Moonbreeze: The Dragonian Series, #4

EPITOME

My name is Elena Malone-Squire-Watkins. I’m eighteen years old. I started out my ordinary life as just Elena Watkins, but my journey has led me on so many life-changing adventures and revealed so much about my past that I can’t even begin to explain the name change.

My life hasn’t always been easy, considering I grew up with a dragon for a father. That was a small piece of information he declined to share with me.

Ever since I could remember, we’d moved every three months. I never knew why until the night I finally got my answers, the night I discovered who my father really was: a dragon. That night my father died saving my life.

That was how I came to be in Paegeia, a world hidden behind an enchanted wall inside the Bermuda Triangle. It used to be part of our world, my old home realm. Magic, dragons, shifters, you name it, roam free behind the enchanted wall now, living alongside gifted people who can tame dragons, bonding with them in order to share their abilities.

They are born with a special mark and are known as Dragonians – dragon riders.

I was born with that mark too, and a pretty darn dark one at that.

A mark no one thought really belonged to me, including me, because of what my father was.

It turns out that only children born from humans can become Dragonians.

Still, that mark was my ticket straight into Dragonia Academy, an elite school for dragons and gifted dragon tamers.

The teachers at the Academy taught me everything I know today. Magic, the art of fighting and handling weapons – two axes to be exact – but most importantly, learning about dragons and their riders.

While the whole idea of dragons and their riders threw me for a loop, things were about to get a whole lot stranger. I soon learned that some of those dragons and tamers were actually meant for each other. Their souls were somehow connected, coded in each other’s DNA, before birth. Their destinies and what they would achieve together had been written in the stars before time even existed, and this future could only be seen by Moon-Bolt dragons that could reveal them in a form of a riddle.

These bonds are known as dents.

How it all works is still beyond me, it’s extremely complex and not something that can be easily explained, but needs to be experienced. Dents are extremely rare and are revered as the oldest form of magic, even in a world as magical as Paegeia.

So you can just imagine how lost I was in this new world, having to deal with the fact that dragons weren’t just fairy tales and learning that magic really did exist, on top of losing the man I knew as my father.

That was when I’d met Becky and Sammy. Becky was a human and fellow Dragonian, like me, and Sammy was a Fire-Tail dragon. She is kind and the bravest of all dragons and I was honored to call them both my best friends.

After a few months of living in my new world I fell in love with a boy named Lucian, the Prince of Tith, who stole my heart and my very soul. He was everything a girl could ever want, but it was not meant to last. He died almost a year ago saving me from Paul Sutton, a wyvern who’d claimed to be my dragon. I believed him because of my foretelling, a destiny the Viden had predicted.

A day will come and a day will go, a choice I will have to make otherwise the truth will never be known.

It was a mouthful, and gave no inkling of what it was I needed to do. That’s what had propelled me on all my journeys and how my life suddenly lead to so much death.

I’d really thought wyverns could be tamed, but I learned the hard way that it was not possible – by sacrificing the love of my life.

The worst part of it all was, on the day he died, I changed into a dragon myself.

A small detail no one had ever shared with me.

The dragon inside of me was named Cara, and she shared my body. She gave me freedom; she helped me get over my fear of heights and gave me courage I’d never thought was possible. Her presence also made losing Lucian -a bit more bearable.

During my journey to find out who I really was, I learned that Cara had died a long time ago, saving my life as an infant, and she had awoken when Paul tried to kill me.

Her mother, Tanya Le Frey, had been Queen Catherine’s dragon. It turns out Queen Catherine is my biological mother. Shocked? Not as shocked as I was.

Many years ago, Tanya sacrificed her six-year-old dragon, Cara, so that I could live.

Cara wasn’t supposed to wake, but I guess being in such grave danger at the hands of Paul gave her no choice.

This brings me to my final revelation. I am the Princess of Paegeia. The daughter of King Albert and Queen Catherine. This meant I had to kill the dragon part of me; I had to kill Cara, in order to claim what was mine. The Rubicon. A dragon that was all ten dragon species combined who was predestined for evil. If I hadn’t discovered who I was, he would’ve turned dark, taking my soul with him.

His human form was named Blake Leaf. He was my best friend Sammy’s brother.

He was the kind of guy who would make your legs turn into goo by just looking at you, but he was as arrogant as they come and as stubborn as hell. And the worst part of it all was that he’d loathed me ever since I was brought here, but for an unknown reason had ended up saving my life on more than one occasion.

I guess I finally knew why he’d done it; it was the part that was fighting the evil in him – because he’d known from the beginning who I was – how big that part was, I didn’t know.

Unfortunately we shared one of those special bonds, a dent, and our destinies were written in the stars.

This destiny was something I didn’t really believe in because of this messed-up love-hate relationship I shared with him.

