A Whole Other World: What Could Have Been
By Michelle

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the characters or setting, they belong to Melanie Rawn. I am not making any money off using them here, so please do not sue me. Thanks.

Author's Notes- This was written a long time ago and is just a short piece of fiction came from my rather disturbed mind. This takes place after "Skybowl" and is of the dream theory. Only Dragon Prince and part of The Star Scroll and Sunrunner's Fire happened, very little of what happened in The Dragon Star books came to pass. This is a whole other future where things are the way I believe they should have been. Enjoy.

Rating- PG-13

Pol joined his daughters and the Isulk'im in cleaning the rubble of the flame tower, trying to create a new beginning for himself at the same time.

His old life at Dragon's Rest was gone, like Rohan, and Meiglan...

Things had changed and he had to start all over, figure out how to live again...

Pol woke up with a start, tears coming to his eyes when he remembered the details of his dream.

"What's wrong?" His wife asked suddenly, sitting up and wrapping her arms around his waist.

Pol buried his head in her hair, drinking in her presence. "I had an awful dream."

"What happened?" She asked soothingly, caressing his cheek like she did with their youngest son when he had a bad dream.

"Where do I start?" Pol asked with a sigh, pulling away from his wife.

She sat beside him, tilting her head with interest as he began his story.

"Well, it began at the Rialla of 719 and ended around now." Pol started, remembering the beginning of his dream. "Things were sort-of the same, but then they got strange. The Star Scroll was found, just like here, the Masul thing too and Pandsala was murdered as well, but Andrade ended up being killed too."

"How awful." His wife murmured. "What else happened?"

"Masul was defeated eventually and after Andrade's death, Andry became Lord of Goddess Keep."

"That much is right." His wife mused. "Of course Andrade didn't die until 724, comfortably in her own bed, but it's interesting to see that things weren't completely different. What else happened at the Rialla?"

"Not much." Pol said with a sigh and then he remembered one of the more disturbing aspects of his dream. "Except Maarken and Hollis married, of course, and... Alasen married Ostvel."

His wife stared at him for a full minute. "Alasen and Ostvel?" She repeated. "I'm sure Andry would love to hear that."

Pol chuckled at the thought of his cousin's reaction at the thought of his adored wife marrying the older man. "Wouldn't he? He didn't react to well in the dream either, he loved her, but she was terrified of what she was."

"Alasen?" His wife asked in shock, trying to imagine the nine ringed Sunrunner, who took as much pleasure in her gifts as her husband did in his, being afraid of her gift.

"Alasen." Pol confirmed. "She married Ostvel because she cared about him and because he was safe. Andry didn't react well to losing her. That and his gaining too much power too soon began a rift between him and the family and he and I began to be rivals and eventually enemies."

He saw his wife's clear disbelief at the statement. "I know it's hard to imagine Andry and I not liking one another, but we didn't. It wasn't just each other's power we didn't like, our personality's clashed on every level. It was strange. Anyway, the next years were calm. Very few things of significance happened, except... You married Tallain, love."

Sionell gaped at him. "Excuse me? Tallain as in the Lord of Tiglath, our dear friend, Meiglan's husband?"

"That would be him." Pol confirmed, dreading what came next. "Except, as I said he was your husband and... And I was married to Meiglan, but not at this point. At this point you realized I'd never think of you in that way and married Tallain."

"You and Meiglan?" Sionell repeated in shock. "And she didn't drive you crazy? Don't get me wrong, I adore Meiglan, but I can't see her as your type. She and Tallain are well suited for one another, yeah, but she's too quiet for you, you need someone to scream at you when you're being an idiot and whose temper matches your own."

Pol grinned and kissed the top of her head. "Aren't I lucky I married my She-Dragon, then?"

Sionell glared at him for a moment and then motioned for him to continue. "What happened next?"

"Well, I fought Ruval, that much is the same, but everything else was different. Sorin died, murdered by Marron, and then Andry murdered Marron with his gifts. That was the last straw, he was banned from the Desert and in that moment it was like he was no longer part of our family." Pol said quietly, unable to hide his horror at the thought, after all he and Andry were particularly close, so that aspect of the dream had really disturbed him.

