“Melanie, where are you?” He didn’t sound as furious as he had when I left him, so I replied: “Madame Tusseaud’s.”
“Stay there; Stefan’s coming to pick you up.”
“I’ll look at the rest of the exhibit in the meantime, okay?”
“That’s a good idea. See you soon.” He had calmed down again, or at least that was the impression I got. Stefan arrived before I had seen all the wax celebrities, but he insisted that we had to leave right away. On the way out I saw the young man with the price tags again. I nodded a goodbye in passing.
“You had a nice day, I can see that, but what were you thinking, sneaking away like that? You have to stop endangering yourself,” Stefan berated me once we were in the car.
“Oh, come on, I went sightseeing, not white water rafting,” I shot back, unregenerate.
“Sure.” We both remained silent for the rest of the trip. Back at the mansion, Stefan brought me to Michael. The other Peris were gathered in the same room.
“Tell me you didn’t give away that you can see the dragons in their dragon form.” These were Michael’s first words when I came in. He studied me for a moment before hissing: “You can’t be serious! How could you be so stupid?” How could he be so unfair? “I was scared. You could have warned me that I would come face to face with a dragon of gigantic size. Sure, seen from outside, my behavior might look stupid. But it’s kind of hard to do the smart thing when you’re standing before a huge, frightening monster, you know.”
Michael’s face told me that he would bring this up again later. “Unexpectedly you’ve been invited to attend the festivities tonight, so you should get ready. Kadeijosch personally asked for your presence. I would insult him if I didn’t bring you along. A cocktail dress is in order.” Luckily I had brought two of my new dresses. Michael was wearing a green robe with a sewn-on crest. He was acting unusually cool with me, especially considering how joyful I had felt when I returned. My spirits dampened considerably, I plodded into the room he had pointed out. Annette was waiting for me there. Michael had ordered her to get me ready for the festivities. That hammered home how pissed he must be with me. Burdening me with Annette as some sort of maid; how could he! That was a blow below the belt.
I looked gorgeous in my oxblood dress: skintight and ankle-length, with a slit up to my thigh on the right side, it made my legs look longer. Annette, the walking nuisance, insisted on pinning up my hair and putting on my make-up. When she was satisfied with her work, she led me back to where Michael was waiting with the others. He ignored me and told her how stunning I looked. He had overstepped the mark by a lot. I studied his face, then looked at Annette at my side, then back at him. “Why do I see her energy in you? I get that you’re mad with me, but was that really necessary?” Once again, I’d surprised him.
“I had an exhausting day and she offered to help.”
“Did you sleep with her?”
“What? No!” His expression was grave and his voice honest. I narrowed my eyes at Annette, and she quickly shook her head, looking scared. Whether I had reason to or not, I was jealous. “Alright, Michael, can we go now?” Now it was his turn to realize that I would bring this up again later. He stepped towards me and put his arm around me, but I pulled away. I wasn’t ready to let it go. I followed him and the others through the building. The west wing of the mansion sported a spacious ballroom with a glass front facing south. The elegant room was illumined by precious crystal chandeliers. It offered an ideal ambience for formal events. A number of dragons had gathered in the cavernous room, dwarfing it by their sheer, massive presence. I couldn’t fathom how that many of them fit into the room. It made me dizzy, and I stumbled out of the room backwards, bumping into someone in the process. I didn’t look to see who it was, but merely mumbled an apology and sank down into the nearest armchair. Overwhelmed, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Nobody could expect me to step into a crowd of dragons.
“Are you well? You look as if you just saw a ghost.” I didn’t open my eyes when I breathed: “I merely had a dizzy spell. I don’t want to go in there again.”
“Then don’t.”
“I think I have to, since some guy called Kadeijosch asked for me to be there. Oh, how I miss the times when my university education was my sole duty and responsibility.”
