by Martha Carr
“The lights?” He frowned.
“Murphy, I’m fairly sure he was more focused on the food.”
“Well, I might check it out anyway.” The other girl faced the professors again, her pursed lips drawn to the side in consideration.
“Go for it.” She smiled at her friend as Headmaster Flynn clapped to quiet the students once again.
“A last word, please. I want to make it perfectly clear that you are all still expected to attend classes, to pay attention, and to learn. Even with this upcoming gala. This is a formal event, so if you don’t have anything to wear that couldn’t be confused for something other than formal attire, I suggest you use the next week and a half to find something. Thank you all for your time.” With that, he turned away from the gathered students and disappeared inside the main building.
A few of the other professors followed, and Professor Gilliam remained in her place outside the doors and watched the students' reactions for a moment longer before she joined her peers inside the main hall.
“This could be fun,” Raven said with a shrug. “Except for the fact that I have no idea where I’ll find formal attire.”
“Fun? How is worrying about fancy clothes and finding a date to this supposed to be fun?” Henry shook his head. “I can hit a target with my slingshot from at least six yards away, but I’ll tell you right now, Alby, Maxwell’s a better dancer than I am.”
“What about finding a date?” Murphy asked, her eyes wide and her cheeks faintly pink again.
Raven bit her lip to stop herself from saying anything. She’s getting better at hiding it, at least.
“Yeah, I don’t know, Murph.” He ruffled his hair and turned in a slow, distracted circle to scan the students around them. “I’m not sure that’s gonna happen.”
“Oh.” Murphy looked away quickly before he caught her watching him.
“Yeah, I’m not so sure about the whole date thing, either,” Raven added and hoped that would make both her friends a little less tense. “I don’t mind the dancing part, though.”
“Well, as long as there’s food, I’ll be there.” Henry grinned and his stomach gurgled obnoxiously. He slapped it with both hands. “Someone should form a planning committee for after-school snacks. I’m not the only one who could use something to munch on right about now.”
“For all the growing boys, huh?” Raven folded her arms and smirked at her friend as the students filtered away from the gathering to either head home or stay on the grounds where they lived.
“You’ve been paying attention, Alby.” He pointed at her with both hands. “Nothing gets past you, does it?”
“Hey, Raven.” Daniel Smith stood so close behind her, his voice made her jump before she turned slowly. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“I’m not startled.” Raven gave Henry a disapproving glance—her friend merely grinned—before she raised both hands and took a step away from Daniel. “I’m simply not used to having people in my bubble like that.”
“Sure.” His blue eyes crinkled at the edges as he grinned at her and completely ignored both her friends. “I heard you moved into the girls’ dormitory last night.”
Great. Everyone’s talking about it now. “I sure did.”
“And that you brought your dragon familiar with you.” The upperclassman raised his eyebrows and stared relentlessly at her.
Raven glanced quickly at Murphy, who merely gazed at him with the same dreamy look she wore around Professor Fellows. “Yup,” she told him. “I finally have my familiar on school grounds with me. It makes training with him much easier, too.”
“I bet. That’s so cool.” Daniel ran a hand through his dark hair and took another step toward her.
Raven leaned back a little. This guy doesn’t get the hint about personal space, does he?
“So, do you have a date for the spring gala yet?”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “Not yet. I know it’s a little surprising, seeing as we only found out about it two minutes ago.”
“Cool. Wanna go with me?”
“Uh…” Wow. Daniel Smith’s not wasting any time. “I don’t know, Daniel. I wasn’t planning on having a date at all, so—”
“Well, think about it. We’d have fun together.”
“Yeah, I’ll think about it. Thanks.” She nodded and raised her eyebrows, but the guy simply stood there and grinned at her.
“Cool. See you around, Raven Alby,” he said finally when she made no further effort at conversation.
“Yep.”
Daniel tossed his dark hair out of his eyes and wandered away toward the group of upperclassman who watched him and mumbled whatever jokes they were about to fling at him.
