EMERSON
First, it was the sudden move to Sotsyce Academy. And now the tour guide had to spring up the ancestor taming a dragon bullshit. I wasn't prepared for any of this. I had no interest in any of this.
"Before you officially begin classes tomorrow, a little visit to your parents' house is in order." She smiled at me. "You don't look too excited to hear that."
"I don't know them," I simply said.
"You'll get the chance to know them today. They're good people. Whatever they did, they did it for you even though it was foolish on their part. We eventually found you."
She led me out of the museum and the building, stopping in front of a black, sleek car. "Be open-minded, Emerson. Wait and listen to them."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because it can be so easy to misinterpret intentions if you don't sit down to analyze things first. Just my thoughts."
She opened the backseat door, and when I slid into the car, she slammed the door shut. The driver promptly pulled off, and I sat in the backseat of the car, questioning everything I knew about my life.
***
"We're here, Ms."
I didn't realize I'd dozed off in the car until the driver shook me awake.
"Sorry. Where are we?"
"Your parents' house."
Oh, right. I was here to see my biological parents. Everything I discussed with my tour guide beforehand flashed through my head.
Be open-minded, Emerson. Wait and listen to them.
With a deep sigh, I climbed out of the car. I was speechless when I saw the white and gold mansion in front of me.
This was a luxury I never dreamed of touching. Sure, I lived a comfortable life with my family, but this wasn't comfortable. This was sprawling wealth.
"This way, Ms."
I snapped my mouth shut, following the driver down to the wide-open front door where a butler was already waiting.
"Ms. Emerson, welcome home," the butler said with a kind smile.
Instead of correcting him that this wasn't my home, I put a smile on. "Thank you, sir."
"Your parents are in the garden. I'm sure you can indulge in some late breakfast. They're in the garden."
"Sure."
My stomach growled at the thought of food. I had not yet had breakfast. As we drew closer to the garden, I heard a high-pitched voice.
"You said she was safe there, Pious," the woman's high-pitched voice said.
Pious was my father's name. Was he here? My question was answered when we got to them. A woman paced in front of the table with a phone pressed against her ear. When she laid eyes on me, she stopped talking.
"Let me call you back, Pious."
The man sitting on the chair rose from his seat, shuffling closer to his wife.
"Emerson!" Their eyes watered as they stared at me, but neither of them reached for me even though I could see that they wanted to. I couldn't bring myself to make the first move, so I stayed put.
"Hey. So, you're my parents."
The control the woman had over her emotions shattered. She broke into tears, throwing her arms around me.
"They found you," she sobbed.
The man walked over to us, wrapping us both in his arms. From my peripheral, I could see the butler walking away to give us some privacy.
We stood like that for a while, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the hug.
"How about we discuss everything over breakfast?" The woman offered.
"Sure."
***
"Believe me, I never wanted to let you go, but I had to. For your safety, but it seems like eighteen years of keeping you away has been washed down the drain," Emily, my birth mother, said with a defeated smile.
Now that she was calmer, she had the sweetest voice I'd ever heard.
"What exactly were you protecting me from?" I asked.
"The prophecy," Darren, my father, answered.
"What does that have to do with me?"
"The queen had her first son a few days before I gave birth to you. Even at such a young age, you had an uncanny resemblance to Enya."
"I'm assuming Enya is the woman who successfully tamed a blood dragon."
"Yes. She's from your mother's side of the family. We knew if they saw you, they'd want you to tame Armani. We know how dangerous having such a responsibility can be. We couldn't take that, so we had to send you away. Pious is a close family friend, so he offered to help. We didn't want anyone to find you."
That explained why I was homeschooled, and never allowed to attend crowded events.
Tears swam in her eyes. "You were so precious, and I couldn't watch you go through that, so I thought if I kept you away long enough for Armani to find a rider, you'd be able to return home safely without that responsibility."
"Armani doesn't have a rider," I told them.
"We know," they said in unison.
"Fate is playing the same game, and this time, they want our precious daughter to tame Armani," Darren said.
"You think I'm his rider?"
"We know you're his rider," Emily said with a sad smile. "He hasn't found his rider for years, and that's because you're his rider."
"What if I'm not?"
"What if you are?"
"What do I do?" I asked.
Emily said, "You have to do it. Maybe hiding you wasn't the right thing to do. We've just realized how selfish we've been all along. Without you, Draconix will fall. Armani is slowly tipping over the edge."
"What if I don't want to?"
"The choice is yours, Emerson. No one can make that decision for you. No matter your choice, we'll be here to support you as your parents."
That was supposed to be comforting, but it filled me with more dread knowing the fate of Draconix laid on my shoulders. The expectations would be high. They'd expect me to carry out the task the way Enya did.
The drastic turn of events in my life was something I never expected, but somehow I knew I'd barely gotten started. I still had obstacles to beat in front of me.