by Sarah Noffke
At the sight of her, all heads turned in Sophia’s direction. It made her instantly straighten, gasp, and smile nervously.
As she took a step forward, the fairy godmothers collectively began to hum a tune that Sophia didn’t know but instantly liked. It felt like a song of joy and love and gratitude. It felt like poetry set into notes. Sophia instinctively knew that it was as old as the fairy godmothers themselves.
The procession of women went on for the entire length of the hallway where the double doors were held open, and the campus’ lush green grounds could be spied in the distance. Sophia caught sight of her blue dragon on the other side of the doors.
He bent his head, and for a moment, his large head obscured the doors and everything behind him as he peeked down the hallway at her with one eye, a cunning glint in his gaze. She realized that he knew this was coming and had decided not to tell her about the surprise. She couldn’t blame him.
Some things were best left as surprises. Not trips to Disney World or root canals or family reunions, but things like this were better as secrets. If not, Sophia would have overthought everything leading up to that moment.
As it was, she allowed the nerves to bustle in her chest as she stepped forward.
The pair of fairy godmothers on either side of her extended their hands in unison and held out the white roses for Sophia. They paused their humming and bowed as they said, “Thank you, Rider Beaufont. You saved us.”
Sophia smiled as a tear prickled her eyes. She didn’t feel that she deserved such a show. After all, she hadn’t done it all alone. Bep made the solution that got rid of Don Ectoplasm. Ticker gave Sophia the magical ingredients for the imposter dessert. Lee created the sweet treat. But it had been Sophia who took the time to run the errands and risked her life when the time came, she reasoned. She realized that now and then, it was okay to play the hero.
She took both the roses and stepped forward. In unison, the two fairy godmothers in front of her extended their hands and repeated the words of the ones behind her: “Thank you, Rider Beaufont. You saved us.”
Sophia nodded humbly as she took the roses and smiled at each of the women.
When she reached the end of the procession, Sophia had a bouquet of over two dozen white roses in her hands, and her heart overflowed with gratitude. She was grateful for the college, for her friends, and for a world worth fighting for. It reminded her of why she was about to do what came next. It wouldn’t be pretty, and it would most likely result in something terrible for one dragonrider, but it had to be done.
Once Sophia set foot outside Happily Ever After College, the spring sunlight kissed the top of her head, and the scent of blossoms and freshness was all-encompassing. It appeared that the grounds of fairy godmother college were returning to normal.
Mae Ling stepped forward, accompanied by Willow, the school’s headmistress. They both held white roses, which they slid in next to the others in Sophia’s hands.
“Thank you for your sacrifices to save Happily Ever After College,” Willow stated and bowed slightly. “We are forever in your debt, and you hold our highest degree of gratitude.”
Sophia smiled. “I think if we’re doing things the right way, then we’re always in debt to each other, exchanging favors for helping one another out.”
Willow’s eyes slid to Mae Ling with a look of respect before returning to Sophia’s. “I want to believe you’re right.”
Mae Ling laid a thoughtful hand on Sophia’s shoulder. “May you be well on your next adventures. I’ll see you again soon, but not too soon.”
Sophia nodded with appreciation. “Thank you for the new clothes and everything else. I wish you all the best as you overcome this adventure.”
Without another word left to say, Sophia strode over to Lunis. She realized he was shinier than usual, and his claws looked manicured. It appeared he’d received special treatment as well. Sitting on his back was a brand new saddle that was elegant in design and of the finest quality.
“Are you ready to go save the world?” Lunis asked her.
Sophia glanced back at the fairy godmothers, overwhelmed by their collective beauty and the love they radiated before turning back to her dragon. “Absolutely. Let’s go make this place better so that love has a chance to continue to flourish.”
Chapter One Hundred Five
“Who brought the coffee and donuts?” Lunis asked as he hovered in the air, flapping his wings only enough to keep him and Sophia aloft.
Beside them, Simi and Wilder were in a similar position, high in the air over the cascading Pacific Ocean.
