Guardian

by P B Hughes

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Gregory said.

  “Not as obvious to me as it is to you,” Jelani replied.

  “The man said I’m supposed to go north to fulfill my destiny; that I might die if I don’t. That was weeks ago. And now where am I headed? North, through no planning of my own.”

  “It could be coincidence, Gregory,” said Daniel.

  “I know it’s not a coincidence. I know it means something. Don’t tell me it doesn’t mean something when you have no idea. I have to go north, and if I don’t, terrible things will happen to me—maybe to all of us, but especially to me.”

  “No,” Daniel snapped. “Basing your fears, your actions, or your destiny on something an imaginary man told you in a dream is absurd. Come on, Greg, I know this hasn’t been easy for you, but don’t lose your head.”

  Daniel felt terrible for saying it, for he could see the look in Gregory’s eyes: he had been a fool, and he knew it. He shut his mouth and blinked. Daniel rarely used a harsh tone with his friends, and he could tell it had jarred Gregory back to reality.

  “Sometimes,” Jelani said, kindly, “the meaning of a dream is not as obvious as we think. I am not an interpreter, so I will not guess your dream’s meaning. But I do believe Daniel is right: you must not let a dream dictate your actions.”

  Gregory cleared his throat and sniffed hard. “You’re right,” he said, his voice hollow. “I know it. But the dream was so vivid, and I’ve been so out of my mind with fear lately. But…but I’ll not bring it up again. Obviously, I’m being a regular chump. Of course, I’ll do my part to bring peace back to Orsidia.” He gave them a wooden smile. “I just hope we’re strong enough.”

  “Hope is a powerful ally in times such as these,” said Jelani. “And maybe that is all we can give the people of Orsidia. But it is my wish that we bring peace to both the North and South through nonviolence. Perhaps we can stop Greavus before he wreaks too much havoc.”

  “Greavus spilled first blood,” said a voice from the room behind them.

  The three of them jumped in surprise as they looked for the source. It was Jude, a blanket wrapped around his shoulders and a candle in one hand. His face was lean and hard.

  “The war has already begun. People will want revenge. Nonviolence is no longer possible.”

  “I am no fool, Jude Elm,” said Jelani. “The Empire will have Greavus’ head, one way or another. Let us hope the innocent are not caught in the executioner’s swing.”

  “A fine sentiment,” said Jude. “But don’t get your hopes too high. Now, come inside so I can close this blasted window.”

  Jelani gave Jude a smile. “Why not join us, Jungle Tamer? The night is clear and the conversation deep.”

  “No,” Jude replied curtly. “I’m going to bed. I refuse to bleed the night away with idle chit-chat before a long journey.”

  “Go to bed then, no one’s stopping you,” said Gregory.

  Jude’s lip curled as he glared down at Gregory. “How am I supposed to sleep when my room is colder than a Frost Troll’s den?”

  “I don’t know—shut the window,” Gregory replied in an aggravated tone.

  “The last time I shut the window, the three of you woke me up to let you back in. In case you don’t remember, the latch doesn’t open from the outside.”

  “All right, all right,” Daniel said, sitting up. “We’ll come in.”

  “Good, because this is getting—” Jude blanched. His head shot up and he peered out into the night. The three of them followed his gaze, but the view was the same as before: the sloping roof, the treetops, and nothing else.

  “What do you see?” asked Jelani.

  Jude stared at the tops of the trees. “I thought I saw…No, it was nothing.”

  Daniel stood. “Thought you saw what?”

  “Nothing. My eyes were playing tricks on me.”

  “Okay, that’s enough roof-time for me,” Gregory declared. He crawled back inside the window. “Leave it to Jude to creep everybody out. Come on, Jelani, let’s go back to our room.”

  Jelani followed after Gregory, leaving Daniel searching for any sign of what Jude had seen.

  “It was nothing, Daniel,” Jude asserted. “Get back inside.”

  With that, Daniel crawled back into their room and fastened the window shut.

  Chapter 4

  Daniel removed his cloak and hung it on the coat rack in the corner of the room. His eyes caught his reflection in the murky mirror hanging over the mahogany dresser. The years were finally catching up to him—he was taller, more muscular. In the past months he had matured from being boyish and scrawny into a strong adolescent, though he was still shorter than Jude and Gregory. He ran his fingers through his brown hair and admired the change.

