One year had passed.

A full moon was shining overhead.

Summer nights were always the brightest and most lively nights of the year in the Kingdom of Sky. And today, during the summer solstice, a full moon made the night that bit more special.

Carmine was wearing two golden horn adornments, and a dawn pink veil over her back and wings, which made her look like a lost cloud, according to her brothers. But she didn't really listen to them, partly because she had kind of handpicked her outfit herself, that night.

The royal family was participating at the festival tonight. Guards swarmed the place, patrolling every street and corner, enough to make the place as safe as possible for the Queen and her family.

The plaza they were at was full of SkyWings celebrating, and there were stands offering food, drinks, and lanterns everywhere.

Robin looked at Carmine. He nodded. "You look particularly dazzling today, your highness," he said with a small bow. The SkyWing Prince was wearing his golden armor and looked particularly valiant too. He was still a Captain in the army, and the SkyWing kingdom seemed to have taken a liking in him.

Carmine laughed. "Since when did you start acting like that?"

He smiled back. "Since Saffron wanted me to address her as 'your highness'," he said flatly, "I mean, I'm her brother, and she isn't a Queen."

Saffron was wearing more jewels than Carmine had ever seen, and her wings were covered in veiled adornments. Her light golden scales were barely visible under them.

"Weird," She said, smiling as she ate a small deer pastry from one of the stands. The seller bowed lowly as she walked by, and she smiled back at him.

"She's Saffron. I honestly didn't know what to expect," Robin said, shrugging, though it was still clear he was annoyed.

Suddenly, he nudged Carmine. The Prince pointed at something.

She felt the world around her disappear.

Wisp was there, looking lost, and wearing a dark metal chestpiece and tail band, which if Carmine had to guess, he had carved himself.

She walked towards him, Robin following her.
Wisp smiled as he saw them.

"You look beautiful," he said, taking her talon as he dipped his head politely. Carmine could feel herself blush.

"You look... good, too," she said, awkwardly. She didn't know how to act in these situations, but she let her heart lead her.

A moment of silence followed.

"Wisp, I wanted to introduce you to my mother," she suddenly blurted. It was too late to take it back. "If we're going to be together, and really together, I don't want this to be secret anymore."

He nodded slowly. "I agree, but I had actually-"

Carmine didn't let him finish. She darted off, energy rushing through her, as she tried to find her mother.

Wisp rushed after her. "Wait, Carmine-," he said, trying to keep up.

The SkyWing princess was two wingspans away from her mother, who was talking to some nobles about some aspiring Captain of the Royal Guards when she finally stopped to wait for Wisp.

"Wait, Carmine, there's something you must know before. I do love you, but-" Wisp started, just for Carmine to interrupt him again.

"Then what? This is the next logical step if we want to be official, and-"

Wisp stepped closer to her. "Carmine, for the sky's sake, will you marry me?"

Silence seemed to fall under Wisp's loud announcement. Carmine looked behind her to see her mother looking at her, the Queen's eyes blazing with surprise.

As she faced Wisp again, the SkyWing is was holding out a carved wooden ring, and he looked at her in a way that made her forget everyone around her.

"I had never imagined to be anything to anyone," He started, spreading down his wings, "I grew up thinking that I was born a broken heart and that I'd never, ever heal again. But the moment you came into my life, you lifted me up. You saved me. You made my life have a meaning. So now, I love you, Princess Carmine, and if they say broken hearts can never truly mend once broken, you gave me more: you gave my heart a chance to beat for something more than survival. There is no other dragon that I love more than you, so I'm asking you: do you want to make our broken hearts beat together until the end of our lives and beyond?"

Carmine felt her heart melt. She smiled lovingly and stepped closer to him, her wings held low next to his.

"This is an atrocity!" Queen Titian's voice made Carmine tremble in fear. Her mother marched forward, as every SkyWing moved back, forming a large circle around them.

"What do you think you're doing, Carmine? Do you want to ruin our honor? Do you think that this lowborn traitor can really fool me? I know what's right, and this is a monstrosity. Step away, now," she ordered, her eyes smoldering with fury.

She had known about Wisp all along. Carmine could tell from the security of her voice, like if the possibility of her being wrong was nonexistent. She had let Carmine think she was free. But she had never truly evaded her mother's surveillance.

Carmine didn't move. She was paralyzed. Her mother's eye had pinned her down, and she felt her glare burn through her scales, sending shivers down her wings.

Queen Titian looked around her, seeing that now the whole SkyWing capital had their eyes on them. She lashed her tail once, and guards started to surround Wisp. He tried to talk to them, telling them to not hurt Carmine, but they were closing in on him slowly.

"No."

Titian looked at Carmine. Her daughter was looking at her, narrowing her eyes, her wings outspread.

"What did you just say?" Titian hissed, with a voice that would usually echo in Carmine's nightmares.

"I said no, Mother," Carmine replied, her voice unwavering thanks to a rush of confidence that the princess had never felt before. "I lived by your rules, by your stuck-up rules all my life. Those aren't SkyWing laws, and I'm not an animus or a firescales. I'm a SkyWing who fell in love. Everyone should have the freedom to fall in love. There's such beauty out there! Every place I visited, every dragon I met in this kingdom has made me realize that there's more out there than just being a good royal," she paused, "I don't care if I'm a princess, because I don't want you to control my life any longer."

Titian bared her fangs, taking a lumbering step towards her daughter. "You insolent dragonet! You seem to forget what SkyWings value over all! No one would ever want you as Queen!"

Suddenly, something almost magical happened.

A SkyWing lit their FullMoon lantern. They held it up, letting it flicker over himself like a crown.

More and more followed. After a minute, the whole plaza was alight, SkyWings lifting their lanterns to support the princess. Robin was one of them, his smile making her feel better.

Carmine could spot three dragons who didn't raise their lanterns: Saffron, who was scoffing in the background, her father Forge, out of reverence for his wife, and her old mentor Gust, who looked shocked.

But that didn't change anything for her.

"You won't make this choice. You won't decide something that is only our choice," Carmine smiled as she walked towards Wisp, standing at his side.

A long moment followed.

Queen Titian saw that the kingdom wanted this, that they felt more sympathy for Carmine than for her, and dipped her head in acceptance. She had given up.

Dragons around them cheered and let go of their lanterns.

Wisp looked at Carmine, took her talon, and slipped the ring on her claw. They smiled as they held on to each other in a hug.

That would have been a perfect night. If it hadn't been for her mother who, while giving their marriage her approval by touching Carmine's head with her own, hissed something in her ear.

"You just made a huge mistake. I'll never leave this kingdom in your talons," the Queen hissed.

And then, she was gone.