An enemy.

Anemone.

An enemy.

It took Tsunami a few moments to realize what Riptide had actually said. Her skin prickled, hearing an enemy, an enemy, until it sank in that he’d been saying a name.

Anemone. Tsunami’s sister. Another heir to the throne.

So much for being special. So much for her guaranteed future kingdom.

“Uh-oh,” Glory said, echoing her thoughts. “Looks like you’ve got some competition. Maybe you’re not destined to be queen after all.”

Tsunami whirled toward Starflight, her gills flaring. “You said I was the only one,” she cried. “You said none of the others survived.”

“That’s what I read,” he protested. He spread his black claws. “Blame the Talons, not me. Our scrolls were often old and outdated. The Royal Lineage of the SeaWings, from the Scorching to the Present must have been written before this one was hatched.” He nodded at the little dragon flapping behind the queen.

Anemone was a pale, pale blue, almost white like an IceWing, with hints of pink along her wings and ears and horns. She looked a little bit like the dolphins they’d seen earlier, and Tsunami wondered grumpily if that was really why Queen Coral had forbidden SeaWings to eat them — in case one of them ate Anemone by mistake. Anemone’s eyes were large and blue, and tiny strands of pearls were woven around her neck and tail as if to match her mother’s.

That could have been me, Tsunami thought. I could have been the one with matching pearls and a matching throne and a mother who loved me, if the Talons hadn’t stolen me from my home.

She didn’t have a chance to notice anything else, because suddenly Queen Coral was landing and running toward her.

“My baby!” Coral cried. Enormous blue wings whooshed around Tsunami, enveloping her in a hug that smelled of sea air and starfish. Pearls pressed into Tsunami’s face as Coral cuddled her close. Her wet scales were warm and her talons were gentle as she stroked Tsunami’s head and back and wings.

“I knew you’d come back to me,” she said. “I knew you were out there, trying to find your way back. I never stopped searching for you.”

It was exactly what Tsunami had always wanted to hear.

Actually it was word-for-word what the queen said in The Missing Princess, but Tsunami shoved that thought aside.

She leaned into her mother, feeling elation flood her from horns to claws. Someone does want me. I have a place in the world.

“Mother,” whined a tiny voice from behind them. “Ow. That was too fast. I think I hurt my claws.”

Queen Coral let go of Tsunami, whirled around, and tugged Anemone closer with the harness cord. The little dragonet crept under her wing and held out her front talons with a pitiful expression.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Coral said, carefully examining Anemone’s claws and then giving them a quick lick with her forked tongue. “Is that better?”

“I guess,” Anemone said, flexing her talons mournfully.

“Look, darling, it’s your sister. The one I told you about, who was stolen six years ago.” Coral reached out and slid one webbed talon over Tsunami’s snout. “Isn’t she gorgeous?”

Anemone blinked at Tsunami. She was really tiny, no taller than a scavenger, and she didn’t look very strong. Maybe I don’t have to worry about her, Tsunami thought. She’d be easy to defeat, and obviously I’d make a better queen.

Then she felt a stab of guilt for thinking about something like that on her first meeting with her real family. She held out one of her front talons to Anemone, and after a small pause, Anemone pressed her own talon against it.

“Hi,” Tsunami said. “I’m Tsunami.”

“Ah,” Queen Coral said. “A good name. Webs did one thing right.” Her green eyes narrowed. “Where is he now? I have been planning his punishment for years.” She glared over Tsunami’s shoulder, but when Tsunami looked around, the only dragon there was Riptide. He had his head ducked and his wings folded as low as he could get.

“I knew he was a coward and a deserter,” Coral said, “but after he returned to steal my egg . . . well, let’s just say it won’t be a quick death.”

“Oh, no,” Sunny squeaked. “Please don’t hurt him. He was the only one who was really nice to us.”

“We don’t know where he is anyway,” Tsunami said as Queen Coral turned to stare at Sunny. “He escaped when —”

“What are you?” Coral asked Sunny. Her gaze fell on the other dragonets, and her tail lashed dangerously. “WHY IS THERE A MUDWING IN MY SUMMER PALACE?” She took a step toward Clay, gills flaring.

“These are my friends,” Tsunami cried, leaping in front of Clay. “You can trust them, I promise. We were all stolen from our homes as eggs. We’re the dragonets of destiny, from the prophecy.”

“Ha,” muttered a voice, and Tsunami realized that Shark was now perched on the rim of the ledge along with nine other very large dragons.

