Chspter twenty two- Her first steps back
The infirmary had begun to feel like a world of its own, sealed off from the Academy's noise and ambition.
The air was always warm, always still, always carrying the faint scent of healing salves and clean linen.
Liora had been here for seven days, long enough for the room to memorize her breathing, long enough for the healers to stop fussing, long enough for Ashwing to claim the space as his territory.
He lay curled around her bed like a living barricade, wings tucked close, feathers rising and falling with every breath she took.
He barely left her side. Not even when the healers tried to coax him away.
Not even when they needed to change her bandages.
He simply pressed closer, humming low in his chest, as if the sound alone could knit her bones back together.
Liora didn't mind, she needed him. More than she wanted to admit.
Her ribs still ached with every inhale, wrapped tightly beneath her shirt.
She could sit up now, though it hurt. She could walk a few steps, though it left her dizzy.
She could think clearly again, though her thoughts always drifted to the same place — the fall, the cut strap, the whispers, the danger.
And the absence of the one person who stayed away.
The door creaked open, and Ashwing's head snapped up instantly, feathers flaring. When he recognized the visitor, he relaxed with a soft chirr.
Aiden stepped inside, carrying a tray balanced in one hand.
"You're awake," he said, voice gentle. "Good."
"I've been awake," Liora murmured. "I just didn't want to move."
"Understandable." He set the tray down. "You look better today."
"I look like I've been trampled."
Aiden smiled — a small, tired smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. He pulled a chair closer and sat beside her, elbows on his knees, hands clasped. He always sat like that, as if ready to spring up at the slightest sign of danger.
"You didn't sleep again," Liora said quietly.
Aiden shrugged. "I slept."
"Not enough."
"I'm fine."
"You're not."
He looked away, jaw tightening. Ashwing nudged Liora's hand with his beak, and she stroked his feathers gently. Aiden watched the motion, something soft flickering in his expression.
"He's been glued to you," he said. "I don't think I've ever seen a dragon this protective."
"He's scared," Liora whispered.
Aiden's voice dropped. "We all were."
Silence settled between them — heavy, but not uncomfortable. Aiden reached for the tray and lifted the bowl of soup.
"Eat," he said. "You need strength."
"I'm not hungry."
"You said that yesterday."
"And the day before."
"And I ignored you then too."
She sighed but took the bowl. Her ribs protested, and she winced.
Aiden's hand shot out. "Careful."
"I'm fine."
"You're not."
She glared at him. He didn't back down.
She took a spoonful of soup. It tasted bland, but warm.
"You don't have to babysit me," she said.
"I know."
"But you're doing it anyway."
"I know."
She opened her mouth to argue, but the door swung open again.
Mira slipped inside, carrying a bag of pastries and a stack of books. Ashwing chirred in greeting.
"Good," Mira said, "you're both awake. And alive. And not killing each other."
Aiden rolled his eyes. "We weren't—"
"You were," Mira said, dropping into the chair on Liora's other side. "It's your love language."
Aiden choked. Liora nearly dropped her spoon.
"Mira," Liora groaned.
"What? I'm just saying what everyone else is thinking."
"No one is thinking that," Aiden muttered.
"Everyone is thinking that," Mira corrected.
Aiden opened his mouth to argue, but Liora cut in.
"What are the books for?"
Mira brightened. "Your assignments! Instructor Veyra said — and I quote — 'If she's well enough to complain, she's well enough to study.'"
Liora groaned. "I hate her."
"No you don't," Mira said. "She's the only instructor who doesn't treat you like a political landmine."
"That's because she doesn't care about politics," Aiden said. "She cares about anatomy."
"And she wants to dissect me," Liora muttered.
Mira laughed. "Probably."
Aiden didn't laugh. He was staring at the books with a strange expression — something tight, something worried.
Mira noticed immediately.