  He hoped Ari had noticed.

  Hot humiliation steamed through his body at the thought. He scolded himself for allowing his mind to wander to her yet again. Ari had made it clear how she felt two months ago during the school dance; he couldn’t keep hoping things had changed.

  That night in September seemed so long ago now, but he couldn’t help revisiting it often in his mind.

  The summer had been oppressively hot, and memories of the massacre weighed heavily on everyone’s spirits. Though the skies were mostly cloudless, a gloom had settled across the land, and each day seemed dark. Mordecai must have sensed that the students needed to feel some normalcy in their lives again. So, in late August, just a day before classes began, he made the announcement in the school dining hall during dinner: on the twenty-third of September, Brightcastle Hall would host an Autumn Ball.

  Daniel remembered the confusion he felt as he stared across rows of tables abuzz with excited students. Mordecai stood at the back of the room on a stage beneath the warm glow of a brass chandelier, a satisfied smile on his wizened face. Daniel had never been to a Ball. Littleton didn’t have the finances (or the number of students) to host such an event. So, when the entire student body erupted with cheers, he felt lost, glancing around the table at his friends for answers. Gregory looked just as puzzled as he did. Nera and Ari exchanged wide grins, and Jelani brightened. Only Jude seemed unfazed.

  “Hooray for dinner and dancing!” Nera exclaimed, tossing her cloth napkin into the air in celebration. The napkin landed on Gregory’s head and then fell onto his plate.

  Daniel felt a pang of anxiety. Where would he get the dress robes needed for a Ball? And where would he learn to dance? He had only been to one dance as a child. The neighboring town of Hearthdale held one during the spring each year, and once, Mordecai decided it would be fun to take the students. It was exciting to see all the people wearing their nicest clothes, dancing in unison across a dusty barn floor. All the guests, including Mordecai, knew every song. When a new tune played, they danced again, this time with different steps. Daniel remembered desperately wanting to join the fun, but he didn’t know any of the dances and felt too embarrassed to try.

  “So who are you boys asking to the Ball?” said Nera.

  “Asking?” Daniel repeated, worriedly.

  “Yes, asking,” Nera laughed. “You have to take a date. Jelani’s going to take me, aren’t you Jelani?”

  Jelani looked up from his meal. “If you wish it.”

  “I accept your invitation,” Nera replied, stabbing a green bean with her fork. “Thank you.”

  “I’m not going,” said Jude. “I have more important things to do than dress up like a flower and prance around.”

  “But Jude,” Ari exclaimed, “you have to go! Everyone will be there. And it will be such great fun.”

  “You expect Old Sourpuss here to go?” said Gregory, patting Jude on the back. “Good luck. But don’t you worry. I’ll be there. I don’t know how to dance, really—not like you, Ari. But I think Martha and I can fake it well enough to have fun.”

  “And what about you, Daniel?” Nera asked. “Who will you take?”

  “I—” Daniel cast a glance at Ari. She was looking at him ex
pectantly, eyebrows raised. “I don’t know that I’ll go either. It doesn’t sound like my kind of thing.”

  “Your kind of thing,” Nera snorted. “You boys are all alike. You probably just don’t want to go because you don’t know how to dance.”

  “I know how to dance,” Daniel protested.

  Gregory and Jude gave him sharp looks and immediately Daniel regretted his words.

  “You do?” asked Gregory suspiciously.

  Daniel stared up at the vaulted ceiling. “Well enough,” he said untruthfully. “I just don’t know if I want to go.”

  “Well you had better make up your mind, then,” said Nera. “All the pretty girls are getting snatched up. The prettiest,” she fluffed her hair and tossed her head, “is already taken by Jelani. Sorry, boys.”

  Daniel’s heart jumped. That meant that if he didn’t ask Ari, she’d go with someone else. And in that moment he wanted to go to the Ball more than he had wanted anything in his life. But only with Ari. He would ask her; he had to ask her.

  “Ari,” he said.

  “Yes, Daniel?”

