darkSpyro

"Hey," Ivy said, scooting over to him. She draped her wing over his back. "True that we shouldn't question Master, but that doesn't mean your opinion doesn't matter!"

Nyght hesitated for a moment. He wasn't usually allowed to speak his mind. "I don't...want to kill them..." He nervously looked over his shoulder. "I want to meet them, especially Cynder. Blood ties are hard to sever, and I'd like to at least get to know her first."

"If there was only another way..." Ivy murmured. "I don't understand why Master doesn't just get them to join us rather than destroy them. From the sounds of it, Cynder was a great asset, and you'd think another purple dragon under his control would be at least tempting..."

Nyght glanced about. "I heard it was already tried." he whispered. "And they broke free from it!" Nyght frowned slightly. "That takes an unheard of amount of willpower."

Ivy rubbed her temples. "I cannot even begin to comprehend!" she exclaimed. She then lowered her own voice to a whisper. "Does that mean that they are...stronger than Master?" Ivy swallowed hard, almost afraid to think of such a thing.

"Thats irrelevant. No dragon, purple or not, is more powerful than Master." Nyght reassured her. "I blame those idiotic apes for underestimating a sizable threat. That Gaul probably thought that a pair of hatchlings weren't threatening, and thats what got him killed. Serves him right." Nyght scoffed.

"May his ashes be blown to the depths of the underworld." Ivy said with a firm shake of her head. Gaul had been an idiot, for more than one reason. She even heard a rumor that he'd had a soft spot for Cynder when she was a hatchling, again idiotic.

A sudden thought occured to Ivy. "Nyght...what if they find out about us? What if they come here and try to kill us because we serve Master?" her voice took a bit of a lift in pitch from fright.

"I wouldn't doubt it." Nyght answered, not helping. "But we could fend them off." he added hastily, realizing Ivy's fear.

"Y-you're sure?" Ivy asked, looking up at him nervously.

"Of course. We're the elite! Plus Master wouldn't abandon us, He loves us!" Nyght assured cheerfully.

Ivy nodded slowly, Nyghts words reassuring her. "Of course, of course! What was I thinking?" a smile slowly came to her face.

Nyght kissed her gently on the lips. "See? Nothing to worry about." he smiled warmly at her.

Ivy blinked rapidly, her cheeks blazing red once more. "Silly me!" she laughed. "Though I could use a bit more reassurance..." she said, slyly giving him a peck on the nose.

Nyght caressed Ivy's cheek with his paw, his muzzle barely touching hers. His ruby eyes stared into her topaz with such love and compassion unconventional of a "dark" dragon. Nyght was showing Ivy what truly lay beneath.

Ivy gazed into Nyght's eyes, everything else around her blurring into an existence of unimportant sorts. She reached up slowly and placed her own paw over his, then moved her other paw to his chest, above his heart. She smiled, feeling his heartbeat.

Nyght's pupils quivered in excitement. "Ivy....I...I lo-"
"Please return to your cells. It is time for sleep." the crackling loudspeaker interrupted.
He sighed, shaking his head as he stood up, having lost his nerve. "I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked, eyes full of hope.

"Well I should hope so!" Ivy replied with a grin. She rose too, then stood up on her tiptoes to attempt to kiss his forehead. After a fruitless attempt due to her short height, she settled for giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"If I don't see you tomorrow, I'll just have to drag you out of your cell myself!" she teased.

Nyght grinned before returning the kiss. "You'll see me. I'll make sure of it." He winked before turning and walking out of Ivy's cell, shutting the door behind him.

Ivy sighed, a content and dreamy smile spreading across her face. She crossed the room to her sleeping arrangement and she shut her eyes.

She couldn't help but think about Nyght, thus staying awake for a good two hours or so, much later than she was used to. As her mind began to wander, and she was lured into sleep, she heard a scratching noise.

Her eyes opened drowsily and she saw Decibel sitting outside her barred door, worry clouding his cherry colored eyes.

"Ivy, I can't sleep!" he whispered. "Can I stay here with you?"

"Of course Dec!" Ivy whispered back.

"Thank you!" Decibel whispered gratefully, unlocking her door and scampering in. He shut the door behind him and snuggled up next to Ivy, his small form shuddering.

"What's the matter little one?" Ivy asked in concern.

Decibels wide eyes looked up into Ivy's topaz iris's. "I had...another nightmare."

"Oh, Dec..." Ivy murmured in sympathy. She draped a wing over his back like a blanket. "Decibel, nightmares are only your fears, and you are a fear dragon! You can control your dreams far better than any other dragon."

"Any dragon?"

"Yes, probably better than Master." Ivy decided to keep it to herself that she was quite sure that Malefor didn't sleep at all.

"Wow..." Decibel murmured, his eyelids drooping.

"Get some rest child."

Nyght lay back on his own mattress, thinking deeply about the events of the day. It was strange, the Master showing up unexpectedly after three years of no contact. Nyght rolled onto his side and curled up, his thoughts drifting to Ivy. His eyelids grew heavy as he fantasized about seeing her the next day, until he finally fell into a deep sleep.

Decibel was soon fast asleep, his leg and tail would twitch every now and then, showing that he was having a dream of running. Ivy smiled at the young dragon, wondering what it would be like to have a real younger brother.

