"Augh-heh!" Grandma groans
I sit as a slob at the tree, and just watch as Grandma Tony and Grandpa Line fight. As I look to my side I find Dad having fully collapsed on the forest floor, with only his head sitting against the same tree as me… was his neck okay?
"Were you really a general?" I ask. "Sorry."
"Well… I have one hand, and my gem barely works… so take a guess. Being a general at one point doesn't mean I-"
"-okay yes, I know. That's why I apologised. I just…" I look away.
"Yeah okay," Dad says and sits up. "I understand that you are trying to… connect. So that's okay."
And the silent and distant Leo only did it because he thought that Tyle might die of heartbreak, or some other way if Leo didn't look after him.
Sigh… I thought you left.
But Leo knew the writer couldn't leave until the story was over.
It won't just… go down… at least not in a bad way.
…
Besides, you told me that it is a possibility.
Was it that or was Leo only being manipulated by the writer?
If that's the case… you think the story might have a chance…
But I don't get a reply, and Dad nudges me to give me a bottle of water.
"Thanks," I say, and devour the water.
"I miss being that energetic," Dad says, and I find his parents still going on – as I follow his gaze.
"You had your time."
Dad scoffs. "Did I?"
"Well, whether you used it or not, you did. And it… is in the past."
"Ah jeez, stop making me feel useless."
"I'm not… you're the one thinking so. Dad… you took care of me and Hailo. When mom wasn't here. You weren't useless."
"We are running for our lives, Leo. Your mother would have done a better job."
"Well… her or you would still keep us alive. Whatever it takes. However you can. And you are indeed doing that."
Me and Dad look sideways as a flash emits brightly from near Grandpa and Grandma.
+
"Augh-heh!" Tony exclaims while stabbing towards me – with her spear.
"You need to remember how I'm the love of your life. Jeez."
"I know you can deal with this, so stop whining!"
She turns around and stretching her arms knocks the spear towards me – while I duck to answer that. And then I uppercut the handle of my spear and hit her chin.
"Besides, you're one to talk."
"Clearly you're letting me hit you."
Tony stops and gasps while pointing at her sweaty body, and then at me.
"I'm a red dragon. What do you expect? We don't sweat that much. You… know that."
"Why are you blush-" Tony says and lifts her eyebrow at me. "Fight me, you pervert!"
We both uppercut our spears and rather than them hitting each other - they scratch at the other's handles and we form a X in the air. I push the spear sideways and Tony twists her body to come behind me and grabs my neck from behind herself.
"Okay, please, don't."
"Take THIS!" Tony declares and flips me over.
I transform my arm and punch the ground to stop my fall. Then while standing on my one fist this way, I glare at Tony.
"You wanna go, you jerk? You forget who I am?"
"Yes, let's go. What are you, huh? Who are you?"
"I'm your da-"
"-ew come on. Say nemesis or something. Jeez. What's wrong with you?"
"I was… I was gonna say something like that."
"Yeah? What? Say it then."
"Nevermind. Let's take it to the sky, for old time's sake."
"Do you have a bomb attached, or should I get one?"
"You are in contact with Esterine still?"
"I put flowers on her grave, whenever I visit."
"Wait, really?"
"Yeah man, she and I were so close and all. Take a joke!"
"Well I took you, didn't I?"
"We are on!"
I transform and so does Tony.
"Maybe we can Crystal crash."
"I'll crash your crystals."
"Ew?"
"No, ouch."
Tony comes towards me and grabs at me while I lift myself up and take her above. The skies sure were her domain, but she had thought me enough for me to use it against her.
+
"Oh shit, why do they keep doing this?" I ask, and Dad only laughs. "They really were nemeses once, weren't they?"
"Yeah… that's their dynamic."
"What…" I say, pondering on my question.
But you can't ask him, can you? Leo couldn't find the strength.
What if it is something which would hurt him?
Then he'll say that.
I am not like you, to preach out stories of others and make it look so easy. Make their story feel so simple.
