Neoma was flying over the water again, the fog was starting to lift and the edge of the other island was just visible. Having done already so much practicing, Neoma huffed to herself as she realized she didn’t have a valid reason not to go over there. It had been about seven years of living on her own and she had always come up with a reason not to go. From what she could see, it was just a small island right? Wheeling around, she grumbled to herself.
But inside, barely daring to admit it to herself, she was kind of excited. She hadn’t gotten to explore something new in a very long time.
She flapped her wings and pushed herself. If she was going to go somewhere, at least she could have some fun with it right?
Neoma sped over the water. Her ears lay flat and her eyelids sat half-closed to shield her eyes from the salty spray. Though she was slightly smaller than most, she was faster than she appeared.
Her wings were beginning to burn slightly with the speed she was going, but she knew that the faster she went and the harder she pushed herself, the better it would feel to rest on the island. To keep up her strength, she quickly used her warped blade to spear up some more fish and ate them as she went. The overwhelming salty taste was starting to get a bit annoying and she looked forward to when she'd be able to land on the island and find a good water source.
Except for a problem- the island seemed to be growing.
The sun was beginning to set as Neoma reached the edge and landed softly. Her muscles groaned with tiredness. She was even more grateful for the fish she had eaten on the way.
That's when she registered where she was and what was around her.
She was surrounded by ice and some sort of white powder.
This white powder around her was freezing cold. Wha- oh, right- Snow!
Her parents told tale of it when she was younger, but in the poison jungle, there was no such thing!
Her talons began feeling a prick of pain as the cold pierced through her. She shivered slightly. The sun was setting and she was stuck in a cold land; While she wasn't built specifically for a warm or cold setting, she was more used to the warmth.
She couldn't turn around and go back, it was too late and she was too tired. Standing at the edge of the icy water, she saw a forest nearby. If she could shelter in there for the night, she would be able to hunker down and maybe a large tree could cut the wind.
She stretched her wings, and- "OW!"
Neoma yanked her wings back to her sides. It had been a while since she had pushed herself that hard, and her left wing felt a familiar pain that she had experienced before. Spraining a wing was never fun, but when you make it your purpose to practice and exercise, it became something you just had to deal with.
Neoma growled irritably. She was going to get to the trees before sleeping though.
She began to walk- and then stopped.
Raising a taloned hand, she flicked the white powder. It sprang into the air, and drifted down lazily. A tiny tired smile spread across her snout. She looked behind her and flicked her tail, and the powder scurried across the ground. She looked up and watched as more fell from the sky.
The snow was like falling stars against the darkening sky above her. She opened her jaw and caught a snowflake on her tongue. It felt like frozen fire and melted immediately.
Neoma shook her head, snorting. Her tail lashed back and forth, and her head sternly told her to get to the trees.
But for the first time in ages, her heart told her head to shut up.
She jumped straight up and spun around, biting at the snow on the ground. Flakes stuck to her snout, and she sneezed. Her eyes crossed to stare at an unmelted crystal on her nose, and she excitedly stomped in the snow. Her right wing scooped up the snow and flung it straight up, and she whooped in delight as it showered over her back.
She flopped on her side, wriggling back and forth, and then sprung up again, looking at her imprint. She laughed out loud for the first time in a long time, then snapped at the snow falling, spinning to catch as much as she could.
She stopped and stood there panting, tail still lashing from the excitement.
Her sides heaved and her lungs burned, but she hadn't had so much fun in- well, since she was a dragonet.
Her mood lifted tremendously, she raced for the forest and found a large tree at which she cleared the snow from around the trunk and lay down, curling up and laying the tip of her tail over her nose. She sighed contentedly, and was asleep in seconds, with dreams swirling around in her mind like the snow softly dancing around her.
