A Dragon's Path - Chapter Four
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A Dragon's Path
Chapter Four:
Nightclaw
She decided to visit Nightclaw first. Her parents had each other to keep themselves company, but Nightclaw had nobody. They could wait longer than he could.
Adjusting her course, Skytail started to head for Nightclaw's cave. As she flew, she started to tune out, and enjoy the feeling of the humans wriggling in her gut, trying in futility to escape the impending digestion. Juices were starting to trickle in, and if she listened carefully, she could just faintly hear her stomach gurgling.
Eventually, she found herself close to his cave, and tuned back into her surroundings. Just as the cave came into sight, she spotted the Monstrous Nightmare; a large, dark purple dragon, with a pale underbelly and bright yellow eyes. The two of them saw each other at the same time, and immediately started to fly towards each other.
"Nightclaw!" Skytail yelled as she came within shouting distance.
"Skytail!" he called back.
Finally, when they were close enough, they both stopped, flapping their wings at a steady pace to hover midair. Nightclaw looked up and down her body, and she noticed his gaze stop on her swollen, wriggling gut.
"Ah," he said. "I see you've eaten."
Skytail nodded. "Yep," she said. "I snagged a couple humans from their village just now."
"Were they good?" he asked.
"You bet they were," Skytail replied. "Humans are so delicious..."
Nightclaw smirked. "Indeed, they are... I was just on my way to have some myself... and then I was going to see you, actually!"
"Oh?" Skytail replied. "What about? Just coming to say hi?"
"Well... Yes..." Nightclaw confirmed. "But also... I wanted to ask you something..."
"What is it?" Skytail asked.
"Well... How to say this..." Nightclaw took a deep breath as he looked for words. "I'm leaving," he announced. "I wanted to know if you would... come with me?"
Skytail cocked her head in a mix of confusion and curiosity. Does he mean what I think he means...? She thought.
"Leave?" she asked. "To where?"
"Somewhere else," Nightclaw replied. "Anywhere but this island. I've been feeling... restless lately. I've spent my entire life here, and I think it's time to go out and see the world." He looked Skytail in the eyes. "I was wondering if you felt the same way. I'd love to have a companion on my travels... Someone to share the journeys with."
Yes... He does.
_ _
Skytail tried to open her mouth and respond, but the words wouldn't come out. Yes, she had been wanting to leave... She had been feeling the same sense of restlessness. But the possibility had never really seemed... well, possible. She had always had a difficult time imagining herself living anywhere but this island. How could she just leave her home like that?
But yet... The urge remained. The world was bigger than what she knew here; her parents had told her that much. Why shouldn't she go out to see it?
My parents... she thought. I can't just leave without telling them...
Well, she was going to see them anyway. She could tell them then.
But yet, she still wasn't sure. This island was her home... Could she really leave it behind? But at the same time, there was a whole world out there, waiting to be explored.
"Skytail?" Nightclaw asked. "What do you think?"