Begonia

Gentle giant Begonia takes pride in his flower garden, cultivated anywhere he can find a few feet of free space. After his return from studying flora in the Everbloom Gardens, Begonia found great joy in cataloguing and cultivating beautiful blooms in his home territory. The growing quantity and diversity of wildflowers has welcomed more insects to the area, some helping to distribute pollen and seeds while others are caught and munched upon by dexterous dragons.

Begonia also brought to life the wildflower garden on the edge of Viridian Forest, which serves as a home for dragons of all sizes as well as a meeting place for Begonia and his mate, the forest-dwelling Pitaya. The two continue to convene in the area, now populated by colorful dragons enjoying the beautiful blooms and bountiful fruit trees.

Begonia focuses most of his energy on growing his creations, and tends to remain silent unless his voice is necessary. A stranger will experience frosty reception from the large, imposing Imperial, but his children and loved ones see the caring side of Begonia - who is focused on growing each relationship to its greatest potential.



Since the wheels started to turn on Sunset's desired family reunion, Begonia was looking forward to seeing his children again. Of course, he was especially eager to convene with the other gardeners of the family, and secretly hoped they'd bring along some specimens from their home clans. It's clear he's of a one-track mind...

Over the weeks leading up to the reunion, Begonia spent extra time with his claws in the dirt - including working overtime at the clan's humble farm, to fertilize and tend to the crops grown for the feast. Similarly, he checked daily to ensure the wildflowers outside Viridian Forest were looking their best, as well as the flowers growing on the cliff face and within the caves of the Grotto. The clan was never more colorful!


It was a surprise when typically timid Begonia blossomed into a social butterfly for the duration of the family reunion! The giant Imperial was so grateful to reunite with his descendants Tiesa, Sycamore, Nym, Hyacinth, and Garnet. Begonia enjoyed showing his children and grandchildren around his personal garden, as well as the areas in which he'd planted flowers into the Grotto's walls. The two Spirals even brought along some fine silks and fresh-cut blooms to decorate Begonia's mane and wings. All in all, it was a pleasure for Begonia to unite with his own branch of the lineage, and an honor to help provide food to nourish the guests at the great feast.


Of course, it came as no surprise to anyone when Begonia was the first to suggest the family begin preparing for the coming year's family reunion...in spring, though his mother's birthday and the main event doesn't occur 'til autumn. Oh, well - the flora of Sunbeam Grotto has never looked better!

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Like his siblings, once Begonia reached a certain age, he was encouraged to fly far from his home clan. At the time, he wasn't sure whether his search with end with discovering his purpose, a new home, or even finding a partner. The juvenile Imperial packed a small satchel with some dried fish and seaberries - the flavors of home - and started his journey by taking off towards the northeast.

Strong fliers are common in Begonia's gene pool, and he himself is no exception. As such, it was barely a day's flight to cross the Sea of a Thousand Currents at a brisk pace. Begonia's first stop was upon the shore of the Sunbeam Ruins, and when he landed on the soft sand he already felt awfully far from home. One might not see the difference between these two sandy beaches, but such a one might not be a Water dragon. While Begonia was used to gritty sand, with flecks of broken shells and corals sifted within, the sand under the Lightweaver was distinctly smooth and pale. Palm trees bordered the loamy coast, a sight altogether new to Begonia. With a shifting stomach full of homesickness, he padded along the beach and up the shallow cliffs of the Sunbeam Ruins.

It was just a few paces past the sandy shore that Begonia caught sight of a humble village, shielded from the strong ocean gusts by a thicket of strange "trees" that looked nothing like the trees in the books he'd learned to read from. All of a sudden, he was hit by a rush of feeling - something quite like fear, and a little bit like he was on the outside of a joke. Surrounded by a landscape that had existed all his life, yet it was filled with things he'd never imagined, let alone seen...Begonia suddenly understood why his father so strictly mandated his offspring to leave the clan before deciding to settle down. Begrudgingly, Begonia trudged down the sandy path leading to the seaside village.


As it turns out, some things stay the same no matter where you go! Once Begonia had entered the village, he'd nearly been bowled over by a group of little Imperial hatchlings running across the main path and behind a ramshackle building. Seconds later, a harried Fae rushed after them, only to be stopped short in her tracks by the hulking Imperial staring down at her quizzically. She spat out sentence after fragmented sentences, seemingly torn between asking his help to corral her children and apologizing for any trouble they'd caused (which seemed to be a habit of theirs - oh, well). All at once, she decided to do both by asking him to help her bring them home, where she promised him a meal and a bed for the night. With no prior obligations, Begonia agreed.

