"Now let’s set the field properly. Your brother needs to be reassured and your mother needs her strength when she wakes up." As Raaz left the room, Shargein put Elina’s figurine on her bedstand and nuzzled her in worry. The scent relaxed her further and the warmth of the Wyrmling reassured her in her sleep. "Sorry, Auntie. Shargein weak." Seeing their Hatchling so upset made Salaark and Leegaain feel so guilty that Tyris deemed it being reproach enough. Raaz returned a few minutes later, bringing Surin, Aran, and a crib for the baby. "Is Mom alright?" Aran asked. "No." Raaz shook his head. "She witnessed the full fury and power of your grandparents and now needs our help." "Why?" Aran was puzzled. "Isn’t it like the coolest thing ever?" "No, it’s not." Leegaain kneeled to look the boy in the eyes. "Have you ever seen your brother angry? And I don’t mean just annoyed, I mean so mad that he threw a tantrum?" "No." Aran replied. "Big bro is always in control." "Exactly." The Guardian nodded. "It’s because of that control that his power is reassuring instead of scary. Today, your grandma and I lost that control." Aran swallowed hard. He knew how powerful Lith was and could barely grasp how strong a Guardian was. Yet he wasn’t scared of them because he knew they would never hurt him. Without that certainty, he would have felt safer locked in a cage full of starving lions. "Was it bad?" "Very bad." Leegaain lowered his gaze. "I failed your mother and for that, I apologize." "What can I do, Dad?" Aran asked. "The only thing any one of us can do, son." Raaz replied. "Be there for her when she wakes up and tell her how much we love her." *** Leegaain and Salaark left the room not to scare Elina with their presence while the rest of the family assembled there, waiting for her to regain consciousness. Thanks to Tyris’ soothing presence, Elina opened her eyes a little less than two hours after fainting. The warmth of her bed and the fuzziness in her head made Elina want to keep sleeping. Yet the whispers in the room and something warm and scaly under her hand made her look around in confusion. "What are you doing here?" Elina asked in confusion, seeing her husband, children, and grandchildren looking at her with worry. "More importantly, how did I end up back in the Desert?" "What’s the last thing you remember, child?" Tyris asked. "I was buying groceries with Shargein." She patted the Wyrmling’s head and he cooed with joy. "What time is it? I have yet to prepare d-" The scent of Snowpine figurine wafted to her nose, stirring the memories her brain had tried to repress. Elina’s eyes fell on Shargein and she froze in horror as the events of that day replayed in front of her eyes. There was plenty of space around her bed, yet she felt suffocating. Her chest tightened and her breath became ragged as if she was running for her life. "It’s alright, dear." Raaz held her hand and brought it to his lips. "It’s all over now." Your next read is at freewebnovel His voice snapped Elina out of her nightmare and his gesture reassured her. Every time she had given birth, they had been tight on money, or something was wrong, Raaz always kissed her hand and reassured Elina everything it would be alright. Until that moment, he had always been right and there was no reason this time it would be any different. "Are you alright, Mom?" Aran asked and seeing the worry in her little boy’s eyes made Elina feel silly. "Of course, I am." She opened her arms and he ran into the embrace. "If you need to rest, we can leave, Mom." Trion said. "None of you can leave. Especially you, young man." Elina’s voice was filled with too much relief to carry the mock-rebuke she intended. ’My lost boy.’ She thought. ’I’ve lost him for so long and today I almost lost him forever.’ Elina looked under the blankets to ensure she was decent and then stood up to greet her family, hugging them one by one. "I’m sorry for making you worry, Rena." Elina said, "Don’t you ever scare me like that, Mom." Rena embraced Elina tight enough to squeeze the air out of her lungs. ’My first child.’ Elina thought. ’You had it harder than everyone and spent your childhood helping me with your siblings instead of playing. I’m sorry I couldn’t give you more but I’m proud of the woman you’ve become.’ She hugged Trion and then hid her face in Tista’s shapely chest. "Mom! Hands off the merchandise." She chuckled. "Shut up, young lady. I made you." Elina said. ’My poor, poor baby.’ She actually thought. ’She was born so ill. She wasn’t supposed to live past ten and look at her now.’ Then, it was Lith’s turn. ’My miracle boy. I don’t know if the soul inside his body is the same that left it on that night and I don’t care. He is my son. He brought more joy into my life than I could ever dream for.’ "Mom?" Lith asked, unbothered by the long embrace but worried by her sniffling. "I’m sorry. I was lost in thought." Elina let him go and hugged Aran again. ’My lucky charm. I thought I couldn’t have any more children until Lith cured me and now here you are. You have no idea how lucky you are, little rascal. You had more toys than all your siblings combined. I have spent more time with you than any of them.’ Aran groaned in disappointment when Elina stepped back and took Surin in her arms. ’You are my last baby, Surin. I’m too old to have more and my greatest fear is to pass away before having the opportunity to know you. To see the wonderful young woman you’ll become. Mommy loves you so much.’ Surin understood nothing of what was happening in the room. She just cooed at her mother and, when the message wasn’t received, she started to cry, demanding a fresh diaper. "What’s this smell?" Elina pulled back as the cries tortured her ears as much as the stench did her nose. "You’ve ruined this moment for me, young lady." She chuckled. "I’ll take care of her." Raaz took the baby and brought her to the changing table. Elina then embraced her grandchildren one by one, thanking the gods for blessing her with each one of them. "Where are Leegaain and Salaark?" She asked when she was done. "Far from here." Tyris replied. "They didn’t want to upset you further. They’ll stay away for as long as you need." "There’s no need for that." Elina said while thanking Shargein one more time for protecting her. "Call them here, please." "Auntie!" The Wyrmling licked her face before parading the figurine to the rest of the family, fishing for compliments and snacks. A knock on the door quickly followed. "May we come in?" Salaark asked. "Of course you can." Elina forced herself to smile. "This is your palace." "But this is your room." The Guardian opened the door, waiting to see Elina’s reaction before entering.