Sets of shivers had been running up and down Aelwen's body all throughout Beveri's story. She and Kera had exchanged several astonished and frightened glances as they listened.

Things were understandably quiet inside the tent. Aelwen wished she could see what was going on. She felt pangs of guilt for listening to such an incredibly private story, but had not been able to pull herself away from it, either.

Witches can possess people? Is there no end to their disgusting menagerie of powers? Do their spirits not pass on? Aelwen's eyes widened. Is that how my mother is... still "alive"? Or is such a thing incredibly rare? The thought caused her to bite her knuckle in nervousness. She looked over at Kera, who was visibly distressed.

"Why hasn't mom ever told me this?" she whispered quietly enough for only Aelwen's dragon form to hear.

Aelwen's brows lowered in concern.

"M-mom..." Gerel said. "I-I had no idea."

Beveri gave a long sigh.

Kera grasped Aelwen's shoulder. "Go. Now, please. If I catch you still skulking around here, you'll pay for it."

Aelwen nodded before padding silently away. She watched as Kera rose up, taking on a commanding presence before striding into the tent.

Kera saying "I heard everything," was the last thing Aelwen could discern before she exited hearing distance, on a beeline for her tent.

She mulled over everything that had been discussed. The way Beveri had described everything, so passionately and with such detail, had made Aelwen almost feel as if she was there. The fight had felt so intense, so real. Aelwen choked up at the thought of what Beveri had been through. Was it really her fault? How could she have known? Yes, it would have been wise to listen to Auria, but... Aelwen shook her head. She let her emotions get the best of her. That is what should be taken away from it all. Plus, to never ignore a goddess...

Aelwen Shifted to human form before entering her tent. As her fingers brushed the tent's canvas, she stopped. Her head cocked slightly. What about that downed dragon? How is he doing, I wonder...

She took up her lunch, which was laid out gracefully for her upon her bed sheets, and pranced outside, heading towards the cave the small dragon was kept in.

She peeked over the hill's edge, heart pounding in anticipation. How will he react to seeing me again? I would assume not in the kindest way. I'd better be prepared in case he decides to use me as fire-breathing practice...

She tip-toed the last few inches, gazing in wonder at the tiny dragon's emerald scales. He was sleeping, curled up cozily against the back wall of the cave. The entrance's iron bars cast striped shadows upon his thin frame.

Aelwen bit her lip at the sight of the two long scars gracing his back where his wings should have been, as well as the bandages wrapped around his front leg. Her sudden sense of deep empathy surprised her.

I take pity in the fact that he cannot fly anymore, yet it was I who was sentenced to the ground for most of my life. I've gained such an incredible ability I never knew I had, and yet I already feel sorry for him for losing his. Hmm...

She sat cross-legged near the entrance's corner, biting into her steak sandwich. He's certainly quite small. Probably around seven or eight if he turned human. Then again, I don't have much of a point of reference for younger dragons besides myself and the few I've seen in this village. I wonder how old he really is?

The dragon gave a snort, tiny puffs of white smoke rising from his nostrils.

We'll have to convince him to join us. His knowledge of the dragon army could be a great asset, not to mention how to stop Empress Kaleign. Delku could get Auria to talk with him, perhaps. I know so little about this goddess. Does she simply talk with people whenever desired? Or when she feels it is the right time? I will have to learn more about her.

The dragon's eye snapped open. Aelwen gave a small cry, coughing profusely as her sandwich caught in her throat. The dragon simply watched as she downed a canteen of water and attempted to recover.

"Ah... h-hello," she said between coughs. "Are you...uh....feeling ok?" She prepared to bolt if need be.

The dragon gave a very childish pout before rolling over so as to face away from her. "Go away," he mumbled. "I won't tell you anything."

"I just wanted to know your name, if that's alright," Aelwen said, brushing her hair behind her ears.

"Filthy humans do not deserve to speak the name of a dragon prince."

"A prince, are you? Does that make you the son of Kaleign?"

"Empress Kaleign, plebian."

Aelwen raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't use that tone of voice with the person who helped to rescue you. You were on the verge of dying until a bunch of us came to heal you."

"HEAL ME!?" the dragon raised his head, spouting flames from his nostrils. "My wings are GONE! Do you call that HEALING!?" He pounded a fist on the ground, tears spouting from his eyes as he began to cry.

"No no no, hey, little guy, it's ok! Stop crying!"

"A P-PRINCE c-can CRY when he WANTS!" the dragon blubbered, his tail slamming into the stone wall.

"Listen, I came here to explain things to you, including who we are and why your wings are gone. If you really don't want to hear that, then I guess I'll get going..."

The prince froze, his eyes narrowing. "No. Stop it. I order you to tell me."

Aelwen smirked.

"BUT you also have to give me that." He pointed a tiny claw at what was left of Aelwen's meal, a lone pear. Aelwen shrugged and rolled it over to him. He ate it quickly.

A prince, huh? He could be lying in order to make us think he's more important than he really is, that he's too dangerous to keep captured.

"My name is Aelwen. I am also royalty."

The prince looked up from his meal. "Hmph. Humans sure have low standards."

Aelwen's face contorted into a sneer. "And dragons sure are spoiled brats..." she said under her breath.

The prince's angry face turned on her instantly. Aelwen suddenly remembered the hearing capabilities of dragons and shirked away from the cage bars.

"N-No, YOU'RE a spoiled brat! All humans are! And also ugly!" Pear juice flew from his mouth.

