Chapter 9 #2
“Maybe.” Kasi looked doubtful.
“Hold on,” Elliot said. “Are you saying some of the shadows in the Shadow Realm were trying to help?”
“But that implies—” Jahrdran broke off.
I could tell by the look on his face he was worried about Kasi.
“That there are survivors?” she whispered.
I looked at Mikaela and saw on her face the same dread I felt on mine. I drew in a deep breath and then said as gently as I could, “I don’t think so, Kasi. They didn’t feel—” I hesitated.
“Alive,” Mikaela finished.
“They were just whispers,” I finally said. “Barely there at all. I’m not even sure they were there. Maybe I just imagined—”
“No,” Kasi said. “One of you maybe, but not both of you.”
“Become the shadows,” Mikaela suddenly said.
We all looked at her in surprise.
“They told me to hide and then to become the shadows. Maybe because they knew I had Miki-Leopard and so we could hide in the shadows in a way Jasmine couldn’t.”
“So they told me to fight,” I concluded.
“It makes as much sense as anything,” Vorzak said.
“So they were trying to help,” Elliot concluded.
“They didn’t always tell me to fight, though,” I said. “Not all of them anyway. Some of them told me to yield.”
“Yield to what?” Vorzak demanded.
“Zowen, I think. They said it again in my dreams this morning.”
“What dreams?” He glared at me, obviously annoyed I hadn’t shared this with him yet.
“They’re still vague. I don’t remember them very well at all.” I shrugged. “They were just weird dreams, that’s all.”
“Except Leslie was a dream-walker,” Kasi said sharply, “and we don’t know if Zowen managed to steal her ability. Maybe he’s dream-walking in your dreams now.”
I shuddered at the thought of it.
“So what were the dreams about?” Vorzak asked, pulling his chair closer to mine, as his snakes tightened around me, as if they could protect me with their very proximity.
“I don’t know. They were vague, full of shadows and whispers.”
“Whispers that told you to yield?” Mikaela asked.
“And to fight. They told me both.”
“Were you in the Shadow Realm in your dream?” Jahrdran asked.
“I’m not sure. I don’t think so. There were people at first, a lot of people.”
“Who were they?” Kasi leaned forward.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. But they were being thrown into the shadows and just disappearing.”
“Were you dreaming about that night here at the Academy?” Mikaela asked. The look on her face was one of extreme dread.
Mikaela and her roommate, Leslie, had been the first students targeted by Lydrel Zowen, though we didn’t know about Leslie until it was way too late to save her.
Neither one of us had been present for the battle with Zowen the night he attacked students and professors at the Academy, but we were both scarred by it nonetheless.
Mikaela because he’d taken and tortured her right before attacking the Academy, and me because I’d been terrified I was about to lose my best friend.
If I’d known my mate was at risk as well, I don’t know how I would have coped.
“It wasn’t about that night,” I belatedly answered her.
“It wasn’t here at the Academy at all.” I thought about it a moment.
“In fact, I think it was in a lot of different places, all at the same time. That doesn’t even make sense.
All I know is I didn’t recognize any of the people in the dream, though that was just the impression I got since they were flung into the shadows so quickly. ”
Kasi sighed. “Please don’t tell me this means Lydrel Zowen is going to break free and storm across the realms once more, condemning millions to death.”
“I sincerely hope not! I don’t have prophetic dreams. Never have.” It wasn’t outside the realm of possibility in my family, but the power had never manifested, thank goodness. “It was probably just a nightmare.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised. You know I had nightmares after Zowen got hold of me,” Mikaela said. “There’s no shame in it.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said. “I just hope that was the last of them.”
The rest of that week and the next were uneventful, something I was extremely grateful for, as it gave Vorzak and me time to focus on each other and to strengthen our bond.
With every passing day, we grew closer together and I fell deeper and deeper into happiness and love.
Miki-Leopard continued her tattoo quest, different parts of her appearing at different times on Mikaela’s skin.
My favorite was when she pushed her spots outward and for an entire day, Mikaela walked around covered in leopard spots.
I don’t think Mikaela found it as adorable as I did, but she didn’t complain either. Instead, she sang Miki’s praises, confiding later that Miki was so proud, it felt like sunshine was filling them to the brim.
The best part of the following month was discovering what our final in Dragon Riding 101 was going to be. It was something called The Gauntlet and it involved riding our dragons through obstacle courses.
It sounded like an amazing combination of Extreme Sports Ed, Extreme Water Sports Ed and Dragon Riding 101.
Personally, I couldn’t wait.
Mikaela, on the other hand, had taken to glaring at me any time the word dragon was even mentioned. Not only did she not enjoy our class—for some reason, she was still terrified of the dragons—but Elliot didn’t like it when she came back smelling of another dragon.
It had gotten so bad that she’d started taking a shower immediately after class before doing anything else.
“Unless I want to rile him up, or I’m feeling a bit horny,” she confided to Kasi and me, “then I’m not bothering with the shower at all.”
Kasi snorted and I grinned.
That was why she was a little out of sorts with me lately. She was very annoyed at the thought of having to fly through an obstacle course on a dragon she didn’t trust and she was even more annoyed that Elliot had declared under no circumstances was she riding any dragon but him for The Gauntlet.
Of course, that didn’t go over well, since Mikaela would never risk failing a class just to appease her mate.
So, she’d taken to glaring at me for that too. I don’t know why. It’s not like I knew she’d be mating a dragon when we signed up for the course.
As for Vorzak, he wasn’t making any progress with Nika, which was the most basic requirement for him to experience any kind of success during The Gauntlet.
I thought if we could at least get Aniu to accept him, maybe Professor Vesely would allow Vorzak to switch dragons for The Gauntlet, but not even Aniu would accept Vorzak’s overtures of friendship.
Not that said overtures were believable, considering The Hissies always ruined them by earning their name with great enthusiasm.
I was quite afraid that Vorzak was going to end up failing the course.
Then, Professor Vesely delivered the final blow.
Apparently, The Gauntlet was a team effort and as such, we would be receiving a team grade.
My fate in this course was suddenly tied to that of my best friend, who was terrified of wild dragons and whose mate was determined she wasn’t going to participate at all, and my mate, whose snakes treated antagonizing dragons as a life-or-death mission.
The only saving grace was Kasi, who at least seemed to get along with the dragons, so long as her shadow-cat wasn’t around.
The minute Shadow appeared, though, all bets were off.
I was doomed.