Fear so palpable it could be felt against skin filled the air.
In the blinding darkness, Rose scrambled to flee. She pumped her legs as hard as she could, her hands reaching out in a panicked, fruitless attempt to grab onto something. She couldn't see anything past the blackness, but she could hear far too much.
Incomprehensible voices screeching at her, their words blurring together in a horrible symphony of rage and hatred. Nothing could be discerned from them except for their undeniable thirst for Rose's blood.
They despised her, these cruel voices roaring for her death.
She ran from them, from these monsters that pursued her relentlessly in the dark. Her heart pounded harshly in her chest, the blood rushing up to her ears and causing them to ring. Rose's mind was filled with nothing but unbearably cold terror that chased out all her thoughts like a rabid dog.
Her feet tripped over something unseen, and Rose tucked forward. She fell into the blackness, splashing into it like it was a dark river that swallowed her up. Chilling water filled her lungs and Rose struggled to breathe, her panic rising to new heights and then—
Rose sat up with a scream caught in her throat, tears pouring out of her eyes as she struggled to catch her breath. She swallowed heaping gasps of air, clutching at her throat. She trembled like a leaf in a harsh wind, more tears falling from her eyes as panic greeted her cruelly.
I—There's—I'm—Dark—But—Okay?—No—I—
Her thoughts jumped out in a horrified frenzy, unable to form anything cohesive. The edges of her vision blurred as Rose fought to stop whatever was happening to her. Goosebumps crawled over her body like squirming centipedes, and the young dragon struggled desperately to keep from making any noise.
Fear held her in its grasp, digging its merciless talons into her heart and shredding apart whatever strength the young girl had.
Time was simultaneously slowed and sped up, the seconds seeming to drag on for eternity, but in the blink of an eye, an hour had already passed.
Rose wasn't sure how long she remained like that: a silent, trembling mess that fought to calm down. All she knew was that one moment she was gasping for air like a drowned sailor, and the next, exhaustion pressed hard on her.
Her limbs slowly stopped shaking, and her hiccups evened out. Welcoming numbness greeted the young dragon, and she fell back into her bed, staring blankly up at a white ceiling.
The pounding inside of her chest didn't feel as hard or loud as before, and even the tight feeling in her gut began to relax.
...🌹...
Even as things began to return to normal, however, Rose wouldn't allow herself to fall back asleep.
For that night, it seemed like if Rose dropped her guard, the blackness would swoop in and devour her whole.
So, she pulled the blankets close around her, and made a makeshift fort with her pillows. She turned her back away from the door—away from the outside world—and she stared at the dew-covered lavenders outside her window.
Rose refused to fall back asleep. She remained there for another three hours until there was a knock on her door.
She blearily opened her eyes, staring tiredly at her window. Ocean waves crashed against dark rocks with the sun barely peeking over the horizon and washing the entire beach in cool light. Rose was curled into a tight ball in the center of the bed, blankets and pillows stacked on top of her to give her the illusion of being held, and she continued to stare at the ocean, wondering where it was.
The knocking continued, and Rose let out a hoarse, "Come in."
She heard the door open behind her and smelled Havi. Quietly, Havi approached the bed, climbing onto it and placing a gentle hand on Rose's shoulders. Rose turned towards her, blinking away the last bit of grogginess, curious what was going on.
Havi smiled crookedly at her. "Good morning, little kingmate."
"Morning," Rose whispered, shifting around. "Everything okay?"
"Mm-hmm. The vigil is over. Are you doing okay? I'm sorry I didn't see you around much."
"I'm okay."
Something about Rose's response must have bothered Havi because her brow furrowed. Havi leaned over the younger girl, her red eyes peering at her. Feeling guilty about her lie, Rose looked away and mumbled, "Is it time for breakfast?"
"Yeah. We're all going to go as a group."
"Okay. I'll get ready."
Havi leaned back with a sigh. "Rose—"
"I'm okay," she insisted quickly, pushing off the blankets.
The dragon rolled out of her bed and moved towards her dresser. She did her best to ignore Havi's concerned staring, choosing instead to focus on picking out her clothes. Havi left after another minute and Rose felt a bit more relaxed.
She didn't tell anyone about the bullying attempts, and no one seemed surprised to find the dragon seeking solitude since everyone else had done so. Havi probably didn't even think it odd that Rose wanted to be alone during the vigil, and her concern only came when Rose lied about being okay.