She used to freeze whenever Aiden looked at her — stiff posture, lowered eyes, the whole "oh gods a prince is speaking to me" panic. But after a week of sharing this room, watching him fall asleep in that chair, watching him panic every time Liora winced... she had relaxed around him.
Now she just rolled her eyes.
"Oh, don't look at me like that," she said. "I didn't assign them. I'm just the unfortunate mule carrying them."
Aiden blinked, startled. "I wasn't blaming you."
"You looked like you were," Mira teased. "But I'm used to your royal brooding now."
Aiden rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. "I wasn't brooding."
"You always brood," Mira said. "It's your default setting."
Liora snorted. Ashwing chirred in amusement.
Mira reached into the pastry bag and tossed one at Aiden. He caught it one?handed, barely.
"Here," she said. "Eat something. You look like you're about to lecture the books for daring to exist."
Aiden huffed a laugh despite himself. "I'm not—"
"Eat," Mira repeated, pointing at him. "You're worse than she is."
Aiden sighed but took a bite, and Mira grinned triumphantly.
Liora watched them — Mira relaxed and teasing, Aiden softening despite himself — and felt something warm settle in her chest.
Some people didn't do softness.
Some people didn't do comfort.
Some people didn't do sickrooms or quiet hours or sitting still.
But Aiden and Mira came every day.
And that mattered.
A healer called Aiden's name from the hallway.
He stood reluctantly. "I'll be right back."
When he left, the room felt different — quieter, more fragile.
Mira sat back down, flipping through one of the books, pretending to read.
Liora watched her for a moment.
Then the question rose in her chest like a stone she couldn't swallow.
"Mira..." Liora said softly.
Mira hummed. "Mm?"
"Do you know where he is?"
Mira froze.
Slowly, she lifted her eyes. "Who?"
Liora swallowed. "Kael."
Mira blinked once. Then twice. Then she shut the book with a soft thump.
"I thought you were into Aiden," she said bluntly. "Do you have a crush on his cousin?"
Liora nearly choked. "What? No— I just— that's not—"
"You're blushing," Mira said, pointing at her face.
"I'm not."
"You are."
Liora groaned and covered her face with her hands. Ashwing chirred in amusement.
Mira softened — just a little.
"Look," she said, "he's not at the Academy."
Liora's breath caught. "He's not?"
"No," Mira said. "Rumor is he left with Master Thalen."
Liora's heart thudded painfully. "Left for what?"
Mira hesitated.
"A hunt," she said quietly. "And not just any hunt."
Liora's stomach twisted. "The Black Dragon."
Mira nodded. Ashwing lifted his head, feathers rising in a slow, dangerous ripple. Liora's pulse hammered in her throat. Mira reached out and squeezed her wrist gently.
"Liora... don't read into him not being here. He doesn't visit people. He doesn't do this. He's... Kael."
Liora didn't answer. She didn't know what she felt. Fear. Confusion. Something sharp and tangled she couldn't name.
Mira leaned back, watching her carefully. "And for the record," she added, "if you did have a crush on him, I wouldn't blame you. He's infuriating, but he's... well. He's Kael."
Liora groaned. "Please don't."
"No promises."
Two weeks after the fall, the healers finally released her.
Liora stepped out of the infirmary with her satchel slung over her shoulder, Ashwing towering beside her like a feathered guardian.
Her ribs still ached beneath the bandages, but she could walk without dizziness now.
She could breathe without wincing. She could think without fog.
She could also hear. Every whisper. Every stare. Every rumor sharpened in her absence.
"That's her."
"The girl who fell."
"No — the girl someone tried to kill."
"She shouldn't be here."
"No one wants her here."
Liora kept her chin up, but the words slid under her skin like cold needles.
Ashwing couldn't follow her into the classrooms—he was far too large, his wings alone wider than the doorframes—so he waited outside each building, feathers puffed, eyes sharp. Students whispered even louder when they passed him.
"He's guarding her."
"Why does she need guarding?"
