"I miss him. He was really kind to me and showed compassion that very little Masters would show to their familiar. I don't know if it's a gender thing, but it's harder for men to be "kind" to their familiars. Especially if they're the same sex. It's like a stigma that if you're a male and have a male familiar, you have to be strict and sometimes rude to them to feel more dominant? I know it's stupid, but that is generally what has happened to us. We were treated poorly and more like tools. That's why I have a soft spot for Finn because he's nothing like the other students. He lets me do my thing, but if he needs me, he'll rely on me."
"I hope Finn keeps you," I whispered, meaning every word.
"I hope so too." He leaned in to press his forehead against mine. "At least then I'd have a nice Master and be closer to you."
I smiled and, without hesitation, leaned in to kiss him gently on the lips. My eyes were still locked with his, and though he was shocked at first, he soon responded; his lips pressed back against mine as his eyes slowly came to a close.
He broke the kiss with a smile against my lips, and I opened my eyes to meet his pleased gaze.
"When we find out where we're being placed next… can we go out on a date?" he whispered.
"Isn't that a few weeks away?" I questioned. "You're technically up next."
"What about Gabriel?"
"Oh… uh… we had our date." I blushed, and Rainer smirked.
"Interesting." He chuckled, and I groaned, slapping his chest playfully.
"Don't 'interesting' me," I grumbled.
He leaned in unexpectedly and kissed me firmly, sending tingles down my body. He broke the kiss when I was left breathless and whispered, "I'm fine with being patient for a full day of us together. The others can go ahead if they wish. I'm in no rush."
"Yet you kiss like that..." I muttered, and he laughed.
"Just because I'm patient, doesn't mean I can't kiss you like it's my last time," he murmured.
"Hmm, Bru," I mumbled. "Smooth. You learned that from Finn."
He laughed again and hugged me, his lips pressing onto the top of my head before he relaxed.
"He's my temporary Master. Maybe he's rubbing off me a little."
I closed my eyes and let my body loosen up, especially in Rainer’s arms. "Are we napping?"
"Hmm. I guess. It's nice snuggling with you," he admitted.
"I like being in your arms too," I replied with a yawn. My ear was pressed against his chest, listening to his heartbeat that was beating fast. "You always have a fast heart rate when you hug me."
"It's your fault," he whispered. "Always..." He trailed off and I knew he was on the verge of sleep.
I smiled and let my eyes close, allowing his slowing heart sound to be the lullaby I needed to fall asleep.
"Sorry I'm late, Asher!" I apologized, panting as I came to a stop.
Asher lifted his head from his phone and his silver eyes with hints of blue lit up.
"Evening, Arielle." He shook his head. "Don't apologize. I just got here. Faelia was helping me with something."
I caught my breath and noticed his hands were behind his back, hiding something. I blinked and tried to lean over to see what it was, but Asher smirked and rotated so I couldn't see.
"What are you hiding, Bru?" I mumbled, my eyes meeting his as his smile widened.
"You have to close your eyes before I can show you," he suggested.
I gave him a look but smiled and closed my eyes. "Fine."
My ears picked up his approaching footsteps and I felt his hand brush mine before he lifted it. I kept my eyes closed as he'd asked, but I wondered what he was putting on my wrist.
He lowered my hand. "Okay. You can open your eyes now." Asher’s whisper in my ear made me shiver, and I opened my eyes to see his silver eyes up close.
He took a step back and I looked down at my left wrist to see a sparkling bracelet made up of shiny gems. I gawked at it and lifted it to take a closer look.
"Asher… how… when. So shiny! " I exclaimed, trying to look up at him questioningly, but I couldn't tug my eyes away from the bracelet. It was so pretty and reminded me of the jewels and stones I collected.
I finally looked away and met Asher's pleased gaze, his cheeks growing slightly red.
"Do you like?"
"I LOVE IT! How much was it?! I… uh… how do I pay you back?" I asked.
