... The Monster was alone this time. Beor saw him on an black island in the middle of a lava lake somewhere deep underground, his hands shackled to an obsidian pole with black chains. His head hung low as he seemed to be either unconscious or asleep.

"Hero?" Beor called out, already knowing that the Monster would not see or hear him, being just a vestige of the terrifying past life, which his strange child had left behind him.

"Atta!" Hero called out from behind him and Beor immediately felt the hug at his legs as the small human ran up to him. Beor patted his head and looked at the Monster in confusion, wondering what terrible punishment this was. The place around them looked like something straight out of scary stories about the Nether.

Again, Beor couldn't help wondering what terrible crimes this Monster had committed to deserve such treatment. A hint of pity stirred in his heart as he looked at him, tied and helpless, until he remembered the burning villages that he had seen in the child's dreams earlier.

"Hero, remember, this is not real. All right? Now, try to wake up. You need to wake up."

Beor said patiently, picking the child up in his arms. Hero only blinked at him in confusion, watching him with his eerie white eyes. In response, the child only pouted. Beor sighed in frustration. It seemed that something needed to happen in the dream before Hero could wake up. Another piece of crucial memory that had to snap back into place.

The child's memories were returning back to him, a piece at a time. Beor understood that much after being drawn into his dreams five times over the past 6 months.

The only thing he could make sure is tell him that these memories were not his own, to separate the child's current past from the terrible one that happened before, in hopes of preventing him from turning into the Monster that the witch threatened he was destined to become.

So far, this seemed to be working.

"Hero, what has happened here so far? What is going on?" Beor asked the child patiently, but Hero only shrugged and resentfully pointed at the lonely figure on the obsidian island in the middle of the lava lake, appearing confused.

"So, he is just there and that's it?"

The child quickly nodded, not appearing to be in much distress. If anything, he seemed slightly bored. Yawning, he rested his head on Beor's shoulder and closed his eyes.

A dizzying feeling and Beor found himself back in his living room again, still touching the child's heated forehead. For a moment, he stared at him in confusion. Then, his eyes strayed to the child's hands and widened.

Jerking violently away, Beor stared at the small flicks of flame that played around the sleeping child's fingers. The blanket was already blackened, with small embers eating away at the fibers around Hero's arms.

Not knowing what to do, Beor strode to the wash basin and, taking a pitcher of water, simply dumped it over the child in his bed.

Startled from sleep, Hero gasped and looked at Beor with wide eyes before his face made a an unhappy, hurt pout.

"Hero! No crying! Your hands were on fire!" Beor said sternly.

At that, the child lifted his small hands and looked at them in confusion. There weren't any flames there anymore, just slightly flushed skin. Beor frowned and quickly touched the child's small hands with his own, inspecting Hero's fingers. Turning his hands this way and that, Beor looked at him with concern.

"It doesn't hurt?"

Still confused, Hero shook his head. Just at that moment, Beor's brother peeked into the room. Glancing at the bits of water pooling on the floor around Hero's bed, he raised his eyebrows.

"What happened?"

Beor chewed his lip, still frowning, but then knew he couldn't keep this from everyone. Fire magic was dangerous…

"Fire. He was dreaming and… his hands turned on fire."

"What?"

"He has fire magic, Rangil. That's why he was having nightmares and got so hot before. His magic is trying to wake up."

"More magic?" Rangil asked with disbelief. For a moment, he just stared at the child uneasily, then came a few hesitant steps closer. "What does this mean, Beor? What are we going to do?" He asked.

"Well, we cannot keep this from the elders. I think this time… We will have to tell them. It's too dangerous not to." Beor muttered darkly, wondering if he should tell them the whole truth about the child's dreams as well, even if it might mean that he would be banished.

"But I thought… Uncle Grake…" Rangil said helplessly, turning to the window where he could see the older villager awkwardly throwing a woven ball to Margol and Tnul, who would catch it and laugh.

"This is now bigger than us. Fire magic is too dangerous to be kept a secret."

"So, he really is a monster like the witch said?" Rangil frowned, giving the confused child a displeased look.

"No. Having a dangerous magic does not make him a Monster. You should know better than to say so. He is just a human child with big magic. We just have to be careful and teach him properly, so he does not end up doing something dangerous by accident. It will require an entire village and not just us to teach him how to be careful with his magic, so he does not accidentally hurt someone."