“I brought trail mix.” Wilder held up a bag of pistachios mixed with dried cranberries.
“You do get that you’re the absolute worst.” Lunis groaned. “Well, when Simi isn’t present. She tops you.”
Wilder laughed and popped a handful of nuts into his mouth. “If you’re going to start being all sentimental, it’s going to make it difficult to focus on this stakeout. I need constant vigilance.”
Sophia chuckled. The pair and their dragons were outside the elfin homeland island in Hawaii and near the barrier that kept them out of the Rogue Riders’ stolen territory.
The plan was to wait until one of the demon dragonriders crossed into the barrier or out of it and confront them. In the best-case scenario, they could persuade this dragonrider to switch sides by stating the obvious, that bullying their way around the globe wasn’t the way even for demon dragonriders.
If that didn’t go well, they would move to Plan B, which involved fighting the Rogue Rider for the soul stone. They only needed one stone for the next part of the plan, but getting it was the tricky part.
“Sophia, did you bring any candy?” Lunis asked.
“I have a pocket full of Jolly Ranchers.”
“Because you’re not the ultimate worst.” The blue dragon sighed. “Take note, Vegan. Candy. Not trail mix. It’s almost Halloween.”
“What are you going to dress up as this year?” Wilder asked Lunis.
“I’m going to paint myself white and have no personality,” he answered.
“Oh, you’re going to be a sheep then!” Wilder exclaimed.
Lunis shook his head. “No, I’m going to be Simi. Duh.”
The white dragon hovering beside them pretended not to have heard the joke.
Sophia yawned and momentarily wished that she was back in bed at Happily Ever After College. It was by far the coziest place she’d ever slept, and waking up to desserts was amazing.
They had been cloaked in the clouds for over an hour with no sign of a demon dragonrider. However, Sophia knew that one had to pass through the barrier to the island soon. According to what Mae Ling had told her, one couldn’t portal inside the protected zone. It worked similar to the Barrier at the Gullington. From everything that Sophia had heard, the Rogue Riders were very active outside their headquarters, bullying and stealing from mortals and magical creatures—they showed no prejudices about who they took from.
“I’m bored.” Lunis copied Sophia’s yawn.
“Only boring people get bored,” Wilder teased.
“If I weren’t certain that you’d taste awful from all your vegan fare, I’d eat you,” Lunis threatened.
Sophia pulled the parts of the key that Trin had given her when she returned from Happily Ever After College out of her pocket. Now she had two. She tried different ways of putting them together, but something was missing. She figured that she needed more pieces for them to fit.
“Do you know what’s at stake for a tired dragon?” Lunis asked.
“Falling from the sky and killing his rider?” Wilder offered.
Lunis shook his head. “A flaming yawn.”
Sophia groaned. Wilder chuckled. Simi rolled her eyes.
“When I get my bachelor pad, Simi…” Lunis let the sentence trail away.
“Yes?” the white dragon asked.
“You can’t come over unless you tell me a joke,” he replied.
Wilder leaned over and patted his dragon. “I have a few jokes for you.”
“But they have to be funny and can’t make me want to kill myself.” Lunis cut his eyes at the other dragonrider beside them.
“All right,” Wilder chirped. “Tell me a joke, Lunis.”
“That’s not how it works,” Lunis countered. “I’m not a monkey to perform for you on a whim. I’m a majestic dragon with the knowledge of my entire race locked inside my consciousness. I have always been and always will be. I’m timeless. Wielding the power that the angels and Mother Nature gave me before humans were even a spark of an idea. I refuse to be ordered to tell a joke like I’m your circus clown.”
The light expression on Wilder’s face disappeared. “My sincere apologies. I’m sorry if I offended you.”
“Well, you did,” Lunis snapped. “Let’s focus on this stakeout. I only want to talk about things pertaining to that from here on out.”
Sophia shook her head, knowing exactly where this was leading.
“Okay, that’s fine.” Wilder gave Sophia a confused look—falling for Lunis’ antics.