She would be okay, though. The bullying and nightmares would probably stop now that the vigil was over. Surely, they didn't hate her that much, right?
Rose finished getting dressed and put her messy hair up into a ponytail. She'd brush it when she got back, but for now, she was feeling ravenous and sorely craving hot chocolate. Rose hoped that now that the Dark Vigil was behind her, things would return to normal and everyone would be cheerful again.
She put on a smile when she left her room, the same kind of smile Mother Mara taught Rose to do when she was upset in public. Her kingmates all stood to wait for her, minus Wei and Shō. Galio was yawning widely, covering his mouth and looking for all intents and purposes like he literally rolled out of bed and threw on pants. Lanna—equally disheveled—leaned heavily on Galio. She yawned after him.
Havi and Philip, on the other hand, were dressed neatly and completely alert. Havi beamed when Rose came out, returning her smile with one of her own. "We ready to go, then, everyone?"
"Mm-hmm," Galio grunted, a stone tail popping out from behind him.
"Put your tail away, Galio," Havi sighed.
"Oops," Galio yawned again, his tail disappearing. "Okay, uh," he yawned again, "let's head out, my loyal subjects."
The gargoyle marched out the door with the others following.
Rose was the last one to file out behind them, and the second she stepped outside, something glowed brightly underneath her feet, followed by the sound of a balloon being popped. Rose reflexively closed her eyes the moment something cold and slimy hit her face, holding her breath in the same instant.
When she opened her eyes, she found that she was covered in red paint, along with Havi, Lanna, Philip, and Galio.
The moment the red paint hit Rose, she was bombarded with such a nauseating smell that it made her stomach lurch and her head spin. Her hands clamped down over her mouth to keep her from retching.
No one else seemed to be smelling something so foul.
Havi let out a shriek of indignation. The four of them stared in quiet disbelief before Lanna rounded on Galio with a snarl, "I swear on Sylvania, if you started another stupid prank war with Deo…!"
"I-I didn't," Galio stammered out, spitting out red paint. He was utterly bewildered and shrunk under Lanna and Havi's mutinous glares. "A-at least I don't think I did?"
"You don't think?" Havi hissed out. "What a surprise!"
Galio shrugged, holding up his hands in surrender. "I don't remember doing anything, but you know Deo isn't above preemptive strikes."
"Oh, I'm going to kill him," Lanna gnashed, blue electricity shooting off her hands. "Last time you two got into it, you made Aella cry."
"And I said I was sorry," Galio insisted, shrinking in the face of both girls' rage and disbelief. "I've kept my word, too! No more pranks."
Philip cut in, "Enough. We're drenched. Let's focus on getting cleaned up."
Everyone exchanged looks of varying emotions. Rose steadily refused to meet anyone's gaze, while Havi and Lanna looked ready to throttle the next person who annoyed them. Philip kept a cool expression, whereas Galio had a bright grin on his face.
"Since this got everyone involved, I can retaliate, right?"
"Permission granted," Lanna snapped. "But if you even think about bringing Aella into this…"
"I won't," Galio said quickly. "Strictly between me and Deo. Cross my heart."
"We'll see," Havi sniffed, turning her nose up and storming back into the dorms.
Rose watched quietly as Philip followed behind her, then Lanna. Lanna ruffled Rose's hair on her way back in, rubbing the paint into her hair further. She didn't have the heart to swat her hand away, though.
Was this really from Deo? Rose thought, wringing her hands and feeling a keen sense of unease along with her queasiness. Given everything that happened during the vigil, Rose wasn't quite sure it was a simple prank. She didn't want to bring up her thoughts in front of the others, uncertain of how they would react. They were already quite cross with Galio when it might have been his fault.
Would they yell at her? Would they want to distance themselves from her to keep out of the way?
Every time Rose wanted to answer that with a no, she kept remembering the mob. She kept remembering the disgust and hatred on the faces of people she had thought of as family. It made her heart hurt and her stomach drop. Her hands trembled, and her face twisted in pain.
That was only for a second, though, before she remembered that she was still covered in paint and feeling impossibly nauseous.
"I-I think I'll skip out on breakfast," Rose whispered hoarsely, her stomach doing cartwheels.
