by G. Bailey
“Here is your class, princess,” Dagan says, pointing at the door.
“When is this silent treatment going to end?” I ask, but he doesn’t even look at me as he leans against the wall and staring at the floor. I shake my head, turning to go inside the classroom and shutting the door behind me. On each small round table is a little purple egg, and every table is filled except for one near the front. I take the seat, ignoring the stares of everyone else as we wait for the teacher to come. After a month of being ignored, being stared at like you have a dick drawn on your forehead becomes easy to ignore.
“Welcome class,” the old man from plant class says as he hobbles into the room, sitting down on the chair behind the desk.
“I’m sorry this class has been cancelled, but the eggs were not ready until now,” he explains to us. I thought he was just ill or something. He hasn’t been in plant class either, we were just told to study our plants in our room for the entire lesson each week.
“What are the eggs, sir?” a guy with black hair asks.
“Snakes, jewel snakes to be specific,” he says, and several of the girls on other tables move their hands away from their eggs, looking scared. I have no idea what a jewel snake is, but normal snakes aren’t that bad. I don't get why people are so scared of them. It’s pointless to be scared of something that is likely more scared of you.
“They will hatch any moment, and it’s your job to make them like you enough not to bite you, and then let them free in the woods. If you are bitten, you have fifteen minutes to get to the infirmary before you will pass out,” he says, yawning as the sound of eggs cracking fills the room.
“If you want to fail the entire year, please run out the room now,” he says, and to my surprise three people get up and run out, leaving about ten of us in here. I take a deep breath in the silent room as I stare at my egg, watching it wriggle a little before a deep crack appears near the top. The egg breaks open slowly as I observe, and then a tiny, green snake with spikes all down its back slithers out the broken egg. I hold my hand flat on the desk as I hear some students swearing, and others speaking softly to their snakes, but I try not to look away from its tiny little eyes that watch me.
“Hello little snake, I’m Isola, and erm... we need to go outside without you biting me,” I say, and the snake hisses at me, sliding across the table. I see a student get bitten by their snake out the corner of my eye. A quick glance at the teacher tells me he is nearly asleep and not paying attention.
“Great,” I mutter, looking back at my snake as someone else screams in the room. The snake gets to my hand, lifting its head as it opens its mouth. Doing the only thing I can think of, I turn my had around and call my dragon, freezing the snake up to its neck, and it falls on its side. I pick up the frozen snake, keeping well away from the sharp hissing mouth. I stand up and see most the students holding books out to keep their snakes away from them. I hold out my hand, freezing all the snake’s bodies, and the students slowly drop their books.
“Get them outside and I will unfreeze them,” I say, not waiting for a response from their shocked faces. I walk out the room, seeing Dagan waiting for me. He just raises an eyebrow at the frozen snake in my hand but doesn’t say anything. I walk past him, straight down the stairs to the front door, opening it up and walking outside. I walk to the trees, placing my snake down and slowly unfreeze the ice. It hisses at me before slinking away into the woods.
“Will you do mine, princess?” a guy asks nervously, moving next to me and putting his snake on the ground as several more students wait behind me.
“It’s Isola and sure,” I say, unfreezing his snake and waiting for the next student to bring theirs. Everyone’s small smile at me makes me think I may have a few less enemies after today.
Chapter 26
Isola
“What is your plan for the rest of the day, princess?” Dagan asks me after I spent the rest of my lesson unfreezing the snakes, and then explaining what I did to the teacher. He was really impressed with my idea and said everyone has passed for team work.
“Going to the library to read,” I say, and he nods.
“I will wait outside then,” he says just as cold and impersonal as his very first sentence to me.
“Okay then,” I say, hating how awkward our conversations have become. We walk in silence until we get to the library, and he smiles at me.
“I wish things were different, kitty cat,” he whispers.
“So do I,” I say, knowing if he wasn’t a dragon guard and I wasn’t a princess, this isn’t how we would be. I look at him once more, meeting his blue eyes as they drag slowly over to mine. It takes a lot for me to pull away, to force myself to remember who he is, and that he is doing this for the right reasons. Dragon guard and ice dragons can never care for each other, or be anything more than people who know each other. Emotions and curses don’t mix, despite how much it hurts to avoid them. I shake my head, knowing I need a good book to dive into, and forget the real world for a while. Good books can shake your world, make you forget reality. That’s what I need right now.
“Can I help you look for anything, child?” the older librarian asks me as I walk past her and I pause, turning to look at her.
“Nope, I’m good thank you,” I say.
“Do you know how you can cast a curse? I was just reading a book on them,” she explains her random statement, her eyes drifting to the door of the library, and I shake my head.
“Any dragon can call a curse at any time, but you must be desperate, dying, or so close to being destroyed that the curse is all you have left,” she tells me.
“That’s how Icahn’s wife cast the dragon guard curse?”
“Yes, and all curses can be broken, they are made to be,” she says, looking at the library door once more.
“Not without a heavy price,” I say quietly.
