Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Vedris the IV, one of the Clan Chiefs of the Air Element, and Head of Clan Toren- threw a vase against the wall. The air thinned dangerously for anyone not of the Air element. His Advisor, guarding the door, flinched but didn't say anything. Erdogun was well aware of the mood his lord was in… and the reason. One Sandrilene fa Toren, his great-niece, who'd just been found. She was with the clan healers now.

"Those idiots." He growled, smashing another vase. His advisor wisely did not mention that it had been a gift from the Air Queen. "They should have told me where they were going if they were going to galivanting around the realms!" His lord kicked a desk across the room.

Erdogun sympathized. One of his sons, Mattin, had taken his Bonded and their daughter on a vacation trip around the realms. Mattin didn't tell his family circle where he was going, however, not wanting his 'fun' to be ruined by his father telling him to stay in Nevarah and attend to his responsibilities as an heir of Clan Toren. He'd always been childish and had chosen Bonded equally foolish. They'd left happily in the middle of the night. They traveled through three realms, sightseeing, partying, and exploring to their heart's content- before disaster struck.

Martin and his circle had traveled to a quarantined planet- a planet they'd know was quarantined if they listened to the Chief. A mysterious disease had been affecting magical beings. All the major Master Healers had agreed to shut the planet down until a cure could be found. Powerful Mages had ensured no one could leave the planet. While there, the entire circle had contracted the disease, though Sandrilene had been spared. Her Third had mustered what little sense she'd had in the empty place she called a mind and warded and shielded a room with her life using sacrificial magic in the basement of the place they were staying. She'd then shoved Sandrilene into the room, where she would be safe while her parents died in the upstairs rooms.

It took a month for the cure to be developed.

Mattins' and his circle were already dead and Sandrilene had been thought dead with them. Vedris had gone to personally deal with the bodies, a stupid son was still a son after all. The bodies couldn't be returned to Nevarah, considering they were still infected with the disease so Vedris decided to burn them. He was an accomplished blood mage, so when he first stepped on the planet he felt someone with a bloodline connection to him. He'd found her in a ritually locked room. She was thin and pale and wouldn’t wake up when Vedris grabbed her.

Sandrilene had spent a month stuck in a small, dark room with no food.

Vedris had ported her to his personal healers that instant and came to this room to vent.
"Milord," Erdogun spoke up before a thousand-year-old painting could be destroyed in the rampage. "What about their bodies?"
"I burned them with a quick spell before I left," he dismissed. Erdogun did not ask about the ashes and Vedris didn't offer an answer.

As the conversation went on the air slowly became stabler. Erdogun hid a smile. "Shall we go check on her?" He questioned carefully. His lord hesitated, then nodded. As they walked out of the room, he nodded to a passing maid to clean up the room discreetly. As they approached the healing quarter, Erdogun saw the Master Healer Kei waiting- with someone else. His lord paused in front of the person. “Niklaren Goleye. What do the Kadel’s need?”
“I do not come for the Kadel’s but for the Merlin Academy.” Goldeye smiled. “What does the Academy need with house Toren?” “I think hearing from your Master Healer about your great-niece would help with my offer,” He deflected. Vedris’ eyes narrowed but Goldeye was unphased. Vedris turned to where his healer had been nervously waiting.

"Milord." Kei bowed with sweat beading on his forehead. Chief Vedris nodded for him to rise, his Advisor standing behind him with his permanently blank expression. The servants gossiped about what it would take for him to show an actual emotion. "How is my great niece?" Kei swallowed "She spent weeks starving and in the dark. I have written up a dietary program for her to get her appetite back. I would also recommend hiring a discreet mind healer." The Chief nodded to all of this and Kei took a deep breath, now for the bad news. "She won’t wake up.” Immediately the air thinned. "What." The word was growled out. "She still won’t wake," Kei squeaked again. “I believe that’s my cue,” Goldeye interjected. One of the Clan Chiefs’ of the Air element took one deep breath, then another. "Tell me everything."
~
Sandrilene fa Toren allowed a slight, crazed laugh to slip out as her stitches lit up with the flames from the dying candle. They were small flames and she could barely see with them, but it was better than the dark. It had been a last-ditch effort, but it had worked.

"Well done child."