"Don't worry, I promise I won't let that jerk prank you again," Galio said, mistaking Rose's reluctance for worry. "Besides, it's tradition! All the warriors eat the first breakfast after the vigil."
Rose found it hard to point-blank refuse Galio when he was brimming with such enthusiasm. She gave him a wobbly smile, slowly lowering her hands away from her mouth and hunching forward.
"O-okay."
Galio beamed at her. "Good! Now hurry and wash up. We need to grab a good table."
Rose took a deep breath, put on a shaky small smile, and went to go clean up.
Fifteen minutes later, Rose shuffled into the cafeteria, feeling unusually wary. She moved with hesitance, and her eyes constantly roamed about. She really hoped the paint incident was nothing more than a prank that she happened to get caught up in, but a sinking part of her didn't think that was the case. She was the last of her kingmates—ignoring the twins that didn't want to join them—to enter the cafeteria, and immediately, she felt one pair of eyes after another find her.
Goosebumps crawled up Rose's spine and she looked around. Most of the looks came from a group of Hero kingmates, but there were some tossed about from the other kingdoms as well. Her stomach churned unpleasantly, and Rose resisted the desire to turn on her heel and leave.
Stiffly, Rose continued to follow behind Lanna, who was looking around the area. Lanna's face lit up when she saw Aella break away from her kingdom and head to them. Aella's nose was turned upwards, and her entire demeanor screamed irritation from her clenched fists and scowl. Aella's kingmates stopped staring at Rose long enough to look at their knight in unhidden horror.
Lanna pulled Aella into a hug when Aella reached their group.
Havi greeted Aella with a smile, "Hello, Aella. Thoughtful vigil?"
"As depressing as ever," Aella returned, giving the princess a small nod.
She looked over at Rose and pointedly reached over towards the girl and pulled her into her arms. Rose stiffened immediately upon being hugged by Aella, and she could hear the harsh whispers breaking across the Hero Kingdom's table.
"U-um." Rose mumbled, clutching at her stomach.
"They're being stupid," Aella muttered into Rose's ear. She then pulled back and gave Lanna a sharp look. "You're watching out for her, yeah?"
"Wh-what? Of course," Lanna said, blinking in surprise. "What's going on?"
Havi's eyes narrowed as she looked over at the whispering other tables. "Are they… Aella, is your kingdom actually still hung up on Rose being a dragon?"
"Yep," Aella said, popping her p. "I thought they were just caught up in the moment 'cause of the vigil, but they're still talking stupid today."
Galio glared over at the table. "That's insane! You can't blame one person for something that happened over a thousand years ago!"
"They're probably still emotional from the vigil," Aella said with a roll of her eyes. "It's been like that every year. Wish they stuck to the usual thing of charity work."
Havi sniffed. "They better drop it soon. The Community wouldn't allow Rose into school if they thought for an instant she was a danger to the students. Moreover, to hate an entire species on the act of one king is ignorance at its finest."
"Yeah, well," Aella muttered, looking torn. "They'll get over it soon, I'm sure. I just wanted to make sure they weren't being too mean to you, Rose, and to remind you that not everyone thinks like that."
Rose thought back to the 'monster' incidents. She felt tempted to bring them up, but she really wasn't sure if it was only Aella's kingdom. She could feel gazes on her from all the tables, after all.
Rose shifted uncomfortably, her hands wringing. "N-no. The vigil is over now, so things should be okay now, right?"
"Everything will go back to normal in no time," Aella promised her with a smile, her face brightening like a sunrise. "And I'll have our king, Kyros, come over and properly apologize to you once he gets his head outta the clouds."
"Okay," Rose said quietly in response to that.
It made her feel better that Aella and the others were certain things would return to normal. Since nothing else truly major happened, Rose was content to simply put everything behind her.
As long as no one else called her a monster or ruined her things, she was okay to let it be. Mother Mara always taught her to be a good girl, and good girls wouldn't fuss over something like that.
Right?
Her kingmates herded her towards one of the tables. Lanna sat beside Rose, and Rose took a seat at the edge, honestly worried she might need to dash out at any moment to use the bathroom.
Rose couldn't bring herself to order food. Even after she had washed up—and she took a brief dunk into her lava pools as well—she couldn't seem to get rid of that foul smell. No one else seemed bothered by it, and it made Rose wonder if it was in her head.
