by D J DuMont
“Oh, right. Did she know that was all fake?”
“Yes. Everyone except you knew.”
Willow made a face.
“Sorry. I hated having to trick you, but I needed to see how you would actually act under pressure. You passed with flying colors. The others had already been tested. They knew before they came here what this place was, but we waited to tell you until we could get your dad’s letter to you. It was the closest we could come to having him tell you himself.”
Willow felt her throat tightening up, and she quickly shrugged and tried to change the subject. She felt far too emotional to be talking about her father right now.
“So, will I be rooming with Sylvie or Cara?”
“Actually, no. You’ll be rooming with a normal student named Alexis Walton.”
“A normal student? As in one who isn’t part of the Dragon Heart Program?”
“That’s right. Alexis knows nothing about the program, and it’s important that she doesn’t discover its existence. You’ll be briefed on security procedures before you’re moved out of here, of course, so don’t worry too much about that right now. But we like to room our students with regular students from the boarding school, to avoid arousing suspicion. Besides, we think there are some great students in the boarding school and want you to get to know them. Just because someone isn’t in the Dragon Heart Program doesn’t mean they aren’t good friendship material.”
Willow shrugged. It seemed risky to her to mix the students, given how top secret the program was. But she figured she should trust that Anjali knew what she was doing.
“Whatever you think is right.”
Anjali shook a finger at her. “Now, now. I don’t want to hear you saying that. Here in the Dragon Heart Academy, we value everyone’s opinion. If you think something is being done poorly, we expect you to speak up. Don’t just accept things the way they are. Everyone in this program is smart, and we want to know what you think.”
“Right,” Willow said. “Sorry. I’ll remember that.”
She highly doubted she’d be speaking up a ton, though. She already felt like a fish out of water, and she hadn’t even had an official briefing yet. This whole magical world was so new to her, and it sounded like she was the only one who had been caught off-guard by it. For a moment, Willow was angry with her father for not warning her. But her anger only lasted a minute. She knew he hadn’t been allowed to say anything. And he had done his best to try to clue her in. He had always made frequent comments about magic, which hadn’t meant that much to Willow at the time. Now, though, she saw that he’d been trying to tell her who she really was. Her heart ached, and she wished more than anything that she could see him. But there was no use wishing for the impossible. Willow turned her attention back to Anjali and forced a big smile onto her face.
“You should get some rest,” Anjali said. “It’s good that you woke up, but you’re likely still recovering a bit from everything. It’ll be late afternoon before the staff doctor can get by to check on you, so you might as well relax. I did want to ask, though, if it’s okay to send Sylvie by to see you?”
“Um…sure,” Willow replied. She must have sounded as unsure about it as she felt, because Anjali smiled.
“Don’t worry. She’s a friendly girl. I think you’ll get along great with her, and it’ll be good for you to meet her before class officially starts tomorrow.”
“Right, of course,” Willow said, trying her best to sound confident. She felt a little overwhelmed not only by the fact that class started tomorrow, but also by the idea of trying to talk to Sylvie. Sylvie had been nice enough on the shuttle ride from the airport, but Willow still felt a bit annoyed that everyone except her had been in on the ruse.
Still, Anjali was right. These were going to be her classmates soon. She might as well start making an effort to get to know them.
But as Anjali left the room a few minutes later, Willow felt panic rising in her chest. She wasn’t ready to meet other wizards, or take classes, or pretend to another boarding school student that there was nothing out of the ordinary going on during “study hall” time. She wasn’t ready for any of this, but it didn’t matter.
Ready or not, here it all came.
Chapter Seven
Willow fought sleep as best she could, but at some point she lost the battle. When she woke up again, the light in the room had changed. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her that it was nearly three in the afternoon. She was about to close her eyes for a few more moments when she heard the sound of papers rustling. Startled, she looked over to see Sylvie Asher sitting on one of the chairs by her bedside.
Sylvie didn’t look that different from when Willow had first met her in the shuttle. Her clothes were a lot more relaxed now—she was wearing a velour sweat suit that was more coordinated than any kind of casual wear that Willow herself had ever worn—but her hair was cascading in the same silky waves as it had on the day Willow met her. Her brow was furrowed slightly as she looked at whatever papers she held in her lap, and Willow felt a pang of jealousy. Even when Sylvie wasn’t smiling, she looked beautiful. Willow felt frumpy and self-conscious in her hospital gown. She wasn’t sure what her hair looked like right now, but she knew it would be frizzing out and tangled, at best. Willow wished she’d insisted on getting up and taking a shower earlier. At least then she would have looked mildly presentable when Sylvie showed up.
It was too late for that now, though. Sylvie looked up at that exact moment and smiled when she saw that Willow was awake.
“Hi. How are you feeling?”
Willow attempted a weak smile. She had never felt so self-conscious in her life. “I’m alright. A bit groggy.”
Sylvie nodded. “That will last a few more days, I think. At least that’s how it went for me. Once I was recovered from the virus, it took a few days to feel completely normal again.”
Willow frowned. “When were you given the Dragon Heart Virus? You don’t look like you’ve been sick recently at all.”
