I wandered through the vast gardens, leaving behind the ridiculous conversation that had consumed breakfast and turned my family into debating lunatics over theoretical siblings.
Smaug quickly abandoned me, darting off to terrorize a group of gardeners, no doubt delighted by their startled cries and frantic scrambling. At least one of us was having fun.
The morning air felt fresh and clean, filled with the scent of blooming flowers and newly trimmed hedges. It was a stark contrast to the heaviness lingering in my mind, a heaviness that had nothing to do with my overbearing relatives or their extravagant plots.
No, this weight had been there since the beginning, tucked away in the deepest recesses of my mind, where I preferred not to look too closely.
I sighed, glancing up at the pale blue sky, marbled with wispy clouds. Birds soared overhead, blissfully oblivious to my existential dilemma. How simple their lives must be eat, fly, survive.
