The Escapade
They never intended for their tribes to hate each other, they just wanted to be together. And so they were. The reimagined escape scheme of Arctic and Foeslayer.
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Foeslayer exhaled softly, watching her breath appear before her in cold puffs of vapor that dissolved into nothingness. She slowly raised a talon towards the diamond earring she had on, the earring that kept her warm... and reminded her of why she was here at the glacial cliff overlooking the sea to begin with.
They had one night, one chance. If they messed it up, her mother and the others wouldnât come back to try and save them. Not when they were at the mercy of the Icewing Queen. Not when it was her they would be coming back for, she harshly huffed.
Nevertheless, she was clever and persistent, she was going to figure out how to take him with her and start their lives back in the Night Kingdom in peace. And do it all with as little magic as possible... she wanted to keep as much of Arcticâs soul as intact as possible, didnât want to depend on his magic. She hadnât needed to depend on Nightwing powers, and sheâd still made it far despite her mother constantly attempting to control her every step in life.
âWhat are you thinking so hard about now? More enchanted item ideas?â She turned to the source of the voice; Even if the unique icy timbre of his voice was instantly recognizable to her, she didnât mind looking at him and confirming what she already knew. The Icewing prince walked up and sat next to her, lips upturned in a playful smile.
She snorted, âI donât need more ideas, but no. Iâm thinking about how to sneak you out of here without using too much of your magic.â
âMagic isnât an issue.â Foeslayer turned to Arctic sharply, eyes narrowed in irritation at how casually he spoke about his soul-destroying magic. The ice prince flinched back slightly, startled by her quick and sudden movement.
âYes it is! Itâs an issue to me because it eats away at your soul and I donât want that, I donât want to lose you or for you to lose your soul. So listen, I think I have a good plan...â she pulled out from under her wing a large bundle of soft, purple fabric, âwe unfortunately just need one last enchantment and then youâll never have to use your magic ever again. I promise.â
Arctic looked curiously at what he could identify as a Nightwing-made blanket dyed purple that was very large, large enough to swaddle an adult dragon, and seemed insulating. He guessed Foe had brought it with her and used it before he gave her the diamond earring. But he was confused now. âFoe, how will this help us? What kind of enchantment would I even put on it?â
He moved his gaze back to her and stared her back in her dark green eyes that lit up with determination. The nightwing smiled confidently, âThis blanket can completely cover you, even while youâre flying, itâs that large, and if you can enchant it to behave like Rainwing scales and create a perfect camouflage to blend your form into the landscape... youâll be free. You can fly back with me and the other Nightwings and nobody will notice.â
Arctic stared for a long time at Foeslayer, starstruck for a moment at how creative she could get; Never in a thousand years would this have crossed his mind to do. He had no doubt that if she were the animus here instead of unimaginative him, sheâd be able to create unimaginably powerful items.
But while he was busy internally marveling at his partner, it became clear he took a little too long to respond because after blazes knew how long. Foeslayer spoke out again, meeker in tone now. âI mean, we can always find other ways to go about this, the blanket just seemed like the best to me but-â
âNo no! The blanket plan is amazing! I can do it-â Arctic, took the expansive wad of purple fabric out of the Nightwing femaleâs talons and mentally recited his magical command to it. While in his claws, the blanket shifted from a flat purple to an iridescent purple. A part of him wanted to command the blanket to turn green but he felt that Foeslayer wouldnât appreciate the action despite the sentiment behind it.
Arctic then got an idea, and this time it was Foeslayer who watched curiously as the Icewing unfurled the blanket over and around her, over them both, and all she heard from him was a soft chuckle. The confused Nightwing finally asked, âwhatâs so funny?â
Arcticâs piercing blue eyes glowed faintly in the dark cocoon of fabric, like a felineâs, as he delivered her his answer. âItâs big enough for us both.â Foeslayer just became more puzzled.