Flinching, at the unexpected voice, ‘There should be no one else here, everyone else is dead’ Sandrilene looked up and saw a vision of surpassing loveliness sitting across from her. As soon as Sandrilene saw her, she felt a sense of peace. She wondered whether she should be afraid, but she felt that the being wouldn't hurt her. “What an incredibly weaver you are,” the ‘person, ghost, figment of her breaking? mind' spoke.

"Who are you?"

The beauty smiled, "I have been called many things by mortals before." Her voice was haunting. "Have you come to help me?" Sandrilene questioned. She laughed and the flames in her stitches glowed brighter. "You called me here, my darling. Rarely has someone wished for me so ardently.”
Sandrilene was confused, "The only thing I wished for was light."

The woman's expression was teasing. “I am light.”

Sandrilene gasped as ‘She’ began to glow. She was the purest shade of light Sandrilene had ever seen and her eyes stung to see her. At the same time, Sandrilene had never felt such relief. She finally had real light in this dark room; not small stitched lights she could barely see an inch with. She remembered a vague recollection of her lessons of the immortals, what they governed, and who they were.
“You’re an immortal,” It was a statement, not a question. The immortal spread her hands, still glowing, “You wished for me with such desperation it reached my dreams.”

'That's right,' Sandrilene thought dazedly, 'the immortals are supposed to be sleeping.' “If you're asleep, how are you here?” She asked. “This is a simple shade with little power I can use as I sleep.”

“So you can't help me,” against her will, her chin trembled. ‘Stupid’ she chastised herself ‘Stop crying over nothing.’ “I can not help you to leave here, but that doesn't mean I can not help you.” She corrected. “How?” “Come into my dream realm,” the immortal smiled. “It is a place of all light. I will use what meager power is in this shade to put you in a magical coma. You will be with me, no longer in the dark.” Sandrilene was dubious, she'd learned not to make bargains with the Great Ones, something the immortal noticed. Her voice became harder, “You have no food here. You will starve if you do not accept my sleep. My coma will keep you alive.” Sandrilene took a deep breath, ‘She won’t hurt me, I wished for her to be here. I moved her.’ “Only until someone comes for me,” Sabdrilene bargained. The immortal's eyes twinkled as she agreed, “Only until someone comes for you.” Leaning over, she placed a kiss in the center of Sandrilene’s forehead. It was searing.
~
“So now Sandrilene is with the immortal of Light.” Goldeye spread his hands after finishing his tale.

Vedris’ eyes were nearly completely black. Erdogun interjected before his lord could do something they would all regret, “Milord went and got her. She should wake.”

“People should be careful to make deals with Immortals, especially ones that are interested in you. Lady Theia agreed to wake Sandrilene when someone got her. Chief Vedris rescued her body, but her spirit is still in Lady Theia’s dream realm. No one’s gone to get her yet, so she will not wake.”

“And How do you know this? Why should we trust you?” Erdogun questioned sharply. Goldeye looked grave, “I saw it.” The hallway went quiet. Neither Vedris nor Erdgun would question his Sight, no one would. The less informed wouldn’t question him because he was part of the Kadel Clan, known prophets. Those more informed wouldn’t question him because they knew what his nickname of Goldeye symbolized. Niklaren was one of the best Seers in all of Nevarh.

“How do we get Sandrilene back?” Vedris finally spoke. His voice was distorted, more growl than anything else. “Why do you want her to come back? She’s happier in the palace of eternal light than she was here. Her family circle’s dead.” The air went so thin, anyone not of the Air element would have passed out.“I will take my family in.”

“You are still mourning the death of your bonded,” Niklaren refuted. Scales appeared on both Vedris and Erdogun, but Niklaren was unphased. “Your home is a place of politics. Sandrilene deserves better than that if you want her to leave her paradise.” A minute passed in silence, Vedris and Niklaren locked in a stare-down. Vedris spoke first, “What do you want Goldeye?”

“Sandrilene will be different after this. She’ll gain powers she won’t know how to handle. She needs to learn control at the academy.” “Out of the question, she needs family,” Vedris dismissed. “She will have her family unless you’re dying?” Niklaren’s voice was faintly sarcastic. “She will need the Academy. I'm not taking your family from you, Vedris.”

