Reborn soared through the valleys surrounding Jade Mountain, her wings catching the cool mountain breeze. The scattered lakes below glittered like fallen stars, their surfaces rippling in the sunlight. While it felt liberating to escape the mountain's pressing walls for a while, she couldn't help but feel drawn back to the school. It had become a home of sorts, so she made sure to stay within sight of its peaks.

You really are something else, aren't you, Reborn? Darkstalker's haunting voice pressed into her mind, making Reborn stiffen mid-flight. Her wings faltered for a heartbeat before she steadied herself, diving toward a crystal-clear lake below.

Oh, get out of my head, you murderous snake, she snapped back, her thoughts sharp as daggers.

Darkstalker's sigh echoed through her mind, heavy with centuries of regret and justification. My love, please. I did what I had to do. Arctic would have murdered us—you most of all. He hated the NightWings, and you know that.

The words slithered through her thoughts like silk hiding steel, just as dangerous as they were smooth.

Darkstalker paused, and when his voice returned, it carried an edge sharper than dragon talons. And you most of all, he continued, since you didn't belong to any tribe. The words dripped with scorn, but not his own—a cruel echo of Arctic's ancient prejudice.

Reborn sighed heavily and slammed her mental walls back up, staring down at her reflection in the lake. She stirred the water with one sharp talon, watching the ripples distort her image. The sound of wingbeats drew her attention skyward, where a strange copper-red SkyWing was soaring toward Jade Mountain, sunlight glinting off her metallic scales like living flame.

Peril, the name flashed through Reborn's mind. She bristled instantly, wings flaring as she launched herself into the air. She raced back to Jade Mountain as quickly as her wings could carry her. By the time she landed inside, she could feel the scorching heat radiating off Peril's scales, making the very walls seem to pulse with warmth. The SkyWing stood with her head tucked low and wings half-spread, looking ready to take flight again at any moment.

"Get out," the AllWing snarled. The SkyWing spun around, her blue eyes wild and eerie.

"You," Peril breathed. Reborn's wingclaws flexed instinctively.

"We meet again, little champion," Reborn said with a weary sigh, her wings drooping. "You didn't find Scarlet, did you?"

Peril startled. "How—" She shook her head. "No. You're right. I've looked everywhere, but I can't find her." Smoke spiraled from her scales as her wings sagged.

"You know her?!" Winter's voice cut through the air, cold as ice and sharp as claws. He shouldered past Peril—careful to keep his distance from her deadly scales—and wrapped his wings around Reborn, forcing her to face him. "You know this murderer?" he snarled.

Qibli and Moon pressed past Peril too, who flattened herself against the wall. Reborn just stared down her snout at the slightly younger IceWing. "Yes, I do. We met in Queen Scarlet's arena. We had to fight..." She paused. "She couldn't hurt me."

Winter's scales bristled like newfallen snow, his voice sharp with disbelief. "How can you know her?" he demanded, tail lashing. "And why would she spare you, of all dragons?"

Reborn let out a long breath, her wings settling like fallen leaves. She turned to meet Peril's fierce blue gaze over the bristling IceWing prince's shoulder. "Yeah," she said softly, an old confusion threading through her voice. "I've been asking myself that for years." Her eyes locked with Peril's, searching for answers across the gulf of time between them. "Why did you spare me, Peril?"

Peril swallowed hard, her talons curling inward until the stone beneath them began to smoke and crackle. "You... you were different from the other prisoners," she said, her voice raw with memory. "Scarlet hadn't bound your wings. You could have flown away." Her blue eyes blazed with intensity. "But you didn't. You stayed." Her claws carved glowing crescents into the rock as she wrestled with the words. "You didn't try to escape me."

Reborn's smile was gentle as starlight as she eased Winter aside. She moved toward Peril, who shrank back against the stone wall, leaving shallow scorch marks in her wake.

"No, don't—don't touch me!" Peril's voice cracked with panic, the air around her shimmering with heat.

Reborn sighed, a sound soft with understanding, and reached for Peril's trembling talons. "I touched you in the Sky Kingdom arena," she reminded her, her voice steady and sure. "I can touch you now."

Reborn's crooked claw cupped Peril's talons and brought them gently to her snout. A cascade of ice crystals breathed from her nostrils, dancing in the air between them. "See?" she said softly. "No harm done." She released Peril's talons, turning them over to reveal her own dark scales unmarked by fire.

In the next heartbeat, Peril launched herself forward, wrapping her wings around Reborn in a fierce embrace. Her silent sobs shuddered through both their frames as she clung to the one dragon her fire couldn't harm.

The other Jade Mountain students stood frozen, jaws agape—some even swooned where they stood. Above, Clay and Sunny watched from an upper level of the school, exchanging sad smiles. They remembered all too well how quickly Peril had bonded with Reborn, back when every other dragon had feared her deadly touch.

Peril pulled back, her wings trembling like copper leaves in a storm. Her blue eyes shimmered with tears that turned to steam before they could fall, leaving tiny wisps of vapor trailing through the air. "I missed you," she whispered, her voice carrying years of loneliness.

Reborn's smile softened like morning light breaking through clouds as she cupped Peril's cheek with one crooked talon. Where their scales met, tiny ice crystals and steam danced together in a delicate spiral. "And I you, little firebeam," she murmured, the old nickname carrying all the warmth of remembered kindness in a world that had shown Peril so little.

Tsunami burst through the gathered dragons, her scales flashing like sunlight on waves. "Alright, everyone, back to your duties!" Her voice carried the familiar tone of authority that sent students scattering like minnows before a shark.

She turned to Peril and Reborn as the crowd dispersed, worry flickering across her face like shadows under water. "You'll take care of her, yes?" she asked Reborn, her gills fluttering with concern.

Reborn dipped her head. "As much as I can, Tsunami." She then turned to her winglet, where Moon stood with uncertain wings. "I'll be back in a few days."

Moon darted forward to wrap her arms around Reborn, who enfolded the smaller dragoness in her wings like starlit shadows. "I'll be back soon," she promised softly. "Don't worry."

With a powerful sweep of her wings, Reborn launched into the sky, Peril following like a copper comet in her wake, their scales catching the sunlight in a dance of shadow and flame.