So now I am coming to grips with the knowledge that the man who raised me was not my father and my mother had never left me, she died. Also that my real father was the greatest man who’d ever lived and that I am unable to free him or the people of Etan from the spell of an evil sorcerer because of a promise I’d made to him during my ascending – a promise that wasn’t mine to make alone.

But none of that matters as my dragon is the last person/creature in this world who would ever dent, even if his life depended on it. That knowledge wasn’t an easy pill to swallow.

Blake wants absolutely nothing to do with me; he’d made it clear on so many occasions. I know everyone blames his dark side, but I know better. It isn’t his dark side. For some reason he just doesn’t want me as his rider.

But I know I will get there; somehow I will find a way, as I always seem to do. I have no choice, as I am, and will always be the princess of my new world.

Part One

One

SUMMER WAS HARD, but never in a million years had I thought the beginning of my third year at Dragonia Academy would be harder.

I had a new schedule, one that would instruct new riders on how to connect with their dragons. The only plus side to this was that I was sharing classes with Becky and Sammy again.

To make matters worse, I was now being forced, this time by the two ruling kingdoms, to sit with King Helmut and King Caleb to discuss Paegeia’s projects. The royals ran a number of charities, which Queen Margerite loved, and from that money they found ways to help the less fortunate or fund projects that would produce enough income to sustain their charity work. But not all of those projects were good. Some of these projects were dodgy, and they were conducted on the other side of the world. So every Wednesday and Thursday after school, I was either taken to Tith or Areeth to sit with them and talk politics.

Blake was still missing, for more than two months to be exact, and if not for his love of booze, I would have thought he was lying in a ditch somewhere without a heartbeat.

Whenever he consumed too much alcohol, well, it was the only time that he ‘tuned in’ and actually spoke to me inside my head, a conversation that was only meant for us. But it was usually vulgar, dirty, and always below the belt, and far from the truth, as I knew he hated my guts. However, for some reason it was the opposite whenever he was drunk. It was the only time he really wanted me.

He was my dent, a bond so strong it made people who had to watch it daily want to puke. Becky, my best friend, shared a dent with her dragon, George, who was a Moon-Bolt. The kind who could see into the future as they aged.

I remembered how he’d loathed her those first few weeks after she claimed him. It was before he’d dented. And when he finally went through the process, a process that no one can explain because the stupid idiot will not reveal it to any living soul, he’d become her shadow, a limb without which she couldn’t function, and her soul mate. They drove everyone around them nuts with the way they stared at one another, giggling and cooing sweet words in each other’s ears.

It was unnatural, not the real kind of love I’d once shared with Lucian, the Prince of Tith. To me it was a spell under which these dragons were placed. It wasn’t something I treasured the way the rest of Paegeia did.

Sammy and Dean, one of Lucian’s best friends, had fallen in love during our second year. When I’d started to show signs that I was close to ascending, we had thought about teaming up, but then Paul, a wyvern, had come into the picture and said he was my dragon. After that, Sammy and Dean made it official and they became a team. They didn’t share a dent but they were really close.

Elena. Sir Edward called my name and I cringed. Shit. Not paying attention in these classes was surely going to make me fail all of them.

I cleared my throat and stared at him questioningly.

You’re free to go, he said, and I narrowed my eyes, not knowing where it was I should go.

For heaven’s sake. Becky spoke softly, but everyone laughed, as the entire class had super hearing abilities. Master Longwei, the Council.

Oh. I started to pull all my stationery and my books together and put them into my backpack, closed the flap, and got up.

Thank you, Sir Edward.

He gave me that look, the one that told me he was seriously concerned about my lack of concentration lately, and nodded.

I walked as fast as I could out of the Magical Variances class and ran to the office where Master Longwei was waiting for me.

I pulled hard at the oak door. I remembered when it’d felt like a regular door, but my strength was one of the first things that’d left me when Cara died, and also one of the things that I’d never gotten back after I claimed Blake. I missed my strength.

Master Longwei was already waiting for me at the dragon statue inside the lobby.

There was no time to change into something more adequate to meet the Ancients, but they needed to get used to who I was.

Ever since those horrible three weeks of summer learning – no, let me rephrase – forcing everything about Paegeia down my throat, I’d refused to become this dressed-up doll whenever the Ancients or Council wanted a word with me.

Master Longwei gave me a slightly raised eyebrow and glanced at his watch.

Yeah, I know. I’m late. Sorry. I forgot about the Ancients.

"Elena, you cannot‒

I know. I was irritated. I just hated everything about being the princess because I really sucked at it still.

THE CARRIAGE FLIGHT felt like five minutes and then we were at Town Hall in Elm, where the Ancients were going to meet with us.

