Listen, And The Stars Shall Speak

~Flashback~ Apple

A/N: I know these were supposed to be about the couple's lives BEFORE dragonets, but Pearkeeper left me a bit stumped. So, here's a short part about Pearkeeper, set just a few weeks after Apple hatched. 

Rainkeeper awoke with a start, unsure as to what had jolted him out of a peaceful sleep. Bright sunlight shone through the room's windows. It was quiet, perfectly serene. Pear was curled up next to him, her features relaxed in sleep. He smiled at her softly, until there was a slight tug on his tail. He glanced over. His tail hung over the side of their hammock, ending a few inches from the ground. A teeny tiny dragonet clung to the end, pulling on his tail with a mischievous grin on her face. 

Raineeper's smile grew. Apple. His little daughter was only a few days old, but she was clever. After all, she had somehow managed to get out of her bed and into their room. She was a sweet little thing that shockingly resembled Pear. No one would ever suspect that she was part Nightwing by looking at her. She had normal Rainwing scales, she had venom, and her tail curled like a Rainwing's did. But there was one thing about Apple that left them completely shocked.

Tree-Bud didn't hate her. 

That stinking sloth hated the entire world. Literally everything and everyone. From Prince Cliff of the Skywings to that one grain of sand in that one sand dune in a place he'd never even been. Tree-Bud was mean and threw fruit at the things he hated most. Thus, Rainkeeper still occasionally got fresh bruises from walking too close to the sloth's tree. 

But he didn't hate Apple. For whatever reason, he couldn't hate her. It made absolutely no sense. It was just weird. 

Snapping back into reality, Rainkeeper shut his eyes, pretending to be asleep as Apple climbed up onto the hammock, falling on his feet with a small squeak. He turned over slightly and whispered to Pear.

"We have a visitor." he breathed. She grinned slowly, waking up slightly. 

"Tell them to come back later." she insisted.

"Well, I would, but they're already here." As if to emphasize his point, Apple tugged on Pear's foot, as if she was attempting to wake her parents up. Pear smirked, realizing what Rainkeeper meant. 

"One," he whispered softly.

"Two," she replied.

"Three!" They jumped up and grabbed Apple, pulling her close and tickling her. She shrieked and giggled so much her face was red as a Skywings. 

"Were you messing with my tail?" Rainkeeper joked in a deep voice. Apple burst into another fit of giggling as she nodded. Pear cracked a grin as Rainkeeper flipped the small dragonet upside down, causing her to shriek again. 

"And what were you doing in here?" Pear questioned when Rainkeeper had flipped her upright again.

"I was wakin yous ups!" she exclaimed.

"And why would you do that?" Apple smiled.

"CAUSE I WANTS TO PLAY!"  

Rainkeeper let out a fake gasp.

"Then we have to go play!" he announced, picking her up as they climbed out of the hammock. 

"Hey," Pear reminded them. She kissed their foreheads playfully. "Breakfast first."