The remarkable change of Oliver Gray

In his story, around the time he decided to stay within the realm the queen had made, he had to go through a ritual–a ritual that would change him and allow Nature to accept him into the realm.

Oliver sat in the middle of the forest, a place recommended by Heather (a seer for the queen) that radiated with magic in the air.

It was ten till midnight. The fireflies swarmed all around, lighting up Oliver’s surroundings enough to clearly see. Oliver sat in the tall grass, nervous and scared. In his heart he knew this was the right thing to do, but with the events that transpired, he wasn’t sure he would be accepted by Nature. It was said that Nature would appear at midnight, and every minute Oliver watched pass on his watch, he became more nervous.

“Oliver” A faint voice could be heard nearby, startling Oliver for a moment while he was lost in his thoughts, on the verge of tears. “It’s me sweetie–” As Oliver turned his torso enough to see where the voice came from, he could see it was Heather making her way through the tall grass with her staff. He didn’t say anything as she approached.

“I came to ease your mind. I saw it in your face before you left–the emotions rushing through you with all the information the queen gave you…” Heather adjusted her cloak, sitting down beside Oliver and resting her staff in the tall grass.

“There must be so much on your mind, and I can’t imagine how nervous you must be about this,” She picked up Oliver’s hands, holding them in hers. “But I know you’ll be accepted. Nature has seen all the good you’ve done, and all the good you’re capable of.” Oliver’s eyes started the water up, trying his best to hold it together.

Heather could see a faint white glow in the distance, deeper within the woods. She looked back at Oliver. “I’m scared, and I don’t want to be alone.” Oliver explained through his shaky voice, finally letting tears escape. The faint white glow was getting closer and Heather knew she was running out of time.

She knew what she had to do, but didn’t care. What felt like her own child, in that moment she decided to break the rules of the ritual.

Heather let go of Oliver’s hands, cupping his cheeks in her hands. “I know sweetie, and I’m not going anywhere. It’s going to be okay.”

After a moment, Oliver reached over and hugged Heather tightly. Those were the words he needed to hear, and he was grateful for it. Heather returned the hug, letting it last for a moment before sitting him back down. “How about you sleep for a bit? I’m sure you wouldn’t want Nature seeing you crying.” Heather said with a soft smile, patting her lap as an invitation to sleep on. Oliver nodded, laying his head on her lap and passing out almost immediately from the emotional exhaustion.

Heather brushed through his hair, starting to tear up herself. The white glow grew brighter and brighter until it was revealed to be Nature itself. As it approached Heather and Oliver, Heather could see Nature was smiling with joy.

“He’s going to do so great.” Heather said to Nature, smiling through her tears. “I know.” Nature replied as it crouched down and placed a hand on Oliver’s chest briefly, standing back up and walking away.

A normal ritual would last longer than this, but Nature only needed to do one thing. The rest, Oliver had done himself without even knowing.

As the night passed into the morning, Oliver went through change, that of which was his soul and body transforming. Heather was asleep while this all happened, but his body started to grow scales, a tail, horns, features that would be seen on a dragon. While it was not a full change but partial, this was significant in the realm as dragons are considered to be primordial of the realm.

Half human, half dragon. This is the result that arrived in the sunrise, what he proved himself to be capable of.