:: http://www.geocities.com/dragynmistress ::
:: By Jennifer Vromant			   ::
:: jen_vromant@yahoo.com		   ::
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Spoof - Chapter 04

Spoof spent the next 10 years with Kynder, Safyr, Tala, and their mother.  Spoof lived in a shallow cave not far from the big one where the others lived.  The mother, Ebony, was one of the smaller, more common black dragons.  They made up for their size in stealth, and were the quietest of all dragons.  Ebony hunted for all four draclings, but didn't tolerate Spoof very well.  She mistrusted the golden-red dracling and couldn't shake a bad feeling about him.  She believed he would one day tear her family apart.

Spoof would join Kynder on her daily hunts.  They would go out and practice pouncing rabbits and squirrels.  Spoof never mentioned that he was adept at hunting the agile mountain goats that lived in the highest parts of the mountains.  He pretended to be clumsy and slow, so Kynder would have more confidence in herself.  She immensly enjoyed "teaching" Spoof how to pounce.

Safyr and Tala maintained their distance from Spoof all the time.  They were constantly afraid of him, hiding behing Ebony or Kynder whenever he came near.  Ebony would snort or growl a warning at him, and he would swiftly back away.  Kynder would just laugh and push the two towards him.

Spoof grew a lot.  His wings started growing and he started trying to fly when no one was looking.  He'd flap his wings as he'd fall asleep and dream of soaring through the sky with the gryphons and pegasi.  He was almost as big as Ebony by the end of the 10 years, even though dragons don't reach their full size for about 50 years.  He could fly for short distances, but never told Kynder.  He also practiced throwing flames at rocks and little animals unlucky enough to pass the opening of his cave.

Kynder and the other two barely grew, and Ebony was becoming very wary of Spoof.  She would let him less and less closer to the opening of the big cave where they lived, and she brought back less and less for him to eat.  One day at the end of the 10 years, Spoof was lying on his back in his cave, which had become much too small for him.  He stared and the roof of the cave and decided he was tired of being pushed around by Ebony.  He left his cave and silently walked towards the path to the mountains near the cave where the others were.  As he passed the entrance, he looked in and saw Kynder sleeping near her mother and siblings.  He hesitated, wanting to say good-bye, then thought better of it and started on the path.  He was a traveller once again.