Nend Ardhon Chronicles - Complete

Chapter 7 – Lodon Lunn's secret

When School ended, Byia and Guyi were at the gates, waiting for her brother. Every other student left the School, and they were both still waiting.

Then, Guyi pointed to a couple that was swimming at full speed in their direction. “Here he comes. I bet he got distracted as usual and forgot about us, that moron!”

Byia frowned when she noticed that Paullu was being followed by a light brown female, and when he stopped in front of her, he immediately apologized, “I am sorry for being late, sis! I was talking with Drezara Forgge, and I lost track of time!”

Byia approached the awkward-looking female and asked, “What are your intentions with my brother? Do you want to make him your boyfriend, or do you just want to take advantage of his goodwill to improve your grades?”

“Boyfriend, for sure.”

Drezara turned bright red and hid her face with both paws. “I did it again, didn’t I, Paullu?”

Byia looked at her brother with a puzzled look, and he shrugged. “Yeah, she does that very often. She says what is on her mind without even thinking. It’s easier for me, at least. You know how much trouble I have understanding a female’s mind.”

Byia approached Drezara’s face, slowly took her paws away, and made a big smile. “I like her, brother! She is pretty! And funny too, if she always speaks before thinking properly. I hope you are not a stupid bimbo; my brother deserves a proper girlfriend!”

Drezara frowned and poked Byia’s snout. “Who are you calling stupid bimbo, you brat? Who told you that I need your permission for anything, by the way?”

Byia looked at her brother again. “See? She is funny! I really like her, brother! Now, go away; we must go home, and you are a distraction!”

Drezara pulled Byia’s left ear and snorted. “You need to learn some manners, little girl! I go when I feel like it, not because you are ordering me! Besides, this is the path I normally use to go home!”

Byia slapped Drezara’s hand and frowned at her. “You are a little crazy, aren’t you, pulling my ear like that without knowing me or realizing that I can bite your head off if I want to!”

Drezara Forgge smiled at Paullu while rubbing Byia’s head. “Your little sister is funny, Paullu. I might need to slap her butt a few times, but I like her!”

Paullu laughed and pulled Guyi’s ear. “Byia, it’s better if you behave properly, or Guyi is going to pay for your rude manners! By the way, how was school?”

Byia frowned at Drezara while going to save Guyi from her brother. “Let him go, will you? School was okay, I guess. I got a few problems because they all thought it was funny to mock the little female in class, but I think tomorrow will be better.”

“Really? I need to talk with one of your Teachers, or what?”

“No need; everything will turn out just fine, eventually. What about you? What happened to you to forget about me? It was because you were talking with that crazy female over there, or you did something stupid again?”

Paullu made an awkward smile. “I tried to heal her broken arm and made a small blunder. It was a complete mess after that, but everything turned out okay, I guess.”

Byia took a glance at the red-faced Drezara Forgge and spoke, “Well, it would be nice if she turned out to be a proper girlfriend. I just don’t know if you will keep her interested with your careless character and weirdness. Mother is going to nag you so much when she finds out! I can hardly wait to see her face when I tell her you accompanied a female home!”

Paullu pulled Byia’s right ear and made a scary smile. “Yeah, do that, and I will increase your training. You are too relaxed for my taste; we may need to take care of that in our next training session!”

Byia gulped. She never liked that smile of his; it always meant trouble. “I won’t say anything, but I bet mother will be suspicious as soon as she sees the weird smile that you had on your face when you arrived.”

“What weird smile, sis? I don’t…”

Byia pointed to his face as soon as he looked at Drezara Forgge. “That exact smile! That crazy female impressed you a lot for you to be staring at her like that!”

Byia had to swim away because her brother tried to grab her head to smack her. They all rushed after her, with Byia laughing and Drezara Forgge smiling.

In front of their house, Drezara stopped and gave a slight smile. Guyi pushed Byia to enter and swam to his house, leaving the two of them alone.

Paullu made an awkward smile. “This is my stop. Maybe I should take you home first next time instead of coming straight to mine. Force of habit, I guess. I am not used to accompanying a girl to her home.”

“That’s okay; I will let it slide, just this once. Next time, we will stop first at my front gate. Can… Can I come early tomorrow morning and go to school with you? I mean… If you don’t mind…”

“I guess that’s okay if you want to. Those females that were so angry with me might think twice if they see you right next to me to protect me.”

Drezara Forgge made a slight smile. “I don’t think you need me to protect you. I saw how easily you got rid of that violent female who tried to punch you by surprise. You are not just a simple young male that likes to read, are you?”

