Takes place two years after Of Forest and Sea
(And before the epilogue, of course)

Omnipresant POV
(This may not be the word I'm looking for, I just mean that we get to see what everyone's thinking.)

Cliff was a dunce.
He knew he was a dunce.
He'd always been a dunce.
A poetic dunce albeit, but a dunce none the less.
But even more so since the day he fell for her.

The first time they saw each other, was at the Skywing palace when they were two
Cliff had taken an imediate liking to Auklet and they quickly became friends.
Saddly, afterwards they rarely saw each other, for one reason or another.

Until, the two of them winded up at Jade Mountain Academy - in the same winglet!

It was there that he started crushing her.
He wasn't sure when it started, or how, exactly.

When he was younger, he wrote stories and songs, not simply because he liked writing, but rather, he did it to please his mother.
He loved the way her face lit up, and the way she hugged him and told him he was her greatest treasure.
He often spent hours waiting in suspence for her to read his stories, for her to express her affection for him.

He knew what he wanted to do.
He wanted to give her his life.
He wanted to go to war, become a docter, a poet, anything to do for her what she'd done for him.
He was her shadow, there for her whenever she needed him.

He'd been so excited when she promised to make him one of the students at Jade Mountain.
There, he could make her proud.
He could write to his heart's content.

Now, he found himself waiting on Auklet the way he used to wait on Ruby.
He caught himself blindly going whereever she went.
He knew it was creepy, but he couldn't have stopped, even if he tried.
He flet like if he left her for even a minute, she would disappear.

And as the two of them were flying across the ocean to the Kingdom of the Sea, he couldn't take his eyes off of her.
He watched in awe as she hovered closer to the water, chattering with the dolphins and whales that surfaced to welcome back their princess.

He had to ask her.
Somehow, some way, he would ask her.
And maybe, just maybe. . . . . she'd say yes.

Queen Coral grimiced.
She and the Skywings hadn't exactly been on good terms since the bombing of the Summer Palace.
Of course, that was during the chaos of Scarlet's percieved death, but that was not important.

And as she stood there on the balcony, she couldn't bring herself to come to terms with the truth - that her own daughter, the princess of the Seawings, was in love with Prince Cliff, Queen Ruby's own flesh-and-blood.

She would not accept it.
She would not stand for it.
Somehow, she would make her daughter see reason.

"Beloved", she said warmly as the pair landed.
She wrapped her wings around Auklet and her bitter thoughts almost vanished.
Almost.

Her smile faded as she let go and turned to the Skywing prince.

Theif!
You think you can get away with stealing my daughter?
We'll see about that.

"Hello, Prince Cliff", she said with a makeshift smile.
"We are honored to have you."

"Honored to be here", Cliff said with a polite bow.

Auklet looked at Coral, then at Cliff, then back at Coral.
She cleared her throat and tilted her head towards the palace interior.

Wow.

Cliff had seen several royal dining halls in his day, but the Royal Seawing Dining Hall was among the most impressive.

The enterance was a tall archway made of emerald marble.
Statues of soldiers stood on pillars, guarding the hall.
The walls were made of white Limestone, and here and there, a seashell penetrated through its prison.
In the center of the room, was along, seaweed-green glass table.
The chandiliers above it shone green light on the plates of cooked seafood, and on the carved ceiling.

Seated at the table, were seven dragons: Princesses, Anemone and Tsunami, Prince Turtle, Rainwings, Tamarin and Kinkajou, and Tsunami's husband, Riptide.

"Hey, Auklet!", Tsunami greeted, standing up, and fist-bumping her sister.
Anemone and Turtle smiled warmly at her.

Auklet glaced behind her sister's wing and cringed.
Sitting at the table, grinning at her like the king of the world, was her Mother's new favorite dragon, Seaslim.

He'd met the queen several months before, and even though Auklet hadn't been there, she recognized him on sight.

Seaslim had yellow-green scales and a frill that drooped over his filmy, orange eyes.
He had a scar across the left side of his mouth, and holes dotted his wings and webbing.

