Page 3 of Grumpy Dragon Christmas

Qrow blanches. Or at least his bright skin goes a little paler.

“I think there may be a shipment of parts coming in shortly, but…” He rubs his chin.

“But what?”

“The spaceport’s going to be closed for the solstice celebration.”

I stare at him. He blinks slowly back at me down the comm.

“Solstice celebration?” I repeat. “What the nev is asolstice celebration?”

“Remind me how long you’ve been on Kitchik?” Qrow asks insolently.

Smoke fires out my nostrils and I go to terminate the comm.

“Wait, wait, Drekkan!” he calls out. Little nevver doesn’t want to miss out on any credits I might send his way.

“I don’t need you, Qrow. I can get what I want myself. If anyone gets in my way—” I fire out a single burst of flame, setting fire to a bunch of rags next to the comm. “Understand?”

“It’s going to be locked up, Drekkan. You won’t…” His pleadings are cut off as I end the call and disconnect the comm entirely.

I’ve had enough. For all I hate the little nevver, he is correct. My shed is near and my scales itch like a nevver. There’s only one body of water large enough to take a Sarkarnii on this ancestor-forsaken rock in space and I’m forbidden from entering it, all because I used it that one time and left my shed.

They should have been honored.

So I’m forbidden from the one place which can bring me relief, stopped from taking what I want from the spaceport because of some stupid celebration, and my ship is nowhere near being fixed.

I slam my fist down on the console and it bends, leaving a dent to match all the other ones of my frustration. I add a selection of claw marks in order to vent further. My other option is to go burn something, given I ran out of ammunition before I got to Kitchik.

Another thing to annoy me. Another reason to take out my anger elsewhere. It’s been a while since I shifted, and with a shed imminent, I see no reason not to give the other inhabitants of the planetoid something to think about…while things burn.

Decision made, I leave the cave high above the main settlement and take to the air, filling my accelerant sacs.

Destruction in three…two…one…

JADE

When I open my eyes, I’m not in my egg anymore. Qrow’s face stares down at me.

“She’s awake!” he says with the same level of excitement from earlier.

Another face joins his. This one is pale gray with an iridescent sheen. Female with strong, kind features. Her dark red eyes blink slowly as she studies me. If I had to guess, I’d say she was a doctor. The give away is the long coat and whiff of antiseptic.

“Her vital signs are steady. I presume they’re normal for her species,” the gray alien says.

Weak as I am, I reach up and manage to grab hold of Qrow’s colorful jacket, twisting the fabric in my hand and pulling him towards me.

“What did you say about ‘young’?” I growl.

He splutters until he’s elbowed aside by the gray alien.

“I am Blynda, one of the healers on Kitchik,” she says to me before turning to Qrow and informing him he can leave.

“You know about your young?” She asks once he’s gone.

“I knew I was pregnant,” I reply. “But I don’t know who the father is.” I stumble over the words, feeling ill as they come out.“I wasn’t…intimate with any males. I was captured by a species called the Bogarok.” I’m sure I’m going to throw up. “My baby…it couldn’t be…one of theirs, could it?”

If it is, I don’t know what I’ll do. My blood is ice in my veins.

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