And there he lay that night, trying to sleep in an undersized cot as light streamed through the window. It only served to reason, Begonia thought, that in the region of Light there must always be a light on - even in a village as small as this one. He might have been able to sleep with the brightness threatening his closed eyelids if only there wasn't the disturbance of hushed whispers outside his door. With a groan, he climbed up out of bed and whisked the door open.

Beneath him, clearly trying to stand bravely but quivering in fear, were the three Imperial hatchlings he'd become acquainted with throughout the afternoon and evening. The eldest, Flick, jumped to his own defense.

"We were - I mean, I was just going to bed, and I saw these two talking by your door."

"We weren't doing nothing, I swear!" his sister, Flutter, piped up.

"It's 'we weren't doing anything,' Flutter," littlest Finch argued.

"Enough, enough," Begonia said sternly. "Or you'll wake your mother, too." At this, the hatchlings looked even guiltier than before.

"We really don't mean to cause her trouble, it's just - "

"We're bad luck!" Flutter cried, then clapped her paws over her snout.

"What?" Begonia asked, genuinely confused. As the triplets looked between one another, each unwilling to answer, he sighed. "Why don't we walk outside?"

The quartet strolled down the village's main cobblestone road - well-lit even at night - and were already to the sandy path on the village outskirts before one of the hatchlings finally spoke.

"It's bad luck to have three Imperials in a clutch," Flick said gravely, as if that was all Begonia needed to know.

"I have two Imperial sisters, what do you say to that?" Begonia replied, trying to keep his tone even. What were these little dragons so worried about?

"Yeah, but what about your parents?"

At that, Begonia nodded. "Of course, they're Imperials too."

"Well, you met our mama!" Finch pointed out. "And she's our real mama...Our dad left our village, that's all she said."

"There's a story of what happens when three Imperial siblings die," Flutter said, her lip wavering. "It's horrible...and cuz of that, once we grow up, we're never gonna see each other again."

"So we got to have our fun together while we still can!" Flick explained - yet his tone was grim rather than triumphant.

Begonia turned over the information he'd just learned inside his head. Something they'd said sparked a memory deep within his mind.

"So, you really believe in Emperors?" he asked, finally. The trio's eyes blew wide, as if the word itself was cursed. Maybe, to them, it was.

"I don't wanna hurt anyone," Finch blubbered. His siblings only nodded, trying not to cry.

Begonia considered his options. He never was one to babysit, so this situation was altogether new to him - but wasn't that the whole purpose of his journey? He cleared his throat.

"As I'm sure you've noticed, I'm traveling all alone. Your mama didn't ask why, but neither did you three." He lifted his broad wings, shimmering in the brilliant moonlight. "I'm here by myself, without my sisters, and without my mother and father. What do you think of that?"

"You must'a got lost," Flutter sniffled.

"Or he's in trouble! He got kicked out!" Flick accused.

"No, no," Begonia resisted the urge to chuckle as he shook his head. "The truth is, my parents sent me away. It was my father's idea, actually - but I've known about it all my life. Every dragon born to my clan is sent away once they're grown up. Some of them are afraid at first, but many young dragons grow up looking forward to their chance to explore the world.

But I don't think my father sent me and my sisters off because he feared we'd become an Emperor - I think it was for a positive reason, that he wanted us to learn more about the world away from our home." Begonia stepped off the path and perched upon a short, flat rock. With his tail, he patted the empty space next to him. "I can tell you more about my clan and my adventure, if you like."

The brothers just stared up at him, but Flutter followed Begonia to the rock and climbed up with a little more effort. "I've never met a dragon with blue eyes before," she said, staring into them with her pale golden gaze. Shyly, her brothers joined the pair on the rock's cool surface.

The four dragons stayed there late into the night, until Begonia noticed the sun rising over the sea to the west. He hurriedly ushered the triplets home, where their mother was already awake and frantically searching for them. Begonia felt a little guilty, but the trio rushed to hug their mother and apologize for causing so much trouble, stating they weren't bad luck anymore. With the tearful smile the Fae gave him, Begonia suddenly didn't feel so guilty anymore. The day was young, and he'd had no sleep, so Begonia was allowed to return to his cot until the sunlight in the window forced him awake a few hours later. After a long farewell and three promises to write, he walked then flew to the north.


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