Another pause, longer this time- then the air level became stable. “Save her first, everything else can be discussed after,” Vedris ordered. Goldeye nodded and turned to Kei, who’d done his very best to pretend to be somewhere else. “Take us to her,” Goldeye ordered. Looking toward the Clan Head, who nodded, Kei walked them to Sandrilene’s unconscious body.

She was lying on the examination table, still and quiet. Vedris made a small sound at the sight of her that everyone around him polity ignored. Niklaren walked next to her and looked down, “Does she have a focal object or a first stone?” “She has a first stone she made with her power, I’ll get it,” Erdogun volunteered. “No need,” Vedris held out his hand, and a stone appeared in it. It was bright and clear. He handed it to Niklaren, who grabbed it and put it in the center of her chest. His eyes went unfocused, “Don’t interrupt me in any way once I begin.”

Goldeye then bent down and placed his lips exactly where the immortal had kissed her. The touch was searing, it was a claim from a Greater Being. He could see a chain linking Sandrilene’s body to her somewhere in the distance, her spirit most likely. He followed the chain, ignoring the tempting whispers and strange-shaped beasts. They were mere annoyances unless he paid them attention. Then they got power and became dangerous. He followed the chain until he found an ancient door. It had suns, stars, and moons on it. The entrance. “Great One, may I enter?” He projected his magic into the door. A pause- the door cracked and a wisp of pure magic slipped out.

Niklaren entered the steps leading to a bright pavilion. Seated up there were Sandrilene fa Toren- and the immortal. Carefully not looking at anything but the pavilion, he walked toward it, not focusing on the dazzling sights. An immortal’s possessions weren’t something to covet. Walking up the steps he stopped and bowed toward the immortal Light.

“Everlasting Light, I have come to retrieve the child.” At those words, Sandrilene stood up from the table she had been sitting at. She’d wondered who the Mage was when he first came but figured he was simply someone who wanted to make a bargain with an immortal. “Has my great uncle sent for you?!”

“Yes, with the Eternal Lights permission, I will take you from here.” Turn she threw her arms around the immortal and- hugged her. Niklaren barely kept his mouth from dropping open. “Thank you,” Sandrilene cried “It has been such fun, but I need to go now. Thank you for helping me.” The Deathless being smiled down at the child, “I had more fun helping you than I have in centuries.” The immortal paused thoughtfully, “Child I would like to give you my blessing.”

“Blessing?”

“A boon” Niklaren interjected, stunned. Light had not blessed anyone in a millennium. Light glanced at him, “Hush.” Niklaren felt his body freeze, no longer obeying his command. He cursed his fast tongue. Light was not a merciful immortal. They simply had their favorites they were kind to.

“The Seer is right. I wish to give you a boon for pulling me from my inertia of the past. I feel alive again. I might even wake up in the next century.” If Niklaren could move, he might have choked at the statement. As it was his mind went blank.

“Oh,” Sandrilene bit her tongue. “What will it do?” Niklaren came back at that question. Light’s past boons had been noteworthy: allowing someone to blind, burn, invisibility, and take away all light from someone.

Light smiled, “Make sure you’re never alone in the dark again.” Niklaren was puzzled, that sounded too merciful for the history of the immortal before him. Sandrilene, however, was nearly dizzy with relief. “Yes, please give me your boon.”

Light cupped Sandrilene’s face, “I claim you, child, for your kind heart and desperate pleas. May you never again be alone in the dark.” She kissed Sandrilene again in the same spot as before. Sandrilene felt the magic wash over her, more magic than she’d ever felt before. She felt something inside her rising to meet it, and her eyes went black. Catching her as she fell unconscious, Light looked down at Sandrilene, the child who’d pleas had reached her. She was gaining her inheritance due to the influx of magic. ‘A Submissive.’

Light turned to the Seer in her realm. Considering him, She spoke, “Mortal. I charge you with my chosen’s safety. Until she finds her soul bonded, you will protect her.” Niklaren bowed as he was released from his stasis, “I will protect her.”

Light walked over and placed her and Nicklaren’s arms. Looking down, the deathless being’s expression softened and she smoothed Sandrilene’s hair. “Take care of her, Seer.” Niklaren bowed as well as he could, holding someone, and left. He used Sandrilene’s connection to her body to speed up travel.
~
Vedris wanted to kill Goldeye when he saw him put his lips on his great-niece.