“The heavy price makes it all worth it. You would never risk anything for something cheap and worthless, child,” she chuckles, and then coughs a little, smoke coming out of her mouth. She must be really old, as dragons and dragon guards age different than humans. For us, a hundred years is the same as one year for humans after we turn sixteen.
“Can I read this book on curses?”
“Come to me in an hour at the desk, and I will get it for you.”
“Thank you, I never got your name?” I ask.
“Windlow Pakdragca, your highness,” she bows slightly and walks away. I shake my head at the strange old lady. I know that the information on curses could be useful, but I really don’t want to think about curses at the moment. I need to find a good book to get lost in, not a history lesson. I go straight past the romance aisle to the fantasy section, finding a book written about a world full of dragons and then looking for an empty sofa down the aisles. I walk down the middle aisle, stopping when I hear a feminine laugh.
“Elias, come on… you remember that night? It was so good, and you’re single now. I don’t see a reason not to,” I hear. Stepping forward, I look down the aisle to see Elias leaning against a wall, and Lisa sliding her hands up his chest. He doesn’t move, staring down at her as she kisses her way up his neck to his jaw.
“I can do that thing you like–” I hear her say and I drop my book, the sentence reminding me of what Jace said to me that morning before he died. Elias and Lisa stop, turning to look at me, and I quickly pick up my book.
“Sorry to interrupt,” I say, turning away and walking fast out of the library and towards a confused Dagan. I storm past him, hating how I feel like everything is crushing me, and I start to run towards my room.
“Isola!” Dagan shouts, but I ignore him as I keep running and then I smack into a chest of someone. I look up, seeing only dark eyes under a cloak as a pain shooting through my stomach has me screaming. I look down, seeing the dagger on fire that he has slammed into my hip, and I gasp, falling to the floor as someone jumps over me. I roll over, seeing Dagan and Elias fighting the guy. Elias grabs the guy's neck, s
napping it as Dagan runs over to me.
“Hold on kitty cat, shit, hold on,” he desperately begs me, but darkness prevents me from doing anything other than closing my eyes.
Chapter 27
Isola
“We will meet soon, and this will change everything. Just remember, I will make you remember,” the girls voice whispers to me, but everything feels icy cold, and I can’t open my eyes. I don’t want to move, I don’t want to speak, but I manage one word.
“Remember?” I whisper.
“So, you can save us all, Isola. Now rest,” she whispers back, and everything slowly fades away into darkness once more.
“Should we tell her what we did?” I hear Dagan question angrily, and a hand tightens around mine. I can’t move or open my eyes, as I feel exhausted. Even though I can hear them, everything sounds as if it is getting further away.
“No, she can never know. No one can. This is a secret between us five now, no one will ever know,” my uncle commands.
“It’s not fair not to tell her,” Elias demands, his voice terrifying.
“The world isn’t fair and if she knew what happened, you all know the price she would pay. You saved her life, just deal with it and move on,” my uncle says, his voice leaving no room for argument.
“He is right, no one can know,” Thorne’s voice says, and then everything goes hazy again.
“Naughty princess, I could do with seeing those crystal blue eyes of yours pop open and stare at me in that sexy way of yours right about now,” the deep husky voice of Elias fills my ears, and I blink my eyes open to see him sitting on a chair next to me. His blue eyes lock with mine, both of us silent as we stare at each other for a long time.
“Eli,” I whisper, my voice crackling slightly with hurt as I remember Lisa all over him and then the dagger. I try to roll away, so he doesn’t see me cry, and I howl out in pain from my stomach.
“Hey doll, take it easy. No moving for a little bit while your dragon healing does its job,” Korbin says, and I turn to see him smiling at me from his seat on my other side. I take a deep breathe, calming myself down a little.
“Who was the man that did this?” I ask, my voice breaking as I rub my tongue over my dry lips.
“Kitty cat, have some water, and let us sit you up a little,” Dagan says from near the end of the bed. Korbin gets up, picking a pillow up from the floor and helping me sit forward. He slides it behind me, every movement sending sharp pains through my stomach. I look down at my vest top, lifting it to see the bandaged cut on my stomach. I pull it back down again as Dagan offers me a bottle of water with a straw in it. I take it off him with a small smile, drinking it as he sits on the end of the bed.
“We don’t know who he was, but he had a badge with the fire rebellion symbol on his cloak,” Dagan explains, and for the first time in a while, I feel frightened. They are everywhere, always out to get me. How can I ever be safe?
“He is dead now, you don’t have to be frightened,” Elias says, picking up on my emotions somehow.
“I’m not frightened of that man, I remember you killing him, Elias,” I say, avoiding the point that I’m more frightened of all the other members of the fire rebellion who seem like they will never stop trying to kill me, not until they succeed. I search for my dragon in my mind, feeling her pain as she purrs against me, not strong enough yet to make that connection with me.
“You’re awake?” Thorne asks as he walks into the small infirmary room and shuts the open door behind him. Thorne looks as tired as the rest of them do. They all look like they need a long sleep and a shower. I kind of hate that despite the fact it’s clear they haven’t slept or showered in ages, they still look hot. I bet I don’t look hot. I bet I look more like a hot mess that smells.
