Searching for Thanksgiving (Dragonlings of Valdier)

Chapter 4

4

“ I ’m soooo bored! There is nothing exciting going on here. I thought we’d be doing cool stuff like we did the last time when we pretended to be the big Dragonlings,” Pearl groaned.

Morah tried to ignore Pearl. It was impossible. The Sarafin cat-shifter huffed as she flopped down on the thick carpet of purple grass next to her and threw her hands above her head. When Morah ignored her, Pearl spread her legs, almost knocking over the paints Morah had lined up. Pearl acted as if she were literally dying of boredom. She even rolled her eyes back and hung her tongue out of the side of her mouth in a very unladylike pose.

Morah snorted and turned her back a little more to the other girl. Pearl was always getting in trouble. She was just like the boys—well, some boys. Jabir and Bálint were pretty cool.

And Zohar and Jabir’s baby brother, Hamlet. Zohar is okay because he is a leader likes me. Hamlet was stills too little to gets into troubles.

Roam and his cousin Leo were the worst. They were always getting into trouble. Amber and Jade’s little brother, James, was almost as bad as his big sisters. Thankfully, there was only one of him and not two like Amber and Jade!

“There is lots of things to do. I’m painting a pretty picture for my mommy and daddy. I thoughts you were playing with your sister and Hope,” Morah replied.

“They was playing with dolls. They didn’t like it when I tried to bury them. I want to do something fun! Something cool like the last time we were here!” Pearl groaned again.

“Well, I think painting is cool,” Morah replied.

Pearl glared at her and lowered her head back to the grass with a snort. “That’s not cool. That’s boring. Cool is going on adventures or using cool gadgets to trick our parents. Playing with dolls and painting is… moan-tonous .”

“What does moan-tonous mean?” Morah asked.

Pearl shrugged. “I don’t knows. Daddy says it whenever Mommy tells him it is time to clean up. Then he makes up excuses to go play with Roam.”

Morah scowled at Pearl in annoyance. She forgot that she had paint all over her fingers and spread some across her cheek.

“Why don’t you go play with Leo and James? They likes burying and blowing things up,” she suggested.

Pearl rolled over on to her stomach and tucked her hands under her chin. “They was just sitting around and eating. Leo is always hungry. They also said girls wasn’t allowed in their clubhouse. I didn’t want to go in their stupid clubhouse anyway. It’s just a box that they cut holes in. Maybe I can paints with you.”

Morah wiggled her nose and protectively covered her paints with her hands. “No. These are brands new. The last times you used my paints you mixed them all together and made the colors change before you painted yourself.”

Pearl sat up and grinned. “I was making myself invisible. I can’t do it likes you do.”

“Well, you can’t uses my paints,” Morah growled.

She pulled the container of blue paint closer when she saw the glint of mischief in her cousin’s eyes. She knew what Pearl was thinking.

She going to get in our paints, her dragon growled in warning.

She better nots!

She going to!

Slowly the smile on Pearl’s lips blossomed into a gleeful grin, and the small cat-shifter lifted her butt and wiggled it before her features blurred and a tawny, black-spotted leopard cub appeared. Morah released a short growl of warning before she shifted into her gold dragon. She pounced, tackling Pearl in midair before she could land in the middle of her paints.

Pearl hissed and squirmed. Morah grunted when Pearl put her paws under her stomach and flipped her.

Morah’s dragon twisted in the air, landed on her feet, and snarled a warning. She might be a princess, but her daddy had taught her how to wrestle. She leaped and landed on Pearl’s back. The dragon and the cub tumbled across the grass, rolling several feet before they stopped.

“Grrr,” Pearl rumbled.

Morah shifted back and wrapped her arms around Pearl’s chest as the small cat stretched out a paw toward her new paints.

“You nots getting in my new paints!” Morah growled back.

Pearl suddenly shifted, causing Morah to roll off her into the grass. Pearl sniffed, rolled her eyes, and fell back onto the grass again.

“You’ve gots paint all over your face,” Pearl said.

“I gots it everywhere now,” Morah complained, smearing more paint on her clothes as she tried to wipe the grass off her.

Pearl sat up and shrugged. “I just wants to have some fun.”

Morah sighed and sat down. “I guess you can use my paints… as long as you promises not to mix them together.”

Pearl shook her head. “I don’t wants to paint anymore. I guess I’ll goes see what the boys are doing. I can always attacks their clubhouse.”

Morah’s eyes widened. “Oh, that sounds like fun.”

“You want to helps me? We can be space pirates,” Pearl said with growing excitement.

“That—”

Morah’s words were cut off when a loud bang, followed by squeals, drew their attention to the far side of the garden.

“James!” Jade and Amber hollered.

“It wasn’t me this time!” James shouted back.

“James, looks out! They’ve gots glitter bombs!” Leo squealed.

“Glitter bombs! I gotta see this!” Pearl exclaimed.

Before Morah could say anything, Pearl shifted into her cat and took off across the garden. Morah hurriedly capped her paints before she shifted into her dragon and followed.

Maybe Pearl is right. Glitter bombs and adventures are a lot more fun than painting, she thought as she tore off across the garden as the squeals and shouts grew louder.