Destiny

I woke up to the sound of the rooster crowing, that meant the start of a new day. I stretched, took a bath, changed into my work clothes, and then started my chores. The first thing I did was feed the chickens, pigs, and horses in the barn. Mother would do be the one to make breakfast, while Axel went with father to do some hunting for dinner.

After I was done, I went to the kitchen to greet my mother, who as always wasn’t too happy with my presence. “Good morning, mom,” I said with a smile.

“Here’s your grandmother’s breakfast bring it to her,” she said in a cold voice.

I wasn’t expecting her to say ‘hi’ to me at all, but I wasn’t wrong to hope for it. I handled the plate with care as I exited the kitchen until a certain old woman stopped me.

“Grandma! I was just about to bring you your food.”

Grandma looked at me then walked into the kitchen to sit at the table. “I may be old, but I’m not that old! I can come down and eat my food at the table just like anybody else!”

I laughed, then placed her food in front of her on the table. “Okay, okay, here’s your breakfast grandma. Would you like some tea?”

“That would be nice dear.”

With a smile, I nodded and walked to the kettle to make her some tea. I noticed there was no water in the kettle. “Hey, mom, why’s there no water in the kettle?”

She slammed the pot of porridge on the counter, which made me realize my mistake too late.

“You think I’m your servant? Huh? Answer me!”

“N-no.”

“Exactly! If you want water, you can go get it yourself! In fact, you can make breakfast and serve it to everyone! I’m going to the market.”

I put the kettle down and ran after my mom. “Mom, wait, I was just—“

She stopped and looked at me with pure anger in her eyes. “Oh, so now we’re being disrespectful? Okay, alright. For that, you can cook breakfast and dinner for the rest of the week.”

I just looked at her. Dumbfounded at what I had done.

“Understand?”

“Yes, mom,” I said holding back my tears.

She slammed the door in my face leaving me on the verge of crying. I walked back into the kitchen and made grandma her tea. She didn’t say anything, even though she heard the whole conversation between me and mom. If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that grandma respects me a lot. She knows when I want to talk and when I want to be alone.

After I finished with breakfast, I was about to wash the dishes when grandma stopped me. I looked at her and she looked at me with sincerity.

“I’ll clean up. Why don’t you take a break?” she asked with a comforting voice.

I nodded. I placed the dishes in the sink and went to my room. I walked calmly as not to alarm my grandmother, but my calm walking alarmed her enough. When I got to the stairs I ran to my room, shut the door, and jumped on my bed. I cried into my pillow. I cried over my mother’s anger. Why does she hate me? 

“Am I that much of a disgrace? I know I wasn’t born with powers, but I’m still your child!” My voice squeaked with each cry I gave. “I wonder if the Dragon Tamer had to go through this with his mother. I bet she loved him, much more than my mother loves me.”