It started off peacefully enough. Bluefire emerged into wakefulness with a contented sigh. Looking over at the slumbering back of Spark curled up beside her, then down at the large clutch of eggs beneath her, she smiled with affection and joy. The two of them had created such a lovely brood.
A bit belatedly, her female instincts flooded her brain, causing her to nuzzle each of the eggs, checking their condition while savoring the contact with her young. Now, she could understand why her mate had been so adamant about continuing to nest. Thinking of Spark again, she leaned over to rest her head on the red dragoness's shoulder, getting her first morning's glimpse at her face.
"Morning, love," she murmured softly. Spark only sighed in her sleep. A movement caused Bluefire's eyes to drift down to the dragoness's paws, now encircling little Ember and a new golden dragonling.
The revelation caused a thrilling shiver to run down Bluefire's body. What a wonderful surprise! Still, she suppressed her reaction in order not to wake Spark. The poor thing must be so tired.
Nevertheless, she really needed to get a better view of the new arrival. Softly getting to her feet, she crept around to a better position. Her movements caused another odd sensation to catch her notice. Why did she feel like she had more eggs in her? Hadn't she laid already? Wait, she was forgetting something. Something important. What was it?
A polite cough made her jump, despite its being made at such a low volume. Whirling around, she caught her breath at the sight of a dragon.
Then, it came back to her. Dartwing! Before she could react to this reminder, something else distracted her.