Legends of the Sky - Sage: story 1

 «We're going to the treehouse, wanna come with us?» Raven whispered conspiratorially in his ear, winking and trying to hide a smile.

     His whisper tickled Sage's ear and the foal was a little embarrassed. Sage noticed other cubs shifting from paw to paw, waiting for him alone, and the boy tensed. His sister never allowed him to play somewhere where she cannot see him, she always watches him, wherever he is, so long as something does not happen to him. Sage was offended and jealous, he knew that everyone was laughing at them, at least so it seemed to him. If he asked his sister if he could go with everyone, she would most likely lock him in the house. Everyone knew this very well, so they stopped even trying to invite him anywhere. Except for the Raven.
Sage was enraged by this, but he immediately ashamed himself, because his sister was trying for him, he should be grateful to her... probably.
«Go without asking?» a risky thought flashed through his head, making his heart restless and often beat in his chest. Several pairs of eyes besides the Raven's, among which he noticed Zephyr's eyes, clear as the sky and delicate but prickly like rose eyes of Silver Wing, were staring at him, which made Sage even more embarrassed and nervous... Quickly lowering his gaze to his paws and hiding it under his bangs, he pressed his ears.

 
     «Come on, the treehouse is not that far from village, your sister won't worry!» Zephyr threw in impatience

     «Shut up...» Sage wanted to say it, but he remained silent and only bared his teeth. More than by his sister, he was infuriated when others talk about her.

     «I'm not small, I don't need her permission, I'm not small, I'm not weak, I'm not weak, I'm not weak...» 

     «I'll go!» a pitiful growl escaped his throat, as if the kitten was trying to pretend to be a tiger. It was not hidden from anyone, and their ears perked up with surprise and curiosity. Sage thought he could hear their thoughts... 

     «Wow! I like your attitude! Come on, let's go everyone!» Sage and Raven Eye walked behind everyone, he could not bring himself not to turn around and not look around, looking for his sister, but Raven encouragingly touched him with the tip of his wing and Sage relaxed, but such a simple and kind gesture could not but embarrass him. It was weird when someone other than Raspberry showed concern for him. Or maybe it was some other feeling, Sage could not understand. They almost came to the tree house, but Sage stopped when he noticed that others ignored it and walked past, deeper into the forest. 

     «Where are you going?» Sage narrowed his eyes slightly and pressed his head into his shoulders. Raven explained, in a half whisper, as if afraid that the adults would hear him: «In fact, we are going into the forest. The warriors told yesterday that they found someone's bones not far from the village!»

     «Yes!» Zephyr interrupted him. «We became interested and we decided to go and see!» 

     «Look, we didn’t tell you right away, because you wouldn’t agree...» Silver Wing inserted, slightly irritated, which did not escape Sage's ears. He looked into her eyes in confusion and resentment. 

     «You were once my friend... What happened?»
They were friends quite a bit, but for Sage it was enough for her to become his best friend, not at all thinking about whether she wanted to be friends with him. 

     «... if you want, we can walk you back,»

     Sage felt the irritation like boiling water begin to rise in him. 

     «I'm not a weakling, I'm not a weakling, not a mama's son...»

     «Well, yes...» Sage suddenly grunted. «She at least take care of me. They probably won't even look for you...» Sage said unexpectedly to himself and immediately regretted it. «I-I'm sorry, I...» but it was too late and the fur on the nape of Silver Wing bristled. 

     «Guys...» said Raven, who was silent all the time before, but no one paid attention to it.

     «My father loves me! Yes, he is too busy with his duties, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't take care of me,» It seemed that it was difficult for Silver Wing to say these words, it seemed that for her it was a manifestation of weakness, which made her annoyed even more. «Your sister is just an overprotective fool!»

     At that moment, something clicked in Sage's head.

     «Not a mama's boy, not a mama's boy, not a mama's boy...»

     «Let's better get back...» Raven's voice trailed off in a pitiful semblance of a warlike cry.

     Sage jerked towards Silver Wing, swung his paw with neat claws released and, although not hard, hit the filly on the nose. His paw filled with some kind of weakness, he wanted to peel it off, but scarlet scratches adorned the white soft nose with bright stripes. The filly howled through her teeth and brushing away the tears that had come out of pain, pounced on Sage, but Raven and Zephyr stopped her. She looked like a mad vixen, all disheveled, bristling, with bared fangs, she tried to break through to him, to tear him to shreds. Sage wanted to apologize, ask for forgiveness, but instead...
     «It's sad your mom died, maybe you wouldn't have grown up so crazy!» Sage was crying, he was insulting, he took offense at Silver Wing, at himself, at his sister.

     «Crybaby, crybaby, weakling, you specifically wanted to offend her, you're too dumb to be her friend and you can't admit it!»

     Zephyr calmed Silver Wing by snuggling against her and whispering something in her ear, and it worked. This broke Sage's heart even more. Zephyr looked disapprovingly into his eyes, Sage realized that he probably hurted him even more, because he had no one at all except the Queen.
Sage hunched over, pressed his tail between his legs, wanted to disappear, sink into the ground, run away. But he seemed to be constrained and he could not move, he was shaking from crying, anger and resentment...

     Suddenly, he felt warmth next to him. Raven Eye pressed against him, hiding him from everything, the trembling stopped.

     «Why are you doing this, I didn't deserve this kindness, leave me, go to Silver Wing...»

     «Let's all go back,» Raven muttered in confusion, forcing Sage to walk.

     The others said nothing and walked, too. Everyone's mood has soured and all because of him.