It took Edrogun to grab his arm for him to calm down. He was more on edge than he realized. Taking a deep breath, he summoned a bottle of Calmweb and drank directly from the bottle. Vedris felt his magic settle almost immediately and settled in to wait. It took almost 30 minutes for Niklaren and Sandrilene’s bodies to stir. On Sandrilene’s body, her eyes opened and a bright, piercing light shone from them. Her scales started to appear and change.

Kei hurried over from where he’d been against the wall. Casting a diagnostic spell, his eyes widened in disbelief, “She's inheriting.”

“What?!” Two voices, Erdogun and Vedris, snapped.

“She's inheriting as a submissive.”

Vedris felt his new calm immediately break and the air in the room went berserk for a moment before he reined it in. ‘Just what is happening over there?! She's far too young to inherit.” His mind turned in circles. At that moment, Niklaren also woke up. “Goldeye. What is the meaning of this?!” Niklaren blinked and turned to an enraged dragel, held back by the thinnest control. “The immortal Light was impressed by Sandrilene and gave her a boon. The influx of pure magic from a deathless one woke Sandrilene’s inheritance early. Congratulations, you’re now the guardian of an underage Submissive,” His voice was dry.

The room went silent. In the stillness, Sandrilene settled down and went into a natural sleep. “The Lady received a boon,” Erdogun spoke in disbelief. Niklaren nodded. Vedris sighed deeply. Niklaren fixed him with a Look. "Air Chief, I think it's time for us to talk." Vedris nodded, "I agree. Let's go to my study."
~
Sandrilene woke up starving.

A cup was placed near her mouth and she promptly gulped it down- along with the next three cups of sweetness. "Are you back, my lady?" A voice gently teased. Sandrilene looked up ready to growl over her food, then smiled "Master Kei."

He smiled back, "You've been through a lot these few weeks, my dear. There's a lot we need to talk about."

Sandrilene flopped back on the examination bed as Master Kei stepped out to tell her great-uncle she was awake. She was grateful to be alone for the moment- she just had to take in a lot of information. She'd inherited from her boon, though she could tell waking up; there were new instincts within her she hadn't had before. Master Kei had given her his pure healer's blood when she first woke, but now she would have a dietary plan for the next couple of months to ease her body back to where it should be. Right now, Master Kei had made it clear he thought she was dangerously unhealthy. To top it all off, he had disclosed the argument he had heard between her great uncle and the Seer that had come for her and the immortal's dream room, Niklauren Goldeye. To go to Merlin Academy…she didn't know what to think. Her family was dead- she suppressed a whine at the thought- and she didn't know if she wanted to stay in the clan house and be reminded of them. At the same time, her great-uncle was still here, and she didn't want to leave behind any more of her family. Sandrilene sighed.

"I hope that sigh is not for me," A voice spoke up from the door- Vedris, her clan head, and great uncle. "Uncle." It gasped out. A moment later, they were in each other's arms and Sandrilene was holding back tears.

"My dear, Can you ever forgive me?"

"There's nothing to be forgiven. You came for me." Her voice was muffled where she’d buried her head in his chest. Her uncle tightened his arms around her, "I will always come for you." It was a vow.

"Even if I go to Merlin Academy?" It was her gamble, and it worked as she felt her uncle pause.

"How did you- Master Kei. The man is such a gossip, I don't know why I employ him," her uncle grumbled.

"He was only making sure I what's up to date on everything that's happened to me," Sandrilene corrected. "I deserve to know you."

"You do," he sighed "I have just finished talking with Goldeye, and I believe that it would be best for you to go to the academy on weekdays, however, every weekend- unless you inform me that you have plans otherwise- I want you back here." "I can agree to that." Sandrilene smiled. "That won't be for months, however, not until Master Kei decides you've healed." She nodded in agreement at that- instinct didn’t want her to leave the house while she was vulnerable.

"Sandrilene," Her uncle spoke again. His tone made her look up and her uncle rested one broad hand on her head "Welcome home." Burying her face back into his chest Sandra allowed herself the one thing she promised she wouldn't do- she cried.

Chapter Text

‘The newly minted ‘Briar Moss’ is an interesting lad.’ thought Niklaren.

