"Mum, calm down, it's just a renaming," Pugnum called towards the overly stressed Josella darting back and forth. She was desperately making sure that she and her son looked presentable for the day's upcoming event.

"It's not just a renaming! How can you say that? I am never invited to things, not since your fa-"

A hot flush of shame coloured Josella's cheeks as she bit back the rest of her thought. Pugnum then watched his mother's eyes glaze over, as they often did.

"Not since my father's exile?" he finished for his mother, through gritted teeth.

She nodded, without daring to look into her son's fiery gaze.

"Will I ever stop hearing about the stupidity of that man!" Pugnum couldn't hold back. Yet the hurt that coursed through his mother's sudden shiver made his heart ache. He shook his head and finished buttoning up his clean, white shirt with his only functioning hand.

After just a moment of enduring a thick, uncomfortable silence, Josella decided to break the never-ending cycle of the exchange of guilt-filled glances.

"I'm just excited that's all. It is such an honour to be asked to attend such a personal affair. I think I've finally made a true friend in Naomi," Josella shared with a warm smile.

The look that Pugnum managed to catch within her damp eyes squeezed at his insides. Such long-suffered loneliness was evident within her. She yearned for a connection with her peers for so long. Pugnum couldn't help but be grateful that somebody had managed to finally put a smile on her face.

His gaze then fell as his thoughts began to spiral downwards.

"Mum?" he whispered towards the floor.

"Yes, my Joey?" Josella smiled as she checked the neatness of her carefully, woven hairstyle in her vanity mirror.

"You know that I thought of you everyday in the Emerald Army," Pugnum stumbled through his words. "There was never a moment that I didn't long to be with you, to help you, to..." The quivering of his lower lip made it impossible for him to carry on. Josella dropped everything and turned towards her broken son. She pulled him into her arms and let him lay his head on her shoulder.

"You mustn't worry about a thing, my sweet, sweet, Joey," she cooed into her son's ear. "I knew. Of course, I knew. You are not the cause of my loneliness."

Pugnum lifted his head and his mother instinctively wiped his tears from his cheeks.

"Who is this couple, anyway? Have I ever met them?" he asked, so to change the subject and in turn dismiss the emotions that were fighting to overpower the pair of them.

"Oh, I don't think you do. I believe one is from the Biabus-Lus family. I can't be sure though."

"Alright," Pugnum shrugged.

"Alright!" Josella echoed and turned back to the mirror with a new found enthusiasm. "Have you eaten anything yet, my Joey?"

"No, Mum, not yet."

"Well go and have something, now. It's nearly time for us to go."

Pugnum turned to leave the room.

"Oh and do make sure you remember to wear your hand today. It's a special occasion."

Pugnum rolled his eyes before uttering, "Fine."

He then left his mother to do the last minute tweaks to her already perfectly arranged ashy blonde, twisted hair strands.

Pugnum felt like he stuck out like a sore thumb inside the Slànacus' family home. He hovered at his mother's shoulder as she did her best to mingle with the others present. One guest she particularly found easy to talk to was Luchinda Fiosolim. Her small frame and kind face made her come across as approachable and they both got lost in kind exchanges of compliments.

"Joey," Josella said over her shoulder towards the lanky lad that stood only centimetres from her. His raised eyebrows made her fumble an apology, "Oh sorry, we're in public, I mean Pugnum, dear, why don't you go and introduce yourself to some people?"

"Must I?" Pugnum's words left him in an adolescent groan.

"Pugnum Draoicis-Lus! Yes, you must," his mother scolded him gently, the light twinkle not leaving her eyes as she spoke. With an eye roll and a sigh, Pugnum left her side and searched the small gathering for a clique to join.

"What a quaint gathering of people, Naomi didn't invite many did she?" A woman said to a taller man with red, curly hair scraped back into a neat ponytail, sitting on the back of his neck. His white and gold attire made it very obvious who he must be.

"That's right, Astrid was wary about the gathering being too big. She's not so good with crowds," he answered.

"I can't wait to see her, I bet she'll be absolutely beautiful!" The woman gushed.

"I have no doubt, Mum."

"I'm so proud of you, Son."

Pugnum made his way closer to the mother and son conversing in front of him. He thought, if he had to introduce himself to someone to appease his mother, why not the very man that was being renamed that day. But as their conversation carried on he stopped in his tracks.

"I don't see any of the Sprèintis family here," the woman said as she took a quick glance around the room.

"Oh no, none were invited," the red-haired man responded.

"How come?"

"To avoid any conflict, Naomi's dear friend Josella Draoicis-Lus is here."

"Oh, of course, silly me. I should have worked that one out myself."

