Artis

"This is super not okay."

"Chill out, bro. It's just the woods. They're the same exact woods they are during the day."

The older hatchling blinked his golden eyes. "We're lost. Hopelessly. And we're gonna get eaten by something. Admit it."

His younger sister scoffed. "You're being dramatic. We're dragons. We're at the top of the food chain."

"If I were you, I wouldn't be so--" He stopped abruptly. "Wait. Do you see that?"

Up ahead were glowing lights, bobbing gently like something floating upon the surface of the sea. Lights! They were a beacon in the ink-black night. Neither hatchling saw any reason to avoid them; they rose from the ground, spreading their wings and flapping towards the gleams.

The lights shrank away as they flew closer. Forgetting their minor squabble, they made it into a game, chasing the lights through the trees, ducking and darting to avoid the thick branches.

They were having fun. Until the lights suddenly stopped moving and they smacked right into the source.

The siblings tumbled to the ground, falling over one another in a shocked tangle.

"Ow!" came a voice. "Hey, that really hurt! What are you doing in my swamp?"

Swamp? The hatchlings picked themselves up, wincing, and sank down to their knees in mud. They squinted at the lights, and they saw a pair of eyes like theirs, glowing golden in the night, in the midst of them. Another dragon.

She was standing in front of a row of bushes, holding a basket half full of berries. When their eyes adjusted, they saw a triangular cabin behind her some ways away.

"No way," said the sister. "How long have we been flying? There's no swamp on the maps here. And we know every inch of these woods!"

The Veilspun shook her head. "I've lived here long before you two were hatched, I can promise you that." She turned and started waddling towards the cabin, pausing only once to glance back at them. "Well? Are you coming? I'm not about to leave two kids out here alone. Let's get you some hot stew."

They trudged through the mud onto dry land and followed.

The inside of the cabin was a single room hung with garlic, mushrooms, and various meats. The walls were lined with books on alchemy and survival; the floor was covered in one giant colorful rug; glass cabinets displayed treasures like crystals and polished wood carved into animals.

A bubbling cauldron hung on the hearth in the middle of the room. It smelled amazing. Stepping forward and looking closer, the siblings saw that it was full of meat and vegetables in a brown gravy.

Enchanted, they wiped the mud off their scales and sat down at a low table. The Veilspun put bowls heaped with stew down in front of them. They dug in happily.

"Now," said the Veilspun, "what are your names?"

"I'm Telltale," said the sister, "and this is--"

"I'd rather not tell a stranger my name," the brother cut in.

The Veilspun simply smiled. "Thank you, dear."

The cattail-shaped lights around her face glowed brighter and brighter. As bright as the sun. The brother couldn't look anymore.

And then, they went out. His eyes adjusted and he looked around, startled. He was in his bed. The sun was up, streaming through the glass of his and his sister's enclosure. He turned to her side of the nest. "Telltale?"

But she wasn't there.

Immediately the brother knew what had happened. He tore out of his enclosure and hurried into the woods. He had to find his sister.