Chapter 3

Destiny

When Axel was done choking me, we said goodnight and went to bed. I had already taken a nap early, so I decided to look at the stars. I leaned against my bedroom window only to see the crescent moon and glittering stars light up the night. Looking at the night sky always calms me down. That and seeing grandma beat up Axel.

I laughed at the memory of grandma hitting Axel in the head with her stick. Grandma always looked out for me. She would always side with me when mom would punish me for the most minor things. She just hates me because I'm seen as an outcast. It's not my fault I was born magicless. After all, the Dragon Tamer had no magic either. Grandma said that was the untold truth.

"Mph, I wonder what people would think if they knew the truth," I sighed. I took one last look at the moon, then blew out the candle on the window.

"Thanks to mom's punishment, I have to make breakfast for the whole week, which means an early bedtime." With another sigh, I closed my eyes, trying to relax enough to sleep.

It's getting hot in here. Why do I smell smoke? I opened my eyes to my room, engulfed in flames! I found a safe passage out of the room and ran to wake everyone up. To my horror, the fire had already spread throughout the house. I couldn't see anything, nor could I advance any further. I tried my best to see through the flames and get to my brother's room as quickly as possible. Our rooms were next to each other, so it was easier for me to maneuver through the flames. I hoped, at least, he was still okay. When I got there, in Axel's room, I found him on the floor. I tried to wake him up, but he wasn't moving.

"Axel! Axel, come on! This isn't funny anymore!" Tears poured out of my eyes as I tried to wake him. I sat on my legs and put Axel's head on my lap. I noticed the flames weren't your average flames. At that moment, they gathered together, and to my horror, revealed a dragon with immense anger in its eyes. I wanted to scream, but my voice froze, and my blood went cold.

The beast looked at me and growled. It roared before leaping at Axel and me. I screamed.

"Ahhhh!"

I jumped from my bed, sweating and panting. I looked around the room to see if there was any sign of a fire. There wasn't. 'It was just a nightmare. That's all it was, right?' I thought to myself. Suddenly, Axel came bursting into my room with his sword.

"Destiny!" he shouted with worry. He then ran to me, giving me a big hug. His breathing was heavy.

"Axel?"

He looked me in the eye, "Are you okay? I heard you scream."

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just had a nightmare, a nasty one."

I played with my blanket because I couldn't look Axel in the eyes. My nightmare felt so real. I really thought I had lost him: my brother, my big brother who's looked after me since the very beginning.

Axel

I saw her tears fall on the blanket. For some reason, she couldn't look me in the eye. Whatever nightmare she had must've really scared her. I held her in my arms to calm her down. I've seen my sister cry before, but not like this. She was crying her eyes out. She held onto me real tight, like she was never going to see me again.

"Oh, Destiny, shhh. Shhh, it's okay. The nightmare's over; your big brother's here," I said softly in her ear. I broke the hug and held her face wiping away her tears. I smiled at her, and she smiled back.

"Feel better?" I asked softly. She gave me a slight nod and hugged me again.

"Hey, how about I help you with breakfast? Grandma told me what happened between you and mom."

In an instant, she looked at me. Her eyes were red from crying. "I know that mom can be difficult, but don't forget, I'm here for you. Grandma, too. Okay?"

She let out a small smile, "Okay."

"That's better, now get dressed. I'll be downstairs."

"Okay."

I grabbed my sword and left Destiny to get ready. I waited in the kitchen for her since I had already taken a bath. This was the morning father's time, and I would go hunting, so it was normal for me to bathe before anyone else. Destiny came down a little while later in her daily attire. She showed me where the ingredients were, and we got to cooking.

Destiny made the porridge while I made the eggs and cut the bread. By the time we were done, father had come down and told me it was time to hunt.

"Axel, let's go," he said, putting his arrows on his back.

"Coming!"

I left the kitchen with my hunting supplies, but not before messing up my sister's hair. I ran out the door before she could throw anything at me. I hopped on my horse then rode off with my father to the forest.

My favorite part of hunting was not the actual hunting but rather riding my horse. I would take Destiny riding when she needed cheering up. She seemed to love it. I even let her drive the horse; she got the hang of it pretty quickly.

