Liberating, terrifying, and utterly exhilarating. Wings spread wide to welcome a timid updraft, I tilted my thick, scaled neck—a greeting to the drowsy sky. A low cloudbank split apart before me. Ribbons of buttery yellow, flowered scarlet, and deepest cerulean draped the sky in the hues of dawn. I pulled back my lips in a sharp-toothed grin and let out a low, satisfied growl. Tantalizing heat caressed the sensitive undersides of my still-flapping wings, buoying me farther into the glare of the rising sun.
Exhaustion cradled me in her tender, merciless hands, urging me to halt, to rest—to find a cave or a ditch and curl up in the muck. But I knew better; if I wasn't back by the time Mama dragged herself from bed, I would have more to worry about than sleep deprivation. I could see her now: rosy-faced and bleary-eyed, her hair wild as a feral cat's and her screeches just as alarming. If I didn't find my bed soon, she and the boys would be in the forest after me quicker than a blink. Only, they wouldn't find me—not unless they happened to glance up, and even then they wouldn't recognize me on sight. 360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxhrkOmVzvm
360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXvvQDWdHq
To weak human eyes, I was no more than a smudge of green on the horizon. To them, I would be a streak of light and color. Unremarkable. Unthreatening. But if they were to look more closely and truly see me as I was now, they would recoil—shrink from my gleaming talons and shimmering scales. To my family—to those who raised me—I was a beast, one to be feared and distrusted and appeased. I was and always would be their Tamora, but if they were to look upon me now, they would see only a dragon.
To my great relief, an oncoming air current caught me in its stride, and, buffeted, I glided east toward my family's farm. From the corner of my eye, a glint of brilliant green caught the sunlight. I inclined my head, eyes narrowing on the spot. Nothing, I saw nothing, save the clouds and the sky. 360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJQZzFFMcrQ
Dismissing it as nothing but a trick of the eye, I rallied my strength and pushed on. Gold stalks and grazing herd animals dotted the fragmented landscape below me. Dilapidated farmhouses and crumbling stone wells broke up the sway and flow of the crops as they danced in the gentle breeze.Tannyth on the cusp of spring was truly a sight to behold. 360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2nHjvM9pNX
360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDthKcquwgU
"Who are you?" a low voice drawled.360Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4IuXiWI3CG
My head whipped to the side. Hulking far too close, his eyes sparking and serpentine, drifted the first dragon I had ever seen. He flashed a smile, revealing pristine and sharp teeth. Plummeting, wind roaring in my ears, I dove, desperately spinning through the air to reach the edge of my family's land. My bare, stinging knees screamed with pain, and my lungs ached as the world heaved beneath me. I rose unsteadily and scrambled to the barn. Creaking hinges and the faint tang of damp hay greeted me, but all I could register were the thunderous wing beats at my back and the cramped walls and lofted ceiling of the barn surrounding me.
He'll find my family. He'll kill them. He'll kill them all.
Thump. The boom of large feet against hard-packed soil. Then silence.
Ragged breaths tore in and out of my constricted lungs, and sweat beaded at the nape of my neck. Not a sound from beyond the door, not even the flutter of a wing or the flick of a tail. I inhaled slowly, longing for the safety of my bed.
Why did I stay out past dawn? It isn't safe. I was never safe.
Hands shaking, I lowered the rusty latch, sealing myself inside the barn. My head pressed against the rough wood, I exhaled. I could breathe freely again.
A throat cleared behind me. "Pardon me. I found the back door, so I let myself in."
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