“I guess not. You are not the crazy female you seemed to be, are you?”

Drezara Forgge laughed and bid him farewell. “That’s why we need to know each other a little better. See you tomorrow, Paullu.”

When Paullu entered his home, Byia was seated at the dinner table, smiling at him. She tapped the seat next to her while smiling. “Tell me everything, will you? What did she do for you to raise your head from your books?”

Paullu shrugged while sitting. “Not much; she just needed my help and talked with me. I thought she was… intriguing could be the right term… No, interesting. Yeah, I thought she was interesting. She is rather funny, but it took me a while to realize she is rather pretty.”

“Pretty? Are you nuts? She is gorgeous, brother! I am not sure if you deserve such beauty near you! Now, listen to me very carefully; I will teach you how to treat a female properly so that you don’t ruin your chance of getting yourself a pretty girlfriend like her!”

“Wait, a minute. Who said that I need your help? You weren’t there when we were talking! I think I gave her a good impression!”

Byia gently tapped her brother’s paw. “Brother, brother, a good impression doesn’t conquer a female’s heart. Now, open your ears and be ready to receive my enlightened teachings!”

“You nearly left your egg; how can you think you are an expert on females? Geez, sis, sometimes I think you are completely nuts!”

…

When Teera Calla arrived home, she found both siblings talking at the dinner table, with Paullu taking a few notes and Byia patiently waiting. She approached them just to see an awkward smile on her son and a big smile on her daughter. “What are you two up to?” You look rather suspicious!”

Byia kept smiling and answered, “Nothing much; my sweet apprentice here is learning a few things about the strange minds of the females!”

“Okay… How was your first day, dear? Many friends?”

“Not really. Being the littlest female in there and asking the Teacher to be excused from her Rune and Magic class didn’t grant me many friends. Maybe tomorrow things get better.”

Teera nodded while going to the kitchen to prepare dinner. “At least you were polite when you asked your Teacher?”

“Of course, mother. Guyi also asked to be excused. We were both very polite, and the Teacher was very understanding. She said she was going to talk with the Principal to find a more advanced class for us.”

“That’s nice, then. But you may need to put in some effort to gain more friends. Better not to rub on their noses that you are smarter and more capable with Magic than them, for example.”

Byia awkwardly smiled. It was probably a little late for that already, but she didn’t want to worry her mother and brother any more than needed.

…

Late that evening, Byia carefully opened her room window and swam in the direction of the outskirts of the City, where her Nemesis, Lodon Lunn, lived.

She wanted to be sure he didn’t try anything funny against her when he returned to school after his three days of suspension and caught her by surprise.

She pretended to be alright, but that slap he gave her early in the morning was the last drop. He was bullying her for Tides, and she always held back because her father asked her not to use his teachings to hurt anyone. But Lodon was a special case. He was getting worse at each Tide and that attack he made indicated that he was losing control of his judgement, and sooner or later, he would hurt her a lot or kill her.

Carefully, and avoiding being seen, Byia approached Lodon’s house. She knew which one it was because once she did the same thing, but changed her mind and went home again. Not that night. This time, she would go through it till the end to make sure Lodon never hurt her again.

She carefully used the shadows as a hideout and approached the top corner window, where Lodon’s room was. She peeked inside from the bottom left corner, and what she saw made her jaw drop. The window was half open, and she could hear everything perfectly.

Inside, Lodon had a floured tiara on his head, a necklace on his neck, and a few bracelets on his arms and tail. He was dressed like a young female, from top to bottom, with his mother seated on the bed, clapping and smiling.

Astonished, Byia heard Lodon’s mother say, “You look so beautiful, my sweet daughter! Just look at you! My sweet and beautiful little daughter!”

Byia wasn’t going to let this opportunity slide. To Lodon’s astonishment, Byia placed herself in front of the window and knocked, making out a big smile. Lodon’s mother opened the window completely and asked, “And who might you be, little girl? What are you doing out here so late in the evening?”

“Good evening, madam. I am Byia Calla, I am… Lodon’s best friend and I came to say hello.”

The female made a big smile and invited her in. “Really? That’s so nice of you! Lodon never brought another female home to play! Come in! Can I tempt you with a batch of fresh biscuits? I finished them moments ago.”

“That would be nice, madam. Thank you, but I don’t want to bother you.”

“It’s not a bother at all! Wait here; I will be right back!”

As soon as his mother left, Lodon moved to approach Byia, only to suddenly stop in his tracks when he saw Byia pointing a dagger at him.

He grunted while staring at the menacing dagger. “What… are you doing here? Came to brag?”

