The morning air shimmered faintly with aether as Arav stepped into the Flame Courtyard.
Warm stone spread beneath his feet, the ground still holding the heat of yesterday's sun.
Today wasn't supposed to be special, but the atmosphere felt different—like the world was quietly holding its breath.
His father stood waiting for him.
Aaryan Ashvath's posture was straight, calm, steady. He carried himself like a man made of flame and discipline, though his eyes always softened a little when he looked at his children.
"Arav," Aaryan said, "your awakening is approaching."
Arav nodded. "I know. I can feel it."
Aaryan exhaled slowly. "Your aether has been reacting unusually. Lamps flicker, formations shift, small distortions appear… It's concerning."
Arav blinked. "Concerning for me or for you?"
"Everyone," Aaryan muttered.
Before Arav could respond, something small and silver slammed into his back.
"I'm coming too!" Isha wrapped her arms around him tightly. "Bhaiya gets shiny when he trains!"
"Not shiny," Arav corrected. "Distorted."
"Shiny," she insisted.
Sharanya entered the courtyard just as Aaryan muttered, "Yes, shiny. Very shiny. World-bendingly shiny."
Sharanya sighed. "Aaryan. Not helpful."
"I'm simplifying!"
"You're scaring them."
"I'm scaring myself!"
Sharanya placed a calming hand on his arm. "Breathe."
Aaryan inhaled. Nothing improved.
Isha tilted her head. "Papa's flame is wobbling."
---
Aaryan drew Arav forward.
"Awakening isn't about strength. It's about resonance. Connecting your inner flame with the world."
He placed a hand on Arav's chest. Warmth spread outward, deep and steady. The courtyard's aether stirred like a breeze.
"Try cycling your breathing," Aaryan said.
Arav inhaled.
Aether flowed into him—
then curled around him in soft orange swirls.
Isha clapped. "Bhaiya is making soup!"
"That is not soup," Aaryan muttered.
Sharanya smiled faintly. "Let her have her imagination."
The ground trembled slightly.
The aether lamps flickered in perfect rhythm with Arav's breaths.
Even the flame torches tilted toward him, drawn by something unseen.
Isha gasped. "He's controlling the world!"
Arav panicked. "No—!"
Aether surged out in a tiny shockwave, pushing Aaryan a half-step back.
"You pushed me," he said, stunned.
"I didn't mean to!"
"You pushed me while breathing."
Sharanya shot him a warning look.
Aaryan immediately shut up.
---
Aaryan stepped closer again. "Arav… awakening tests control more than power. If you lose balance—"
"I might hurt you," Arav finished quietly.
Aaryan paused. His expression softened, just a little.
"No. Because we'll be with you."
He tapped Arav's forehead gently.
"Your mother stabilizes the world. Your sister calms your distortions. And I keep you grounded."
Sharanya knelt beside Arav. "You won't fall. We won't let you."
Isha threw her arms around him. "I'm your moon seatbelt!"
"…Seatbelt?" Arav repeated.
"Yes! I hold you so you don't fly away!"
Sharanya laughed softly.
Aaryan rubbed his face like this was his new destiny.
Arav, despite himself, smiled.
---
Aaryan lifted a finger and summoned a tiny flame.
"Look at this—not with your eyes. With your aether sense."
Arav focused.
The world dimmed.
The flame brightened.
Aether currents around the courtyard revealed themselves like threads of light.
Then—
a faint pulse rippled in the distance.
Not here.
Not near them.
Somewhere else in Emberveil.
Arav frowned.
"What do you see?" Aaryan asked.
"I… felt something. Just for a moment."
"What kind of something?"
"I'm not sure."
Aaryan's brow tightened.
Sharanya quickly stepped in. "Enough for today."
The moment dissolved.
---
That evening, Arav sat on the smooth stone steps outside the house while Isha doodled glowing shapes on the ground. Most of them looked like lopsided rabbits, but she seemed proud of each one.
Arav lay on his back, staring at the orange-tinted sky.
"Isha?" he asked quietly.
"Yes, bhaiya?"
"Do you think I'll awaken properly?"
"Of course," she said confidently.
"Why?"
She looked at him with an expression so simple, so certain, it almost hurt.
"Because you're you."
Arav swallowed.
Sometimes children understood things adults overcomplicated.
Sharanya watched them from the doorway, a faint smile on her lips.
Aaryan stood beside her, arms crossed, quiet.
"He's almost ready," she whispered.
Aaryan nodded slowly.
"But the world is reacting too soon. When Arav awakens… Astraeon will feel it."