The next day seemed like the longest day ever to Ralem. He waited for Jaydon to contact him all day. Nothing ever came. He got so frustrated that he had to get out of his cramped room. It was when he melted into the bustling crowd, wishing that people would just hurry up that he realized that this was a crowd that he would never fit into again. He would always be the oddball, with his slightly glowing eyes, his over-the-edge energy and strength, his stealth, his way with air, and that shimmering sign on his shoulder blade. He may be 98% human, but the other two percent would set him apart for the rest of his life. If someone knew who he was, even his family, who knew what would happen to him. He self-consciously pulled his hood down lower.

            After a day walking around town, agonizingly slow so he could pass as a human, the sun finally started its descent. He stopped at the Happy Hog Tavern, waiting for the signal from Jaydon. He waited for hours. The Tavern-keeper finally asked him, “Are you waiting for someone?” while he was cleaning out a dirty mug.

            Ralem set down his own mug, “No.”

            He decided to go anyway to his house- If Jaydon was still unconscious then something must be wrong.

He snuck into the back door like always, coasting over the ground two inches so he wouldn’t make the slightest noise. Jaydon was in Ralem’s old room, the one nearest to the kitchen. The only room with a fireplace. As Ralem surveyed the hallway to make sure no one was there, he saw the white glint of Aidan’s face-he had been half-asleep in the doorway, his back to the wall. He woke groggily to Ralem’s glowing stare. Seeing Ralem standing there, a few inches over the ground and wearing the black cloak of death, Aidan’s eyes widened and his mouth opened to deliver a scream to remember.

Ralem took his hood off quickly and settled to the ground, his hands thrust in front of him in a don’t do it! gesture. Aidan blinked before his eyes adjusted and he got up shakily, running to Ralem’s side. His soft footsteps woke the other two and they crept out behind them, exaggeratingly trying to pretend to be spies.

“Uncle Ralem!” Aidan hissed, waving for him to follow. He tiptoed to Ralem’s room and slowly opened the door. Ralem followed cautiously, “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“It’s Jaydon,” Aidan said solemnly, “He’s not doing very well.”

Immediately Ralem was by Jaydon’s side. The dragon was as white as the sheets, his cheeks glinting with yellow. Sweat glistened in the light of the fire and even though he was ridiculously close to the flames he was cold and clammy to the touch. “Jaydon?” Ralem said, his voice choked. Fear clawed at his chest and he forgot to breathe. He cradled Jaydon’s head in his hands, “Jaydon- it’s me. Ralem, your Rider. Please, wake up. Please.” Ralem knew this was really bad. Jaydon was never cold. He never sweat. He looked… dead. “No, no,” Ralem moaned, practically forehead to forehead with the half-dead dragon, “Come on, my little hatchling. Wake up. Wake up for me.”

He sucked in a breath before sinking into the dragon to search for him. He had done this before. He had hoped to never do it again. But now he became lost to the world as he sunk into the dragon’s fevered conscious. He found Jaydon, terribly shook up and weak. He grabbed on to him, pulling him up to the waking world. He was slipping from his grasp. Ralem, you’ve got to let me go. I need… to rest. Shocked, Ralem did so and snapped back to himself with hoarse breaths. “Jaydon, no!” he yelled, shaking Jaydon’s unresponsive head, “No, please! You can’t!”

“He’s not going to wake up,” a new voice spoke up from the dark room. A hunched figure appeared in the gloom, small eyes flickering from the fire, “He’s going to die.”

Ralem turned to the new arrival, shocked that she could sneak up on him. “Who are you?” he said stiffly, wiping his running nose with a hand.

“The healer,” the woman replied, her eyes narrowing.

“Is there nothing you can do?” Ralem cried. Aidan had swept the other kids back into their room, sensing that what was to come next would not be the best thing for them to see. And he was right because right then, the six-foot-four muscular Rider was smacked silly by an old woman no taller than five feet. A stick swung out of nowhere and Ralem hissed as it whacked him on the jaw and stung him on the shoulder in quick succession before he could respond. “What was that for?” he asked, rubbing his jaw gingerly.

“You know what that was for! You don’t deserve the title of Rider. You don’t deserve that dragon! You don’t deserve the” –smack-“dirt”-poke- “you stand on!” And with that she dealt him one final blow where it counts.

Ralem bent to his knees, tears in his eyes. When he spoke his voice sounded several levels too high, “I know I’m a dirtbag, but what did I do to you?”

“You pulled my poor Whisker’s tail! But that is not the point. It’s what you did to the dragon. You honestly think you can get it past me?”

“What?” Ralem squeaked.

The lady made an impatient noise, “The fact that you gave him iris mengae. And that you were idiotic enough to give him a full vial of it! Then you had the audacity to go flying on him after that mess. You’re the reason he’s going to die!”

“Iris mengae?” Ralem repeated, stunned, “What?”

“The potion Lauri uses to turn Vali human,” the healer said impatiently, “Purple liquid.”

“Lauri? You know her?” Ralem asked.