âI know, what about it?â
The Icewing hummed, âJust a fun fact for me- with this, I can sneak you into my room-â The Nightwing immediately interrupted him, âWait- no, Arctic, I will not-â
âNot for that!â The ice dragonâs face flushed blue at the implication, that wasnât what this was about. âItâs just... we can spend the night together, asleep together like proper mates.â Foeslayerâs expression softened, âArctic...â
âI know! You could just sleep in your place like usual and I can do that too and sneak out under the blanket, and that after all of this weâll be able to do that all we want but with less risk...â Foeslayer tilted her head questioningly, prompting him with a soft âbut?â, he picked back up. âBut I donât want to wait another night when we can sleep together now.â
Both dragons were silent, motionless as they processed what they were saying. Foeslayer acted first, bumping her snout to Arcticâs and gently unwound the blanket from around both of them. Taking the enchanted blanket into her claws, she sighed and looked at him determinedly. âAlright, but Iâll go to you, not the other way around. Diamond will definitely notice if you arenât in your room, meanwhile my mother, Starclaws, and Discretion wonât bat an eye. See you tonight.â
The nightwing stood up and unfolded her wings, taking off with the shiny blanket in her hands. Arctic watched as the green-tinted female left, sitting a while longer at the cliff. Tonight... Tonight and after, they could begin to be more of a couple beyond stolen moments. For once, the ice prince was eager to return to his room in the palace. Eager knowing it was his last, the Night Kingdom had to be an improvement over this place and Foeslayer would be there.
Heâd gladly go wherever she went.
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Foeslayer was glad that Icewings didnât have night vision like Seawings or the Icewing guards would definitely have seen a floating, dark green eye roaming the halls silently. She had done her best to fold up the large blanket, to make it not drag on too long over the icy floors.
She couldnât risk being careless now and having a patrolling Icewing that was expecting to step on cold, solid ice to step on a soft, ice-colored section of fabric. Or even potentially tear it, she didnât know how the enchantment worked.
She finally reached what she could assume was Arcticâs room, the doors tall and carved in exquisite symbols. And the pair of armed guards at the door was a pretty good indicator. She mentally thanked Arctic for his moment of foresight to give her his freezing dagger, the Nightwing raised the blade and poked itâs tip outside the confines of the blanket.
Before either armed guard could notice the glinting metal of the item, she whispered âfreezeâ twice, pointing the daggerâs end at a different guard with every repeated activation word. Both the Icewings were as still as statues, leaving Foeslayer ample time to walk past them and open the frozen doors to her loverâs room.
Arctic raised his head from his forelegs excitedly when he saw the door creak open, and smiled when nothing came through and yet the door closed on its own. He stood up and held out a talon, not surprised when a warm black talon materialized from thin air. âOh? An invisible thief?â
Foeslayer let the blanket fade back to itâs iridescent sheen as she let it drop to the floor, âPerhaps, but all Iâll be stealing tonight is an innocent place beside you.â
Arctic used his spiked tail to lift the discarded fabric to his open claw, âSneaky, will you be stealing me when the sun rises?â He playfully smiled, enjoying their game.
âOh definitely, but I canât steal you away right now. Iâve definitely spoiled you enough for one night, my cold prince.â Foeslayer smiled mischievously as Arctic mock-pouted at her and bumped his nose against hers in a playful attempt to make her âreconsiderâ.
The couple happily teased and flirted some more, illuminated by moonlight and an orb from the Gift of Light. Unworried about being caught, since the guards outside were still frozen.
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Foeslayer woke up like clockwork the moment the first beams of sunrise hit her face, the sky fading from an inky blued blackness to the warm shades of dawn; orange, gold, and bloodied red. The sun cast the white landscape outside the window a brilliant white, which only made the forms of blackness and dots of white within these shapeless blobs of black more obvious. It was time.
She, none too gently, pushed out her wing and knocked her sleeping loverâs head to the side. âArctic, we have to leave now.â
She stood up, not waiting for the soon ex-princeâs response. Foeslayer stretched and reached for the animused blanket. Meanwhile, Arctic was nursing a bruised cheek with a cold talon. âCouldâve been gentler, yâknow.â
âI do know, but you also were sleeping like a rock and we canât miss the others, I need to be with them for this to work, remember?â
Foeslayer had the blanket wrapped around herself, black scales already coated and turned to icy shades of pale blue and white, and leaving her seemingly disembodied head floating.
âYouâre lucky I like you.â Arctic stood up and pushed the ice doors open, Foeslayer quipping back âTrust me, youâre the lucky one hereâ before covering her head in the veiling fabric and slipping out of the room into the hallways.
Arctic only became aware of her departure by the soft tapping of her claws on the ice. Sounds he knew to look for to follow her, imperceptible if you werenât listening for the tapping to begin with.
As he was leaving, Arctic took his freezing dagger (that heâd gotten back from Foeslayer last night) and whispered âunfreezeâ twice, not wanting to just leave the dragons frozen indefinitely. He tucked the blade under his wing and kept walking, moving quicker to lead the duo.