“Speaking of stakeouts,” Lunis began, his voice serious. “I had a friend who investigated a thief and waited to catch him in the act. There were two suspects. One was a Canadian, and the other an Eskimo. My friend and I are on this stakeout, and he tells me that his gut tells him that the real culprit is the Eskimo. Well, after a long stakeout we discover the Eskimo is the thief. My friend turns to me and says, ‘Inuit.’”
Sophia groaned and shook her head.
An abrupt laugh fell from Wilder’s mouth.
Simi let out a puff of smoke and growled.
“I should have seen that coming,” Wilder replied, still laughing.
“Because Lunis doesn’t have any friends,” Simi stated.
The blue dragon cut his eyes at her. “That almost resembled a joke. Who says you can’t teach an old dragon new tricks? How old are you again?”
“Three hundred and thirty-three,” the white dragon answered.
Lunis whistled through his teeth and shook his head. “You look much older. Maybe try a night cream.”
Sophia and Wilder laughed, but Simi didn’t appear at all amused.
“Do you think the Rogue Riders are cloaked when they leave the barrier?” Sophia asked, feeling like they should have seen someone come or go by now.
Wilder pondered this. “I don’t think so. From what I’ve learned, they aren’t that proficient with magic.”
Sophia’s brow wrinkled. “I’ve been doing cloaks since I was, like, five years old.”
He rolled his eyes. “Not everyone is Sophia Beaufont and gets their magic before losing their first tooth. Most grown magicians still can’t perform a cloaking spell, especially for long lengths of time.”
Sophia considered this. “It does seem that when it comes to magic, the Rogue Riders lack a bit. Like when they relied on technology to keep you caged instead of using a locking spell.”
“They have weird levels of competencies, I’ve noticed,” Wilder explained. “Their dragon-riding and combat skills aren’t honed, as one might expect. They rely on less-magical strategies, like using soul stones to get through a barrier instead of a spell, which would be more foolproof. Then they surprised me with the reinforcements they had on the pit where they kept me, so they have the capabilities but don’t use it in all aspects.”
“That’s interesting,” Sophia mused. “It does seem like they’re the opposite of us, who use magic for pretty much everything and shy away from magitech unless we have to.”
Lunis yawned, apparently not finding the notion interesting. Sophia patted the side of his neck as he lowered like he was falling asleep—something that wouldn’t be good since they were several hundred feet up in the air.
“Wake up!” she encouraged.
He shook his head and willed away the tiredness. “Fine. Who knew that stakeouts were so boring? There’s all this suspense around them in the movies, where the cops have to watch through binoculars or slide down in the car when the suspect hurries by.”
“I left my binoculars at the store,” Wilder joked.
Sophia laughed, grateful that they didn’t have to rely on such methods.
“What is it when one bull spies on another bull?” Lunis asked quite seriously.
“What?” Wilder asked.
“A steak-out!” Lunis laughed loudly and rose in the air a little.
When Wilder laughed, Sophia shot him a scolding look. “Don’t laugh. That only encourages him.”
“What is it when one butcher spies on another butcher?” Lunis asked again.
“What?” Wilder replied.
Sophia shook her head. “Seriously…”
“A steak-out!” Lunis answered.
Wilder smirked. “I really should have seen that one coming.”
“You really should have,” Simi said without inflection.
“What do you call a reconnaissance mission carried out by two Australian cops?” Lunis asked, and before Wilder could reply, he shouted, “An Outback Stake-Out!”
“No more stakeout jokes,” Sophia ordered.
“Fine,” Lunis muttered, sounding defeated. “Do you know why Dracula is a vegan?”
“Why?” Wilder asked, holding back an amused smile.
“Because stakes kill him!” Lunis exclaimed. “And that’s not a stakeout joke, Sophia, so there.”
“Okay, no more jokes that involve stakeouts, stakes, or steaks,” Sophia ordered, pretending to be serious.
