Four years later.

Alaric stirred in his sleep, the thin blanket tangled around his legs. The morning birds chirped outside, heralding the new day. Slowly, his green eyes fluttered open to the sight of the familiar wooden ceiling, marred with scratches and the scent of new wood from recent repairs.

The walls, however, looked like they’d been standing for generations. Cracks riddled the old brick walls while tough vines grew into their very structure, humming with the faint shimmer of magic.

The dark-haired boy lay still for a moment, listening to the soft snores and murmurs of his fellow orphans.

[Good morning, Alaric] a motherly female whispered into the boy’s mind.

[Good morning, Alia] he greeted back with a warm smile.

[You dreamt of him again] the voice came again. Flashes of the traumatic event four years ago came and went at the sudden reminder.

Taking a deep breath, he swung his legs over the bed and stepped onto the cool crack-ridden concrete floor, a shiver running through him.

[Why wouldn’t I? Today is a day he’d been looking forward to for a long time… but never got to experience it] Alaric replied with a sigh.

The dormitory was small and sparse, but each bed had a touch of personality. An old, weathered book lay beside his flattened straw pillow: "Guardians: A Curated Guide to the World of Guardians."

Nearby, a makeshift curtain blocked out the sun, casting a shadow over a small table holding trinkets he'd gathered over the years.

[Then live this day just like he would have; To its fullest,] the guardian replied. Her voice carried warmth through the boy’s body and dispelled his dark emotions almost entirely.

Jared wouldn't have wanted him to be sad on a day as bright as this one.

Alaric was tall for his age, well-built—a little too built— with dark short hair and soft green eyes. He gazed down at the scars on his chiselled torso, vaguely tracing the abs that had formed as a result of gruelling training and hard work.

Clenching his fists, he took in a deep breath, ‘Right… to the fullest.’

So much had gone into the preparation for this day. It felt as though a frozen clock had started to tick once more.

Today was a special day indeed.

Today, Alaric and the other fifteen-year-old children from the Five Hills as well as those from all over the Valerian continent would be appraised.

He glanced around, his gaze falling on a boy with sandy brown hair sleeping not so far from him. A faint scar peeked out of the top of his sandy mop, a constant reminder of the attack four years ago.

In Alaric’s dream, this had been the unconscious boy he carried from the woods that day. This was his best friend, Finn.

“Hey, Finn, wake up, you lazy sack,” Alaric whispered, shaking his friend’s leg.

“Get away from me, you busybody,” Finn mumbled, rolling away. His bed, unfortunately, wasn’t large enough to escape far.

“You don’t want Sir Garin to find you unprepared, do you?” Alaric tried. The boy stirred for a moment, lifting his head momentarily before slamming it down, followed by a loud snore.

‘This is hopeless…’ Alaric slumped his shoulders. It had been four years… and Finn was still a terrible morning person.

A soft knock at the door drew Alaric’s attention. Marla, their caretaker, peeked in, her white hair framing a kind beautiful face. Alaric’s heart skipped a beat at the sight of the gentle lady.

He saw her every day but on days when his mind drifted back to that dark day, he was also forced to remember that her love saved him from the self-torment that nearly tore him to pieces.

“Good morning, Alaric,” the woman called in a whispering voice.

“Good morning, Marla,” he replied with a smile.

Marla stared at the sleeping sandy-haired boy and beamed, “Good morning, Finn.”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Finn grumbled in response, failing to make any words.

The caretaker chuckled and turned back to Alaric, still whispering, “Breakfast is almost ready. Help me get everyone up.”

Alaric saluted her playfully. “I’m on it, Sister Marla. We’ll be out before breakfast is ready.”

“Take your time, Alaric. You don’t want Cody to blow off the roof again,” Marla giggled before disappearing behind the door.

Alaric turned to an odd structure at the very end of the room. Humming with magic, a gargantuan mass of constricting vines folded in and out of each other in a complex mess of knots and stitches to form a tight egg of vines.

Drawing from experience hacking away at the resilient bundle of vines, Alaric shrugged… ‘Meh, we’ll be fine.’

Silently, he walked to the window and opened it wide, letting in a chilling draft. Naturally, Finn wrapped himself even tighter in his blanket.

A dark smile appeared on Alaric’s lips as he approached his friend. Suddenly, he whipped Finn’s blanket off him, exposing him to the chilly air.

“ALARIC!!!” Finn bellowed, his eyes popping out of their sockets from the sudden shock.

BOOM!!! An explosion shook the dormitory.

Alaric and Finn froze with grimaces on their faces. Contrary to popular belief, an explosion in this odd home never meant an attack.

Rather it was the side-effect of a single boy waking up… and everyone was used to this.