Oh no.
It's Whirlpool all over again!

Whirlpool had been one of Coral's most loyal subjects, up until the point of his death.
Auklet had been too young to remember him, but according to Tsunami and Anemone, the queen had plans for him to marry one of her daughters, which could have made him king of the Seawings.

Seaslim almost exactly matched her sisters' discriptions of Whirlpool, which even on it's own, was concerning.

"May I speak with you privately, Auklet?", the queen asked abruptly, after everyone had taken their places.

"Luck, Babe", Seaslim said as Auklet stood up.
"Don't.Ever.Call.Me.Babe", she snarrled.

"Auklet, if your Father was still with us-"

"Mom, if you would only talk to him, get to know him-"

"I don't wnat to get to know him", her mother interjected.
"You are a princess-"

"The princes have daughters of their own", Auklet argued.
"Why can't-"

"I will not have my throne passed down to a lying, second-line heir!", Coral flared.
She inhaled deeply.
"Tsunami and Anemone are married. You are the only remaining true princess. It is your duty."

Auklet sighed.
Coral was much better about disregaurding her sons that she used to be, but when it came to the throne, they might as well be ball of dust.

"How-can-what-how- I can't let go of this!", she stammered.
"I can't stop this feeling!"

The queen loomed over her, suddenly taller than a rouge wave.
"You can. You will."

The Narwhale horn at the end of her tail twitched.
"You will go out there. You will sit on the right side of Seaslim. And we will never speak of this again."

The following silence was so violent, Auklet could hear her mother's heavy breathing.

Finally, she lifted her head, and looked difiantly into Coral's eyes.
"Yes."

She confidently strode into the hall, and sat down next to Cliff.

The next day, Coral called Cliff and Auklet to her, and the three of them flew down to a cave on the coastline.

Coral had taken Riptide and Tamarin to that cave when they were dating Tsunami and Anemone, but Auklet could tell there was something different this time.

There was a cool fire in the air such as she'd never felt before.
It was like a cord waiting to snap.

Cliff shot her a reasuring smile as they landed on the beach.
She smiled back at him nervously.

"As our royal guest", Coral said in a regal voice that she must have practiced,"I would like to speak to you about something of vital importance."
Without another word, she proudly walked into the cave.
Cliff stepped forward, but Auklet breifly stopped him.

"She's going to give you a lecture about me", she cautioned.
"Just. . . . . . don't let her get to you."

Cliff nodded and followed after the queen.

They walked wordlessly for several minutes before they finally reached the cavern at the end of the cave.
The ground was smooth from being walked on, but here and there, a gem peirced through the rock, and more grew from the ceiling.

Cliff looked behind him, wishing the sun would shine through the stone and into the cavern, but nothing.

"I understand you have a thing for my daughter?", Queen Coral asked, breaking the silence.

"Um, yes", Cliff said timidly.

The queen began pacing in a circle around him.

"And how did you fall for her? When did you first start liking her?"

"Well. . . . .I always liked her, just not always like that. I'm not sure when I first started falling for her. I like smart girls. As I got to know her better, I guess that's what caught my eye."

"Really?", the queen asked.
She was starting to like this Skywing, but no, this was about the tribe, not love.
But. . . . . . if someone had told her to marry someone other than Gill. . . . . even if it was for the sake of the tribe. . . . . . would she have done it?
She shook herself.

"Yeah", Cliff said with a small laugh.
"She the smartest dragon I know. She loves all of our classes at Jade Mountain, no matter how boring they are. And she likes to write, like I do."

Coral blinked.
Well, he certainly sounds honest.
  No. He's lying! He only likes her because he knows, that if he likes her back, there will be no more rightful heirs to the throne.

"Do you have any reason to think my daughter returns your feelings?", she asked, flicking her tail cleanly through the air.

"I hope so. Gosh, I hope so. But if she doesn't. . . . . . then I don't want a part of this. Love can't be forced. I'm more concerned about how she feels about me, than I am about myself."