He smiled and shook his head again. "It's a gift, silly. You don't need to pay me back. I also didn't purchase it."
"How did you get it then?" I asked.
"I made it," he replied and lifted his hand to run through his long silver-red locks. "I know with dates I have to do something impressive, like flowers or chocolates, but since the festival is happening today, the other shops were closed and the flower shop was sold out."
"You… made it for me?" I whispered, feeling moved by his words. "Asher..."
His face reddened, and he glanced away. "Uh… well… I kinda collect beads as a hobby at night and those are my favorite ones… so I thought you'd like them," he muttered and shyly peered up at me. "If you don't like it, I can-"
"No! I love it!!! That's so kind of you, Asher. Thank you, Bru!" I walked up to him to give him a hug and he grinned and hugged me back.
"I'm glad." He chuckled. "And you look really pretty, Arielle."
I beamed at his compliment and we pulled out of our hug to smile at one another.
"You look super handsome," I replied, admiring his silver silk dress shirt, black dress pants, and black shoes.
"Faelia and Hunter helped!" Asher proudly announced. "I'm not really into fancier clothing, but I didn't think my casual wear would make the cut."
He did have a point. He had a similar fashion sense that reminded me of Theo with reds, silvers, and black. Almost like gothic style. With his current look and adding his long silver and red strands that were left down, it gave him a mature, professional look.
I wore a purple dress with pink flowers at the bottom. There were gold sparkles throughout the dress, adding to the slight shimmer that showed when the light shone on it. My shoes were purple flats that were super comfortable, which was awesome because we'd be walking a lot as we looked around the festival.
I'd curled my hair and had a simple gold handbag that Celestia had bought for me. She was spending time with the twins, Caio and Cairus, today.
"Well, they cleaned you up good," I sang and moved to hug him again. "Thank you, Asher. I'll cherish this bracelet."
"Y-your welcome," he stuttered, and I giggled at his sudden shyness.
"You're super cute, Asher."
"Getting compliments from you makes my face burn," he grumbled.
I leaned back to see that his face was beet red. "Wow. Your face is red!"
"I'm going away," he muttered under his breath, and I could tell he was embarrassed.
I slipped my arm around him so he wouldn't be able to move away. "Too cute. Let's go have fun, Asher," I encouraged with a wide grin.
He blinked a few times and he smiled back and nodded. "Okay."
We began to make our way towards the entrance of the festival and I glanced at the various lights and decorations. Aslan was having a tiny festival to celebrate those who survived the Trials. Now that everything was under control again, there would be a break for students scheduled to be altered and finalized. That included familiars being either assigned Masters and Mistresses or being reassigned to a new set of students.
I was a bit nervous for the others, but I tried to stay positive. It was why I felt like this was a good distraction for us, and since everyone was doing their own thing, it was nice to hang out with Asher tonight while the twins were busy.
I knew Noah and Gabriel were sleeping, Rainer was hanging out with Finn, Axel and Griffin were chilling with one another since Axel was out of his weird funk mood, which left Asher having nothing to do.
Since the festival was a night one, it made perfect sense to go with him, and seeing as I'd napped all day by accident, this worked ou
t marvelously.
We went to a bunch of booths and I couldn't help but squeal at all the different games. It wasn't long before we were trying each out thanks to Faelia letting us borrow her school pass that gave us the opportunity to try every single ride and booth without paying anything.
We were now on the Merry-Go-Round, and I was humming happily with Asher's arms around my waist as he rested his head on my shoulder.
"Having fun?" he asked.
"Lots, BRU!" I replied. "You okay?"
"Ya. The spinning motion makes me sleepy," he admitted.
"Wanna get off?" I questioned.
"Nah. I like listening to you sing and hum. Reminds me of my mom," he confessed.
"Oh," I replied. "How is she?"
"Not around anymore," he whispered, and I frowned at his confession as I thought about my mom.
"Mine isn't either. I loved when she'd sing me to sleep," I mused.
He tightened his hold around me. "Me too."
