While Storm was having his fight with the Order, his mate Aurora was in a fight of her own.p
By far the toughest fight she had ever had in her life!!
"Ok, little guy! You need to eat something if you want to grow big and stong!!" Exclaimed Aurora.
"I'm not hungry!!" Exclaimed Orian.
Aurora sighed. Orian had been impossible to deal with for the entire day.
Something had clearly upset him, and yet his mother was unable to find out what.
He hadn't said anything, and she was quickly running out of options.
She had one last option left, but she dreaded using it. It came with great perils.
"It's your favorite!!" Aurora tried desperately.
"I'm not hungry!!!" Retorted Orian angrily.
Aurora placed a claw on her son's back.
"What's wrong little guy?! You've been out of sorts the entire day?! Did you fight with your friends at school?" Asked Aurora.
"No!! Of course not!!" Exclaimed Orian.
"Then what is it?! You've been avoiding the topic the whole day?!" Asked Aurora.
His mother was concerned for him at first.
He was much younger than the other children taking part in the Regimen and she feared that he might feel out of place, or even bullied by the older students.
But much to her relief, although he did struggle to fit in at first, he quickly made several friends among the other children.
His group consisted of 3 members other than himself.
He had befriended a fellow dragon relatively early, a female purple dragon by the name of Lavander. A noble and responsible dragon despite her young age, Aurora hoped that the dragoness would be able to guide her son.
The second member of his group of friends was a small griffin by the name of Quicksilver.
An energetic, curious little one that always seemed to stick his nose everywhere, he was also one of the smarter students in the Regimen and when he wasn't out exploring, he was burying his nose in some kind of book.
The final menber was the biggest suprise of them all. It was a child female manticore, one of the few manticores that was currently staying in the city.
They rescued her mother from the Lich's laboratory where they found Storm's siblings, she returned to her pride only to return a few days later begging for a place to stay due to her advancing pregnancy at the time.
After giving birth to her daughter, who she decided to name Quill, everyone expected her to pack up and take her child with her.
She returned to her pride, only to come back a few days later with Quill.
No one knew who Quill's father was, and her mother refused to speak about the topic.
At first, Aurora was not happy at all about his choice to befriend Quill.
She had an shy, brutish and abrasive personality.
She tended to threaten anyone that came too close to her with her throwable spines growing from her tail.
Despite the perils, Orian perserved and was eventually able to break through her icy exterior.
The sudden addition of several new friends caused a drastic change in Quill's personality.
Although she could still come off as 'gruff', she at least no longer threatened to pin people to walls with her spines anymore.
"All my friends are out playing with their parents. " Orian finally said.
Aurora began to get a rough idea why her son was upset.
"You miss him?" Asked Aurora.
"It's just... everyone sees their parents regularly, you spend time with me but not him? Doesn't he care for me? Like Quill's father?"
Aurora felt sad to hear her child's mind state.
"Orian, we've talked about this. Your father is a very busy dragon, he needs to oversee this entire city, and he's a hero. This takes him all over the world.
But just because he doesn't see you as often, doesn't mean that he doesn't love you!" Explained Aurora.
"I don't need a hero! I just want my father!" Exclaimed Orian.
"Did Quill's mother ever tell you how she came to join us?" Asked Aurora.
Orian shook his head.
"Your father saved her from an evil Lich's experiments.Many of the people you know owe their lives to him."
Aurora gestured to the city beyond.
"We have all of this because of your father.
He and I had hard lives growing up.
He built all of this so that you and others like you could have better lives growing up than him.
He does all of this 'because' he loves you!" Explained Aurora.
"I just wish I could see him more." Answered Orian.
Aurora knew she had to use her 'secret weapon ' now.
"I was going to take you out to the Fay quarter for the day. Get some sweets. But I suppose I'll have to cancel the plans now, since you're not hungry.
Orian immediately perked at the mention of sweets.
We can still go!!" Exclaimed Orian excitedly.
"Thought you weren't hungry?" Asked his mother.
"I can make room!" Exclaimed Orian.
Aurora grimaced as a unpleasant sensation passed through her gut. She suspected that she had eaten something unpleasant because she had been plagued by nausea and cramps the entire day.
Not to mention the strangest cravings.
Her expression was on her face just long enough for Orian to notice.
"Is something wrong, mother!!" Asked Orian.
"It's nothing... Just been feeling a little under the weather today. " Explained Aurora.
"Maybe you should have Auntie Kalipso look at you? Or Gran?" Suggested Orian.
Aurora grimaced as her guts twisted itself into knots again.
"Maybe I should! We'll stop there, then go out together. " said Aurora.
She lowered herself to the ground and her son scrambled up her back until he laid down on top of her head.
Once he was settled in, she rose to her full height and walked with her son towards the small cottage that the Grans had built on the grounds of the infirmary.
As Aurora walked in, the Grans reacted with suprise.
"Ohh!! It's not often that we see you, dear!"
"What brings you here?" Asked the Grans.
"Mommy is ill!!" Exclaimed Orian.
"What's wrong dear?" Asked the Grans.
"It's nothing!! Just an upset digestion!
Probably something I ate!" Stated Aurora.
"We'd best take a look."
"Dragons don't often get sick."
The Grans stepped forward and began to poke and prod her in the belly region as they examined her.
"When did it start?"
"A few days ago!" Exclaimed Aurora.
"Eating still fine?"
"More or less." Responded Aurora.
"Getting enough sleep?"
"When I can." Answered Aurora.
"Any other symptoms?"
"Dizzy spells... and... cravings. " Explained Aurora.
"..."
"I wonder." Said one of the Grans.
She walked over to Aurora's lower belly and placed a palm on her side.
She recoiled a moment later.
"Sisters!! Come look!!" Exclaimed the Gran.
A moment later, the remaining Grans crowded around the area with a large grin on their faces.
"What's wrong!! Is mother dying!!!?" Exclaimed Orian with clear panic in his voice.
"Nothing is wrong, dear!!"
"In fact, your mother couldn't be better!!" Exclaimed the Grans.
"What do you mean?!" Asked Aurora.
"You're carrying a child, dear!!"
Aurora was stunned.
"... are you saying..?" Asked Aurora.
"Yes dear!"
"You're pregnant. " Explained the Grans.