"What if they are going to banish us, instead? You know Uncle Grake is not going to give him up. Where are we going to go? They are going to tell all the villages about this." Rangil asked in a small voice.

"That won't happen, Rangil. If anything, I will take that responsibility. I will go with the child instead."

"No."

"It was my call not to say anything to anyone about his ability to tame monsters or heal himself, either. But then I did tell them and they accepted it. Only gave me a warning to tell them anything else without fail." Beor shrugged to dismiss his brother's worries. "And the elders were displeased, yes. But they didn't banish me then. So, its unlikely that they will banish me now, either. Not if I tell them right away about this."

"Are you sure?" Rangil asked uncertainly and Beor nods with confidence he did not feel. After a moment, Rangil reluctantly nods.

"We'll tell them, then… And about the Witch? Are we going to tell them that she told you that he is not Human?"

"No." This time Beor's voice came stern. "Because she spoke falsely. She said that he is a Monster, but he is not. He is just a human mage. But even if he is right and he is not, he has not done anything wrong, yet. At least not in this life. We have no right to judge him until he does something. That is our way. Each Respawn means a new beginning, regardless of who you may have been before. That is what our law says."

Rangil watched his brother with a darkening face and stubbornly shook his head.

"Beor, the law applies only to us, Villagers. Not to Humans or… whatever he might be."

"As far as I'm concerned it should apply to everyone. He is a good child and does not deserve to be cast out. Neither do I want to go and live out there on my own if I have to leave the village because of him."

At the last, Rangil slumped and then looked at Beor with resentment. "You should have told me about all this sooner. And it should be uncle Grake who should leave, not you. He is the one who brought him here and asked us to come and help him."

At the stubborn look in his brother's face, Beor sighed and put his hands gently on his brother's shoulders. "Please, Rangil. Listen to me… Everything will be all right. You will see." He smiled confidently.

Rangil huffed and looked to the side at the singed blanket, which Hero was now gingerly touching with an apologetic pout, not appearing to mind that he was wet.

"I will do what you say, Beor. For your and our uncle's sake. But I don't agree with it. You should have told everything that happened to us all fully. And I think you are still not saying everything to me now, are you?" He looked intently into his brother's eyes and at the guilty look in Beor's eyes only thinned his lips and made a step back.

"I thought so…"

"Rangil, I'm sorry. I know I'm not telling you everything that happened, but I just… don't want to worry you. I have to… figure out first if it's really true."

"This has something to do with that witch told you, then?" Rangil asked curiously despite his hurt look and Beor guiltily nodded.

"Yes. She told me and showed me some things… She did it so I could see his dreams and I have seen a few of them. Enough to tell me that there is more to it than just him being a bad mage in his past life. I will tell you once all the puzzle pieces fall into place. I promise you that."

Rangil considered with brother for a long moment and then faintly smiled as a weight seemed to have left his heart and mind. With his old trust in his dark green eyes, he then carefully nodded, his tone friendlier and lighter.

"All right, then. Don't forget. You are the oldest and in charge, anyway. I will support you regardless of what you say."

Stepping quietly away, Rangil walked to the door and paused at its edge. "I just hope… You are not making a mistake."

He left, leaving Beor alone with Grake's little foundling. Beor sighed, looking at his hands uncomfortably as he once again doubted whether he was making the right decision. He had to tell the elders about this fire magic. But what about everything else? If he told them that Hero really was a Monster who has destroyed entire villages in his past life as the dreams seemed to tell him he did, then they would banish him from their village. Maybe he could convince uncle Grake from going with him?

Was Beor doing the right thing protecting this being that uncle Grake was still so sure was an innocent human child with magic?

Small hands hugging his legs attracted his attention. He found Hero looking up at him with innocent guilt. He lifted the singed blanket to him.

"… Sorry." He said in a small voice.

Beor hesitated and then couldn't help smiling. This was no monster. This was little Hero. He just had amazing, if dangerous gifts that could be turned for good, so long as he received proper care and love. Surely that would be enough to keep him from becoming bad despite everything.

Beor took the damaged blanket away and patted Hero on his back to comfort him. "It's all right. Lets change your clothes and then see if you can go help grandpa Grake make some more baskets. Then we'll exchange them and get you another blanket. How does that sound?"

Relieved, the child nodded and hesitantly smiled.