Dragonspeaker: A Dragonslayer Sequel (Reupload)

Chapter 5: Rowan

brief a/n: for reference, Mallow is the name of Wren's unnamed sister. in this fanfic, Camellia is 22, Mallow is 18, and Bluebell is 16.

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ROWAN

This is such a stupid idea. Why did I agree to this, again?

She was walking in between Grove and Cranberry, with Thyme taking the lead. Rowan wasn't exactly thrilled that they were headed back, to say the least - but having Grove and Cranberry with her did help her be somewhat at ease. They don't have to be by my side all the time, though.

Rowan didn't particularly want to dwell on that, though. At least, not at the moment. She was more concerned with how her sisters would react to her since they removed the dragonmancers from power. Were they disgusted with her for hiding the truth from them for so long? Or did they more upset with the fact that she'd left without even talking to them?

They'll probably hate me for it like Leaf. I wouldn't blame them, either.

Cranberry's palm brushed against Rowan's hand. She gave Rowan a reassuring smile - Rowan smiled back, blushing and slightly dumbfounded. She's always so sweet to me. Why is she so nice to me? I'm not sure what I've even done to deserve it... Grove's chuckling pulled her out of her thoughts.

"You both are adorable," He commented. Cranberry simply giggled, while Rowan simply blushed harder, unable to resist letting out a few laughs.

Thyme grinned at them, though he didn't comment on it. "We should be close to one of the underground shelters." His gaze rested on Rowan. "You don't have to go in the village with us, you know. You could wait in one of the shelters till we come back."

Rowan shook her head. "No, it's...it's fine. I should come with, anyways. I need to speak with my sisters whether I want to or not." And I need to know if they hate me for hiding the truth about Wren too.

Grove frowned, resting his arm on Rowan's shoulder. "I can do most of the talking, if that helps."

Something resembling a smile tugged at her lips. "Thanks."

They didn't talk much for the rest of the walk to Talisman. Cranberry had been trying to soothe Rowan's nerves for most of the walk, but Rowan didn't feel that it was helping much if at all. She was grateful for it, though. Upon reaching the village itself however, Rowan didn't feel as sick to her stomach as she had felt when the idea was initially presented to her - it was still there, of course, but the gut feeling felt slightly better.

Rowan could see some villagers walking about, though not without warily glancing up at the sky for dragons - the warning bell was also still standing, along with the dragonmancers' old study. Did anything even change since we left? I wouldn't put it past them, honestly... She wanted to try and be positive that these people could change their ways, but she felt that even a little faith in them was too much.

"Rowan, where would your sisters be at this time?" Grove asked, turning to her.

She shrugged. "I don't know...it's not like I paid much attention to them. I remember Bluebell enjoying wandering around the village a lot, though. She might be out."

Thyme nodded. "Yeah, I think I remember her doing that...a lot. Wasn't she the one you said thought that she could speak to butterflies?"

"Yep."

Cranberry blinked at Rowan. "Wait, you weren't joking about that?"

Inhaling sharply, Rowan shook her head. "No." She shrugged. "But that was when Bluebell was nine, so hell knows if she still thinks that. She still wanders around the village randomly, though."