Chapter 3 Lost To Time

The land had long since changed since the days of the Queen had chosen to make a deal with the Dragon. Now the family was living inside a small single story house on a street, the sun was gone and sky filled with stars, the house had a light paint with a darker low angle roof. At a window a single vase sat in the moon light it s clear glass held the single throned white rose with it s curved stem. Inside under the window was a rocking chair in the corner of the room, it was hand carved the occupant was gently rocking back and fourth.

Her grey hair was tied up at the back as her dress seemed black in the darkness of the room, she looked up and watched over the rose, as her mother had done and her mother before that. Making sure that the rose was as close to nature as possible, as even know it was basked in the nature of wind, sky and moon.

A women came in to the room she was was dressed in a light blue jacket over a pink peach top with tanned trousers her light blond hair was pinned up at the back and she was cleaning up the room. It was connected to the kitchen and as such a room was one large space but filled with no more then a small table in the middle of the room with a sofa and arm chair.

She was accompanied by a young girl with golden curly locks that only ran down to her neck. The mother was trying to chauffeur her daughter towards her bedroom, but the stubborn child refused to do as her mother asked of her. As they passed by the grandmother looked on and smiled remembering how much of struggle it was raising her own daughter. Ounce they had gone she looked up to the rose which had not aged a day and she got out of her rocking chair and followed her daughter and grand daughter to the bedroom.

The room was smaller but had a single bed in the middle of the room with a chair next to it and small white shelf which held a small collection of books. The young girl was being tucked in wile the grand mother just watched from the door way looking in. Her mother tucked in the bed sheets in to the side left a kiss on her fore head and left the room.

"You try dealing with." said the mother with a tone of disapproval.

The Grandmother walked in and took a seat on the chair, after making herself comfortable she turned to Nova laying in the bed.

"Do you want me to read you a story, to help you go to sleep." she offered.

Nova began struggle under her tight sheets as she rustled around to brake free, as the sheets become loose and untucked from the bed, she soon found herself more free.

"Yes please." she asked, now she had become comfortable.

The Grandmother turned to the shelf and scanned the book shelf, looking at the books her eyes locked with one that had a hard back cover of dark red with gold plating on the corners, with a Dragon carved in the cover. Pulling it from the shelf the Grandmother looked it over with such grace as love as it had been handed down though the generations.

"Why do you read the same story?" asked Nova looking up at her grandmother.

She put the book down on her lap "This book was based on the fable my mother was told by her mother, it was made in to a book and read to me by my grandmother and later my mother as a warning."

Nova just seemed a little contused.

"I then read it to my daughter, your mother then you brothers in turn, all so they would be aware of the threat that may face them." she explained. "It was passed down to me with the rose and it has been my duty to guard the rose until the dragon returns."

Nova just made her self more comfy and the Grandmother opened the book and started to read the story of the Princess & the Dragon.

After the story had worked its magic that had been bound in the words writing on the page, Nova had been sent in to a deep sleep. The Grandmother put the book back on the shelf and left the room closing the door behind her. Her frail old body was not able to keep her up for to long and as she fell in to her seat she began to rest up.

The mother came in and reached for the vase, an arm came up to block her twice as fast.

"Leave that alone." she insisted.

She looked at her mothers intent in her eyes twisted with the anger and fury she was showing for her disdain.

"Fine." insisted the mother and retracted her self from the flower.

"Never touch the rose, it must never be moved." she insisted.

The mother left, she had never liked the rose and hated her mothers protest and protection over it. The Grandmother became more relaxed as her daughter left to sleep, she sat by the flower and waited for the next day to come as she closed her eyes.

As the night passed and sun rose the Grandmother began to fade with the change, as the sun rose and the sky got brighter the grandmother became more faint until the light shone through the Grandmother faded away until she was no longer there.

The new day was filled with buzz as the mother was cleaning up the house taking things of the wall, each one that had a vast history now being pulled from place of pride and being forced in to the box, that they where discarded in to. The Mother made sure to disrespect her mothers family house as she had wished to do for years before her departure. As she entered the main room she saw her mothers chair in the corner of the room and looked to see the rose in it s clear vase on the open window. Reaching out she took the vase from the window, tacking it down she laid on the table to first remove the rose. As she pulled the rose from the vase and held it in her hands but the single thorn cut her palm and rose was dropped falling ever still to the table. She gripped her hand to hold back the blood the best should could.