Havi glanced over at Rose with clear concern in her eyes. "Rose, aren't you going to order anything?"
"I feel a little nauseous," Rose admitted quietly, clutching her stomach.
Aella reached around Lanna and rubbed Rose's back, Lanna placing a hand over Rose's forehead. "You don't seem feverish," Lanna murmured.
"Hm. Maybe you should go see Doctor Basileus?"
"I'll take you," Havi offered immediately, already standing up.
"No, no," Rose said quickly. "Um, I'd rather go by myself, if that's okay."
Galio peered at her, his face twisted into concern. "Think you'll make it, kiddo?"
"I'll be fine. Sorry," Rose apologized, standing up quickly. Her kingmates and Aella looked at her in concern, but Rose gave them a big smile in return. "I'll be okay, promise."
Havi slowly sat back down. "If you're sure. If you aren't back by noon, I'll come check up on you, okay?"
"Okay, thank you."
Rose stumbled away from her table, ducking her head to avoid the stares. She moved as fast as she could down the halls, her stomach lurching dangerously with every step. More than once, she had to stop, double over, and take deep breaths to keep from retching. She received more than a few curious looks, but no one tried to stop her.
When she finally reached Doctor Basileus's office, she staggered in and looked up at him in clear discomfort. The doctor had immediately gotten up from his desk as soon as he saw her, his eyes widening and nostrils flaring.
"Wh—why do you reek of drahathawnn?" Basileus demanded, rushing over to the girl and placing a warm hand on her back. A burst of golden magic flowed out from the palm of his hands and a soothing sensation washed over Rose.
"Come sit down, I'll bring out some reedust."
The doctor gently guided Rose over towards one of the beds, where she crawled inside and curled up into a tight ball. Doctor Basileus briefly left her in order to slip into his back office. Rose could hear the clanks of glass vials hitting one another before Doctor Basileus emerged with a ceramic jar. He brought it over to her and uncapped it.
"Breathe this in, Miss Rose."
Rose took in a sharp whiff, and then immediately sneezed. Something dark and red flew out of her nose, and Doctor Basileus caught it with his magic. He looked at it in disgust before tossing it into the trash.
At once, the foul stench left Rose and her stomach relaxed. She still felt a little queasy, but the overbearing smell was finally gone. Rose let out a tight, relieved sigh.
Doctor Basileus placed the jar beside her bed, a frown on his face and his golden eyes unusually hard. "Who gave you that?"
Rose tiredly shrugged. "I-I don't know. Someone set up a-a prank outside our dorms. Red paint everywhere, but after the paint got on me, I started to feel a little queasy. What was that?"
"That," Doctor Basileus began, his voice tight with anger, "was a very nasty plant called drahathawnn. When inhaled, it causes nausea for certain creatures. One of those creatures being dragons. It's highly regulated, and students are not allowed to handle it without supervision. I will inform the headmaster at once about this and have them better guarded. This should not have happened, Miss Rose, and I apologize on behalf of the school."
"It's fine," Rose whispered. "Everything will go back to normal soon."
Doctor Basileus looked down at her, and Rose pretended not to see his expression.
Everything will go back to normal. They'll realize I'm not a bad person, and they'll leave me alone. Everything will be fine.
Rose fiddled with her fingers. "Is—is it okay to have breakfast here?"
"Of course," Doctor Basileus told her, smiling warmly at her. "You can tell me all about the latest book you're reading."
Rose smiled sincerely for the first time since Christmas Eve.
...🌹...
Come lunch, and Rose decided to try and eat in the cafeteria and meet with her friends. Rose entered the cafeteria, momentarily freezing when she felt the glares on her. She looked around and found that only a few students were openly glaring at her, but each looked away when she met their eyes.
It's still early, Rose thought to herself, trying to calm herself. Things will go back to normal soon. It'll be okay.
Taking a deep breath, Rose continued to her usual table. Keinan and Chester both looked up and smiled when they saw her. Chester waved cheerfully at her.
"Hey, Rose! My mom sent over another worksheet. Wanna help us with it?"
"Sure," Rose answered with ease, smiling in return. She sat beside Keinan, placing her backpack on the table beside Chester's and Keinan's. "What's it about?"
