Book 2: Chapter 102 (1/2)

“Vur…,” Stella said, drawing out her voice. She sat atop Vur’s head with her arms crossed over her chest. Her eyes narrowed as she lowered her gaze to meet his. “What did I say about contracting a wind elemental?”

“You said definitely not to do it,” Vur said with a nod.

“Right, so you heard me,” Stella said. Her head tilted to the side. “So why did you contract with Zilphy?”

Vur glanced at the green runes on his left arm. Sheryl’s runes were curved and wavy like flames, forming into the shape of a sun. Diamant’s runes were straight and blocky, forming a simple rectangular shape that circled around his forearm. Zilphy’s runes were small and glitter-like, ultimately forming the shape of a five-point star on his bicep. When Vur asked why it was in the shape of a star, Zilphy had said stars were the best, so it was only fitting for the best wind elemental to have a star.

“So?” Stella asked while pouting and tugging on Vur’s hair.

Vur scratched his head. “Well…,” he said. He crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. A moment passed. “Because I wanted to.”

Stella fell forward onto her face, planting her head into Vur’s hair. She sighed and pretended to wipe a tear from her eye. “They grow up so fast,” she said and sniffled. “One moment they’re obedient and listening to you; then the next thing you know, they’re all grown and independent and disregard every one of your suggestions.” She sighed again and shook her head. “Well, that’s okay too. I’ll just feed Zilphy to the dragon.” She dissolved into purple motes of light, entering Vur’s body through his head.

Vur glanced at Diamant’s runes as he stood up and dusted off the back of his pants. “Are you happy, Deedee?”

A tired voice came out of his arm. “No.”

“Wow! Are you saying I don’t make you happy?” Zilphy’s voice came out of the same spot on Vur’s right forearm instead of his left bicep. “Then why’d you marry me, blockhead? Huh? Huh?”

“Just like a fairy,” Stella said from Vur’s chest while tutting. “See how noisy your life is going to be now? Don’t worry, I’ll fix things.”

Sheryl materialized onto Vur’s shoulder in the shape of a small flame. “I think Stella’s jealous,” she whispered into his ear. “Like when an older sibling gets a younger sibling and the older sibling’s afraid of their parents loving the younger sibling more.”

“Then why wasn’t she jealous of you?” Vur asked as he made his way out of Zilphy’s cave.

“That’s simple,” Sheryl said. “Since I’m the most reasonable one of everyone here, I’m like the nanny of the family. You’re the dad. Diamant’s a grumpy old neighbor while Stella is the baby that we all spoil. The baby isn’t jealous of the nanny, but Zilphy’s personality directly contends for Stella’s position as the youngest.”

Vur scratched his head. “Why am I the dad? I’m the youngest one here.”

“What?” Sheryl asked. “No way. That aunt of yours said you drank fountain of youth water. Aren’t you like over a few centuries old? Yeah, dragons become adults when they’re like a dozen centuries old. I’m only 463.”

“What!? You’re younger than me?” Zilphy asked. “I’m close to two thousand!”

“Really?” Stella asked. “From the way you were acting, I thought you were twelve.” A purple light flashed on Vur’s arm. “Come with me for a second.”

“Me? Twelve?” Zilphy asked. “How do I act like I’m twelve? And where are we going?”