Father and I soon reached the forest and prepared our weapons. When we were ready, we tied the horses to a tree and left to go into the woods. Typically, we have our father-son talk when I bring up Destiny and how unfairly she's being treated.

"Hey, dad," I said as we walked.

"Yeah, son," he answered.

"Why do you hate Destiny?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb; I've seen the way you look at her. In fact, you ignore her, act like she's not there, and you don't even bother to defend her when mother punishes her."

"Whatever your mother does is her business, not mine. Besides, I have no reason to defend someone who can't even use the simplest of spells."

"You know she didn't choose to be this way. It's not her fault she was born without magic."

"That may be true, but she is most certainly not my daughter."

I flinched, and at that moment, I snapped. "You're a sorry excuse for a father."

My statement stopped him in his tracks. I clearly hit a nerve. He turned and looked me in the eye with anger. I only stared back with a look of rage. How dare he talk about Destiny like that?

"Watch your mouth, boy," he said, holding back his rage.

"Why should I? I mean, you just called my sister, your daughter trash. What kind of father does that?"

"Quiet, Axel."

"No! Destiny deserves to be treated like a person. Dirt would make a better parent!"

"Axel!"

"Destiny's human; you, however, are less than human. You're the scum of the earth."

BAM!

His face hit me so fast and hard I slammed on the ground. My cheek was swollen with a big bruise, and when I spat, blood came out. I held my cheek and looked up at him. He stood over me as if he thought he was superior.

"I'll repeat it. Watch your mouth, boy. One more outburst from you, and you won't even be able to feel your face, let alone the rest of your body," he declared with a cold voice and hardened stare.

He walked away, leaving me to wallow in my shame, but it was really his shame.

Destiny

After the kitchen was clean, I went to feed the pigs and chickens. As I was providing them, grandma came outside for her daily dose of fresh air.

"Grandma, I thought you'd be napping?" I asked.

"Nap? Why would I nap on such a lovely day? My nap can wait 'til later," she declared.

I laughed a bit, then returned to feeding the animals. The pigs were oinking with glee when they saw me bring over their food. I made sure they all got their fair share since pigs are pretty greedy.

My hands were covered in dirt, so I pulled some water up from the well to wash my hands. My daily routine kept me occupied, but my mind couldn't help wondering. The wandering continued until my mind was on my dream. Or should I say nightmare? It just felt so real. I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice grandma standing next to me. I jumped when I saw her.

"What are you jumping for?" she asked, looking at me from head to toe.

"You came out of nowhere!" I yelped, holding my heart.

"I walked over here while you were daydreaming."

If there's one thing I've learned, it's to never underestimate your elders, especially my grandmother. She may be old, but she sure can move.

"I wasn't daydreaming; I was thinking," I said defensively.

"Thinking about what?"

"Oh, just stuff."

"You mean like that nightmare you had that caused you to wake up crying in your brother's arms?"

I looked at her with shock. How did she know that? Was I talking to myself out loud by accident?

"How do you know?"

"Sweetie, I'm your grandmother. I know everything, plus I heard you crying and Axel telling you 'it was just a nightmare'."

I mentally kicked myself for forgetting how small this house is. Seriously, there is no privacy around here. The walls actually have ears!

"So why don't you tell your old grandma about it, hm?"

I smiled. My grandma always came in my time of need, so it was only fair for me to tell her about my bad dream. "I had a dream that my room was on fire, then when I went to go get you guys, I saw the house was on fire, too. I went into Axel's room and saw him on the floor; he wasn't breathing. I started crying, then the flames gathered together to form a dragon. He was about to leap at Axel and me, and that's when I woke up," I explained.

Grandma was silent for a while, which bothered me a lot. "That it?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"Nothing else happened?" She pursued.

"No, not that I know of. Is that bad?"

She gave me a warm smile and shook her head. "No, of course, not dear. Go inside, eat, and rest up. You've had a long day, and I know you didn't have breakfast."

Again, I was caught red-handed!

"Darn it."