CHAPTER 21 – STRENGTH FROM WITHIN
I finally got to the tunnel entrance. I knew she was inside before I got in myself. There were fire marks around the edge of the edge. I used the water to open the tunnel, but…I soon regretted it. As soon as I opened it up, I was attacked…by a dragon! It may not have been big; in fact, it was the size of my hand!
"Hey! Get back here!"
It was Sen's voice. "Sen?"
"Oh, hey Lein."
What are you doing here? Everyone's been looking for you. Where's Yang? And…what or who is this?"
"Oh, Yang's asleep after getting bored. I haven't named her yet. Um…Lein? Where'd the sun go?"
"Sen! It's after ten!"
"What!?"
I sent up a giant water bomb, that way everyone knew I found her. She explained how the tunnel entrance closed, and she couldn't tell sunlight from moonlight.
"Sen, we've been worried about you. Especially Nara and me."
"Why?" Sen looked at me closely, as if looking for the answer on my face.
"Because…he's your brother and…"
"No! I mean what you meant about especially you two."
"Well, I'm your best friend and…about when you…"
"When I what?"
"When you were little…and used attack called the Dragon Flair."
"He what!? I'm going to kill him!"
"What? Why?"
"He was never supposed to tell anyone! He promised me that he would never speak of it! Sure, I was going to tell you, but after I mastered it myself! Which would probably be tomorrow, or right now. I'm sorry for yelling, I just got so upset."
"It's okay. But tell me, what is the Dragon Flair?"
"It's a special attack that my mother taught me. And only me." I began to freeze up, but only a little. This was Sen's mother, not mine. "It's an attack that she created all her own. She taught me everything and showed it to me. Step by step, and every stage. She didn't even try to teach Nara, just me!"
"Wow."
"But that's when it ended. Lein, I'm just like you. No parents, nothing. All I've got is Nara, and he's really protective."
"How….?"
"Your village wasn't the only village attacked by lightning. Volcano was too."
"Wow Sen. That takes a lot."
"To do what?"
"To still practice your mother's attack, even after she's dead. That takes a lot."
"She always said the reason she taught me wasn't because I was her daughter. It was because I had 'strength from within.' But I don't know what it means."
"It means to have lots of courage to stand up for what you believe in. like protecting your friends and your way of life. To believe in yourself at all times, and never give up."