by G. Bailey
“Sorry, I forget how small you are,” he comments, using that as an excuse to look down my top, and not raise his eyes for far too long. Urgh.
“Michael, don’t you have an interview with my father tonight? Shouldn’t you be… I don’t know, training or researching, or something other than hitting on Issy?” Hallie says, cutting in, and I flash her a thankful smile.
“You’re working for Hallie’s dad?” I ask Michael, moving across my seat and towards Hallie.
“Our parents are good friends, so he offered me a job. It’s a brilliant one,” he says and Hallie laughs, but she doesn’t say anything as Michael glares at her.
“Shut it,” he snaps at her, and she still laughs. It gets seriously awkward as I sit between them, having no idea what they are talking about. I wish I knew what her father does, what she is so sure she doesn’t want to do.
“So, erm, how was your weekend?” I ask Michael when there’s a very uncomfortable silence between us all for way too long.
“Didn’t do much, I’m just looking forward to my party. You are still coming, right?” he asks, like an excited child.
“Yep,” I say, not really wanting to go, but the puppy dog eyes he is doing right now makes me feel a little guilty. I look away, seeing Dagan, Korbin and Elias all watching me, wearing matching faces of anger. I want to get up and go to sit with them, explain myself to each of them, but I can’t. I’ve already messed up with Dagan, and risked the curse with Korbin. Even with Elias if I’m honest with myself. I might not have kissed him since Dragca, and he might be hurt because of me right now, but there’s something between us. Some princess I am, making the guards lose their dragons because I can’t control my hormones. The bell rings, snapping me out of it, and I quickly stand up.
“Time for class,” I say, walking away, but Michael grabs my arm as he stands, roughly pulling me to him.
“Let go,” I say carefully, not liking how strong he is, and how my dragon hisses in my mind. I look up as he grins.
“I only wanted a hug sexy Issy,” he says playfully, and I pull my arm away.
“You should wait for me to offer, not demand. Goodbye Michael,” I tell him, seeing his bright red face as he glares at me. Hallie links her arm with mine, walking out the dinner hall at my side. I rub my arm, looking behind me to see Michael still watching me, anger flittering in his eyes. Humans and dragons never date, because the human always gets obsessed. It was one of the things Jace made sure I knew, not only for my protection but for my understanding of why guys like Michael won’t leave me alone.
“You should stay away from Michael, he is pretty obsessed with you. I don’t want to see what he would do when he realises you’re not interested,” Hallie tells me, looking back at him when I turn around.
“I plan to stay away, don’t worry,” I reply.
“So, you’re not going to the party?” she asks, relief flittering over her face.
“I will if the guys go, they wouldn’t let anything happen to me, and I need to get them to speak to me,” I say.
“Why? They might be sexy, but so are you. You don’t need to chase them,” she says gently.
“I’m not chasing them, it’s complicated,” I say and she smiles.
“Good, I’m not having you chase anyone,” she says, and I quickly pull her in for a hug. She hugs me back, laughing.
“What’s that for?” she asks.
“For being a good friend. Whatever happens, I’m your friend,” I tell her, and she gives me a slightly confused look as I pull away.
“What would happen?” she asks and part of me wishes I could explain all this to her. Explain that I’m a dragon, and I have to go back to Dragca soon. That I won’t see her for a long time, and I might die trying to save the world I was born in. Not that I can tell her anything, only enjoy the little time I have with a true friend now.
“Nothing, I’m being silly,” I reply, lying.
“Come on you weirdo, it’s Mr Dreads class and you know how much of an arsehole he if we are late,” she says, tugging me along to class.
Isola!” I hear my name shouted as I walk out of school, and I look through the students, seeing Dagan walking through them and towards me like a man on a mission. He looks stressed, his black hair looks like it has had his hands run through it a million times. I look down, seeing the shadows under his eyes and the tight-lipped expression he is giving me. He has a black coat on, tight black jeans, and a grey jumper underneath. It makes him look like a normal guy, a hot god type guy, but still not someone I’d expect to be a dragon.