“I see. What exactly is the problem?” I didn’t want to say the wrong thing again, so I merely shook my head. He repeated his question. “What exactly is the problem?” Strangely enough, I suddenly felt the urge to tell him. The dragons knew that I could see them for what they were, so I couldn’t give that away anymore. The truth wouldn’t hurt. “The ballroom is crowded with dragons, ranging anywhere from fifty to eighty feet length. I don’t even see how they all fit into that room.”
“You’re Melanie, right? I’ve heard that you went sightseeing today. Did you like it?”
The thought of my London adventure brought a smile to my lips. “It was worth the trouble. Who knows whether I’ll get another chance to ever see these places again? I couldn’t let the opportunity pass.”
“What trouble are you talking about?”
I was sure that word had gotten around that I had run away. “Is that a trick question?” I said cautiously.
“You must have known that Michael wouldn’t be happy about your disappearance. Why did you do it anyway?”
“I wanted to see the city. Plus he was already angry with me for opening the lock with a bolt cutter. I figured it couldn’t get much worse. He’s my boyfriend, not my boss.”
“He claimed that he and his people had already neutralized the spell, and that letting you cut the chain like that was merely a publicity stunt.” I opened my eyes in shock. Michael should have told me! We really needed to learn to communicate more efficiently. Now that I could see who I had been talking to, I squeezed my eyes shut again. Another dragon! His scales were ocher, and he sported a pattern of golden triangles on his forehead. Before he continued, I could hear him chuckle. “Don’t worry, I never believed Michael. None of us did. He’d told us several times in advance that he couldn’t guarantee the success of their ritual, and that it might take several days. And they had barely gotten started and the spell was already broken? Please. Who would buy that?”
“You know that Michael didn’t expect you to believe him either. The trick is that you can’t officially doubt his word, right? Even if I confirmed to you that it was different, it would be his word against mine, and since I’m only human, mine wouldn’t count. Which means that his story stands.” I still refused to open my eyes, so I couldn’t see his reaction, but when he answered, he sounded impressed: “Of course I’m aware of all of that, but it still fascinates me that you see things this clearly.”
“When Nikelaus kidnapped me, it was the same. Michael even had to pay for the damage I had caused when I escaped.”
“Nikelaus kidnapped you? You escaped Nikelaus Dravko without any help from outside?” It was obvious that I had aroused his interest. I shrugged my shoulders and ventured a shy smile.
“Since when do you know about our world?”
“Since I met Michael.”
“How did that happen? And what happened since then?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you everything.”
“That is interesting. Why not?” I had slowly gotten used to his presence and was finally ready to open my eyes again. He had to wait for his answer, because I was busy taking in every inch of his huge body. For the first time I realized what magnificent, beautiful creatures dragons were. I would have been rapt right away if I hadn’t been so scared at first. The play of light on his scales refracted and dazzling, his large, muscled body, yet lean and lithe, his scarily huge but benevolent face. Granted, I probably only saw his face as benevolent because he was well-disposed to me. The thing that fascinated me most was his amber eyes, so deep and so wise. When I rose to my feet and made as if to circle him, he cleared his throat. I flinched. Lost in my newfound admiration, I
hadn’t thought about what I was doing. “Oh. I’m sorry, I can’t tell you, because I have no right to give away other people’s secrets.” Once again he prodded me to tell him everything. I felt the urge to follow his request, but I still said no.
Surprised, he repeated: “No?” Then he smiled confidently and told me again. This time it was an obvious order. I suppressed the urge to obey, though it wasn’t easy.
“No matter what method of thought control you’re attempting, stop it, for it won’t work,” I said, getting irritated with his mental pushiness.
“Is that so? What makes you think I’m trying something?”
“Aren’t you?”
“And here Rebekka thought you were slow. I heard you met Hugorio. Did he touch you?” I nodded, but that was the only reaction I would give him. He let it go and changed the subject. He wanted to know everything about me, my studies, my parents, how I spent my days. When it came to my education, I had no secrets, but I was silent about my parents and had no idea what to tell him about my day-to-day life. There was no clear routine. I liked him, because he gave me the feeling I was talking to a friend. I decided that he was nice. I wouldn’t have minded chatting for longer, but at some point Ryoko and the yellow dragon appeared behind us. They signaled to the ocher dragon, so he said casually: “I’m sorry, but they’re expecting me inside. Maybe you should come along.”