Aelwen couldn't stand spoiled children. She had dealt with too many of them while living in the castle, be it the daughters of absurdly rich Lords and Ladies, or the sons of pompous Great Witches. She found it best to let them know that she was the one in charge.

She promptly turned into her dragon form, which caused the prince to squeal in terror.

"How do you do that!? I don't understand! Tell me NOW! A human cannot be a dragon!"

Aelwen took in a breath, pacing back and forth outside the bars. "As I said before, I am royalty, the daughter of Queen Liriel."

The dragon hissed. "That horrible, disgusting witch who dethroned my mother all those years ago? I should have known! You must have taken me prisoner to blackmail my mother into stopping her attack, is that right!? Well, princess, I'll have you know that your mother is already dea-"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH AND LISTEN, YOU LITTLE--" Aelwen stopped herself before cursing. She took a deep breath through her nose and regained her royal tone. "You are NOT a prisoner here. We had you put in this cage so you wouldn't hurt anyone. We want to become friends with you, as well as help you recover from your injuries. The only reason your wings were amputated was because they were so incredibly torn up and broken there was no way to repair them. However, your leg will heal just fine."

The prince's mouth opened, then snapped shut. He glanced at the ground, mulling over what she said.

"I used to be aligned with Queen Liriel, but now I am not. I realized her ways were cruel and awful, especially what she did to your mother. However, that doesn't mean Empress Kaleign is right either. She seeks to destroy humanity and take the kingdom for herself, correct?"

The little dragon nodded.

"Well, has she ever told you that she, herself used to be human?"

"YOU TAKE THAT BACK, MEANIE!" the dragon cried, snarling. "You have no right to insult her in such a way!"

Aelwen gave a penetrating stare. The dragon hushed.

"You see, back in those days, humans and dragons were one and the same. All dragons could turn into humans, and all humans could turn into dragons. They were one species, called Shifters. Some people, people like me and the others who rescued you, can still do that. They showed me the truth about us."

The dragon's brows lowered, his face twisting into confusion.

"This war is not between humans and dragons. It is between Queen Liriel and Empress Kaleign. Their followers are of the same kind, just in different forms."

"If what you are saying is actually true, which is definitely isn't..." The dragon paused. "Does that mean I could turn into a human?"

Aelwen cocked her head. "Well, if you aren't a follower of Cainen, then I suppose so."

"Teach me how."

Aelwen smirked. "I thought you said humans are filthy creatures?"

"I have my own reasons for wanting to acquire this knowledge. Now teach me."

"Well, really all that I do to change is focus intently on the idea of changing the parts of my body into that of the other form. Look at your front paw and sort of... will it to become a hand."

"That's all?" the dragon smirked.

"Hey, listen. I'll make you a deal. If you manage to turn human, I'll convince the people who locked you in here to let you out. Got it?"

"Yes! Yes! I'll do it!" The dragon whipped his uninjured paw before him, staring at it intently. "Hand. Hand. Hand," he said repeatedly, as if that helped at all.

Aelwen watched curiously. I wonder if he's really going to be able to do it. Boy, that will be a great first step in helping him understand the cause.

Before her eyes, the dragon's hand began to change. Claws retracted and scales shrank back into soft skin. The same started happening to the rest of his small body.

But as soon as Aelwen's heart soared in joy, it crashed down into the pits of her stomach. It was now, as the young dragon began to scream, that she remembered what Gerel had said.

"It's really...painful to go through a first transformation," his words echoed.

Aelwen shifted back to human form, plugging her ears with her fingers and turning her head away in horror as the boy's pitiful cries reverberated through the cave. What have I done!?

A minute passed. Aelwen rocked back and forth, wishing she were anywhere but there. When the cries stopped, she dared to look back.

Sitting at the back of the cave lay the tiny, curled up body of a ten-year-old boy. He shook intensely, only small whimpers escaping his lips.

Aelwen dashed for a loose rock near the bars, lifting it up to reveal a key. She took it up and unlocked the cage door, closing it behind her and tucking the key in a pocket. She ran up to the boy, covering his naked frame in the blanket he rested upon.

She set a hand on his shoulder, her tongue making the soft clicking sound she made whenever trying to comfort animals or children.

"H-hey, are you alright?" she asked hesitantly.

The boy looked up at her through tangled blonde hair, a brilliant green streak falling over his tearful aqua eyes.

Aelwen took him up in her arms, patting his back as she hugged him.

"I'm so sorry," she said, "First transformations are painful. But please don't worry, now that you've gone through this, transforming won't ever be painful again. I forgot to tell you, I'm so, so sorry." Her own eyes were starting to wet, the idea of inadvertently causing him so much hurt tugging at her heartstrings.

A low chuckle made her stop. Confused, she looked down at the boy. He was smiling, a mangled-sounding laugh escaping his lips.

"Y-youuu foooal!" he said, trying to speak properly with his new mouth. "Yoouu hauve onley led mee to becaume stronguerr! HA HA HA!"

Aelwen pushed him away from her, looking him square in the face.

"Nouw, I haev tha powerr tu infellltraaate youre rankes! I will bue unstoopabell!" He cackled, looking down at his human body. Then he frowned. "Whyy am ai soow smaell?"

Aelwen broke into relieved laughter...

...Until she glanced back to see the woman who was supposed to deliver the prince's food staring right at her, mouth agape in shock. The woman gave a scream before running back to the encampment in terror, the food dropped on the ground behind her.

Aelwen continued to laugh.