Chapter 22
The Warring Blizzard
New Dragon(s)
Amethyst held his cargo near and close, doing his best to protect it from the blizzard that raged around them. If the situation wasn’t so dire and what he was supposed to transport so fragile, he’d be fuming right about now, but, even if the Spire hasn’t really helped him as much as he’d wanted, it did help temper his anger just enough to be able to suppress it in dire situations.
The bundle shivered and Amethyst held it closer, frowning, looking around to see if he could make out some semblance of anything. The blizzard was too harsh to make anything out and Amethyst swore under his breath. He knew he had to be close but the blizzard had to have gotten him lost. He glanced down at what he was holding and he steeled himself. He wasn’t going to fall this task, there was no way.
A small hand reached up to grab the collar of his scarf. “Is… is the cold going to s-stop soon?” a tiny voice asked.
Amethyst looked down with concern in his eyes, as his precious, precious cargo, the young Princess Kunzite of Hollowwell, shivered pathetically in the cold. It has always been strange to him that even ice dragons suffered in the cold, but for once he had no scathing remarks to give, especially not to the young princess. He held her closer and whispered, “Yes, we’re almost there.”
Kunzite didn’t reply, instead nestling into what little warmth there was to find against Amethyst’s body.
And so, Amethyst pressed on. The blizzard only grew harsher and Amethyst could start to feel his own body giving out. He focused on Kunzite’s breathing, on her heartbeat, to give him the will to keep going. That, and the spite he felt towards the idea of dying in the cold after he’d lived for so long in the Southern Icefield.
But spite and determination alone aren’t enough for miracles. Eventually Amethyst realized he couldn’t take another step. He was too cold, too numb to keep going. His legs wouldn’t move anymore, no matter how much he willed them to. Everything sunk in at once. This was it, he had failed. He shakily took his scarf off, taking a considerable amount of time to wrap Kunzite with it, in a feeble attempt to give her more layers to fight off the cold with. Afterwards he looked at her one last time before he finally let himself succumb to the cold and fall unconscious.
---
When Amethyst awoke, he could still feel the unforgiving cold in his bones. That’s how he knew he was still alive and once that information sunk in, he bolted upright. The only thing on his mind was Kunzite’s safety. He barely even perceived the room around him as he looked around before his eyes settled on a startled looking dragon sitting in the corner of the room. His eyes widened with surprise, he recognized that dragon.
“A-Aero?” Amethyst let out instinctively.
Aero quickly calmed after his initial surprise. He gave Amethyst a smile that was a little awkward. “Amethyst,” he said with a nod. He examined Amethyst, looking him up and down. “You’ve healed nicely. That’s good.”
“Why are you here? Where am I?” Amethyst asked, his confusion surging further.
“You’re in the Neo-Shallowlight right now,” Aero replied. “We found you passed out in the snow, and we were lucky to, I think if we’d hadn’t found you when we did you might’ve died there.”
Amethyst sighed. “Th-thank you for-” he cut himself off as his mind went back to Kunzite. He lunged forward, grabbing the collar of Aero’s shirt and dragging him closer before he fully realized what he was doing. “Where’s Kunzite?!” he shouted.
Aero was startled at first but seemed to calm, even if Amethyst still had him by his shirt. “I see your legendary temper has not yet waned,” he said, letting out an awkward laugh.
Amethyst’s eyes narrowed and his lips curled back in a familiar snarl. “Where. Is. Kunzite?” he growled.
“I’m not sure who Kunzite is-” Aero started to reply.
Amethyst moved to pin him against the wall with a solid thud. Aero squirmed and winced under his grasp. “The Wildclaw hatchling,” Amethyst spat. “Where is she?”
Aero opened his mouth to reply before the door creaked open. Amethyst looked over and, when he saw who it was, let Aero go. Aero himself fell onto his rear against the wall, rubbing where Amethyst had grabbed him and frowning.
“Princess Kunzite!” Amethyst shouted, relief flooding through his body. He quickly moved over to her and picked her up, overcome with emotion seeing her in a much better state than he had for such a long time.
Kunzite nuzzled into Amethyst’s arms. “I’m so glad you’re okay!” she said with a sniffle, burying her face into Amethyst’s chest.
“Of course I’m okay,” Amethyst scoffed. “Some blizzard isn’t going to take me out.” He refused to admit that it nearly did, especially in front of Kunzite. He held the young Wildclaw for a few moments before remembering Aero was there. “Erm… sorry for that, Aero,” he murmured.
“It’s fine, I get it,” Aero responded, standing with a sigh. “So that’s Kunzite. I’m surprised to hear her speak, she hadn’t said a word before now.”
“She’s been through a lot,” Amethyst said vaguely. He didn’t want to explain anything to Aero, it wasn’t something he was owed. He turned to look at the Ridgeback. “This is the Neo-Shallowlight, huh? Where’s Chaoskin?”
“
King Chaoskin,” Aero corrected, frowning again. “Please treat our King with the respect he deserves.”
“Listen, I really don’t have the patience for this,” Amethyst retorted, annoyed. “Where is he?”
“Here,” a voice new to Amethyst replied. He turned his head and was met with the sight of Coatl in the doorway to the room, regal in attire and stature with a resemblance to Kunzite. Chaoskin. “Please refrain from getting angry at Aero again, please. He spent a lot of time watching over you to make sure you were healing alright. You owe him a bit of thanks, in fact.”