“Of course I know her!” the healer harrumphed, “I’m the great dragon healer in Baroke part time! You didn’t know this? I healed your dragon last time you two got into a fix.”

Ralem’s mouth turned into a perfect ‘o’. His legs shaking a little, he got to his feet. “You did?”

“Yes. And now look how you repay me,” she gestured to Jaydon on the bed, “You try to kill him again!”

“Listen. I never put any purple iris margarine or anything in anything of his. Jaydon turns human by himself. I swear. Please, can you help us? Even if you hate me, could you do it for him? He’s only four months old.”

The old woman nodded slowly, thinking it over. Finally she said, “Okay. But you have to do everything.”

“Okay. What first?” Ralem asked sincerely.

“Well since someone apparently gave him a gallon of potion to turn him human he’s turned so human that he can’t heal. Or he’s too tired to heal. We’re hoping that’s the case. And what’s the most obvious thing to do when he has absolutely no energy?”

“Give him lots of pie?” Ralem asked nervously.

“No. You seriously are as dumb as you look. You need to give him more energy so he can heal. Otherwise, he’s dead,” the healer replied smartly.

“But how?” Ralem asked.

“It’s rather simple. I’m sure Jaydon has given you energy several times. You just gather all your energy into a hard ball inside yourself and transfer it to him. Make sure to  leave enough for you to survive. Don’t worry, you’re young. You’re a Rider. You’ll regain the energy soon enough. And when you do you’ll have to do this again and again until he’s well. Understand?”

Ralem nodded.

“And then you’ll have to leave. You shouldn’t be here. You know that. You’re putting your whole family at risk.”

Ralem hung his head, “Yes, ma’am.”

Aidan, who had been hiding in the corner, popped out at this moment, his eyes wild. “No! You can’t leave, Uncle! You can’t just leave us!” Aidan looked close to tears as he said this. “You have to stay!”

Ralem bent to a knee, gathering the ten-year old up in his arms. “Listen. I don’t want to leave either. But I am putting you all in danger and I can’t risk your lives. I’m sorry.”

“Then take me with you!” Aidan sniffled bravely, “I can take the danger. We’ll fight together!”

Ralem smiled even as the lady glared at him meaningfully. He pulled Aidan away so he could look him in the eye, “You need to stay here and take care of the family for me. That’s a job in itself. Can I trust you?”

“I don’t want to stay!” Aidan said stubbornly, “I want to go with you and Jaydon. I’m sick of looking after my little brother and sister. That’s all I do! I want to do something more!”

As his lip puffed out in obstinacy Ralem saw himself in Aidan. He himself had been tied to his brother and sister, taking care of them in the absence of parents, wishing for something greater in life. But Aidan was only ten years old and certainly didn’t know what Ralem was up against. Ralem mussed up Aidan’s hair, “You can’t. You got to stay here,” he said softly.

“I hate to interrupt the heartfelt Uncle-to-nephew talk but Jaydon is dying,” the healer said quietly, for once not brash.

Ralem smiled sadly at Aidan before walking over to Jaydon and then he and put his hands on Jaydon’s chest like he was directed. Aidan sidled up next to him, watching the dragon intently. Ralem sucked in a deep breath, gathering all his immense energy into a mass inside of him. Then he pushed it into Jaydon. Jaydon’s eyes flicked open in an instant and bright green flashed across the room. Ralem suddenly felt weak-legged. He needed to take a break…

“More!” the healer demanded, “That surely can’t be all!”

Ralem gave up more of his energy. He thought he was going to throw up. “Are you slowing down? Keep going!” the healer demanded as the cuts on Jaydon’s face slowly healed up, “It takes a lot of energy to heal a broken back!” How does Jaydon do this? Ralem thought as he let Jaydon suck more of his energy. The dragon was like a black pit. He was afraid that he would suck up all his energy and it wouldn’t make a dent. “I… need a break,” he gasped out, feeling like he was going to black out.

“Don’t stop,” the healer urged.

“I… have to…” Ralem gasped before the darkness swallowed him up.

            Ralem woke up to the most delicious smell ever. Mmm, he thought, his heavy eye-lids slowly opening. A second later his stomach seemed to wake up and it woke with a vengeance. “I’m STARVING!” Ralem about roared, feeling like he could eat a horse. He realized he was on the floor and scrambled to his feet, jump starting to the kitchen. “Is that lamb stew?”

            Something dark flew out of nowhere and hovered an inch from below his nose. Ralem stopped abruptly, going cross-eyed to look at the heavy metal pan. “Yes. It’s lamb stew. Ralem’s favorite,” Sarah said testily, not lowering the pan. “And you are not going to get a tiny spoonful of it until you tell me what the heck is going on?!”

            Ralem curled his fingers around the greasy sides of the pan, lowering it from his face, “How about you give me some and then I explain? Because I’m really hungry and I think I’m going to die if I don’t have food right now.” He started edging his way towards where the stew was shimmering enticingly.

            The pan shot back towards his face, “No. You’re going to have to wait and give me a reason not to kick your sorry butt out of my house.”

            Ralem looked pained, “For one, this is my house, Sarah.”

