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I IMMEDIATELY RECOGNIZE THE VOICE. Internally groaning, I turn around and meet the eyes of Derrick, the boy that tormented  me in the courtyard my first night here. Flanking him are two other boys, one with red hair and a smattering of freckles and another with dark skin and hauntingly light eyes.

"Ciana," Nikolai says, frowning and glancing between me and Derrick, "who is this?"

I take a step back, grabbing onto Nikolai's arm. "Nobody important," I say. "Just someone bent on making my time at the Academy as miserable as possible. Come on, let's go."

Derrick scoffs and crosses his arms, taking a step forward. His lackeys follow him like a bunch of well-trained dogs, their arms crossing across their chests as well. "Scared of a little confrontation, witch? Or maybe you're just trying to lie low so you can burn down the school again."

This time Nikolai turns around, teeth bared. "Leave Ciana alone. You have no right to torment her like this."

"Really?" Derrick says, scoffing again. "And how long have you known her? She could easily be hiding something behind that pretty face."

Nikolai flinches, eyes flashing. "I've known her longer than you have. Judging someone based on the actions of their predecessor is cruel, and by doing it, you're no better than they are." He pauses, then adds, "Maybe by doing this, you're going to turn her into another Milay. Maybe because of your constant torment, you'll push her to do the same things Milay did six years ago."

Then it's Nikolai's turn to grab my arm and yank me through the doors of the school, his eyes narrow and his lips pursed. He doesn't stop walking until we're well past the doors of the school, in the direct light of the sun. "Thank you," I say as Nikolai lets go of my arm. "For defending me."

Nikolai glances down, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "You're welcome. I guess I just can't stand seeing what happened to my mother happen to you." Then he freezes, apparently having realized what it seems like he said, and he quickly amends, "Not that's she's Milay. She just had a ton of bullies growing up. She never defended herself, and one day, she just couldn't take it anymore. We had a funeral right before the Selecting."

I frown as Nikolai leads me along the tree line, a light breeze tossing about my hair. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I thought you said your mother was still alive."

Slowing down so he's next to me, Nikolai shrugs. "Yeah, well, maybe it was too sensitive for me to reveal to a complete stranger." I flinch at his words, biting my lip and looking down. He's right. And here I am, doing the same thing but a thousand times worse, lying about my entire life instead of the well-being of my mother. "Anyway," Nikolai says, "let's drop it. We're here to have a break, right?"

I nod, grinning as Nikolai suddenly speeds up, and we're jogging along the line of trees until the grass turns to sand and the smell of pines melts into that of salt and water. "A beach," I say, laughing and basking in the sun. "How did you know this was here?"

Nikolai smiles a little. "I was bored out my mind yesterday, so I came out here and explored. It's all allowed, as long as you don't go past the wall the headmaster put up after the incident with Milay six years ago."

Nodding, I glance around us. "What did you do all day? Get burnt to a crisp in the sun?"

Grinning, Nikolai shakes his head. "No, I found something much better. Follow me." Then he takes off again, and I'm forced to follow him down the water line until the sand turns to rocks and I struggle to keep my balance. Eventually, we're in sight of a small cave nestled between the woods and the water, and as Nikolai leads me inside, I shiver, the spray of cold water raising goosebumps on my bare arms.

Nikolai slides down the wall of the cave, crossing his legs and gesturing for me to sit. Teeth chattering, I slide down next to him. "Are you cold?" he asks, brows furrowed. "Here, let me give you my jacket."

"B-But then you'll be cold," I stammer out, cursing myself for picking such a thin shirt to wear today. "Keep it. I'll be fine."

Nikolai shakes his head and leans forward, sliding off his jacket and handing it to me. "Nah, you're good." He grins and points to his upper body, where another jacket sits. "I always have two jackets on. I like to say I'm cold-hearted."

I chuckle and slide on the jacket, immediately encased in its warmth. "Thank you," I say, letting out a deep breath and glancing about the cave. "I can't believe I'm actually here. Nightshorne Dragon Academy. The place where legends are made." Leaning against the wall, I think of my family for the first time in what feels like forever.

I know my brother won't miss me--he's too busy taking care of the kingdom and making the mental transition from carefree boy to king of all of Nightshorne. Still, though, I regret not telling him goodbye at least. I can't help but wonder if he even misses me, the troublemaker my mother always hated.

I've lost count of the number of times Henry had to send out a search for me after doing this or making this mess around the kingdom. He probably thought of me more of an annoyance than anything, I think to myself, frowning slightly. I should have been better. Now, it's doubtful I'll see him within the next seven years, if ever again.

"What are you thinking about?" Nikolai asks, pulling me from my thoughts. "You don't look happy."

Lifting a shoulder in a shrug, I say, "Just my fami--the orphanage. I wasn't the nicest person for some of the older boys there, and now I'm sort of regretting it. They probably don't even miss me, but still. I wish I could have been better before I left, you know?"

Nikolai nods, a faraway look in his eyes. "I was an only child, but my mother always treated me like work was more important than my well-being. I don't even know how many times she chose her bakery over me when I was sick, leaving me to my father--who was almost never home--or the village medics when it got serious."

"That sounds more like her fault than yours," I say, tracing a crack in the stone floor of the cave. "You shouldn't blame yourself for that."

Nikolai shrugs. "I know." Then he looks up, his eyes meeting mine, and grins. "Let's get out of this hole of moping an have some fun." I stand with him, perturbed from his sudden mood change. "Want to go for a swim?"

"Come on," I say, laughing as Nikolai grabs my arm and leads me out of the cave. "I don't have swimclothes on, and Mikki would kill me if I got this outfit wet."

We're suddenly interrupted by a load roar, and I jump, looking towards the direction from which it came. A huge ink-black dragon hovers over the tree line some distance away, fire spewing from its mouth. I freeze, almost falling back into Nikolai,

It's the exact dragon from my vision at the Selecting.

Uh oh! What do you think is going to happen? Let me know in the comments, and please please vote if you enjoyed reading this chapter!

~ Amber

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