“Cool,” Henry muttered and nodded. “Cool. He doesn’t have much of a vocabulary, does he?”
“You know, I heard that happens when guys get nervous.” Raven couldn’t help but laugh when he rolled his eyes.
“He doesn’t look nervous to me. He looks—”
“Dreamy.” Murphy sighed, still focused on Daniel as he reached his group of friends.
“Uh…that wasn’t really what I was goin’ for, Murph, but okay.” Henry snorted. “I thought more like overly confident. Puffed up.”
“Like a toad?”
“What? No, not like a toad. I’ll have you know, Alby, toads are majestic creatures. And there’s much more goin’ on inside Maxwell’s head than dances and dates and—Maxwell!” His familiar uttered another loud croak and leapt from the shoulder bag. Henry’s fingers were too slow to catch the toad’s legs, but they knocked Maxwell’s leap off-kilter and the creature flopped clumsily at his feet.
“So majestic. The most.” Raven laughed as he lunged toward his familiar and caught him in one swipe.
“Hey, no one’s perfect. Even majesty takes time.” He tried to look offended but smiled as he tucked Maxwell away again. “Are you gonna go with him to the gala?”
“I have no idea.” She shook her head.
“I would,” Murphy said and the color rose in her cheeks again.
“Well, it’s not exactly the most important thing on my mind right now.”
Henry’s stomach growled. “I’m right there with you. Duty calls.” He spun toward the entrance gates to Fowler Academy. “Are you comin’, Murphy? I’m much faster walking home than I am walking to school.”
“’Cause there’s a plate of food waiting for you at the other end,” Raven called after him.
“You know me so well.”
“Yeah, I’m coming.” The girl leaned toward Raven and grinned. “You should totally go with Daniel to the gala. He might not ask again, you know.”
“Okay, I’ll think about it.” She hugged her friend goodbye. “See you tomorrow.”
“Yep.”
“Later, Alby!” Henry called and gestured impatiently for Murphy to catch up. “It’s gonna be weird not beating you in a race home anymore.”
“You never beat me.”
“I would have.”
She waved in response and turned away from the front gates before her friends had even reached them. I’ll miss that walk a little too. But I definitely won’t miss the walk to Moss Ranch.
With a deep breath, she hurried toward the stone archway in the wall leading to the fields and wished she could fly to her dragon.
Chapter Eighteen
Leander was waiting for her when she reached the pen and snorted at the sound of the latch releasing to her access rune. Raven stepped inside and smiled to see him curled in the grass, watching her.
“You look comfy.”
The dragon raised his huge head as she approached. “It’s the grass. And I enjoy not having to wait so long to see you.”
Raven stroked his long snout and nodded. “I like that part too. So, tell me about your first day at Fowler Academy.”
Leander maintained his stare but didn’t say a word.
“Okay, maybe I’m playing it up a little, huh?”
“An understatement I’m
willing to ignore.” He stood to his full height and stretched his wings before he tucked them in again. “Your mock battle this morning was amusing.”
“Amusing? Huh.” She patted his thick, scaled shoulder and swiped a few strands of hair out of her eyes. “I don’t know if I’d call it amusing.”
“Perhaps not for you.”
“Could you see it from all the way out here?”
He released a low rumble and took a few slow steps sideways before he settled onto a fresh patch of grass. “A dragon sees with more than their eyes. I heard it. You were frustrated.”
“That’s an understatement I’m willing to ignore.” With a chuckle, she joined him on the grass, sat in front of his huge forepaws, and crossed her legs beneath her. “You’re here, Leander. On the school grounds with me, and I want to be able to train with my familiar the way everyone else does. We’ll find a solution for that.”
“Nothing you do is what everyone else does.” The red dragon’s wings twitched against his back and he snorted a hot breath of air, not quite at her but not away from her either. Its warmth was close enough to heat her cheek and neck.
