"I Do What I Can" {PRIVATE}

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    Mammoth blinked and almost jumped at the welcome surprise. His eyes focusing on Shatter, who held onto his muzzle. He actually laughed in amusement at the tiny dragonet. "Yes, hello there," Mammoth wasn't really sure she could understand him yet, "I AM your father. You don't have to worry."

    Shatter cooed and patted his snout. Starstreaker giggled and she shot her mate a small grin. "She's adorable," Starstreaker said. Shatter let out something that sounded like a laugh and her tiny wings fluttered ever so slightly.

    What an amusing little dragonet. Mammoth wished to enjoy this little moment forever. But they had to return: His daughter and himself. The smile on his face faded away slowly. "You know I must go soon." he reminded Starstreaker. The male reached for Shatter with a wing. Brushing the tip against her small head. "I must return to the Kingdom Of Ice...With Shatter."


    Would the journey back be alright for Starstreaker? She had been sick for a while...

    Starstreaker nodded. "Yes, of course," she said, frowning slightly. She wasn't sure if she would feel fine enough to survive until the next time she met with Mammoth, but Starstreaker knew that she should. I can, she assured herself. "Hopefully it'll be a nice trip back for you," she said. "And that Shatter would be alright, too."

    (( Alright, so since I'm in charge of playing NPCs, I have a character I kinda want to play but I'm not sure how to fit him into this kind of plot. Do you want to hear about him and maybe we could decide on his role and how big it could be? ))

    (( Alright, so he's an IceWing named Prowl, like the prowling of a snow leopard. Prowl is...not a kind dragon. Whatsoever. Prowl is just as arrogant and stubborn as any other IceWing aristocrat (although he's more lowkey about it), and he is very cold-shouldered and emotionally constipated. He alienates everyone who even tries to get close to him and Prowl is very strict and disciplinary, as well as aloof. He puts a strong emphasis on rules and regulations, although he is willing to bend and break the rules wherever he sees fit.


    Prowl is more clever than everyone around him and he is very manipulative. This is why literally no one, not even other IceWing aristocrats, likes him. Most other IceWing aristocrats could at least be trusted to be loyal to their tribe and their queen when it comes down to it, although everyone knows that Prowl has his own agenda to follow. Prowl would never go as far as to try to take over the throne for himself (he's not so ambitious as to do that), but there have been multiple occasions where Prowl had been suspected of going behind his queen's back to do what he wanted to do.


    He tends to be kind of a jackass toward other dragons, and he sees dragons more as numbers and learning opportunities than as, well, actual dragons. For example, Prowl would absolutely let a dragon crash and burn and humiliate themselves in front of everyone, and he wouldn't even show that he cares about how that dragon might be feeling, instead choosing to make a note to himself to not do what they did.


    He does feel regret for some of his behavior, but Prowl always believes that the ends justifies the means. He will manipulate, lie, and scheme his way to the ending he wants to get. He has good intentions in mind, but his actions are often rather bad, as Prowl would be absolutely willing to sacrifice an entire orphanage full of innocent dragonets if it meant that his tribe would be saved, no matter how much he may regret it later.


    The only reason why Prowl is kept around is because he genuinely is competent at his job. Nobody really trusts him, and everybody hates him. If Prowl wasn't as skilled and competent as he was, then nobody would find a reason to keep him around. Fortunately for him, Prowl is certainly competent, and he is perhaps one of the queen's most skilled and clever soldiers. ))

    (When Mammoth arrives back to the IceWing palace)


    "I can assure you she will. We both will." Mammoth had crafted himself a furred sling to wear. To carry Shatter back to the Palace. After Starstreaker placed their daughter back down, he would put her inside and be on his way. "However: Will you be alright?" He was well-aware his mate hadn't been in the best of health.

    "I'll be fine," Starstreaker answered. "Don't worry about me, I made it this far and I won't let myself slip away now." She tried to keep the illness and doubt out of her voice. "I'll be seeing you again, I'm sure," she said, handing Shatter to him.

    The IceWing gently reached down with a claw, scooping Shatter up and gently trying to place her in the pouch. It took a bit of careful adjusting, but soon Mammoth had the dragonet secured. Before heading for the mouth of the cave, he quickly wrapped a wing around Starstreaker in a hug. "Promise me you will send word if you want to see us both again." To let me know if you're alive.

    "Of course I will," Starstreaker said to him. If I ever have the chance to see you again, she thought, but she quickly shook off that thought. No, no, I will see them again. I have to. I'm just hoping that they'll both be alright by the time I see them again. She pulled away from him. "Good luck."

    Mammoth nodded his head, stepped outside the cave, and took flight with Shatter. He would occasionally glance back towards the cave until its location disappeared from sight. And from then one, he'd focus on both looking ahead and checking to see if his daughter hadn't fallen out. After this flight, the two would be facing another obstacle: The royalty.


    ~~~~


    It had been a long, seemingly endless journey home. But in the end, father and daughter arrived at the Ice Palace. Mammoth landed on one of the many balconies carefully & quietly. He didn't see the appeal of giving Shatter and him away until he was ready to approach Queen Eirwen. When the child squeaked, he lightly hushed her.


    First, Mammoth looked down the hall. Making sure no fellow IceWings would stumble across the two. Once he was confident, Mammoth began to enter.

    Prowl had been, well, prowling the halls of the palace, looking for his brother. Where did he go off to now? he wondered grumpily. His ears pricked as he thought he heard something. Talonsteps, Prowl recognized. Let's see...judging by how heavily they're falling, it doesn't seem as if whoever it is is eager to running into anyone. Prowl decided to follow the noise, and just then he thought he heard the sound of a young dragonet cooing.

    Mammoth nearly jumped for the second time this night. The noises of both Shatter cooing and talonsteps seeming to follow his set the IceWing on edge. This led him to his own conclusion: They would both be discovered sooner than he expected and hoped. "Shh. Shh!" he gently hissed to his daughter.

    Shatter stopped the noise and she peered up at her father curiously, and the talonsteps stopped.

    "Alright, who is it?" Prowl's voice sounded out. The hallway was empty except for him and whoever the other dragon was. Prowl narrowed his eyes as he decided to keep following where he heard the cooing noise. Clearly whoever it was had a baby with them.