1545 words

~~~~~

Am I really doing this? Yes. No. Maybe? What if she hates me? What if she doesn't? What if she doesn't want to see me? What if she does want to see me? What if I make our lives worse? What if this will change our lives for the better forever? What if-

"Three moons, Ember. Just go to her! I can't stand watching you tear yourself apart. Not just because I'm worried about you, but also because that would be messy and I'm busy with my dragonet and I can't clean up your mess."

Ember raised a brow at his sister's less- than- eloquent explanation of why he should get out of her house.

It was true that Crim was a comforting presence. But if she knew that comfort would not help you, she would not mince her words.

"I have no idea how your husband deals with you."

"He doesn't. He loves me-"

"Good for him. So do I. Tell him that he should treat you right."

She went on as if Ember never said anything. "AND he would do anything for me. And also he is just as ex-army as you, except not as rusty, so I would get going."

"Ex-army? Who is it?"

She suddenly adopted her mischievous grin and said, "Look behind you."

Ember felt a variety of different emotions sift through his mind as he spun around. He was speechless.

Well, that is, until he found his speech.

And very eloquently said. "You've GOT to be kidding me."

~~~~~

Ruby opened her eyes and saw bright orange eyes.

"Ack!" she exclaimed.

"Mommy! Wake up!"

"What are you doing here, sweetheart?"

"I is waking yous up! It's the day where a bunches of dragons comes to the palace to complaining and you says okay to everything but then we gets back to our room and then yous complains. It's my favorite day of the week!"

Ruby groaned. This would be a long day.

She sighed and draped a strand of tourmaline stones around her neck. As both Ruby and Tourmaline, she felt like she should have both parts of her with her every day. It also got the message out faster that Queen Ruby was also her sister Princess Tourmaline. It was both strategic and sentimental.

"MOMMY!!"

"Coming Cliff!"

She hurried down the hallway and to the throne room.

She could see the massive line of dragons waiting there to see her even before she was halfway to the throne room.

She sighed again, resigned to the idea of her endless boredom for the day, and sat on the throne.

"Enter!"

"Your Majesty, I would just like to start by saying what an honor it is to finally meet you."

"Uh... no problem?" she replied, unsure of what to say to her.

"Goodbye."

"Wait what?"

"That was all I wanted to say. I just wanted to meet you."

Ruby pinched the space between her eyes.

"You may leave now," she said through gritted teeth. "Next!"

"Hey baby," the dragon said. "Do you happen to have an extra heart? Because I've lost mine." He winked.

"NEXT!"

And so the day went. Every one of the dragons either wanting to meet her or mate with her. She could have rolled her eyes, but she was getting so bored that her eyelids began to droop.

"Next," she said, yawning.

"This is Queen Mommy, strange dragon."

"Cliff? What are you doing?"

"This dragon said he wanted to sees you. I tolds him everyone want to sees you and that he have to waits in line. He say okay but he jumping more than me. And then guard dragons say everyone go home now. But this dragon saying he have to sees you now. So I snucks him in."

"Cliff, who is it?"

"Strange dragon! Queen Mommy is gonna be seeing you nowish so stop jumping arounds because Mommy saying that's not good."

"Be nice, darling. Don't be rude to dragons."

And then she saw the dragon come around the corner.

Ruby would have liked to say that she was sophisticated and graceful, but she was just astonished and maybe a tiny bit extremely paralyzed.

"Y-you... how?" she asked lamely, with a shaky voice.