Since my dragon refused to dent, we’d had to come up with something to keep our connection at bay in some cases.

In the history of Paegeia, no dent had a connection between dragon and rider this strong. Whenever Blake was beaten, as he was still dark and had evil urges, a process that was on hold until he dented, I automatically went through the beatings as well, ending up with slashes as long as the width of my back. We only discovered this a few weeks back when I’d dreamed about Emanuel, King Helmut’s dragon and a really good friend, getting beaten, which then turned into Blake and eventually became my own beating, which nobody could stop. Not even Constance with her magic healing touch.

Master Longwei, bless his mind, put two and two together really fast, even if it did sound far-fetched, and phoned Sir Robert to stop beating Blake to a pulp. It took weeks for me to heal and to be honest I think I still had the scars on my back to prove it.

This bond was so not frawsome at this stage.

The connection was messed up, but it was one I had to deal with.

I didn’t like the beatings, and I hoped that when it happened again, I wouldn’t feel it like the last time and would somehow be able to get to him before his father ended up killing him.

This was why we were meeting with the Council. A plan to block our bond and situations like this was their number one priority. A situation that I’d made very clear to Sir Robert could never happen again. But he was a dragon and who was I to give him orders, even if I was the princess.

You are awfully quiet today, princess.

I told you not to call me that, Master Longwei.

He smiled. It’s what you are, the day you own up to it is the day that you are ready to handle your responsibility.

I wanted to roll my eyes, but a princess never rolled her eyes. Every time I wanted to do that, Stanley’s voice shrilled inside my head like a horrible alarm.

You are right. Sorry, Master Longwei, I said.

It made him laugh. Elena, you are still Elena Watkins to me. You never have to pretend, please.

A small chuckle escaped passed my lips too but it turned into a sigh as I stared out the window, upon my world. It’s all still so confusing.

Which part?

Everything.

Then maybe you should speak to someone, Elena, one who was part of a dent, a long time ago but lost her rider.

I rolled my eyes, even with Stan’s stupid voice shrilling in my head.

I’ll die before I walk one step up that tower again.

She can help you.

I shook my head. I guess it wasn’t just my dragon who was stubborn. Every time our Viden Irene’s name was mentioned in my presence, I would remember her harsh words the first time she’d given me that horrible foretelling. I guess a first impression was really that strong.

She told me that I, King Albert and Queen Catherine’s daughter, didn’t belong. That my mark was just a birth defect, that I would never ascend and I would never fit in. For someone who had the ability to see into the future, she really sucked with me.

I would never see her as anyone who I could confide in, even if Blake spoke highly of her.

Yes, there was a time when he’d been super sweet to me. A part of me had fallen head over heels for him, but it wasn’t real. He’d only been trying to lure me into doing the most horrible thing ever: to kill him when the time came, since my dragon form – since Cara – had changed into a Rubicon herself.

In some way, killing him would’ve probably been easier than what he had to do now.

Even if Irene’s very first Foretelling had been about us, I would rather free Blake than hear what the Viden had to say ever again..

I saw dents as evil, and not the way the rest of this world saw them.

Dragons have to do what their Dragonians tell them, no matter how sinister their requests are. Cheng’s father couldn’t break from his rider, who according to Cheng was just as evil as Goran himself.

Becky was controlling too, and it was disgusting how George just did whatever she wanted. He loved that part of her with all of his heart.

Our love would never be real. Not like the love Lucian and I had shared. We’d fought, we’d laughed, and fought some more. It hadn’t been easy at times, but it had been the real deal.

Blake would become like George, and I would know that none of it was real. I would never do that to him, never, and nothing was going to change my mind.

We stopped in front of the hall and Master Longwei climbed out first. Flashing lights reflected off his face and into the carriage, and I took a deep breath.

Ever since the truth had come out about who I was, everywhere I went the cockroaches with their cameras were there.

I hated each of them, because the one time when I had really needed them, the time when I wanted to break free from all the learning how to be something I was not, none of them had ever revealed what I was truly going through. They made it look as if I was having a royal time without my two best friends, whom I’d almost lost in the process.

These people with their cameras were only in it for the money, and Stan or one of his gang would throw bags of money at them to not print what was really going on.

They would do anything to earn that penny. It was disgusting.

I climbed out, and flashing lights blinded me.

Princess, what will you do if there is nothing that can protect you from the Rubicon’s bond?

Yes, that piece of information had been in all the tabloids during the past few weeks. How I’d felt Blake’s beating, every single slash of it.

Mr. Brody, I answered. I guess then I will just have to deal with it, like I have always dealt with things, and pray that he will come to his senses. The last part made a few laugh softly, and I moved through all of them, with guards at our sides.

More questions came but I only had time for one and I thought I had answered it well enough.