“Hey,” I say and he smirks, wiping his hands over his face.
“Hey Issy,” he replies gently.
“Are you tired? Do you need anything?” Korbin asks after there’s an awkward silence between us all.
“No, but how long have I been asleep? Is anyone looking after Bee?” I ask, and Korbin takes the bottle of water off me and puts in on the cabinet by the bed.
“You’ve been asleep three days, and no one can get into your room because Bee has put a ward up. I tried to tell her you’re not well, but she glared at me like I’m an idiot or something,” Dagan explains, huffing.
“There is plenty of food in there, and she knows where it is,” I comment, not so worried about her now. She clearly knows how to look after herself.
“I don’t think she is strong enough to heal this,” Dagan comments, and then explains himself as we all stare. “She struggled to heal your arm, and you passed out from that. I think she needs to be older to wield enough magic to heal something like this.”
“Makes sense,” I say, yawning.
“I came in for a reason. There was an attack on the left side of the forest. We should check it out with the other guards,” Thorne says.
“I will stay with Isola, we need to talk,” Elias quickly says.
“No, we don’t. You can go,” I bite out.
“We do, because assuming things and ignoring others clearly isn’t working out well for us,” he says, and I just stare at him as I hear the other guys walk out the room. When the door shuts, Elias moves closer, scooting to sit on the bed next to me. He places his hands on either side of my head.
“What you saw with me and Lisa–,” he starts off.
“–I don’t want to know,” I interrupt him, and he chuckles humourlessly.
“You do, don’t lie to me. You know I don’t like it when you lie to me.”
“Eli, I can’t want to know. I can’t do any of this. I can’t because it’s impossible for us,” I whisper, and he shakes his head.
“Nothing is impossible,” he tells me, and I hold my breath as he starts to lean forward. Gently brushing his lips against mine at the start, Elias suddenly deepens the kiss as I let him take control. He slides his hand into my hair as pleasure shoots through me with every brush of his lips against mine until I can’t think of anything other than Eli. Eli kisses me like he demands every part of my soul, and won’t stop until it is his, and I don’t want to fight him. I moan a little when he pulls back, getting off the bed and sitting back in his chair.
“Eli,” I whisper.
“You need to rest, but that was real. That is what is between us...chemistry, magic, and fuck knows what else, but I want to find out. What Lisa was trying to do wasn’t real, and I wouldn’t have let it go further. I’m done letting rules fuck with my mind when it comes to you, the rules of this damn curse."
“You can’t, we can't,” I say, thinking of the curse. I couldn’t let him lose his dragon over me. That would destroy everything between us, it would destroy him.
“Things have changed, and I will explain them one day, naughty princess,” he smirks, while I’m just confused.
“What changed?” I say, trying not to yawn, and he looks up,
“Everything,” he says, and I close my eyes, drifting off to sleep with the taste of Eli’s lips on mine and his smoky scent filling my senses.
Chapter 28
Isola
“I’m really okay, I can go back to my room now,” I tell my uncle, who shakes his head as I lean down and pick up my coat that fell on the floor. I’m still a little weak, and my stomach still hurts, but it has healed over and is not bleeding anymore.
“Fine, stubborn child,” he says, but there is a little bit of a smile as he turns to Dagan and Korbin.
“Take her to her room and keep guard. More dragon guards are being sent here by her father tomorrow for increased security. If another attack happens, I’m afraid she will have to be kept under twenty-four-hour watch at the castle,” he explains, and they both nod.
“Isola, you must be more careful from now on. The war is coming to a close. I have heard news that your father may have found the rebellion,” he says. I’m not sure if that is a good thing, because it wo
uld mean a massive fight and less guards around both the castle and here.
“That’s good, right?” I ask.
“Very good,” he says.
“We need you on the throne, and not dead. So, stay close to your dragon guard, agreed?” he asks me.
“Alright,” I say, not wanting that, but I get that my life means more than my freedom at the moment. I don’t know how I would explain Bee if we had to move rooms. Everyone would find out about her then.
“It’s good to see you alive Isola,” my uncle says, placing his hand on my shoulder and squeezing gently before walking out the room.
“He is an emotional guy that one,” Korbin teases, and I shrug.
“He’s lost a lot, I get it,” I comment.
“Have you seen Thorne or Elias this morning?” I ask Korbin as he carries my bag of clothes out the room, Dagan following us out.
“No, I haven’t but they will turn up,” he shrugs my worries off, and I’m sure he is right.
“Why don’t I go and get you some of your favourite foods?” Dagan asks as we walk past the cafeteria.
“I’d like that,” I smile, wondering what the hell changed between us all. They aren’t ignoring me anymore; if anything they are always asking me how I am and wanting to do things for me. I don’t really know what it is, but they feel like my friends again. I haven’t spoken to Elias about the kiss yet, and I’m not sure how to bring it up with him. Or what he said has changed. I look down at my ring, turning it around on my finger and wishing I could talk to Thorne. We haven’t had a moment alone, one of the others is always here. I have the feeling he wants to talk to me, I just don't know what it is about.