Oh my god!! Oh Tien!! Oh Dragon!! The Dragon Knight; The Awakening of the Legend hit 50.000 reads this morning!!! And almost 400 votes! I AM SO HAPPY RIGHT NOW!! =)
Anyway... Enjoy!
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The next morning the sun filled my room, and for a moment I thought it were still the lanterns from last night. I had fallen asleep next to Zjarr, who had curled around me protectively and was still sleeping. At first I only pressed myself closer to Zjarr and try to get some more sleep but after a while I simply couldn’t.
I got up and immediately Zjarr’s golden eyes were fixed on me. She followed me around while I got dressed and fixed my hair up. As beautiful and light the dress from last night was I was glad to be back in leather pants and a linen tunic. By the time I left my room, Zjarr had decided to go back to sleep.
Downstairs, everything was bright by the morning sunlight. On the table stood the vase in which I had put both Robin’s rose and mine; the colors were still a little surprising to me. Last night when I put them in the same vase the white from Robin’s rose seemed to become more brilliant and silvery. Now as I looked at them better the white colors had definitely turned silvery. And even more surprising; the roses seemed to have intertwined, which was very strange in my opinion but I guessed that it probably had to do with the magic of the Goddess.
Also on the table was breakfast. I grabbed a piece of bread and started making tea. I filled up two cups letting them cool down a little before I grabbed some more bread and the cups and headed back upstairs. Zjarr glanced up when I passed my door but I went straight to Robin’s room.
Inside it was just as light as everywhere else in the tree. I put down the tea and the bread before slightly shaking Robin to wake him up. He only slightly opened his eyes before groaning and pulling a pillow over his head. I completely forgot. Quickly I closed the curtains, plunging the room in semi-darkness.
“Try again.” I whispered, knowing that he would hear me just fine but wanting to spare his ears the torture. But he didn’t move so I ripped the pillow away from him. He groaned again but opened his eyes nevertheless. It was still weird seeing him with white hair but I would get used to it soon enough. “Sorry, I totally forgot. Better like this?”
He simply nodded. To be honest; he looked terrible. His clear eyes were bloodshot and he had purple bags under his eyes. It only made me pity him more. I smiled sympathetically and handed him a cup of tea while it was still warm.
“So…” I wasn’t sure of what to say or ask first. “Oberon told me you had too much to drink; how much exactly? They told me it takes a lot to get an elf drunk.”
He winced a little when I didn’t whispered and I felt sorry for him. On the other hand, it was his own fault for drinking too much. “I-I…” He started but his voice sound hoarse so he sipped his tea. “I don’t know.”
“Okay, what do you remember?” I still didn’t whisper.
“The roses, Haizea wanted you to dance, we talked a bit about the prophecy and then you left after Anila appeared. After that it’s fuzzy, I think I remember Haizea being excited about a story but I’m not sure. And could you please not talk so loud.”
“I will if you think a bit harder about why you drunk so much. Did you want to get drunk or something to see what it would be like? Because if that’s the case you could have asked me and I would have told you that it would be pretty bad the next day.” I gave him a smug look because, as bad as I felt for him, I couldn’t help but find it sort of funny.
“I told you; I don’t know. I don’t remember. I don’t remember much.”
“I don’t want an answer now; you have all day to think about it since you will probably stay here and sleep it off. I, on the other hand, have plenty of things planned.”
He gave me a skeptical look and said, “Really?”
“Well, not really but I’m going to copy the prophecy so you can have a look at it. And also, it has been a while since I saw the sun and Zjarr and I flew together.” He nodded before groaning something about that being a bad idea. I wanted to laugh but that would be even worse for his head.
We stayed a little longer in silence and I kept debating whether I should tell him what he told me last night or not. I figured not; he was drunk and sleepy and probably had no idea what he was saying. Zjarr should be happy about that.
“Well, just get some more sleep, eat something, and once you feel like getting up you should probably clean up. I’ll come back later.” I smiled before leaving the room.