“That’s fine,” Lunis stated. “But I do need to confess something about one of my friends, who I do have lots of, Simi.”
“Sure you do,” the white dragon replied.
“Real friends? Not just the animals on Animal Crossing?” Sophia questioned.
“Those count!” Lunis insisted.
“What’s your confession?” Wilder asked because he didn’t know any better than to be led on by the blue dragon.
“I think that this friend of mine is a vampire,” Lunis confessed, very convincingly.
“Oh?” Wilder mused. “Why is that?”
“I stabbed him in the heart with a wooden stake, and he died!” Lunis’ laughter rumbled under Sophia.
She was going to complain that she had ordered no more stake jokes, but a demon dragonrider appeared suddenly, flying through the barrier around the elves’ home island. Sophia tensed. Of all the ones it could be, she couldn’t believe which Rogue Rider had appeared first.
Chapter One Hundred Six
The demon dragonrider who had finally passed through the barrier was none other than Tanner on his black dragon, Coal.
Wilder tensed beside Sophia, then jolted forward on Simi although she stayed in place. If anyone wanted to murder Tanner more than her, it was Wilder who had to suffer his abuse and insults when held prisoner.
“Remember we’re going to try talking,” Sophia warned after seeing the vengeance written on Wilder’s face.
He nodded, but his jaw flexed, and he didn’t at all appear like he wanted to “just talk.”
“Okay, let’s cut him off before he gets away.” Sophia steered Lunis into a dive and flew after Tanner.
“We could start a day late, and we’d still catch up with him,” Wilder grumbled. “The demon dragonriders are that slow.”
Sophia laughed as the wind sped by her. However, she reminded herself not to get overly confident with her skill. Wilder might be over two hundred years old with plenty of training and riding experience, but Sophia wasn’t that much older than the demon dragonriders. However, she had the other riders' expertise and had trained with them since day one. The Rogue Riders appeared too good for such things. Instead, it seemed they spent their time stealing and bullying.
Despite not talking about how they’d coordinate their efforts to cut Tanner off, Sophia and Wilder atop their dragons seamlessly synchronized. One went to the right and the other to the left.
The two dra
gonriders moved fast and crossed the distance between them and Tanner in seconds. The rush of air and the smell of saltwater was a welcome experience after sitting for so long on the stakeout.
Sophia pulled down their cloaks when they were close to Tanner—going for the element of surprise. The other dragonrider noticed them right away, definitely spooked by the Dragon Elites’ sudden appearance.
To Sophia’s relief, Tanner didn’t try to run. If they were there to kill him, that was probably a dumb move. But she’d observed that this guy had an overabundance of confidence. When Sophia and Wilder were only a few yards away, Tanner yanked back hard on Coal’s reins and swiftly brought him to a halt.
Sophia used the reins mostly to keep her balance on Lunis. Mahkah had taught her how to steer and control her dragon’s speed using her intention. He’d explained that riding a dragon wasn’t at all like riding a horse. The rider was in full control of the dragon only when they connected to their thoughts for steering and controlling them.
With a single intention, Sophia brought Lunis to a halt, slowing him gently. Next to her, Wilder did the same a safe distance away, effectively surrounding Tanner. He studied them for a moment, maybe sensing that they weren’t necessarily there to fight. If they were, their weapons would be out, or they would have started with an attack. Or done it with their cloaks up.
Tanner narrowed his eyes at the pair. His knuckles were white from gripping the reins so hard. “You two decided that you’re tired of the Dragon Elite and want to join a real group of riders?”
A rude laugh popped out of Wilder’s mouth. “Yeah, but unfortunately there isn’t one.”
Tanner’s face contorted with hostility. “Whatever. The boss would never let the likes of you into our ranks anyway. Angel dragonriders aren’t welcome in the Rogue Riders. You’d no doubt beat us down with all your holier-than-thou talk.”
“I know,” Wilder agreed and nodded. “Having a conscience is tough. I’m sure you psychopaths sleep like babies at night. There are so many ways that you’re like a baby.”