Coral stopped pacing.
No conartist would say that, not even as an act.
No lier would say that.

"Well, she's pulling your leg!", she blurted.
"She likes fooling around with other dragons' emotions. She doesn't care about you!"
Her voice went silky as she continued.
"She's been tricking you. You'd better forget her. You can leave right now and I'll deal with her."

Cliff stared.
But. . . . . . if she was only messing with me, why would she go on for so long?
Why keep at it for this long?
Why keep at it for two years?
Wouldn't it get boring?

"That doesn't sound-"
His glance went to the ceiling right above the queen's head.

Small rocks and dirt had begun falling from the cracks and crevices in the corners.
A loud sound, like a mountain crashing down.
The earth shook and rumbled.

A large stylactite broke off from the roof of the cavern, sending several deadly shards to the ground below.

"Look out!"
At the last second, Cliff pushed the queen backwards, just before the shards stabbed the rocky floor right where she'd been standing.

"Cave-in! Run!"

Coral stared in shock at the stylactite shards.
Cliff grabbed her arm, and as larger rocks started dropping from the ceiling, the two of them ran for the entrance.

They could see it now, just a couple yards ahead, a patch of sunlight that shone through the fog of dirt.

Rocks were begining to fall in clusters around the exit.
Soon, it would be completely blocked.

Coral stumbled and fell behind.
"Your Majesty!"
Cliff turned around, put her arm around his shoulders, and stared.

The entrance was just a few rocks away from being sealed off.

"We're going to have to run through some of those rocks!", Cliff warned.
"You're going to have to help me. Ready?"

"No."

"On three! One. . . two. . .three!"

With a final gush of adrenalin, they hurdled themselves at the boulders, broke through the entrance, and landed at Auklet's feet, not a second before the cave crumbled shut.

"Mother!", she gasped.
"Cliff!"

Coral coughed and stared at Cliff as he helped her stand up.

"Wh-why did you save me?", she coked.

"What are you talking about?", Cliff said with a laugh.
"Of course I saved you."

What have I been telling myself?, Coral childed herself.
If he was really here to cause trouble for us, he would have let that stylactite kill me.
He would have escaped and left me.

Now, she saw that she'd never really believed anything she'd told herself.
She knew she never believed it - she had only wanted to believe it, she'd wanted it to be true.

What have I done?
Cliff truely loves Auklet.
If I tear them apart, I must be the greatest monster in existance.

The queen stepped forward and threw her wings around the princess.

"I'm sorry", she sobbed.
"I was wrong. You and your sisters are the greatest treasures I have. I suppose I was relucant about whom I shared that treasure with.
Now I see why you like him. I would never forgive myself if I broke you up and forced you to live with someone you didn't love. I see that now."

"We're all blind sometimes", Auklet comforted.
"That's what families are for."

A week later, the Annual Festival of Arts was held.

Nearly the entire tribe had gathered in the palace auditorium to hear stories and essays read aloud, and to celebrate the art and poetry.

Normally, the queen personally forsaw all of the events herself, but something was different this time.

Auklet was the first to notice.
"Where's Mother?", she whispered to Anemone.

"She's been feelings sick the past few days", she her sister told her.
"She'll be here soon."

But after thirty minutes, the queen was still absent.

"I still don't see her, Tsunami", Auklet said quietly.

"I'll take care of it", the confident Seawing asured her.
"You. You go check on the queen", she ordered one of the guards.

The talking dies down as the princess stepped up onto the stand.

"Greetings, fellow Seawings! Welcome to this year's Festival of Arts!"

A wild cheer ran through the crowd.

"The queen will be with us shortly, but to kick off the celebration, I would to to welcome Prince Cliff of the Skywings!"

"You got this", she whispered as he got on the stage.

Cliff inhaled deeply.
Here we go.

"Hello", he said bravely, holding the small pouch tentitively.
"Today, I would like to talk about a very special member of the audience: Princess Auklet."

He slowly began pacing the stage.

