The moon hung high over their castle in the mountains when Irene's enhanced dragon senses picked up the sound of whimpers from Erza's chambers. The Queen of Dragons, who had been studying ancient texts in her library, felt an unfamiliar tightening in her chest at the sound of her daughter's distress.
"No... Jellal, please... Simon... everyone..." Erza's voice carried through the stone walls.
Irene found herself at Erza's door before she even realized she had moved. Inside, the twelve-year-old thrashed in her bed, her scarlet hair - so like her mother's - splayed across the pillows. Tears streamed down her face even in sleep.
For a moment, Irene stood frozen. Comfort wasn't something that came naturally to her after centuries of hardening her heart. But seeing her daughter in pain awakened something primal within her - something she thought she'd lost long ago.
"Erza," she called softly, sitting on the edge of the bed. Her hand hesitated before gently touching her daughter's shoulder. "Wake up, little one."
Erza's eyes snapped open, glowing with residual magic in the darkness. For a second, she looked ready to attack, but then recognition dawned on her face. "Mother?"
"The tower again?" Irene asked, her voice unusually gentle.
Erza nodded, trying to hide her tears but failing. In a rare moment of vulnerability, she launched herself into her mother's arms. Irene stiffened for a moment before slowly wrapping her arms around her daughter.
"They hurt so many people," Erza whispered. "And Jellal... he changed. He became something else..."
Irene's fingers found their way into Erza's hair, stroking it softly as she had seen human mothers do. "Listen well, my daughter. Pain shapes us, but it doesn't define us. What they did to you in that tower... it will make you stronger. And one day, you'll be powerful enough to ensure no one can ever hurt you again."
"Will you teach me?" Erza asked, her voice small but determined. "To be strong like you?"
A rare smile graced Irene's features. "I'll teach you to be stronger than me. You are my daughter, after all. The blood of dragons runs through your veins."
As Erza's breathing steadied, Irene found herself humming an ancient dragon's lullaby - one she hadn't thought about in centuries. It was in a language long forgotten by humans, but its magic still held power.
"What's that song?" Erza asked drowsily.
"It's a dragon's lullaby about a young dragon who learned to soar above the storms that frightened her," Irene explained. "Perhaps... I can teach you that too."
"I'd like that," Erza murmured, already drifting back to sleep, feeling safe in her mother's embrace.
Irene continued humming, her usual sharp features softened in the moonlight. She realized that in trying to heal her daughter, something in her own heart was slowly healing too. The darkness of the tower would never fully leave Erza, but Irene would make sure it was overshadowed by the power and pride of being a Belserion.
"Sleep well, my little dragon," Irene whispered, maintaining her vigil until dawn's first light.
This is it for the second chapter !