by Martha Carr
“Thank you, Professor.” Raven nodded and Gilliam glanced at Elizabeth once more before she smiled wearily.
“Goodnight.” With that, the woman wandered down the hall again toward the stairwell.
The oilskin bag dropped with a muffled thud. “Hey, Elizabeth.”
The girl didn’t look up from her book and merely tossed her dark bangs aside before they swooped over one eye again.
Before she could step into her new room, the door on their left squeaked a little. Teresa Reynolds pushed it open as far as it would go and folded her arms as she leaned against the doorframe. “Raven Alby. I thought it was you.”
“It’s good to know I can’t be confused with anyone else.”
Teresa studied her dismissively and raised an eyebrow. “Do you have any idea how long we’ll be neighbors?”
“Not really.” Raven smiled and shoved the oilskin bag into her new dorm room with her foot. “But I’ll let you know when I find out. Goodnight.”
Once she dragged her belongings inside, she shut the door quietly behind her and sighed. A moment later, she heard the sound of Teresa’s door clicking shut too. She hauled her bag toward the twin bed on the opposite side of the room and nodded at Elizabeth. “Hey, thanks for sharing a room with me. I know you’re probably used to having this whole space to yourself.”
The girl merely shrugged, shook her bangs aside to no effect, and turned the page of her book.
I’m gonna take that as indifference. It’s better than resentment. Finally, she manhandled her luggage to where she wanted it and released it beside the bed. Her satchel followed before she rummaged through the oilskin bag for her pajamas. When her fingers brushed against the old leather of Connor Alby’s journals, she paused.
“Hey, do you mind if I do a little…personalized spell?”
Apparently, that was interesting enough to make Elizabeth look up from her book. Raven nodded at the wall they shared with Teresa and whoever her roommate was, and the girl turned her head slowly to stare at the wall. “Sure.”
“Thanks.” She crossed the room and stood just inside the door and facing their neighbors. Raising both hands, she flipped through the spells her grandfather had already taught her and pulled to mind the one she wanted. “Incigo silentium,” she whispered.
A copper light bloomed from her palms and spread across the entire wall. She focused on the moving spell until it covered all four walls, the ceiling, the floor, and the door. When it reached completion, she lowered her hands with a little sigh.
The room she shared with Elizabeth Kinsley was suddenly blissfully quiet. Her roommate gazed around her and her bat familiar cocked his head in very much the same way. “Wow. That’s so much better.”
“I’m glad you think so.” She dusted her hands off and returned to her side of the room.
“Reading is the only thing that drowns out all the conversation. It’s not like the walls are super-thin, but I have a hard time focusing if I can hear other people.”
Seated on the edge of the bed, she grinned and couldn’t help a small chuckle. That’s the most I’ve ever heard her say. “Well, I guess it works out for both of us, huh?”
A small, closed-lipped smile spread across the girl’s mouth. “Yeah. Peace and quiet for me and Iggy. And I assume you don’t want to listen to one of Bella Chase’s best friends talking all night either, huh?”
Raven shook her pajamas out and laid them on the bed with a shrug before she pulled her boots off. “It’s more like making a safe space for myself—and you too. I didn’t know I’d have to sleep right next door to Teresa, but I’m not gonna worry about a slipped word here or there. If no one can hear us outside this room, I won’t waste time wondering who might’ve heard me say what.”
Elizabeth snorted. “It probably wouldn’t have been that big of a deal anyway. No offense, Raven, but I’m not really into staying up late and swapping secrets.”
Her boots clunked on the floor and she looked at her new roommate and laughed. “Me neither.”
“Cool. Welcome to the dorms.” The other girl returned to her book and didn’t say anything else.
Okay. I think this whole dorm thing might work out better than I expected.
Once she’d slipped out of her clothes, she pulled her pajamas on and tried to tidy everything. I can unpack tomorrow. With the dirty clothes roughly folded in a pile at the foot of her bed, she headed toward the wide window in the middle of the back wall.
