With a flight far too short, I could see the castle, the waving arm of an elite leaving me to look at her. The wild arm motions suggested she wanted to go down first, which was reasonable, she wanted to show that the dragon was no threat, but, well, I was supposed to make an entrance, wasn't I? Wasn't that the reason they wished me to ride Vitreus?
Grinning I instead leaned forward into my dragon, holding at his neck as he growled at the thought. The fun and deserving thought. His wings pulled in as he leaned forward, the now desperate waving being ignored as we dived towards the carriage line that was soon to panic. The subtle blare of horns melting in comparison to the blasting force of the wind.
Before we could crash into the castle's closing doors, Vitreus opened his wide wings, the heat of his neck growing as I didn't doubt a glow in his throat. But instead of attacking he, like a good kid, merely offered a ground-shaking roar. With a slow and unnecessarily hard landing, he growled at the door guards that stood their ground with magic in hand. Horses rearing and carriages rushing away.
Surprised by the loyalty of the knights that would not survive a fight with a dragon I slid down Vitreus's side without any resistance. Landing before them with open hands I offered a smile they couldn't see.
"Lilith!" Came the hardly restrained voice with the notable sound of wings. "Do forgive her," Came a grunt with the clashing sound of claws against stone, "She couldn't slow down nearly fast enough," She shoved my masked head down into a bow while offering them a sweet smile. Her grip, however, was anything but sweet. "Send the beast away before you cause further mayhem," She glared at me from the corner of her eyes, a firm expression I had yet to see on her face daring me to refuse.
"Of course!" I offered with a cheery voice and a clap of my hands, the growl of a dissatisfied dragon sounding behind me at the words. "Oh, don't be childish," I shot without hesitation, turning to look at the beast that just blew smoke from his nose. "Go on! Shoo!" I waved at him half-heartedly, as if I was shooing some bird. Baring his fangs annoyed he opened his wings nonetheless and with a firm push off the stone he cracked under his weight, he had returned to the sky. "Do come back later though! I don't want to be stranded!" I shouted, cupping around my mask, before waving at the dragon that flicked his tail in response.
"Hatchlings, am I right?" I offered, looking over my shoulder at the still tense knights, my hand on my hip. It took about two seconds before a rough and heavy hand found the back of my head. "Hey!"
"Behave," she didn't even raise her voice, her gaze deadly. Apparently, her reputation meant nothing to the unexpected behavior I decided on.
"Mmkay!" I chirped, immediately disregarding the command as I looked over the tense guests around us and the calming knights. She wanted me to show off without bragging, what better way than to ignore a magi within the council with no consequences?
"It was not a suggestion," She pressed as if knowing what I was thinking, pausing, I looked at her properly, debating if it was in fact one. Nah, you can't be violent at a ball dedicated to peace.
"I wouldn't dare think it to be," I lied with a wave. A wave she grabbed with an extremely tight grasp. My gaze immediately on that painfully tight grasp.
"Lilith," She warned, staring me down while I slowly looked from my hand to her. Mmm, I guess we haven't entered the ball yet. "You are to behave at this event, or so help me-" She cut herself off, her grip tightening as the audible sound of something in my wrist popping met more than our ears.
"... Alright," I said politely, the grinding of my bones stopping as a smile found her face once more. Rolling my wrist with my other hand protectively under it I silently stared at it. Pain raced up my arm but it felt like it would bruise at most. So I guess she hadn't broken anything. How boring.
"Alright, my dear! Get us go," She ushered me towards the door as if she had not been trying to break my hand but I didn't resist. Edward was easier than her in that regard then. I rolled my eyes as she offered proof of identity to the announcing knights. As if she needed proof of identity. All mages that reached magi were known by their face alone and to ask for identification was an insult most paid with their life, or at least a few broken bones.
"Announcing this year's magi representatives, Yastum leading water magi, and Lilith, a-apprentice to the magi council?" Glancing at the question of an announcement I raised a brow at the knight rereading it to themself before leaning towards a different knight to ensure they had read it right. Yastum didn't pay them any attention, continuing forward as every person seemed to turn to look at us at the announcement.
"Remember, we are guards as much as we are representatives, and Averin is not far from us in the event that something is to happen, yes?" She whispered, her hand on my back as she guided me down the staircase.