  As the words formed in his mouth, he choked on them. If Ari were to see how poorly he danced, she’d think him a klutz. She was so elegant; the picture of perfection. He was an uncouth street urchin, and in her glow every one of his flaws would certainly be revealed. Asking her would put their relationship in jeopardy, but not asking her would mean someone else would have the chance to earn her affection.

  Daniel spotted a boy out of the corner of his eye—a tall, handsome cadet with red hair and a sharp-looking grey jacket. Ari looked over her shoulder to see what Daniel was staring at. The cadet was making a beeline for their table.

  He marched up to Ari, folded his arms behind him and said, “Good evening, Miss Celeste.”

  “Hello Marcus,” Ari replied pleasantly. “Nice to see you outside of class.”

  “Likewise,” he replied with a little bow. He looked up and gave her a half-smile. “I must tell you, Ari, I heard a little rumor about you from my men.”

  The way Marcus called the other cadets his men, as if they belonged to him, made Daniel roll his eyes. The boy was barely seventeen.

  “Oh?” said Ari, fanning her lashes in surprise. “Well, I do hope you quelled it. Rumors can be nasty things.”

  “I did my best, but, alas, they would not be silenced. They all insist that you’re an exquisite dancer, that you won the Ballroom Dance Competition five years in a row during your tenure at Apex Academy. Is it true, or have the churls been lying again?”

  “I’m afraid they’ve been teasing you. I’m not nearly as good as they say. I only won the competition four years in a row.”

  He let out a laugh, white teeth flashing. “Oh dear, I’ve been misled!”

  “Don’t you listen to her, Marcus,” Nera inserted. “You’re only allowed to compete the last four years you’re in grade-school. Ari won every single time.”

  “Nera, stop it,” said Ari.

  “I won’t!” Nera exclaimed. “I remember because she beat me every year. Dalton Ridge always competes against Apex Academy. It’s seared into my memory.”

  “So, the truth comes out,” Marcus replied. He winked. “I was about to make my men run laps tomorrow.” Marcus’ chest puffed and Daniel could see the light shimmer on his brass buttons. “You know, Ari, I also happen to be classically trained. And I’ve won a competition or two, myself. It would certainly turn heads if you and I went to the Ball together, don’t you think?”

  Daniel’s heart sank. He was too late. If only I’d asked sooner, he thought. He wished he could melt through the floor to avoid hearing her accept.

  Ari blushed. “Oh, Marcus, how kind of you.” Her eyes flit to Daniel, and then back to Marcus. “You’ll forgive me, but I’m already spoken for.”

  Marcus shuffled in place, taken aback. It was clear he did not expect her answer to be no. “I see,” he said. “May I inquire as to who has the honor?”

  Ari gave Daniel a fretful look. “Daniel Hart asked me,” she said, trying to smile.

  A jolt of electricity shot through Daniel, and he stared at Ari, confused.

  “The Littleton boy?” Marcus scoffed as if Daniel were not even present. “I’ve heard the kids from that school are practically cavemen. They know how to fight, but they don’t know how to dance.”

  “Yes, they do,” Ari replied defiantly. “Well, Daniel does. He’s as good a dancer as anyone—isn’t that right, Daniel?”

  “Oh, I know how to dance,” Daniel replied with venom. “But it may not be to your taste, Marcus. It’s different than what you’re used to. You see, we cavemen start a fire in the middle of the room and flail about in nothing but our undergarments.”

  Nera and Gregory snickered.

  “Daniel!” Ari exclaimed, mortified.

  Marcus’ jaw flexed. He glared at Daniel with hatred, and Daniel met him in kind.

  “Well,” Marcus said before long, “enjoy your wild man, Miss Celeste.” He turned to walk away, and then said over his shoulder. “If you change your mind and decide you want to go with a real gentleman, let me know.”

  “Real gentleman,” Gregory said in a sophisticated and mocking tone when Marcus was out of earshot. “The Creator’s gift to the world, that one is.”

  “Oh, hush,” said Nera. “He was only teasing.”

  “He’s pretentious and egotistical,” said Jude wryly.

  “And I say you’re all jealous,” Nera replied. She turned to Ari. “Why’d you say no, Ari?” She craned her neck after Marcus. “He’s awfully cute. All the girls like him.”