Downstairs, sitting around the table were Haizea and the others. I was actually surprised to find them there. Usually they came with breakfast but now breakfast had made it here before them. When they heard me they all looked up.
“Morning.”
“Morning.” They all replied at once which had me frowning at them curiously. “Didn’t you get breakfast yet?” Haizea asked.
“I did. I had some bread and left the rest with Robin although I doubt he’ll eat anything.” I shrugged. “But what are you all doing here?”
“Checking on you of course. And Robin. Is he really in bad shape?” Alwyn asked.
“Have any of you ever been drunk?” They all shook their head. “Then you cannot imagine the headache he has right now.” I sat on the arm of an armchair looking at them not really knowing what to say.
“Can we go up?” Oberon asked, breaking the silence.
“Sure, if he isn’t asleep.”
Oberon went up with Haizea but I could tell they were all curious. Alwyn, Ortwin and Darwin picked up their conversation where they had left it and I sort of looked around not knowing what to do. I wanted to go to the Temple to copy the prophecy but I couldn’t leave without them asking question. And if I told them I would go to the library, who knew, they would probably come along.
Soon enough Haizea and Oberon came back down, saying he was already asleep. I had thought he would be the moment I left. Haizea also told me that Zjarr didn’t seem to appreciate to have them upstairs or something but I was pretty sure that that wasn’t it.
When I told them I would go upstairs to check on her they decided to leave. Was it really that easy? “I’m guessing you’re not coming to train today?” Alwyn asked before leaving. I shook my head; I had other things to do although I didn’t tell him that. “Okay, we’ll come over again later.”
I went back up to Zjarr and told her that we would go flying today, which she seemed eager about but I sort of crashed her mood again when I added it wouldn’t be just yet. I put on my boots and left just as Zjarr was about to leave as well.
Outside people were already busy with their daily chores, yesterday’s festivities completely forgotten except for the occasional rose I saw through a window. Nobody paid me any attention and I made my way to the library without any problem. At home when I was sneaking around it didn’t make me feel any different because I was used to doing it but here; I felt a little guilty as I thought about what I was going to do. Sure it was our prophecy but I was keeping it from everyone here. I didn’t know why but it simply made me feel a bit uncomfortable.
First I went down to the library; it was dark in there as ever with only a handful of torches lighting the way. As soon as I saw a table somewhere between the shelves of books I went to it. Everything I needed was on that table; paper, a feather and ink. I wasn’t sure if I could just take it but I shrugged it off; I would put it back as soon as I was done. I managed to carry everything back up.
The Temple was empty of people for which I was glad and I went in quickly. But I asked light and dark to hide me nonetheless because I didn’t want the Queen walking in on me again, that might me a little hard to explain. Again. I took a seat on the ground and started carefully copying the entire prophecy as it was written on the wall. The last four lines, at the bottom of the wall, I wrote them at the bottom of the page, leaving space between it all for what I guessed was for more lines that would be revealed later.
Just as I finished and had gathered everything I heard the door open. I spun around on my heels only to see the Queen. And she was looking right at me. How I didn’t know.
“Don’t worry, young knight.” Light seemed to whisper in my ear. “She can’t see you. We’re still hiding you.”
I was about to ask some, just whisper it into the silence when Dark cut me off. “She can hear you. But no, she cannot see your energy trail.” I nodded although I had no idea to whom and stood there in silence. When she started walking toward the wall, I hastily backed away, moving out of her way but I must have made some noise since she turned to look at me again. What happened next was strange. For some reason I knew that she was sending a prayer to Earth. She was asking what was hiding. I just knew that she asked that.
“Please don’t tell her I’m here.” I thought desperately to the elements, no matter which one. I thought it was Fire who told me not to worry but I wasn’t entirely sure because the way the Queen’s clear eyes looked right at me without actually seeing me. It was very unnerving.
When I thought she didn’t get an answer from Earth, she turned around and left the Temple. I left out a sigh of relief but didn’t move just yet. To be sure I waited a minute or so to be completely sure that she wouldn’t come back. I ran for the library doors and raced back to the table where I had gathered the stuff. I was about to leave when I thought about the history book of the elements that had disappeared and about my dreams. That Dragon Knight, Sofia and her dragon Ahiga, they had something to do with the Great War I just knew it. But sadly I didn’t know anything about them except that Sofia was probably from somewhere in Teizeira.
