Listen, And The Stars Shall Speak

Dragonet Daycare/ Remember....

  "Do we have to go?" Rin questioned. "Yes. It's about time you two started making some friends." Joy confirmed. Rin sighed. Her parents had decided to take her and Ander to the dragonet daycare, insisting that it would be good for them. "We have plenty of friends Mother, but I do agree, we need to go. It is destiny. The Stars will be screeching from the moment we arrive." Ander supplied. Joy and Kelp exchanged a glance. Rin knew what this was secretly about. They thought that if Ander was around other dragons more often, she might talk a bit more......commonly. But until that happened, Rin was usually the translator to her sister's wedding oddness. "So something that will change the world is going to happen because we went to dragonet daycare?" She asked. Ander grinned and shook her head. "Alas, dear sister, you are both correct and wrong, right and left. The continent itself will not change, but your world will be flipped. Of course, you won't notice for about.....4 to 2 years." She explained. "You mean 2 to 4 years?" Kelp corrected gently. "No. I never misspeak." Ander said in confusion. "Oh. Well, when you're there, just try to make some friends. Go up to some group and ask what they're doing and if you can join." Joy suggested. "Okay!" they agreed.

As the twins entered the daycare area, Joy and Kelp hesitated at the exit, waiting to see how they did. Ander, taking her mother's advice, approached a small group of dragonets who were playing a game and singing. "What are you doing?" She asked, the ordinary words like a bad taste in her mouth. "Ring around the Rosie, wanna play?" One of the girls asked. Ander stared at the girl before replying. 

"Why would I want to play a game that does nothing but reference a fatal disease, joke about the symptoms of a dark plague and then ends with laughing about death?" 

The girl stared at her. "Uh.....never mind." She stammered, looking traumatized as she backed away. Ander turned and walked over to the next group. By the exit, Joy facetaloned so hard that Kelp suspected she might have given herself a concussion.

Meanwhile, as Ander unknowingly terrorized all the children in the room, Rin was having better luck. There was a pile of various board games in one corner, with a lone dragonet poking through the pile. He held up a scroll-shaped object and grinned. "Hello," Rin greeted him. He turned and waved with the game piece in his talons. "Hi. What's your name?" He asked. "Rin. What's yours?" She replied. He gestured at himself. "Parrot." He announced. "Wanna play Scroll tower?" "Sure," Rin agreed, helping him set up the game. "I've never heard of a dragon being called Rin before." Parrot admitted. "It's short for Mandarin." She explained. "Ah," he commented. " well, you look nothing like a fruit." "Nor do you look like an annoying bird." They laughed until a dragonet across the room screamed. They turned and Rin closed her eyes as she spotted a terrified-looking dragonet staring at Ander. She sighed. "What is it?" Parrot questioned. 

"That would be my sister, probably telling someone about how they're going to die and when, by the reaction." Rin offered. "She knows that?" Rin nodded. "Cool."

Joy and Kelp walked hand in hand through the village. "She'll be okay, right?" Joy asked. Kelp nodded. "Of course. Ander's quirky, but she can handle herself. And Rin will look out for her." He insisted. Joy smiled slightly and they walked in silence for a few moments. "Do you remember what it was like before we had Shore and the girls?" Kelp asked, grinning at the memories. "Of course," Joy promised. She grinned back at Kelp. "I remember we did a lot of this," she replied, kissing him. He smirked. "Would you ever want to go back to that?" He asked. "Back to when it was just us?" Joy thought for a moment. "Maybe." She admitted. "I loved those days, but I don't think I could go back to a life without the kids. It'd be quieter, but there is no way in hell I'd voluntarily have them all over again." Kelp snorted. He wouldn't want a repeat of those days either. As they fell quiet, both of them began to lose themselves in the memory of the days when it was just the two of them.


Meanwhile, in the Sand Kingdom...

Coal collapsed on the couch with a relieved sigh. "She finally went to sleep?" Firefly asked, coming to sit next to him. Coal nodded. "The sugar high finally wore off and she passed out." He explained. Firefly grinned. "But how many scrolls did you have to read her first?" She questioned. "All of them. At least twice." He confirmed. "My brain hurts." Firefly shook her head. "How is it that Dawn can get you to read more in one night than I could get you to read in your entire time at JMA?" "Hey, she is very persuasive." Coal insisted. "Mhm. Or is it just that you can't say no to her?" Firefly questioned, a grin on her face. Coal smiled. Dawn was the baby, all of them loved her, even Dusk. She was too sweet to disappoint. Coal relaxed as Firefly laid down next to him on the couch and wrapped her arms around him. "Remember when it was just you and me, before Dusk and Dawn?" He asked. "I remember that most of it was terrifying." She admitted. "But I also remember the good parts." "If it was up to me you would only remember the good parts," Coal said ruefully. He remembered the year of hell they had. He just never wanted to think of it again. "I don't. Those parts just make me love you even more," Firefly admitted. Coal kissed the top of her head as they fell asleep, their house quiet as they began to remember.

In a cave in the mountains....

"Mommy?" Hopeseeker asked curiously. Air glanced up. "Yes?" "What did you and Daddy used to do before Ember and I were here?" she piped up. Nightflyer's eyes widened. Nearly all of the things he remembered were definitely not for a dragonet to hear. Especially not one that wasn't even a year old. But, of course, Air remembered a bit more. She grinned slightly. "We'd do lots of things," she said vaguely. "Like what?" Ember questioned, now interested. "Well...." Air trailed off, losing herself in memories. Nightflyer smiled as he remembered. 

A/N: And thus begins the Flashbacks. A.K.A., the next few parts will be about the lives of Jelp, Airflyer, Pearkeeper, and Coalfly before they had dragonets. It will mainly be about Firefly and Coal and their "Year of hell" as it was mentioned. 

P.S. I'm really sorry in advance if updates are slow, but school started and I have ZERO time. Literally, I go to school, then sports, come home, do homework, shower, and then go to sleep. But I'll try to update tomorrow of over the weekend. Just, please bear with me, the books will be updated, don't think I'm abandoning them or anything. :)