“Hey,” I say, wondering what he wants when he nods his head to the left of me and walks around me, not stopping once. I follow him, looking over when I hear Elias bike roaring, and seeing him driving out of the car park. I don’t see Korbin’s car, so I think he must have left without Dagan. Dagan walks to the bus stop, sitting down on the empty seat as students walk past us. There are three other students around I notice when I sit down next to him, but they have their headphones in, or they aren’t paying attention to us. Both of us silent for a long time, just watching nothing. I just wait for something from him, any sign that I haven’t messed everything up when I need his help.
“I have fucked up dreams,” he says quietly.
“Yeah?” I mumble.
“Yeah, kitty cat, dreams that make me believe what you are telling me,” he says and reaches over, taking my hand in his and linking our fingers. His hand feels warm, rough and right.
“Do you believe me?” I ask him.
“Yes, I believe you. Or I want to,” he admits, sending relief crashing through me.
“I need you all to remember, only you can help me. Or I’m not going to make it long, and people will suffer in our home world if I don’t try to fix things,”
“Tell me some things you know about me? About my home land?” he asks.
“Honestly? We only knew each other for a month or so. You are a dragon guard, and I’m a royal. Even though I haven’t known you that long, I know a lot. I know you’re one of the bravest, most stubborn men I’ve ever met. You are cocky, protective, and sometimes even charming,” I chuckle when he grins.
“Seems you liked me.”
“Sometimes,” I laugh but it dies away when the seriousness of everything rushes back. “Dragca needs me, needs us. I’m meant to be on the throne, meant to be ruling and uniting everyone. But right now, it’s got Thorne, one of my old guards on it,”
“Old guard?” he asks.
“Longer story, you kinda dislike him. Elias hates him, but I see something in him, even though most of me hates him for the things he has done,” I say quietly, and Dagan leans over, moving a little bit of my hair over my shoulder, before trailing his fingers down my side.
“You are so much of the light, you know that?” he asks me, staring at me strangely.
“What?” I ask, wondering why he would say such a stage thing.
“In my dreams, a girl I’ve never seen tells me you are the light. All the light left to save us from dying in the dark,” he tells me and I stare wide-eyed at him.
“What does the girl look like?” I ask quickly.
“Honestly, green. Like a green Barbie doll, and the size of one too,” he says, making my heart pound. Bee told him something, I don’t know how it’s possible, but she did.
“A lot of things are so uncertain for us, maybe it would be best if you got up, and walked away. Lived a life as a human, and I go back to my world, face what I’m running from alone,” I say and he shakes his head.
“Every little bit of me tells me I could never let you do that alone, Isola,” he bites out, anger clouding his blue eyes.
“Dagan, get Korbin and Elias, and go. I can’t do this, I can’t let you try and fight with me,” I suddenly realise. I couldn’t lose them, and taking them back to Dragca would mean I could. They are safe here, safer than another place, even if they don’t remember who they are.
“All I know, is that I want to be clos
e to you, and this distance between us is driving me fucking insane. I’m with you, no matter what,” he says as the bus turns up, but neither of us move as we stare at each other. Our faces inches apart as he leans closer, and a car beeping makes us shoot apart before he can kiss me. We shouldn’t anyway, no matter how disappointed I feel.
“You shouldn’t want me, we can’t be together. There’s a curse, a curse that says you will lose your dragon if you fall in love with me,” I blurt out loudly to him and then look around quickly, noticing all the people have thankfully gotten on the bus so they didn’t hear us.
“Apparently, I’ve already lost my dragon, so what more could any curse do to me for doing this,” he says and moves over, slamming his lips onto mine. I slide my hand into his hair, fully accepting his kiss, loving how his lip ring feels as it slides across my own lips. He groans, pulling me as close as we can get without me climbing in his lap, sliding his hands into my hair.