But how was I going to find anything about that one knight in particular in this place? I looked around desperately before I got an idea. Magic might not be my strong point and I wasn’t sure if it would work but maybe, just maybe I knew a spell that could help if I modified it just a little.
“What I am looking for I want to find, show me the book and save me time.” I whispered into the silence of the library and waited for… something to happen. The good thing was that I didn’t set the place on fire. The bad thing was that nothing actually happened.
“You can’t just take a spell and change the words to make it work.” A voice said making me jump. As I turned around I folded up the prophecy and shoved it down my shirt. Svadilfari appeared from out of the shadows wearing one of those long robes Mages always wore. “Now tell me, what book is it that you are looking for?”
“Well I don’t exactly know what book I’m looking for. I want to look up a Dragon Knight who fought in the Great War but all I have is her name and her dragon’s.” He looked at expectantly before I realized he was waiting for me to tell him. “Her name was Sofia and her dragon was called Ahiga.”
Svadilfari mumbled something under his breath before he signed for me to follow him. “How do you know those names?” He asked, looking at me intensely just like the Queen had done.
I saw no reason why I should lie to him since he knew about the prophecy. “Dreams. I’ve had two dreams about her. The first one was during a battle; they were fighting in the Great War against whatever it was they were fighting. Ahiga’s wing got hurt and they lost altitude so Sofia had to heal him but it was too slow. Those things they were fighting got on Ahiga’s back and right before I woke up they were going straight for the sand somewhere in the middle of the Desert.”
“And the second dream?” Svadilfari asked intrigued.
“In the second one was before the first one I guess. I was at a camp and everyone was gathered around the fires and Sofia told a story about her childhood. I don’t know; something about sand castles. It seemed random but I get this feeling when I think about it; I’m sure it is important.”
He nodded but didn’t reply. He seemed deep in thought and I wondered if he might know anything about those dreams. I knew that I had had them for a reason except that reason was still completely unknown to me. “Have you told Robin about these dreams yet?”
Yet? I hadn’t planned on telling him at all. “Uh, no. I had the first one immediately during our first night. I didn’t exactly tell him about it but he caught glimpses in my memories. And the other one while he was with you looking for that flower; I haven’t had the time yet since I barely saw him last night and this morning he isn’t really feeling well.” That was an understatement.
He nodded once more but again said nothing. And then suddenly he turned into a row and I almost kept going. He looked over the books before pulling one out. A small dark green leather bound book that went practically unnoticed between all the other thick and much larger volumes. He hadn’t it me with a smile.
“I think you are right to think those dreams are important.” Svadilfari started in a thoughtful yet serious tone as he started back the way we had come. “If you have been shown them there is a reason behind it. Maybe something to help your dragon and you in your quest.”
“And Robin.” I reminded him.
“Yes, and Robin. And while we are talking about the young elf; it might take another several weeks before the potion is ready. Although I have all the ingredients some have to be added at a very precise time. Complicated potion, really.”
“Don’t worry. It’s not like we’re in a hurry to leave.” I reassured him.
“On the contrary; Robin might not be in a hurry but your dragon and you, Blanchefleur, are a very different case.” I had no idea why he said that but he gave me an understanding smile. “Now, I should head back to my house, I’m afraid I left the water boiling over the fire.” And just like that he disappeared in the shadows again.
I glanced down at the book he had given me. The pages stuck together but I was used to it. The pages were filled with tiny letters but unlike the history book they weren’t strange symbols; they looked like letters. I could actually read what the book said, which was strange. Until I read the first few lines which explained everything.
I take upon myself the task to translate all information known about disappeared Dragon Knights during the Great War. The language is evolving quickly and soon no one will be able to read the only signs. The translation will keep these knights and their dragons from being forgotten and make sure their sacrifice will be remembered.