She brushed the thin curtains aside and peered into the darkness. Even from there, she could make out the large dome of the barn and the stables beside it. They only looked a little larger with the new extension, but at least she could see the pen from there. “This is perfect.”
Elizabeth closed her book and set it on the nightstand. “Can you see him?”
“You mean Leander?”
“If that’s your dragon’s name, then yeah.”
Raven took one more glance out the window and nodded. “Well, his pen, at least. I bet I’ll see him stretching over the walls in the morning.”
She wandered to her bed and turned the covers down. “So does the whole school already know that I finally brought my familiar to Fowler? ʼCause I only found out after classes let out today.”
“Professor Gilliam came to tell me after you got here, I guess.” The girl slipped under her covers. “I have no idea who else knows, but I’m sure everyone expected you to bring your dragon with you soon anyway.”
“Yeah. The circumstances were kind of weird but I know everything will work out. And I’m sure everyone will know tomorrow by the time class starts for the day.”
“Probably.” Elizabeth snuggled under her blanket and didn’t move at all when her bat familiar scrambled onto the pillow and buried himself in her dark hair. “I’m gonna sleep like a baby tonight.”
With a quiet laugh, she slid into bed, pulled the covers up over her shoulder, and pointed at the large lantern hanging from the ceiling. “Nullen lucidis.”
The magical light snuffed out and from where she lay, she could see the stars and the end sliver of a waxing moon through the window. Hopefully, Leander’s sleeping like a baby dragon, too.
Chapter Fourteen
Despite the little sleep she’d had the night before, Raven woke on instinct a little over an hour before dawn. She reached sleepily toward her nightstand on the right, but her fingers cracked against the wall of her dorm room instead. “Ow.”
Whoops. She glanced at Elizabeth’s dark, curled form in the bed across the room and sighed. I hope lights-out doesn’t apply to waking early. I won’t go back to sleep.
As quietly as she could, she slipped out of bed and crouched beside the oilskin bag. “Circum inlustro,” she whispered. A small, soft white glow formed and hovered over her bag while she rifled through her things for new clothes. She dressed quickly, located her boots, and was out of the room without Elizabeth stirring even a little. The glowing light bobbed along behind her, giving her enough to see by but hopefully not enough to wake any of the other girls still sleeping behind their doors.
The girls’ dormitory was quiet, but she caught a few snores and voices muttered in sleep as she moved down the hall to the bathroom. That silence charm is a good one. Thanks, Grandpa.
A short while later, she reached the common room and finally stopped to put her boots on before she eased outside into the cold air. Fowler Academy looked completely different beneath all the stars and the moon on the other side of the sky. She took a deep breath through her nose and tilted her head as she considered the odd feeling within. “Huh. I never thought I’d miss the smell of goats and hay in the morning.”
The muted light of her spell hovered over her head as she hurried through the curved archway and into the field. The grass whispered beneath her boots, everything perfectly quiet in the hour when everyone but the kingdom’s hard-working ranchers was still asleep.
Before she reached the closest side of the stables, Leander snorted. His steaming
breath rose in plumes above the top of the pen. She grinned and increased the pace but tried not to disturb any of the other animals that slept in the stables. Quickly, she slid her left arm out of her jacket to hold her access rune to the gate, which unlocked as quickly as it had the night before. The barrier squeaked a little when she opened it and she stepped inside and shut it again.
Raven turned hastily and came face to face with shimmering scales and glowing yellow eyes only a foot away from her face. “Woah. Are you trying to sneak up on me?”
“As much as you were trying to sneak up on me.” Leander pressed his muzzle against her shoulder and she laughed quietly and slid both hands up the sides of his face.
“I wasn’t trying to sneak up on you, only trying not to wake anyone else. I didn’t even hear you move across the pen.”
“I heard you halfway across the field.”
She patted the top of his nose below the brilliant yellow eyes. “I guess I’ll have to work on my stealth, then.”
