Chapter 12 Golden Powers?

Chapter 12 Golden Powers?
Aurora’s POV

Sleep did not bring me peace anymore.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Christian.

His eyes.

His touch.

The hurt on his face when I disappeared.

The pain in his roar after I left him alone in that cave.

Even now, days later, it still haunted me.

I woke up with a gasp, clutching the bedsheets tightly beneath my fingers. My breathing turned uneven as a strange ache spread through my chest. It wasn’t physical pain exactly… it felt deeper than that.

Like someone was squeezing my heart slowly.

I sat up immediately, trying to calm myself.

The room around me was quiet. Golden sunlight filtered through the crystal windows of my room inside Krystallos Palace, making the walls glitter softly. Everything looked peaceful.

But I wasn’t.

I pressed a hand against my chest and shut my eyes tightly.

Why did it hurt so much today?

Suddenly emotions crashed into me so violently that I almost fell off the bed.

Rage.

Possessiveness.

Pain.

Longing.

My breath hitched.

Christian.

The realization struck me instantly.

Those emotions… they weren’t mine.

I could feel him.

A shiver ran down my spine.

The mate bond.

It was incomplete, weak and unstable, but after our acceptance and… after that night… it had strengthened.

Enough for me to feel him.

My lips trembled.

He was angry.

So angry.

But beneath that anger was something else.

Something raw.

Something desperate.

I hugged myself tightly as tears burned my eyes again.

“He didn’t reject me…” I whispered brokenly.

That one thought alone shattered something inside me.

Ever since I left him, I kept imagining hatred in his eyes. I thought he would reject me immediately after finding out I was a witch. I thought the bond would break completely.

But it hadn’t.

I could still feel him.

And he could probably feel me too.

My chest tightened painfully again.

Moon Goddess…

What was happening to us?

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts.

“Aurora?” Drake’s voice came from outside. “Are you alive or did you drown yourself in tears again?”

I quickly wiped my face before answering. “Come in.”

The door opened dramatically and Drake walked inside carrying a huge tray filled with food.

My lips twitched despite my miserable state.

Only Drake could enter a room like he owned the entire world.

His silver hair looked messy as usual, and his black shirt hung loosely over his broad frame. Dragon shifters were naturally huge, but Drake especially looked intimidating.

Well…

Until he opened his mouth.

“There she is,” he sighed dramatically after spotting me. “The crybaby princess.”

I glared weakly at him. “Go away.”

“Nope.”

He placed the tray on the bed and sat cross-legged beside me without permission.

“You didn’t eat dinner properly yesterday,” he muttered. “Aunt Fiona almost threatened to personally feed you.”

A small warmth spread through me despite everything.

The Dragon family had accepted me so naturally that it sometimes made me emotional.

I looked down quietly.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

Drake frowned instantly.

“For what?”

“For troubling everyone.”

He stared at me for a few seconds before flicking my forehead lightly.

“Ow!”

“Stop saying stupid things,” he muttered. “You’re family.”

Family.

That word still felt unfamiliar to me.

I looked at him quietly.

“How are you always so calm?”

Drake snorted loudly. “Who said I’m calm? I’m just better at hiding my panic.”

Despite myself, I laughed softly.

“That’s better,” he grinned proudly. “Now eat before I force-feed you.”

I picked up a spoon obediently while Drake continued rambling about random things happening inside the palace.

Apparently one young dragon had accidentally burned down an entire training hall yesterday.

Another dragon had proposed to his mate by shifting mid-air and nearly crashed into the palace fountain.

I listened absentmindedly while eating slowly.

But suddenly the bond pulsed again.

This time softer.

A deep aching loneliness washed over me.

My movements stilled instantly.

Christian.

He was awake.

And hurting.

The spoon slipped from my fingers.

Drake immediately noticed my expression changing.

“What happened?”

I looked away quickly.

“Nothing.”

“Aurora.”

I bit my lip.

“It’s him.”

Drake sighed softly.

“The bond?”

I nodded weakly.

He became quiet after that.

Dragons respected mate bonds deeply. They understood better than anyone how soul connections worked.

“That means he accepted you,” Drake said carefully.

My eyes widened slightly.

“No…” I whispered. “Not fully.”

“But enough.”

Those two words shook me completely.

Enough.

Enough to feel me.

Enough to search for me.

Enough to hurt because of me.

I lowered my gaze as tears gathered again.

“I didn’t want to hurt him,” I whispered shakily. “I really didn’t.”

Drake’s expression softened.

“I know.”

“But he hates witches.”

“And yet he still feels you.”

I froze.

The truth in those words hit me hard.

My mate hated witches.

But he still couldn’t let me go.

Neither could I.

The bond pulsed once more.

This time possessiveness flooded through me so intensely that heat spread across my cheeks.