There was nothing else, nor was it specified who had actually translated the text. I flipped through the pages, occasionally reading a passage. There must have been a biography of about twenty different knights and their dragons in those pages. These pages might hold the information that I was looking for about Sofia and Ahiga.
I took the prophecy out from under my shirt and folded it up more carefully before putting it into the book. I hurried out of the library, taking two steps at a time only to come to a halt when I reached the door where I was nearly blinded by the light. Once my eyes adjusted I started running for our tree, excited to show Robin the prophecy and the book.
“Are you at the tree?” I sent to Zjarr.
“I’m heading back. I heard what Svadilfari said to you. I think he must feel the same as I do; that we will fly together soon. And I don’t mean this afternoon.”
“Maybe.” I replied thoughtfully. “I don’t really know what to think of Svadilfari. He strikes me as someone wise, just like Vadmin, but at the same time, whenever I talk to him I feel like he knows more about me or this prophecy than he lets on.”
Zjarr didn’t answer but I could almost hear her think about it. I got to the tree before she did but it didn’t matter; whatever I told Robin she would hear as well. The house was silent and I quickly went up the stairs. I should have noticed something had changed but I wasn’t focusing on my surroundings. I should have noticed that Robin’s door was open instead of bursting right into his room and saying, probably too loudly for his headache, “Robin, I got the pro…”
My voice went higher than normal when I saw who was in the room with him. Robin was sitting up in bed holding a steaming cup of tea in his hands. On the bed next to him, was Anila, wearing a light yellow and green dress that was, just as my dress yesterday night, made with a multitude of veils. Of course when she turned her gaze to me she looked slightly annoyed but I hadn’t expected anything else.
On one of the chairs next to the bed was the Queen. The moment her pale eyes landed on me, I froze and something in her eyes told me she had known very well that it was me in the Temple. Oh dragon! This was going great so far. The only one who didn’t seem annoyed or completely emotionless to me arrival, other than Robin, was Haizea, who seemed ready to burst out in laughter.
“What is it you got, Princess?” Queen Lagina asked in a somewhat sweet tone.
I gritted my teeth at the use of my title; somehow that one sounded worse than whenever the elements called me their knight although I wasn’t a very good one. Quickly I hid the book behind my back and thought of what to say. I didn’t want to show her the prophecy. That would only raise questions; questions Robin had so far managed to avoid. And I didn’t want to share the book with them either. The book for now was my secret and I wasn’t ready to share it with anybody but Zjarr.
“I’m sorry, you Highness, I didn’t know you were here, or that you were coming. Had I known I would not have come in like this. I will leave you now.” I tried to sound polite but I wasn’t sure if it worked. But I needed to get out of that room. Behind Anila I could see Robin looking at me curiously and mockingly at the same time. Haizea looked just mockingly and I had to fight to keep my face straight. The pale gaze of the Queen and her eldest daughter was enough to keep me from cracking up. When they didn’t react I started turning.
“What is that in your hand?” The Queen asked.
Tien help me through this, I silently prayed and turned back to face her. Her eyes were fixed on the book. “Oh this? It is just a book of stories. I want to see just how bad mine is compared to some of the other knights’.” I shrugged hoping she would believe me.
“Way I see it?” She asked. Okay, this was not going the way I wanted it to. Maybe Tien was busy with other Tanah Bulan things that were more urgent. When I hesitated, the Queen raised an eyebrow surprised and Anila’s annoyed look turned suspicious. “Is something wrong? Can I see the book?”
I shook my head slightly but they all noticed. Anila was the first to get over her surprised; she got up and walked over to me, wanting to snatch the book out of my hand. Before she could though, a loud and intimidating roar made the entire tree shake. Zjarr kept it up for a few seconds. Robin looked in real pain and was holding his head with one hand and I felt bad for him. But he didn’t seem to register anything else than the pain the sound caused in his head. The other three elves were frozen, and appeared paler even. I could feel the anger and the threats that roar carried but I was left unaffected.
