Change of Plans II

"Yeah, thought I'd spend the night in here, you can go to bed Inigo." I tell him.

"*Yawn* Good, who knew pretending to sleep could be so tiring. Rest well, my friend." Inigo says with a yawn as he makes his way out of the house and to the tent he's been sleeping in.

I head into the room, setting the prosthetic and the harness down at the foot of the bed before taking a seat in the chair beside the bed closing my eyes, and falling asleep.

I have a dreamless sleep like normal, and I'm awoken by several long pokes to the face, prompting me to open my eyes where I see Aventus wide awake and sitting up in bed.

"Aventus! You're finally awake!" I shout in surprise before wrapping him in a bear hug, pulling him close.

"You aren't mad at me, Papa?" Aventus asks with nervous curiosity.

"Oh, I'm furious with you, and you're definitely getting grounded for being so reckless, but I'm just glad you're okay." I say, holding him close.

"Nooo!" Aventus screams out but is muffled by my hug.

"What?!" I ask in shock since I was careful not to grip his injured arm.

"I don't want to be grounded!" Aventus cries out in distress.

"Boy! You lost your leg, shattered your arm, and faced a dragon... But you're terrified of being grounded? What is going through that thick skull of yours, huh!" I say, ruffling his hair.

"Oh yeah... Can I get a peg leg? I'm sure there aren't many one-legged assassins! And you only need one hand to wield a dagger." Aventus retorts, leaving me speechless.

"You crazy kid..." I say with a sigh before pulling the leg, I made onto the bed.

"I think we can do a little better than a peg leg for the little hero." I say.

"Wow! It's so cool, Papa! How do I put it on?" Aventus asks as he takes it from me and starts examining it.

"You tighten the straps here and here... Also, I got a brace for your arm." I explain, helping him attach the prosthetic and brace.

"Thanks, Papa! It looks so cool, but..." Aventus trails off as he looks at his feet.

"Is it supposed to look like that?" Aventus asks, making me realize I accidentally made a left leg instead of a right leg.

"Um... Well, if anyone ever asks you to dance, I guess you can tell them you have two left feet?" I say, awkwardly rubbing my neck.

"Sorry, son, I'll fix it later." I apologize.

"No, I like it like this. Well, let's go get breakfast! I'm starving!" Aventus says, trying to leap up from bed only for his new leg to give out from beneath him, making him fall back onto the bed.

"Careful! Don't go and break your other leg. Here, let me he-" I begin to offer my help to him before he stops me.

"No thanks, Papa. I got it." Aventus says with determination before trying again, and this time he is able to stand on his own and even take a couple of steps, albeit quite shakily.

"Alright, little dragon slayer, it's not weakness to rely on those who care about you. Take my arm, and let's get a bite to eat." I tell him, extending my arm.

"Okay..." Aventus says, reluctantly taking my arm and using me as a crutch to make it out of the house and to the camp where everyone was eating breakfast.

Once outside, the camp notices us, prompting the crew to cheer and whistle while the children run up to check on Aventus.

"You were so cool, Aventus!" Hroar cheers, with the rest of the children hugging, thanking, and cheering him.

"Woah! Your leg looks so cool!" Samuel says, pointing at Aventus' new prosthetic leg.

"Yeah, Papa made it for me!" Aventus says proudly.

I let him enjoy the glow and accolades of his victorious return before the celebration ended.

"Alright! Everyone gather round!" I shout, prompting those nearby to stop their cheering and head over.

"As you all know, Aventus accomplished something impressive, and he should be rewarded." I say, getting cheers from the kids and the camp.

"And he will be, but he did something reckless and could have potentially been hurt even worse or died, so before then, he will be punished." I say, with most of the adults nodding in agreement, albeit reluctantly.

"That's not fair!"

"You can't do that!"

"Aventus saved us!"

The children grumble in protest, which I ignore momentarily, as Aventus looks to the ground sullenly.

"Aventus will be grounded for four weeks. That means no sweets, no leaving camp on family outings, mandatory schooling, and intensive training. No one in camp is to help him, if you break this rule, your punishment will be worse." I say as I see Aventus pale, and the children grumble even more.

"Y-you c-can't do t-that! Aventus s-saved us!" Agni shockingly speaks up, trying her best to stare me down despite being terrified of speaking publicly.

I pretend to think as I stroke my chin, as I had elicited the response from the kids I had hoped for.

"Hmmm, do you kids really think this is too harsh?" I ask them as they all agree, and I see some light return to Aventus' eyes.

"Yeah!" All the kids agree.

"Okay, how about this... If every one of you can agree to share in Aventus' punishment, I'll lower it to only one week. But, if anyone eats a sweet, sneaks out of camp, or slacks in their studies for the week, I'll add another day to the punishment." I say with an evil smirk as the kids' faces pale and I see Aventus lose hope again.

I see the kids huddle up and begin seriously debating as I'm left to wonder if my little gamble will pay off.

The kids take several moments before they turn back to Aventus, coming up to stand by him, linking arms, and saying, "We agree!"

(Hey everyone! Author here, just wanted to let you all know Sinclip is to thank for this extra chapter. While they haven't made many comments I've been able to track their binge reading with the likes they've been giving me. And knowing someone spent so much time reading my work really made my week. Thanks Sinclip and everyone else for enjoying my work! Have a good week!)