He’d played nice in the courtroom and through the streets, but the second they’d left the city gates, he’d started looking for places to sneak off. Niklaren had caught him at every turn, so at this point, he was just impressed by the boy’s determination.

The first time, Briar had simply snuck away when Niklaren was buying supplies for the road. He’d simply followed the boy’s scent through all the twists and turns the boy could find until he gave up. Though Briar had stubborned it out for a while, even crawling through a sewer to try and escape him. When the boy had given up, he’d simply reappeared next to Niiklaren, and they’d both made no mention of the attempt. They’d gone on their way peacefully.

Then, they’d stopped at an inn.

Due to the boy’s smell from the sewer, Niklaren had cast a discreet spell that hid the boy’s scent until they’d secured their room and called up a bath. Once the bathtub came into the room, Niklaren made it clear the bathtub was for Briar. Briar had promptly tried to run, and upon catching him, Niklaren had learned the ‘fascinating’ fact that the boy thought taking a bath would make him sick.

He'd wrestled the boy into the bath and then fought to scrub him down, all while being cursed in a multitude of languages. Nick would have been impressed if he wasn't so annoyed.

Nick could tell the bathtub had erased any potential goodwill Briar might have grown for him and sighed. He’d wanted to wait a little longer until he was closer to the portal to have this conversation, but needs must. Looking from the door to Briar’s glare, the boy still dripping from his ‘bath,’ Niklaren made a decision.

Silently, he commanded the door to shut and warded the room from eavesdroppers. Niklaren sat down at the foot of the bed. “Briar Moss, let us talk about why I saved you.”

Briar stood angrily in front of Niklaren, ready to give him a piece of his mind when a shudder went up his spine. He was trapped. Briar had been on the streets his whole life. He knew exactly how to position himself to be ready to escape a bad situation. While he’d been about to yell at Niklaren, he’d kept the open door at his back.

Now…the door had shut.

His hands immediately went into his pockets- where he’d cut them open inside his pants and slipped knives he’d nicked from the kitchen. Chefs always had the sharpest knives. Briar cursed himself inside his mind… he’d let his guard down around the Bag. He’d even thought to yell at him. Briar readied himself…when Niko sat down on the bed and said he wanted to talk. Briar almost laughed- talking didn’t involve trapping someone. And Briar could tell- he was trapped.

He kept silent, hands ready on his knives in case Niko tried anything- Briar had already felt his strength when he’d been wrestled into the bathtub.

“Briar, do you believe in magic?” Niko asked. No answer came. The boy had a derisive look on his face. Niko held out his hand, withered blooms in his palms. They were Briars; the boy had been picking them up whenever they had stopped on their journey. The boy’s glare renewed at the site of his belongings in Niko’s hands, but he still didn’t speak.

Focusing inward, Niklaren called up the Earth affinity within him, and the plants in his palm began to bloom again. Thyme, rosemary, and honeysuckle were all made fresh and young again. Hearing Briar’s voice hiss out, Niklaren looked up to observe him. Briar’s face looked enraptured watching the flowers.

Niklaren smiled, satisfied. “Briar, do you be in magic?” He asked again. “Do strange things happen to the plants around you? Can you hear them?” Still no answer, except… the boy’s eyes looked hopeful.

Niklaren continued. “There is magic all around us. Some humans can wield it; they are called witches and wizards. There are also magical beings. Sirens, Fae, Werewolves… they all exist.” Here, Niklaren paused, gauging Briar’s reaction. The boy’s face was pale, and as he watched, Briar took a deep breath and sat down on the floor. “What’s that to do with me?”

Niklaren smiled, “I am not human.” He paused again, but Briar didn’t flinch. “I am a Dragel. We are humanoid dragon hybrids. We have our own realm, Nevarah, due to differences with this planet's magical humans-”
“Then why are you here and why tell me this now?” Briar interrupted. Niklaren looked at him quietly for a moment. “For you, Briar.” The boy’s head tilted in question. “Me?”

“I am a Seer. My magic led me to a boy with deep green magic, you.”
Briar still looked skeptical, “What’s a dragon want with me?!” He demanded. “Dragel.” Niklaren corrected, though he noticed the boy didn't deny having magic. Briar rolled his eyes, ‘same thing,’ he thought.

