"Okay daddy." I shouted as I ran out of the cave that we resided within.

Looking about I couldn't help but smile at the wondrous amount of color that had come to the forest since I had fallen asleep last year after the first snow. A small amount of smoke trickled out of my nose before I gleefully galloped down the hill and towards a small meadow I had been playing in since I was little. Spreading my tiny wings I tried to fly, but unfortunately I failed to get off the ground, even with a running start.

"Tempestus, do be careful." my father called softly, relative to a low reverberating echo, behind me as he crawled out of our cave and stretched his might wings, momentarily blocking out the sun.

I giggled and ran into the meadow of new spring flowers, only stopping so I could fight off a sneeze. I failed in doing so I blasted the flowers with streams of fire from my nose, which I quickly put out by hopping up and down on the flames I created.

"Tempestus do remember that you should stay away from flowers, the pollen makes you sneeze." my father laughed as he walked on his hind legs past me, looking down with a sad glint in his eye.

"Daddy, when will I fly?" I asked, turning to the massive dragon.

"I do not know son, if you were fully dragon I would say in a couple more years, but you are a pony and even though I am ancient, I do not know enough of pegasus physiology to give you such an answer." he replied, a soft smile grazing his features as he bent down to my level.

I gave him a frown before hopping onto his snout and hugging him as best I could.

"Oh, hohoho, my boy, I do believe this is the year though." he shouted unintentionally, causing nearby birds to fly away in massive flocks.

"Year for what daddy?" I replied, lifting and tilting my head.

"As I once did at your age, and my father, and his father before his, you shall perform your rite of passage into the dragonkin." he replied.

"But daddy, I'm only part dragon remember?" I replied, slightly confused.

"Nonetheless I view it as tradition, pony or dragon I have faith that you can do it." he replied, the same glint in his eye as I had seen when he first entered the meadow.

"Okay, so what is it?" I asked as I slid off his face and sat down in the flowers.

He looked up towards the sun behind him before turning back to me, "You have until next sun to use the skills I have taught you and make your first solo hunt a success my son." he stated, giving me a confident smile.

"But what am I to hunt?" I asked, giving a glance to a small rabbit as it hopped by.

"What else but a Manticor my boy, tis tradition to prove that you can hunt a Manticor to prove that you are able as dragonkin to support yourself, and in turn others." he replied, making me stare at him as if he had suddenly grown a second head.

"But don't you think I am a little small to fight a Manticor?" I asked him, fidgeting with my grey hooves as I looked up at my father.

"You are my son, no matter how big or small, you can hunt anything, no matter its size, this I know with all my being." he replied, smoke billowing from his snout as he stood to his full height.

"So do I start now?" I asked, receiving nothing but a nod from my mighty father.

I turned and ran into the woods, thinking about the many things my father had taught me over my six years of life. From controlling my fire, the basics of flight, how to fight without my flames, how to take care of my wings, and perhaps our most unique trait specific to our race of dragon, our use of magic. While I had no horn like some ponies that I had seen when he had taught me of my other race, I was still able to use magic with ease because of my dragon heritage, though how exactly he hadn't explained.

Slowing myself down I found a pack of Diamond Dogs scurrying about while they looked for gemstones, I made certain to edge around their clearing so I wouldn't set them off and end up as one of their slaves. Stopping when I heard whimpering I looked outwards from behind a large fern to see a small albino pegasus be slammed against the ground, ropes holding her wings shut. Recalling what my father had said, a noble dragon wouldn't stand for such action,I quietly moved up behind the Dog and prepared to strike him down. The filly noticed me and opened her eyes wide when she saw the sharp teeth in my mouth as smoke slowly drifted from my open maw.

I gave a roar before spreading my wings out and snapping my muzzle towards the Diamond Dog, no longer caring if I had stealth on my side or not. The Dog jumped in surprise and ran off from my show of smoke and teeth, the filly tried to do the same but found that she was in too much pain to move. I checked my surroundings once more to ensure that the Diamond Dogs had not noticed, and to my relief they hadn't and the only one who had ran off into the woods.

Looking again at the filly I gave a soft smile before undoing the ropes on her wings with my teeth. Looking her over I realized that she was my age, had a cutiemark of a sewing needle and thread, and had her front right leg broken.

"Here let me help you." I said as I opened my mouth and let a soothing yellow flame trickle across her leg, her wound healing up in the soothing flames.

"H...Ho...How?" she stammered as I put a hoof over her muzzle and dragged her flank into the bushes.

"How many other are in there?" I asked her, a look of worry on my face over what she may have been through.

"It was just me valiant one, thank you." she replied, giving my a soft kiss on the cheek as I blushed.

"Do you live far from here?" I asked.

"I live up in the clouds, would you be so kind to give me escort?" she asked, batting her eyes at me.

Frowning I looked at my undersized wings, "I..I would love to b..but I can't fly." I looked away from her.

She gave a shocked expression and turned my head with her hoof as she peered into my eyes, "Where did you come from then?"

"I hail from a cave an hours trot from here, there I live with my father Logantis." I responded, not thinking before she gasped.

"You are the dragon pony the others speak of?" she phrased in a question.