"Protect the monarchs and their heirs," I repeated for the millionth time, a blue crackle of light catching in the corner of my eye as I turned to look at it. Finding nothing but people dressed far more formally than I, I couldn't help but clench my jaw, a tingling sensation filling my arm. "Yastum," I stopped at the edge, something continuing to set the blasted thing off, but I wasn't able to warn her, people flocking to us in a second.
"An apprentice?!" People fussed, words blending together as the crowd grew around us. With a firm step behind her, I used her as a shield to the people desperately trying to get my attention. A situation all too familiar, only, it was not my father that took the step forward to block the advances.
"Yes, Lilith has proven a great asset to us in the council," She glanced at my retreat, a near-smug smile on her lips as she offered a shielding arm to further my defense against the vultures. "A mage unlike any we have ever seen before, it is only right that we took her in," She continued, my gaze instead scanning the large hall and the guests inside.
I couldn't help but pause on a particular pair. A pair staring at me with a gaze different than the rest. The two looked to be parent and child, their hair dark, their suits matching, with minimal decorations on them. New nobles? The son wore an eye patch, an unhidden scar running from the bottom of his jaw to the middle of his cheek, and his father wore a mask that covered half his face instead.
One was being polite and hiding his scars, the other only providing the bare minimum to do so. Their all-black attire eerie amongst the brighter colors the other guests wore but what had caught my attention was those cautious evaluating gazes. Like they wanted to know if I was useful.
With a soft pull at my escort's sleeve she looked down at me, before following my gaze. Her mouth continued to keep those swarming us at bay as she instead took my hand in hers and began to draw letters on my palm. R-e-a-p-e-r-s, n-e-w, n-o-b-l-e-s, m-e-r-c-e-n-a-r-i-e-s. So I was right, they were new nobles, apparently from a mercenary background. Because that's not problematic.
And what monarch gave them the name Reapers?! The blazen did they do to get a name like that?! Taking her hand I carefully did the same and slowly drew the letters, T-h-r-e-a-t-s-?
N-o, c-o-u-n-c-i-l, s-u-p-p-o-r-t-e-d, n-o-b-l-e-s. Blinking at the information I looked at them again, only, they were gone. A frown pulling at my lips as I scanned the hall again, looking for the two, yet, I couldn't find them. A crackle of blue magic snapped in the corner of my vision, looking up I found them on the upper balcony, the son leaning on the rail backward and the father with his hand resting on it. Both watching me, surprised I found them so quickly.
The hand still in my grasp twitched as my grip tightened, reminding me of its presence, and I looked back down at it. S-o-m-e-t-h-i-n-g, i-s, w-r-o-n-g. I said honestly, the holy abomination on edge and whether those two were the ones to do it or not, she needed to know before I couldn't tell her again.
"-If you'll excuse us," She firmly cut her conversation off, her hands finding my shoulders again as she stirred me away from them. "What?" She asked softly in my ear, using me as a human shield to part the crowd already reforming.
"I don't know, but the mana is wrong," I tried, not touching that the holy beast had been more apparent the closer we got to the chatting monarchs.
"Wrong?" She asked, opening my mouth, trying to find a better way to explain it, a crackle set off in the corner of my eye once more. Jolting away from her grasp, I tried to follow the striking blue magic with my eyes, only to get pulled back to her side, the person it was following disappearing in the crowd. "Lilith, I need your full attention, what does that mean," She pressed taking me by my shoulders as I met her gaze again.
"It's just... It's wrong," I sighed exasperated, waving my hands between us as my mind raced. I couldn't tell her about the holy beast, a familiar can't just show up as it pleases but I don't know what's setting it off. "Something's off and it's..." Groaning as she looked over my mask with a frown, clearly trying to see inside to my face I huffed. "It feels slimy!" I came up with, a heavy and thick feeling certainly pulling at my legs.
"I- hah, Lilith I trust that you felt something, I can do that much, but I can not take this feeling as a threat if you can not explain it in a way that would allow me to evacuate this hall," She sighed, tightened her grip before brushing off my shoulders. "If you this changes, tell me, unless then let's greet the monarchs,"
"Yastum!" I snapped, grabbing her wrist, heavy and piercing gazes shifting to me at the action. My throat drying and palms sweating as I ground my teeth, "Just... Just be careful," I said softly my head dropping as she put her hand to my back again. Nodding she acted as the crowd splitter this time.