Forenoon

AFFILIATION: THE OUTCASTS / THE ELEVEN
DESCRIPTION: Forenoon was born into a clan of water dragons- a clan which unfortunately no longer exists. Forenoon’s brother, Sundown, and his strange prophecies had been causing trouble for The Enigmatics- so her homeland and her brother were swiftly dealt with. Soon after her homeland’s destruction, Forenoon found herself allying with The Outcasts- supporting their endeavors to take down their parent clan, and the clan which had destroyed her home.
Forenoon prefers to live off of The Outcast’s territory- distancing herself from her new clan and those around her. She spends her time honing her newly awoken primal abilities, and trying to curb her raging anger and grief through her dancing.


—— ——-


Forenoon was born soaked in the colors of the sun. Her fiery, downy coat only mirrored her zesty spirit- she was always a bit of a troublemaker in her family, her boundless energy being nearly insatiable. Many dragons would often mistake Forenoon as a member of the fire flight because of these traits- the only trait separating her from the fire flight being her piercing blue eyes.

Of course, this common mistake only intensified Forenoon’s shaky relationship with her family. Forenoon’s parents discouraged her energetic and , to them, outlandish behavior- believing that it was unbecoming of a member of the water flight. First it started with verbal reprimands- when that didn’t work they tried punishments. When that still didn’t work, they eventually seemed to just have given up on her, and avoided associating with Forenoon as much as possible. For years she tried to contain herself, to win her parents’ approval, but somehow she could never make it work. Many of her clan members would often not even realize that she was her parents’ daughter, with how distantly they treated her.

On top of all of this baggage, there was her brother, Sundown. He was, in every essence, a model water dragon- cloaked in deep blue feathers and bearing shimmering, primal blue eyes. He was born with a gift, they said- his birth must have been blessed by the Tidecaller himself. Sundown carried himself with a regal confidence, befitting of a wise sage. Dragons would flock to her brother for his advice, his blessings, his teachings- and he would greet every dragon with a calm smile, and give his all to helping them. He was perfect.

Forenoon wanted to hate her brother. How he could appear so regal, how he was simply born with the disposition her parents so desperately wanted her to have. She tried so desperately to avoid him, to despise him, to let him know it was HIM that kept her from being happy. Still, in the hours when the siblings were together, Sundown was always her shoulder to cry on- always there to console her. Always waiting for her, with that same gentle smile. He was one of the few dragons who encouraged her to be herself, to “let loose” as it were. And it was him that first taught her how to dance- an activity which Forenoon quickly became enamored with. In her dancing, she could simply lose herself to the movements of her body, and the fiery energy broiling deep in her blood.

Still, as she watched her parents dote over her brother, she couldn’t help but feel a stab of undeserved resentment toward him creep over her.
And that feeling, that sickening knowledge of her jealousy, only hurt her even more.

———

It was around six moon cycles after Forenoon had come of age when it happened.

Forenoon had been practicing her dancing atop a cliff when she saw the pair of travelers coming upon her clan from afar. Curious, she rashly flew down from her perch to greet the two- after all it wasn’t often that strangers wandered into their territory. As Forenoon neared them, she was struck with a sharp stab of unease. The two figures were cloaked, and the air around them seemed deathly still and quiet. Still, it was too late, as she flew over them, they had already spotted her and called out to her.

“Greetings, Skydancer! We received word that a powerful oracle resides near these shores, and we were hoping to speak with him.”

Of course. They were just here to see her brother.

Forenoon landed in front of them, clumsily kicking up plumes of dust as she slammed into the earth. The larger cloaked figure, a skydancer like herself, snickered at this- and as she choked on the clouds of dust she swore she heard him mutter, “Aren’t water dragons supposed to be graceful?” Although Forenoon couldn’t see her face, she knew his companion was sneering.

Gritting her maw, Forenoon spat out the dust and glared at the two.

“You want to see him? Then watch your tone and follow me.”

The skydancer returned her gaze cooly, then gave her a small smile. Again, the unease pricked at her. The smile wasn’t reaching the skydancer’s eyes.

“Very well, we didn’t mean to insult. We would just very much appreciate being guided to him.”

Forenoon stared at the two for a few seconds longer, then grumbling, she turned around and quietly guided them back to her clan’s lair. No more words were spoken between them- and with every step, her unease continued to grow. Forenoon had never been a particularly sensitive dragon, but these two were just... wrong. Alien. They didn’t belong there.

When they arrived at the lair, she could feel the eyes of her clan-mates boring into her, making the skin beneath her feathers crawl. What nonsense had she brought to the clan this time? Head low, she quickly made her way to her brother’s den, pushing through the tendrils of ivy which blanketed the entrance to his lair.

“Sundown? Two travelers are here to see you.”

Her brother was lying down on a soft bed of blue moss, already smiling as she entered. It was as if he had been waiting for her.

“Ah yes, thank you Forenoon.” He turned his shimmering gaze to her two companions. “How may I help you two-“

“Wait!”

Forenoon quickly cut into his speech. “Can I speak to you for a moment, in private?” She felt the two foreign dragons’ icy glares raking her back. “Please.”

Sundown’s eyes widened, his mouth agape. He clearly had not expected this interruption- for once in her life, she must have surprised him. Then, he once again relaxed, and the soft smile returned to his face.

