by M Guida
I took a bite of my waffle and it hit my gut like a heavy, sweet stone. Maybe I should have just gotten a bagel and cream cheese.
“You’re up early.”
I looked up to see Jaxon smiling at me. He looked as handsome as ever, in an orange shirt and a pair of black pants. The vampire colors were orange and black while dragons were purple and black.
“Yeah, I wanted to look at my schedule.”
“How come you’re not sitting at the Royal table?”
“Because it’s nice out here.”
“Mind if I join you?”
“No, not at all.”
I was mulling over my schedule still and sipping my coffee.
Jaxon came back with steak and eggs loaded with hash browns on the side. His rare steak smelled so good that I immediately regretted my waffle and strawberries.
He motioned to my plate. “You like the sweet stuff, huh?”
I shrugged. “Today, I did.”
“What classes do you have?”
I told him my schedule and he remarked, “We have first period together but nothing else.”
I cut up my waffle and swirled it in the whipped cream. “What do you have?”
“I have Vampire Magick, Defense and Battle Techniques, Royal Advisor, and Demonology.”
I frowned. “What’s Royal Advisor?”
“I’m sure it’s going to be super boring. I’m supposed to become an advisor to my cousin, Dante, who is next in line to be king, so it’s learning negotiation skills, monetary systems, stuff like that. It’s going to put me to sleep, but King Nico insisted I take it., and it’s not like I can say no to a royal mandate.”
More students were entering the cafeteria, including my wonderful roommate. I’m sure she was tickled pink I wasn’t sitting at the Royal Table. It was all hers unless Armond had other designs.
Speaking of Armond, he, his twin brother Darius, Gunnar, and Cadye were heading straight toward us. Gunnar’s white hair contrasted against his black shirt and dark pants and made him look extra stunning.
Cadye yawned. “What time did you guys get here?”
“We both got here around six-thirty,” Jaxon said as he sliced into his thick steak.
I was fascinated by the blood in the rare meant, which made me worry I was one step away from being Hannibal Lecter. What was that about?
“If you see Kyle,” Armond said, “tell him to join us out here.”
I smiled. “Sure. I’ll keep an eye out for him.” I leaned closer to Jaxon. “I bet you ten bucks Kyle’s running late.”
He stabbed his eggs with a piece of steak. “Kyle seems a little absent minded.”
I pinched my finger and thumb together and grinned. “Just a little.”
He tossed his head back and laughed.
A few minutes later, the rest of the gang joined us. Jaxon looked at Gunnar curiously. “How come you’re wearing a black shirt instead of a white shirt? Aren’t you in Mystic Towers?”
“Yeah, but I’m not a Golden Demon, I’m a Dark Demon.” Gunnar’s voice was a little sheepish.
He was fighting an uphill battle here, as the only Dark Demon at Legacy. He had told Armond that wasn’t sure he’d be accepted here, but I don’t think he had anything to worry about. Not with Armond around.
And to prove my point, Armond gave Jaxon a hard stare. “It’s all good. Gunnar’s one of us.”
Before he could respond, I nudged Jaxon and nodded my head. “Told ya so. Here comes Kyle.”
He was running full speed across the courtyard, his face bright red, huffing and puffing. He had less than twenty minutes to eat and get to class.
“I overslept,” he panted as he arrived at our table.
“Obviously,” Armond grinned. “You’d better get in there before all the food is gone. They were running pretty low.”
“Oh, shit.” Kyle raced of toward the cafeteria.
“Armond.” Cadye shook her head reprovingly. “You know the cafeteria never runs out of food.”
A teasing glint shone in Armond’s silver eyes. “You know that. And I know that. But he doesn’t.”
Once again, we all compared schedules. Luckily, I had three classes with Cadye—Potions, Supernatural History, and Defense and Battle Techniques. With Gunnar, I had Supernatural History and Demonology. In fact, all of us had Supernatural History first.
