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Chapter XLVII - The Spirit Realm

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Sir Claudius's soul drifted into the fireplace. He was born out of fire, and so he returned to it.

The stone had finally reached his heart, turning it hard and cold like the fierce Ireland winters. And the rest of his body followed soon after—his chest, forelimbs, underbelly, neck, and lastly, his long snout and eyes.

Flames whisked his silvery-blue soul up out of the chimney and into the moonbeams. Moonlight sucked him up and carried him away.

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Everything was just as it had been on earth. Beochaoineadh Castle remained, as well as the cliffs and forests and sea. But the land was covered in a light blue haze, like mists in the early morning. And shimmering spirits—púcaí, wisps, ghosts, and others—bounced about in the gardens. Deer spirits frolicked in the nearby fields, skipping and leaping like dolphins over the ocean.

There were hardly any sounds, just the sea waves lolling and crashing against the cliffs. Every step Sir Claudius made into the dirt was silent, and his tracks disappeared behind him as he walked down the pebbled driveway leading into his castle.

But then, a voice:

"So, you have a human soul."

Sir Claudius's ears perked. It was a voice he had almost forgotten. Everything in him stopped. His blue lips trembled. "H-hello… Father."

"Hello, my son," the voice returned, low and calm.

Claudius inched around, stiff as a tall oak. Never before had Claudius seen his father's soul, for it was not black and red as his earthly form was. Instead, there was a dark, navy blue dragon standing before him, basking in the moonbeams. The patriarch was enormous, larger than both Sir Claudius and Heart of the Flame combined—practically trumping Beochaoineadh Castle. Loose skin hung down from his neck, almost like a beard, and it swung in the slight breeze. Multiple silvery brandings scattered all across his body like a patterned tapestry was draped over his scaly skin.

"Am I blue, too?" Claudius asked, holding his hands out in front of him.

"Everything is this hue in the spirit realm, Claudius," the Patriarch replied.

The man bobbed his head up and down, his face stuck in an expression of both awe and hesitation. "Are we both… dead?"

The Patriarch shook his head. "You are. However, I am not, my son. Since I am an Elder, I can pass through the realms as I please." He hung his head. "I keep tabs on all of my children. I always make it a priority, whenever one of my children pass—whether they have remained in the clan or ventured out on their own—to visit them."

Claudius took in a deep breath. "So, my soul is human… but where is my dragon body?"

"Right where you left it. You could travel to the dungeons if you wanted and find it."

"Oh, no. I never want to see that skin ever again. I'm… oh…" His skin turned bright white as he sighed with relief and a blue flame ignited in his eyes. "Oh, I'm so glad to be rid of it!" Running his hands through his shimmering blue hair, Claudius grinned and hollered for joy.

The Dragon Patriarch frowned, his old, saggy scales shifting downward. "I wish you would not speak like that, Claudius."

The man's arms fell to his side. "Why not? You know better than anybody how much I loathed my dragon skin. And now I can be forever free from it!"

"I know, I know," the Patriarch spoke. "But… oh, Claudius, you never learned, did you?"

"Learned what?"

The Dragon Patriarch lifted his forelimbs, rearing up slightly before pressing them into the ground again. He turned around, his tail slinking, but leaving no trace that he had been there. "You know better than anyone, Claudius—as a Master of Potions—that all enchantments have stipulations. And there are reasons behind them."

Claudius followed his father, stepping alongside his massive form. "I always felt that it was a curse, never an enchantment. For I could never be fully who I wanted." His face grew stern, as he stared into his father's slitted eyes. "It was a living hell being two halves, but never a whole, Father."

Lifting up a claw, the Patriarch rubbed the back of his neck. "I—" He faltered. "I never knew what to do with you, Claudius." He looked off into the distance. All of the spirits had dispersed elsewhere, not wanting to disturb the two of them—although a few stragglers hid behind bushes in the garden, listening. "You never knew your mother. You never knew what she was like."

Claudius shook his head. He hadn't wondered about her in decades.

"She was a rogue, a traveler, going from clan to clan—but I did not know this at the time. She asked permission to join and, as is tradition in our clan, I mate with new members first before anyone else. I… thought that she would mate with others but—she never did. There were only a few other brandings on her side, so I knew she did not mate very oft—"

"What was she like?" Claudius interrupted.

"Pardon?"

"Her personality? Her features? Anything?"

The Patriarch threw his head back and let out a deep booming laugh, almost a roar. "Oh, you are human, aren't you?" he spoke. "I hardly remember, Claudius. She was bright red—like you—with a few white and silver markings. And her eyes were green and yellow. Oh, she was quiet and soft. Shy, but eager as we mated. She hardly ever spoke. Even as she had you, she barely said a word— then… she left. Almost as soon as she had arrived, she left."

Claudius leaned forward, reaching out for his father's arm. "But… why? Didn't she want anything to do with me?"

The Patriarch sighed. "Claudius, I know, as a human, you want to believe that your mother cared for you, but the truth is—not all dragon mothers remain with their young. Oh, some do, but your mother was a roamer and likely wanted to go mate with someone else in another clan. We were all surprised when she left, but there are many dragons—male and female—who live as such."

"So, that's it?" Claudius huffed. "I die and go to the spirit realm all to just see the one who cursed me again, and to learn that my own mother wanted nothing to do with me." He strutted away from his father, heading toward the castle doors. "At least Athena will be here in a few decades, and then I can finally be at peace."