“I could have told you when I first got you from the judge's courtroom, and you would have laughed at me and thought I was crazy,” Niklaren looked at Briar and the boy nodded. “I hoped a few days' travel would help build trust.” Briar snorted at that, which Niklaren peacefully ignored. “As for your other question, what I want from you is simple, to take you with me, back to Nevarah.”

Briar’s mind went blank. ‘What.’ he thought. “Why?!” he said, suspicious. “You said your kind and the magic folk here don’t get along. If I'm magic, shouldn't I be with the magic people here?”

“If you were human, yes.” Niklaren said gently. Briar’s eyes widened in understanding, and he jumped up from his seat on the floor.

“Am I not human?! Was my pops not human?” was asked urgently.

Niklaren raised an eyebrow, surprised at the question. He’d expected more denials from the boy before he got through to him. Briar guessed at his thoughts and snorted. “I’m not a dumb kid,” he said scornfully. “You’re right about me and plants, and I know that’s not normal, which is why I didn’t talk about it. I don’t have many memories of my ma, but she was human. Since you’re here, it must be my pops. Is he dead?”

“Dragels have three parents. We are made of magic,” Niklaren instructed. Briar looked disbelieving, “Now you're having me on. I know how babies are made.” Briar grew up on the streets, he’d seen people on the streets doing that kind of work for money. If they weren’t careful, that work would leave you with an extra mouth to feed. “You might have experience with human children, but Dragels are magic. We have a sire, bearer, and third to help give and stabilize magic to the child.” Briar shrugged, “Does that mean I have two people who had a ‘fun night’ with my ma and left after?” Niklaren coughed in shock at the question. “It means it’s possible you would have family in Nevarh. Do you want me to find out?”

“No”, he said decisively. ‘I won’t be dropped out of nowhere on some family.’

Niklaren nodded peacefully, “It’s your decision. Then, will you be willing to stay with me?”
“Why?”
“I told you, my magic wanted me to find you,” Niklaren repeated.

“Why can’t I stay on Earth?” Briar reasoned. “Not possible. No dragel adult would leave a child behind.” Briar scowled at Niklaren’s words.

“I am a teacher at a school that focuses on magic. If you choose me, you will go there and learn what it means to be a dragel. We will teach you how to work with plants. You will live on campus.” Briar was silent, a hesitant look on his face.

Niklaren’s voice softened, “Neavarh is a sanctuary realm, Briar. She will never turn away those who need a home. If you don’t like me, we will find your relatives in Nevarah, and I will take you there. But you are not staying by yourself, and you are not staying on Earth.”

A pause- “Then I’ll stay with you,” Briar decided. “Though you have to promise to show me more magic with plants.” He added. 'Better the devil you know than a family of strangers,' Briar thought.
Niklaren smiled, “I promise.”

Standing up, he offered his hands to Briar, who reached and slowly took them. “We will leave no then. What I am about to cast is a portal to Nevarah. It will be quite safe, though likely more magic than you’ve ever experienced so it may feel strange. I will be using the most common portal. Don’t let go of my hands and take a breath,” Niklaren ordered.

Briar gripped the man’s hands and inhaled until his cheeks poked out like a squirrel. Niklaren squashed the urge to laugh at the sight and instead spoke,
“Temptrificus Portgas!”
A huge swirl of magic shot around and encircled them, and they were gone, off to Nevarah.

Seconds after they did, a group of people burst into the room, having been held back by the ward’s Niklaren they lay around the entire inn. Most started searching the room while a finely dressed man waited outside. “They’re gone, Prince Al.” One of the people stopped searching and reported to the man outside the room. “That’s too bad. I had questions I wanted answered.” The prince mused to himself. He was the leader of the magical beings in the country. Minutes before, he’d been alerted to the fact that the Mage known as Niklaren Goldeye was in his country. He’d come immediately to speak with the Seer and ask Goldeye for a reading, but it seemed they were too late. The prince sighed and looked at his men, “We’re done here.”

They disappeared immediately, with none of the humans in the inn being aware of anything that had happened in the inn.

Chapter Text

‘There were a lot of different ways to describe Tris Chandler,’ Niklaren thought to himself, glancing at the girl walking next to him. They were heading to an inn at the edge of the city. The people at the temple he’d just got her from would describe her as rude, combative, and dismissive: a danger to those around her. Niklaren the Seer would describe her as desperate, lost, and lonely. Tris was so very lonely; it seeped into the aura around her. Any adult dragel with aura sight that looked at the child would likely immediately burst into tears.