"We first met when we were dragonets, but the first time I really got to know her, was when we met -or re-met, I should say- at Jade Mountain Academy.
"Love is a son of a gun; it sneaks up on you when you least expect it."

The audience chortled, and a few dragons nodded in agreement.

"What started out as friendship grew stronger, and before I knew it, the floor was pulled out from under me.
Somehow, I always ended up following her. No matter how many times I told myself that there was no reason for me to be afriad, I never had the courage to let it flow. I've been running around in circles in my mind. So before my confidence gives out. . ."

He met Auklet's eyes, as he took a wedding armband out of the pouch.

"I just want to tell you. . . . . I love you. Will you marry me?"

Auklet's jaw dropped.
She couldn't breathe.
"Are you serious?! Yes!"

She hurried up the steps onto the stage, and ran into Cliff's wings.

"Oof! I should have worn armor before I proposed."

"Armor or no armor, I'd find a way to strangle you, Seaweed Brain", she teased.

He tilted her chin up so that he could kiss her, but he never got the chance.

The guard returned with grave news.

"It's the queen", he said.
"She's-"
He choked on his own words.
"Dead."

"No.No."
Auklet colasped infront of her mother's body, all of her strength giving way.
Tears ran down her cheeks.

Coral lay on her bed, talons on her stomach, a peaceful expression on her face, as though she was dreaming placidly.

How could this happen?
How could she die of a heart-attack so suddenly?

Anemone stood behind her, blinking furiously.

Seven princes, including Prince Turtle, sat at the bedside, their faces racked with utter disbelife.

Tsunami had taken one look at Coral's face, and then calmly walked out of the room.
On one dared leave after hearing her violent screams of agony and pain.

Cliff laid his talon of Auklet's shoulder, but the sinking feeling remained.

And then, the terrible question arrived:
Who will take the throne?

"Tsunami and Anemone are married", the queen had told her.
"I will not have my throne passed down to a lying, second-line heir! You are the only remaining true princess!"

What if it has to be me?
What if there's no other choice?
What if my life with Cliff is fantasy?

"Do you want to know what the last thing she told me was?", Cliff asked, as though reading her thoughts.
"Yesterday, I told her that I loved you.
And she said, 'I know. You take care of her. And don't you dare let anything or anyone. . . . . . stand between you.'
"Her last wish, was for us . . . . . to stay together."

"I want to stay together, Cliff", Auklet choked.
"More than anything."

Muray, one of Coral's most loyal and trusted gaurds, stopped crying.
"Who will be queen now?", she asked in an elegant voice of dispair.

"I will", a tall, indigo-blue Seawing said, walking into the room and looming over Muray.

It was Sealily, daughter of Prince Earthshaker and his mate, Amphilrite.

She was three years older than her, but Auklet remembered her being a kind, bold, and intelligant dragon.

"You?", Muray scoffed.
"Says who?"

"Prince Cliff and Princess Auklet have her Majesty's bellsing", Sealily pointed out.
"Princess Anemone can't become queen, and as far as I am concerned, Princess Tsunami is no longer interested in the throne."

She turned to face everybody presant.
"Are there any objections?"

No one answered, and slowly, one-by-one, everyone, including Murray, bowed to their new queen.

"However", Queen Sealily said abruptly, "I admit, I have little experience as a ruler, and though I may need asistance from time to time, I will do my best."

"And I will help you", Auklet said, standing up.

"Me too", Anemone said, following her sister's example.

"And so will I", Cliff said awkwardly.
"If I can be of any use. . . .your Majesty."

The young monarch smiled faintly.

Even there, in the cold, dark room of her mother's final moments alive, Auklet felt a flame burn through the shadows of her sorrow.

The Seawings had a new queen.
Her mother, Queen Coral was gone, but with every passing day, Cliff would be with her to comfort her.
They would never be separated, not even by Death.

A/N: And that was the first short-story!
I hope you enjoyed, and hopefully liked the new queen better than Coral, lol.
If you did, remember to vote and share!

Wordcount: 3136

Have a wonderful day!

Renx out!