I knew instantly what caused it.

Christian.

My face turned bright red.

Drake narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

“What?”

“Nothing!”

“Aurora…”

“Nothing happened!”

His eyes widened slowly before a smirk spread across his face.

“Oh my God.”

“Drake!”

“You can FEEL THAT too?!”

I grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at him immediately while my entire face burned in embarrassment.

“Get out!”

His laughter echoed through the entire room.

“You two are disgustingly in love!”

“DRAKE!”

Still laughing like an idiot, he finally escaped before I murdered him.

I buried my face into my hands.

Oh God.

This was horrible.

What if Christian felt my emotions too?

The thought alone made me want to disappear underground forever.

After calming down slightly, I got ready for the day.

I wore a soft cream-colored dress with full sleeves and tied my hair into a loose braid. My eyes still looked swollen from crying, but at least I looked somewhat presentable now.

As I walked through the crystal corridors of the palace, I couldn’t help admiring everything around me.

Krystallos was beautiful.

Sunlight reflected through thousands of crystals embedded into the walls and ceilings, making the entire palace glow softly like a dream.

Dragons passed by occasionally, greeting me warmly.

No one looked at me with suspicion.

No one hated me.

The realization felt strange after years of hiding myself constantly.

I finally reached the royal gardens behind the palace.

The moment I stepped inside, cool wind brushed against my skin gently.

Flowers bloomed everywhere around me in colors I had never even seen before.

Golden butterflies fluttered near the fountains while crystal trees shimmered beneath sunlight.

It was beautiful.

Peaceful.

But my heart still ached.

I sat near the fountain quietly and closed my eyes.

The bond remained calm now.

But Christian’s emotions lingered faintly inside me like echoes.

Anger.

Pain.

Obsession.

Love.

I inhaled shakily.

“Aurora?”

I looked up to find Queen Fiona approaching me slowly.

She looked elegant as always in her flowing golden gown, her silver hair braided beautifully behind her.

But her eyes held warmth.

Real warmth.

She sat beside me quietly.

For a few moments neither of us spoke.

Then suddenly she brushed my hair away from my face gently.

“You’ve been crying again.”

It wasn’t a question.

I lowered my gaze.

“I miss him.”

The confession slipped out before I could stop it.

Queen Fiona sighed softly.

“Mates are not easy to forget.”

“I thought leaving him would protect him.”

“And now?”

Tears gathered again.

“Now it hurts so much that I can barely breathe.”

She wrapped an arm around my shoulders gently.

“My poor child.”

I leaned into her warmth silently.

For the first time in days… I allowed myself to be comforted.

“I think he hates me,” I whispered brokenly.

Queen Fiona smiled sadly.

“If he truly hated you, the bond wouldn’t be this strong already.”

I looked at her uncertainly.

“But he—”

“He is hurt, Aurora. There’s a difference.”

That sentence stayed inside my mind long after she left.

There’s a difference.

Maybe there really was.

Maybe Christian’s anger existed because he cared too much.

The thought terrified me almost as much as it comforted me.

That evening, unable to calm my restless mind, I decided to practice magic again.

I walked toward the isolated training grounds behind the palace where huge crystal pillars surrounded an open circular field.

The air felt strangely heavy tonight.

I stood in the center and inhaled deeply.

Closing my eyes, I let my magic flow slowly through my veins.

Usually my magic appeared silver-blue.

Soft.

Controlled.

But today something felt… different.

Hotter.

Stronger.

Unstable.

I stretched my hand outward carefully.

Energy burst from my palm violently.

Golden light exploded around me.

I gasped in shock as wind swirled wildly around the entire field.

The crystal pillars began trembling.

Flowers bloomed rapidly across the ground beneath my feet.

The air shimmered strangely.

And above me…

The night sky glowed gold.

Fear gripped me instantly.

“What…?”

My heartbeat accelerated.

This wasn’t witch magic.

I stumbled backward as more power erupted uncontrollably from my body.

The ground cracked beneath me.

Golden tendrils of energy wrapped around my arms like living light.

Panic rose inside me.

“I can’t stop it!”

Suddenly a powerful voice echoed behind me.

“Aurora!”

The energy vanished instantly.

I collapsed onto my knees, breathing heavily.

Nicholas stood nearby with Drake and Queen Fiona behind him.

But their expressions terrified me.

They weren’t shocked.

They looked afraid.

Real fear.

Nicholas approached me slowly, his face pale.

“When did this start happening?” he asked quietly.

“I-I don’t know…”

His jaw tightened.

Drake looked confused.

“What the hell was that?”

But Nicholas didn’t answer him.

He kept staring at me with troubled eyes.

Then he whispered something that made cold dread crawl through my body.

“It’s starting earlier than expected…”