“Why? You have me.” He pulled away from her and as he circled the pen, his tail cut a thick, snakelike path through the grass.
“Huh. Actually, that’s a really good point.”
“I know.” The red dragon looked at the dark sky and stretched his long neck as far as it would go. A forepaw scratched the grass and damp earth beneath him as he sniffed the air.
“So. How was your first night at Hotel Fowler?”
Another snort escaped him. “Uneventful.”
“Hey, that’s a start.”
“Raven.” Leander lowered his head and hunkered in the grass again, although he didn’t curl or rest his head on his paws.
He looks like he’s about to pounce. “What’s wrong?”
“Something feels…not quite right.”
With a frown, she walked toward him and scanned his long neck, broad shoulder, and the massive wings tucked closely against his back. “Does something hurt? You look fine to me.”
“Not me. Something in the air—or the earth. Perhaps both.”
“Hmm.” She bit the inside of her lower lip, stepped toward him, and trailed her hand from the top of his head all the way down his back. “Is there any chance you could be a little more specific?”
“If there were, little girl, I would have been more specific.”
“Right. You know, it was weird for me to wake up here too.” When he turned his head toward her and curled his tail in the same direction, she sat on the grass to lean against his rough, leathery side. “I’ve spent every night, for as long as I can remember, waking up at home on Alby Ranch. I almost broke my fingers thinking I was still there in my bed. We’ll get used to being here. Like I said, though, it might take a little time.”
His head curved closer toward her on his long neck until he rested it on the ground beside her. “That’s not what I meant.”
“It’s not?”
“I already enjoy this pen much more. You’re closer, it’s quiet, and I look forward to not hearing trainers bark commands at dragons all day.”
Raven laughed. “William doesn’t bark.”
“No. I suppose it’s more like a squawk.”
She buried her face in her hands and laughed again. We’re gonna wake every animal in those stables. “Well, I’m really glad to hear you’re already settling in. I knew you’d like it.”
“Like is a strong word, little girl.”
“Oh, sorry. How about tolerate?”
A low rumble vibrated through his chest against her back but it cut off quickly. “Yes. Even still…”
“Something feels not quite right, huh?”
The dragon’s large yellow eye facing her closed slowly as he released a long sigh. Steam rose from his nostrils. “Something, yes, and I can’t say what.”
“Okay. For now, let’s chalk it up to the strangeness of being in a new place, huh? Which doesn’t mean we sweep it under the rug. I can’t say there’s nothing going on or nothing to be worried about, but until you can be a little more specific, there’s not much we can do about it, right? I wish there were.”
Leander opened his eyes again and studied her face. “You’re learning, little girl. Months ago, I think you would have told me to either explain this…feeling or deal with it.”
Raven chuckled again. “Yeah, you’ve taught me a thing or two about patience, haven’t you?”
“I trust you, Raven. You’ve taught me that in return.”
With a sigh, she smiled and rested her head against his side to gaze at the stars. “You know, I think I could live with this new routine. I could skip feeding the goats altogether and spend the first few hours of my day hanging out with a dragon.”
“There are no goats and I’m the only dragon here. You don’t have much of a choice.” He uttered another low rumble and hissed a little through rows of sharp teeth.
“Ha, ha. I meant hanging out with you, specifically.” She stroked the top of his huge head beside her. “I like not having to wait until after school to see you.”
“The pen on the grounds is as far as I go. I hope you don’t expect me to step into your classes with the other familiars.”
“Nope. No one expects that. But I’m happy with the tradeoff. Sure, the other students have their familiars with them almost every second of every day, but I’m the one who gets to fly.”
“Hmm. The conversation’s not horrible either.”
She snorted and settled comfortably into the warm pocket of her drackan’s leathery hide behind her and his head beneath her hand so his warm breath blew against her legs. Maybe this is where we’re supposed to be for now. And if there is something going on, we’ll find out what it is.