Mr. Brody, or Kevin, was someone I’d met regularly. He was one of the idiots who had been paid off on numerous occasions. He even ran a show on TV called Just Kev, definitely an eye-roll opportunity.

He was the last one I should probably answer, but he was also the most demanding, and always said horrible things about me on his show when I didn’t answer at least one of his questions. His famous line was how I didn’t care and didn’t have a heart or the time to address my people’s concerns, and whether I was really a princess worthy of love.

All things that weren’t true, but things that would make everyone believe that it was the truth, especially the people of Areeth, Arianna Kingsley’s father’s kingdom.

We entered the hall and the Ancients were waiting on huge thrones.

My Pappi was the first face I saw and he had a twinkle in his eye as he winked at me. He smiled and nodded a greeting in my direction.

Good afternoon princess, Master Longwei.

We both took a bow in front of the five thrones and sat on the two seats right in front of them.

I hope we haven’t made you wait too long, your Honors, Master Longwei said and took his seat.

Not in the least. We know the princess’s education is of importance now, more than ever.

I hated the way they spoke down to us, especially the speaker: Admirable Duclin.

I think he was a dragon too, and it was as if he loathed royalty. Well at one stage I would’ve agreed with him, but we weren’t that bad.

My Pappi stared at him, but took a deep breath and closed his eyes as if he’d passed his afternoon nap, turned his head and stared at the two of us again.

We have found an old incantation that we have placed on a charm, a bracelet, that the princess should wear at all times. It will protect her from the lashes. It wasn’t an easy spell to come by, but in some cases, it’s necessary to look in darker places.

That piece of knowledge made the hair on my arms and the back of my neck tingle.

The Black Market.

Pappi closed his eyes once, lovingly, in my direction to ease my worries with a soft smile.

My heart still pounded as it was one of the places I would gladly close down in a second if they gave me the chance to rule this world. They still used dragon parts, parts that kept them alive, as the most valuable potions couldn’t function without them, like the coward potion.

A potion my mother had once asked Goran to make her so that she could pretend to be dead and reunite with me.

She wrote about that in her journal, something she’d done daily after she’d given me up. If I hadn’t relived the pain she’d gone through giving me up that day, her words of what life was like without me would’ve done it.

She’d really wanted me with all of her heart, so much that her relationship with my father turned to dust because he couldn’t find the person who was going to betray them. Theirs was a love I thought could never die.

The Ancients still spoke in the background. I hadn’t heard a single word they’d said until a short little fat man with medals sewn on his black suit brought me back to reality when he came running in with a wooden box.

He came to a halt in front of me and opened the lid.

Inside was a beautiful, round bracelet with a small heart charm dangling from it. There was a dark blue stone in the middle of the heart.

The guy with the big belly nodded once, and I stared at him and then at the Ancients.

Princess, you are the only one who can touch it. The spell will begin when it comes into contact with your skin, my Pappi said.

I reached out with slightly trembling hands as if it was a snake that was going to strike at any moment.

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and took the bracelet gently.

I awkwardly tried to clasp it on, and on the fifth try, with a few annoying sighs coming from the thrones, I finally got the clasp to connect with the link.

The dark stone will turn to a soft blue when the spell is busy protecting you from whatever pain the Rubicon is going through, Duclin said.

My Pappi cleared his throat. You can’t take it off. If you do, the spell will lose its power and the bracelet will be just that, a bracelet.

I nodded and took a deep breath.

I understand. I stood up, and Master Longwei followed my lead.

I thank all of you for finding something so rare to protect me from danger. I smiled. It didn’t sound anything like me. The old Elena would never say anything like this, or accept anything from the Black Market.

Thank you, your Honors, we appreciate this dearly, Master Longwei added and all of them got up and made their way without a hint of acknowledgement through another door.

I felt as if I could breathe again, and we turned around and exited the hall.

More questions filled my head, but all I did was dangle my bracelet in the air and tell myself there was a reason the Ancients were called Ancient.

Pedro, my Pappi’s most trusted apprentice whom I’d met that horrible night everything was stripped from me, waited not far from the carriage and nodded.

When I opened the carriage an envelope waited on the soft leather seat.

Master Longwei closed the door and I sat down, breaking the wax seal.

My dearest Elena.

You have no idea how important this bracelet is. It’s the only object that might protect you from this horrible curse that was placed upon you, a curse that will hopefully soon turn into a blessing. Please, I pray that you will never take it off. We trust and pray with all of our hearts that it is going to work, and will never give up finding something that will, if the bracelet does not live up to its task.

I beg you not to worry about how we came by it, just trust that the stone and the magic behind it is rare and as old as time itself.