“Or maybe I should get away. I can see you and the others only in their dragon shape. I don’t want to go inside; I would be in constant fear of being squashed. Like a mouse in an elephant cage, only a mouse is a lot faster than me.”
“Try focusing on the walls, the windows and the doors. If I were in my dragon form right now, I wouldn’t fit into this hallway.” I stared into his amber eyes and did as he’d suggested. I focused on doors and windows. There wasn’t enough room for legendary creatures of that size. I blinked several times and saw him as a handsome young man. He was wearing a turquoise robe with a sewn-on coat of arms at chest height. The background of the crest was dark green, almost turquoise. In the center, there was a glowing planet, framed by a golden pattern – U-shaped, tapering upwards, its ends bending inward. He looked to be in his mid to late twenties, with black hair that was a little longer than was fashionable, heart-shaped lips, brown eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses. He exuded intelligence and education. Considering that as a dragon he measured about seventy feet, you would expect a very tall man, but he was actually a lot shorter than Michael, and only minimally taller than me. He gave me a look that inspired confidence. “There you go. That worked wonders, didn’t it?”
“How do you know?”
“Because you finally looked into my eyes just now.”
I marveled at how familiar and close he already felt, though I didn’t even know his name. I threw a glance over my shoulder. Ryoko behind him looked vaguely Italian. Focusing on the man with the glasses again, I ignored the other two. “You’re the first person who doesn’t ask me what I am. Why?”
“Because I know what you are.”
Had I heard him correctly? Baffled, I gave him an expectant look. “What am I? Please tell me!” He laughed out loud and stroked my cheek. Then he put both hands on my cheeks, his gaze intense and benevolent, and touched his forehead against mind. He stayed that way for a long moment, before pulling away and looking into my eyes again. The gesture held so much meaning, only I couldn’t decipher what it meant. He smiled once again and left me. Ryoko and the other dragon followed him into the ballroom.
A short while later Michael found me by the door. “What are you doing here?” My answer was as snappy as his question had been. “Took you long enough to notice that I’m missing.” He gave me an annoyed look and I added: “When we came in earlier, I felt overwhelmed by the number of gigantic dragons.”
“Darling, I’m sorry, but you have to come inside.”
He was confused by the flash of a happy smile on my lips. “Did you just call me ‘darling’? Are we back to being darlings?”
“That just slipped out,” he replied with mock grumpiness. He suppressed a grin and tried to appear stern. If he wanted to play this game, fine. I could do that. He took my hand and I reined in my energy. Puzzled by my behavior, he inclined his head. “Are you trying to tell me anything?”
“Annette provided you with the energy you needed, so I thought mine would be superfluous.” Without another word, I turned to head into the ballroom. Michael grabbed my hand and kept me by his side. “Let me go. I don’t want to be rude and let our hosts wait.”
“You can’t be serious. You humiliated me in front of my entire staff and our business partners by sneaking off and running away. And let’s not forget that you broke the chain without my permission. And now you’re offended because I accepted Annette’s energy? I was tired and you weren’t there. What was I supposed to do? Sleep?” He stressed the last word to make it sound like an utter absurdity.