When Zjarr was done I heard the satisfied huff she gave, which made me laugh. Once she had gotten over her fear of my dragon Anila looked furious. She tried to snatch the book again but I held it out of reach. The thing she tried after that was Earth. But that didn’t work, which surprised her.
“Earth favors elves over humans because of his love for Varteni.” I heard myself say although in my thoughts it sounded more like Air talking and giggling slightly. “But he does not favor them over the dragon knights. Isn’t that right, brother?” She asked through me in a giggle. “Oops, I might have just blown my cover.” She giggled some more and I think I might have heard Mind and Crystal laughing along with her.
“Nice trick, pretending to have an element talk through you. I’m impressed you changed your voice so simply.” Haizea laughed.
“If it was a trick why does my head hurt with all these extra presences in my mind?” I groaned. “Believe me, that was no trick. The only one who would tease Earth like that is Air. I wouldn’t dare.”
Anila was unimpressed and tried to reach for the book again. She actually got it but before she could rip it out of my grip Zjarr roared again. Louder than before, she seemed angrier as well. While Anila was once again frozen in fear I took my book back and fled the room for my own.
Inside Zjarr was walking around like a caged lion in the limited space she had. The moment I walked in she stilled. Before she could ask anything I crossed the space that separated me from her and started climbing onto her back where I settled between two spikes. Zjarr used her hind legs to push herself out of the tree and into the air. She maneuvered herself through the branches until finally she shot out of the sea of trees and into the sky.
I had to close my eyes for a while to get used to the sun. The sky was brilliant blue and cloudless, the sun was shining brightly and heading toward its highest point in the sky. Zjarr extended her wings and let the wind carry her up effortlessly. The sun reflexed on her scales, which made them seem to be an even brighter shade of red. I looked passed her shoulder toward the Elfique Forest. Her shadow appeared so small on the green cover, a green cover that stretched toward the horizon in every direction that I looked.
“Go anywhere but don’t stay here.” I told Zjarr because, although we were high in the sky, I was feeling a little paranoid and expected to see Anila or the Queen burst through the leaves at any second although I knew that wouldn’t happen.
I felt Zjarr’s laughter rumble through her chest and started beating the air with her wings. Somehow I knew she was going east, toward the Desert, toward whatever evil was rising again. But I wasn’t worried about that now. She flew at a steady pace and yet seemed to go quite fast. It might take half a day on horseback to go to the other side of the Elfique Forest but on a dragon’s back a few hours were enough. Soon I saw the Desert appear at the horizon and Zjarr started to slow down. “The hot Desert air and its currents are no good for flying.” She told me as she started flying in wide circles before turning back around. As she started flying back to Álfar she flew slower, no longer in a hurry. There was still enough time left before the sun would set.
Her slow pace and the absence of the wind allowed me to open the wind. The entire book was all about Dragon Knights who had disappeared during the battles. Nobody knew if they had been killed or taking prisoner; they had vanished during the night and had never been seen again. Some of the knights’ weapons had been found in the sand after days and days of searching but there hadn’t been a trace of its owner. Or dragon scales in the sand or stuck in rocks but no sign whatsoever of the massive beasts themselves.
It was a little scary to read how they had all lived a peaceful life and then had had to leave only to disappear and never to be heard of again several months later. I tried not to think too much about all those that had died and disappeared and focused my thoughts on Sofia and Ahiga.
Knight Sofia of the Clear River family was the third child in her family. Not much is known about her family other than that her parents were merchants. She had an older sister about whom she never liked to speak much. On the contrary, her brother was often mentioned when she told stories.
They were close and it soon became clear that after this war Sofia would set out to search for him. Her father had sent him to study under a Mage in a high Lord’s castle, which we can presume was at the far north of the Old Kingdom, the north of Sable Sucré. And later, on the day of her sixteenth birthday, Sofia learned that her marriage had already been arranged and never did she try to hide her anger towards her parents as she spoke of them.
The day she bonded with her dragon Ahiga was one she spoke freely off; one that filled her with joy. Ahiga was very large compared to the age his bond mate. He had bright green scales that covered his body entirely. None of the other dragons, even the wild ones, dared to provoke him. He might not have been the biggest of all but he was young and strong, teeth like swords and a roar that could paralyze those who heard it with fear; a rare talent even among dragons.