But enough of that. Meet me this Saturday at 17 Millherb Road, ask that Moon-Bolt friend of yours, he will find it in no time.

Much love and warm thoughts,

Pappi.

I smiled and felt better about the bracelet dangling from my wrist as I put the letter back into the envelope.

It wasn’t the first time my Pappi had snuck off to meet me for some private time with his great, great, great, great, great-grand- daughter.

The last time we talked while walking in the park, enjoying an ice cream. Pappi was a sucker for ice cream. We had both been in disguises and were pleased nobody recognized us, thanks to Lucille.

The ride back to the academy felt longer than the first.

I was looking forward again to something: discovering if this old spell was going to work.

When the carriage stopped the bracelet started to sparkle.

I stared at it, as did Master Longwei. Neither of us knew what that meant, as the Ancients said that the stone would turn lighter if it was protecting me in some way, not that it would sparkle.

Does it hurt? Master Longwei asked, and I shook my head while staring at it as we walked down one of the cobblestone paths, past the huge statue of my dad and plenty of oak trees.

Then I should speak to one of the Ancients and find out what this means.

Yeah, that sounds like an idea.

We reached the main building in record time as Master Longwei’s strides widened and I had to run-walk to keep up. He pulled at one of the doors as if it weighed nothing and the bracelet sparkled even more.

This is seriously starting to freak me out, I said softly.

Soon, we’ll have our answer soon, was all he said as we rushed down the hall toward the dragon that parted the hall and the lobby of the Academy.

I was still staring at my bracelet and it was brighter than ever. I could swear that it’d gotten brighter and brighter as we moved down the hall toward the lobby.

What do you think this – I slammed into Master Longwei who was standing in the entrance of the lobby and hallway.

Master Longwei? I asked. He stared toward the stairs and my gaze followed.

I guess I know why that bracelet was shining.

Yeah, I knew too, as the reason was standing with his lips against Tabitha’s, kissing her as if there was no tomorrow.

Two

I WALKED PAST them, while my heart was hammering. Why Blake still had this effect on me was beyond my knowledge. A few months back he’d made it perfectly clear I was no match for Tabitha.

He was such an idiot, and I had no idea what I’d seen in him. None of it had been real; it’d been just one big act.

A hand grabbed me tightly around the arm, and my eyes shifted to it.

I slowly raised my head to look at him.

He was still kissing Tabitha, but his ugly paw was around my arm. What was his problem?

He finally broke the kiss, brushing her cheek softly with his thumb. When she saw me, she jumped slightly but her surprised, parted lips turned into a thin line, and her nostrils widened slightly.

He turned his head, staring straight at me with his narrowed peacock blues.

Now, a word, he said with his jaw muscles pumping.

He was so arrogant. Prick.

You have no right to speak to my father the way you did the other day. He almost spat the words at me.

I started to laugh, and I could see it was seriously annoying him.

I don’t need a babysitter! Or a rider for that matter.

This piece of information was clearly making Tabitha glow inside.

You think I want to be your rider? To be stuck with this fucked-up bond or whatever it is we share? I – I poked him hard, but he stood his ground. "– didn’t run away like a coward. I faced whatever I had to face, and dealt with my responsibilities. You need to decide what you are going to do, because to be honest, I’m sick and tired of this game you’re playing, tired of your whining, just tired of everything, Blake. So either get that ego of yours in check and own up to your responsibilities or get the fuck away from me, as far as possible, where I don’t have to pay for the shit you get yourself into whenever you can’t keep yourself under control. If you think I did that for you, you better think again pal."

I could see he wanted to say something else.

Matter is closed. If you don’t like it, then leave.

He grunted softly then cussed in Latin. How I knew it was Latin was hard to explain, but it sounded different, like a higher dialect of English.

My insides wanted to explode; he was the only one who had that effect on me. He knew just what buttons to push, but I kept my pose as I walked up the stairs; I wouldn’t show him how I truly felt.

When I entered my room – a place which no dragon’s enhanced hearing could penetrate – I let out a frustrated scream.

Four pairs of eyes stared at me from the couch in the corner.

Becky turned the TV down. Are you okay?

George and Dean both stared, while Sammy was already making her way to the door.

She wrapped her arms around me. What happened, did the Council give you anything, did they say anything?

I huffed. This is not a Council matter. Your brother decided to come back and had some words about my little ordeal with your father. He is so freaking arrogant, do you know that?

Wait, my brother is back? she asked with a slight change in her tone.

Yes, he’s never going to change. It’s been almost three months since I claimed him, and he still refuses to accept me as a rider.

I shook my head at Becky. I don’t know if I can do this anymore.

Don’t you dare say that.

George breathed out loud. Give him time. I promise you he is going to be pretty sorry when that time comes.

When, George, in two years, three? They don’t even know if this stupid bracelet works.

