THE VIDEN'S WORDS were imprinted on my mind, and the worst part was that I didn't understand any of it. What choice must I make? What truth will be revealed? I sighed, wondering if she even meant any of it for me. Our conversation, however, made me furious.
I went straight to my room. The more I thought about our meeting, the more I wanted to strangle her! Who did she think she was, saying something like that? I was glad that I didn't have to see her again. She must have her hands full with all her "important" students. Good riddance.
Around one o'clock, Becky and Sammy found me, still in our room.
"Oh, here you are." Sammy's smile vanished when she saw my expression. "Oh crap, what did she say?"
I wanted to punch the wall out of anger. "Just leave it. It doesn't matter."
Both girls sat on my bed, clearly interested.
"She's such a snob." I sniffed, sick of all the silence.
"I told you she was vain." Sammy's upper lip twitched in disgust.
"Look, nobody likes her very much, except those that she knows are destined to do great things," Becky said. "She treats their sessions like they're the highlights of her day."
"What did she say?" Sammy handed me a hanky.
"She said that I don't matter, because my dad was a dragon, and dragon children are not destined to wear the mark. I still don't know what that means." I sighed and wiped off a tear that had escaped onto my cheek.
"The truth?" Becky said.
I nodded, ready to hear what she had to say.
"You're the first human that bears the mark whose father was a dragon. It has never happened before, and some of the professors here at Dragonia feel that Master Longwei is wasting his time."
"Becky!" Sammy yelled, clearly stunned at her confession.
"I didn't say I felt that way! I'm just telling her how it is."
"I still don't understand."
"Dragonians have human parents, Elena."
"Let me try." Sammy touched Becky's hand softly. "Having a dragon for a father means that you have his DNA. Although you don't have a dragon form, you still carry the gene. A part of you is a dragon, and that's the reason you can't become a Dragonian."
As I let their words sink in, it was all slowly starting to make sense.
"There are a lot of dragon offspring, Elena. When a dragon falls in love with a human, their children are human and never bear the mark."
"There are others here who aren't born with the mark, and nobody tells them they don't belong," I said stubbornly.
"Their daddies paid a crap-load of money for them to be here. Only the students with the mark are able to attend Dragonia Academy free of charge," Becky said.
"That's why they don't think I belong here, because my father didn't pay?"
"No, Elena, it's because your father was a dragon. They feel that Master Longwei is taking a chance he shouldn't. I even overheard that some of the parents with non-gifted children, who have been on the waitlist, got really pissed when he let you in. They had this huge discussion arguing the fact you'll never ascend and that your mark is just a birth defect," Becky said.
"It's what she said too."
"Did her eyes glow when she said it?" Sammy asked.
I shook my head, lied and pretended I had no idea what she was talking about. "Her eyes glow?" I wasn't ready to share that part with them just yet. I was still trying to figure out what she'd meant.
"Yes. If not, you don't pay any attention. She talks a lot of shit."
Becky raised her eyes at Sammy's remark and I giggled, remembering our conversation about how much Sammy liked the Viden.
"Do you guys think I'm wasting my time being here?"
"Hell no!" both shouted in unison.
"Sammy's right." Becky put her hand on my shoulder. "Only pay attention to what she says when her eyes light up and when her hair blows."
I sighed. I was lucky to have roommates who understood. Both were incredibly jealous when I told them that she didn't want to see me again.
"I would give my left boob for her to say those words to me," Sammy said, "but I guess with me being the Rubicon's sister, she expects great things from me too."
We shook off the stress of the whole encounter, and went to lunch. This time we found a table inside the cafeteria. It wasn't long before Lucian plunged himself down on the remaining pillow. "So how was your first time with the Viden?"
"Shhh, we don't mention her," Sammy whispered.
His smile disappeared. "That bad?"
"It's fine, I just didn't like the way she treated me."
"Elena, if her hair didn't blow and her eyes didn't shine, then you don't pay attention to the witch," he said.
I gave him a soft smile.
When the bell rang for class, I felt better.
* * *
BEFORE I KNEW it, my first full week was over. I went through a schedule change around Tuesday, and some of my classes got swapped around. To make matters worse, not all the classes were like Professor Gregory's and Sir Edward's. They were extremely difficult, and each one may as well have been taught in Latin, because I had no idea what they were talking about half the time.
Enchantment was a nightmare. We had a professor named Longchester who lectured for the entire duration of the class. My head ached by the time his lectures finished, and he made us recite foreign words over and over again. My stuttering made the spells backfire more times than they worked. So instead of protecting myself with a stupid shield nobody could see, I got hit with tiny stings that made me look like a crazy person hitting myself. It stopped the minute Professor Longchester snapped his fingers, but not before the entire class stopped to watch the show. The students always sniggered, and Becky would chuck a pencil or eraser at whoever laughed the hardest.
