by Katie Cherry
“We are not pets!” I hear Nora’s voice echoing indignantly in my mind. “We are here to help you, not entertain you! We are called Familiars. Most of our kind aid witches and wizards of high status among the realms, but my companions and I volunteered to aid you in your quest to discover your Gifts. And I am most pleased to have the opportunity to aid you, Princess Dragon,” she adds, bowing to me, her wings outstretched for balance. I blush, aware that others are watching with dumbstruck, confused, and envious looks on their faces. “I did not dare to hope that I would one day have the privilege to serve one such as you. But there are some things you are not to ask me to do, and one of those is to attack another Familiar.”
“All… alright…” I think back to her, still overwhelmed that I have a hawk- and one that can talk, at that! I look at Nathan. He seems even more confused than I am.
“I… I have a rat… that can talk…” he stammers.
“What’s his name?” I ask, trying to get him to calm down. It seems to work, a little.
“Greg,” he replies, glancing at my hawk. “What’s your hawk’s name?”
“She’s Nora,” I respond proudly. “Isn’t it awesome that we have Familiars to help us out now?” I say, excited and happy. He nods, still a little overwhelmed. Looking over at Jake, I see that Kat has convinced him to trade her Familiars. I start laughing as I realize that Kat doesn’t like cats. Nathan, after realizing what I’m laughing at, begins laughing with me. Turning to the audience, I see that quite a few of them are chuckling as well.
Finally, Nehru bids us goodnight and lets us go home. Nathan and I gladly head back to our house and get some sleep after our long day.
Chapter Ten
The Sohos
I force myself to get up before sunrise. Groaning, I roll out of bed and wake Nora. She stretches and seems perfectly fine with being awake so early in the morning. I’m jealous. My eyes are burning, begging me to climb back into bed. Resisting, I head over to the window and look out. The sky is getting light, but the sun hasn’t come up over the mountains yet. I quickly get dressed and go to the bathroom, splashing some cold water on my face to help me wake up. I then put on my boots, noticing Nathan stirring while I do so.
“Morning,” I greet him.
He opens his eyes and looks at me inquisitively. “Up so soon?” He swings his legs out of bed, his body spinning to face me as he does so.
“Yep. I need to check on Eric before we go train with Thaddeus.”
“Are you taking Nora with you?”
“Yeah, I figure she’ll want to stretch her wings and hunt for something for breakfast.”
“And what are you going to do for breakfast?” he asks.
“I’ll go see the cook near the square that we’ve gone to before. She seems to cook mostly for the contestants, so I’m sure she’ll get me something.”
“Alright,” he sighs. “I guess I’ll stay here and cover for you in case somebody comes looking for you. I’ll probably say something about you getting to know your Familiar, and maybe throw in that you had nightmares to explain why you’re doing it so early.”
“Thanks,” I say, grabbing my backpack. “It really does mean a lot to me. …I’m forgetting something…” I murmur, slowly spinning in a circle, trying to identify it. “Oh! Milk for Eric,” I suddenly remember. I quickly head to our kitchen, pulling out a water bottle and filling it with milk, like before. I also grab a small bowl so Eric can feed himself and put everything into the backpack. I wave goodbye to Nathan as I head out the door.
It’s chillier outside than I expected, but I just pull my jacket closer and keep walking, heading toward the pillar of smoke coming from Paula’s cooking stand by the Square. When I get there, I am greeted by the happy chef.
“Crystal! I see you’re up early,” she says, chuckling merrily as she dishes steaming hot eggs and sausage on a plate.
“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep,” I respond, accepting the plate.
“And getting to know your new Familiar as well, I see,” she comments while flipping pancakes. “A fine one you’ve got there, too. I know I’m jealous!” she chuckles.
“Yeah, I’m a lucky girl,” I mutter, fighting the urge to remind her that I only got the bird because I managed to not die in the stupid Games these people were forcing me to go through. Lucky wasn’t really the word I would use to describe my life-or-death situation. I head over to a table set up beside the stand and wolf down the food before the wind steals away its heat. After returning the dishes, I head towards the woods.