She laid her head down and smiled. It didn't matter, Decibel was the best kid anyone could ever know either way. As her tail swished slightly, she thought about seeing Nyght the next day, and drifted into a content sleep.

She dreamed of them flying through the valley of Avalar, splashing some water from the river at each other. Laughter. Decibel was even there, chasing butterflies through the grass. A smile crossed her sleeping face.

Nyght's peaceful slumber seemed to last an eternity, at least until the morning buzzer abruptly ended it. Nyght grumbled awake before crossing over to his schedule, and for the first time, he didn't understand it.

It was blank. No shots, no training, no mission recap, just blank. It's not possible... he thought. There's always something to test on us. He left his cell in search of Ivy's. Maybe she had an idea what was going on.

In her dream, Ivy was just about to land in the lucious grass, but then a blaring buzz echoed through the valley, the sky shattering, Nyght and Decibel fading from sight.

Ivy's eyes snapped open, and to her relief she saw Decibel right there. She yawned and crossed the room to her schedule. "Wait...what?" she said aloud, her head tilting to the side. "Bu-but?"

Nyght banged on Ivy's door with his tailblade. "Hey, is your schedule messed up? I got a blank." he asked.

"Same here, it's just a white piece of paper..." Ivy replied.

"Hmm?" Decibel murmured, waking up from Nyght banging on the door.

"Nothin Dec, we're just trying to figure out why the schedule is blank." Ivy said.

Decibel stumbled over and unlocked Ivy's door. "Unusual, sounds like fun!"

"Maybe they misprinted? Or forgot?" Nyght theorized.

"Forgot?" Ivy echoed. "I doubt it, it's been there job since before I was born...er, created? Either way, they've been at it for almost two decades!"

"Maybe they're too preoccupied by Master's stay and slipped up?" Nyght suggested.
"Or maybe Master gave you all the day off." a voice behind him said. Malefor grinned at their shocked faces. "I think you've earned it."

Ivy's eyebrows shot up in surprise, unsure of what to say.

"But Master...what do we do on a 'day off'?" Decibel asked after a pause. He'd never heard the phrase before.

"A day off is a time to relax and have fun! Do the things you enjoy doing." he explained. "Its a time for all the things you want to do, and who you want to spend it with." Malefor winked at Nyght and Ivy.

Ivy spared a fraction of a glance at Nyght, bit her lip and looked away quickly. Decibel's brow was furrowed, still a little confused.

"But...fun... Never mind..." he trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.

Malefor stared in disbelief at the young dragon. "Haven't you ever had fun?"

Decibel tilted his head and thought. "Well..sorta I guess. When I was real little I chased another dragon around with my element, but then I got in trouble." He looked down sadly.

Ivy nodded. "I remember that. Poor Dec wasn't allowed out of his cell for a week! And he never gets in trouble!"

"Well then, young Decibel. How would you like to spend the day with me?" he invited.
Nyght was shocked. Not many dragons got personal time with the Master, including himself.

"Sure!" Decibel said with a smile. He looked up at Ivy, who smiled and nodded. "I'd love to!"

Ivy was glad for Decibel, maybe if he got to know Master, things would get better for him. She gave him a little pat on the head.

Malefor chuckled at Decibel's enthusiasm. "Excellent! Lets be off!" he exclaimed. "Oh, and um, I would suggest not seeing your brother, Nyghtmare. I believe he's spending time with Luna today." he added.
Nyght nodded slowly, not completely catching the hint.

Decibel smiled and trotted along with Malefor.

"Aw, Dae's found someone too~" Ivy said with a grin.

Nyght grinned too. "A whole day off... Wow..."

"So, what do you wanna do then Nyght? Is there anything to do for fun, or should we raid the kitchen?" Ivy asked mischievously. "I'm kind of in a snooping mood too!"

"I'm feelin the kitchen." he responded gleefully. "Its beef day."

"Beeeeeef!" Ivy grinned, slinking down the hall.

Keep going! I love this.

I also can't believe how nice Malefor is...

Nyght followed suit, laughing. "I call first bite!" he challenged.

Ivy laughed. "We have to actually get it out of the kitchen first!" she said in a hushed tone.

Nyght chuckled. "I know." He stopped outside the kitchen doors. "You distract them. I'll get the prize." he strategized.

"Excellent." Ivy grinned, eyes narrowed. She straightened up and sauntered into the kitchen doors.

"Why, hello there." she said airily, batting her eyelashes at the cooks. Her tail swayed slightly as a delicate smile spread over her lips.

Nyght crept into the kitchen behind her, unnoticed. He lurked underneath the tables, silent and catlike, until he reached the cart full of beef platters. Nyght held his position under the cutting table, waiting for the perfect moment.

"3? What are you doing in the kitchen?" one of the cooks asked cautiously.

Ivy batted her eyes again. "Oh, I just had a terrible itch that I just couldn't reach! Could one of you help me out?"

All three cooks blushed brightly. "Um, we're...very busy, 3." One of them began walking toward the cart.

Nyght inched back to avoid being detected.

"Mmmm, please? It'll only take a sec..." Ivy murmured, tilting her head a bit.