Echo

chapter 20

"You know why I'm here punz" he cocks an eyebrow and I roll my eyes and take a seat. He relaxes his body slightly and subtly shifts his weight to his right side, "I couldn't figure out that note, nobody could" his expression remains blank as he looks at the counter.

"Did you try?" I nod slowly but he sees right through me and shakes his head, "vina! YOU are the only one who can actually disciples that code" I furrow my brows together give him a puzzled look.

"How do you know my name punz?" I ask, his face drains of all colour and he swallows, "punz? Did dream tell you?" I question further but he remains silent.

"Punz!?"

"Okay!" He yells holding his hands up in defeat and sighing, "we're from the same kingdom" he admits and I lean back in my chair with my mouth parted slightly.

"What are you talking about?" He walks over to the fireplace on the other side of the room and pulls something from a small secret compartment on the side, a book.

"The large kingdom just north of snowchester... snowchester being the first kingdom you rode to after being exiled" I stand from my chair and back away a little feeling slightly dizzy, "I was a gaurd in our kingdom, your fathers personal gaurd at that" I stop.

Thats not possible

"Thats-" I can't even finish my whole sentence, i want nothing more than to believe he's lying to me.

"Dream visited the kingdom while I was in training and kept in touch with me" I nod slowly and my head starts to ache from all the infromation "he came to me some time after being appointed head gaurd and told me if I didn't go with him he'd destroy the kingdom" he placed the book on the counter and slid it towards me.

I walked over and recognised the book immediately, it was mine. On the top of the page in my own handwriting was the phrase he wrote to me when I found the tavern for the first time a while ago.

"This isn't possible, that guards name was-"

"Luke?" He cuts in and I fall into a chair and grip the counter, he wasn't lying, "I took the book a while ago, I really don't remember the reason but I knew it would be important" I grace over the writing with my thumb and smile at my younger self.

"Know where you belong" I read it proudly, he smiles brightly and a small weight is lifted from my chest.

"You have control again" my entire body freezes at his statement and I read the line over and over again to confirm it.

I have control

I look up at him and back down to my hands, blade was a pretty good teacher but I had many doubts of ever gaining control again.

With a small simple thought of the spell small sparks of fire hover above my palms. I make a fist and they disappear.

We sit in a comfortable Silence for a while. I have perfect control over my powers yet again, he would be proud if he didn't think I was dead.

I should have waited. I should figured everything out before having philza tell them I'm dead, it was a stupid mistake but there's nothing that can be done now.

"Now you can take him down" I snap my head up to him and throw him a puzzled glance.

"Who?" I ask slowly and he smirks in response.

"You should go, I'm not sure how much longer he'll be gone" I nod and stand from the chair. I quickly walk to the door and in the distance notice the man himself riding towards the tavern at a high speed.

"Crap! He'll see me" I rush back over to luke and he gestures for me to follow him, he opens a small compartment under the bar and gives me a nod. He quickly turns around and hands me my book back.

"This passage will get you pretty close to blades"  I nod and walk down a few steps into a long tunnel. The doors shut with a thud behind me and I make a run for the end of the tunnel.

I emerge through a trapdoor and push the snow away from the top so I can climb out without slipping.

He was right

I'm in the tree line just behind blade's. I run over and up the stairs. I push through the doors and both boys snap their head to look at me.

"Everything okay? Its almost dark you were gone for ages" blade stands and examines me to ensure I'm not hurt and I just stand with a smile on my face.

"I have complete control" they both cheer and laugh, in a swift movement I wrap my arms around blade, he sucks in a breath and hesitates before actually relaxing and hugging me back.

I pull away from him and smile.

"Thank you" he smiles a little, I spin around to ranboo who has the biggest smile on his face and I throw my arms around his neck, he spins me quickly and places me down.

"I knew you could do it" he beams and I laugh to myself, "and you're sure you have total control" I pull out the book and open it to the page luke showed me.

I point to the writing at the top of the page and he furrows his brows at me and gives me a questioning look.

"I wrote this years ago, before I was exiled from my home" I explain and blade takes a seat and its only now I'm noticing that his long hair had gone, I push it away quickly and look back to the book.

"Its written so I can only read it when I have full control" he nods slowly and I can see the questions stiring in his brain.

"It says 'know where you belong"