“Just like you.” I told Zjarr. I knew she had been listening to what I read but she had stayed quite so far.
“What do you mean?” She asked, turning her head back to look at me with those golden eyes while her wings carried her over the trees.
“Well, earlier, when you roared, they all seemed to freeze in fear. I don’t know whether you were really angry and trying to protect me but it scare them. She didn’t say anything but I could feel her think about it. Eventually she told me to read on.
Although Ahiga earned his respect among the other dragons very quickly it took Sofia longer to be accepted among the knights and soldiers. Her fellow Dragon Knights respected her because she was one of them and therefore an equal but the soldiers and knights of the Kings did not like the presence of a woman among them.
At first she didn’t care at all but during the preparations she found herself at the head of a group and they refused to listen. Some say that Ahiga was ready to eat or torch alive anyone who refused to listen but Sofia stopped him. Many saw that evening how she approached the one that had convinced her group to not listen to her.
She told him that tomorrow he would not act the same way as he had done that day or he would regret it. Of course, he had not taken her seriously. He had gotten up, asking her what she was going to do. Soldiers and knights both say that she drew her sword faster than anyone else could have and that with a few well-placed kicks and taps with the flap side of her sword he had fallen to the ground again. Before anyone could move her sword was at his throat. She had left shortly after with one last message; ‘Don’t mess with me.’
Zjarr’s chest rumble with laughter and for a terrifying second we lost altitude before she righted herself again. “She sounds lovely. Had she been alive I am sure the two of you would have gotten along perfectly.”
I ignored that comment completely and quickly scanned the following lines. It held a lot of information about her character and how she was at the camp now that the soldiers and knights treated her like they should. It wasn’t until the end that I found something that seemed more important than the rest of those lines.
She rode her green dragon into battle a dozen times but she was lost in the last battle. She had been part of the group that would cover the far away end of the army. The flames of her dragon were impossible to miss, emerald green flames that burned through shadows like it was flesh and blood. Many Dragon Knights saw her having trouble in the air before she disappeared among the shadows in the Desert. In the beginning there were occasional green flames and bursts of light coming from where they were. None of the other dragons managed to help them and eventually even the light stopped.
At first they were thought of as dead but when the sun rose many hours later no dragon saw a green reflexing in the sunlight. Where they had fallen there was nothing more than sand and dissolving bodies that melted into the sand like snow melted under the sun.
Some think that she and Ahiga managed to flee during the battle and had been too badly hurt to fight any more. The Dragon Knights supported that theory because they could not find her or any of the other Dragon Knights who had disappeared during the night; something that was impossible, even if they had died, they should have found a trace of the bodies.
The mystery around the disappearance of so many Dragon Knights and dragons was never solved and will always stay just that; a mystery. We can only hope that they found peace and had been able to forget about the horrors they had seen.
That was the last it said about Sofia of the Clear River family. There were a few remaining pages about other knights and I might read them at some point but right now it wasn’t important. I closed the book again and thought about what I had just read while I looked behind me where the Desert had long since gone disappeared.
“They disappeared into thin air.” I finally mumbled and the wind snatched up my words and carried them away. “Just like that, without leaving a trace.”
“Although that is not a very comforting thought, have you noticed what they said about Ahiga’s flames?” Zjarr asked. I was surprised that she talked about the fire the dragon could breathe and not of his disappearance. “I think that it holds something important that so far none of the other books have told us.”
“The flames of her dragon were impossible to miss; emerald green flames that burned through shadows like it was flesh and blood.” I reread. “What are you thinking… Oh Tien! You’re right!” I reread the sentence another dozen of times making sure what I thought was written in those lines and not something I had made up. “Flames that burned through shadows like it was flesh and blood.” I breathed. “Do you think…?”