What? Becky had that worried look on her face that the others mirrored.

Nobody’s shared this messed-up bond we have before. So they couldn’t try it out on anyone. It’s just hopeful dreams. The only thing they said was that they got it at the Black Market, or I assume it’s from the Black Market. I hate this, Becky. I sat on the edge of my bed with my head in my hands, sounding more defeated than I wanted to let on.

The bed shifted and I could feel her presence right beside me. He is back. He is going to be in every class with you, learning. Believe me, as much as he is going to protest, he will be forced.

I gave her my unbelievable laugh and she gave me her not impressed glare.

Who is going to force him? Half the professors are shit scared of him. I can’t, because he hates my guts, and I’m the last person he would ever listen to.

I know it sounds like a hopeless case. I’ve been there, but it’s not.

And if this doesn’t work? I dangled my bracelet in her face, ignoring her last statement, as she hadn’t dealt with this for three bloody months. What then? I just have to take the beatings with him? You saw how long they took to heal. I walked for weeks with the pain, and the scars are still there.

She didn’t say anything, just stared at me with as much compassion as possible.

I just don’t know anymore.

Don’t give up, Sammy begged. I’ll speak to him if you want me to.

No. I can do my own dirty work.

C’mon, he’s my brother, and I happen to love you both. I know he’s an arrogant bastard, but I still have a different connection with him.

I shook my head. I know you mean well, but I’ll deal with him my own way. I’ll try harder, ask for advice if that’s what it takes. But I refuse to wait for him for years. I headed straight for the bathroom.

I’m going to go say hi. Sammy spoke softly but I could hear it through the door, as if she’d said it directly in my face.

The bracelet wasn’t shining so much anymore; only a faint glow came from it.

Well at least one good thing would come from this: It would let me know when the idiot was near.

I STAYED INSIDE my room until dinner time. I even tried to read my mother’s journal again, but I couldn’t get that stupid conversation and image of what a dick Blake was out of my head.

I couldn’t believe that I’d told him that I loved him at one time. Whatever that was, that feeling was long gone and the only thing that remained was the same way he felt about me.

I really didn’t want to share this bond with him and wished it was transferable.

Around seven-thirty, Becky and Sammy entered the room, Sammy carrying a silver dish. Chef asked me to give this to you.

I smiled as she put it down on my nightstand. Thanks.

When I picked up the lid it revealed a plate of coq-au-vin. One of my favorite meals.

I dug in as Sammy couldn’t stop speaking about her brother. He is in the impasse stage. I just know it. He’s stuck in between good and evil.

Yay me!

Elena. She stared at me and seemed to want to say something, but instead shook her head.

She was frustrated with this entire ordeal. Just like I was. Still, impasse stage or not, I had to make some kind of deal with him to just co-operate, and I had no idea how on earth I was going to do that.

We went to bed after our favorite teen soap, Fire-Frost.

It was a new series and reminded me a bit of Teen Wolf, but this one was about shape-shifting panthers. The main character was to die for, and gave Blake a run for his money.

The day you meet him, Sammy said, I’m so there.

Me too, Becky chirped.

You have George, Sammy said with a slight smirk on her face.

And you have Dean. Besides, I’ll just tell George to stay behind.

I couldn’t believe she’d just said that. Urgh, I hate it when you do that. I got up.

It was a joke, Becky said in a high-pitched tone with a smile.

Still, you know he’ll do anything for you, and you still take advantage of it.

I don’t.

I gave her the raised eyebrow, and it got her all riled up. You will never understand anything. Becky got up and left for the bathroom.

She was wrong, I did.

She wasn’t the one who’d seen the entire picture. She would never own up to that as she was madly in love with George, even if it was all just a big love spell to him.

I found Sammy watching me with parted lips and slightly narrowed eyes.

What?

That was uncalled for.

Whatever. I got up and crawled into bed.

I closed my eyes and could still hear them scurrying around in the room as they got ready for bed.

I hated arguing or disagreeing with them, but sometimes they just didn’t truly understand what I was going through.

MY BRACELET SPARKLED again as I neared the cafeteria the next morning.

The idiot was near.

The entire cafeteria was filled with Dragonians and their dragons It was that time again: Warbel tryouts. I didn’t even go to the opening this year, as one: I had a really bad experience the last time, and two: they held it during the time that I was still being held hostage by Stanley and his gang trying to force Paegeia down my throat.

Blake was sitting at a table with Tabitha. Our eyes met for a second and I could feel the hatred he had for me behind those peacock blues. How on earth was he ever going to like me? It had to be a spell. I turned away and ignored him completely, grabbing my bowl of oatmeal with a side plate of fruit.

Did you enjoy your dinner last night?

I did, thanks Chef.

