Return of the Dragonborn: The Complete Trilogy

by N. M. Howell

  Carmen trailed off as she noticed that Andie was once again flirting with Tarven. In her defense, Andie hadn’t even noticed that she’d stopped listening.

  “Andie. Andie!”

  Andie snapped back into her body, her eyes landing on Carmen.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry, Carmen, I didn’t even know what was going on. That was rude of me.”

  “Are you going to go to the festival with him?”

  Andie couldn’t tell how Carmen meant the question: was it an accusation or a hint into her disappointment? Both? Andie became flustered and could feel her cheeks begin to burn as they reddened. Suddenly she was nervous.

  “I don’t see why not,” she said. “If he wants to ask me.”

  She honestly didn’t know if he did.

  Andie caught SKY 6 on her way home after class.

  She suddenly had a lot to think about, namely how her relationship—if she could even call it that—with Tarven was going to affect her relationship with her host family. Marvo, Raesh, and Carmen had been nothing but good to her and had helped her through some incredibly tough times. They were still helping her with the transition from Michaelson to Arvall City, and from taking care of her father to taking care of herself. She didn’t want to seem uncaring and she didn’t want them to think of her as someone who had toyed with Raesh’s feelings. Though she was beginning to suspect that she had, inadvertently. What would happen if they thought she’d chosen Tarven over them? She didn’t know what she would do without them.

  Andie had tried to get Tarven to socialize with them, but he simply wouldn’t deign to talk to Marvo and Raesh. He had no problems talking to Carmen, though, since she had magic in her blood, but he had no patience and no respect for nomags. Raesh had made an honest attempt to compromise and meet Tarven halfway, but it hadn’t worked. Tarven’s elitist priorities were ingrained in him. It was his greatest flaw that Andie resented, but she forced herself to see passed it, through to the good in him.

  Marvo was doing his very best to pretend that Tarven didn’t bother him and he didn’t mind having him around. Carmen seemed too torn to make up her mind either way; she’d gotten by this far by simply avoiding the topic. But Raesh had been a complete sweetheart and a terrific friend. He seemed to understand that Andie, for whatever reason, had chosen Tarven and that he, Raesh, now had to do what any good friend should and be happy for her. And he was. Certainly, he didn’t pretend to like Tarven and he’d stopped trying to greet him, but he stayed courteous through it all.

  SKY 6 sped down the mountain as if furious with the world. Outside the window, the rain came in torrents. Sometime during the Fifth Cycle of the First Age the sky had changed. Some say it was because of the massive and horrific war that had spread over the earth, others say it was because of the sky being stained by the blood of the Cloud Mages as their species went extinct by the millions. Some say it was simply time. But since then, the lighting had turned green and more violent than at any other time in the history of the earth.

  Arvall City was protected by powerful charms and incantations, but there were whole regions in Noelle that had been rendered uninhabitable because the lightning struck the earth with such ferocity and frequency. At the Hot Salts of Mithraldia, the lightning struck the earth some seven thousand times per hour when it rained. Now when a storm came, the world beneath flashed in green bursts of swift and violent light, like some great deity in the sky above had gone mad. Even the rain had changed over time, and if you looked closely you could see the hint of green in the drops. The spellglass had been transformed into a striated pattern with raised wavelike ridges in order to help the rain roll off easier. Andie watched the drops leaving the window almost as soon as they landed. Her mind drifted and she started thinking of her past.

  That night they’d come to Michaelson to check for dragonborn descendants. There had been an attack in Taline earlier that day and the council of the city had contacted the University and asked for the Searchers. The Searchers were essentially just mercenaries, but no one questioned the University. By the time her parents finally got home from Taline, the Searchers were already pounding on the door and Andie was alone. Her mom and dad fought off the first wave of men valiantly; Andie could still remember their strength and power, the beautiful and mesmerizing way they used their magic to defend her. A beautiful and terrifying blend of dragon and sorcerer. Her family had run outside to escape, but they were caught in matrices, magical traps set up to stop magical beings from teleporting. The Searchers took her mom away and Andie never saw her again. They nearly killed her dad. They tried to erase their memory of her mother, but Andie’s concealed dragon blood magic had protected their minds.

  Sometimes, Andie wished her magic hadn’t seeped out, hadn’t protected all those memories of her mother. She could have grown up so much happier, so much more whole if she didn’t always carry with her the terrible memories of that night. It definitely would have saved her father unimaginable pain and grief. So many things could have been different.

  When she finally made it to the restaurant, she’d managed to clear her head while walking through the city streets. She was ready to get to her daily tasks. Marvo and Raesh never stopped insisting that she didn’t need to earn her keep, but she wouldn’t hear of it. Besides, she knew they’d grown to like her company. She came in and said hi to them both, immediately getting to work. Raesh was cleaning tables and Andie worked on the floors, but she kept getting distracted. Raesh was joking with her about the way she mopped and she was trying her best to focus on what he was saying, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the Winter Festival and what it would mean to be asked to it by Tarven.

  “You know, mopping is supposed to have a sort of rhythm,” he teased.

  Andie made no reply, having not heard him because of her deep reverie.

