Cracks

I awoke to a dull, aching pain in my chest. Surrounding me were the relieved faces of my mother and father. Yumi burst into tears and restricted me in a hug. "I-I was so worried about you!" 

Confusion overwhelmed me as I hugged her back. That was until I remembered the dull pain in my chest. I was reminded of the previous incident. As Yumi released me, I placed a relieved hand on my chest. I was so glad I hadn't been taken from this world. My parents moved in to hug me as well. 

My mother's tears rained down my face, "I was so afraid of losing you!"

Immense guilt pulled at me, knowing this was all my fault. The tears my mother was crying were all because of what I had done. My stomach turned, my chest tightening. I choked down the sobs that were threatening to leave me, my eyes growing watery. "I am so…"

"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Why are you so worthless!?" A memory played in my mind: a drunken father yelling at me. A loud smack reverberated in the room as I collapsed to the ground. His smack sent a stinging sensation that spread across my cheek.

The memory was as clear as if it had happened yesterday. I was eight years old at the time. I brought home my report card, already expecting the abuse. I tried my hardest in class to impress my parents, but it wasn't like I was the most gifted child. 

The grades on my report card were mostly B's. There was a single A in science class, but at the bottom of my report card was a C, contrasting it. I had made a C in history class. 

My father continued yelling obscenities at me as I lay on the floor. "Go to your room and wait till your mother gets home." 

I obeyed, spending the rest of that day holed up in my room, waiting for her to leave work.

When she finally got off work, she didn't yell at me but looked at me like I was trash. After which she grounded me to my room for a month, 

This misery was common in my childhood. My parents always looked at me like one would garbage, and school was never a haven, either. The abuse would only continue there. The kids would call me names and make fun of how I looked. The abuse never stopped until I got out of high school. 

I promptly cut my parents out of my life, and I never spoke to anyone from school again. The only person who had treated me with care died when I was five. My grandpa left me with his inheritance, and when I turned eighteen, the money came to me. 

After becoming an adult, I became a shut-in, only ever leaving at night. I became scared of the outside world. My only friends were online, and I had met them all through gaming. 

I always wondered. Was it okay to live like this? Living only off of an inheritance and feeling guilty constantly felt wrong. I knew it wasn't okay.

"En! En! Enala! Are you okay!?" My mother broke me from my memories. The tears that were threatening to be released from my eyes burst forth. The dam broke, and I cried loudly. 

"I-I-I am s-s-sorry! I-I am so st-stupid!" I cried into my mother's chest. The whole time, she stroked my hair. 

"There, there. My daughter is anything but stupid," She said.

"B-but I…" 

She placed her hand under my chin, forcing me to look into her eyes. She smiled tenderly, rubbing my cheeks with her palms.

"Now listen to me, dear. I will not have you think so lowly of yourself. You are not stupid. There is not another three-year-old in this kingdom who could have done what you have been able to do." She wiped away my tears with her thumbs.

"But that is only because…" The only reason why I could do any of that was because of my past life. The truth was that there was nothing special about me at all, and it hurt.

"Shhh. I told you I would not let you think so lowly about yourself. Whatever you are thinking is wrong. It would do you well to listen to your dear mother." 

I wanted to refute it all. I tried to tell my mother that it was all because of my past life, but the words got stuck in my mouth. 

"Let me tell you what I think. I think you are the most precious thing in the world, and I was so terrified when you suddenly collapsed," Mom said, pausing to wipe the tears from her eyes. "Your father and I were terrified of losing our kind and sweet daughter. You are the most important thing in the world to us. When the doctor said you would never be able to use mana again, we were saddened, but we are more relieved that you are okay."

"I will never be able to use mana again?" I asked. 

"Fufufu, that would be true, but I have a special acquaintance. He owes me a big favor, so I called it in just for you. Before that, though, I need you to promise me something."

"Promise you something?" 

She nodded before looking at Father and Yumi, each nodding along sternly. "Promise me you will be more careful from now on. Promise me you will pay attention to warnings." 

"I promise, mommy. I am so sor-..." 

She placed a finger on my lips. "Also, promise me you will stop apologizing. We are just glad you are okay."

"I promise!" 

She hugged me once again before picking me up. "Now, I will take you to our dear old friend." 

My father sighed, "That scaly brat is hardly a friend, but he at least honors his agreements. If only he didn't have that personality of his."

Mom chuckled, picking me up and carrying me through the castle with Father and Yumi following behind. 

We arrived at the courtyard where the knights usually trained, but no single knight was present. Instead, a sizeable, menacing figure hovered in the air. Its wings were jagged and black. The scales that ran over its body were light orange, and its sharp white teeth were the size of my torso.

I looked at it in shock, burying my head back in my mother's safety. It was a creature of legends on Earth. Stories about knights going to slay them, stories of them holding princesses in captivity. It was a real-life dragon, and my entire body shook, my teeth chattering.

"Ineer, can you change your form before you scare my daughter to death!" My mother shouted at the beast. 

The dragon landed, shaking the ground, a black smoke surrounding him. I covered my eyes with my small arm, and as the smoke dissipated, a different, more humanoid figure stood there.

He was tall, muscular, and wore a black suit, his orange hair slicked back and orange scales going down the side of his neck. His deep voice left him. "Hmph, if she died from such a simple sight, then I would question if you were really her parents."

My mother glared daggers at him as a strong power emanated from her. Much to my amazement, Ineer shrunk, making himself smaller.

"Hieeeh! I am sorry, it was just a joke! Please forgive me!" He prostrated himself, slamming his head on the ground and cracking the stone.

"I will have you make it up to me later. For now, that isn't the reason we brought you here. You are going to check on my daughter." 

He jumped up and slowly walked over while hunched like an igor.

"Hurry up!" 

"Yes!" 

I turned away from him towards the comfort of my mother. "It is okay, dear. Even though he is like this, I promise he will be able to help you," Mom said. 

His slit pupils glowed as he inspected me. "I see, I see." He looked me over several times. "How could you be so stupid?" He asked.

I couldn't keep up with what happened next. To me, my mother barely flicked her arm, and abruptly, the dragon's head was planted in the ground. I didn't even feel the movement, but her hand had chopped him on the head hard enough that his face collided with the ground, forming cracks. "Don't ever say that again!" 

"Yesh, meh, lady." His head waved back and forth, but he shook it, seemingly clearing the dizziness. "H-her mana core is c-cracked. Probably, even more than my skull, at the moment."

"Can you help her?" 

He looked at my mother as though she had just said the most ridiculous thing. "Of course, I can help her! Who the hell do you think I am!?"