"And I still don't see why you don't wear nicer clothes, Amber. Let everyone see the real you." Bea gave her a stern look. She did this almost every time Amber came to visit. She really seemed to hate the idea of Amber not reaching her full potential. At least it made her miss her own family less. With someone else watching out for her, there was definitely a comfort in that.
"The human's would likely have a fit if they saw I have a tail." Amber shrugged.
"Spell it?"
"That's not possible," Amber protested instantly.
"Seriously?" Bea raised an eyebrow, then turned to look at Izban rather than Amber. "Is it possible?"
"I've never tried, but I shouldn't think so. It'd just need a hiding spell placed on it," he replied, a thoughtful look on his face.
"That's beside the point," Amber interrupted. "I don't have any other clothes anyway, so it's not something I need to worry about."
"You don't have any clothes right now," Bea teased.
"I can summon them for you if you want, though?" Izban asked tentatively. Despite herself, Amber appreciated the offer. It seemed genuine too, as if he actually wanted to help her.
"My scales are fine, thank you."
The three of them lapsed into silence for a few moments. It was unusual for Bea to be quiet for so long, and Amber worried about that. She didn't want things to become awkward between her and her only friend at school.
"So tell me about you," Bea prompted Izban after a few moments. "Why are you here?"
Amber perked up at that. She was eager to find out what he'd been doing. And why he wanted such weird items.
"Erm..."
"You can tell us," Bea added. "Amber and I are very trustworthy."
Izban frowned, as if he was considering hard for just a few moments. "I have a list."
"Of..."
"Items."
"Cryptic," Amber added in exasperation. What was the point in only half opening up? He may as well have just stayed silent.
"Sorry, I'm not used to being able to say much about my abilities. I spend a lot of time around humans, you know what they're like."
Amber nodded. But Bea shook her head.
"Actually, no. I don't. I was a human until a mage spelled me, but I was clueless about the supernatural world until then. I'm not sure how humans would act. Especially humans now." She pouted, a highly amusing expression on a ghost. It'd probably be a lot more effective if she wasn't translucent.
"Sorry," Izban offered. "They're not very accepting of anything or anyone that's different. They're definitely not ready to know about our world."
"Good to know," Amber said, nodding her head.
"You didn't already?"
"No. I'm a beithir, remember? We basically live with our swarm in the mountains unless we're at school. Other than that, we fly in the storm clouds. We don't really interact with humans very much." She shrugged. It was probably something she should rectify. Especially if she didn't want to spend the rest of her life in the same place she was born.
"I didn't realise beithirs were so antisocial," he admitted.
"Explains a lot, right?" Bea teased. "Now, your list, young man."
"Yes." He rustled through his pocket and pulled out a worn piece of paper with words scribbled all over it. Amber's curiosity was piqued, and she leaned over to look down the list. Only getting annoyed with herself when she couldn't work what any of them meant. Except for sgiathan sìthe, but she had no idea what anyone would use a fairy's wings for. Other than fairies, naturally. She understood their use for their wings.
"Hand it over," Bea said, holding out a hand and making a grabbing motion.
Reluctantly, and with a clear expression of confusion on his face, Izban handed it over. Bea's spectral fingers closed around it, seeming surprisingly solid as she held the paper.
"Hmm." Her white brow furrowed, and a slither of anxiety wormed its way into Amber. Whatever it was, it didn't sound good.
"What is it?" Izban asked.
Amber was a little taken aback. Why didn't he know what was on the list? If she were him she'd have studied it time and time again, until she knew it by heart and could recite it aloud.
"Do you know what's on this?" Bea asked, her words coming out slowly as if she was still thinking about them.
"Yes, I memorised the list."
"Do you know what they are?" The same tone coloured her voice, though Amber didn't know if it was wariness of Izban, or over what was on it.
"Most of them yes."
"Who gave it to you?" This question came quicker, as if Bea was coming to actual conclusions and not just clutching at straws.
"My grandfather."
"Do you know why he's looking for the ingredients to gain immortality?"
Chapter 6
Izban didn't speak while following Amber back into the main part of the school. His mind was far too busy mulling over what Bea had said. Immortality. He was having trouble getting his head around it. He knew his grandfather was having delusions of grandeur occasionally, but actually wanting to be immortal? No, that couldn't be right.
A tiny little voice in his head was telling him that it was a good idea, that if his grandfather wasn't to die, Izban wouldn't have to become Elder Mage. But that wasn't the point. There was a reason magic only appeared in every second generation. Izban's parents were as normal as humans went, although of course they'd grown up knowing that magic existed. His father was even on the Mage Council, representing the non-magical mages, as they called themselves. But the jump in generations was so that younger people would take over their grandparents' roles, bringing new ideas and knowledge into the mix.
So for his grandfather to break that tradition... it was wrong. As much as he liked and respected the Elder Mage, Izban was not going to be an accomplice to him endangering their society's structure. If one of them somehow managed to become immortal, others would want to follow. There'd be fights, jealousy, maybe even deaths. No, he wasn't going to have any part in that.