The father walked in his brown hair large build with a tanned jacket and white and blue plaid shirt, with tanned cargo trousers as well.

"What s going on?" he asked coming in.

"I cut my bloody hand on the rose." fumed the mother.

He pulled in her in to calm her nerves. "Why did your mother even keep that thing?" he asked.

She pulled away and pushed her hair back "My great grandmother was always protective over it, she never liked it to be touched. It always had to be near nature and my own mother kept the stupid window open so much for the flower that I almost froze one winter."

"You told me, you closed it in protest and she she broke it response."

"You know Julia my great grandmother was so taken by the rose that it was if she was hunted by it s touch." she said as she picked it up and put it down on the table.

"We d better get that cleaned up?" he said.

"It ll be fine." she insisted. "BOYS, if you want any of Grandmas things to remember her by, you should hurry up before it gets packed and is sent away."

Nova came in between her parents and picked up the rose, her hand unlike all others before was not cut by the single thorn.

Her mother looked down to see her holding the rose. "Nova put that down." she screeched her mother

Nova looked at her mother and walked to the kitchen sink and put the rose down on the side of the sink. As her hand was removed from the rose s stem her mother raced to dress the wound and as she bent down and took hold of her daughters hand she saw it was not cut.

"Mum let me go." insisted Nova pulling her hand away.

"Go, get ready for school." she said standing up. "Boys lets go." she called.

The father moved past Julia and he looked down at her palm the blood was contained but the cut was all to real.

The hall was narrow and had coats hung on hooks and shoes under table with a bowl for the keys, the door had large glass pane in the top that bleared the view on both sides. Nova and her father where in the hall he was kneeing down doing up her coat it was a yellow puffy winter coat with pink patterns that flowed down, with a bright purple backpack.

He handed over a paper bag with a lunch inside. "Here s your lunch my little princess." he said.

"Thanks Tom." Nova replied tacking her lunch.

"Why don t you call me dad, or father?" he asked.

Nova could not come up with real response and shrugged as she turned around and left. As the door closed behind her on her departure, her father felt as if his own daughter was not his, but he had been there for both conception and birth. He got to his feet and walked in to the main room to see his wife.

"Do you think Nova sees me as her father?" he asked.

"Why?" she replied whipping down the table.

"She never calls me dad, of father or anything, but she calls me buy my name."

"I don t know but she s not normal, her hand wasn t cut by the rose but I was."

"Maybe we should see someone."

"What ever it may be I think it s thanks to my mother."

The trip to school was the same as ever passing down the straight suburban streets passing the planted trees. She could see the school building in the distance but began to slow as she heard a song call to her. She carried on nearing the T junction to which she had to cross, but the song kept calling to her. She stopped and looked back past the autumn trees and saw someone dressed in white smart clothes with white hair, looking on at her from up the road at the crossing she had come down from. A car drove past and blocked her view the sound calling her was gone and so was the man, she looked back towards the school and carried on. She looked both ways before crossing over the empty road to the path heading up toward the junction at the end of the road.

Ounce she reached the junction she carried on going across the main road and arrived school gate. Tacking her more direct route diagonal she cut out passing the wall and the metal gate that was roll up along the wall to let every one in. The School was L shaped on it s side allowing the building to surround the playground, as she walked in kids where playing and talking, they where many ages most in uniforms of dark blue shirts and grey trousers and skirts, hers concealed by her coat.

Her route inside was also direct and as she grew close to some parities they chose to move out of her path clearing away to the door. After the school bell rang she still kept a slow pace wile the others raced in with speed and haste, all the meanwhile keeping enough distance as not to bump in to her.

Inside Nova was at the back on her own, her coat hung up her back along with it, the class was drawing, being so young they only need to learn so much at their age and the class as allowed to draw for now. The teacher was in a white blouse and red skirt with her hair tied up with chopsticks, she was watching over the students as they where drawing. The teacher walked around to see what they where drawing, as the teacher came round to Nova she saw something that ignited a spark in her mind.