The Patriarch drew his eyebrows together. "Athena...?"

Sir Claudius rested his fingers on the door handle, not pulling. "She… is a girl." He winced.

"A human girl?"

"Yes, well, mostly." He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Mostly?"

"She's… she was born with a gift. Half-púcaí, half-human. She can shift whenever she pleases."

"Hmmm…" the Patriarch hummed, scratching his loose skin with his thick claws. "So, what is your relationship with this... girl?"

Claudius gulped. "Well, a— romantic… one?"

The Patriarch's eyebrows uncreased and he closed his eyes. "So, you have fallen in love, as the humans say."

Claudius reared back, turning around. "Is there anything wrong with that?"

"You know how I feel about lifelong mates—or 'spouses'. You are a dragon, Claudius. You are not meant to—"

"I am not a dragon, Father. My soul is human. I am human." He marched forward, pointing a finger at the monstrous beast in front of him.

The Patriarch sighed, lowering his head. "I've argued this with you before, and I shan't do it again. But I'll tell you: It is the way of life for dragons to mate multiple times. We do not pick and choose one mate, we do not sell our mates, or give away mates for diplomatic reasons—as humans do. We are all bonded together; our clan is strong because we are all connected." He put his claw up against his heart. "Oh, Claudius, I only wish you could understand. What it's like to live in a clan where there is trust and respect between each member. I suppose that the humans around here cannot understand that. So, there is adultery and divorces and lies and manipulation. There is none of that in the dragon world, my son. I only wish you could understand. That's why—" He took a deep breath. "That's why I wanted you to remain partially dragon so that maybe, you could learn what it is to love in our way."

Claudius faced the ground, shifting his feet in the pebbles. Blue mists swirled around his face. "Father, I always understood what it meant," he said, lifting his head suddenly.

The Patriarch's features twisted, confused.

"I never disagreed with the ways of the dragons. I think it's wonderful that you feel this way about mates. If you want to know the real truth, I had considered mating with a female dragon not too long back but decided against it. Because Father," he looked the dragon in the eye, pleading with him, "this kind of love is not for me." The man's features and wrinkles softened and his eyebrows unfurled. "No, not all humans mate for life. Certainly not. But… some do," he said. "I do. I could never be with anyone else except Athena. My heart knows her and only her." Claudius flung his arm around, speaking into the distance. "Even with the temptation of… Heart of the Flame and Henri… oh, I couldn't let my Athena go. She means too much to me. We are one and the same." Claudius smiled at the thought of rose petals falling, the colors pink and blue.

The Patriarch winced, sliding his paws in the ground. "So, now that you are gone… how do you think she will cope?"

Claudius's shoulders fell and he ran a hand through his hair. "This should have never happened to someone so young. She does not even know who she is, Father. All she knew is that she loved me. I saw it in her. She gave up every part of herself to save me." He had a far-away look in his eyes and his mouth hung open. "That kind of love I wish I could have given her. Part of me wants to start all over as a man so that I can live out our great love together."

"But, Claudius…" The Patriarch's head slipped onto the pebbles. "Do you not see the issue here?"

The man waited in anticipation, ready to roll his eyes.

"Do you not see that Athena was much too young to be in such a… devoted relationship? Now that you are gone, what is she supposed to do with herself?"

Claudius scratched his chin and his eyes drew closer together as he winced. "I suppose... you're right, Father. I hadn't…." He pulled away, marching into the grass, pacing back and forth. "Oh… Isolde was right!" The man wrapped his arms around his head and crouched down, squatting on his heels. "Athena was never a rose like I thought she was—like I wanted her to be! She was never a domesticated, tame rose who would sit and read with me at the fireplace, or do everything I said." Suddenly, he flung himself up out of the fetal position. Standing on the grass, his face lit up. "She is a wild rose. A wild rose that's barely bloomed."

Winds circled all about them; the ocean waves roared at the cliffs.

"Oh, Father, I've been so foolish!" He spread his arms out, opening up his chest. "I knew who I was. I've known who I am for centuries!" he cried. "But Athena never had time to figure out who she was before I died." A sudden sadness came over the man. "I never got to see her bloom. I was too selfish to realize, so eager to love and be loved… perhaps it was better to wait before pursuing a relationship so serious with her."

The Patriarch nodded his head and grinned a toothy grin. A hearty laugh erupted out of the chambers of his belly and throat, smoke spewing out of his mouth. "Oh, my son, you may have lived longer than any human on earth but… you are still such a child when it comes to love. I am proud of you for your epiphany, however." His smile faded and he turned away into the blue moonlight. "You are not a weakling, as so many of the clan members thought. I once thought so too but… now I understand. After all these years, you wanted to live and love in the human way. Even if you respected the dragon way, you couldn't live like it and be content." The Patriarch rubbed his paws together, leaning on his back legs and long tail. "I'll make you a deal, Claudius."

The man's ears pricked.

"The abilities I have acquired over time are powerful," the dragon said, forming a ball of energy and light in-between his paws. "You may have to wait years for this certain spell to take place but… that is the challenge I leave to Athena."

"Athena?" he gasped, leaning forward. "Why Athena? What does she have to do?"

"Well, why not?" He grinned. "After all, she still has her own story to write."