He crumpled the list in his fist. If his grandfather wanted to do this, he was going to have to do it without his oldest grandson.
"Wait," he suddenly said and Amber stopped, looking at him expectantly. He was grateful that she had left him to his thoughts. Not many girls he knew would have done that.
"This ruby must be pretty rare, right?"
She shrugged. "I've never heard of any like it, but I'm not an expert in incubus-infused gem stones."
She winked and he had to smile. It was good to have her here with him. Maybe they could stay in touch after he left the school. Maybe she could go along on one of his meteorology expeditions...
"So if this one was to mysteriously disappear..."
"Then he'd have a hard time finding another. I like the way you think." She grinned at him and something near his stomach contracted. Maybe a bit below his belly. Like, between his legs. Nobody had ever had that effect on him, at least not after so short a time. They'd met maybe twelve hours ago and already he was thinking how he would like to spend more time with her, a lot more time.
He cleared his throat, trying to distract himself from her alluring smile.
"Same goes for that book about those horses, it looked so old that I doubt there are many copies lying around."
He unfolded the crumpled piece of paper he was still holding in his fist. There were a few rips in it, but the list was still legible. He showed it to Amber and she pointed at the final item.
"A hair of an Arran giant - weren't they supposed to be bald?"
"I've never even heard of them," Izban admitted. "Arran like the island?"
"Yes, there are giants' graves there and they even found a few remains nearby. Of course the humans believed it was a hoax, but the bones were taken to a lab in Edinburgh where one of my distant relatives works."
"There are beithirs who work among humans?" Izban asked in surprise.
"It's a supernatural lab, but yes, not all of us are as reclusive as my family. It takes a
lot of effort to blend in when you have a tail."
"So you're saying that there is no Arran Giant hair because they were bald? Then why is it on this list?"
Amber shrugged. "All I know is that they think they were bald, but they only found skeletons, so maybe they did have hair and we just don't know it? Anyway, I have no idea where that hair would be kept. Pretty sure it's not in this school."
"Well, that makes it easier for me not having to hide it. And this ruby... we could always destroy it. It's not like anyone would be able to find out what we did with it anyway."
She frowned. "How do you want to destroy it? It looks pretty solid to me."
He had an idea, but he wasn't sure if she'd be up for it. During their pretend lesson earlier that day, he'd felt her power, but it looked like she had no idea about it. He was going to have to be careful, he didn't want to make her feel inadequate or stupid. Because that was something she definitely wasn't. Untrained, yes. Stupid, not at all.
"I think lightning might destroy it," he said in as neutral a voice as possible. "With enough energy pressed into the ruby, it might shatter."
"And where are we going to get lightning from? Are you going to ask Thor to come down from Asgard?"
Thunder rolled over the school and they both jumped, bumping into each other. They stepped back, avoiding each other's eyes. Izban could still feel his skin tingle where she'd touched him. He was almost hoping for another bout of thunder to make her do the same thing.
They'd reached the main entrance hall. It was empty; everyone was in bed.
"I'm a meteorologist, did you forget? I knew it was going to storm tonight. Now we just need to find a way to conduct lightning into the stone."
"Is that something you can do?" she asked, still not aware of what he was getting at.
He took a deep breath. "No, but I believe you may be able to.”
Chapter 7
"No." She shook her head profusely, her hair whipping against her cheeks as she did. She could feel the power of the storm brewing above them, but she knew as well as anyone that she wouldn't be able to harness it.
She wasn't old enough.
She wasn't powerful enough.
She just wasn't enough.
"I think you can," Izban tried to assure her.
"I've never been able to control lightning, I don't know why you think I'll suddenly be able to do it now."
"Will power is a powerful thing," he pointed out, just annoying her rather than anything else. How would he know anyway. He wasn't a beithir. He just had mage powers. And while she didn't know how they worked exactly, she doubted they’d be the same. Especially because they seemed to be teachable, whereas beithir powers were just innate at birth. It was only once they'd manifested in the beithir's twenties that they were able to actually learn how to harness them properly.
And only ever from another beithir too. She'd always imagined it'd be her mother who taught her.
"I can't do it."
"Please, try. We haven't lost anything if you can't do it. And if you can, well we're further ahead than we were before."
She studied him intently. He seemed to be being earnest, but it was hard to tell. She really didn't know him that well. Or at least, not as well as she should to be making these kind of assumptions.
"Fine, I can try. But I'm not promising anything."
"Good. What do you need?"
"How should I know? It may have escaped your notice, but I've not done anything like this before," she bit out.
"Sorry, I forgot for a moment. You said you lived in the mountains, right?"
"Yes..." She drew out the word, wondering where he was going with this.
"We could go up the one behind the school?"
She nodded. That was a reasonable suggestion, and she was a little bit miffed she hadn't come up with it herself. It was kind of obvious now she was thinking about it.
"Okay."