We continued to quietly enjoy the ride, each of us lost in our thoughts.
"Griffin's family was really nice to me," Asher said quietly.
"Were they?"
"Ya. They took me in when my mom passed on. I was super young then, but it was as if Griffin was like my older brother. It was weird being around an eagle familiar family, and it was a little difficult to adjust to since eagles are active during the day versus owls who favor the night. Griffin would take naps in the middle of the day so he could keep me company for the first half of the night," Asher explained.
"That's so nice of him. I was always curious why you two look alike in human form. I mean you both have similar hairstyles. From behind, I would have assumed you were related or twins."
"Ya. We have things in common and I guess when we thought of how we wanted our human forms to appear, we kinda just turned out looking very similar. I honestly don't mind. It kinda makes me feel like we are brothers in a sense."
"That's comforting. I'm glad Griffin was there for you."
"He's really stupid sometimes, which makes me wonder if he does it on purpose or he just doesn't like thinking much, but he's an amazing friend and brother to me."
"An insult and compliment. How brotherly." I giggled, and he joined in as we both laughed.
"Wanna go get cotton candy and head to the Ferris wheel to look at the stars and fireworks? I think if we speed walk, we'll make it in time."
"That would be a lot of fun!" I squealed. The Merry-Go-Round came to a stop and I turned my head to look at Asher but froze when he gave me a quick kiss on the lips.
"Thanks for listening, Arielle." His smile was genuine as his silver eyes twinkled from the lights and moonlight that shone above.
I think my cheeks would hurt from all the smiling I was doing, but my heart felt so full as I stared back into his eyes and whispered, "I'll always be here to listen to you, Asher. No matter what."
"Where are we going?" I asked as I stared at Axel and Griffin blankly. They had been acting weird all morning long.
Celestia and her men had something they needed to study for, so all of us were booted out so that they could focus and not listen to us bicker.
Axel said he wanted to take me out but got into a fight with Griffin. He thought Griffin had already had his turn, and due to them being far too loud, Faelia told them both to take me out and stop acting like spoiled children.
That's what led to us being on a cliff in the forest of Aslan, and I'd yet to figure out what we were planning to do.
"It's a surprise." Axel smiled with confidence and Griffin rolled his eyes.
"It really isn't. The only reason why it's close to a surprise is due to the fact you haven't been there yet," Griffin confirmed.
"Haven't been where? I've flown around the forest before," I noted.
Even though I continued to be in my human form, I did do my best to squeeze in a flight in my familiar form to keep me active.
Axel and Griffin both smiled, and I arched an eyebrow at them. "Haven't I?"
"There's one place only the sophomores and familiars know about here. It's still open, so it's a perfect way to waste some time." Axel began to stretch.
"Are we shifting?" I asked, making sure I was wearing my necklace to help me shift back to human. And with a set of spare clothes.
"I'm shifting and so is Griffin. You're riding me." He winked, and I blushed at the term.
Griffin groaned and turned around. "Let's go, charmer. Try impressing Arielle with your flying skills."
He didn't wait for Axel to reply when his body was engulfed in light and he appeared in his large eagle form. I gawked in amazement as I watched his brown-gold-white wings spread out while he hovered in the sky.
"Ugh! Such a show-off. Your shifting takes two seconds versus mine," Axel grumbled, and I giggled.
"I'm excited. I never got to see either of you shift when we went to save Celestia," I pointed out. I'd fallen asleep the morning of and woke up already on Axel’s back with Griffin and Asher keeping him company.
Axel smiled and walked up to me. "Big or small, Arielle," he teased, and my heart skipped a beat at his words.
"Big?" I replied, my cheeks growing red.
He blinked a few times before his face began to turn bright red and he placed his hand on his face to hide his expression. "I didn't word that properly, but sure," he replied. "Turn around for a second."
I did as he asked, turning around and waiting to see what he wanted to do. His hands began to run through my hair before he started to gather my long strands into a ponytail.