All the while, alert for any sign of his mother or... uhh, whatever his soon-to-be-ex-fiancĂŠâs name was. Even now, he felt a bit guilty to forget her name but it wasnât his fault that the quiet, noblewoman was so boring and forgettable!
The Icewing opened the doors to a balcony and flew off it, listening for the flapping of the hidden Nightwing female. âArctic, we have to switch now-â
The disembodied voice almost startled him out of the air, it didnât help that he came from beside him. He heard an invisible Foeslayer huff, âAstounding flight skills, prince. Now letâs land, I can say I overslept and are running late if anyone stops me to ask. You have to fly ahead if that happens though, Arctic.â
Both dragons lighted down, and Foeslayer quickly threw off the disguise. Arctic needed no prompting to be quicker as he slipped under the blanket quickly. The less time they spent grounded, the quicker theyâd be gone.
The sooner theyâd be able to be together in peace. As soon as the ice dragon was completely unseeable, Foeslayer flapped her wings and took off from the slushy ground, hearing the muffled wing flaps of her Arctic behind her.
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Snowflake crushed a chunk of ice in her claws, the dragoness quickly ridding her talon of the slushed ice and paying no mind to the balcony railing with a missing ice section. She narrowed her eyes at the shrinking figures of black on the horizon, internally baring her teeth at the distinct lack of an additional white figure flying away with them.
âDonât worry, one way or another, heâll be gone. You wonât have to end up marrying him, not as long as I breathe. Wherever he is, wherever he hides within this frozen tundra thatâll be mine soon... I will personally find him and kill him.â
The moon-silver Icewing closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Exhaling a puff of coldness, her eyes open and apathetic again but in their cores, fragments of a soothed rage resided still. She replied quietly, though it sounded loud in the stillness of the morning.
âThank you, Fox. I know you will, and I know you will be queen. There is no doubt from me about that.â
Snowflake focused her deep blue - nearly black - eyes on the horizon where the Nightwings were long gone. Her soothed wrath flaring up again, though her face didnât twitch a muscle.
âHorrid though,â a slight tint of anger she only allowed herself to show with Snowfox seeping in, âHeâd have left his mistress to die. What a selfish prick.â
The grey-blue Icewing beside Snowflake let out a huff, âWhat else should we have expected, heâs dimwitted and a spoiled prince. Weâll snuff him out some other way, besides... Diamond will bring him out of whatever hole heâs hidden in.â Snowfox turned to look at her partner in crime.
âCome on, Diamond should be waking up by now if you did your part right.â Snowflake shot an angry glare but soon schooled her face back into a quiet, indifferent mask of respectfulness.
âOf course.â
Neither scheming Icewing the wiser to the fact Arctic was, indeed, long gone.
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Arctic learned this morning that dealing with any Queen was an unpleasant ordeal, it wasnât just his mother that seemed intent on breathing down his neck but also Queen Vigilance. The Queenâs obsidian eyes felt like they were trying to see into his soul (or what was left of it by now) and see if he would be a threat.
It made his skin prickle with discomfort to be so examined; it was more uncomfortable than his motherâs gaze, at least she had been family. This was a stranger.
Nonetheless, he kept himself still as a statue beside Foeslayer and the other Nightwings whose names eluded him right now. He almost felt like reaching under Foeâs wing and grabbing the blanket to hide away from the vigilant queen.
It was Foeslayerâs tail brushing against his own in a light hold that kept him from doing so (a comfort and a warning).
âAllknowingâ, the bejeweled dragoness spoke levelly, âyou have not steered us wrong yet, good job. Arctic, I personally welcome you to the Nightwing Tribe and by extent, the Night Kingdom. We hope youâll like it.â
Arctic more or less tuned out the rest of the meeting with the Queen until she finally dismissed him and Foeslayer. He breathed out cool mist into his forearm, letting out a breath he didnât realize heâd been holding. He lightly joked to Foeslayer, âSheâs judgy, huh?â
Foeslayer blew out a smoke plume, âOh absolutely. But that also makes her intimidating,â she shook her head and looked at the ice dragon, eyes lighting up again, ânow, letâs go! We need to get you used to my house. Itâs not much, not close to the sky, but something and enough.â
âAs long as we are together, anything is enough, Foeslayer.â
The dragoness looked away, âFlattery will get you anywhere but none of that, we should go before the Queen of Shrewdness decides she wants us back in there.â
âYeah.â
So, into the Night Kingdom flew a dragon of dark viridian shades followed by a glittering dragon of ice blue and white.
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To Be Continued...












