As they drew closer to the mountain, Hide began to see large wildcats, muted birds, palm trees, and tons of sand. Hide continued beating his wings, hoping to see the castle. After a few moments of silence, he saw it.
It was a beautiful kingdom, with dozens of risen towers, all looking to be gold-plated. It looked so regal and elegant. The towers twinkled in the setting sunlight, just like the sand did. There were dozens of palm trees, and the muted birds from before were everywhere. Hide looked around, seeing more cacti sprinkled around the outside of the kingdom. Around the cacti, there were beetles, and hundreds of insects, surprisingly able to live in the hot sun during the day. The kingdom overall looked like buildings of gold, with the life inside being beautiful.
Tai looked back to Hide, seeing his eyes widened, and jaw loose.
"Beautiful, is it not?" Tai asked a playful smile on her face.
Hide quickly nodded.
"Luckily for you, your bright blue eyes will be a perfect contrast to your scales," She said, folding her wings inwards, and slowly gliding back next to him.
"So, our next queen is always coronated at the peak of the moon. We should be at my second home soon, so we can get you ready!" She said, a flashy smile on her face
Hide quickly beat his wings, putting him far ahead of Tai. He looked back, a toothy grin on his face.
Tai giggled, shooting herself forward. She shot so fast, Hide had no reaction time, and she soared in front of his very eyes.
Hide soon gave up, following Tai from behind. He noticed they were entering the kingdom, at a faster pace than he had expected. They made swift turns, one after another. There were dozens of them, and after a moment, Hide quickly stopped when he saw Tai slowing down. She stopped in front of an open home. It seemed to be made out of sandstone, and glass. The glass was harshly tinted and was all around the home. She pushed through a few long rags that functioned as a door. She spat a shot of fire at a few torches.
Hide had his jaw on the floor.
"Well, I'll go get ready for the coronation, then get you ready! I shouldn't be long." She said, trotting up a staircase.
Hide sat down, waiting patiently. He spent the next few minutes examining his scales. They were still the same pale gold he had pictured in his head before, even though that wasn't on his mind anymore. He started thinking about his original scale color. That Prussian blue. He noticed his scales shifting into that shade of blue. Hide finally looked at himself again. Tai zoomed down the steps to ask a question.
Tai was wearing a flower crown. The Echinopsis flowers on it were a pastel pink, mixed with white. The pine green leaves were a beautiful contrast to the rest of her body. Hide soon found himself staring, without a single word escaping his mouth.
"Woah, your scales are back to normal! How's that possible?" She asked.
Hide remained quiet, still in complete shock.
"Hellooo?" She asked, waving a claw in front of his face.
Hide quickly shook his head, then kept his gaze in her eyes.
"I don't know if I'm being honest. I just started thinking about my scales before they turned to that pale gold." Hide answered truthfully.
"Please go back to thinking about that pale gold, please, I have to see what color would look good on it." She said, her ears slowly drooping.
Hide began thinking about the paint from before. Its sparkling, pearlescent color was even more beautiful in his memories. He quickly began to shift to the pale gold color, the hue rippling over his Prussian blue.
Tai's jaw soon loosened, seeing the magic at it's finest. Her eyes were wide in absolute awe. Hide was matching Tai, in every sense of the word. Even down to the burn scar against her left talon.
"Alright! Follow me, so I can get you ready!" She said, in a cheerful manner, trotting up the stairs, a smile plastered on her face.
Hide followed her up the staircase, watching as she led him to an exquisite room.
There were mini cacti in clay pots everywhere. The room overall, had mini stringed lanterns, making a string-light effect. To his right, he saw a green rag, with a thick layer of clay surrounding it. The clay seemed to be keeping something from spilling out, but Hide wasn't too interested in knowing what. In front of him, was Tai, in front of a large tinted window, the moon peeking out from the east, where Takashi and Tsuki would be sleeping.
He glanced over to Tai, who was patting a spot for Hide to sit.
"We shouldn't be long. Maybe half an hour. Since you're a guy, it should take even less time." She said as Hide sat down, a puzzled expression on his face.
Tai quickly rummaged around her room, trying to find something for Hide to wear. After about five minutes of her grumbling, she turned back around, a flower crown in her mouth, and some vine.
Hide looked at her, even more, puzzled than before.
Tai swiftly walked over, gently setting the flower crown on his head. She then, motioned for him to raise his wrist. As Hide did so, she wrapped the vine around his wrist. She paused for a moment, then watched as a swarm of juniper green flowers began growing off of the vine.
Hide's eyes were wide, his amazement shining as bright as the sun did.
"Well? It may not be much, but we don't really have much out here to make for formal wear. We're told to wear pretty flowers every coronation." She said a bright smile on her face.
Tai looked out the tinted window, seeing as it was almost time to leave.
"The coronation is going to start soon, we have to get going. If anybody asks who you are, just say you're my twin brother." She said, her smile fading.