Darius finished off a piece of bacon. “Figures that they would make us take that first.”
Armond frowned. “Why do you say that?”
“Because it’s going to be the most boring.”
Jaxon pushed his cleaned plate away glumly. “I dunno. I think Royal Advisor is going to make Supernatural History look exciting.”
Darius, Armond, Jaxon, and Gunnar were all in the Royals Advanced Class for weapons because they’d all been using weapons a fair bit. Cadye and I had some experience but not like they did.
Kyle rushed back to our table with a plate laden with scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon. “They had plenty of food, Armond. Why did you think they wouldn’t?”
We all burst out laughing and after a moment Kyle shook his head.
“I get it . Okay, joke’s on me.”
He told us his schedule between mouthfuls. It turned out he’d also be in the Battles and Techniques class with Cadye and me. I was feeling better about my classes except for Dragon Magick. I’d be on my own in there.
We took our trays back into the cafeteria, and Cadye and I stopped to go to the restroom before class. Bad mistake.
Nora, Victoria, and some other girls were all primping themselves in there, putting on lipstick and fixing their hair.
Nora cornered me before I could reach a stall. “Don’t think that what happened yesterday or today at breakfast means anything.”
I lifted up my chin. “What are you talking about?”
“Gunnar. Belongs to me, so hands off.”
I narrowed my eyes. “He doesn’t belong to anybody.”
“Oh, my god.” A Fae girl I didn’t know pointed at me. Her sparkling eyes widened. “Look at those horns. I’ve never seen anything like them.”
Victoria snickered. “Makes her look like Maleficent, doesn’t it?”
“Get out of my way.” I slid past Nora and entered a stall.
I could hear Nora laughing and I cringed.
I hated my stupid horns. Hated, hated them. Tears threatened to fall as I tried to block out the comments. What had started out as such a good day was nosediving fast. How was I going to get through Dragon Magick without a single ally?
Chapter 6
In the end, Supernatural History wasn’t as boring as everyone thought. Professor Rink had been entertaining. She was a vampire and told us a whole lot of stuff about her kind’s history that I didn’t know about. For example, the first vampire was Vlad Dracula, but after making vampires, he suddenly stopped and no one knew where he disappeared to. I found that fascinating. Where did he go?
Something else that was news to me was that vampires weren’t ‘made’ anymore. Vlad had found a way for vampires to be born by casting a spell, and now only a few of his ‘made’ vampires were still alive. One of them was Anton. Holy pedigree.
Class ended way too fast for me. Shit, Dragon Magick was next.
Cadye walked with me out of class. “You look pretty nervous.”
“Well, I’m going into a den of devils.”
“I think you’re overreacting. Nora won’t even be in there. I’m the lucky one who has her in my class next.”
“True. But Victoria will.”
“Don’t sweat it, girl. You’ll do fine.”
“If I can learn to shift.”
She gave me a sympathetic smile. “You will. I believe in you. I’ll see you after Golden Demon Magick.”
I was happy Cadye thought I’d be fine. But what if she was wrong?
She turned and headed in the opposite direction. I dragged my feet to class. I wished I was going with her, but everyone, including me, assumed my
dominant race was dragon and I’d be a silver dragon like my sister, so that was the Magick class I’d been put into. Most of the supernaturals were just of one race, but that wasn’t true for Raven, me, Armond, or Darius. Armond’s and Darius’ family were a mix of Golden Demons, Fae, and Wolf shifter. The fact that we weren’t pure was supposed to make us more powerful.
Yeah, right. If I was so powerful, why couldn’t I shift? I couldn’t figure that out. Neither Darius nor Armond had any problems sprouting their wings. No, it was just me. My dragon better make a damn appearance or my goose was cooked.
I walked into the classroom and groaned. Students were seated on bleachers, divided up by the color of the dragons.
Professor Tuamma stood at the door and smiled. “Hello, Ebony. Welcome to Dragon Magick. I understand you haven’t shifted yet.”