“Yes, of course. Do you two mind waiting?” He gestured to the two dragons.

The duo looked at one another, silent, then back to Sundown. “Very well, call us when you are ready. But please be fast.” Then quietly, they slipped out of the reeds blanketing the entrance to Sundown’s den.

Her brother turned to her. “Now, what is bothe-“

“These two strangers! I don’t know what it is- but there’s something off with them. They’re dangerous- don’t listen to whatever they tell you, send them away. Pleas- please. Please, for once in your life, listen TO ME.”

Forenoon was trembling. Her pent up anxiety had come tumbling out- but she needed to let her brother know that with these two dragons, there was something horribly wrong. He had to listen.

Her brother’s face was unmoved. The smile remained. “Thank you for voicing your concerns, but everything will be fine.” He paused. “I was given a gift, and I will use it to help as many dragons as possible. If these two need my assistance, I will do my best to grant it to them.”

Forenoon’s face distorted. “Are you listening to me?! These two are dangerous! Maybe it’s hard for you since you’ve never had to before, but get out of your own head for once, and listen to what other people tell you!”

He was still unmoved.
Sighing, her brother gestured towards the exit of his den. “I want you to go take a walk and cool off. Stay away from camp for a little bit.”

Rage surged through her. “But-“

“NOW.”

The stern, sharpness to his command shocked her. She had never heard Sundown raise her voice at anyone before, at her no-less. Stunned and dumbstruck, Forenoon slowly backed out of Sundown’s den, and as she left, his eyes never left her own.

The two dragons were waiting outside, curiously watching her as she backed out. She glared at them, hot tears stinging her eyes. “He’s waiting. Get in there.” And with that, she quickly flew up and out of the camp, desperate to get as far away from the memory of her brother’s icy voice.

Forenoon kept flying for quite awhile, until she had reached the cliffs which bordered the ocean. This was her private place- the place where she went when the glare’s and whispers of the clan became too much for her. Quietly, she watched the sun dip down from the sky, swallowed by the yawning ocean in from of her.

Then, she began to dance. The song of the crashing shoreline filling her ears, Forenoon silently twirled in the dusk’s cool wind. Below the cliff where she danced, the ocean’s waves seemed to sway with her, mesmerized with the soft sway of her body.

It wasn’t until her tears were dry and her energy was spent that she returned to her clan. She had spent the entire evening dancing on the shoreline, keeping her emotions at bay. As she flew home, the sun had sunk far beneath the ocean, and the sky was vast, moonless, and hushed. There wasn’t even a breeze.

As Forenoon neared her camp, a sharp scent clung to the air. It was tangy, musky, and faintly earthy. At first, she couldn’t identify the smell. She had scented it before- it was familiar, but never this pungent. The closer she got to her home, the stronger the smell became. Then she realized.

Smoke. Something was burning.

No!

Panic surged through her. She was on the border of the clan lair now- smoke saturated the air and stung her eyes. She could see large snarling flames raging through the musk. Gritting her teeth, Forenoon dove into the heart of the flames.

It was hot- unbearably so. She felt the edges of her wings becoming singed by the hot ash which was raining down on her. Forenoon screamed, trying to find anyone alive within the raging inferno. There was no response, save for the snapping snarl of the blaze.

Blindly, Forenoon stumbled through the camp- with each step the hot ashy soil seared her feet. Her brother, where was her brother? She screamed again, but again, there was no response. Faintly, Forenoon recognized the outline of her brother’s den- and desperately fought her way toward it.

It was useless. His entire den was engulfed with the blaze, the mouth of his den seemed to be spewing out a torrent of hot, angry flames.

Tears began to pour from her eyes, once more. Forenoon screamed- not this time for survivors- but for anguish, loss, and heartbreak. Rage, shame, and regret flooded her body. This was her fault, she brought them here. No- it was his- why didn’t he listen? Why, why, why? But he didn’t know, couldn’t have known, she should have-

The tears kept flowing, and silently overheard, storm clouds began to gather. All of the energy which she had kept locked away for years seemed to surge forward- crashing over her like a tsunami. The tears in her eyes kept pouring out- a hot angry torrent.
Then, they began to churn.

The storm overhead broke, a downpour of rain cascading down onto the smoldering earth. The fire hissed and spit in protest, then, with a final roar, went silent. Alone, in the charred debris of her home, Forenoon stood silently.
The tears which had filled her eyes continued to swirl.

Had he known this would happen? Is that why he sent her away?

Something deep, something which had lain dormant in her blood, had finally emerged- and the waters which flowed from her eyes never again ceased.

——

Travelers in her homeland soon became well acquainted with her- the strange skydancer who would dance on the ocean cliffs at each sunrise and sunset. They would watch with amazement as she seemed to move the waves around her with every whirl of her body, every step of her feet. Her movements were energetic, yet seemed to carry some sorrow, some melancholy weight to them.

Primal energy had poured relentlessly from her body- over-time some of her feathers had taken on a bluish hue. It was startling the first time she noticed it. When the skydancer would stare into her reflection, the blues reminded her of her brother- whose own feathers were decorated in the same colors.

And in her homeland, Forenoon would dance with the waves, cry with the thundering storms, and wait.
She would wait until those two travelers inevitably dared to return.

Then, her true storm, which she had always hidden away, would be unleashed.