“Oh,” Queen Coral said slowly. “Oh, I see.” She studied Clay suspiciously, then turned her gaze to Starflight, Sunny, and Glory. “Yes, that was the rumor. If you believe in things like prophecies, of course. Dragonets of destiny. Well, Queen Blister will be so interested to meet you. We’d better make sure you don’t go anywhere.” She flashed the royal patterns along her wings and clapped her front talons together. Seven burly SeaWings rose up behind the dragonets, claws twitching ominously.

“Put these four in Blister’s cave,” Queen Coral commanded, “and set a guard so they stay there.”

“What?” Sunny cried. “But we came here to be safe! Not to be prisoners again!” She squeaked in terror as one guard snatched her into the air. Starflight stared after her, frozen in place with his claws half outstretched.

“Nobody touches me,” Glory snarled at the SeaWing who was reaching for her. Black clouds billowed up in her scales.

“Don’t hurt Sun — ow,” Clay yelped as three SeaWings landed on him at once, pinning him down. “Ouch! Ow!” One began lashing woven seaweed ropes around his wings and claws and snout.

“Wait,” Tsunami said. She clasped her talons pleadingly. “Your Majesty . . . Mother.” The word felt so odd on her tongue, even though she’d imagined saying it a million times. “You don’t have to do this. They’re my friends, and I brought them here so you could protect us. I swear they’re trustworthy.”

“It’s for their own safety, too, dear,” Coral said, stroking Tsunami’s head again. “We won’t hurt them, of course. You’ve come to the right place for protection. But they shouldn’t wander the palace unsupervised — most of my dragons will attack MudWings and unfamiliar SandWings on sight.”

“Or whatever that is,” Shark muttered, sniffing at Sunny. Starflight shot him a glare, then looked away quickly as the SeaWing turned his gaze to him.

“I guess this means no feast?” Clay said mournfully. He rested his snout on the stone with a sigh.

“Food can certainly be arranged,” said the queen. “Lagoon, make sure our guests are well fed.” A plump turquoise dragon bowed and dove off the ledge. “See, darling, we’ll take good care of you all. Please tell that one to stop looking so fierce.” Coral flicked a claw at Glory, who was still facing off with a ner vous-looking SeaWing guard.

Tsunami thought, uncomfortably, of Glory’s secret weapon. In the SkyWing palace, they’d discovered Glory could spit a deadly venom, which seemed to be a RainWing skill most dragons didn’t know about. It certainly hadn’t been in any of the scrolls, which rarely mentioned RainWings at all.

But Tsunami hoped Glory would decide to keep her venom a secret for now. Melting one of the queen’s guards probably wasn’t the best way to introduce the dragonets of destiny to the SeaWings.

“You don’t have to tie them up,” Tsunami said. “They’ll go with you.”

“Speak for yourself,” Glory growled.

“Calm down, Glory,” Tsunami said. She hoped her mother and the other dragons would see her as the leader of the dragonets. “You heard the queen. It’s for your own safety. You’ll be fine.”

Please don’t argue with me in front of my mother, Tsunami prayed.

Glory glared at the SeaWing guard for a moment longer. “All right,” she snarled. “I’ll go with you. But I still say nobody touches me.”

“Fair enough,” Queen Coral purred with another gesture and flash of her stripes. “Off you all go, then. Tsunami, darling, come sit with me and let’s talk.” She swept over to her throne, towing Anemone behind her. The tiny dragonet settled onto the small throne, flicking her pearly wings and watching Tsunami’s friends with big eyes.

“It’ll be all right,” Tsunami said to Clay as the guards hefted him into the air. “I’ll come join you very soon.” He nodded, still looking rather anxious. Another guard tentatively tried to shoo Starflight off the edge. The NightWing backed away from him unhappily, then turned and flew after the guard who had Sunny.

Tsunami watched her friends spiral down to the cave by the entrance — brown and gold, black and silver, all of them so out of place here. She saw them vanish into the dark hole, and then the guards emerged and planted themselves outside. It didn’t look like the way you’d treat guests.

At least it’s better than the SkyWing palace, she thought. At least we’re not being forced to fight to the death. My mother is keeping us safe. She’s really being welcoming, in her own way. She glanced up at her mother’s warm eyes. Especially to me.

Her mother reached out her talons to her, smiling. She was perfect — just what Tsunami had always imagined.

Her friends would be all right, Tsunami was sure. They were in the SeaWing palace now. She was home with her family. This was her lifelong dream.

There’s nothing to worry about, she told herself. Nothing at all.