Amethyst rolled his eyes. “Fine. Thank you for looking after me, Aero,” he said, with only a smidge of meaning behind.
Aero simply bowed, trying to hide his face and the hurt in his eyes. He walked passed Chaoskin. “Please, excuse me,” he said simply in a quiet voice as he disappeared past the doorway.
Chaoskin narrowed his eyes at Amethyst. “I don’t quite appreciate how you’ve conducted yourself so far,” he said, his voice cold.
“I couldn’t care less,” Amethyst said with a hefty sigh. He let Kunzite down, but she still clung to his leg, her eyes still wet with tears. He gently moved her aside with his tail and dropped to a kneel. “Amethyst, delegate of the Spire of Muted Roses,” he said, slipping back into the formal language he’d been stuck using for so long at the Spire. “I request shelter for me and my ward.”
“I’m not that keen on turning away dragons at this point,” Chaoskin started to say. Amethyst narrowed his eyes up at the Coatl, even as he was still kneeling his head down. “But, so far, I don’t quite find myself really wanting you to stay here.”
Amethyst was silent for a moment. Then, that all too familiar rage he struggled with struck. He stood, glaring daggers at Chaoskin. “I couldn’t care less what you think of me, if this had anything to do with me, I wouldn’t even be here,” he spat. “But I have been entrusted with the safety of your niece and I’ve come to find I don’t have any other options to keep her safe.”
Now it was Chaoskin’s turn to be silent as his eyes widened with surprise and he examined Kunzite. “My niece?” he repeated. “... I see.” He was silent for a bit longer. “Who’s?”
“King Vakarian,” Amethyst replied. “I doubt any of your other siblings are even around anymore anyways.” He kneeled down again, but not out of station this time. He gently coaxed Kunzite forward. “This is Princess Kunzite. If you don’t care for me, that’s fine, but this girl is of your blood and an innocent soul that needs your protection.”
“My blood…” Chaoskin repeated with a sigh. He shook his head. “I don’t really have a choice. Since she is your ward and clearly attached to you, I’ll welcome you both to my Kingdom. However, I’d like to know why she’s here and not with my brother.”
“I don’t really know what’s happening in Hollowwell,” Amethyst admitted. “But something’s not right. The youngest of the King’s children, Kunzite and her sister, were kidnapped not long after their hatching. The Spire was able to recover Kunzite and sent her with me to request shelter from a faction wholly apart from Hollowwell.” He motioned to Chaoskin. “You. I don’t know what’s happened to the other princess or what the aftermath of this kidnapping is in Hollowwell, but whatever is going on, I was told it isn’t safe for Kunzite in Hollowwell anymore.”
“Why does the Spire care so much about Kunzite and her sister?” Chaoskin asked.
Amethyst shrugged. “They’re just hatchlings. Whatever is going on shouldn’t involve them,” he replied. “At least that’s all I can think of.”
“Well, that’s concerning to hear but,” Chaoskin nodded as he continued speaking, “You are both welcome in the Neo-Shallowlight. I hope you’ll continue to be Kunzite’s dedicated guardian. I also request that you stay here in the main cabin with me for the foreseeable future. It’s the safest place to be.”
Amethyst nodded. “Thank you,” he said. “I know that you’re doing this just for Kunzite, but seriously, thank you.”
“Well, you’re right, she is just a hatchling. Take care of her and please, try to behave,” Chaoskin responded. “I’ll leave you two to get some rest.” With that said, Chaoskin disappeared from the doorway, closing the door behind him.
Amethyst turned to Kunzite, standing back up fully. “We made it, kid,” he said in a quiet voice. “We’ll be safe here, I promise.”
Kunzite looked up at him, still slightly teary eyed. She nodded and smiled. Amethyst weakly smiled back, taking in the sight. He decided then and there, he’d do anything to keep that smile on her face.
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YakileBekrea @
Petall @
Testing123 @
SakuraSundae
Ah, there was a bit of a gap between this chapter and the last huh, sorry about that! Though, I can't really guarantee that this won't be a somewhat common occurrence as inspiration to write can be pretty fickle for me. The main holdup I was having with this chapter in particular was what exactly I wanted to do with Amethyst and well, I had the idea that he was another delegate from the Spire of Muted Roses for a few days but that was about it.
But today (or well yesterday because I kinda fell asleep before I was supposed to post this) was my flight rising anniversary and I completely forgot that I had a nest lined up for it, and a pretty significant nest, which was the nest of Vakarian and Valouria who are the King and Queen of my main group of dragons, Hollowwell. So, when I had Kunzite and her sister hatch, I thought it'd be fun to add one of them to the Pinkerlocke. And while I was writing, I realized that this could also tie in Hollowwell more significantly to the Neo-Shallowlight and possibly set-up some conflict for later. So, that'll be fun when we get to it!
Also, I just wanted more Wildclaws in the Pinkerlocke, they're cool. Also an excuse to keep another one of Vakarian and Valouria's kids because they're always really pretty and I think I've kept most of them thus far, too. But also, because this nest was so recent, I do still have Kunzite's sister, Sugilite, so if anyone wants her, I'll be glad to give her over.
Also in regards to Aethers? I uh... might rescind my rule of having no ancients for this Pinkerlocke...