She smiled at him and enjoyed the way the early-afternoon sun danced along his glistening scales. He could be made of fire right now. “No, I don’t. Neither do you.”
“We are what we are, Raven Alby.” He pressed his snout into her outstretched hand, then lowered his head onto his paws again. “I would very much enjoy a chance to train the way we do.”
“Me too. The last thing I want is to make you feel as cooped up here as you did at the ranch.” Raven drew a long, deep breath, looked into the bright sky with very few clouds, and sighed. “I didn’t have the time to ask about taking you flying. The last two days have really shaken things up, huh?”
“Some things. Not all.”
“Do you mind waiting to fly until after I ask about…you know, when’s the best time?”
Another snort from Leander’s nostrils ruffled the tips of the grass in front of his head. “We don’t need permission.”
“I know. But I want to make sure I don’t do anything that risks you being here with me. It’s safer to ask, I think.”
“No, I do not mind. I can wait for another day.”
“Good, and I’m sure there won’t be an issue. I’m very good at negotiating when I want something.”
Leander hissed between his rows of razor-sharp teeth and lifted scaled lips a little to reveal them. “I hope your negotiating skills are better with full-grown mages than they were with me.”
“Very funny.” Raven stroked affectionately between his eyes again. “I learned my lesson on that one. It’s not always about me.” The dragon said nothing more but closed his eyes beneath her touch. They sat there like that for a few minutes before she pressed a hand to her stomach. I guess the day built up my appetite too. “Are you hungry? I can open another bag of feed again before I go. I hope the dorms serve dinner too.”
“I’ll be fine until the morning.”
She stood and moved to check the trough. “You barely ate half of it, Leander. Is everything okay?”
“My appetite will return.”
With a frown of concern, she turned to study him. The red dragon glistened in the sun and seemed healthy enough. He didn’t move and he’d now closed his eyes to soak in the warmth. “Do you still feel like something’s not quite right?”
“Yes. And no, I still do not know why.”
“Hmm. You know what? I’ll try to get us out tomorrow. We’ll fly and take a breath of real fresh air. And I’ll work to find a way to get you out of this pen to at least do familiar training with Professor Worley. I’m not sure how much he knows about dragons but he has at least two familiars. He’ll have something for us to work on.”
“If you say so.” Leander’s voice was much quieter now.
He’s actually falling asleep. That would be a little hard if his not-right feeling was getting stronger.
“Okay. I’ll talk to Headmaster Flynn tonight and I’ll be back in the morning. Try to eat a little more between now and then, okay?”
The dragon gave no reply or indication that he’d heard her. With a small laugh, she waved in defeat and walked through the gate. When she’d latched it firmly behind her, she turned toward the stables and narrowed her eyes. There’s another way to find out if something’s wrong, even if it won’t tell me what that is.
Raven walked down the long wall of the stables and stepped through the front gate at the far end. One of the horses whickered at her and stepped toward the end of its stall. The young mage smiled. “I’m only passing through to check a few things. You have nothing to worry about.”
The horse shook its head and the long brown mane flicked against the side of the stall. When she reached the back and the tack hooks, she found Headmaster Flynn’s old saddle easily enough. The little bag she’d tied to the side was still there too, and she detached it before she withdrew the white orb Connor had given her.
It’s not white anymore. At all. Only a thin streak of pale pink was visible at the top of the glass ball that fit snugly in one hand. The red had also darkened a little since the last time she’d checked it. Whatever trouble this thing picks up is getting worse. Or closer.
She slid her satchel off her shoulders to tuck the orb inside, strapped her school bag on, and glanced around the stables. If the animals are this calm, there’s still enough time to find out exactly what that trouble is.
With the sphere safely stowed, she left the stables and strolled across the field toward the school’s main building. Her satchel felt a little heavier with the orb inside, but her stomach grumbled anyway.
“Dinner first.” She nodded and increased her pace.
