The steady beat of the train tracks filled Charlie’s ears as he stared out of the open window, resting his head in his hand as he watched the scenery flash by. The greenery of the trees went past in a blur, and on the rare occasion that they passed a bird, it looked like a small stain on the rest of the world around him. The people behind him were loud and rowdy, while the person next to him was quite antsy. He was always moving, twisting, or turning in his seat. It was driving Charlie insane.
The burnette haired boy tried to ignore the unpleasant surroundings and instead focused on the rhythmic thump of the tracks against the train. It reminded him of a steady heartbeat, and he tried to pour all of his focus onto the sound. It was comforting, and it was better to listen to than the strangers around him.
Closing his eyes, he allowed his mind to drift, the thumping sound beginning taking over all of his senses. He tuned out the people around him and the loud horn of the train that singled that they were close to their destination. Instead, the only thing that he could hear was the steady thump of the train tracks.
…
…
…
Opening his eyes again, he realized he was no longer on the train. Startled, he tried to sit up and look around at his surroundings, but every movement caused him searing pain that he could hardly bear. He stared at the white ceiling, his arms twitching. Wait, were they twitching? He couldn’t tell, they felt numb.
After a moment’s consideration, he realized that he was in a hospital room. More specifically, he was laying down on a hospital bed and had an IV in his arm. Feeling drowsy, he let his eyes wander around the room, not being able to see much because of the awkward angle he was in. Also because there was a light brighter than the sun shining down onto his face.
Slowly, he swiveled his head until he was staring at the right wall. He noticed a black screen in front of the wall with lines running across it. A heart-rate monitor, he realized. That’s when he began to hear the thumping noise again, but this time, it sounded louder. Closer.
Feeling comforted again, he let himself relax into the bed, closing his eyes once more as he began to drift into sleep.
But then, it stopped.
And the heart-rate monitor flatlined.
…
…
…
He sat up, breathing heavily. His blood felt like ice, and he was freezing. But he was also drenched in sweat. His hair stuck to his face, and his shirt was crumpled and disheveled. The train horn honked. They were reaching the drop-off.
It honked again, even louder, and suddenly, Charlie wasn’t on the train anymore.
But in the middle of the street.
A bright light flashed in front of him, getting closer, and closer. The horn honked again.
And then . . .
Pain.
Unbearable pain.
It hurt so much, he couldn’t even think.
All he could do was scream.
…
…
…
"Hey! Are you alright? Hey, wake up!"
Charlie slowly peeled his eyes open, feeling dizzy and nauseous. His head hurt, and it took him a moment to register what was happening.
"Were you . . . shaking me?” Charlie asked slowly. The person holding him (who he later found out was the guy who couldn’t stay still) was clutching him by the shoulders and gripping onto him tightly. The man had dark skin and even darker curly hair that sat shaggily on the top of his head. It reminded Charlie of a mop, and he almost laughed. Except, his lungs felt like they had collapsed in on themselves, and he couldn’t barely make a breathy chuckle.
"Yes, of course I was. You were passed out on the seat, sweating bullets, and when you finally woke up, you screamed bloody murder and passed out again! Are you having a seizure?" The man suddenly got very close to Charlie, peering into his eyes suspiciously, as if that would do anything.
"I’m fine, just had a nightmare, is all. No need to get so worked up." Charlie mumbled, gently putting his hands on the man’s chest and pushing him away. The dark skinned man narrowed his eyes skeptically, but he looked relieved regardless.
"This is your stop right?"
"Yeah . . ."
"Mine too! What’s your name?"
"Charlie."
"I’m Kirin. Nice to meet you Charlie!"
". . . You too, Kirin."
It was a winter morning when the child was born. She had beautiful auburn hair that curled around the top of her head, and small, white freckles planted across every corner of her skin. The mother sobbed with joy as her child was handed to her, and she cradled the child as gentle as she might a fragile piece of glass. Kissing the child on her brow, she turned her head to look at the familiar that laid next to her, asleep. A small lizard with a wedge shaped head and small horns protruding from the top of its head. The scales on the lizard’s body were sharp, even for their small size. It even had little buds that came out of its shoulders, and no one knew exactly what they were. But they knew that it was the child’s familiar, so they didn’t disturb it. Familiars were respected among the humans. Every human was gifted a familiar the day they were born. The familiars just seemed to appear, and no one could scientifically explain how they came to be. So, they accepted it, as they might accept their tongues or toes or fingers. Familiars were to be expected, and there would be panic if a child was born without a familiar. The mother tore her eyes away from the lizard before gazing at her daughter fondly. She ran her fingers through the curly auburn hair, a deep smile growing on her face. "Isn’t she beautiful?" The mother spoke softly, holding her child close as she let her feed. "Indeed she is, just as beautiful as you." Her husband said from beside her bed, resting his hand on her cheek as he smiled at her happily. "You were fantastic. What will we name her?" Her husband had a dark furred ferret resting on his shoulder, reaching its head out and sniffing in the child’s direction curiously. The mother’s familiar, a small sparrow that was sitting on a desk across from the bed, made a ` tweet, tweet ’ sound, before gently gliding over to the mother and landing on the baby. The mother gasped, gently shaking her familiar away. The bird chirped apologetically before backing away, now standing on the mother’s lap as it eyed the child. One of the nurses, who was standing a few feet away, interrupted the mother before she could speak. "Ma’am, I must take your daughter and her familiar away for a few moments." The nurse spoke softly, her words flowing through her mouth like honey. The mother narrowed her eyes at the nurse, holding her baby closer to her chest while her husband stared at the nurse with a puzzled look. The nurse cleared her throat before speaking again, taking a step towards the mother. The mother tensed up when the nurse reached forward, but relaxed when she picked up the lizard and gently held it in her arms. "It won’t be very long, I promise. You see; your daughter’s familiar is very strange, indeed." To solidify her statement, she held out the small lizard and ran her fingers across the horns and buds. "We have never seen a mythical familiar before, it has never been recorded in history. However, your daughter’s familiar is a different case." "What is so different about it? It’s just a lizard, right?" Snapped the mother, tightening her grip on the babe. The girl whined and sobbed out loudly, and the mother shushed her gently, cooing as she rocked her back and forth apologetically. "My friend has a lizard familiar, it is not uncommon. What are you trying to say?" The nurse clicked her tongue before gesturing to the buds. "These are going to grow into wings, ma’am. Your daughter’s familiar is a dragon." The mother and her husband gasped in unison, and the daughter seemed to quiet down as she heard her familiar being spoke of. It was then that the two parents realized just how special, or cursed, their daughter was. Never has a mythical creature been a person’s familiar before. Just what would happen to their child and the dragon? How would the world react when they learned of the first baby born with a mythical familiar? The mother swallowed, her throat feeling dry. She ran her fingers through the curled auburn hair again before speaking. "Her name will be Quasar, because she is unique. Because she is special. She will be protected, and she will be loved. My daughter and her familiar are going to be happy."