He cocked his head at the whiteboard next to the buffet on the wall. See my riddle?

Nope, and not going to until certain girls behave, I joked.

He roared with laughter as I took my tray and went to Becky and Sammy’s table.

We stayed until the first bell rang then made our way to Professor Pheizer’s class.

She was in her element when she saw Blake. He didn’t share her enthusiasm, but it still didn’t stop her from giving him a warm welcome back.

So, today I was thinking of starting my lecture with Dragon Oaths. Her eyes widened and a huge grin was plastered on her face.

It made half of the class snicker, George in particular, but the other half, the ones who shared Blake and Tabitha’s mood, grunted slightly.

So who can tell me what the difference is between a dragon’s promise and a dragon’s oath?

Is there a difference? I spoke out of turn as I remembered that very first promise Blake had made when I went into the Sacred Cavern. But I knew the answer. Ever since I’d gotten my memories back from the stories Dad used to tell me when I was little, I knew there was.

She smiled. There is a huge difference.

Riley’s hand shot the highest and half the class slumped back in their chairs and rolled their eyes. Of course the know-it-all would have the answer.

Riley? Professor Pheizer asked.

A dragon’s promise can be easily broken, but with a dragon’s oath, they would actually go through physical pain if they tried to break it, right? She stared at Vivienne, her Night-Villain’s human form, sitting right next to her.

The dark head nodded.

That is correct, Professor Pheizer said in her over-excited tone. George, why is a dragon’s oath so sacred?

George chuckled. Because it’s something we almost never do.

Becky laughed the hardest.

Becky, please share.

A dragon’s oath from him? She joked too as I knew he had given his dragon oath plenty of times.

I’m serious, guys, she said. Blake, you seem to know all the strangeness in dragons, tell us why dragon oaths are so sacred, why do you creatures hurt so much when you break one?

Because it’s how it is. To give a dragon’s oath is to swear with your entire existence, what you promise will be, if not, you wither in pain for all eternity. He spoke in rhyme and it reminded me of the poems in my head.

Professor Pheizer must have thought about that too, as she gave him a knowing, soft grin. The memory of his poem melting her away in that same chair was definitely evident on her face.

But Blake’s tone was dull. Something that will never leave my lips. That is a promise, he said through a huge grin.

Buttons!

She smiled. Thank goodness that wasn’t a dragon’s oath.

Becky had to suppress her laughter as Tabitha glared at Professor Pheizer.

Oh, I’ll say it if you want me to, as it means nothing to me.

Don’t Blake. I’m sure you would like to say it one day to that beautiful girl sitting next to you, and then the regret of this day is going to bite you in the butt.

Tabitha smiled, and Blake’s lips curled slightly.

I didn’t like that for some reason, but I knew Professor Pheizer wasn’t an idiot.

She didn’t want him to make that oath, even though he would never give me his dragon oath, he could still give it to Tabitha.

The lecture went on about how sacred and strong dragon oaths were. In the old days they used to have a ceremony once a month where dragons could give their oath in front of hundreds of people. It was also something that’d died out when the Creepers consumed Etan, and oaths had become as rare as dents. Even though there were two in this classroom.

When the bell finally rang everyone scattered.

I let Blake and Tabitha leave first and was one of the last students to leave Professor Pheizer’s class.

Elena, can I please have a word? she asked.

I lowered my backpack and almost dragged it behind me, so un-princess like.

I smiled as I reached her and she mirrored me with a much kinder and warmer smile.

I know you are going through a very difficult time and I said those words –

Professor, you don’t have to explain it to me.

Let me finish. She gave me the eye with a soft curve at the lips. I didn’t want him to say it, as the right time will come when he’ll really want to say it, and not to Tabitha.

I huffed. It really doesn’t matter to me that much.

It should. He is your dent. The boy that is going to literally want to give you the moon and the stars, the one that is going to protect you for the rest of your life.

I wanted to protest as I knew that was so not going to ever happen. It made me think back to my father’s, Herbert’s, stories. He told me that too, and if it wasn’t for Cheng’s ability to show them to me, bless his heart, I would still not have remembered them. But they were all wrong.

Don’t. It always happens when the right time comes. You just need to be patient.

So everyone keeps telling me.

Be patient. Your bond was supposed to have been made a long time ago.

I didn’t argue as I really didn’t want to speak about this anymore. I didn’t like anything the dent stood for.

So I took a deep breath and nodded.

Now go, before you miss the second bell.

I opened her door and found Sammy and Dean waiting for me. Becky and George were a few paces in front, walking side by side.

What was that about? Sammy asked, and I scrunched up my nose to tell her it was nothing.

Dragon promises or oaths made no difference to me as I knew the day one left Blake’s mouth was the day that he wasn’t going to be the same anymore.

