Wisdom of Warmth

To be alone is one thing, but alone with your mind in the dark forest is another.

Outcast, they had called her. Worthless runt undeserving of companionship. The words of her tribe elders had echoed through her head as she walked, the small pricks of thorns and fallen branches inconsequential compared to the pain of her own thoughts.

Were they even her thoughts at all?

Perhaps they were right and she would be better off dead. There was no doubt she would starve to death, anyway. Her youth showed in every way and considering she hadn't learned to hunt from her elders, her starvation was inescapable. Much like this winding labyrinth of trees and shadows.

A sharp crack emitted from the darkness beyond the young dragon, and suddenly every direction had an invisible attacker crawling out from between the trees. Had it come from the north or south? Maybe the west? Whirling in circles, she realized that she didn't even know which direction was which. Unarmed, untrained and scared witless, alone had never been so terrifying.

A flash of human flesh danced for only a second before disappearing as the light of the moon grazed through another opening of treetop. The slight movement of clouds created another figure just feet away from the first, as if the creature was jumping.

The scales on her back began to raise as fear crept through her nerves, the new openings allowing chills to seep into her body from the night air. She was shivering as thee figure disappeared and reappeared in a third position, tucked once again out of the light.

Tales of humans had haunted their village for eras, the caverns being filled with the whispers of their deadly weapons and lust for the jeweled shine of dragon scales to trade for a few gold pieces. They found value in materialistic shine instead of the words and old arts that were worshipped among tribes of dragons. When the very heat of your breath turned a small lump of soot into a pile of opalescent gems, shine begin to feel common and worthless. If only the humans could put aside their hate long enough to understand.

Another snap, again from a direction of no discernment sent the youngling whirling again in circles, tears brimming in her eyes at the anxiety building in her chest.

"I don't want to die today. Please, human creature, grant me the mercy you have in your heart. If I die, I want to go quickly, please. Kill me, but do it only swiftly. Please don't let me suffer."

She jolted to a stop, unable to turn anymore as the world continued to spin around her, the shadows blurring in a dark abstraction. The begs seemed to be only to the thin air as the silence crept in closer.

"Why do you cry out to the emptiness, young one? I, too, know the whispers of loneliness and the damage they can do. Their ears are deaf, though, to the pained whispers of a mourning heart."

The large dragon had appeared next to the youngling without making a sound. His age was obvious, but he appeared different than the elders of her tribe. While their colors had been vibrant and their scales shiny like the human coins, the dragon before her had faded in hue and had dotted spots along his body where the scales had appeared to be ripped out. The scars paled like the moon above.

"Sometimes it feels as though I am the darkness. It is within my body and haunts me as if I am possessed. Will it always feel that way?"

"Sometimes yes."

The sigh was heavy from the smaller dragon, her heart burdened with her new knowledge.

"And sometimes no."

"I'm confused, elder. Why do you answer with such contrasting words? And where is your tribe? You have the marks of great battles; surely your acts have been heroic and rejoiced by others."

The laugh echoed through the soil and shook the trees around them. Remaining scales shook as the belly of the pale dragon reverberated with a stale joy.

"My acts may have protected me and the ones I love, but they have left me damaged and incomplete. The ones around me noticed how ragged I had become and decided that it would be easier to cast me out and mock me rather than help me repair what had been broken in order to keep them safe."

The fear that had disappeared with the threat of a human had reappeared within the young girl and left a thick stone in her stomach.

"Why do tribes cast out the innocent and injured?"

"Because we are not beautiful. We do not please the eye nor the heart, so we are removed from their perfect society."

"I don't understand what I did wrong. They cast me out only a few weeks after they loved me. How can someone change so fast?"

"Minds and hearts are tricky creatures. They change entirely in a matter of seconds and can be your best ally or worst enemy. I can sense that yours are not on your side tonight."

"I tell my heart to be brave and it only beats faster. I tell my mind to be quiet and the echoes grow louder. How can they be my own and yet not obey me?"

The elder paused for many seconds, letting out a deep sigh. His color seemed to fade even darker, a great sadness overtaking his eyes as he looked at the ground again.

"You have many questions and rightfully so, my dear. I can sit and talk to you for days, but we would starve before my wisdom truly is impart in its whole. I do not think you wish to die in such a painful and long-term suffering. Let me first teach you how to hunt, so you may eat. Then, I shall teach you to love yourself in a way that no one else ever will. Finally, let me teach you to forgive. For as long as you hold onto the effect of their hate, you wound yourself in ways unnecessary. First, let us eat. We shall survive and then we shall thrive. Fear not of humans, only of your own mind and the abilities of others to warp it against you. Come, child, you have much to learn."

The footsteps of the young dragon were light and uncertain as she followed in the trail of the bigger beast. The woods still were lit only by the pale light of the moon, but as her mind grew stronger she saw the beauty in the silvery shine on the scales of the elder and the iridescent flow of the forest floor.