“Who is Eric?” Nora asks, riding on my shoulder.
“You’ll see,” I respond. “…Would you be so kind as to see if I’m being followed? I… want to be alone.”
“Of course, Princess,” she replies, launching into the air. After a few minutes, she returns. “No one is near. You will be able to slip into the woods completely unnoticed.”
“Thank you.”
Ten minutes later, I reach the cave where I hid Eric. Nora hops off my shoulder and follows as I crouch and enter Eric’s new home. I blink as my eyes adjust. I feel another mind touch mine and I can sense joy at my presence. Smiling, I kneel down and scratch under Eric’s jaw. He wriggles with pleasure at my touch.
Reaching back, I pull the bowl out of my backpack and place it in front of him. He sniffs it curiously, then reels back in surprise as I pour in some milk. He licks some off his snout and gets excited, thrusting his face into the bowl. While he’s eating, I explain to Nora how I came to find Eric.
“So you’re raising him?” she asks, disbelieving.
“Well, yes. What else could I do? Just let him die?”
“No… I just think that perhaps a wiser choice would be to tell Thaddeus about him and let him help you return him to his own kind.”
“Well… I’ll do that eventually, but right now he needs me, and I can’t be sure what Thaddeus would do if I told him. I’ll take care of him until he can take care of himself. After that… I’ll see what I can do about returning him,” I reply, my thoughts shadowed by fear of what the adult dragons would do to me if they saw me with a dragon baby. They would probably kill me without taking the time to question me.
“Very well. I’ll not argue with you, just help you to do what you believe to be right.”
“Thank you,” I respond, relieved to have a friend who won’t fight with me about all of my decisions.
Eric, having finished eating, is now nuzzling at my hand. Smiling, I tickle him under his wings. He rolls around, cooing happily. I continue to play with him for a few minutes, but soon enough my time is up. Putting everything back in my backpack except the bowl, I try to explain to Eric that I will be back around noon. He’s not pleased, but he accepts it and lays back down on the rock, closes his eyes, and begins his waiting.
I feel awful, but what else can I do? I quickly jog back to the house, Nora flying above me. I leave the backpack there and head out with Nathan to train with Thaddeus. At lunch, I eat as fast as I can before running back to the hut to retrieve food for Eric. Back in the woods, I play with him and feed him, managing to return in time for training with Vlad. That part of my day isn’t as unpleasant as I expected it to be, since he just coldly instructs me on how to properly care for my Familiar.
Then it’s training with Thaddeus and Nathan again. We do weaponry, and I do reasonably well, especially considering my thoughts are elsewhere. After that is dinner and feeding Eric again. Nathan is already asleep by the time I get back.
This is my life for the next week- and it’s starting to get to me. Nathan brings it up as we are heading to train with Thaddeus that morning. “This isn’t good for you. You’re exhausted!” I start protesting, but he stops me before I can even get going. “No, don’t try to argue. It’s true, and you know it. If you keep this up, you’re going to drop soon.”
“It’s true,” Nora chimes in. “I’m concerned about you. You aren’t well. You need to take a break and get some sleep.”
“Gosh
, thanks for the vote of support,” I grumble. I’m in a bad mood as well- too much stress, I guess. Nathan walks in front of me and stops, forcing me to halt as well. He puts his hands on my shoulders and looks me in the eyes.
“I am trying to support you,” he says. His hazel eyes convey his concern for me, softening my stubborn heart. “I just want to help you. You shouldn’t have to do this all by yourself. Let me take the morning shift, at least.” I hesitate. “Please. You need to rest. I’m not saying you have to get rid of him or anything, I think- I know- that you need help.”
I sigh and give in. He’s sweet to want to help, but it’s hard to give up some of my time with little Eric. “Fine. I’ll let you help. But only in the mornings. Okay?”