Niklaren the Man looked at her and saw his. His child. His mentored student, and a new person to give a part of his heart. The second he’d looked at her sitting in that chair, back straight and eyes furious, so defensive- like people wouldn’t notice her red eyes or tear tracts if she yelled at them enough.

She was such a mixture of angry and heartbroken.

Niklaren had felt his magic buck his control for the first time in decades, responding to the sight of her. The mentor bond had struck light lightning, binding him to her.

‘Protect her, keep her,’ his instincts had raged.

Niklaren had been rooted on the spot, disbelief filling him. He…hadn’t expected her. He hadn’t seen her. She was a blindspot to him. Oh, he’d known Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, he knew Briar Moss, and in a week, he would be meeting one Daja Kisubo. However, how those meetings would go was dependent on a lot of factors. They were expected, however, and he’d planned on laughing at his friends and the trouble the new students’ would bring them.

He’d been glad of it! They needed something to shake them up.

But he had not planned on joining them and getting one. He liked his life the way it was. His independence was hard-earned, and he refused to ever lose it. But…now there was one Tris Chandler.

Niklaren was confused, to say the least. And he planned to go straight to his home and check the ritual he’d done there to find his friends’ students; maybe something of his had gotten put into it by mistake. That said, he couldn't leave her. Both his new bond with her and his compassion for what she’d been through wouldn't let him. Tris clearly expected him to abandon her as her family had, and he was determined to prove her wrong. Niklaren wanted her to trust him, a difficult task considering that he didn't know how to begin explaining to her about dragels. Lady Sandrilene was dragel high nobility, Briar had his plants, and he’d know how to help Daja as soon as he saw her. Tris…was a blindspot.

Because her family had witches among them, Tris likely knew of magic. That made things easier and harder in some aspects. Easier in that she would believe him about being a magical being. Harder, in that he didn’t know if she’d have misconceptions about dragels. He was not unaware of how the witches of this planet saw his kind. That could be…troublesome.

Up ahead, he spotted the inn. Niklaren sighed. It was time.

“One room,” Niklaren said to the innkeeper. Tris bristled, “Two. I’m not sleeping in a room with you.”

“One. There are things we need to discuss,” Niklaren refuted. ‘We will not remain here for the night.’ He spoke in her mind. She flinched but kept silent. Judging by the angry flush on her face and how the wind around her picked up, however, she was not endeared by his power. The innkeeper made a sign to ward off evil as a wind swept through her inn.

Tris was silent up to the room until he shut the door. Then she gave him a piece of her mind, “You keep out of my mind,” she snapped, and a sudden rain banged against the window in the room. Niko ignored it, keeping his eyes on her. “My thoughts are mine. If you ever do it again I’ll-”

“What? Hurt me? On purpose, I doubt you’ll be able to, but your poor control of your magic could kill someone. I wonder if it has already.” Niklaren interrupted her growing tirade. Tris flinched back like she’d been struck, and Niklaren heard lightning strike outside. He sighed, “Tris, why were you in that temple?” She stayed silent, a mulish look on her face. He’d hurt her.
“Shall I guess?” Niklaren probed. Tris crossed her arms. To Niklaren, it looked like she was bracing- like she expected to be hit. The sight wounded something inside him. He walked over to the only chair in the room and sat down.

“To begin, I’ll start with what the matron of the temple you were at told me. Yours is a family of merchant witches. They sell potions, charms, and the like. They have no specializations or rare gifts. Your family are simple witches who work as merchants.” Outside, the rain and wind picked up. Tris stayed silent.

“You, however, were born strong.” Thunder rumbled directly above the inn.

“For another family, that might have been a good thing. For your family, though, it only caused jealousy.” A lightning strike headed for the inn, deflected only by Niklaren’s wards. He frowned, “Poor control-”

“Shut up, you don’t know me,” Tris interrupted, voice cracking.

“I know more than you want me to,” he countered gently.

“Why are you doing this to me?” There were angry tears in her eyes, and Niklaren’s barriers had deflected three more strikes. “Because the mere mention of your family could kill someone with your unstable magic. You need control, and I’m best to teach you.” Tris’s arms tightened around her, a shield. “I just want to be left alone.” Niklarnen his head slowly, “I can’t do that.”