“No, I came to wait for you to go to sleep and slice your throat. Today was the last time you dared to touch me. I was going to end your pitiful life, but I wasn’t expecting to find out such an interesting secret. This is so much better! I wonder what everyone will say when I tell them that you like to dress as a female! The scary bully is just a weirdo who likes to pretend to be a female!”

Lodon backed away, surprised by Byia’s leisure confession of coming to kill him. He kept staring at the dagger and stuttered, “You… don’t understand… I don’t like… to dress like this… I hate it… but…”

“Yeah, right, give me a miserable excuse, will you? It won’t matter; one way or another, you will never bully me again! I never understood why you hate me so much; what did I ever do to you?”

Lodon began to tremble, and he started to cry nonstop. Byia wondered what that was about, but she kept pointing her dagger while glowing, ready for everything he might try to pull off. But she wasn’t expecting his next words: “It’s… because of my mother… my mother had two eggs: me and my twin sister. She never exited her egg, and my mother had a mental meltdown. Since then, she started to think that her son was the one who died and that her daughter was alive. Me and my father could never make her believe what really happened. Doctors say she will eventually get better, but it will take time and continuous mental treatment. She is better, but… Well, I still need to pretend to be my sister for her…”

Byia backed away a little, hid her dagger again, and asked with a puzzled look, “And what do you have against me? Do you hate every female out there because of what is happening with your mother, or is it just me?”

“I… don’t know… Maybe because my sister could look like you if she were alive… or… it’s because every other male out there becomes so mesmerized when they set their eyes on you. I don’t understand why you have that power over them!”

Byia frowned and sat on an empty chair. “That is the stupidest reason I ever heard. You don’t even know why you hate me so much? That’s so messed up! Clean your face; your mother will get worried when she returns! I will make you a deal, for your mother’s sake. I am going to pretend to be your best friend and continue this charade, but only for tonight. From now on, you will never speak or look at me in a weird way. Your days of bullying me will end from now on. Or else, I will tell everyone what I saw here. After that, I will come in the middle of the night when you are least expecting it, and I will slice your throat during sleep. Understood?”

Lodon quickly nodded. “Yes, understood. But don’t worry my mother, please. Anything but that. I don’t want to see her cry.”

“Stop crying already, geez! You are such a crybaby! And you dare to call me Baby Byia! Clean your face; you must be smiling when she arrives, stupid!”

Lodon quickly wiped his tears and took a few deep breaths. He sat on top of the bed and asked, “Now what?”

“What? I don’t want to talk to you ever again, remember? Just shut up and smile. I think she is coming.”

Lodon’s mother arrived with a bowl of biscuits that Byia happily devoured. She left again, leaving them alone to talk some more. She waved at Byia and smiled before closing the door. Byia returned the wave and the smile and grabbed a couple of biscuits before going for the window.

Lodon asked when she was about to leave, “You… are not going to tell anyone, right?”

“As long as you keep your part of the deal, I won’t. If you don’t, well…”

Lodon nodded, and Byia swam away. He sat on the bed again, and then he heard a familiar voice. “Better if you keep your end of the bargain, because if Byia doesn’t snitch you out, I will!”

Lodon stared blankly at Guyi Mohryi. “You… What are you doing here?”

“Nothing much. I saw Byia leaving her room, and I thought it was suspicious. I always have her back, even if she doesn’t realize I am there. It would be better if you did as she said, because if she has doubts about telling everything about you, I won’t hesitate to end your reign of terror. I warned you over and over that one day you would regret everything that you were doing against me and Byia. It seems that day has arrived. She is a little dense, even more than you; that’s why neither of you knows why you pick on her so much. I found out today when she asked you if you wanted to kiss her. I saw your red face at that time. You like her, don’t you? Yeah, I am right, judging by your surprised face. You didn’t realize that until now, right? That’s why you were always picking on her, and you go crazy when other males stare at her. You get jealous.”

Guyi left, leaving Lodon to his thoughts. He began to tremble, realizing that what Guyi said was right.

That was why he always lost control near her. Her light blue scales and her blue eyes that change color sometimes, like they did when she was pointing the dagger at him. She had scary red eyes that became light yellow when he told her about his mother. The yellow returned to light blue again when she relaxed. The way she smiled at his mother while tasting her biscuits. That pretty and unforgettable smile. Yeah, he liked her, alright. It was just a pity that he ruined everything, and he couldn’t ever go near her or talk to her again.

He slowly went to the window and closed it. He went to bed and cried until falling asleep, remembering the way she tilted her head when she called him a crybaby in such a cute way.