Sylvie shrugged. “I was given the virus the same day as you. But I recovered much quicker. So did Locke and Cara. The virus hit you harder than anyone.”
Willow groaned. “I’m always the worst at everything, even recovering from the dragon flu.”
Sylvie shook her head. “No, you’re not the worst. You’re actually the best. Anjali told me that the stronger your body’s reaction to the virus, the stronger your magical powers will be. They’re expecting you to be as talented as your dad, if not more.”
Willow felt her heart constrict in that familiar way that it did when anyone talked about her dad. It seemed everyone had known about his secret life except her. “So when did you find out?” she asked.
“Find out? About the Dragon Heart Program?”
“Yeah. I didn’t know until I got here. But Anjali told me that the rest of you already knew.”
“Right. Well, Locke and Cara apparently knew before they got here. They come from a long line of Dragon Heart Agents, and their parents told them before they arrived what was going on. Your dad would have done the same, you know, if he was around.”
“I know.” Willow’s voice sounded tight, even to her own ears. She didn’t want to keep talking about her father with this girl she barely knew. Thinking of him always felt painful, but even more so now that she knew that she’d missed out on a chance to share the Dragon Heart experience with him.
“Anyway, my parents didn’t know about the Dragon Heart Program before I got here. I was being sent away to boarding school because they couldn’t ‘contain me.’ Those were their exact words.”
Willow sat up a little straighter, intrigued. “They couldn’t contain you?”
Sylvie didn’t look like a hard girl to contain. Her appearance was put-together and proper, and her manners on the shuttle had been a lot better than Locke’s or Cara’s. Her smile gave off a warmth that felt genuine, and her eyes appeared bright and attentive. She didn’t seem at all like a wild c
hild who needed to be shipped off to boarding school. Willow’s confusion must have shown on her face, because Sylvie laughed.
“What can I say? I tend to be a little on the adventurous side? I don’t like sitting still. My parents got tired of my constant escapades and sent me here. Little did they know, I was about to start the biggest adventure possible and join the Dragon Hearts. Some undercover CIA Agents got involved and influenced them to choose this school.
Willow decided in that moment that she liked Sylvie. It was hard not to. The girl had an easygoing air around her that made you feel instantly relaxed, but she was also energetic. You could almost feel the joy emanating from her smile, and Willow could use a lot more joy in her life. Life had been too sad since her father disappeared.
“So do your parents know now about magic?” Willow asked, finding herself intrigued by Sylvie’s story.
“They know that I’m participating in a top secret CIA program. They had to sign off on at least that much, since I’m a minor. But they don’t know any of the details. They have no idea their daughter is now a wizard and soon to be dragon trainer.” Sylvie laughed, but Willow suddenly had a troubling thought.
“Wait a minute! My mom didn’t sign anything, as far as I know. How did the school get away with putting me into the Dragon Heart Program?”
Sylvie looked at Willow as though that were the silliest question she’d ever heard. “Your father signed off for you, of course.”
“But…he’s not here anymore.” Willow couldn’t bring herself to say that he was dead, even though she knew that was the most likely scenario.
“He’s not here, but he isn’t officially dead,” Sylvie said. She seemed to have no problem saying the d-word out loud. “So, technically, he’s still your guardian, right? And he signed off for you before he disappeared. The school has been making preparations for us to come here since we were babies.”
Willow considered this. How strange it was to think that all through her childhood, the CIA had been watching her, waiting for the moment she would be old enough to learn of her powers. Her father must have been bursting with pride, anxious for the day he could tell her of the power that lay hidden within her. Willow wondered if he’d ever felt guilty about keeping such an enormous secret from her mother. Then, another thought occurred to her.
“Wait, Sylvie. If your parents aren’t Dragon Hearts, too, then how in the world did the trainers in the Dragon Heart Program find you? How did they know you had the potential to do magic?”
Sylvie’s eyes danced. “When I was just a year old and received my measles vaccination, I had a serious reaction to it. I was delirious and feverish for days on end.”
Willow blinked. “So?”
“So,” Sylvie continued, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial tone even though it was only the two of them in the room. “A reaction to the measles vaccine is a telltale indicator that someone might possess the Dragon Heart gene. The CIA watches closely for children who might have such a reaction, and follows up to get a blood test. It’s usually pretty easy to do, since a child having such a strong reaction is usually undergoing medical testing, anyway, to find out exactly what’s wrong with them.”
“Aren’t there laws keeping health information private? How did the CIA find out you had a reaction in the first place, or get a hold of your blood sample?”
Sylvie shrugged. “There are loopholes in every law, Willow.”
Willow considered this for a moment, then decided that she didn’t want to consider it for too long. She turned her attention back to Sylvie instead.
“So, do you know anything about what training will be like? All Anjali told me is that we start tomorrow.”
Sylvie shook her head. “They keep it all very hush-hush. Locke is bragging that his dad told him all about what we learn, but I don’t know if that’s true. He won’t give us any details, so I think he’s just bluffing. I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to sleep tonight, waiting for tomorrow to come.”