The common room had begun to clear by the time Raven stepped into the girls’ dormitory. The table had, in fact, been laid with a huge array of food for dinner, although there wasn’t much left to choose from. She took a few slices of buttered bread and cheese and added the roast beef left on the platter. Seated at the closest empty table, she stared at her plate, shrugged, and stacked all the food together to take a bite of everything at once.
This is the way to eat. Someone should come up with a name for it.
Another girl passed, eyed the stack of dinner between the slices of bread, and frowned. She grinned at her. “It’s efficient, right?” She shrugged and took another bite as the girl walked away. At least there was food left.
She wolfed the rest of her meal and swiped a few crumbs into her hand before she strode across the main grounds again. A few students stood in small groups, studying and practicing their spells. One circle of girls burst into a fit of giggles as they clutched textbooks to their chests and darted glances at four upperclassmen who played with the floating beanbag again.
Raven shook her head, then noticed Daniel Smith in the circle, watching her move toward the doors into the main hall. The girls giggled again when she passed them, thinking Daniel was looking at one of them. Before he could say anything, she slipped past the group and through the front doors. It’s like he simply waits for me to appear.
The building was mostly empty and she hurried toward the base of the stairwell leading to Headmaster Flynn’s office at the top of the tower. When Professor Worley appeared around the corner, she almost ran into him.
“Miss Alby.” The huge man smiled beneath his wild beard and brushed a few curls out of his eyes. “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”
“I have a few questions for Headmaster Flynn.” She nodded toward the staircase.
“I see.” Worley’s frown darkened. “He’s not there, though.”
“What?” she sucked a piece of bread out of her teeth and glanced up the stairs again. “Where is he?”
“He is elsewhere, currently.” The professor tried to smile again. “Maybe there’s something I can help you with.”
“Oh. Um…maybe.” Elsewhere? Where would Flynn go? “I had questions about Leander being here. My—”
“Your familiar, yes. I’m aware. How’s that pen working out for him?”
“He seems to like it. I wanted to ask the headmaster about getting Leander out of the pen. You know, to stretch his wings a little.”
Professor Worley chuckled. “Off the ground, I assume.”
Raven couldn’t help but smile. “That’s part of it.”
“Well, I can’t speak for the headmaster when it comes to a trained dragon familiar flying over school grounds, Miss Alby.” He stroked his wild beard, tilted his head thoughtfully, and glanced toward the front of the building. “But I intended to suggest this tomorrow anyway. I think we’ll hold my class out of the barn and in the open. I invite you and your familiar to join us. That should let him stretch a little more, at least.”
“It definitely would.” She nodded and grinned at the thought. And we get to stretch what we can do together, too.
“That is, as long as you feel confident that your familiar can handle being so close to everyone else and theirs.”
“Absolutely. One hundred and fifty percent confident.”
“That’s hard to argue.” Worley chuckled in a mild and somewhat distracted way. “Then bring your familiar out tomorrow before my class and we’ll take the training to him.”
“Thank you, Professor.”
“That’s why I’m here. Enjoy the rest of your evening.” Professor Worley walked away and moved slowly through the dark stone hallway.
Raven turned around to call, “Do you have any idea when Headmaster Flynn will be available?”
“Tomorrow morning, at the very least.” The man vanished around another corner on his route to the front doors.
For a moment, Raven stood at the base of the curving staircase and stared at the walls, a little bewildered. I thought Flynn lived in his office, too. I definitely saw a bed there yesterday.
She glanced over her shoulder, but the halls were empty. I would’ve done this if Worley hadn’t stopped me. With a quick nod, she sighed quietly and headed up the stairwell. “I’ll make a quick check. I told Leander I’d find answers tonight.”
Her footsteps echoed in the stairwell and she reached the top much faster than she expected. The large door to Headmaster Flynn’s office was still closed. It doesn’t mean anything. She drew a breath and knocked firmly but there was no response. Once she’d knocked again, she stepped down one step and pulled the door open using the iron ring.