“Kitty cat, I feel like I’ve wanted to do that forever,” he whispers against my lips and then kisses me again before I can answer. Maybe he has wanted to kiss me for a long time because I know in this moment, I’ve wanted to kiss him for just as long.
Chapter 19
Isola
It’s about time, I’ve been waiting in this place for an hour. Go to sleep on time please,” Melody’s voice comes through the haze, and I open my eyes to see her standing over me as I lie on the floor.
“I made the mistake of checking on my future girlfriend and her life, only to see her with another guy,” she says, and stare up at her.
“Is she not out the closet yet then?” I ask.
“Nope, but I’ve seen us together. It was my first vision, and the only one I’ve had about myself,” she tells me. I always wondered if she sees a lot of her own future, and how creepy that must be.
“You must be excited to meet her then,” I say.
“We already met, but it’s complicated as she doesn’t remember me. Anyways, you should get up as we don’t have much time as you didn’t go to sleep,” she says, offering me a hand. I stand up, looking around at the trees and more trees that surround us. I look up, seeing two moons, so I know its Dragca.
“What is this a warning of?” I ask her, ignoring her whining about me not going to sleep on time. I didn’t know she was waiting for me, it’s been over a week since she last came to my dreams.
“Wait for it,” she waves a hand behind me and I turn, seeing myself running through the woods in the distance, three men are chasing after me. I look desperate, broken, covered in blood in a long dress that catches on everything I run past. I watch myself run and I step forward, wanting to save myself. A person in a walk after the guards and me, following them but not looking in any rush, dark smoke trailing after her cloak on the ground. The smoke slides up the trees next to her, burning them into dust. I’ve never seen anything like it and it honestly terrifies me.
“What happened to me?” I ask quietly.
“I don’t know, I only see this one after you come for me. There will be no more warnings for a while sister,” she says sadly, and then I hear myself scream. The scream goes on and on, and then there’s a loud bang that makes me and Melody cover our ears. Fire shoots up in the air, blasting out in every direction and heading straight for us. It burns all the trees in its path, and blue lights come out the trees, floating up into the air. I can feel their sorrow; the lights seem to look into my soul. The fire goes around us, like we’re immune to it and yet part of me wants to stop it.
“This moment feels massive, yet, I don’t understand it,” Melody admits and I look over at her, seeing fear in her eyes for the first time. She always has come across so fearless, so sure of herself, but not right now. And that scares me, more than anything has scared me for a long time.
“Melody, Dagan and Elias know what I am but don’t remember. My relationship with all of them is advancing more than it should. Thorne is… well, I don’t know, but he confuses me. He didn’t kill our father,” I ramble out.
“I know, I see it,” she taps her head.
“Tell me what to do, how to make them remember,” I ask.
“I can’t. What has to happen, will happen, and they will remember because of it,” she says, a tear dropping from her right eye.
“Because of what?” I ask.
“Because of the emotion. The hate, fear, and the love. It’s the only way, and I’m so sorry I can’t stop it,” she says, stepping closer, and placing her hand on mine.
“I need you, and Thorne does. Don’t forget about us,” she asks.
“I wouldn’t forget, not unless you make me,” I joke, making her smile for a second but it soon fades.
“The curse will fall, and so will you, but remember Isola. Remember what you have to fight for,” she says, pulling me into a hug, and holding on tight. I return the hug, feeling strange about hugging my sister I’ve never known.
“I’m going to show you something you must tell Thorne when you have a moment alone with him. A real moment, not a dream, and you will know when,” she begs me so seriously.
“How can you show me?” I ask her.
“By using all my power, it just hurts me a little bit, and I will sleep for a few days. No biggie,” she says, shrugging a shoulder, and moving to stand right in front of me.
“No biggie? That sounds big, I don’t want you hurt. You’re my sister,” I say, grabbing her hands.
“And that’s exactly why I must show you this, you must make Thorne see the truth because I can only show you, and he won’t believe me. My mother showed me this, just before Tatarina killed her, and I know it’s the only way to save everyone,” she says.
“How can one vision save everyone? And I’m sorry about your mother,” I ask.
