Young Writers Society

Zoltar awoke to the whispery touch of a cold winter wind on his back. Opening his eyes, he slowly blinked in the dim light of the rising sun. Streams of vivid fire red streaked across the orchid purple sky, the glittering sunlight sparkling off the thin coat of snow covering the ground. The pine tree Zoltar was sleeping under was covered in a fresh layer of frost and tiny icicle spears dangled from the pine needles.

Zoltar took a deep breath of the fresh morning air, letting it fill his lungs and clear out the night’s aches and pains. The gentle snores from Emerald and the heavy grunts from Shiraku drowned out the distant cracking of ice. He remembered have a strange dream last night, something about Felistia and her tail. Shrugging off the stray thought he slowly stretched his limbs trying to get the cramp out of his right back leg. A spike of sharp pain shot up his leg and into his spine, making him cringe in discomfort.

‘Oh, now I remember,’ Zoltar thought, gritting his teeth as he waited for the burst of pain to pass. The images of last night came flooding back to him and he instinctively shot a quick glance at Felistia. She was still curled up in the same ball of silver scales she’d been in last night. Her tail was lied out over the snow covered grass like a poisonous snake waiting to strike, her tail spikes still stained with specks dark blood.

A thin shiver ran down Zoltar’s spine. Last night he’d gotten over his dream and had been prepared to go with her to the ice kingdom, but now he wasn’t so sure he wanted to go with her anymore. He’d been nervous enough before she’d struck him, but now he felt a bit like a rabbit being hunted be a venomous viper, never knowing when she might lash out again.

‘Stop it!’ he yelled in his head, ‘she is a dragon. I mean come on she is covered in spikes and barbs from head to tail, accidents are going to happen.’

Zoltar looked over at Felistia again, her paws were wrapped over her snout like she was hiding from something and her legs were curled in close to her body.

‘Come on, she doesn’t even know that she hurt you. The least you could do is give her another chance.’

Sighing, Zoltar painfully walked over to the ice dragon, carefully avoiding her deadly tail as he treaded through the talon deep snow.

Swallowing the growing lump in his throat, he cautiously stroked her head, trying to wake her up without startling her.

As his paw touched her shimmering scales, Felistia breathed a deep sigh and stretched, splaying her talons like a leopard, causing Zoltar to recoil in alarm. Once he realized that she hadn’t lashed out, he gently inched back towards her.

Her eyelids were slowly fluttering open, revealing her glittering snake-like pupils as they swam into focus.

“Zoltar?” she murmured sleepily as she rubbed her snout, “What are you doing? Where am I and what happened to the pri…?” She trailed off as a flash of realization brushed over her face. Blinking, she stared back up at Zoltar, who was busy trying to figure out what she had been about to say.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Felistia asked, wrinkling her snout as she sat up. Her eyes caught on the twisted gash streaked across Zoltar’s back leg and she let out a horrified gasp, “What happen to your leg? Who did this?” she snarled, her eyes glowing with rage, “Tell me and I will rip their wings off.”

“Felistia,” Zoltar intersected calmly, “You…did it.”