"Different types of fire," Keinan explained. "Ah, to be honest, when we told our parents about you being a dragon…"
Rose stiffened.
"—they got really excited," Chester cut in with a look of exasperation. "This kind of thing is tailor-made for you. You don't have to participate if that makes you uncomfortable, though."
"Ah, no, that's fine," Rose said, sighing with relief. "I need to learn more about being a dragon, anyway."
Both boys grinned at her.
Keinan said, "Good. Then let's meet up this weekend. All that's left is finding a place to do the experiment."
"We'll need someplace safe enough to use fire," Chester said with a frown. "Maybe we should ask one of the teachers to supervise, too…"
"Ah! I can ask Professor Nigel," Rose offered. "He's really nice."
"Sure, that sounds—"
"Um, Chester?"
The trio looked up in surprise to find a small girl in a Hero Kingdom uniform standing awkwardly in front of them. She was pretty, with perfectly neat hair and violet-colored eyes. She had her hands folded in front of her, but she shifted her weight anxiously. Rose vaguely recognized her as someone from their year group.
Viola? Rose tried to remember her, but she was an overall quiet girl. Every time Rose had seen her, she always looked away immediately and hardly spoke.
Chester turned to face the girl, offering her a polite smile and a curious look. "Miss Viola, right? How can I help you?"
Viola lifted her gaze long enough to meet Chester's. With a shaky voice, she said, "Would y-you mind if we t-talked in private?"
Her eyes slid over towards Rose before pure fear entered them and she abruptly looked back down. Rose's stomach twisted into a tight knot when she caught the sudden, odd scent. It was something she vaguely understood, and only on an instinctual level.
It was a smell that made Rose tense and the sound of gunshots ring in her ears.
Fear.
It was so pungent on the girl that Rose reflexively covered her nose. She wasn't sure how she knew what the smell was, but it was abundantly clear to Rose that the girl was terrified out of her mind.
Because of me? Rose thought to herself in disbelief. The idea was nauseating.
Chester looked at the girl in surprise. "Ah, yeah. I'll be right back, guys."
Viola looked immensely relieved and took a couple steps back to let Chester get up from the bench. Chester stood up swiftly and the girl led him out of the cafeteria. Rose watched the two vanish from her sight, feeling distinctly queasy.
Then Keinan shoved a piece of bacon underneath her nose and Rose jumped in surprise. "Wh-what was that for?"
Keinan smiled at her, but it didn't reach his eyes. "You smelled her fear, didn't you?"
Rose's shoulders slumped as she nodded. "Yeah… you could smell it, too?"
"Arachoas have excellent smelling abilities," Keinan explained. "Might not be pure, but I've got enough of my father in me to smell that."
Rose swallowed roughly. "Are you—are you scared of me?"
Keinan raised an eyebrow. "No. I told you, Mother said I would have a good year if I befriended a rose. You're my friend, so I can't be scared of you. And, if you were an honest threat to me, Mother would have warned me against you. She's never wrong.���
"I see."
"Besides," Keinan said flippantly, "you're too nice. Anyone who's ever met you would think that, dragon blood or not."
"Thanks," Rose said with a smile. Keinan held out his slice of bacon for her and the dragon gladly took it.
Chester returned a couple minutes after that, eyes burning bright with irritation and huffing with every step. Viola followed him back into the cafeteria, her eyes brimming with unshed tears as she returned to her own kingdom's table. Chester stomped back over to their table, standing in front of Rose and glaring.
He placed a hand on her shoulder and said in a loud and clear voice, "I'm your friend, Rose, and you're my friend. So, if anyone has a problem with you, they have a problem with me."
Rose's cheeks burned with embarrassment as Chester's impromptu declaration had drawn everyone's attention towards the trio. Rose stammered out a 'thank you' before Chester took his seat, still glowering.
"Did she not confess to you?" Keinan asked slyly. "She's stared at you all last semester."
"I wish that's what she would've done," Chester complained. "No, instead she had to reveal herself as an ignorant little brat."
"Brutal," Keinan deadpanned.
"This is not how I wanted to start off the new semester," Chester muttered with a sigh. "How annoying."
Keinan patted his friend's back. "It'll get better, probably."
"Aella said everything will go back to normal soon," Rose hesitantly put in.
"It better."