CHAPTER 23: THOUGHT I COULD CHANGE FATE

It was a very quiet morning and Aeron had left the cave early, headed home to grab some food and get a horse for Nyella. She had given him her hairpin, one that could easily pay for a good horse.

When he reached the house and stepped inside, he froze.

His mother was sitting there. Elarya. Her eyes were red and swollen, clearly, she had been up all night and crying.

She looked up and saw him.

"Aeron," she said quietly, and then stood up. "Where have you been since yesterday?"

He hesitated. "I... I was at Ronan’s."

"Don’t lie to me, boy," he could sense the anger in her voice. "Where have you really been?"

"I didn’t know you’d come back," he replied in a low voice.

"Oh yes, I came back," Elarya said bitterly. "The moment I heard there was a fight near the shore... rumors spreading about some monster. That’s when I knew I had to return, for my son."

Her eyes locked on his. "So, I’ll ask again, where were you?"

"I’m sorry, Mom," Aeron whispered. "I’m really sorry."

Elarya’s voice cracked as she spoke. "They said it wasn’t just a monster... they said it was a dragon."

Aeron widened his eyes, but he stayed quiet.

She kept talking, almost to herself now. "Six years ago... you found that egg. A dragon egg." She let out a shaky breath. "And here I was... thinking I could change fate."

"What do you mean, Mom?" Aeron asked carefully.

Elarya turned and faced him. "That dragon do you know anything about it? Tell me the truth, Aeron. No lies."

"I don’t know anything..."

"Stop lying to me!" she yelled. "I’m your mother. Look at me and say that again."

Aeron’s voice trembled. "I... I just know where it lives. But I’ve got nothing to do with it. I swear."

Elarya felt as if she had lost someone. She sank into the nearest chair, and her hands were shaking. "And here I was thinking I could change things. Thinking I could change the hard fate of yours."

He stepped toward her, about to say something, but she raised her hand to stop him.

"From now on, you don’t leave this house," she said. "Not unless I know where you’re going and why. I’ll shut down every one of my businesses if I have to. I’ll be here watching you. You hear me?"

"Mom"

"No, Aeron. You’re not allowed to speak. Not to me. Not now. You lost that privilege when you looked me in the face and lied"

A moment of silence passed. "I’m sorry," Aeron whispered.

Elarya didn’t respond. She just turned back and faced the window.

"..."

Elarya kept a close eye on Aeron the whole day, making sure he didn’t leave the house. But later that evening, there was a village meeting she had to attend. So, she locked the door and went off, thinking that would keep Aeron in place.

She thought wrong.

The moment she left, Aeron climbed out the window and made his escape. He didn’t have time to waste, Nyella had waited long enough. He had to make things right. So, he rushed into the village market, sold the hairpin Nyella gave him, and bought a horse.

But just as he was leading the horse out, he ran into Ronan and Yvarra.

They stopped in front of him.

"So what now?" Ronan said as he folded his arms. "You running away for good this time?"

Aeron blinked. "What? No! Why would you even say that?"

Yvarra stepped closer. "We are tired of the silence, Aeron. I thought you were better than this... You’ve been hiding a lot of things now. We want to know what’s going on with you, the truth about everything."

Aeron looked between them. "It’s so complicated, guys, it’s just too much to handle.

"Like the ones Ronan told me, about you burning people? Try us." Yvarra said while folding her arms.

"And if I tell you... You promise not to change or look at me somehow or tell another person?"

"Of course not," they said together. "We’ve always had your back. You’re the one who’s been pushing us away."

Aeron sighed. "Alright, come with me."

They followed him all the way to the cave. As they neared, Ronan groaned. "This same cave again? Here we go."

Inside, Nyella was pacing, clearly angry. The moment she saw Aeron, she snapped.

"You left me here for hours! With that dragon! Alone!"

"I know," Aeron said, still catching his breath. "I’m sorry. Something came up."

"Something happened and and the dragon didn’t come to your rescue as always," Nyella rolled her eyes.

"No," Aeron shook his head. "It’s not like a dangerous something. My mother stopped me. She locked me in."

Nyella took a moment, then exhaled. "Fine. Whatever. But I really need to go now."

Just then, Ronan stepped forward and raised his eyebrows. "Wait... who is this?" he asked, pointing at Nyella. "And what’s all that about a dragon?"

"Calm down Ronan," Aeron said. "Let me finish with her first."

"Oh, you’re done with me here. I’m leaving, like right now." Nyella said.

She took the reins from Aeron, gave him a long look, and said, "Thanks for everything, I really appreciate it. Do you want a reward?"

Aeron grinned. "Oh, I do want a reward."

She rolled her eyes with a small smile. "I’ll think about it then."

And with that, she took her sword, mounted the horse, and rode off into the forest.

Once she was gone, Yvarra turned to Aeron with a raised brow. "Alright, now spill it. Who was she? And what in the world was she talking about, dragons?"

Aeron nodded. "Come inside. I’ll show you."

They followed him deeper into the cave. He stopped, turned, and said, "Ronan, Yvarra... meet my friend, Draco."

He held up the torch and shone it into the shadows.

And there he was. A massive dragon, lying down quietly in the dark.

Ronan and Yvarra stood frozen. Not a word came out of their mouths.