“Why?”

Niklaren took a deep breath and strengthened his wards. “Do you know your father?”

Poignant silence answered him-
Then, the largest strike of lightning so far hit the inn.

Niklaren blinked the spots from his eyes; his wards had stopped any damage from the inn, but the brightness of the strike still blinded him. When he regained his vision, the sight before broke his heart.

Tris was crying, curled up in a ball on the floor. He sighed, “Tris-”
“I know,” Tris interrupted him again. ‘I already know what you’re going to say,’ it was a bitter thought.
~
Anne, Tris’s mother, competed with her sister to be the head of the family. Her sister won. That loss was a bitter one and officially broke the already splintered relationship of the sisters. To make matters worse, her sister announced she was pregnant a month later.

That news broke something in Anne. She decided to have a child also, and her child was going to beat her sisters’. Her child was going to be better at everything: looks, brains, and most importantly, talent. To ensure this, Anne made a contract with a magical being to give her a powerful child. However, Anne died in childbirth.

Tris grew up knowing the entire story because her family would not let her forget.

‘What good is your power when you killed your mother?’ Her Aunt mocked.

‘What good are you when we don’t know who your father is?’ Her younger cousin taunted.

‘What good are you when we don’t know the terms of the contract? Your father could come for you tomorrow or never,’ Her grandmother sneered.

The final strike came when she hurt her cousin. He had come into her room to do his favorite thing- mess with her. This time, she’d determined to ignore him- she didn’t want to be lectured and yelled at again for arguing with him. She’d buried her face in a book and tried to tune him out. He hadn’t liked his favorite victim not paying attention to him. Her cousin had torn the book from her hands- then ripped it apart before her eyes. That’s when things went fuzzy. She knew her magic had lashed out at her cousin; his screams had made her aunt and grandmother come running. They’d contained her- then decided she was too much to deal with permanently, especially if she was going to be ‘hurting her family over a book,’ as her aunt put it. They’d officially disowned her from the family and shipped her off to a temple, where she wouldn’t bother with them anymore.
~
“What do you want with me?” Tris looked up at Niklaren, the man who’d taken her from the temple- yet dredged up all her painful memories. He knelt next to her, “Tris, your sire was a Dragel. Do you know what that is?”

She flinched, “A dark creature.” Tris’s thoughts turned bleak, ‘My family was right. I am cursed.’

Niklaren frowned, “Just because something is powerful doesn’t mean it’s dark.” He paused, “Tris, I am a dragel.”

Tris blinked, then uncurled herself to look at him. Encouraged by her reaction, Niklaren continued, “We all receive a mentor when our inheritance comes in. They help guide us. Though your inheritance hasn’t come, when I saw you in that temple, my magic reached out…and yours answered. It created a mentor-student bond between us.” Here, he paused again, waiting for her to speak.

Tris closed her eyes, “What does this mean for me? Can you teach me control?” It was a painful hope. Niklaren’s answer made her eyes pop back open, “I can and will. It is my duty as your mentor.”

“Then-”

“Two things first,” Niklaren interrupted her this time. “Dragels have our own realm, Nevarah. I teach at a magic school there. When we go, you will learn there from others, though I will be your primary teacher.” Tris wrinkled her nose but nodded. She had nothing tying her to this place. A new place, with people like her, with the same magical strength as her…hope bloomed in her chest. “The second thing is that when we go, I’ll be the adult responsible for you…unless you want us to find your sire and third.”

Tris froze, “...third?”

“Dragels have three parents. We are made primarily with magic. The bearer, the sire, and the third.”

“Do I have to decide now?” Her voice was small. “No,” Niklaren assured. “I’m simply telling you that if you want to find them- I’ll help you. Your parents will not change our bond. It was chosen by our magic.” Trisc nodded slowly. Niklaren stood up and held out his hands, “Shall we go?”

‘A new place,’ she thought. Tris nodded and grabbed his hands. “I will be porting us there with a general portal. Hold your breath as it may feel a little strange at first.” Tris inhaled, and Niklaren noticed she looked similar to Briar. A little amused, he wondered how they would interact with each other.

“Temptrificus Portgas!”
Magic shot up and encircled them, and they were gone.
To Nevarah.