PROLOUGE
A young woman who bore her children all alone sang to them every night. "A dragon who would lay waste to a village day afterday. Until one day he fell in love with the voice of a maiden who sang for pleasure down by the stream. The Dragon took the maiden to his cave and slept as she sang to him a long ever lasting song. But once the maiden stopped her singing and the Dragon woke, staring at the place where the maiden had suddenly collapsed. Anger made the dragon lay waste again. The villagers sent another maiden to fill her place, declaring her the 'Dragon's Diva'. The Dragon was in rage. He killed the Diva within seconds because of unsatisfactory. Yet they continued to send Divas. One has pleased him since then, and she continues to sing for our saftey." Their mother stopped then, a tiny smile across her face as she stared at the children whose eyes were big and round. She let out a sweet angelic laugh that made the children smile. "Oh, my sweet little darlings," She crooned, "You always get so excited."
"That's because we love that story!" The elder one, a girl, said. Her younger brother nodded vigerously. He couldn't find any words. The story both thrilled him and frightened him. The little girl beside him looked up. "Mother," she began, " Is that story really, really REALLY true?" At that question, their mother seemed distant. The smile vanished and the boy shrank down. He was such a coward compared to his sister. Their mother sighed and put her hand on his head to reassure him, smiling again though her voice was half heartedly showing it. "All in good time." She said with a wink. He smiled.
"Rowan! Can you please go fetch our cows now?" His mother, Gwen, called from the kitchen as an after thought. Rowan, the little boy nodded and jumped down from his bed. He ran out with a small smile upon his shinning little face as Herone, their small collie yipped and pranced around the little boys feet. Rowan kicked up a plank of wood and a farmers hoe, thrusting it out as if he were a knight. "Take that, Dragon! You shalnt kill any longer!" He laughed happily and stood on one of the wooden picket fences. He wobbled then straightened, his clean, bright, blonde hair dancing in the wind. He raised the hoe, as if pointed at an enemy and said. "I shall one day free the maiden who sings to the dragon and forever save our village!" He jumped from the fence into the sty of pigs and ran along top them as best he could. He reached the other side of the fence and teetered on it, falling back with a squeak of surprise. A hand reached for him and tugged him standing up. His sister, also blonde smiled at him. "Rowan, you still sound like a girl."
"Melody!" Melody smiled when he said her name and let go of his arm so he could balance himself. She took the hoe from him and turned. "We'll save the maiden and the village together, Rowan." They advanced forward, balancing on the pickets, shouting war cries. It was noon when they decided to stop and rest, staring out onto the cobbled world around them that represented their home. The sun was warm, the breeze was cool and they didn't have a care in the world. Rowan glanced at Melody who looked up at the sky. She was utterly beautiful, her eyes were perfect just like their mother's and everything about her reminded him of her. Even her voice, it was that beautiful little sound of a dove or bells...
Rowan fidgeted. "Melody... What if you become the Dragon's Diva?" He muttered. Melody glanced at him and snorted.
He looked up at her and waited for her answer.
"For one, Rowan," She smirked, "If I just so happen become the Dragon's Diva, they can never worry about sending another after me if I don't come back. Cause- WHAM- I will kill that monster and mount it's head above my bed so all the folk will know who killed that thing and they would call me the Dragon's Slayer!" She made an over exasperated "HAHA" and then turned to him. "You wouldn't have to come after me, little brother. I would be fine, there would be no need for you to come find me."
"But Melody, I don't... I don't think you know how I can-"
Melody stiffened. "Shh." Rowan followed her gaze as a crash sounded from inside their cottage and two men in armor waltzed out, their mother wasn't far behind. Rowan wanted to cry. Gwen's face was covered in blood and she was limping. He couldn't hear what she was shouting at the men, and it appeared as if they couldn't either. They struted up to them and addressed Melody. Rowan rose up after his sister and clung to her arm. A knight looked down at him and spat, slapping him away. Melody pivoted on her heel to help him but they grabbed her and picked her up over their shoulders. That was when Rowan could hear what Gwen was saying. "Get your filthy hands off my children!" Gwen neared them, a wooden beam in her hand and one of the Knights whirled, striking her cheek. Melody and Rowan screamed in unison."Mommy!" the knight turned on Rowan who ran at the sight of those cold green eyes, crying. Melody screamed and kicked, reaching for Gwen, who lay unmoving in the grass, blood as crimson as the dragon's skin in the story trickled down her cheek. Rowan screamed.
After the knights took away Melody, Rowan cried on the ground, beside his mother. How could they take away his sister? Even after he looked up to them, they treated them as though they were dirt. They treated the wife of a nobleman, the mother of two children like a mistress. How could they? He looked to the sky and cried. "You evil..." He screamed. He then rested his face on his mother's stomach and wept until he fell asleep there in the grass, clouds as grey as he felt never showed. It was a perfect day, to lose your family.
