The legendary predator stalked his prey. His body was covered in bck scales and he hunted like a wolf. He was over niall, yet hid perfectly in the forest’s greenery. His wings were folded but ready t into a at any moment, his deep blue eyes fixated on the unsuspeg deer.

  The long shadows of the twilight helped obscure the drake as he inched closer, slowly unfurling his wings. Just when he was mere feet away from the deer, something cracked under him, alerting his prey.

  The dragon wasted no time. As soon as the deer started in the opposite dire, he leaped forward, assisted by a single mighty fp of his wings, c the distaween him and the deer in an instant. He tackled the animal and quickly dug his fangs into its neck, pletely crushing it between his jaws, and spraying himself with blood.

  He parted his jaws and stood up on his hind legs, blood dripping from his mouth and into a crimson puddle that began to form on the ground, rubbing his mouth as he turned around.

  His eyes widened, and so did his snted pupils, as he saw a squirrel standing on a trunk not far from him, staring and shaking.

  "Damn it," he muttered with a worried but gentle voice. "Miss , I expin," He began to step closer to her. "I would never do this to you. I do squirrels." He saw her inch away from him. "It's me! Onyx would never hurt you, would he?" He smiled, but immediately regretted it, as he imagined he didn't look too friendly with a bloody smile.

  The squirrel darted and disappeared into the forest.

  Onyx cursed under his breath, fag the ground aing his shoulders slump.

  *****

  Onyx reached his destination just before nightfall, holding the deer over his shoulder. Before him stood the pce he called home; a humble cottage surrounded by trees and decorated by vegetation. Before the cottage stood an adult wolf kemono, an axe in his paws and a pile of firewood beside him. His hide was white on the front, grey on the back with patches of darker grey.

  As Onyx approached, the wolf’s yellow eyes looked up to meet him with a smile.

  “That took you lohan usual,” the wolf took a step towards Onyx. “Which is still pretty fast by wolf standards.”

  Onyx smiled faintly, though his eyes gave little emotion, as was his norm. “I see you’re nearly doh the wood.” He said as he id the deer on the ground. Wheood, he towered over the wolf. “Wao finish the rest?”

  “Now hold on,” The wolf held a paw up. “Let old Alexander feel a little useful, please?”

  Onyx rolled his eyes, still smiling. “You’re not ‘old’, dad.”

  “Then don’t make me feel old.” Alexander gave Onyx a pyful jab on the arm.

  Onyx shifted his footing slightly, to make it seem like the impact affected him at all. Then his smile faded as he spoke. “Something happened while I was out there.”

  Alexander’s smile subsided as well. “What is it? Something serious?”

  “Kind of,” Onyx looked away.

  “Onyx, tell me.” Alexander’s voice was more stern this time.

  “Well…I think I scared Miss . A lot.”

  Alexander let out his breath and facepalmed. “Onyx, I don’t want to belittle your s and all that, but you made that sound a bit too…dramatibsp;

  Onyx’s shoulders slumped more. “She looked really scared. I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again.”

  A smile returo Alexander’s face. “e on, you’re overreag.”

  Onyx looked to the ground, regaining his smile as a rge calico cat rubbed against his legs while purring. “Here’s someone who will never be scared of me.” He bent down and gave the cat a pat on the head. “Right, Cookie?”

  The cat meowed in response. She started sniffing, then turo the deer.

  “Oh no, not now,” said Onyx, raising a scolding finger. “I promise, we’ll feed you o’s cooked.”

  Cookie stared at him for a moment, then strutted towards a tree and climbed it. Onyx was always fasated by how smart feral cats could be, and he wondered if he'll ever meet someone from the cat folk. Not if I stay hiding here for the rest of my life, he thought, but didn't dwell on the gloomy thoughts for too long.

  “Onyx!” a high-pitched voice called, then a young she-wolf jogged out of the house. Her hide was white, save for her brown tail and a patch of brown on her left eye. She gave Onyx a brief hug, her head barely reag above his hips.

  “Maki, you’ll stain your fur with blood,” Onyx warned during the short embrabsp;

  Maki pulled away and examined a few spots of blood on her paws. What she couldn’t see was the blood smeared on her face. She looked up at Onyx and smiled sheepishly. She looked endearing as ever, albeit somewhat disturbing with all that blood.

  "Don't fet that you promised me a flight uhe moonlight tonight," said Maki.

  That's a lot of 'ights', mused Onyx, before he replied, "I...did?"

  Maki puffed her cheeks.

  Onyx chuckled. "I did, I did."

  Maki's cheeks defted, aail wagged a little.

  After bringing the deer ihe house, ae Alexander’s protest, Onyx did help him with the rest of the wood. At one point Onyx grabbed a sizable piece of wood and split it in half with his bare hands, after which he heard his father murmur a “show off”. Onyx snickered in response.

  Later, they moved the excess wood into the house, and used the rest to set up the fire with which they would cook. Shortly after the fire began to crackle, Maki excimed “Mom and Bruno are back!” Onyx looked at the road in the dirt that led from the cottage and into the distance. An adult she-wolf and a young wolf were visible around twenty meters away, carrying several bags with them. The she-wolf was light-brown with a white abdomen, ned chest, deep greehat nearly shone in the dark, and long, wavy dark brown hair. The young wolf beside her had a brown hide that was lighter in the front, a white , and honey-colored eyes. He had a smile pstered on his face that Onyx always described as “tagious”.