  “Yeah, just look at Elenora,” Gregory chuckled. “She’s making eyes at him right now. Always picking up your table scraps, isn’t she, Ari?”

  Sure enough, a table of Miraclist girls were giggling while Elenora waved to Marcus as he sulked with his cadet companions. Daniel took a drink from his mug and noted sourly that Marcus ignored Elenora entirely.

  Ari stiffened. “I don’t know what you mean by scraps, Gregory. I said no because I thought Daniel was about to ask me. Marcus interrupted him, and that wasn’t quite fair.”

  Daniel choked on his cider and was thrown into a fit of coughing. Jelani patted him on the back with a broad hand until he regained his composure. And then, red-faced, he turned to Ari. He wanted to look nonchalant. “I guess I could take you,” he said. “I mean, considering you told Marcus we were going and all.”

  “Oh?” said Ari with a frown. “Well, never mind, Daniel. If it’s a burden I’ll just tell Marcus that—”

  “No!” said Daniel, more emphatically than he meant to. “I mean, no, I want to go. With you. It would be my honor to—what I mean to say is—”

  Nera elbowed Daniel in the ribs.

  “—will you please go to the Ball with me, Ari?”

  Ari covered her mouth to hide a giggle. “You’re so silly, Daniel,” she said. “Of course, I would love to go with you.”

  “All right!” said Nera, raising a piece of pork with her knife. “Now we just have to find Jude a date and we’re all set. This is going to be so much fun. I can’t wait!”

  “Neither can I,” said Ari with a laugh. “Oh, and Daniel, I am excited to see you dance!”

  “Yeah,” said Daniel. “Me too.”

  From then on, Daniel’s anxiety grew with each passing day. He could barely sleep, barely focus on his studies; he received his first ever ‘C’ on a history test. He thought of coming clean, of telling Ari the truth that he had no idea how to dance. But then what would she do? Scorn him and go with Marcus? The thought paralyzed him.

  In that moment, he decided that if he had to go to the Autumn Ball, he would avoid the dance floor as if it were covered in spiders. Pretend to be sick, or that he sprained his ankle.

  No, he told himself, that won’t work—you’re a healer, you idiot.

  And so Daniel gave up, languishing alone until September twenty-third arrived.

  The Ball a grand affair, held
at the Welborne Hotel, where the wealthiest merchants stayed during their visits. The hotel was built high up into the easternmost portion of the city wall overlooking the ocean.

  Daniel actually felt a surge of confidence that night, for he thought he looked quite dashing in a brand-new black cloak with a white collar and glistening gold buttons. Mordecai had purchased it for him along with a new pair of boots. He even noticed the stares from many a passing girl. Although he didn’t care what they thought; the only girl he wanted to impress was Ari.

  His confidence only grew when he saw Ari standing outside the horse-drawn carriage. She looked stunning—dressed in a light blue satin dress, her hair up in loose twirls on her head. Flushed, they complimented each other, joined their friends inside the carriage, and clopped toward the hotel.

  Daniel remembered the awe he felt as they crossed the threshold into the dance hall. A dozen crystal chandeliers bathed the room in golden light, and crimson tapestries draped the walls. The floor was white swirling marble, and windows lined each of the walls from floor to ceiling. Daniel stared out at the moonlit ocean, and for a moment, he forgot his anxieties; he forgot he didn’t know how to dance. He felt like royalty.

  But then he caught the steely gaze of Marcus Kincaid, and he was reminded of his folly. The cadet was standing beside the dance floor, dressed smartly in coal-colored robes trimmed with spirals of red. Elenora Russo clutched his forearm. Her short-skirted dress shimmered like emeralds as she laughed and waved to her friends. She was clearly enjoying showing off her new stag.

  “He is so handsome, isn’t he Hespa?” she sang so that everyone could hear. “And he’s an amazing dancer, too.”

  Daniel thought their outfits clashed.

  The orchestra began to play a sweet melody and Daniel’s stomach churned. Ari took his hand and led him to a table in the back of the room where they set down their things; all the while Daniel stared at the dance floor over his shoulder as if it were going to sneak up on him from behind and steal his pocketbook.

  “It’s time to show these amateurs a thing or two,” Nera said to Jelani when the orchestra started up again. “Let’s go, Jelani!”