“Because it shows you who the real villain is, who really killed both our mothers,” she says and puts her hands on my head, and a blinding light bursts into my mind. When I can see again, it’s like I’m floating above the ground in an empty hut. The hut has stone floors, a fire in the fireplace, and a small table. The door opens and Tatarina walks in, a much younger version of her anyway. She is stunning, a perfect image of an ice dragon with her long white blonde hair and pale blue eyes. I’m sure her eyes aren’t that pale anymore, I’ve never seen them like this anyway. Two other people come into the room, a couple about her age, and the man with brown hair shuts the door.
“We have to kill the queen. She is evil, I’ve told you this, but I can’t do it. You can get close enough when you go to the castle tomorrow,” she says, shocking me. I didn’t expect her to say that. I knew she was evil, but to ask someone to kill my mother?
“We would never get close, but I will try, because of everything you have told me about her. She tortures dragons and humans, she kills children, and the king hides it because he loves her. She must die,” the man says and I shake my head, wanting to scream at him that none of this is true but no sound comes out my mouth.
“Thank you, my friend,” Tatarina says, and the door opens again. A little boy runs in, with blonde hair covered in dirt, blue eyes and he runs up to Tatarina.
“Mummy!” the boy shouts, and when I look closer I know it’s Thorne.
“Go with your parents, we had a good day together, but you can’t stay late,” Tatarina says, hugging Thorne, who nods and walks over to the couple who open the door. I keep my eyes on the man’s face, and I know this is the man that killed my mother. Thorne’s adoptive father killed my mother. He knew and lied to me, he made me feel sorry for him and his parents. Bastard. Thorne and his parents leave, shutting the door behind them. Tatarina grins, looking up at the ceiling near where I am floating as if she can see me. She raises her hands, and a dark spirit flies in from a hole in the ceiling. The dark spirit has black skin, black hair, and smoke drifting off its body. It looks just like Bee, a light spirit, only dark skinned instead. The dark spirit lands on Tatarina’s hand, and she grins at it.
“Our plan is starting. We
will have the throne, and an heir because of my son, who can rule. I will kill the princess, and any other ice dragons that stand in our way. Then we can act out the second part of our plan,” she says, and the dark spirit nods. Just before I float away, I hear, “My son will be king, but I will rule. He just doesn’t know it yet.”
I slam awake, my heart pounding against my chest, and it takes me a moment to realise someone has their hands on my shoulders, rubbing their thumbs in a comforting motion. I look up to see Elias looking down at me with worry, his hair is messy and his t-shirt is all wrinkled. I take deep breaths, breathing in his smoky scent to calm myself down. I’m safe, I’m not there anymore, and the dark spirit is gone. I repeat the same line in my head over and over until I can breathe normally. That vision, or whatever it was, felt so real. It was overwhelming, terrifying and it makes so much sense. Tatarina planned this all, she planned for my mother to be killed, to become queen, to put Thorne on the throne and control him. What else has she got planned?
“You were screaming. I’m sorry, but I had to wake you up,” he explains to me, removing his hands and sitting on the edge of my bed, “bad dreams, princess?” he asks carefully.
“Something like that,” I say breathlessly, looking at my phone, and seeing its only three in the morning.
“Sorry, I woke you up,” I tell him and he shrugs.
“I went outside for a cigarette, and I was walking past,” he explains.
“Outside? I thought you smoked them in your room,” I chuckle.
“Nah, not since Jules walked in on me once. She hit me with her shoe and told be she wouldn't have me smoking in her house," he smirks. “I like the old lady, but she can half hit with that shoe,” he tells me, making me laugh.
“That’s better, you laughing is much better than seeing you frightened,” he says gently.
“It just takes a minute to realise some dreams aren’t real,” I mutter, and he tilts his head to the side a little. We don’t say anything, but I push my hair out my eyes when it falls and look down at my pyjamas. Thank god I’m wearing plain blue ones, and not the ones with cupcakes all over I almost put on.