He looks relieved and releases me. “Good. Another thing, though,” he continues as we resume walking. “Your head isn’t in the training anymore. I need you to pay attention- no offense- so we can win the Second Challenge. The Games can be over if we can manage to win three times in a row. Remember your little sister. You need to return to her. What would she do without you?”
That makes me feel horrible. I’ve been so preoccupied lately that I hadn’t even had a spare moment to think about Kiki. I had completely forgotten about her. “Right. I’m sorry. I’ll get my head in the game.”
“Good. I need you, and so does Kiki.” I nod gravely, my eyes on my feet as we walk.
Thaddeus is late again, so Nathan and I battle it out with the weapons once more. This time, I win easily. He seems to have lost his grace with the sword- his body must have moved on past that Gift. When Thaddeus arrives, he ushers us to the top of the building again. As we climb, he informs us that he had just been at the meeting to determine what the Second Challenge would be.
The point of this one is to reach the ‘finish line.’ From the way Thaddeus is talking about it, it sounds to me to be some kind of maze. At specific intervals, there will be a creature that will ask us a riddle. If we answer it correctly, we will be able to continue on the correct course. If we answer wrong, then we will be sent on another path that is longer and has an extra riddle as well.
“So basically, in order to win this Challenge, we need to be able to think outside the box,” I state thoughtfully. Thaddeus nods.
Exactly. So we will concentrate on your mind for most of the next week. But you will still have to face the rest of the contestants. You will all be starting at different places around the arena, but there is only one finish line, and your paths may cross others’ paths multiple times. We will need to make sure you can fight them off.”
“Is there anything else?” Nathan asks sarcastically. I chuckle, but Thaddeus doesn’t catch it.
“Well, yes,” he replies seriously. It is also a race of who can get there first, so you will need to be fast. Your bodies will need to be able to endure exhaustion and keep on going strong, especially if you get into any fights.”
When we leave for lunch, not only do my legs hurt, but my head as well from having to think about many different things in tons of different ways. After wolfing down my lunch and avoiding the other contestants, I head to the woods once again. Partway there, I am stopped by Jake. He’s holding his cat- his Familiar. He grins at me slyly while his Familiar hisses at Nora, who’s riding on my shoulder once more.
“And where are you going?” he questions, glancing at my backpack. I swallow, thinking fast.
I nonchalantly answer, “Oh, nothing that would concern you. I’m just taking Nora into the forest so she can catch something to eat. She prefers fresh meat, of course.”
“…Of course,” he slowly replies, implying that he doubts that I told him the full story. His cat moves its glare to me and hisses again. “Oh, don’t mind her. Brianna’s not in a very good mood today. Anyway,” he continues with a wink, “I guess I’ll see you around, Crystal.” With that, he walks away. I breathe a sigh of relief, then continue towards the woods.
“I’m relieved he didn’t insist on coming with me.” Nora agrees.
When we reach the cave, I spot Eric crouching on top of it. Before I can say anything, he leaps off and into the grass. I hear a tiny squeak as he lands, and when I get closer, he looks up at me, grinning a toothy draconic smile. A small mouse is dangling from his jaws by its tail, dead. I’m speechless. As he leads the way back into the cave, I realize just how much he’s grown. When I found him, he was about the size of a house cat. He is now double that, with more muscle in his legs and wings.
He takes the mouse and drops it at my feet, looking up at me with a proud look on his face as he waits expectantly for my reaction. I kneel down and scratch under his jaw, just like he like me to.
“Good job, Eric!” I congratulate him. “You’re such a good dragon!”
I feel in his thoughts that he is pleased he impressed me, and suddenly, he forms a word in his mind and sends it to mine.
“Kysta…” I look down at him, astounded. He had almost gotten my name!
“Yes, Eric. It’s Crystal.”
“Er…ic?”
“Yes, that’s your name. Good job, Eric!”
“Eric!” He bounces around the cave happily. He continues repeating our names. “Eric! Kysta! Eric! Kysta! Eric!” I laugh. Glancing at my watch, I see that my time with him is up. I pour him a little milk and start to leave.
