Wolf's PoV
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I beat my wings, scanning the snowy scape below. Nothing. Not even any prints.

Growling in frustration, I landed, snow floating up. My tongue flicked out to taste the air. The crisp, cool air, the biting wind, the stinging promise of incoming snow. Still no scent of him.

Sighing, I ran, spreading my wings and taking off again. There wasn't anything I could do except keep looking.

'You could go back,' a small voice in the back of my head suggested.

'No. No way. Not after what happened,' I retorted, shaking my head.

'What happened?' the voice snapped back. 'You were too weak? You're not an IceWing? You weren't good enough?'

'Yes!' I hissed, frustrated. Frustrated that I had messed up. Frustrated that I had no idea what I was doing. Frustrated because I wasn't good enough. Frustrated I couldn't do anything right.

Frustrated because I had been too blind to see who my real friend was.

Ghost's PoV
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I snuck my head around the corner, ears strained to pick up the slightest sound. I couldn't hear anything. That was good.

Exhaling slightly, I tiptoed around, on guard. This was risky. If I got caught, the consequences would be extremely severe.

But I already knew about his existence. I didn't know his name, which disappointed me. I was sure he had one. I was the only dragon that didn't have a name.

At least, not anymore.

My tongue slithered out, tasting the air. There were dragons here. One was definitely female, and I could feel menacing aura from here. It was probably either Avalanche or Polar. The other was male, and had a slightly fresh smell about him, less harsh. I assumed that was him.

Cautiously glancing around another corner, I sharply pulled my head back at the sight of Avalanche. So she was here. Not surprising. Polar and Flake were probably out hunting. Considering he was so newly hatched, he'd need someone to watch over him. So here she was.

I peeked back out, taking careful note of the fact that her eyes were closed. She was relaxed, but her vicious talons would twitch occasionally. Other than that, I was certain she was completely asleep.

Or so I hoped.

I warily snuck past the slumbering beast, jumping slightly when a rattling snore shook the hut. I continued, my eyes already on my goal.

Him.

He lay curled in a crib in the corner, sleeping soundly. I inhaled sharply at the sight of him.

So small. So fragile. So delicate. So....un-IceWing-like.

Curled up, his head and tail tucked in, and his wings wrapped around him. He seemed so vulnerable.

'Poor dragonet,' I thought. 'He has no idea what's coming for him.'

I gazed down at the small dragon, slowly lifting a paw. I stopped myself, my paw hovering above him.

I gently pressed the back of my foot to his scales. Suddenly, the dragonet shifted and curled into my paw, sighing as he did so.

And at that moment, something inside of me melted.

He would be corrupted by the Circles. Hardened, desensitized to pain and emotion. He would be molded into an IceWing: cold, frosty, harsh, unforgiving.

Glancing back down at my delicate baby half brother, I made a silent vow.

I won't allow him to be brutalized by the Circles. No matter what it takes.

A loud, rattling snore snapped me out of my thoughts. I jumped, pulling back my paw and whirling to face Avalanche.

She shifted, sleepily raising her head and yawning while I watched, frozen with terror. Fear surged through me, finally prompting me into action.

I spun, scrabbling for a foothold on the slick ice. Cursing my non-ridged claws, I finally got my grip. Wasting no time, I sprinted out of the hut as fast as my paws would take me.

Once outside, I threw myself into the air, frantically making my escape.

But then I felt a weight slam into me and suddenly I was falling, air rushing around me. The wind pulled at my wings and tail, making it impossibly hard to right myself, no matter how hard I struggled. I almost had it, only to be blown over again, wind snatching at everything and pulling me off balance.

Glancing up, I saw the silhouette of a large IceWing outlined against the gray clouds.

I briefly saw my miserable life flashing behind my eyes. There! What was that? I saw Polar and an unknown dragon, Avalanche, Flake, the gang, and Wolf.

'Who was--'

Then everything went dark.

**A/N: hellooooooo!! Sorry for being rather inactive, I had the stomach flu and there's also this thing called school...and yeah. But DO NOT FEAR, I WOULD NEVER FORGET ABOUT MY PRECIOUS BREAD ROLLS. If any of you are actually reading this, could you please comment "pip pip cheerio". I want to see how many people actually read the authors notes. Hopefully you all are enjoying this book. More to come soon! Stay warm, my little bread rolls! ❤️ -cyrciss**