Chapter 210: The Second Sun
>>Draegon
The second sun in the sky caused a lot of commotion.
Word spread about the saint’s power and how she had become a sun. Except that this sun never dimmed even when it was night.
I could see her in the sky at all times.
Her golden energy pulsed high up in the sky and the waves traveled around the whole world, encompassing everything, locking away the darkness.
Every once in a few weeks we would hear this sound. The sound of a lock being closed.
I would often look at the sky when I missed her, None of us knew when she would come back.
Although the news of her power and strength had reached far corners of the world. We never let anyone know she was capable of something as strong as revival too. Since there were too many conditions attached to it and it was only possible if she had years worth of magic stored in her.
Midnight would come and I would sit on the window sill of our bedroom, staring at the second sun till it put me to sleep.
Waiting for her to come back to me.
***
>>Drakkar
The tavern was loud tonight. Laughter from the back tables, the scent of roasted meat hanging heavy in the air, the low thrum of conversation beneath the occasional clink of mugs. I leaned against the counter, watching the crowd filter in and out.
Ari had been here since earlier, helping in her own... Ari way. She wasn’t serving drinks or greeting patrons, no, she’d claimed the farthest table in the corner, elbows on the wood, wearing those battle pants and a plain shirt she always wore. It was comfortable, practical, and completely unlike the dresses or ornaments most women in the city paraded in.
Not that I minded. I liked her since she was Ariston and that fact will never change.
I loved how unique she was.
But I’d noticed something over time, Ari wasn’t romantic. She didn’t give lingering looks, didn’t go out of her way to say things that would make my chest tighten. She was... steady. Calm. The kind of presence you could lean on, but not the type to sweep you off your feet.
I didn’t need that from her. Still... part of me wondered what it would be like.
I mean, she can sometimes do something nice for me, right?
I was lost in thoughts behind the counter when I felt her presence before I even looked up. Ari was crossing the room toward me, her head ducked slightly like she was trying to make herself smaller. That wasn’t unusual, she didn’t like attention, but what was unusual was that she didn’t stop on the customer’s side of the bar. She slipped behind it, right next to me, close enough for me to feel the warmth radiating off her.
I frowned. "You need something?"
She didn’t answer right away. Instead, she reached into her shirt pocket, of those loose, practical clothes, and pulled out something small, wrapped in cloth. She set it on the counter in front of me without meeting my eyes.
"What’s this?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"Just... open it," she muttered.
I unwrapped the cloth. Inside was a small carved figure.
A dragon, my dragon form,
I realized, smooth and polished, with faint gold painted into the eyes. Every curve and scale had been etched with ridiculous precision, the kind of detail that took hours of patience.
"...." I was stunned
For a moment, I couldn’t speak.
"You made this?" I finally asked.
Her ears turned red. "It’s not much. Just thought... you’d like it." She looked away shyly
Not much? It was the most personal, thoughtful thing anyone had given me in years. And she’d carved it herself.
I stared at her for a long moment. "Ari... this is..." I trailed off, because I didn’t have the words. My chest felt tight, warm in a way I hadn’t expected.
She shifted on her feet, clearly uncomfortable with my silence. "You don’t have to, I just thought it’d be nice for the tavern. Or your room. Or," She paused, "I wanted to convey my feelings for you one way or another." I saw her ears get further red.
Before she could talk herself into downplaying it further, I reached out, catching her wrist lightly. "It’s perfect," I said, my voice lower than I intended. "And it’s... the most romantic thing anyone’s ever done for me."
Her head snapped up at that, eyes wide. "Romantic?"
"Yeah," I said, smiling despite myself. "You might not think you are, but... this? This blows me away."
She looked like she wanted to argue, but instead, she glanced away, the faintest smile tugging at her lips.
"I love you so much," I whispered and gently put the dragon on the counter before hugging her
"Hey!" She whisper-yelled at me.
"What?" I nuzzled into her neck, "You don’t love me?"
!!!
I knew what was coming, but I loved to hear it the way she said it, "I do..."
"You do what?" I asked as I straightened my face and looked at her
She looked at me softly, "I love you,"
A wide smile spread across my face, "Then when are we getting married?" I teased her, expecting her to shook the thought off
But she didn’t.
Instead, she looked out the window, at the second sun and said, "As soon as Aelin comes back."
And as if by some miracle God heard my inner most desire, the second sun dimmed after months of being in the sky
***
>>Draegon
I was the first on the roof as the second sun’s glow faded completely.
I went to the edge of the palace, my eyes glued to the bright star that was now coming down. The bright ball that it was fading into oblivion as the figure of the person inside it came into view.
My hearts skipped a beat when I saw her in the sky. She was curled up into a ball, her eyes closed and her arms were wrapped around her knees.
I thought she might come back down nicely but as the golden light around her completely faded, she began to fall to the ground.