"Do you know how to get there?" he asked after a moment's silence. She let out the laugh that was building within her.
"Of course I know. I haven't spent years at this school and not explored everywhere I can."
"When you weren't supposed to be, no doubt."
"Nope, none at all. There's the thing with being a giant poisonous reptile. Other than the odd bully, most people tend to leave you to your own business."
"Just how poisonous are you?" His brow furrowed as he studied her, and she smiled at him sweetly.
"You don't want to find out."
"Meaning you don't know." He smirked at her, and she had to admit being amused he'd worked it out so quickly.
"Not really, no, and I'm not in a hurry to find out. But fully mature beithir poison can kill most things. I'm not far off from that point, so I'd advise against getting in the way of my teeth."
He laughed, the sound deep and throaty, travelling through Amber far more than she expected, or was comfortable with. These weren't reactions she was used to or expecting. And she wasn't completely sure how best to deal with them.
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Good." They stood in slightly awkward silence for a moment. Probably partly due to the fact Amber's mind had wandered off to situations where him being in the way of her teeth might not be so bad. Her human teeth anyway...
She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the images. Now wasn't the time.
"Shall we get going?" she asked him after clearing her throat.
Izban jumped slightly, as if being drawn out of his own thoughts too. "Yes, let's. How long will it take to get there?"
"It depends. How averse are you to flying?" An idea was forming in her head, and she was eager to try it out. She might not have ever had anyone on her back before, but it sounded like a great challenge to fly so they could stay there. She just hoped Izban was strong enough to hold on.
"I don't know a spell for that, sorry."
"I wasn't talking about a spell," she responded, a wicked grin twisting at her lips.
She performed a quick half shift, before ridding herself of the clothing she'd put back on after leaving Bea. Then, she performed one of the quickest full shifts of her life. Probably because it was happening so closely to her previous one. She didn't think she'd ever shifted twice in one day before. Not since she was a child anyway.
She stretched her neck from side to side, before lowering her head to lay next to Izban.
An uneasy look graced his face, but she didn't really blame him. Not many people would be comfortable if a giant reptile presented them with its neck.
"Are you sure, Amber?"
Oh, she liked how he said her name. And how he was actually checking that it was okay. In fact, she liked that a lot. It said something about him.
She nodded her large head up and down. He sighed, stepping towards her. Maybe his question was more to do with his own fears than wanting to make sure she was comfortable.
Well, no matter the reason, it was a good thing.
Carefully, and a little reluctantly, she felt Izban climb onto her neck, swinging his left leg over so he was straddling her. It felt odd to have someone sat there, but not as unpleasant or intrusive as she expected. He gripped onto the mane of scales that travelled down her back, and she chuckled inwardly. That was a use for them that she'd never thought of before. It'd help his grip though.
Amber gave him a few moments to get comfortable, before using the lower part of her body, including her tail stub, to propel herself off the ground and into the air.
Izban let out an involuntary scream, and she laughed to herself again. If she was feeling particularly mean, then she'd have done some aerobatic tricks while she was flying, but she didn't think he'd appreciate those. Plus, she'd feel more than a little guilty if she dropped him.
There'd be a lot of questions too. Questions she wasn't sure she really wanted to answer.
Her family would likely be horrified she'd let someone ride on her anyway. Never mind the fact there'd be a dead body to deal with.
Non-magical people might wonder why someone who was basically a snake without wings could fly. Well... magic. She didn't quite know how it worked, but she'd never crashed so that was all that counted. And it seemed like she could even carry a passenger without much trouble.
Izban was really enjoying himself. His thighs gripped her body tightly, but his arms were in the air, embracing the wind that was surrounding them. Sometimes she felt as if the elements wanted to play with her when she was flying. Especially during storms when the wind would push her from side to side, but never hurting her. It was a beautiful feeling that she got far too seldom. She wished she was back living in the highlands with her family, with no humans around who could spot her. Here at the college, she rarely went out to fly; they were too close to populous areas. And the winds here just weren't the same as the gales over the mountains.
Thunder rolled close by and Izban fell silent for a moment. Was he afraid? But he cheered again and she knew he was fine. Lightning flashed in the distance and she was tempted to fly closer, but that wouldn't be safe. Everybody knew lightning was dangerous, even if her heart didn't believe it.
The top of the mountain came closer and she began her decent, slithering downwards, trying to be gentle. When she was alone, she did some daring manoeuvres, but not with Izban on her back. Maybe for their next flight.
She sighed when she landed on the wet grass that covered the mountain top. She already missed the feeling of weightlessness, but she had a job to do. She shifted into her human, but scaled, form as soon as Izban had slid off her back.
It was cold and wet, but the drizzling rain pearled off her scales. She was made for this weather. The mage next to her, not so much. His blue hair was wet on his scalp, missing its usual spring and volume. His clothes were soaked, but with a swish of his hands, he had them dry again. But it wouldn't last long; the rain seemed to increase. So did the thunder and lightning. The centre of the storm was about to pass over them.
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