…
I'm sorry.
Leo… I need the answer.
What?
"What what?" Dad asks.
"Oh, uh…" I say, and look at Dad with a little embarrassment. "What… was your dynamic? With mom."
Dad seems to like the question, and keeps his smile. But he looks away to ponder on it. "I don't know."
"Oh come on. So much dramatic effect for-"
"-no," Dad says and looks back at me. "Leo. I don't really know."
Leo looks at his Dad with a little disbelief and shock… how could you… forget? How can one just forget?
"Leo…" Dad says and looks at me with a serious expression. "I believe something is wrong."
I think even your Dad needs the answer.
…
"What?" I hear a little higher tone of Skyto, as me and Dad get closer to the house. "Say it again… and not seem like IDIOTS, this time."
"Skyto, relax…" I hear Wyrom speak softly, as we reach the hall. He looks at me and gives a wry smile.
Spythun and Hailo were standing in the front, with Hailo having a body expression of having done something bad. Were they both found out?
"Okay, but… that might be a little hard," Spythun says.
"You're not helping, Spythun," Drego sighs, while standing a bit further from the two too.
"Well it was… sudden," Hailo says.
"Really? Sudden? Hailo… I expected you to be the last person to not think straight," Skyto says.
"Hey… it… can't be… things happen. We are…" I speak up, and everyone looks at me – making me flinch and whisper under my breath, "friends."
"Leo. I see your point. And yes, of course we are friends. But even friends… they can't endanger each other's lives like that. Especially with Spythun around… I trusted you to protect Hailo, Spy… and not…"
No. This was something else. But Hailo looks at me with expecting eyes and those… eyes. So I panic before parting my lips again. "We'll fix this!" I raise a fist, and everyone looks towards me.
"Fix what?" Raigo asks, while coming here. I lower my fist as she scans my posture.
"Well, they had an interaction with Rainbow. Uncalled for and CLEARLY idiotic."
My face turns into an instant frown and I immediately glare towards Hailo, who flinches at my gaze falling at her. But she looks away, trying to avoid me.
Rainbow? Our of no where? How could…
"You were summoned by him again? Are you hurt?" Dad asks, but the prior confusion stays on his face, without any possibility for it getting erased.
"You…" Raigo says, and I look at her gritting her teeth at Hailo. "And you too?" Spythun flinches a bit more dramatically when the glare falls at him.
"We just had to know her powers. And…" Spythun says and looks at everyone and then below.
"I wanted to know about mother," Hailo declares.
Raigo freezes and just loosens up. Skyto, Wyrom, and Drego give an unknown expression.
"What did you find?" Dad asks.
Raigo and I exchange glances, while she questions me with her eyes… I just shake my head a little – hoping she could make sense of it.
"She has powers related to the Crystal-cave," Raigo declares, regretting every bit.
"And she had something to do with… King Rusty, right?" Dad asks.
Raigo only nods, and Dad follows too.
"Okay," Skyto says, and we look at him. "Clearly I have zero idea about what is happening here… but am I to go along with it or…"
Skyto stops, but not to look at our reaction. He zones out into the space before activating his gem and creating an air-void to move Hailo, Spythun, and Drego – from near the wall. The wall breaks and something big falls inside… Skyto clears the little dust out, as a blue light emanates.
"I really hate how the story is for us side characters," Grandma sighs.
She had fallen onto the ground, with Grandpa, bleeding, in her grasp.
"I try catch a fucking break," Grandpa groans.
Hailo hurries ahead and grabs the something pierced into Grandpa, and starts looking around his wound. But I – and all of us, hear something shoot towards here – towards Hailo. But before any of us could react, Spythun cuts the arrow using his dagger – and holds the piece, of the two pieces, with the sharper end of the arrow. The other piece simply hits the floor.
"Hello," a ghostly voice comes to us and we all look towards the sky – where it seems to be arriving from. At a far distance, a dark-blue dragon flaps their wings while looking at us. "We meet. I am Gust. And which of you is the six?"