“No! Kysta!” I sigh, sad to leave him. Maybe I’ll ask Thaddeus for a break tomorrow so I can come and spend more time with little Eric. Scratching him under the jaw, I promise him that I’ll be back tonight.
He pouts. “Kysta no go!” He insists. Downtrodden, I tell him to stay in the cave until it’s dark so no one will see him. I then force myself to leave. His bright blue eyes follow me intently as I walk through the forest.
After training with Vlad and Thaddeus, I finally bring myself to ask him the question. Walking up to Thaddeus after he dismissed us for the day, I clear my throat. He turns around, looking surprised. “Yes?” he asks.
I swallow hard. “Um… I was wondering if I could take a break from training tomorrow?” My voice quivers from fear that he will say no or get mad at me for suggesting such a thing. Instead, he looks thoughtful.
“Yes, I suppose a short break is in order. I can see that you haven’t been yourself for the past few days. I suppose you need a little time alone, yes?”
“Oh, yes! Thank you!” I beam, relieved. He smiles.
“Just make sure to be back the next morning. We have less than a week until the next Challenge.”
“Of course!” I say, catching up to Nathan on his way down the stairs. “Thanks again!” He chuckles and watches me go.
When I’ve caught up to him, Nathan looks at me and says, “That’s great and all, but remember that you aren’t going early in the morning. I am. Just make sure to warn him first, okay? I don’t want him attacking me.”
I laugh. “Of course. But I’m not so sure he’ll need you to come.” He looks confused, so I explain about the mouse.
“So he can catch his own food, then? That’s great! Does that mean he can eat meat now too?”
“I don’t know,” I say thoughtfully. “I would think so, but I didn’t see him eat it. I guess I’ll check tonight.”
Sure enough, Eric ate the entire thing and drank some of the milk as well, although not all of it. I refill it and watch as he dances around, showing me again how he caught the mouse. I laugh, enjoying my time with him. I soon have to leave again, which makes him sad until he hears that I will be able to play with him all day tomorrow. Then he’s quite excited, and I go home happy as well, looking forward to tomorrow for the first time since I got to Zilferia.
*****
When I wake up, the sun is shining brightly through the windows. I sit up, feeling better than I have for weeks. Nathan has already left to train with Thaddeus, so I have some breakfast and prepare enough food for both Eric and me to last us the whole day. That way, I won’t have to come back to the house until tonight. I don’t grab anything for Nora since she pre
fers to hunt anyway.
I stroll to the woods, not hurrying, just enjoying the beautiful day and pleasant weather, which has cooled a little since I arrived in Zilferia. Nora takes off, searching for breakfast as I walk. When I enter the woods, I’m startled by a figure moving swiftly through the trees. Before I can react, there’s an arm around my waist, pinning my arms down, and a hand over my eyes. I’m trapped in place and I can’t see or move, but I don’t panic. I simply wait for the personage to identify themselves. I hear a laugh from my attacker.
“Well, I expected you to lash out at me, at least. I see you’ve been working on controlling your emotions and patience. A handy thing for the Games, since you have to fight other human beings as well as wild, vicious creatures.”
“Who are you?” I ask. The voice sounds a little like another I know… but I can tell they’re disguising their true voice. He laughs again, and I figure it out. “Lloyd?” I cautiously probe. With another laugh, he releases me. I turn and discover that I was correct. He smiles at me, and it hits me once again how cute he is, with his blond hair and bright blue eyes. Now that I am closer to him, I see that his eyes have a thin gold outline around the pupil. My heart unexpectedly does a flip and I’m lost for words for a moment. Luckily, he talks instead, switching back to his normal voice.
“So, how’s it going, Crystal? I see you got a break from training for a day. What are you planning on doing with it?” His happy voice hints at something and his eyes twinkle with eagerness.
“Well, I was going to spend the day with Eric, but you’re more than welcome to come along as well. After all, we need to get Eric used to you before the next Challenge.”