Pyre

The Nurturing Mother
caring ~ gentle ~ modest ~ warmhearted ~ prepared

"Come, rest your weary wings. I may be busy in the nesting grounds, but you are always welcome to visit me for a chat, if you so wish. Do try not to wake the hatchlings, though."

An Imperial was used to a life alone. It was in their nature, perhaps; especially to be apart from their own kind. But Pyre always felt as though it was a dreadfully dreary existence, one clad in loneliness and heartache. Hers was such an acute suffering that she couldn't help but wonder if this was what Guardians felt when their charges were lost; thus, she wandered in search of something obscure and abstract.

Upon finding Leif, she truly believed that she might have found it. Quickly, she found that her heart belonged among hatchlings; she felt something close to complete when she put them into her care. Her strength was only outmatched by her kindness; whenever a dragon needed a shoulder to cry on, she was always present. She took to wandering the tunnels and pathways of the clan's home, checking up on the others while the hatchlings rested. For many moons, it felt as though her ache had been sated; but time and time again, it resurfaced. The hatchlings began to notice when she would stare into the trees for minutes at a time, wondering if this meant she would be forced to wander once more.

It proved not to be so when one day, a great catastrophe shook the clan to its core. A great heaving monster made its way through, destroying anything in its wake, leaving great gashes through the tunnels and the trees and her clanmates. When Pyre heard the great bellow of the beast so close to the hatchlings, she quickly gathered them and spread her bright, brilliant wings. Her strength made her a protector. She was a guardian of her children, and she would do all that it took to keep them safe.

But as soon as Cinder heaved out of the entrance, spitting acid, the two of them stopped ad stared at one another. Her wings still held high, she approached him cautiously, ensuring that none of her movements would provoke him to movement again. His festering eyes seemed captivated on her form, and when she finally came close to him, she gave a small smile and lowered her wings.
"I've found you at last," she whispered softly, and so the hole in her heart was filled.

She later learned of an Imperial remarkably similar to her in every way except for her eyes. They had the same powerful wings, the same shining horns - but while hers had been the ruby red of Plague, Pyre possessed the glistening green of Nature. Perhaps it was a sign, she explained. They were two sides of the same coin. To this day, no one truly understands what such a gentle giant can see in Cinder, who was almost eradicated on the spot - but this was not a story meant to be shared.