“That they were battling shadows? Yes I do. Why else write that those flames could burn through shadows? If you light a candle in the shadows it will break them but once the candle dies out the shadows will come back. If you burn flesh and blood it won’t come back when the fire stops.” Zjarr reasoned.
“I agree with your reasoning but I honestly hope that you are wrong. How can you battle shadows?”
The more I thought about it the more desperate I felt about it. But I was also sure there must be a solution to this all; I couldn’t imagine the elements or even Tien sending someone into an impossible battle. That thought although a little comforting didn’t make me feel much better.
And I couldn’t shake away the feeling that I was still missing something. Something that would like what I had read about Sofia and her dragon to both my dreams. But one dream was about how she liked to build sand castle and the other one was of her crashing down into the Desert.
“Oh dragon. It can’t be that simple, can it?” I thought out loud. “Zjarr, dragons have crossed the Desert for centuries have they not?” I heard an agreeing rumble coming from her. “If there was a castle somewhere made completely out of sand, they would have noticed right?” Again the same rumble. “And I still think that the Desert and her sand castle story are related.”
Zjarr flew until the sun was going down on the horizon far west and by then I had to almost beg her to go back. Surely the Queen and her daughters would have left by now. Once she landed in the tree again I climbed of her and slid down her front claw. My legs hurt from sitting in the same position for hours. At first I checked Robin’s room but it was empty. Next I went downstairs where I found Robin sitting at the table with yet another cup of tea, staring intensely at the roses. If he heard me, he didn’t show it.
I made myself a cup of tea before sitting down across from him. “Sorry about earlier, the roars I mean, must have hurt your head pretty badly.” He shrugged before finally looking up.
“What did you do with the roses? They’re intertwined.”
“I simply put them in the vase, and when I came down this morning they were like that. I guessed it must have been part of the magic Varteni gave them. Was the Queen really mad?”
He looked back at the roses for a moment before answering my question. “No, curious but not mad. Haizea thought it was all very funny. Anila on the other hand; she is very mad at you and I suggest you avoid her for the next couple of days.”
I nodded. I had no intentions of going near Anila if I didn’t have to. “How’s your head? Remember why you drunk so much?” I asked with a grin.
“It’s better. My memories are still foggy but I think I drank so much because of Anila although I’m not sure.” As he said that I felt a little annoyed that Anila had made him drink so much but I was also relieved that he didn’t remember. But it also made me wonder if I should tell him. He must have noticed something was up because he asked, “What is it? What happened last night?”
“Don’t worry about it.” I quickly replied, making up my mind in that second. “It was just drunken talk.”
“Blanchefleur, tell me. What did I say?” He asked again but I refused to tell him. Eventually he moved to sit next to me and put a hand over mine which made me jump in surprise. “You can tell me. What did I say?”
“You… uh, you told me… you told me that…” I started but a knock on the door interrupted me before it opened.
Looking up, Haizea was standing in the doorway, looking curious. “I’m sorry, am I interrupting?” I quickly shook my head, grateful that I didn’t have to tell Robin. I could feel him looking at me and I was sure he must be wondering why I didn’t want to tell him. The curious look remained on Haizea’s face before her eyes flittered to the roses in the vase. “Okay.” She said slowly when she finally managed to drag her eyes away from the flowers. Why? I had no idea. “I just came to see how Robin was doing and if you were back yet.”
“Yeah, I’m back.” I told her although it was completely unnecessary. I started to feel uncomfortable right now with the way both elves were looking at me. “Well, I’m going to take a bath. My legs are killing me.”
I stood up and left my cup of tea right where it was on the table. Only once I was upstairs and had closed the door behind me did I let out a sigh of relief. Zjarr was pretending to me asleep, curled up in a ball but I could feel her amusement mixed with something else that I couldn’t quite decipher. A bath seemed like a very good idea after the day I had had.
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Sorry about the one day delay.... at first I had no idea what to write but when I finally figured that out I got sidetrack by the sun because the past three days we have had sun!! Sun and warm summery weather for the first time since April or something... or was it March? I don't remember it has been too long.
Anyway, I'll try to be on time next time but I don't promise anything.
~~ Bye ~~