  “Well,” Raesh continued, not to be daunted. “If you can’t move a mop, you probably can’t move your feet either. In my experience, a girl who can’t find a rhythm in her daily life certainly isn’t going to pick it up overnight for a dance.”

  “Yeah, probably will,” Andie said. She had no idea what she was replying to or even what she was saying.

  She’d been mopping the same small circle for nearly five minutes, and while she was clueless, Raesh had noticed. He had also guessed, correctly, that it was probably Tarven she was thinking about. But if she’d been paying attention, she would’ve seen the intense resolve on Raesh’s face. He’d started and now he had to finish.

  “And to think, I was going to ask you to the Winter Festival,” he said, finishing with a brave smile when he must have been terrified.

  “Do you think Tarven will ask me to the Winter Festival? Should I ask him?”

  She hadn’t heard a single word he’d said.

  “You know, why don’t you call it a day,” he said, his face looking crushed and angry. “I can manage the rest of this.”

  “Raesh, I’m not going to let you clean all of this on your own. Let me-”

  “I said go, Andie!”

  As soon as he said it his expression changed. He seemed surprised and even ashamed at himself for yelling. Still, with a last lingering look he turned his back on Andie and went into the kitchen. Andie was oblivious, having missed the entire conversation only to catch the ending rage. She leaned the mop against the wall and went up to her room, totally confused.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Andie was hardly in her bed five minutes before she decided to go to Leabherlann. She made up her mind to study and engage in yet another futile search for texts on the dragonborn or anything relating to dragons at all.

  When she reached the great library, Carmen was there. She was flirting—incredibly shamelessly—with Fohrn, the young green-eyed assistant who was filling in while Murakami was out sick. Fohrn was sweet and although he wasn't stupid, he was rather soft and could be persuaded to allow almost anything for the promise of friendship or romantic attention. He was the worst possible person for the job. An
die sat at a quiet table a few rows ahead of Carmen and waited, knowing Carmen would either see her or get tired of Fohrn and leave, having to pass Andie to do it. It didn’t take long. Carmen seemed engrossed in whatever Fohrn was talking about, but she happened to look Andie’s way and caught her eye. She excused herself and came over to Andie’s table.

  “So, I heard Tarven might be asking you to the dance,” she said.

  Andie opened her mouth to reply, but then closed it. Things with Tarven were constantly up and down, but lately they’d been relatively good. The only problem was Raesh, who, first, had feelings that couldn’t be ignored, second, was a really good friend and had made every effort to be happy for Andie and get to know Tarven, and third, was Carmen’s cousin. When Carmen asked Andie why she was so upset, Andie told her all of this and about what had happened at the restaurant.

  “He was just so angry,” Andie finished.

  “Andie,” Carmen began, touching her hand. “I know you care about Raesh and I know he’s your best friend, but I don’t think you really appreciate how he feels.”

  “Carmen, I know Raesh likes me, bu—”

  “Raesh loves you. He’s in love with you, Andie. All that flirting and nonchalance he puts on is just an act, and it’s not even a good one anymore. You’re a gifted sorceress, brilliant even, and you have a way and a rapport with magic that I can’t begin to fathom, but you’re not so good at small details. You don’t notice things. Like how Raesh shifted his entire weekly schedule just so he could be with you when you work. Or how he follows you in the mornings to make sure you make it to the train safely. You don’t even know that most of the time he’s the one who cooks your food, not Uncle Marvo. Did you know that when we first met I didn’t even like you?”

  “What? Why not?”

  “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that it was Raesh who made me promise to stick with you. He wanted me to teach you, protect you. He’s what brought us together. He’s been working in the background of your life since you first got into Arvall.”

  And without any delay or deliberation, Andie began to understand. Truly understand. She was starting to see Raesh for the first time and it was no wonder he’d been so mad. How could she have been so blind for so long? His reaction had been so intense because his feelings were. And, strangest of all, Andie wasn’t sorry he felt that way.

  “That being said, nothing excuses his temper,” Carmen said, regained her composure. “Knowing Raesh, he’ll be waiting for you to come back so he can apologize. It might do you some good to apologize, too.”

  Andie mumbled something, but didn’t put up much resistance to the idea. They both knew Carmen was right. Raesh would eventually have to accept the way things were, but other than acknowledging Raesh’s feelings in her own mind, Andie hadn’t done much in the way of protecting him. She sat with Carmen for as long as she could stand, until the guilt became too much and she had to go.

  She got up, claiming she was going to look for some books, but really, she just wanted to message Raesh from somewhere private. Even though Carmen wouldn’t have been able to know what Andie was sending, it still felt weird to have someone else’s eyes on her while she dealt with Raesh. “Dealt with” because there was simply no other way to put it without verbose circumvention. She found a quiet, empty corner and sat on the oak and lamb armchair, her back against the warm, smooth marble.

  Raesh... It’s been weird with us lately. Not my intention. Still a chance for us?

  “Great,” she mumbled to herself. “Now I’ve become those people who can’t even be bothered to make full sentences. City life does not suit me.”

  A chance? he responded.

  She knocked her head against the high back of the armchair. She’d used the wrong language. She’d led him on again. She took a breath and tried again, wondering when she’d finally break the cycle, finally allow Raesh to have just a modicum of respect.