My whole face burst into flames and I wanted to crawl under the nearest bleachers. “No, I haven’t.” My voice was so small I wasn’t sure she heard me.
“Nothing to be ashamed of, Ebony. Raven had difficulty shifting and managing her powers when she came here too. Silver dragons are different than any other dragons and the most powerful.”
She pointed toward the red dragons. “I have you sitting with Zayne. He’ll help you during the shifting process.”
A tall boy with long red hair in the front row stood up and motioned. He looked almost exactly like his older brother Bo—with the same red hair and the same blue eyes.
I sighed. Bo had helped Raven. Hopefully, Zayne could help me.
He gave me a big grin. “Nice to meet you Ebony Erickson. I’m Zayne Read.”
I nodded. “You remind me of Bo.”
“You don’t look anything like your sister.”
“Yeah, and Raven didn’t have horns, either.” My wonderful roommate called from the green row behind us.
Zayne looked over his shoulder. “Knock it off, Victoria.”
Victoria pouted. “It’s Tori.”
He turned his back on her. “Yeah, right.”
I blinked and sat down next to him. “Aren’t you guys dating?”
He frowned. “Who told you that? Wait, let me guess—Victoria.”
“Well, yeah.”
Zayne snorted. “Hardly. I’m not making the same mistake Bo made. That whole family is toxic.”
I didn’t pursue this any further for now, especially since I was sure people around us were listening intently.
Professor Tuamma stood in front of the class. “Good morning, students, and welcome to Dragon Magick. Before we begin, I want to know—how many of you have already shifted?”
Most of the students raised their hands, including Victoria. Figures, another thing she could make fun of me over.
“Oh, good. I’m very impressed.” She clapped her hands. “I’m sure each of you know that dragons have different powers based on their colors. Red ones are powerful in battle and as a guardian, they are formidable. Sometimes they can also have a short fuse. A blue dragon is aligned with both the sky and the sea and tends to be the calmest of the dragons. Green ones are aligned with the Earth, especially with the weather, and they symbolize life, death, and rebirth. Purple dragons symbolize weather and royalty and based what I can see here, no one is a purple dragon, although as you all know, the Golden Phoenix, Ebony’s father, is one.” She looked at me and smiled. “Lastly of course is the silver dragon, the most powerful and magical of the dragons.”
I could feel all eyes on me and I squirmed in my seat.
Professor Tuamma clapped her hands. “Before we begin, we need to have everyone shift. You can’t access your magic until you do that.”
I tensed and sat straighter on the bleacher.
“Now, for you first timers, the best way to shift is for you to picture your dragon in your mind and call upon them. This will help you shift easier.” She held out her arm. “Zayne will demonstrate.”
Zayne winked and patted my leg. “No worries. You’ll do this, just like your sister did.”
I wished I had his confidence, but I had tried to shift so many times and my dragon wasn’t forthcoming.
Zayne walked up next to Professor Tuamma.
“You may proceed, Zayne.”
Shifters had to be naked to change into their animal. Zayne slipped off his shirt and I gasped. He had a six-pack of abs that were to die for. Then he slipped off his underwear and pants. Oh, my god. He had the biggest cock. Too bad neither Gunnar nor Jaxon were shifters, then I could see theirs too.
God, what was I thinking?
Zayne took a deep breath. He grew in size and his golden skin turned red and then changed into scales. His face changed shape and his nose and mouth lengthened. Razor-sharp talons emerged from his hands and feet. A long tail grew from his tight ass. It all took less than a minute until he was now a fierce red dragon.
“Very good, Zayne. Very good.” Professor Tuamma waved her arm. “I want the boys to line up on one side and the girls on the other.”
I slowly proceeded to the girls’ line, making sure I was as far away from Victoria as humanly possible and at the end of the line. A blonde girl stood next to me and smiled. “Nervous?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Have you shifted before?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m Phoebe, by the way.”
