Ch 3: A new family?

Surrounded by trees, a young boy with dark-brown hair sat cross-legged as a red aura surrounded him. The aura was far less rampant compared to before, while the young boy was continuously condensing the aura into his body.

It had been around 4 days since Sharon had experienced the incredible pain that came with condensing and purifying the aura that had been polluted with negative energy and ... since his first kiss.

It happened so quickly that he barely had time to even realize he had been kissed, as the pain was constantly overwriting anything his nerves had been picking up.

This left him confused as he was sure he heard Ophis mention something about 'mates', but she had never even mentioned anything about it since then.

He pushed the thoughts to a side as he focused on grasping the rope from heaven he had been tossed.

The kiss with Ophis altered the bloodline within his body, allowing him to more effectively condense aura and even increase his comprehensive abilities. The kiss was the way in which Ophis delivered a bit of her blood to him, which worked wonders for him.

The time it took for him to condense the aura rapidly decreased as she patiently watched over him.

Days once again went by, and it had eventually been an entire week since Ophis altered Sharon's bloodline. Through the days when he wasn't channeling aura and condensing it, she taught him the basics of gaining power as a dragon.

He watched as Ophis walked away with a soft smile as he knew he couldn't follow her. He was nowhere near strong enough to stand by her side. Not as her student nor as her mate.

Ophis had actually clarified what she had meant when she claimed to be his mate when he had asked her.

"I believe in your potential and the dedication you showed when you were on the brink of death earlier. Among dragons, the strong ones will always have the right to claim a mate, or multiple if they are strong enough. However, female dragons can only ever have one partner." Ophis had said, leaving him terrified as he understood what would happen should something happen to him.

Having lit a fire under him, Ophis left the forest.

*Time Skip*

It had been around 2 weeks since Ophis had left the forest, leaving Sharon alone in the forest. He trudged through the dense forest and roamed the sub-urban town of Kuoh for an entire day until he reached a Shinto shrine on a small hill. The shimmer of sunlight faded into the horizon as he climbed up the shrine and found a comfortable spot to rest, flopping onto the ground and straight to sleep.

Seconds turned to minutes, which turned to hours, as the light of the sun had risen from the horizon. The light shone towards Sharon as he felt as though he was being watched.

His eyes twitched before they opened, only to see a beautiful young girl with long black hair and amethyst-purple eyes. She wore a frilly purple-white shirt and a short black skirt, along with a small white and purple hat over her head.

Sharon blinked a couple of times as he had not seen anyone before he had gone to sleep, but awkwardly enough, she was still staring at him.

"Hey, hey ... what are you doing, big brother?" She asked as Sharon was a bit startled.

'B-Big brother??' He wondered as he sat up on his butt and looked around. He saw a woman approaching him with an almost identical look to the young girl who was standing in front of him, except she wore a red and white shrine maiden outfit.

"Oh, what are you doing, lying here, young man?" The woman asked as Sharon stood up and bowed a little.

"I'm sorry, I don't have a place to stay, so I thought it would be alright to lie down here." He apologized as he was worried he would get thrown away from the sleeping spot he had found after an entire day of searching. It wasn't like he had money to afford a room.

The woman wore a confused expression as she was standing in front of him. She stood at nearly 160 cm, which was around 40cm taller than Sharon and the young girl.

"What do you mean, you have nowhere to go? Is everything alright?" The woman asked as Sharon was unsure what to say.

'Should I tell the truth or lie?' Sharon thought as he came to a decision.

"My family died in an accident, and I don't have anywhere to go, so I came to stay here for a bit." Sharon said as the woman pulled him into a hug.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know." She said as she patted Sharon's head, leaving him missing his own mother's warmth.

Sharon stayed quiet as the young girl who was watching asked, "Momma, can he be my big brother?"

Sharon turned to the young girl with an expression of confusion as the girl's mother couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"Well, you want to come with us ... big brother?" The mother asked as she looked at Sharon, who was utterly confused by the situation he was caught in.

Seeing Sharon staying silent, the girl wore a sad expression on her face, causing him to hesitantly agree.

However, the girl's sad expression quickly faded into a cheerful smile, leaving Sharon stunned.

'Scary!' He thought as he felt his arm grabbed by the girl and pulled along to the shrine.

"Hey, hey, we'll go home when mom's done with her work, okay, big brother?" the young girl asked as Sharon just nodded.

"How about you introduce yourself, big brother?" The girl's mother suggested as the young girl went first.

"I'm Akeno Himejima, 8 years old." Akeno said as she looked towards Sharon.

"I'm Akeno's mother, Shuri Himejima." Shuri said as Sharon introduced himself, "I'm Sharon Savant. I'm also 8 years old."

"Ara? Will it be a big brother or a big sister?" Shuri playfully said as Akeno said, "My birthday's on July 21st."

"I was born on the 15th of January." Sharon said as he made a triumphant smile.

Sharon and Akeno started to run around and play while Shuri made her way towards the shrine.

Shuri watched with a smile as she saw the two running around and playing.

The sun gradually moved to the peak of the sky as the mother stepped out of the shrine and called the kids.

"Akeno! Sharon! It's time for lunch!" Shuri said with a loud voice as the two kids ran towards the shrine with large smiles on their faces.

The day eventually ended, and when it did, Shuri made her way down the stairs from the shrine with Akeno and Sharon.

"Um ... are you sure it's okay for me to come with you? I don't want to intrude or anything." Sharon asked.

"Fufufu, you shouldn't worry so much. It's no problem at all, so come on." She said as a warm smile grew on her face.

Shuri eventually arrived home and unlocked the door as a man with a large physique was seated on a couch facing a television screen.

"I'm home, darling." Shuri said as Akeno ran towards the large man who turned to see the family enter.

Akeno jumped into his lap as he caught her and seated her down with a big smile on his face.

"Welcome home, darling. Hey there, my little Akeno!" The man said with a hearty laugh.

He glanced over at the young boy who had come along with them.

"Hmm? Who's the kid?" He asked as Shuri explained what Sharon had told her before.

"I see." The man said as he approached the boy only to widen his eyes a little.

"I'm gonna need to talk to the boy for a bit." He said as he lifted Sharon by the collar of his shirt and made his way into the backyard of the house.

...

"What is a dragon doing out here?" The man asked as Sharon stared into the man's eyes. Sharon's golden pupils rapidly constricted into slits as he recognized the familiar aura that spread from the man.

"Fallen Angel," Sharon muttered as his aura began to rise rapidly.

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Phew, that was a rough chapter. Did you like the way the chapter ended? I've been learning to make better cliffhangers, so I hope this one ... will leave you hanging for a bit. Haha.