Three

I THOUGHT THE day that Blake came back was going to be the day classes might get easier, but I was way off.

Blake, well he was Blake, he rebelled against everything that involved working with me, and in every class he could.

Blake? Professor Mia asked with a huge grin. Think you want to show Elena how it’s done?

He squinted and it already made my stomach turn, not from wanting him, but from knowing his reply was going to be cruel.

Why would I want to show Elena anything? he said, and I caught Becky glaring at him.

He was a dick.

Blake, she’s –

She is nothing, Mia, and if you are going to push this, I don’t need this class, you know I don’t.

Still here, if you forgot, I spoke out of turn, and tried to make it as harsh as possible.

He stared at me. Oh, sorry for my bluntness, princess. The sarcasm flowed through his demeanor.

Arrogant bastard, I said softly, but I knew that almost everyone in the class had heard me.

Seriously, man. George tried too.

Blake shot him a glare.

George, don’t. There is no cure for thick-headedness. I got up and walked to the door.

Elena, Professor Mia said, but I kept walking as fast as I could and out of the Parthenon Dome.

When I exited the door, I could still hear them, thanks to my enhanced hearing.

You are going to regret all of this one day, Professor Mia said. Even though the other professors are too scared to say this out loud. I’m not. You are being a prick, and a crybaby for what that girl has done for you. You don’t deserve anything.

Okay, so that I hadn’t expected from Mia, but I covered my ears and blocked out Blake’s reply.

If you look up ‘hopeless’ in the dictionary, it would say ‘Blake and Elena.’ It was never going to happen, and each day I started to realize it more and more.

I went back to my room and read one of my mother’s journals again.

It was about the time she’d met Tanya; she was trapped in a dragon’s trap, her wing was badly injured and my mom wrote how scared she was. That it emanated from her. My mother soaked up Tanya’s emotions and I started to see the pattern. My mom had been part of a dent too. She shared one with Tanya, and they’d gone through exactly the same thing we were.

My father, bless his heart, was so gentle with Tanya that it made my mom fall in love with him even more.

She wrote about Emanual too, how he’d communicated with Tanya, in his dragon form, telling her that they were the good guys.

He’d calmed her down, even if Emanual wasn’t really sure if he should trust any of them either.

My mom wrote plenty about Emanual’s dark side, a side I’d never seen before.

Her stories were the best. My mom had been brave, and I understood why my father had wanted her so much.

She always spoke her mind, and I could imagine what type of queen she’d been, what type of a mom she would’ve been. I would’ve been a completely different person if I’d had her in my life to show me how to be brave, and strong, fearless and not scared of anything.

She sure sounded like one of those. Even in the scariest moments she wrote down, she never cried. She always figured out ways to defend herself, and get herself out of her messes, alive.

The bell rang again and it was time for Aviance, a class I really wanted Blake to participate in but that was yet another wish that would never be fulfilled. Still, I went to the Coliseum and found Professor Vladimir and Professor Alexandra waiting in the ring.

They both smiled as I entered. Nobody else was there yet.

Elena! Professor Alexandra said. She was Professor Vladimir’s dragon and a Swallow Annex just like Constance. She was gorgeous with short, silver spiky hair and the most beautiful green eyes.

He – well he was huge: huge shoulders, huge arms, huge frame, huge everything. With brown hair and a slightly crooked nose that still made Becky, Sammy and I wonder whether it made him gorgeous or not.

Professors, I replied.

You think he is going to participate?

Nope, we just had a moment in Art of War. That dragon is far from ready to do anything he is supposed to do.

Give him time, Professor Vladimir said. The impasse stage has never been easy for Dragonians. The Chromatics rebel for as long as they can, but they always succumb.

Always, Professor Alex said too. Seen it a million times. He will too.

Thanks, I said, not very excited. To be honest, I really wasn’t looking forward to that time at all.

One by one students walked into the Coliseum. Peter entered alone without Tabitha. He plopped down right next to me as all the other dragons started to shift into their form.

We sat and watched as Dragonians hoisted saddles onto their backs.

The couple finally made their gracious entrance. Blake’s arm was around Tabitha’s neck and I could hear the vulgar words – which were probably sexy to her – he whispered in her ear. It was so cheap and disgusting.

Peter, on the other hand, seemed hurt.

Hey, if it’s any consolation, both of them are idiots. We’re just the losers that ended up with them.

I chose to claim her, he said and stared down at his feet.

Then my advice is to do what we do best, give them plenty of space and time.

Time for what? Blake spat at me, and Professor Vladimir climbed off of Alex’s back. He told her to go and she took flight, the others flying right behind her.

I stared at them as they each lifted off gracefully.

"I’m talking to you, Elena,