  Onyx left the fire and jogged to meet his mother and brother midway ahem with the bags. Maki had already beat him and was hugs. She retty fast even for a wolf her age.

  “Wele back,” Onyx said curtly. “Need some help?”

  His mother smiled and said “Thank you, sweetie.” before l her two bags to the ground.

  Before Onyx could reach for the bags, he heard a quick “React!”, then a wooden stick was flying his way, swung by her than his own mother. He quickly blocked two blows with his palms before his mother lowered the stid sighed.

  “No, Onyx,” she rubbed between her eyes. “This stick represents a sword. You don’t block a sword with your bare hands.”

  “Why not?” Onyx shrugged. “I’m a dragon.”

  “‘I’m a dragon’ only carry you so far,” she slowly poked his chest with the stick. “Dead.”

  “Hey, not fair.”

  “Could you two kill each other after we make it bae?” Bruno said. “I’m starving.”

  Maki poked Bruno on the chest with a stid said “Dead!”, giggling.

  Bruno ruffled Maki’s hair, to which she protested.

  “Hey!” Maki stepped away from Bruno, huffing and puffing her cheeks. “I just bed that!”

  Bruno smirked. “And I’m ing after your tail .”

  “Don’t you dare.”

  Onyx snorted.

  The four of them walked back to the house, where Alexander was waiting by the fire.

  "Syed another dragon, Raksha?" Alexander joked.

  "You know her," Onyx said. "Never a dull moment."

  "Thanks, sweetie," Raksha said to Onyx with a sweet smile. "I'm pretty good at beating a weakling like you with a stick."

  Onyx was taken aback by the respo took him a few moments to recover and chuckle. Bruno choked on water.

  "Aren't you being a little too harsh," Alexander said, smiling, walking up to his wife and ing an arm around her shoulder.

  "No, you are just too soft," Raksha replied with a smirk, jabbing a fi Alexander's chest.

  Alexander pced a finger on his nose. “We’ll see about that.”

  Bruno bli them a few times, muttering "I shall pretend I didn't hear that."

  Onyx looked perplexed, having no idea what Bru.

  Raksha saw the deer and said "Well done, Onyx."

  "Thanks," Onyx responded. "Just your everyday weakling, catg a deer on his own."

  Raksha giggled in response.

  While Onyx and Alexander prepared the meat and pced it above the fire, the others unpacked what Raksha and Bruno had brought with them; fruit, vegetables and fabric, among other things.

  Everyone helped in preparing the meal. When it was dohey decided to sit around the fire a it outside instead of in the house, for the weather was cool and the twilight had given way to a bright moon. Wolves loved the moon, and Onyx ied that love despite not sharing their blood.

  Onyx required more food than the rest, and although he never asked for it, Raksha always insisted on feeding him in a way that fit his size, sometimes going overboard even for a dragon.

  And as promised, they did feed Cookie along with them.

  After the food, they took a short rest before Onyx decided to fulfill his promise to Maki, too. She excitedly hopped on his back as he prepared to take off into the woods.

  "Are you sure about this?" Alexander said as he approached them. "Isn't it a bit te?"

  "The night is still young," Onyx replied. "And the moon is bright."

  "It's still the night."

  "It's alright, dad," Maki said. "If a monster shows up–" she reached bad patted Onyx ohigh "–Onyx take care of it."

  "Maki!" Onyx said in a hushed voice. "Don't say such things."

  "I bet he ," Alexander said, crossing his arms. He gained raised eyebrows from Onyx and Maki. "But remember, Onyx, if you get spotted by a stranger…"

  "I'll be seen as the monster," Onyx pleted for his father.

  Alexander sighed. "I didn't want to say it."

  "It's fine," Onyx said. He looked indifferent, but no matter how little, the subject still bothered him.

  "Things will ge one day," Alexander said, patting Onyx on the shoulder.

  Onyx managed a small smile. "I know."

  Alexander returhe smile and nodded in the dire of the forest. "Now go. I feel like Maki will bite me if I keep her waiting any longer."

  Onyx chuckled and heard a faint "He's right" from Maki. He unfurled his wings and dashed into the forest.

  Onyx used his wings to propel himself up a tree, then jump from oree to the . Once he one of suffit height, he jumped as high as he could and took flight. Onyx was never able to maintain flight for too long, especially with an added weight. He didn't know why he was so, but his aunt Zoey specuted that he was simply born with retively weak wings. Regardless, he could still fly long enough to thrill his little sister, and his flight capabilities had been improving over the years.

  "I wish we could fly around the whole forest," Maki said, smiling as the cool night air brushed over her fad made her hair flow behind her.

  "Maybe someday," Onyx said.

  They tiheir flight in silence, Maki ging to Onyx's ned boung up and down as he fpped his wings. Onyx gazed at the forest bathed in silver moonlight, his heart full.

  After some time, and some protesting from Maki, they returned home. The rest of the family was inside. Onyx pced Maki in front of the house and turned in the dire of the forest again.

  "Wait, where to?" Maki asked.

  Onyx stopped to answer. "I just want to pay a short visit to Aunt Zoey."

  "Then why didn't you visit her during our flight?" Maki looked irritated.

  Onyx grinned widely, something he didn't do often. "Because I'm a horrible brother." And with that he took off again, listening to the voice of his sister yelling words bigger than her age fade behind him.