Chapter Sixteen
Six years prior…
Rest. She needed rest. Lightly kissing the crown of my Sun, I promised to return that evening with a fresh tray of food.
Many days were better than others. Many days saw her walking with the children to visit local shops. The people seemed to adore her, as their faces and auras warmed every time she approached. As if the snow yielded to the Sun’s rays and melted into soft droplets of water.
Then there were days like this one, that stole away her light and left her fatigued and weakened.
Every morning as I prepared her breakfast, I would check with a maid to see if Aurora was still asleep. If she was awake by the time I set the tray it meant her day looked bright. Though, if she had yet to sit up in her bed, I took the liberty of adding a relaxing tea to her meal and would keep the children occupied for her to rest comfortably.
The soft click of the latch sounded from the door as I turned away from the room to head back to the kitchens with the tray.
Passing one of the few tall windows of the castle, the darkened shadow of a juvenile dragon fluttered up from the base of the courtyard to above the spires on the far end. Elek had taken to flying multiple times a day, shifting between forms and falling at high velocities to then catch himself right as the ground would meet his feet. Yet, despite the thrill of flying, he never smiled during those free falls, or had a gleam of pride in his eyes when he beat his own record of racing around the city. It was never for fun, and Marek made certain of that.
But he’s still remarkable, I thought, as I entered the kitchen to leave the tray for washing. Perhaps hoping I could entice him to enjoy the rush it was to fly, I decided to head outside to glide alongside him. I didn’t make it to the door, however, when a soft whimpering stopped my feet at the top of the staircase to the entrance hall.
A golden-haired Celina sat on the lowest stair, huddled over tucked in knees and violently shaking in sobs.
“Sweet Cel, what’s the matter?” I asked, coming to sit beside her and resting a palm on her back. The poor girl jumped, as if she didn’t want anyone seeing her cry but soon relaxed when she looked up at me.
Her puffy red eyes continued to overflow as she attempted to wipe them away with the back of her long cream-colored sleeve. Pulling a handkerchief out from my pants pocket, I lightly wiped at her face and held it close to her nose for her to blow on.
“Good girl,” I whispered before tucking the handkerchief away. “Now, tell me what happened.”
First came a hiccup, then a sniffle and then came her heartbreaking reply.
“Auncle Huri, I’m not wanted. I’m not wanted because I don’t have scales,” she replied as her face scrunched up horribly and her eyes shut tightly as if in pain.
Pulling her onto my lap, I embraced her closely. I knew it was a possibility that her scales would never come and that transforming was not going to be an option. Despite that, and how much I would assure her that it didn’t make her less of a dragon, I also knew that seeing her brother transform while she could not was painful. The amount of times I would take her out flying would validate that pain regularly when we had Elek with us. Still though, Elek knew better than to tease her about it.
“Why do you think that?” Stroking her hair as she leaned her head into my chest, I had a sneaking suspicion as to where she heard it before it had to be said.
“I was playing in the throne room, and I know I shouldn’t have been but when I heard Daddy coming I ran to hide behind his throne. He was talking to someone,” she paused to sniffle, “I don’t know who, but he said ‘that woman only gave me one useful kid.”
Burrowing her face further into my chest, she clutched onto my lavender blouse tightly as I tightened my embrace around her. Red wasn’t the color of my anger, it wasn’t a deep enough shade. I saw black. Black for his cruelty. Black for the disregard he had for his own wife and children. And black for casually speaking about them as if Aurora and Celina were faulty and of no consequence.
One day, I’ll make him pay for everything.
Pulling the little girl away from the damp fabric of my blouse, I pulled her chin up so that her eyes met mine. The amount of times I had to reassure Aurora of her importance to the world, to me, and not just as some pawn in a political game were too numerous to count. But I would reassure again and again - as many times as it took, to prove that their worth was not tied into alliances and bodily functions. I did that with Aurora and I was going to do that with Celina from then on. She was more than her bloodline or lack of genetic traits. She was a pure hearted child who was compassionate and worked far too hard for her father’s affections.
I’ll let Aurora rest for today. Cel is the one who needs my help now.