            Sarah bit her lip, “No. This is my brother’s house.”

            “But I’m your brother!” Ralem said, reaching around her for a bowl.

            She slapped his hand. “If you are then you need to explain to me why you turn up out of the blue when you haven’t shown up for months, with not just one but two of you, one of which almost gave me a heart attack with his broken back. What am I supposed to believe?” Her voice had steadily risen unto an all-out shriek, “Who is my brother? You,” she poked him hard in the chest, “or him!” she pointed vaguely in Jaydon’s direction.

            Ralem grabbed her hands gently, staring deep into her frantic eyes, “Me. I’m your brother. Baldy, remember?”

            Sarah jerked out of his reach, “He answered to that name too,” she said stiffly.

            Ralem frowned. “That’s because I told him to pretend to be me. He’s not me, Sarah.”

            “Then who is he? Ralem the second?” Sarah spat, hysterical.

            “No. His name is Jaydon,” Ralem said in his most soothing voice. He had managed to get a spoonful of the lamb stew and almost made it to his mouth before Sarah snatched it from him.

            “And who is this Jaydon? Why did you dump him off at my house? And why does he look just like you?” Sarah snarled, poking him on the chest again.

            Suddenly a little voice piped up from the corner of a kitchen, “He’s Uncle Ralem’s dragon,” Tess said, her little face appearing behind the corner of the wall, “And he can turn to look just like Uncle too! Because he’s magical!”

            Sarah said nothing for a minute and Ralem took the opportunity to pour himself some lamb stew and immediately started stuffing his face. Right as he was about to get seconds she lowered her voice meaningfully, “Ralem, you tell me what’s happening right now or you’ll be the one responsible for me getting sent to the loony bin.”

            “He is my dragon,” Ralem said flatly, not caring as long as he got his food. He started slurping up the next bowl obnoxiously.

            “And how am I supposed to believe that?” Sarah asked, threateningly patting the palm of her hand with the pan.

            Ralem searched his mind for something, “Umm…” he slurped down another spoonful before his eyes lit up in an idea, “I have a wing spike of his. It was torn off when he fell. Would that be proof?”

            Not even waiting for her reply, he shot out his chair and rocketed outside, going so fast he was only a blur to the average eye.

            In less than five minutes he was back with a huge sword-like spike cradled in his hands. He angled it to fit in the doorway and slid in, displaying it for Sarah and Tess to see. “Wow!” Tess breathed, running a small hand down its shiny black exterior.

            “Isn’t it big? Come on, Sarah! Touch it!” Ralem urged, hefting it closer to his shocked sister. Sarah reached out a hand and ran her hand down the spike, feeling the bony texture and the fizz of dormant magic. She drew back her hand in shock. “Ralem, you’ve got a lot to explain.”

            Ralem spent the whole morning eating and explaining. Eventually all the kids woke up to join them at the dinner table as Ralem briefly ran over what happened in the last four months, leaving out the Felinus for obvious reasons. The spike lay in the middle of the table, where William and Aidan couldn’t seem to get their hands off it. Finally Sarah told them to stop touching it when Aidan accidentally touched the edge and a tiny sliver of blood seeped from his fingertip. At noon Ralem wound the tale down and took a well-deserved swig of water.

            His sister shook her head, “That was the craziest story I’ve ever heard. I’m not sure I believe you but if you’re really a Rider in Baroke, and a rich one at that I’m happy for you.”

            Ralem almost spat out his water. “Yes, yes! I am rich! I’m practically a royal, Sarah! And you could be too! If I take you back to Baroke with me you all could be kicking it back with servants waiting for your every call! Come with me, Sarah! It could be just like we always dreamed when we were kids- you pretending to be the princess and I your valiant knight!” he beamed, getting to his feet.

            “Yeah! Let’s go!” Aidan and William screamed, jumping up from the table. “Maybe I could be a knight too someday! I could fight off bad guys and stuff!” William cried.

            “And I could have a real sword,” Aidan breathed, “And fight on my own dragon!”

            “And I could have my own dolly with shiny legs,” Tess beamed.

            They all looked at their mother expectantly. She was glaring daggers at Ralem like, couldn’t you have asked this in private? Finally she said, “I don’t know. I’ll have to talk to daddy about it.”

            Ralem slowly sat back down, troubled. Taylor was too attached to his job as potter. He loved Redfield. Would he give this place up? “I’m going to take a nap,” he excused himself before going back to his room and shutting the door. He soon regretted it. It was burning hot in here. He brushed Jaydon’s brow with two fingers. He was warming up a little.

            Ralem spread his legs apart in a defensive stance before putting his hands on Jaydon’s chest and pouring more energy into the dragon. Jaydon’s chest heaved in the shock of power and the slow beating of his two dragon hearts quickened for a moment. His shocking green eyes flew open for a second as the healing got to work, Ralem gritting his teeth as he felt Jaydon’s spine fight to reconnect under him. Jaydon groaned, rising under the raw power being forced into his body. Then Ralem collapsed back onto the side of the bed, dead to the world.