Their Mator must have seen the discomfort in her eyes, because she beckoned Dior back over to sit beside her. “Stop harassing your sister,” she said with a laugh, though it was edged with concern as she tried to meet Coquina’s gaze.

She dodged the look, yet another chill snaking down her spine. Try and fix it. How exactly was she supposed to go about fixing a war between literal elements?

If they were magic visions of the future, why did everything have to be so painfully cryptic?

Even letting her mind wander back to them made an image flash in her mind. The red dragon, searing amber eyes fixed unwaveringly on her. She blinked hard, but he wouldn’t leave her.

She could feel her Mator’s questions in her air, hovering like darts ready to dig under her scales. So badly she wanted to tell her everything, but with Dior’s watchful eyes and the echoes of demons still circling her head, her tongue just wouldn’t oblige.

With a strained smile, she rose, nodding a goodbye to her family. “I’ve just remembered that I promised to meet Tidi after her appointment,” she said. “I’ll be back by nightfall.”

Her Mator paused, brief but noticeable, before nodding in reply. Dior waved after her. “Bye, Quina! Tell me if you see anything magical!”

“I will,” Coquina said, knowing the promise was already broken.

She turned away, still trying to shake red scales from creeping into her vision. The fresh air hit her as she stepped out from under the cave’s cover and launched into the sky.

Whatever they were, she knew neither her visions nor her white scales were a blessing. They were a curse, and she hated them both.

Tidi would be at their usual meeting place at the base of a particular mountain not far from here, but Coquina wasn’t quite ready to meet her yet. She circled the area a few times, the wind chasing away the red dragon as she thought long and hard about what to tell her friend. She needed a story, one far better than freedom and headaches. Yet somehow, just when she desperately required it, her creativity failed her entirely.

So I can come up with elaborate visions of ice dragons, but can’t lie effectively. Fantastic.

With a heavy sigh, she gave up and curved towards the meeting place. Perhaps she’d work better thinking on the spot. Or maybe Tidi wouldn’t mention it.

Or perhaps today would be the day she finally told someone.

The mountainside was empty when Coquina arrived, so she found her usual perch - a ledge about a third of the way up, with enough space for her to sit with her tail coiled - and scanned the sky, her mind still working on overdrive. A mixture of relief and fear filled her when the pale brown spec finally appeared, shooting towards her with a heightened urgency. Either Tidi was worried about being late… or she was eager to ask some questions.

As Tidi landed, Coquina’s tension quickly faded, replaced by another set of nerves. Tidi was fidgeting, her wings flicking constantly at her sides, her eyes spinning in circles as she searched the mountainside. Strangely, she brushed right over the place Coquina was sitting.

“Selen,” she cursed, her tail lashing. “For the suns’ sake, Coquina, don’t make me wait to tell you this!”

Coquina’s muscles relaxed entirely, her snout twitching a smile. There was nothing Tidi liked more than gossip and mysteries. It was as if the knowledge thrummed through her, not allowing her to keep still until it could be unleashed on someone else in a burst of excitement.

But even in her desperation, she couldn’t see a white dragon on an earth-covered mountain. Coquina chuckled silently, rising as she began to creep downwards towards her friend. It seemed everyone was having trouble using their eyes today.

She was close enough to reach out and touch Tidi’s outstretched wings by the time she was spotted. Coquina burst out into a full laugh as Tidi jumped at the supposedly sudden appearance, glaring half-heartedly.

“Stop being so small,” she muttered. “It makes you hard to spot. Anyway,” she added before Coquina could even begin to defend her size. “Turns out that Precil was quite a talker while I mended his wing. A twitcher, too, but that’s beside the point.” She yanked at Coquina’s tail, pulling her to the ground. “Dux Latriis went missing.”