The Dragon King and His Fallen Star novel Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Bending the Light

EIRLYS’ POV

Claim

Solara gave me one last look, as if checking to be sure I wouldn’t ignite again, then tilted her head toward the path.

“Come on,” she said softly. “Let’s go somewhere quiet.”

I followed without question. My skin still hummed faintly, the aftershock of light pulsing low beneath the surface-but the worst of it had passed. The light was gone. For now.

We walked in silence, weaving through the winding garden paths that skirted the palace, the gravel crunching softly beneath our steps. The further we went, the quieter it became-until the marble and gold were far behind us, replaced by trees and birdsong and the hush of leaves overhead.

Eventually, we came upon a small stone cottage tucked at the forest’s edge.

“Is this your cottage?” I asked, my voice quieter now.

Solara nodded, a faint smile tugging at her lips. “It is.”

It was simple-humble, especially compared to the grandeur of the palace-but it radiated something gentler. Something like calm.

Ivy climbed the weathered stone walls, curling around windows where flowerpots overflowed with pale blooms in shades of lavender and white. The small front yard was alive with color-an untamed garden that buzzed with bees and sunlight, bursting with herbs, wildflowers, and

vegetables.

It smelled like rosemary and soil and something sweet I couldn’t name.

We didn’t go inside. Instead, I followed Solara as she walked around the side of the cottage, where the trees pressed close, their branches forming a natural canopy that offered shade and privacy. Beyond a narrow patch of grass stood a worn wooden bench and a circle of flat stones- weathered by time, but clearly tended with care.

“This,” Solara said, turning to face me, “is where we’ll begin.”

I nodded, uncertain of what was to come.

“I was told,” she continued, her voice calm and steady, “that you light up when your emotions overwhelm you-joy, terror, rage, pain. Is that true?

I nodded again. “It’s hard to stop it once it starts.”

“Of course it is,” she said, as if that should be obvious. “You were conditioned to respond that way. They trained you to link your power to pain and fear. They wanted you raw and reactive-so they

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could harvest it.”

A sharp breath left me. I didn’t respond. I didn’t need to.

She stepped closer, her tone quiet but firm. “You need to learn to control your light-not through your heart, but through your mind. Do you understand?”

Thesitated. “Not really” I admitted.

“That’s alright,” she said gently. “To do that, you must first learn to manage your emotions.”

I looked up at her. “You mean I shouldn’t feel them?

She shook her head. “No, dear. We will always feel. That’s what makes us alive. The key is knowing

when to let those feelings rise-and when to hold them still.”

I frowned, trying to make sense of her words.

She sighed, then tilted her head slightly. “Like earlier-with Mirael. What were you feeling?”

“I was… very angry because she lied,” I said slowly. “And maybe angry at Kierygan too, because he

believed her. Then he carried her in his arms, and I just got angrier.”

Solara’s lips curved, not unkindly. She almost laughed. “Sounds like jealousy to me.”

My eyes widened. Jealousy?

Is that what it was-that sharp, twisting feeling in my chest? That storm of betrayal, of wanting to

tear Mirael from his arms with my bare hands?

“Is that… bad?” I asked, my voice quieter now.

Solara’s expression softened. “It’s not bad,” she said gently. “It’s human. Whether you’re a witch, dragon, or wolf… we all carry that human part.”

She lowered herself onto the stone bench and patted the space beside her. I hesitated, then sat

down.

Folding her hands in her lap, she continued, “You were locked away for most of your life. The only people you knew were the ones who hurt you. Then Kierygan came. He freed you. Protected you.

Gave you a name.”

Her gaze met mine. “Of course you’d feel something for him. A connection like that… it leaves a

mark.”

There was something in her voice-not judgment, not pity-just quiet understanding. Like she saw

me, and didn’t think less of me for feeling too much too fast.

“Will it go away?” I asked.

Solara tilted her head. “Maybe. Maybe not. But you don’t have to figure it all out today. You’re still

3 Chapter 36 Bending the Light

young. You don’t have to decide what your heart wants yet. That will come in time.”

She paused, then added, “And who knows? You might still meet your true mate.”

I blinked. “Mate…?”

She smiled faintly. “Some call it soulbonding. Others, a celestial tether. Depending on your kind, it goes by many names. But it’s rare-and powerful. When two souls recognize each other as their

match.”

“Like my sister and Callum,” she added with a knowing look.

I lifted my head and slowly narrowed my eyes at her. “Do you have a mate?” I asked.

She smiled, but there was a flicker of sorrow in her gaze. “I did. Once,” she said quietly. “But he’s

gone now. He passed on.”

Her voice held warmth, but underneath it was something softer, sadder-like a bruise that never

quite healed.

My chest tightened. “I’m sorry,” I murmured. “I didn’t mean to bring up something painful. That

must’ve been… really hard.”

“It was,” she said quietly. “Sad and difficult. But also… beautiful.” She blinked, and a faint smile

touched her lips, like sunlight through clouds. “I’m grateful I met him at all-even if it was only for a

little while. Not everyone gets that. Those were the happiest days of my life.”

The thought curled tight in my chest, warm and aching. “Would I know,” I asked, my voice barely

above a whisper, “if I met mine?”

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