"It's not real." Sionell reminded quietly. "But go on."

Pol took a deep breath. "Well, that's pretty much the big changes. I fought Ruval and won, just like here, I learnt that Mother wasn't my birth mother and that I was Diarmadh'im, but there was one major change. After Ruval died, I married Meiglan."

Sionell wrapped a possessive arm around Pol as he explained the next few years: The children, the changes Andry made at Goddess Keep, and other little changes.

When he got to 737, he paused. "Before I go on, I have to explain this. Most of our personalities were different, well not entirely, but vital things were different. For example, you loathed Andry."

Sionell blinked in surprise. "What else?"

Pol explained how they had all changed, causing Sionell to burst out laughing.

"Wow." She said, shaking her head. "I cannot imagine that."

"It is pretty different." Pol admitted, before continuing with his story. "What happened next, Ell, you wouldn't believe it. It was awful."

He told her about the Vellant'im, the war, Tobin's illness, Rohan's death, all the other deaths dear to them, their own passionate encounter, Meiglan's capture and subsequent death, how his and Andry's rivalry was pushed to the breaking point, Andry's death, and finally Sioned's suicide.

When he was done, he burst into tears.

Sionell held him in her arms, comforting. "It's alright." She soothed. "It's just a dream."

Pol sighed. "It just seemed so life like..."

"But it's not." Sionell reminded him. "Pol, our lives are nothing like that. You and I have four beautiful children we adore, all of whom are gifted, and we're incredibly happy. We love one another deeply and we adore our children."

Pol nodded, smiling as he thought of Jahnev, Jihan, Rislyn, and Meig. And then frowned as he thought of how odd it was that his and Sionell's children had the names of his children and Sionell's in his dream.

Sionell saw his frown and continued. "You and Andry are friends, as well as cousins, and you work well together, just like Andrade always wanted. He's not power-hungry or ruthless, he's a little ambitious, but aren't we all? He'd never do any of the things he did in your dream. He and Alasen are happily married with twin sons and a daughter who are all almost grown and a sweet new baby girl who came as quite a shock after so long, and they're very much in love. Alasen's not afraid of her power or Andry's, and has had no reservations about her gifts since the moment she realized that Andry loved her for herself, not because she was a Sunrunner.

"Sorin's alive and well, he's married to Betheyn and they have two children now. Your parents are both alive and well, currently at Stronghold putting up with our hatchlings and Chay and Tobin are there as well, and Tobin's perfectly healthy.

"Meiglan and Tallain are both alive, they have a wonderful son and beautiful daughter they both love and are very happy together. Meiglan's quiet and reserved, yes, but she's not at all meek or delicate like you described. She's got a strong back bone, just like the rest of us. Her father, thank the Goddess, has been dead for years now and Tallain's regent of Cunaxa until their son is old enough to become prince. There will be no more trouble between the Desert and Cunaxa now and the Merida will no longer be sheltered there."

Sionell paused, trying to think of who else he mentioned. "Ostvel's been gone for years now. He never recovered from losing Camigwen, so in a way death was blessing for him."

They were both quiet for a moment, thinking how that was the one thing that was better in his dream. The older man that they had both cared for had been alive and truly happy.

Finally Sionell continued. "Chayla is happy with the path she chose. She's on her way to becoming a physician and she's going to marry Kazander, they've figured out a way to make it work. She doesn't mind that he has three other wives and he's planning on making Visian korrus in his absence, because he and Chayla are going to spend half the year at the various castles, visiting friends and family.

"Rohannon's to be knighted this year and in a couple of years he'll probably marry Aldiara, who is Lisiel's cousin and who he met on a visit to Firon with Arlis. No plots of treason involved whatsoever. Everyone is fine, none of that stuff happened. We are all happy."

Pol smiled. "Yeah, we are. I guess, the dream took me by surprise. It showed me how awful things could be."

"It's alright." Sionell told him softly, leaning down to kiss him. "Things are wonderful. We have four beautiful children, a huge assortment of friends and family we adore, and we love each other more each day."

"I know." Pol told her, taking her into his arms. "Just like I know I'm a very lucky man."

"That you are." Sionell told him teasingly, beginning to make him forget all about his dream.

The End