Willow groaned. “I know what you mean. And to make matters worse, we have to sit through a bunch of normal classes first. Our Dragon Heart training isn’t until the afternoon.”
“I know! How am I supposed to concentrate on things like math and history when magic awaits?” Sylvie fell backwards against her chair with a dramatic sigh, and Willow giggled.
“I like you! I wish I could room with you instead of with a normal student.”
Sylvie sat back up. “Yeah, they think it’ll look too suspicious if we’re together. But just because we aren’t in the same dorm room doesn’t mean we can’t spend lots of time together. There are a lot of secret hiding places on campus. I’ve already discovered quite a few of them while waiting for classes to officially start. Once you’re cleared to leave sick bay here, I’ll show you my favorites.”
Willow smiled. “Thank you. I’d love that.”
A sharp knock on the door turned out to be the staff doctor, there to clear Willow to move to Birch Point’s main campus. Sylvie left, but promised to meet up with Willow again soon. Willow’s heart felt happy for perhaps the first time since her father had gone missing. She’d made a new friend, who accepted her despite the fact that Willow was much less put together than her. And that new friend was about to enter the new world of magic as well.
Willow still felt nervous about that new world. She still had more questions than she could count, and her stomach still felt like it was twisted into a permanent ball of nerves. But, at least, she knew she wasn’t going to be alone in facing whatever tomorrow brought. And that made all the difference.
Chapter Eight
The first thing “tomorrow brought” was a slew of boring classes. Willow wanted to sit next to Sylvie, or at least next to Locke or Cara. But seats were assigned, and Willow had been placed next to her roommate, Alexis. Alexis seemed nice enough, but she wasn’t a Dragon Heart. And all Willow could think about during the long morning of “normal” classes was how much she wanted to get started with Dragon Heart training. And who could blame her? How could anyone expect her to think of anything else, now that she knew she was capable of magic?
She was constantly tempted to try her new powers out. The only spell she knew was the levitation spell Anjali had briefly shown her back in the Dragon Heart sick bay. She had been repeating the word “elevare” over and over in her mind all morning, but she didn’t dare to actually speak it out loud and attempt to cast the spell for real. Anjali had warned her that the use of magic was strictly regulated, and that using magic around non-wizards would be grounds for immediate dismissal from the Dragon Heart Program—without any warnings or grace period. Magic could only be used outside of class in a true emergency situation.
And so, Willow forced herself to hold back, enduring the hours of torture as she sat through lectures on mundane things like geography and biology. When her last class finally ended and her “study hall” period began, Willow practically flew out of the main academic building and toward the girls’ dorms, where she had agreed to meet Sylvie for the trek over to the Dragon Heart training facility. Willow doubted she would be able to find the tunnel on her own right now, but Sylvie, who had not spent as much time recovering from the Dragon Heart Virus, had had time to memorize where the countless pathways all led, as well as what all of the buildings were used for.
Willow had almost made it to the spot outside of the main girls’ dorm where she would be meeting Sylvie, when a loud voice from behind her called out her name.
“Willow! Willow, wait up!”
Willow stifled back a groan. She knew before she even turned around that the voice belonged to Alexis. She thought for a moment about pretending that she hadn’t heard the voice, but she knew Alexis would just keep calling and chasing after her until she responded. Reluctantly, she turned around.
“Hey, Alexis.”
“Hey. You sure took off fast after class! I’m out of breath from running to catch up with you.”
Willow shrugged. “I have
study hall next, and I was trying to get there quickly. I have a lot of, uh, homework to do.”
Alexis gave her a funny look. “You do? It’s the first day of school.”
“Well, I like to get ahead as soon as possible,” Willow said, smiling brightly and hoping Alexis bought her excuse. Willow was a terrible liar, which might turn out to be the most challenging part of being a Dragon Heart Agent. How was she going to manage to hide what she was doing with the Dragon Heart Program when she couldn’t make up any sort of excuse without stammering and turning red in the face?
Alexis was giving her a suspicious look, but finally nodded. “Okay, well, I guess it’s always good to get a head start on things. I was wondering if you want to get dinner together tonight, though? We are roomies, after all. We should get to know each other better.”
“Uh…” Willow didn’t know what to say. Anjali had already told her that the Dragon Heart Agents were all invited to a special welcome dinner tonight, and there was no way she was going to miss out on that. But what excuse could she possibly make to Alexis that didn’t come across as rude or fake? Alexis was going to think Willow didn’t want to spend any time with her.
“We could order pizza and watch a movie in our room, if you’re too tired to head to the café,” Alexis prodded.
“Um…”
“Willow!” another voice called out, suddenly breaking into the awkward pause. “Willow, can you come here? I need your help with something.”
It was Sylvie. Grateful for the chance to avoid answering Alexis’ question, Willow turned to go.
“Sorry, this sounds important. I’ll have to catch up with you later.”
Willow tried to ignore the hurt look she’d seen in Alexis’ eyes, while silently cursing Anjali for making all of the Dragon Heart Agents room with normal students. How could they expect a bunch of fourteen-year-olds to explain to their roommates that they were going to be disappearing all the time? It would have been so much easier to just have the Dragon Heart students room together.