"Because someone cut her saddle strap."
"Because she doesn't belong."
Inside the classrooms, Liora felt his absence immediately. No warm feathers. No soft humming. Just rows of eyes watching her like she was a spark in a room full of dry straw.
Mira sat beside her in every class, muttering curses at anyone who stared too long. Aiden joined them when he could, though he had his own duties—and his own shadows.
By midday, Liora needed air. She stepped into the courtyard with Mira, grateful for the open sky, when she saw him.
Kael.
He crossed the stone path with his usual cold, effortless stride. His uniform was scuffed. His hair was wind?tossed, his jaw shadowed with exhaustion. He looked like someone who had been gone for days. He looked like someone who hadn't slept.
Liora's breath caught. "Kael," she called.
He didn't turn. He didn't slow. He didn't even flick an ear in her direction. He walked past her as if she were invisible.
Liora froze.
Mira stared after him, stunned. "Did he just ignore you?"
"Yes," Liora whispered.
Ashwing pressed against her leg, feathers rising in a protective ripple.
Mira scoffed. "Unbelievable. He comes back from gods?knows?where and pretends you don't exist?"
Liora swallowed. "Maybe he didn't hear me."
"Kael hears everything," Mira muttered.
But Liora said nothing. Because the ache in her chest said Mira was right.
The next day, during training hours—when every student was outside on the field or in the sky—Liora wandered toward the dragon roosts with Ashwing. She wasn't allowed to fly yet, but she missed the smell of hay and warm scales, the sound of dragons breathing, the quiet hum of the cavern.
The roosts were nearly empty. Nearly.
Kael sat on the stone floor beside his dragon—a massive gold creature whose scales shimmered like sunlight on water. The dragon lifted his head the moment Liora entered, eyes bright and alert, as if he had been waiting for her.
Kael didn't look up immediately. But the gold dragon nudged him—a firm, deliberate push. Only then did Kael raise his head.
His eyes found hers instantly. No surprise. No cold dismissal. Just awareness. As if he had known she would come.
Liora swallowed. "Kael."
This time, he answered. "Liora."
Her heart stuttered. She stepped closer. "Can we talk?"
Kael's gaze flicked toward the entrance—checking, calculating, making sure no one else was around. Then he stood. "We can talk," he said quietly, "because no one is here."
Liora frowned. "Why does that matter?"
Kael stepped closer—not touching her, but close enough that she felt the heat of him, the tension coiled beneath his skin. His voice dropped to a low, controlled whisper.
"Because we can't talk when people are watching."
She blinked. "Why not?"
His jaw tightened. "You want me to protect him from the experiments," he said, nodding toward Ashwing. "So do as I say."
Ashwing pressed against her leg, feathers rising.
Liora's breath caught. "Kael... what does that have to do with—"
"Everything," he said.
The gold dragon behind him rumbled softly, watching them with knowing eyes.
Liora steadied herself. "What happened out there? With the Black Dragon?"
Kael's expression shuttered instantly. "We lost its track." The words were flat. Controlled. Too controlled.
Liora's stomach twisted. "Is that all?"
"No."
He looked away—the smallest, most fragile tell she had ever seen from him. "But it's all I'm saying."
Ashwing hissed softly. Kael didn't flinch.
He met Liora's eyes again, voice low and unyielding. "Listen carefully." "Don't go anywhere without him," Kael said, nodding toward Ashwing. "Not even for a moment."
Liora's breath hitched. "Kael... why?"
His answer was immediate. "Because many people want you gone."
The words hit harder than any fall.
Kael continued, voice sharp as a blade. "And while you're inside the buildings, stay with your friend or Aiden. Always."
Liora stared at him, heart pounding. "Kael... what are you not telling me?"
He stepped back, walls slamming up behind his eyes. "Go," he said quietly. "Before someone sees us talking."
But his dragon watched her leave with molten?gold eyes—as if he knew exactly what Kael refused to say.