Chapter 11

That scream didn't sound friendly. Startled, Hayden cracked the glass he was holding. Tea mixed with blood coursed down his tensed arm. The twins frowned, watching the silver smoke around the ceiling tangling into a confused mass. When they rushed to the door, their jaws almost dropped to the floor upon seeing the unconscious Melvin. His arm was draped over Miracle's shoulder.

"What happened?" Hayden asked, keeping his scratched palm behind his back. The wound was closing.

What should she say? If she were to say the truth—that this human boy could see the barrier when he wasn't supposed to—he was surely getting chased out of the house. 

"Nothing serious. Just a mild heatstroke," she said simply. 

She didn't want to tell them what exactly happened yet, though it might be a mistake keeping them in the dark. 

Lyn raised a brow. "Mild? The scream—"

"Now that we don't have to worry about the mortal overhearing us," Miracle cut in before she had a chance to further her doubts, "let's continue, Mr. Hayden."

"Continue what?" She heard Lyn asking her brother as he flattened the cushion for Melvin to rest on it.

Kingsley might not like him, but he didn't want to go against the values his dad had raised them with.

Hayden walked over to the couch and crouched beside it. Brushing Melvin's fringe away, he gently rubbed his temples.

"Head up first, children. I need to talk to Miracle." 

"Yes, dad." The twins could only obey.

As soon as they left, there was a long silence. Miracle sensed Hayden was still dithering to tell her everything. But time was running out. She was sent here for a reason, not as a burden.

Who did he talk to about her? Why wasn't he revealing anything to her? 

"Tell me, Mr. Hayden." She tugged at his sleeve, pleading, "What's wrong with this cycle?"

Her gaze was so determined. He gave in, at last. 

"Do you know why mortals stopped believing in dragons?" he asked. 

"Because of an incident."

"What incident?"

She shrugged. "No one is allowed to talk about it in Long Sheng Jie."

Hayden took a deep breath. "Fallen angels have always been the evils. But Mynheex was once the plant elves of Soulless Sonder."

"What?! They were... the silver fronds?" She gaped in shock. "Myn... Mynheex?"

"They were the doorkeepers of Long Sheng Jie. In those days, demons might be demons, but they seemed to be on good terms with Long Sheng Jie. Or rather, they were all minding their own businesses. Nobody created wars. Everybody was living peacefully. But everything torn apart because of betrayal," he continued, knitting his brows. 

"Betrayal?"

He stroked Melvin's cheeks, his eyes expressing layers of concern for the unconscious boy.

"Long... long time ago, there was a fallen angel and a celestial dragon who had fallen in love with one another. They made me realize the beauty of love, that love can be so pure and simple." Hayden caressed the silver smoke twirling around his finger. "But their love wasn't blessed. His Majesty got angry with them, more at Sonders for allowing a fallen angel into Long Sheng Jie. The plant elves begged for forgiveness. However, nothing could be done. The fact that they had broken the rules was inexcusable. His Majesty tore away their skin of immortality and went to the extent of banning them from entering the realm. Ever since then, we no longer have any elves born from these little silver fronds."

"But why did the plant elves agree to help?"

"Greed kills a person, my dragon. Sonders.... they had always desired to be number one."

"What... What happened to the lovers, then?" She held her breath, having a hunch that the latter part of the story was going to be more devastating.

A wave of sadness glinted across Hayden's eyes. His expression gripped her heart. "I'll tell you about it next time. I need to go upstairs to check on the twins," he said, reaching for the stairs.

Feeling complicated, Miracle slumped against the cushion behind her. Just like that, she sat alone in the living room for a few minutes, not doing anything but staring into the distance. Whatever Hayden said a while ago played like a recorder at the back of her mind.

'Mynheex once belonged to Long Sheng Jie. Everything fell apart because of betrayal.'

Her heart ached. She hated the rules, hated how Long Shen handled things with no mercy nor compassion. For Sonders to give up on their pure souls and bow to the demons, it was hard to imagine the amount of torment they had gone through.

The urge to release the dragon in her was getting stronger the more she tried to hold it back. But she hesitated to click the latch. Melvin was in the house. She was aware of it. Yet, there was this voice in her, assuring her that everything would be all right since it'd probably take some time for him to regain consciousness.

That she would have enough time to free the beast in her even if it was just for a short little while.

When she stepped out of the sliding door, wild grasses began to wrap around her bare feet, tingling her with a rich sensation of earthy vitality. Eau de nil rings rose from the soil and circled her as she continued walking toward the deeper layer of the backyard. Long whiskers at the sides of her mouth emerged; her legs transformed into the tail of a white dragon. Skin of mortality sank under her icy flesh, making way for the scales to return to their original positions.

"I don't know the precise story yet," she uttered. "But I really want to put an end to this endless war." Miracle flicked awake the colors in her eyes. "Earth, I summon you."

The moment she stepped into the hidden layer, her human disguise was engulfed wholly by the celestial animal.

With a loud snarl, she lifted her paws. Surrounding roots pierced through the ground at once, gliding through the air to crawl onto her body. The call of nature surged in her. Gravel on the ground hovered, turning into merciless daggers as she hurled them toward the sea-blue clouds behind the external protection. They rebounded. Descending to the pond not far away, she slammed the water with her tail. The roots on her body expanded and burst into glowing flakes, drying up the ground right there and then. 

Countless streaks of lightning flashed across the sky and struck the barrier as if they were reprimanding her for what she did. Black pigeons on the tree branches and electric poles flew away, jerked by the anonymous force.

Dissolving into a human again, Miracle heaved a heavy sigh. She yanked over a whole lump of silver smoke circulating in the house to restore everything back to how it was. 

When she exited the invisible layer, a piece of fallen white Magnolia shouted for her attention. It reminded her of the white jade Xun gave her when he was still alive. Picking up the broken petals, she floated them on her hand with no hesitation, forgetting the fact that there was a mortal in the house, and she was no longer in the camouflaged area.

"For you, Xun, and for the rest of our dragons, I promise to give my all." The petals incandesced and stuck back together. 

Right then, footsteps approaching from the back sent numerous shivers down her spine. She dropped the flower instantly and prayed hard that it wouldn't be him.

"What are you talking about?"

But as soon as he spoke, her heart sank.

'Crap.'

Miracle faked a laugh to ease her nervousness. "Oh... You're awake? How are you feeling?"

"What are you talking about...?" he repeated his question, ignoring hers. His eyes widened in shock and confusion. He pointed to the Magnolia dropped next to her feet. "And what did you do to that flower?"

Panic flooded her soul. She couldn't think of anything to say.

Melvin locked his sight on her. "Miracle... You're a dragon?"