Dragon Queen

All Grown Up

** 10 years later **

Adilene cracked her eyes open as the early morning sun filtered weakly through the bedroom window. She stretched out on the small bed, her toes curling as they poked out from beneath the blanket and over the edge of the thin mattress. Feeling the light pop of her joints, and stretch of her muscles as they wakened, she let out a huge yawn, fighting the urge to snuggle back into her blankets and sleep just a little longer.

Sitting up in bed, she looked across the room, her gaze settling on a similar bed in the opposite corner. A sly smile came across her face as she reached out for her pillow. Quietly making her way across the floor, carefully avoiding any creaks and groans the wooden floor might make, Adilene crept up to the bed, moving around the arm flung over the side. With a loud yell, she swung her pillow with all her might at the head of her prey, landing her hit with a solid "whump" from the pillow as it made contact.

Jumping back, Adilene struggled to contain her laughter as the person in the bed screamed in fright, tangled in the bedding as they attempted to confront their attacker. As the person got more entangled, appearing to be more blanket monster than actual threat, Adilene lost her battle with the laughter and stood bent over, laughing so hard that tears came to her eyes. A moment later, a pair of dark brown eyes glared out from over the blanket as the "blanket monster" finally began to free themselves from their prison.

"Adilene!!" she shouted. The sound of her voice drew Adilene's eyes up to her face, her laughter only increasing as she took in the hair sticking out everywhere from her prey's battle with the bedding she had been wrapped in.

"Oh my....Daria!" was all she could gasp out as the fit of laughter continued, Adilene now lying on her side, as she cried out her mirth.

Daria watched her for a moment before her glare faded, and she too began to giggle at the sight of the girl both laughing and crying on the floor of the bedroom.

The door to the room opened suddenly, and the girls' laughter subsided as a stout figure stood in the doorway. "I see you two are up bright and early!" came the gruff voice of the woman standing there. The twinkle in her eye gave away the fact that she was not in any way angry with either of the girls. "Time to get a move on! Breakfast isn't going to make itself, you know." As she left, closing the door behind her, the girls could hear a quiet chuckle as she moved on down the hallway.

As Adilene picked herself up off the floor, Daria lobbed a pillow at her head, narrowly missing as it sailed across the room onto the other bed. The two girls began to giggle again as they both began to get ready for the day ahead of them.

Adilene opened her dresser to remove a simple loose shirt and a knee-length skirt. She headed for the bathroom to clean up. Turning the water on for the shower, she felt her tight muscles relax under the heated flow of water. She quickly washed up, knowing that Daria would be coming shortly to pound on the door until she gave up the bathroom to her. Grabbing some fluffy towels from the cabinet, she wrapped one around her long hair, and one around her body before yanking open the door. She found Daria just on the other side with her hand poised to knock, a mischievous glint in her eye. Raising her eyebrow at her, she sauntered past into the hallway towards their room with a sly smile on her face, only to bust into laughter as Daria made a "harumph" sounding noise as she stalked into the bathroom.

By the time Daria returned, Adilene was just tucking in her shirt to her skirt, with her long locks still hanging string-like around her face. She made a face in the mirror as she attempted to pull a comb through her unruly blond hair. Finally satisfied with it, she smiled into the mirror before heading for the doorway. She glanced at Daria as she left the room, to assure herself that she wouldn't be far behind her.

Adilene entered the kitchen, opening the fridge to gather breakfast ingredients. Turning on the oven to heat, she turned to the counter to begin chopping veggies on a cutting board. She was just heating up an egg pan on the stove when Daria made her way into the kitchen. "What do you need me to do?" piped Daria, looking to Adilene for direction. Adilene pointed to the coffeepot on the counter instead of responding. "Oh, you DO love me!!" squealed Daria, her eyes lighting up in delight. After pouring a cup and taking what appeared to be a most satisfying sip of the hot beverage, she moved toward the stove, starting on the omelettes that Adilene had prepped next to the stove. As Daria began the eggs, Adilene moved to begin cutting fruit. The smell of bacon was already wafting from the oven throughout the room.

"Something smells delicious!" a gruff voice rang out as its owner entered the room. A tall man with broad shoulders and well-muscled physique came into the kitchen.

"Morning, Brady!!" the girls chimed out in unison. They both smiled at the tall brown-eyed man as he bee-lined straight for the coffee pot. He poured a cup, and then proceeded to drink it without cream or sweetener, as though his life depended on it. He moved to sit at the head of the table as the girls began to set plates down for the meal.

"Just in time, I see!" An older man with no less muscles on his body came through the kitchen doorway. He sat in the chair opposite the other man as Daria poured a glass of orange juice for him. Adilene finished setting out the last of the serving platters as two women strolled into the kitchen, sliding into their seats at the table. They all began to fill up their plates with the omelettes, bacon, fruit and biscuits the girls had prepared. As they began to discuss the day ahead, the back door flew open. A rather burly young man came in, hauling a large basket full of eggs. His eyes lit up at the sight of food on the table as he hurriedly placed the eggs on the counter before slipping into the last empty seat beside Adilene.

"Now that everyone is here, we need to discuss today's assignments," the older man began as everyone started eating. He started detailing what everyone needed to accomplish throughout the day, skipping over himself and Adilene as he made his daily run-through. The three young people shot looks at each other, raising eyebrows in confusion as their thoughts swirled around the break in routine. They all finished eating, the older women taking charge of clearing the table as Girard pulled Adilene to the side. "I need you to prepare yourself, you and I are going into the village."