Fledgling: Part 94
Greetings all!
It's starting again! Meet SNAFU (snaffie for short). We didn't expect to be given a baby rat this young again, but here we are. As of today, he is 16 days old and still requires formula every 4.5-5 hours.
Now that my new writing partner has been introduced, please enjoy this update.
She got to her feet and made her way to the door.
“Where are you going?” demanded Fledge.
“To play my role. To feed the maw to ensure that she can fix what *she *shattered. It must have worked, as no Fledglings have been fed to it.”
“What was all this then? Do you get off on abandoning me?”
She froze in place, a look of guilt and sadness crossing her face.
“I didn’t know about you, but I did everything I could to save you once I knew. You think the timeline you have been playing in is your own? No, that timeline has long since ceased to exist. We are the last from it. I raised you to hate me, to not follow in my footsteps. I didn’t want this life for you.”
“Yet, I still followed, and you still walk away.”
“Fledge.” She turned to face him once more. “I don’t have long. I have been given these precious minutes to give you the goodbye that you deserved.”
“I deserved to have a mother!” he screamed at her.
She took the abuse, nodding her head once. “I know.”
“If you know, then why are you leaving without giving me a real explanation?”
“I left this for now because I thought that you would be old enough to understand.”
“If you didn’t want me, why didn’t you…”
A slap echoed in the room so loud that those outside of it flinched.
“Don’t you dare.” She growled at him. “Just because I didn’t know you existed doesn’t mean I didn’t want you!”
“Well, you had a crappy way of showing it!” said Fledge as he rubbed at his face.
“I wanted you to hate me so that it would be easier to let me go if I disappeared!” She screamed at him.
Fledge stopped rubbing at his face and looked at the woman before him, really looked at her for the first time in a long time. She still looked so young, shorter than Saita, and so very tired.
“It made it easier leaving, knowing that you hated me.”
“I wanted to unmake myself.” He said softly.
That seemed to stop her in her tracks, and her jaw tightened. “That wasn’t my intention. That was never my intention. You were supposed to be my legacy. Something that proved that I could put something good back into the world, instead of just existing and taking.”
The two of them stood in silence for a while before she eventually said. “Do you…Do you still want that?”
“I don’t know who I am anymore. If I am not the son of Saita and Bolx, then who am I?”
“If I told you everything, would that be enough to keep you fighting a little longer?”
“Fight for what? I have been sent back like a child…”
She stepped forward, limping heavily on her left leg, to wrap her arms around his neck to pull him down. Before he could say anything to stop her, she started whispering in his ear. It was quick, and it hurt.
Fledge felt his heart ache the more she spoke. He had never suspected, not even for a moment. And just like that, she released him and stepped back.
“You understand why now?”
He could say nothing as it felt like something was clawing at the inside of his throat.
“And if she fixes what she broke, then maybe we can have another chance. But I need you to fight. I need to know that I am leaving something good in this world. Please.” She begged softly. “If you can’t guarantee that, then there is no reason to do this.”
“That’s emotional blackmail.” He whispered.
“What else is new with my parenting style?” she chuckled harshly.
“Why did you never tell me?” he begged. “I could have…”
“Fledge, you are as you must be. You have played your part for now, and it’s time to step back until you are needed again. You will be needed later, but for now, you need to trust Matta and her. Can you do that? Knowing what you know now?”
He stared at the woman he had come to hate, not knowing why she had tried to be distant with him his whole life. That hate was now quickly changing to pain. Not just his, but also hers, for not knowing about him and distancing herself from him.
“Mom…”
“I must go. Matta will give you further instructions.” She stepped away with a grimace. Her left leg was clearly in pain.
“I…”
“You never did anything wrong. Ever. Circumstances caused this. Be strong, and let’s pray this can be fixed.”
And yet more consequences of playing around with time. What did you do, Saita?
For those of you who have never heard of Fell Dragon you can find Book 1 here, Book 2 here, Book 3 here, and Book 4 here, Book 5 here, Book 6 here, Book 7 here, and Book 8 here
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. I love discussing my books!
As the series continues, it will combine with another book series I wrote. To avoid confusion about what is happening, introductory chapters will be introduced separately so that you don't have to be lost. However, these chapters will contain spoilers. You can find these chapters here:
Races Explained
Banishment
Royal Guard
Saasha’s Direct Family
Saith Characters Recap
Human Characters Recap
Alternate Timeline Brucel
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Part 93>>You are Here>>Part 94
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