"Your Majesty," he said.

~~~~~

For the rest of his life, Ember would wonder why he stood in that stupid line for his homecoming with the love of his life. It was. SO. LONG. He at least should have arrived earlier so that he wouldn't have to wait so long.

Of course, he didn't actually think he would go through with it.

He spent at least half a day jumping around, sitting down, and bouncing up again when the line moved.

And then a small red dragonet appeared.

"Why is you being so froggy?" he asked.

"Me?"

"Duh! Yeah you!"

"I'm not being froggy!" he cried, offended.

"But yous jumping arounds the line and you looks like this." He made a face that looked nothing like Ember.

"I do not look like that."

"Yes you dos."

"No I don't."

"You dos."

"I doesn't- I mean, I don't." He sighed. "Will you leave me alone if I tell you why I'm here?"

"Probably not. But yous can tell me anyways!"

"I need to see Ruby."

"Everyone want to see Mommy."

"But I need to see Ruby."

"Do you seeing any other Queen Mommy around here? So you has to wait."

Ember raised a brow at the dragonet's sass. It reminded him Crim.

"I guess not. Who's your father?"

"I doesn't know. Mommy don't like to talk about Daddy."

"How old are you?"

"I is 9 months!" he exclaimed proudly.

This gave Ember pause. If this dragonet was 9 months old, then it was entirely possible that he was his dragonet. If Ruby had conceived by the time Ember left, that would give one year for gestation, one year after she laid the egg, and now he was almost a one year old.

"What would you do if you met your father?"

"I doesn't know," he said as he turned towards him.

"I need to see Ruby right now."

"No no, strange dragon. Yous has to wait just like everyone else here. Mommy says so."

Ember sighed. "All right. What's your name, kid?"

"I is Cliff! I is the greatest SkyWing ever!"

Cliff? He remembered all the times he had talked to Ruby and said that he would name his dragonet Cliff. Maybe...

"Then what about your mother?" he asked, clearing his brain of his tangents and speculations.

"Mommy say that I is best dragon ever. She say that I is a moonbeam! But I say that I is a superhero. And then Mommy say yes I is."

"Uh... okay?"

"Time to go! You'll have another chance next week!"

"No. No no no. I have to see her today."

"Why do you wants to see Mommy?"

"I just... do. I'm her... friend." Which technically wasn't a lie, since Tourmaline was his best friend. And Ruby was his girlfriend. Oh wow. His family was messed up.

My family...It was the first time he had thought of Ruby (and possibly Cliff) as his family.

"Ow!" he cried. He turned around and saw Cliff's front talon on the vulnerable part of his tail. He drew his tail closer to him and regarded the dragonet. "What was that for?"

"I saying that I is going to get you in, but you looking like this."

He sat down and looked at the distance pensively.

"You not answering when I saying something and Mommy say that's mean so I jump on your tail 'cause I wanting to get your attention."

"Oh. Um... I was just thinking."

"Stop thinking and come with me."

"Next," came Ruby's voice.

Ember's heart began to race. He was about to see her and talk to her for the first time in three years.

Next to him, Cliff was chattering idly as he lead him to the throne room.

"This is Queen Mommy, strange dragon."

Cliff entered he throne room and came back after exchanging a few words.

"Strange dragon! Queen Mommy is gonna be seeing you nowish so stop jumping arounds because Mommy saying that's not good."

Ember hesitantly stepped into the room and caught his breath. Ruby was more beautiful than he remembered, but now, she looked like she was going into shock.

"Y-you... how?"

"Your majesty," he said, a tiny smile on his face.

~~~~~

"Cliff... come here, darling," she said in a small voice.

Cliff came to her and she wrapped her wing around his small body as she tried to process what was happening.

"Ember," she finally said, tightening her wing around Cliff.

"Mommy, you know the strange dragon?"

"The strange dragon's name is Ember, sweetheart."

"The strange dragon is right here," Ember retorted.

Ruby let go of Cliff and flew down in front of Ember. Cliff followed.

"This isn't a conversation to have in front of my guards and my son. I'll come and find you later," she said, refusing to look at him.

"I is a big dragon! I wants to hear!"

"Come on Cliff," she said, ignoring his pleas.

Ruby flew Cliff up to his room.

"Mommy, who is he?"

Ruby hesitated, unsure how much to tell him. "He was one of my friends," she finally said. Her voice cracked on the last word.

"But I've never seen him before today."

"Grandma wanted to kill him because he was my friend."

"Oh," he said, looking disgusted. "I told you. Grandma is mean."

Cliff was an adorable dragonet. He was perfect and sweet and the perfect little wackadoo. He was a hilariously crazy dragonet, and even if it was mildly worrying at times, she loved it.

She laughed. "You're right. Grandma was the meanest dragon ever."

"Where are you going?"

"Mommy has to go talk to her friend. Can you stay here while I got do that?"

"I guess," he said glumly.

She kissed his forehead and left to find Ember.