The drawing was of a dragon and it s surroundings, for the mots part the drawing was what you would expect of a five year old child, but the Dragon was something you could find in an artists sketch book. As the teacher looked in she was in awe over the drawing, it was much like that of the Dragon s home in the enchanted forest.

She spoke up to Nova "Nova, have you ever be taught to draw like this before?" she asked.

"No, but I ve always draw dragons well, I even made a origami dragon ounce that impressed Tom."

"Yes your father." said the teacher her tone of voice was slightly concerned but mainly confused. "Have you any books on drawing at home."

"No."

The teacher looked on as her hands moved to add fine detail to the dragon then as it moved to the foreground, it became less pristine and more chaotic. The teacher unable to explain moved on around the room. Nova stopped the drawing and moved on to colour the dragon when she heard the call again, she stopped and looked out the window to see the man. It was the same man as before, she saw him more vividly know his hair was white slicked back in spikes, his eyes yellow with black pupil slits.

The calling become louder and drowned out the rest of the class soon her mind began to see something it was the woods, they flashed inside her mind and her hand pulled the colouring pencils in and ran up and down over the page to draw the vision in fast vivid detail. Page after page began to filled as her hands washed over the paper coving it in rough but scenic sketches. Ounce the visions became to fast to copy she flung her head back and flames sprouted out her mouth. The fire alarm sounded and as Nova s head sit back up straight and she came back round to see everyone leaving and being forced to leave her sketches piled roughly on the table. She got up and followed the others who where all leaving with the teacher, she followed after them unable to recall what had just happened.

After the fireman where called and students counted, only to learn the panic was over and nothing had happened as there was no real threat, the students where shuffled back inside. Inside the class room the teacher was moving around to straighten things up as the students came slowly in to take their seats. As she walked around she came to Nova s table and saw her new drawings, each one was done with only colour and had where coloured mainly in green with quick strokes up and down to create the vivid landscape. To the unobservant they resembled no more then random pieces of nature but to some they looked like the enchanted forest, as the teacher poured over them images of tress with bright coloured flowers, a river and a cave in a hill. She began to pick them up and put them in order unknowingly, but as she picked them up she saw there was one she had not seen, under the one of the cave. The image was of the man from the window, she was taken back by the drawing as if something had washed over her. After she went to pick it up again something caught her eye in the window, Nova was running towards the gate acorns the playground leaving everything behind. She spun around to see her coat and bag still hung up on the wall, she looked back to see Nova had stopped for her to swing her head back and give the teacher a cold icy stare that scared her so much she chose not inform anyone she was gone, moving back to carry on teaching the class.

The park was one of the main sources of nature, but it was covered in paths and benches and was made to look more pleasing, as Nova wondered around on her search she passed so much of the now spoiled land. As she moved about the park one thing caught her eye, a group of pine tress that where grouped up on the edge of the park that lead in to more wild area s with a nature walk and dirt paths. She felt the calling stronger and wondered over, as she passed though the tress she saw now even forest was over whelmed with people and not left alone.

The land ounce lush land was a now a dark green with many of the luxuries of nature replaced with more city comforts, the ground was covered in weeds and dirt with grass trying to brake though, but fallen leaves began to cover the ground ounce more. A stream of muddied water cut across the landscape the dim light of the sun was coming down though the gaps but it did nothing to poor scenery. She looked on at large hill that had path going over the top as a large disused tunnel cut in to the rocky hill, which was coated in more upturned dirt piled on to the side to keep up the raised area. Nova crossed over towards the tunnel. As she entered the darkness soon engulfed her and she had no way to see forward, but kept on going as the calling became more clear to her the further she went.

As she came to the end of quest she found the area in the end was far grater then it was humanely possible. As she looked on in to see something was there in the cave soon as it lit up before her a Dragon of white smooth scales was looking down at her as had he had done to her great, great grandmother many moons ago. She reached out a hand to touch the dragon and Dragon bowed his head, as his daughter had come home to him.