“I saved you and your people a lot of energy and work. You didn’t even know whether it would work at all. You’re not my boss. I know you Peris are used to your humans being all obedient and meek, because if they’re not, you can force them. You can’t force me to do anything, except if you injure me. That leaves you frustrated, and that’s why you’re angry with me. You have no right to control me. I am an independent person with her own free will, and I see myself as your girlfriend, not your inferior, not your employee, but your girlfriend. If you have a problem with that, you had better put me on the next plane back to Salzburg and never call me again.” He stood there as if I’d hit him with a frying pan, not knowing what to say. I jerked away my hand and stepped into the ballroom. Once inside, I focused on the fact that the supernatural creatures were far too large for this room. I breathed a sigh of relief when I no longer saw them as dragons. It wasn’t a large gathering: my Peris, several dragons, women with scales on their foreheads, and one single human – me. The dragons were all clad in the same turquoise robes as the one the all-knowing guy wore. The Peris wore green robes with their own crest, which was hexagonal and divided in two halves by a diagonal line. The left half depicted day, the right half night. Day was represented by the sun, the blue of the sky, and a forest. Night was a waxing quarter moon, stars, the slate gray of the sky, and a forest that was only a black silhouette.
Michael caught up with me, took my hand, and led me to a large table where three men were already seated. Left was my recent acquaintance, the ocher dragon, center was Ryoko, and right an African American who reminded me of the young Denzel Washington. He was the yellow dragon. On his other side I spied Rebekka, holding his hand. She was wearing the dragon robe, as were all the other women present. The ocher one, who had been so helpful and concerned before, was now acting as if he’d never seen me before. I resented the fact that Michael would soon introduce me as his human.
“Kadeijosch, Ryoko, and Tibi! Friends, it’s great that we can finally spend some time together again.” Michael paused and then pointed at me. “This is my girlfriend, Melanie.” I could have sworn he would say, ‘my human, Melanie.’ Then he introduced me to the dragons. So the ocher one’s name was Kadeijosch. I remembered vaguely that I had told him that ‘some guy called Kadeijosch wants me to be there.’ The dragons nodded at me, and he invited Michael to take a seat next to him. I longed for the dinner part of the party to begin. I had bought a sandwich while I was out sightseeing, but that had been small and expensive. Alessandro was sitting next to me, but for the first time ever he ignored me. I realized that apart from Stefan, all Peris were ignoring me. I surmised that they felt I had humiliated Michael, and didn’t approve. There was nobody I could talk to. It would be a long evening. Michael inquired after Ryoko’s charming wife, and the dragon replied that she was currently on an important business trip. Alessandro made small talk with Adlen, while I sat silently between them. Kedeijosch offered Michael a glass of Incendium and stated: “You understand that we’re drinking something else?” At least he’d managed to elicit a laugh
from my grumpy boyfriend with that comment. From time to time Kadeijosch threw me a surreptitious glance, but only when Michael wasn’t paying attention.
“Would it be okay for you if Ryoko showed your girlfriend the garden?” the ocher dragon asked Michael after dinner. Michael was skeptical, but said: “Of course.”
I was getting a bad feeling about this. My stomach rumbled with mounting anxiety, but I didn’t protest. I followed Ryoko like a good girl. When we passed the stairs which we had climbed when we came here, he waited patiently while I went to fetch my winter coat. I didn’t get to see much of the garden, because I stopped on the terrace in front of the house. Ryoko didn’t immediately notice that I wasn’t tagging along, but I alerted him with my intimidated question: “Ryoko, should I be worried?”
He gave me a warm smile. “No, everything is as it should be. Michael and Kadeijosch have things to discuss. Since we don’t know how fine-tuned your sense of hearing is, we made sure you can’t overhear them.”
“My hearing isn’t better than that of your ordinary human. I’m just surprised that Michael would tell you that conversations can’t be magically concealed from me.” I hadn’t expected him to tell them.
“He didn’t. But we suspected as much, and now you’ve just confirmed our hunch. Why else would he bring you to a business meeting with Hugorio,” he said.
Once again I had said too much. Maybe I should just stay silent from now on. He smiled at me. “Don’t be so strict with yourself.”
“What do you mean?”
“Giving us information is not always a mistake. You’re new in our world and don’t know who you can trust. The only one you’re sure about is Michael, so his opinion has become your yardstick. Fair enough, but I can tell you one thing: He’s not all selfless and grand. He does what’s best for him, not for you.”
Peris Night: Terakon (Secret Language) Page 30