“Ebony.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Professor Tuamma snapped her fingers. “Now, class, I want you to take off your clothes and then ask your dragon to come forth.”
“Here goes nothing,” Phoebe muttered.
I was so nervous I had a difficult time unbuttoning my blouse, my fingers were shaking so badly. At least my skirt, bra, and underwear were easier to take off.
It was so weird to stand in a room full of naked people, but this was normal for shifters.
I can do this I can do this I can do this
Professor Tuamma looked at each of us. “Now, students, I want you all to take several deep breaths, close your eyes, and silently call upon your dragon.”
I gulped in as much air as I could, praying this was going to work. I closed my eyes and tried to remain calm.
Dragon, come forth.
I peeked open one eye and I was still in human form. I remembered how Raven always called her silver dragon.
Please, please, please dragon. I need you. Please help me.
Snorts and grunts echoed all around me. I slowly opened my eyes. Green, blue, and red dragons were all around me, and they were all looking in my direction.
Professor Tuamma came over to me with concern in her eyes. “Ebony, did you call upon your dragon?”
Pushing back the tears forming in the back of my eyes, I nodded miserably. “Yes.” My voice cracked.
“There is definitely something wrong. If your dragon is not forthcoming, I’m afraid, my dear, that you have been cursed.”
The blood drained from my face and a tremor of fear raced down my spine. “What?”
Not in a million years did I see that coming.
“You fought several years ago in the last Dark Demon and Unseelie War, did you not?”
I ran my shaking hand through my hair. “Yeah, but I didn’t get close to King Ryker or King Cormac.”
“It’s not them that would have put a curse on you. How close did you get to Ari? He’s the one with the knowledge of evil incantations.”
At his name, my knees knocked together and beads of sweat broke out all over me. Ari was dangerous—a shape shifter and spell caster. Out of all the Dark Demons, including Faas and his fireballs, I feared Ari the most.
She gently touched my shoulder. “Ebony, do you remember?”
I shook my head wordlessly.
“Zayne, we need Anton. Immediately.”
The biggest red dragon in the room shifted back into Zayne and he quickly got dressed.
I was shaking so badly I thought I would collapse. Shit, my day just spun into a complete nightmare. Cursed?!
“Go ahead and get dressed my dear, and have a se
at.”
Numbly I put on my clothes and stumbled back to the red dragon bleachers and awaited my fate.
Chapter 7
Professor Tuamma kept working with the class and then the door opened. I expected to see Anton or Zayne, but instead Hades flew inside.
The professor put her hand on her chest. “Oh, my. What is that?”
My eyes widened in happy surprise. “Hades.”
The little Catalan dragon always seemed to appear when I needed him. Why he was here, I had no idea, but I was glad to see him.
At least I had a friend.
I kept watching the door for Gunnar to enter as well, but so far, nothing. I bit back my disappointment.
The dragons huffed and puffed. Smoke blew out of their nostrils and their tails switched. Hades ignored them and headed straight for me. What the others didn't know is that Hades might be small compared to them, but he was a total badass.
I smiled and patted his head. “Hey boy. What are you doing here?”
He purred as I stroked his fur. It was almost like having Gunnar here.
Zayne skidded to halt. “What is that thing?”
Anton burst into the classroom. “Hades, I told you to go back to Gunnar.”
Professor Tuamma frowned. “Headmaster, thank goodness. Do you know what this creature is?”
“Yes. Yes.” He put his palms up. “Everyone, calm down. Hades is a friend and an ally. He is a dragon tattooed on Gunnar’s chest and comes during times of stress.” He looked at me and rubbed his chin. “But why he came to Ebony, I’m not sure.”
I rubbed both of Hades’ cheeks with my palms. “I don’t know either.”
“Interesting,” he said. “All right, Professor, continue to teach your class. I will take Ebony with me. If she indeed is cursed, I need to take her to Dr. Greenwood. He may be able to determine what magic is being used to prevent her dragon from manifesting.”