Waveskimmer was filled with nervous energy as she added the finishing touches to her invention. She really wanted it to look its best. Stormcatcher himself would be judging it. And if he chose her invention as the winner, there would be no doubt that she was a true inventor, that she was a Lightning dragon worthy of making even the gods proud. Maybe if she won, the Stormcatcher would give her Lightning magic as an reward...
But that little voice in the back of her head wouldn't stop nagging.
Would the Stormcatcher really choose you? A Lightning dragon who can't summon even a tiny spark? Who was raised in the Tidelord's domain for most of her life? Who built her invention out of scrap materials she scavenged around the Faire? Waveskimmer's heart sank. Her invention wasn't the most well-built out there, nor was it the prettiest or the flashiest. Why did she even get her hopes up in the first place?
There was a knock at the entrance. Waveskimmer looked up. Shimmerglow was standing at the edge of her room, peering in. "Hey sis," he said. "How are things going?" Waveskimmer shrugged. "It's going, um...okay, I guess. Not sure if I'll win."
Shimmerglow fluttered over to her side. "Hey, don't say that. I'm sure you'll do great!" He paused, and then continued more gingerly. "This isn't about your lack of magic again, is it?"
Waveskimmer slammed her worktable so hard screws and bits of scrap metal flew everything. "I DON'T
GET IT!" she screamed. "WHY WAS IT ME, WHY DON'T I HAVE LIGHTNING MAGIC, WHY CAN'T I BE A PROPER LIGHTNING DRAGON INSTEAD OF SOME - SOME -" Shimmerglow gently wrapped his arms around her neck as Waveskimmer sobbed. "I don't - I don't - why, what kind of Lightning dragon am I when I - I can't -"
"Hey. Shh. It's okay. Just let it out, let it out." Shimmerglow rubbed Waveskimmer's back as she cried. Once her sobs had subsided, he continued. "Hey, listen. I don't care whether or not you win this contest. I mean if you win, that's great, and I'll be really happy for you. But if you lose, I won't think any less of you either. I mean, your invention got lost, and you rebuilt it within a week! That's amazing! I think that's amazing, don't you?" When Waveskimmer didn't speak, he went on. "Look, personally I think that if the Stormcatcher doesn't declare you the winner, he'll be the biggest idiot this side of Sornieth, especially if he disqualifies you for some stupid reason like not having magic."
"
Brother!" Waveskimmer hissed. "You can't just say that! Especially not in the middle of Lightning Flight territory, during their Elemental Festival!" She braced herself, but no divine thunderbolt of retribution struck. Shimmerglow chuckled. "See what I mean? Even the Stormcatcher agrees with me. And so what if you don't have Lightning magic? Who cares? I don't care. Tidepapa doesn't care. Really, if you ask me I'd take Water over Lightning any day. I mean, who would want to live in such a frantic place anyways? It's always so hot and dry, and you're always rushing to places, and the Stormcatcher is always screaming 'GET BACK TO WORK' and really, I could never imagine staying -"
"Staying?" Waveskimmer interrupted. "I never said anything about staying."
Shimmerglow took a sudden interest in the floor. "Right! Right, what I meant was...was..." He sighed. "Look, I heard through other dragons at the Faire that sometimes the Stormcatcher invites dragons he's really impressed by to be his personal assistants. I was worried that, if you and your suit won, he might offer you the same, and if he gave you Lightning magic to sweeten the deal..." His wings drooped. "Look, I just don't want you to leave the clan. I'd miss you if you left." Shimmerglow looked at Waveskimmer. "You wouldn't leave to join the Stormcatcher, would you?"
Waveskimmer thought about it. To serve a god was the highest honor a dragon could receive. But if it meant leaving behind the dragons who took her in when she was a hatchling, leaving behind the clan who raised her as their own, leaving behind the Sea of a Thousand Currents with its soothing waters and sandy beaches, leaving behind
Shimmerglow...
"No," she said. "I wouldn't leave."
Shimmerglow looked at her. "Not even if he offered to give you Lightning magic in exchange for joining him?"
Waveskimmer smiled. "Not for all the Lightning magic in the world."
To prove that she meant it, Waveskimmer let Shimmerglow help her add the finishing touches to her suit. Some black paint there, a speaker there, and a few more odds and ends attached went a long way. "You sure about this?" Shimmerglow asked when they were finished. The suit now resembled
A) a miniature replica of the Stormcatcher’s likeness. Complete with lightning wings and a little voice that yelled “GET BACK TO WORK!”
Waveskimmer grinned. "Of course not. Why would I mock the deity if I could be his future assistant? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all."