silence for her passing. He turned back to the egg. Wondering now just what he was gonna do with it.


Suddenly a rustle caused Lethol to perk his head up, clutching the egg tightly to him A familiar yowl caught his attention while a burgundy red body burst through the bush.

Lethol made a move and snapped at the Mirror. Well it did not make it happy. It started running around, trying to get to the egg by snapping and growling in a effort to frighten Lethol. Well it didn’t work. Clutching the egg to him, Lethol jumped and kicked out his sickle claw when the mirror made a move to scratch his eyes. It scrambled to stand and barked at him, licking the wound on his shoulder before slinking away back into the shadows. He growled threateningly at it, before hearing someone shout that he had found the blood trail a short ways away.

He didn't care what happened to the egg (a lie), all he wanted to do now was to get out and fast. He went to his feet and hurried to the cover of the forest before turning back.

A few moments later two dragons gathered around the skydancer, two PearlCatchers to be exact.

"She must have been thrashing around, look at all them marks in the dirt," one remarked.

"Who cares, just hurry up and find that godforsaken egg," his companion answered. Letholdus wheeled and fled.


He had to find Home, he knew, but he had to think first. No, not think, thinking would only be torment; he would just run. Running brought pain for lungs, legs, heart, but not from heartache, just labor. Thoughts were not possible when your attention was on physical affliction. So he ran. For how long, he didn't know, but not long enough to get out of unfamiliar territory. He saw he was close to the over look where he had stood to survey the forest when it was convenient. His breath was sharp in his chest, like a knife-he closed his eyes. Not like a knife. Like a talon. Not like a knife at all.

When he reached his destination the sun was fully in the sky. Ninja saw him come out of the treeline like a foreboding shadow. He gasped and backed away a couple of steps, as the The Wildclaw stopped and blew a steam of cold from his muzzle into his face.


And promptly fainted.

---

Nope, definitely not normal.

The cluster of dragons and other assorted species that resided in this corner of the Shadowlands had gathered in the mess hall the moment Ninja let out his distress call, promptly waking many from their slumber. After Lethol came too after his exhausted faint spell, he recalled the events of the early morning, of the skydancer, the mirror, and the egg. And now here they were discussing on what to do with a egg that seemed to cause more grief then the feelings of happiness many people got for the prospect of laying, or finding eggs.

Their leader, Ixael didn't like this, for he doubted that any of them would act on anything other than pure fear of the unknown. A fear that was instinctive in all creatures. He too admitted that he had qualms about it, but then, who wouldn't in this sort of situation?

"…No good will come this, this messing about with foreign creatures."

Ixael snorted. No good will come of it? When they don't even know what the egg contained? That would be old
Pitch .

"Foreign is not necessarily bad, Pitch."

"Don't contradict me. Foreign creatures are dangerous."

There was a reluctant murmur of agreement to that.

"…Ought to be killed…smash the egg now, I say…"

Ixael could not ignore this. "No," he said, interfering, "not murder."

Pitch gave him an exaggeratedly disgusted look. "My dear leader, there is no way of knowing if it has any intelligence."

"And you assume that it doesn't before it hatches?" he demanded, raising his head higher.

"Well…"

"No. Foreign creature or not, it is still alive and still in an egg. It's not in my blood to allow the death of an infant."

Ixael turned to look at the egg in question, which currently situated between the paws of Ninja's Mate. At the sound of Pitch suggesting to smash it, her paws tightened around it protectively and she growled and Ixael couldn't help but smile, this was the first time anyone had seen her do anything since the death of her previous Baby due to illness. Normally she spent nowadays mopping and looking generally depressed, but seeing her be so interested in something other then locking herself in her den was guaranteed to warm at least a few hearts.


Kato stared defiantly at every face present, met the proud eyes of her mate.
Several gave a half hearted protest, but they fell silent under her fierce glare. When she was confident that she had resolved the problem, she leaned down, taking the egg in her mouth and darted to the other side of the room and stared at the egg with anticipation. What was it? What magnificent creature could possibly live inside it? Had the gods blessed her with a second chance in parenthood? She hoped. She wasn't yet over the death of her first child. Maybe this was her chance to try again.

She was soon to find out.

---

All considerations were abandoned the moment the clear, sharp crack pierced the night.

Kato gave a little shriek, darting out of the suspended bower that hung from a scraggly branch, eyes wide with apprehension. Everyones eyes were fixed with an intensity that was unnerving on the egg, rocking wildly in the little grove they had set it in (it had taken quite some time and lots of persuading and promising that the egg would not be harm) and Kato could almost feel the occupant's desperate impatience to escape the dreadfully cramped encasement, as it put all its strength into cracking the shell.

A shudder passed through the watching Dragons, and a tiny, almost indistinguishable hole appeared in the side, several thin cracks spreading like a spider's web across the shell, and a little white horn sprouted from the thickest one.

"Egg horn," she heard her mate murmur, gripping her arm reassuringly. Kato smiled at him, then returned her attention to the hatching.

It happened so suddenly, as though the hatchling had decided it had kept them in suspense for long enough, and the two halves of the hard shell burst apart, and a small wet shape flopped out, falling head first into the soil.

She could not resist a smile. Typical baby clumsiness. The little…thing, looked up directly at her, and she flinched at its sharp gaze. It wasn't pretty, she decided, and reptilian. That would explain the egg tooth. Scales were discernible now that the dampness that accompanied birth was drying. Its snout was almost square, but in an infantile, childishly adorable sort of way. It was quadruped, she could see that, and had a tail. What she didn't understand was the awkward, seemingly disproportionate things sticking out from its shoulders. She looked inquiringly at Ninja an Ixael, silently wondering if any had wise informative remarks to give. They said nothing.

The creature opened its mouth, and gave a short almost sickly sounding squeal, looking at everyone who was watching it with a comically dissatisfied expression.


"There's your 'intelligent creature'," Pitch remarked in an undertone to Ixael, a sneer spreading on his lined face.

The hatchling looked straight at him, and gave another squeal, deeper this time, with a growling edge. He gave a startled exclamation, backing away slightly.

Kato breathed in, then approached the newborn. It looked up at her, the surprise on its part this time, and reared back on its haunches trying to get a better look the thing standing in from of him. In the better light it was more easier to see its colorations. It was different shades of brown and its eyes had taken the coloration of the People of the Shadow.

He stumbled over to the bulky thing on unsteady hatchling legs, and squeaked up at them, trying to make sense of their scaly bulk. Safe his instincts told him.

"Hello, my little drake,' Kato said, reaching out to sniff the little hatchling She licked round his face. Ninja gave the hatchling a gentle smile and picked up the little one in his arms as he sat back on his haunches. The baby gave a small smile back up at him, realizing this to be his new father as he nestled her in his arms. He looked up to his mate, who nuzzled his neck.

"Come on Kato... We should go to bed..."

She wasn't even paying attention to him, too busy cooeing at the newborn when he stood up