  To be real friends. She wrote. REAL friends. I know me being with Tarven is hard for you. I’m sorry. Can you believe that?

  It seemed a terrifyingly long wait until he responded and Andie had nearly given up hope that he would.

  Sure. To both. I’m trying as hard as I can to just be happy for you Andie. TOUGH. But you’re worth having in my life. One way or another. If friends is the only option, I’ll take it.

  Me, too. Best friends. Want to come hang out at magic school?

  Try to stop me. An hour good?

  Great. See you soon.

  Feeling perhaps a thousand times better, Andie got up and was off again to look for more books. Without even wasting time on the thought of checking the public areas, Andie headed straight for the archives on the lower levels. She skipped right down into the hallway leading to the archives, brimming with the excitement of mending her friendship with Raesh, when she saw Tarven and Professor Harrock standing in the entrance to the archives at the end of the hall. She hid in a small indentation of the wall that was barely as wide as she was.

  Tarven and the professor were arguing in rough whispers, checking over their shoulders, and very nearly trembling with the force of whatever emotion was animating them. Andie tried her best to listen to them, but they were just far enough from her to be inaudible. She thought she might hear something about added security, maybe something about concealment spells, but just when their conversation was rising to a decipherable level, her phone buzzed. Knowing they’d be turning around to track the sound, Andie took off.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Later that evening, Raesh met Andie on campus. They opted for a walk in front of the University’s façade, the long side of the building facing the direction of Arvall.

  “So, how’s school been going?” Raesh asked, genuinely eager to mend ties. “I know you said your professor in your history class was a... what was it... dragon hating muckmouth?”

  “I don’t think I said ‘muckmouth.’”

  “You did. There’s no way I’d make that up.”

  “Well, at least you know which class is my least favorite. I don’t even know why the board is so upset with him. Everything he’s saying falls right in line with Arvall’s treatment of dragon and dragonborn history. All of Noelle’s treatment. He literally hasn’t said a single kind thing or mentioned even one useful contribution dragons made during their time. I can’t believe they were all so bad. No race is perfect, but... I just won’t believe it.”

  “Don’t slap me, but do you think, even in the smallest, darkest parts of yourself, that he might be right? That the whole world might be right?”

  Andie hesitated, not wanting to admit the truth, but knowing her friendship with Raesh couldn’t be built on things kept back from each other.

  “Sometimes. But if that’s true then... it would just be too horrible, wouldn’t it? An entire race persecuted and killed because of the belief that they are evil. If there’s even the slightest chance that we are wrong. That they weren’t these awful, evil things, then their entire race’s massacre has been covered by a lie. Does that not make you wonder?”

  “I guess so. But Andie, it’s in the past. There are no more dragons and probably no more dragonborn people in the world anymore. It’s not really relevant, which is probably why the University is angry with your professor.”

  “Ugh. Enough about muckmouth...”

  Raesh laughed. Andie tried to keep a straight face.

  “... it’s a shame you can’t come in the University. Nomags aren’t allowed inside, but I’d love to show you around.”

  Raesh stopped walking. He was looking down at his feet and even when Andie stopped and walked back to him, he still couldn’t meet her eyes. Andie poked him playfully at first, but when he still wouldn’t answer after several moments, she became worried. She grabbed him and shook him hard.

  “Raesh!”

  His eyes leapt up. He seemed surprised to find her holding him and himself holding her, too. His breathing seemed to be off.

  “Andie, I haven’t told you everyth
ing.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean I told you I was a nomag. And I was born a nomag, but something happened. When I was twelve, my mother died. On the day of her death she gave me something, a parting gift so that I could protect myself from the world.”

  “A gift?” Andie echoed, confused. “Like a protection spell or an idol?”

  “Andie, have you ever heard of the Kyrian Bloom?”

  “No.”

  “Queen Kyri was queen of Hightowyr many ages ago. Her reign was full of war, famine, misfortune, and ruin. The city nearly vanished under her watch. She was a good queen, wise and fair, but the times simply didn’t favor her. Peace wasn’t her destiny. Convinced that her life had brought only harm to the people she loved so much, Queen Kyri set in motion the circumstances of her own death. No one knows who helped her or who even saw it. So much has been lost to history. But the queen had a child. A daughter whom she loved undeniably. The daughter was born human, since the queen had married a human man, and the queen was scared for her. Queen Kyri created a spell, some say the most difficult and brilliant spell of all, that would allow her daughter to have magic. The spell needed so much spirit and power that the queen knew she could not survive it, but for her daughter, she did it anyway. She cast the spell, allowing the princess to have magic taken straight from the queen’s blood. It worked. The queen died, but her daughter possessed her magic.”

  “Raesh, I think maybe you read too much,” Andie laughed. “What does that have to do with you?”

  “My mother did the same thing to me.”

  “Raesh, are you saying that-”

  “I have magic. I’m a magical nomag, so to speak. A pearl-blood.”

  “What?” Andie asked, taking a few steps back. “I don’t think I understand, Raesh. A magical nomag? Impossible. And what’s a pearl-blood?”