Pugnum stood as if frozen to the spot. He didn't know where to put himself. The sneering faces of the Sprèintis family swirled inside his mind. That family gave him and his mother nothing but trouble. They couldn't even walk near them without names and rocks being hurled at them.

He hated that family.

He felt exposed, a prickling heat climbed up his face and locked his jaw.

Suddenly a raised voice grabbed his attention.

"Excuse me, dear guests, could you all make your way towards the garden, the ceremony preparations are now complete," Vicora Slànacus announced to all the faces looking towards her.

A wave of relief crashed over Pugnum as the red-haired man and his mother made their way towards the back door.

"So, shall we?" Josella said, linking her arm with her hesitant son. She then encouraged him to lead her to the Slànacus' back garden - where the renaming ceremony was to be held.

All the guests were given three roses each - one pink, one yellow and one white. These three colours were chosen to follow a tradition of Natanstrelle joining ceremonies; pink represented the couple being joined that day, yellow - the light magic and white - Illuminare-Trabem himself.

They didn't have to wait for long before a beautiful woman, in a gold dress, was led to the Trabem Pool by the three Slànacus sisters, who wore their traditional jade attire. Pugnum could not understand how he managed to overlook such a beauty before now; but yet, here she was, a radiant stranger. Her blemish free skin, her ebony hair that flowed gracefully to the middle of her back. Her movement was elegant and drew in his gaze.

"Mum, who is she? How come I've never seen her before?" Pugnum whispered to his mother. She just caressed the back of his good hand with a gentle stroke in response.

"That concludes the first renaming." The Fiosolim leader's announcement caused Pugnum's brow to slam down.

"First?" he questioned, before being hushed by his mother. With buttoned lips he listened to the rest of the ceremony. The two new names he heard the Fiosolim leader read from the pool resonated in his mind. Yet he couldn't put his finger on why that was.

It was after the ceremony was over and the couple were officially man and wife that the penny dropped for him; for two violet eyes met his gaze as the golden girl walked past him, led by her new husband towards the house.

He knew those eyes. Everybody knew those eyes.

It felt as if a rusty chain was pulled right through him in that moment. A deep crunching anger flared inside him. His breathing became laboured as he tried his hardest not to shout out loud in rage. His thoughts plummeted to a dark place as he involuntarily scratched an impossible itch on his wooden, prosthetic hand.

Within the darkness he watched a wall grow around his arm before him. A deep panic embedded itself into his chest and pain like no other crushed deep into the exposed layers of his trapped forearm. Hot, wet blood seeped and made its eerie trail down the thick, stone structure. Claustrophobia clawed at his brain and his scream began to die down as his breath was drained from his lungs.

"Seeing as you raised the alarm, Dìl-Pugnum, security measures have been activated. We cannot use light magic to let you out." The yellow rank's team leader- Dìl-Forti's voice echoed in Pugnum's desperate mind.

"Quick! Inform the Captain!" That same voice then called out to others that Pugnum could not see. The sound of their footsteps banged in his head like a war drum.

"Pugnum..."

Dìl-Forti's authoritative voice began to repeat his name over and over each time getting quieter and kinder sounding; until Pugnum realised that it wasn't Dìl-Forti's voice at all- it was his mother.

"Pugnum? Are you alright? Everyone has gone inside."

"It's her," Pugnum said, almost in a trance.

"It's who, my Joey?" Josella found her son's behaviour disturbing.

"It's the girl!" he spat in hatred. Blinded by the fire of fury that was lit inside his mind, he knew he had to get out. Get out of this joke of a ceremony! The very sound of happy chatting and celebratory music offended him.

He made his way back to the house. The only way he could go was through the party. He had to just bite the bullet and make his way out. He walked as if a dark force surrounded him, the look of urgency on his face made people part like the red sea to avoid his wrath. All managed to get out of his way except Celeste Slànacus.

"Pugnum Draoicus-Lus! How nice to see you looking so well! Thank you so much for joining us today," Celeste said, unaware of the dangerous anger polluting his very being.

"Get out of my way, I'm leaving!"

"You're leaving?" Celeste repeated, before she noticed the bitterness in his murderous glare, "Whatever happened?"

"Get out of my way!" he hissed, making Celeste tremble before stepping aside. He barged to the front door and left without a single glance back. Repeating over and over again the one phrase that managed to crumble down his very sanity.

"The girl. The girl!"

"Pugnum!" Pugnum heard his mum call out to him as he ran further and further away. He didn't stop. He couldn't stop. He just kept his legs racing.

He stopped a fair distance away, as a stabbing pain spiked at his exhausted chest - it heaved as he tried to catch his breath.

It was within that pause of movement that a deep darkness blinded him and the world around him seemed to halt into silence.