I looked down, my mane falling into my eyes as I tried to hide, last year there had been pegasi who had come down to play in my favorite meadow. At first it was great to have other ponies to play with, but when they learned that I not only had no cutiemark, but couldn't fly with my stubby little wings, I had spent an hour or so with them laughing at me. To make the matters worse I sneezed and nearly incinerated one of them, which drove them away, the only ponies I had ever met before.

"I didn't mean to offend you brave dragonkin!" she exclaimed, her voice like silk to my ears.

"You should get home before they find us." I replied as I crouched and began to silently move away from the camp.

"Would you mind if I travel with you until I know that it is safe dragonkin?" she asked as she followed my example and snuk away from the Diamond Dog camp.

"Not at all my lady." I replied, not knowing what else to say to her, and not wanting the Dogs to get her again.

"My name is Cotton Fluff by the way." she said as we came upon another clearing.

"A lovely name, I am Tempestus." I replied, not really knowing why she was so intent on talking to me.

"Like a tempest?" she asked, stopping in her tracks with a look of fear.

"Yes." I stopped and looked at her, then followed her gaze and somewhat mimicked it, "Fly home!"

She stayed put, her wings locked to her back as I put myself between her and the adult Manticor we had stumbled upon. Its gaze on us as it stood, at the very least it must have been ten times my size.

"What do we do?" she asked as she looked at me, fear ever present in her eyes.

"You fly home and find your family, I will be fine." I said, faking a smile at her.

The Manticor took that moment to attack not me, but the albino filly behind me. As it jumped over me I spout red flames upon its belly, but it seemed unaffected as it swiped a claw at Fluff.

"Cotton Fluff, please fly home!" I exclaimed as I jumped onto its back, careful to avoid its deadly tail.

"I am not just going to leave you Tempestus!" she exclaimed as she backed away from my duel with the massive beast.

"Fine, then stay out of the way and try not to let it see you!" I shouted as I made it stab itself with its own tail, remembering what my father had taught me about using all of my traits in a fight.

"That I can do." she replied in a near inaudible tone as she tried to hide her stark white self in a bush.

I dodged the Manticor as it tried to bite me, enraged that I made it stab itself. It then charged at me with both claws extended as I ducked under the beast and bellowed red flames at its tail causing it to yelp in pain. It then turned to face me as I bucked it clean in the jaw and knocked it out, placing my hoof on its neck I made a qiuck twist and heard it snap as the beasts tail fell with a thud to the ground.

"Why did you kill it?" Cotton Fluff asked as she left the bush and stared at me with disbelief.

"So I can eat it." I replied, thinking it was a normal response, she then looked at me as if I had two heads.

"But you're a pony, we don't eat meat, right?" she asked as the sun finally ducked behind the far off mountain in the north.

"I am also part dragon remember?" I responded with the softest tone I knew of before shooting a green fireball so my father would be able to find me.

Watching it explode when it reached its maximum altitude she looked back down to me, "Do you know of anything I can eat that is down here?"

"Why, why don't you return home?" I asked he as I dragged my kill to the center of the clearing and licked my lips, Manticor had always been a favorite of mine.

"Well, um..." she started before I saw her shed a tear, "I was too much of an oddity among my tribe so they cast me out as soon as they could." she softly said as she began to silently cry.

I approached her, unsure of what to say, "Hey, don't cry, we can be odd together, you and me, practically brother and sister!" I replied to her with a nudge.

She smiled before wrapping me up in a tackle hug as I could hear heavy wing beats in the distance.

"Whats that sound?" she asked as she tore her lovely eyes off of me.

"Cotton, meet my daddy, Logantis." I said cheerfully as he landed in the clearing with a large grin plastered on his face.

"You have done well my son, your first solo kill and it is just now dark." he paused, raising a brow as to why there was a white pegasus with me, "I assume you have a story to tell me?" he asked before eyeing the kill that was as large as his claw.

"She was a prisoner of the Diamond Dogs father, I couldn't just leave her to die there!" I exclaimed, worried that my father didn't approve.

"I am not upset, for not only have you performed well in taking your kill, but you also rescued a fair filly from harm, well done." he replied, putting me at ease.

"My name is Cotton Fluff my lord." she said in a near whisper.

My father smiled and leaned down to her level, "Why are you not in the clouds?" he asked gently.

"I was banished because I was different." she replied.

"Well then, we can't let you remain alone, I Logantis forbid it." he looked at at me, "You always wanted a sister didn't you Tempestus?"

I blushed, flapping my useless wings a few times before sneaking a peek at the filly. She giggled and trotted up to me, nuzzling my cheek she trotted over to Logantis' open claw and climbed in. I soon joined her when I saw that he had picked up my kill and we flew to the cave.

Author's Note

And thus you now know an important part of Tempestus' life.

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Notes:

Tempestus shares many traits with me, attitude, personality, I based him off of me, especially his needs and desires. Now unlike Temp my Parents are alive, though I didn't come to realize my life dream until I was about 12, becoming a Pilot, which I am happy to report that I am halfway there. On that note, I did in fact want a sibling when I was younger, though I didn't get any till I was seventeen.