At the end of the dormitory, isolated from the rest where an egg of vines once stood, was a solitary bed on which a young boy with fiery hair stirred.

The area around Cody’s bed was blackened with soot, charred vines, leaves and branches still glowing with hot flames while a thin veil of smoke wafted through the room.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Cody mumbled, “Finn… you scared me.”

The door burst open, revealing a flustered Marla. She rushed to Cody’s side, checking him for injuries. Finding none, she pulled him into a hug. “You’re alright!”

Cody hugged her back. “I’m fine, big sister Marla.”

“Yes, you are,” she sighed in relief, “Yes, you are.”

Alaric felt a pang of guilt but quickly shook it off. “Sorry, Cody. Good morning, Cody.”

The young boy replied absentmindedly, “Good morning, Alaric.”

As part of his assignment, Alaric moved about the room, helping the younger children wake up… or rather confirming that they had woken up.

As the dormitory came alive with activity, the anticipation of the day’s events filled the air. Today was the day Alaric and his age mates would journey to the Tower of Seekers, and Alaric knew it was the beginning of something much larger.

…………………

The scent of cinnamon, bread and baked potatoes filled the air as a lively table of children chowed down on breakfast with lively conversation filling the dining room.

Alaric filled his plate with food and with more vigour than usual, chowed down on his meal. His heart was beating faster with thoughts of the future.

‘What does the Tower of Seekers look like? How is the Appraisal done? How many people shall we find there?’ his thoughts rambled on.

His guardian, who was hidden safely within his shadow, didn’t bother to answer, instead rolling her eyes at the excited boy’s thoughts.

“Slow down, Alaric or it’s the physician you’ll be visiting,” Marla chided from her place at the head of the table.

The dark-haired boy narrowed his eyes at the caretaker. Unfortunately for him, his cheeks were too full of potatoes for him to reply.

“He looks like a chipmunk,” a girl with long silky brown hair coolly commented. The younger ones at the table laughed in response to her comment.

Alaric, finally scoffed down the food in his mouth only to take a large scalding sip of tea… “Ah… Hot! Hot!”

“Slow down, you musclebrain,” the girl scolded him, “You’ll choke.”

The changes in the tone of her speech were so subtle that it wasn’t easy to notice a difference. For those who had lived with her for long enough, however, it was easy to tell that she was genuinely worried for the boy.

Alaric managed to get a cold sip of water down his throat and catch his breath, “Oh, is the famous Darla worried? Afraid I’ll leave you here with Finn and join the Guardian Academy?”

“Yeah, right! Keep dreaming. Finn would give up his sword after sparring with me just once. He’s barely entertainment,” Darla replied with a slight huff.

Finn, who had been quietly minding his breakfast turned to them with a dangerous glint in his eye, “Huh… Are you talking about me? I must have had wrong because you certainly weren’t talking about me.”

“Alright, dear Finn. I’ll explain it to you again. Your guardian is bound to be a little bunny of the lowest class so naturally you won’t be able to compete against me once I’ve summoned mine,” Darla countered in the same even tone.

Cody pitched in with his high-pitched voice, “I’ll spar with you, Darla.”

The girl’s eyes opened wide at the sudden proclamation, “No way… You’re still too young.”

“No, I’m not. I’m eleven now!” the fiery-haired boy raised his head with pride, “And Alaric’s been training me so I can hold my own just fine. I might even summon my guardian like he did.”

Alaric chuckled, “That’s right. Bow before Cody, the Flame Emperor!”

A few tongues of flame flickered to life at the tips of the little boy’s fiery hair as he stood on his little chair with his chest puffed out with pride.

“Cody, get down from there,” Marla called out, “There will be plenty of playtime after Alaric and his friends come back from the Tower.”

Cody obediently got down from his seat, the flames at the tips of his hair going out. Alaric didn’t miss the concerned look on his face when Sister Marla mentioned the Tower of Seekers. He could already think of a few things running through the boy’s mind.

“Ah, today is the Appraisal Ceremony. Finn, don’t feel too bad if you find out your guardian is D-class. I’m sure having a bunny is just as cool as the powerful guardian I’ll get,” Darla, the girl with silky dark brown hair, smirked.

“Just you wait. I’ll summon my guardian and he’ll be cooler than Alaric’s.”

“I think you meant to say cuter. Perhaps you can cuddle with your guardian. I know, you could fight demons with the ultimate cuddle guardian. I feel sorry for the demons already,” Darla smirked.

“UGH! YOU’RE IMPOSSIBLE!” the sandy-haired boy squealed, “Just you wait.”

Alaric found himself laughing at the scene. Darla enjoyed pushing Finn’s buttons… and the hothead never failed to disappoint, reacting to her every jab without fail.