I was curious as to where he got the tie to bind it together, but after a minute, my hair was up in a ponytail. Turning around, he gave me a good stare before he smiled in approval.
"Perfect."
"Why did you put my hair up and where did you get that hair tie?" I asked.
"Magic, and I don't want your hair getting in your eyes when I'm flying. We're going to go at a faster pace compared to last time."
"Really?" I asked in excitement.
He grinned and nodded. "Hope you’re not afraid of roller coasters or heights."
"I've never been on a rollercoaster, Bru, and I'm a phoenix-harpy familiar. I fly all the time."
He had a confident grin on his face that made me wonder what he was thinking about, and he reached out to brush his hand against my cheek. "Then you're about to have lots of fun."
He moved away, and I watched him do some final stretches before his body began to glow red and his short blue hair started to whip around. A gust of wind flew past me and circled Axel as his body was submerged in red and orange light.
My gaze moved higher and higher as a gigantic form sat a few steps away from me. I needed to step back five steps to attempt to capture most of his large frame as the light began to dim, revealing Axel's dragon form that was double the size as last time.
He turned his head in my direction and moved one large step forward before lowering his head inches from my rather small body. His red eyes locked onto mine, having hints of gold and silver in them today which I felt was due to the coursing magic around him.
"Damn..." I whispered. "You meant BIG big."
His eyes glittered with amusement and he puffed a stream of smoke at me.
I rolled my eyes but reached out to stroke his nose. "I'm excited, Bru!"
He moved his head slightly to nudge me to the right before he lowered to the ground. I made my way to his side and pushed off the ground, my wings bursting out of my back and helping me lift into the air, high enough to reach Axel's back.
I noticed a gold chain-like seat just a few feet away from me and I pushed off him to fly over to it. After a quick inspection of it, I decided to sit in the little gold chair that seemed to be magically infused into his scales and picked up the gold chains.
"I'm supposed to hold onto these?" I asked a little louder than usual.
"KIKU!"
I turned my gaze to see Griffin come to my side and then land on my
shoulder.
"Kiku." He rubbed his head against my cheek.
"I'm assuming that means yes?" I asked.
I knew there was a spell that we would learn during our next class that would help us communicate to one another, but seeing as I was in my human form, I'd just have to go with my instincts.
"Kiku-Ku," Griffin replied, still nestling against my cheek.
I giggled and held onto the chains and tugged them gently to let Axel know I had them in my hands. He stretched out to his full height and lifted his head to growl loudly, the sound echoing around us.
No wonder dragon familiars are wanted by so many. He's powerful.
We began to move, and he outstretched his orange and red wings, the scales going through a shift of colors from a warm color spectrum to cool and then back to their original color.
I prepared for the drop as he took four steps forward that led us off the cliff, and I squealed when we dropped nose first before his wings really stretched out and picked up the huge gust of wind that lifted his body higher and higher.
Sensing the large spike of magic next to me, I turned my head to see Griffin's body was glowing a bright teal, making me realize he was the one adding the extra wind.
"Teamwork!" I shouted and laughed, and Griffin began to chirp away in agreement.
Axel picked up speed, and with the help of Griffin, we kept going up and down in different drops and spikes.
"WEEE BRUUUU!" I laughed and screamed in joy while taking the slow moments of the ride to admire the vast beauty of Aslan from higher heights.
I had never gone this high up before, and the view was taking my breath away. We remained in the air for another twenty minutes before we finally started our descent into an area I'd never been before.
It was pretty clear of trees, and as we got closer, I saw tents and stands that reminded me of the night festival Asher and I had gone to last night.
Axel did a smooth landing and Griffin flew off my shoulder before his body was engulfed in gold light. He emerged standing a few steps away from where I sat and had his hands on his hips.
"We haven't done that in a while! Totally feels like a rollercoaster. Just really high up." He explained as he walked over to me.
Arielle Rainbow (Familiar Blessed Chronicles Book 2) Page 8