Utterly contented, she stayed with him until the black sky lightened to the blue-gray before dawn. “Nullen lucidis.” The glowing light hovering above her head winked out. “Are you hungry?”
“I will be eventually.”
“Well, yeah.” She scrambled to her feet and stroked his side again before she stepped across the pen toward the gate. “I guess I’m still feeding someone early in the morning, huh? I’ll be right back.”
Leander’s wings twitched where he lay but he didn’t say a word.
Yeah, I could probably have fallen asleep again like that too. Raven pushed the gate open and headed quickly to the stable entrance. Already, a few of the horses and less dorm-friendly familiars stirred in their stalls. The crate of dragon-feed in burlap sacks wasn’t that hard to find stacked with the other animals’ food, and she bent at the knees with a little grunt before she threw the sack over her shoulder and carried it outside again.
Even in that short space of time, the darkness had lifted significantly. She almost dropped the bag of feed when she saw the gate wide open. Come on, Raven. Remember where you are. She quickened her pace and turned halfway toward the dark shapes of Fowler Academy’s buildings against the lightening sky. “Leander?”
He looked at her with a drowsy surprise when she stepped into the pen. “Were you expecting someone else?”
“Um…” She exhaled a sigh of relief and shook her head as she headed to the empty trough beneath the stables’ awning. “No. But apparently, I’ve forgotten the importance of closing gates behind me.” The sack of feed thumped into the grass and she stooped to slide her fingers along the inside of her boot. The dagger slid free quickly and she cut a hole in the top of the sack and returned the blade before she heaved the burlap over the edge of the trough. Dragon feed spilled into the long metal container with a metallic ping, and she wrinkled her nose. It smells like pickled sausage and…maybe I don’t wanna think about it.
Leander sniffed the air but didn’t move. “You seem overly worried about an open gate. I told you I wouldn’t leave.”
“You did. And I know you keep your word. It’s everyone else I’m worried about.” And the earful I’d get from almost everyone if someone wiggled their way into a dragon pen. Including the dragon.
“I thought these mages in training had to be smart to
attend this school.”
Raven snorted and turned to smirk at him as she folded the empty bag over her arm. “They do. And there’s the part about magic being a requirement. Hey, if I were anyone else, I might take insult to that. You know, because I’m smart and I didn’t stay away from dragons.”
“You are different, Raven Alby. We both know that.”
She sighed again, nodded, and crossed the pen. “You’re different too, Leander. I guess that’s what makes us such a good team.”
The dragon rose to his feet and turned to face her as his tail whispered through the grass. “That basin’s still empty.”
“What—oh.” She pointed at him and gave him a playful frown. “I know you agree with me, by the way. Nice job trying to deflect.”
He responded with another gentle rumble as she strode through the gate again to find a big enough bucket to fill the basin with well water. This time, she made sure to close it again behind her. I have manipulating fire under my belt, no problem. Water manipulation would be nice right about now. Grandpa’s gone, so I guess I’ll have to look for it on my own.
Chapter Fifteen
Raven left her dragon familiar with a full trough, a mostly full water basin, and a promise to be back as soon as her last class finished, if not sooner. The animals in the stables sounded hungrier than he did as she crossed the field on her way to the main buildings. Worley takes care of those guys. He has it covered.
Her stomach grumbled noisily as she entered through the curved archway into the school’s main courtyard. She gave the stone a pat in passing and frowned at the buildings. No hot rolls on the walk through Brighton and no Henry Derks first thing in the morning, either. It’s gonna take some getting used to.
She was about to return to the girls’ dormitory for her satchel but stopped a few feet into the busy common room. “Woah.”
A long table against the left wall held a huge bowl of fruit, assorted pastries, blocks of cheese and sausage, a smaller bowl of hardboiled eggs, and crocks of butter and honey. The girls living on the Fowler Academy grounds milled around the common room, talking, practicing spells, studying, and lining up along the table for breakfast. No one said a thing about meals.
