Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
IN HISTORY, GODDESSES, often mothered, mounted, and were allegorized with dragons.
Andromeda, Medusa, Hygieia,Wadjet, Hathor, Gaia, and the Hesperides drew their power from draconic beasts. They were in union with dragons, recognizing their wisdom, connecting them to holier knowledge. A symbol of power was what Theadora Valaryen achieved like a Phoenix rising from the ashes to reclaim her golden glory.
"In her mind, she's a legend."
Peter shrugged with a grace of an amused smile dancing on his lips. "She kinda is... except you know, homework doesn't excuse legends, I guess."
He tried his hardest to look her in the eye like before. In fact, Peter wasn't sure if she was even real. As a teenager living in that modern world and as a web-slinging superhero, he'd seen a lot. Peter saw men grow to the heights of mountains and red-skinned androids... but he had never seen a human girl walk into flames and come out unscathed with two resurrected dragons in her arms. She materialized her inner self outside, a goddess of magic.
Bex nodded slowly as the two teenagers watched Theadora Valaryen stand by her locker and begrudgingly toss a packet of papers inside. Her hair was dark again from the box dye she quickly bought from the grocery store. Otherwise Midtown Tech would ask how she was able to bleach her roots in a matter of hours. With all their sleuthing and world-saving, school had slipped the old noggin' once again and Thea showed up to her damned physics class completely unknowing of the exam that was in store for her.
So much for the Dragonmother.
That's another name they bequeathed her with, or so she thought in hushed whispers and random theories crawling around the Internet. Happy Hogan had brought in damage control operatives, firemen, police officers, and the whole crew following that very public plane crash devastating the beach. He felt the grit of cooled sand under his polished black loafers and bits of charred metal were scattered everywhere he looked. The bitter scent of fuel burned his nostrils but sheer astonishment almost swallowed his face the moment he saw Adrian Toomes webbed up to the stack of crates he tried to hijack— accompanied by the note saying:
FOUND FLYING MONSTER GUY — SPIDER-MAN AND ILLYRIS
P.S. SORRY ABOUT YOUR PLANE
All he and a few curious spectators had to do was look up and he would see the Hero of Queens and the Mother of Magic sitting atop the Cyclone, with its neon lights blinking on and off... and the two dragon hatchlings atop their shoulders, singing the song of their unlikely victory.
"I don't know what I'd do without her," Bex began in a hushed voice. "She's my best friend. Literally my other half. And she's the Mother of Magic. She needs to be protected now I think more than ever. There aren't many people who want to see a Valaryen alive. Not after what her dad did. She needs us." Her head turned towards Peter, her eyes soft but emanating a clear warning. "She needs you... so don't ever hurt her."
