The Rider's Truth.

Shadows overhead.

Unedited

Chapter Seven - Shadows overhead.

"Thanks, Turana."

She watched me solemnly, snuffling against my hand as I brushed my hand over her snout. Thick, scaled brows furrowed as she tried to fix both eyes on me. She jerked her hand up, hard golden scales against my palms – a silent 'welcome back' before she moved back and let me turn to survey the Ithrall academy for myself.

The main academy was no so different from Ashbourne, but just much smaller. The stone was a dark, murky grey with thick ivy clinging to the walls. Red leaves wove their way up the wall, tracking under small windows. Outcrops of houses emerged out from that, like little huts made from cobbled stone and the walls were completely circular. The land area was massive – enough for dragons to stroll uninhibited but that's not what caught my attention.

Beyond the beautifully kept paved paths, strong enough to withstand the scrap of a dragon's claws the ground just gave away into nothing. Ithrall was stretched out below us, glimmering in the night-time with lights stretching out as far as the city's boundaries. Low clouds drifted alongside the earth, tendrils drifting with the pull of the land and then broken when a dragon soared up above its cover, their trumpeting calls breaking the silence of the evening.

I broke away from the sight up the thump of Jamie's boots against the ground as she dismounted from Turana's back. The dragon hummed in the back of her throat affectionately before slinking away, tiredly curling up beside one of the huts, but she kept a single eye open, tracking Jamie as she came to stand beside me.

Abner lingered close by, mouth thinned in concern. He had gotten to the academy on Beau's back and the dragon, also tired, just collapsed onto the ground with a mighty tremble. I couldn't help but notice how they seemed to take point around me, all corners covered. I wasn't planning on going anywhere willingly. They didn't need to worry.

"Abner!" The doors of the academy opened and the Ithrall trainer came striding out. She was clad in just jeans and a loose woollen top but I strongly remembered feeling envious at how beautiful she was. And she was; a beautiful person inside and out it seemed, but I could barely mustered the strength to look at her, eyes darting away when her expression fell at the sight of me.

Others fell out into the evening behind her. I recognised the red shock of Alex – who managed to stumble over the doorframe. I saw the Ithrall twins – two girls who were equals both in the air and in the pit and then came Zephyr.

I remembered him.

He emerged into the evening, dark brows knotted as he took in the visitors. Every step was graceful and smooth, like an animal prowling and the sight of it triggered something in me, making me take a step back warily as I watched him. Sharp eyes swept towards me and shock rippled across his face as he took me. Instead of pity, which I was becoming accustomed to, there was...admiration? What did he have to admire? He didn't know what I had gone – had went through to be here.

We were led into the academy of Ithrall. It housed only their four students so the halls seemed wide and empty, an echo of silence reverberating down the walls. The teachers who taught them their other subjects would only return at the beginning of term, but Belle was their trainer and she was responsible for them all year round until they graduated.

There was food waiting for us in the canteen – steaming bowls of nearly everything a girl could want lying out across the table. Immediately, I checked the plates and my hands went ridged by my sides when I spotted them. They were normal people clean, but they were different shades of white.