She was fairly accurate at hitting her targets, which I appreciated.
I hoped things would get better by the end of the week, but they didn't.
When the last bell of the day rang on Thursday, I wanted to jump for joy; the next day was Friday.
I soon learned that Fridays were going to be the worst day of my week, because I'd ended up with a double period of Arithmetic instead of Anatomy. When the bell rang, I dashed out of the classroom and bumped straight into Brian.
"Hello, Elena, excited to see Brian?" His jolly personality made it difficult to be rude to him. I knew he was only after my virtue, and I began to understand why Sammy said they were obsessed with hunting virgins.
"No, I—"
"Oh, c'mon, Elena, Brian isn't that bad once you get to know him." Brian laughed when I blushed. "Just hang out with Brian, and if you don't like what Brian has to offer, Brian promises he'll back off."
"Is it really making you that crazy?" I said, referring to my virtue.
He chuckled. "Brian has no idea what Elena is talking about."
I laughed. "Nice try, Brian, but you forget that I was raised by a dragon. He warned me about the Sun-Blasts," I lied.
"Elena's father would have loved Brian," he said.
"Oh, you think so?" I said, rolling my eyes at his candor.
"C'mon, Elena, Brian just wants one date."
"Elena will think about it," I said and we went our separate ways. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him fist pump into the air.
"Elena saw that, Brian!" I yelled.
"Brian doesn't care what Elena sees. All Brian wants is that date."
If that wasn't making it clear what his intentions were, I'd have to be blind and deaf.
I felt better once I reached the room and saw Becky and Sammy already inside.
"So, Elena, are you coming with us tonight?" Becky asked, as I threw my backpack on my bed.
"Where to?"
"The lake."
"Is it safe?"
"Of course! And it's fun," Sammy chirped.
I thought about it for a few seconds. "You know what? I'm in." I was going to regret it later, but I needed a break.
They clapped their hands, sounding very excited.
"So, what's at the lake?"
"A lake," they said in unison, and laughed.
"You mean we're going to swim?"
"Unless you know of something else we could do at a lake during the night," Becky said in a sarcastic tone.
"I don't have a swim suit."
"You can borrow one of mine. No biggie." Becky skipped over to her dresser, took out the top drawer, and tipped it over onto her bed. Bikinis of different colors were scattered all over.
I picked up a plain black one and tried it on. It fit perfectly. I just didn't like my flat ass. I wanted it to be plumper.
After dinner, we slipped out of the castle and grabbed our bags that were stashed by the bushes close to the entrance and made a run to Sammy and Becky's sanctuary. It took about fifteen minutes just to get there, but I was glad I hadn't chickened out. I was even happier once we arrived, and I took in the picturesque surrounding.
The tall trees and huge boulders lining the lake and cloaked in shadows made the place look a bit creepy, but with the stars and the full moon shining on the water, it took on a life of its own. The smooth surface of the lake was completely still, and the moon reflecting off the water gave it the appearance of an enormous mirror. It was as if the lake was filled with liquid mercury. As soon as we arrived at the edge, Becky and Sammy yanked off their tops and ran straight into the lake, still wearing their shorts.
"Come on, Elena, the water is perfect!" Becky yelled back.
I looked up and noticed that the weather was starting to play up. To hell with it. I took off my clothes and joined the girls. The small pebbles hurt my feet as I tiptoed into the lake, but I stopped noticing as soon as I hit the water.
The water felt warm, not quite bathwater, but pretty close. We enjoyed splashing and dunking each other's heads so much that none of us paid attention to what was happening on shore. All of a sudden, the bushes near where we left our bags started to quiver. We turned into pillars, frozen in the eerie darkness. Flashes of whatever might be lurking in the bushes drove me nuts, as I tried to figure out what was stalking us.
A tall figure with blond hair emerged from the bushes with a dark-haired boy following him.
"Lucian!" Becky splashed water in his direction. "You gave me a freaking heart attack!"
My heart started to beat faster.
"Why are you scared?" he said, chuckling. "You've got Sammy here."
Hot flushes went through my entire body, and my stomach rolled around as if it was now home to a million trapped butterflies.
Slowly he walked to the edge of the lake and took off his shirt. I was going to faint. His silhouette was all lean muscles and ripped abs shining in the moonlight. The effect made him look like a Da Vinci statue.
I dipped my head under the water to cool off, hoping he hadn't noticed my stare.
When I came back up for air, his back was turned toward us. Finally able to tear my gaze away, I noticed that the dark-haired boy wasn't bad looking either.
"Hi, Dean. Long time no see," Sammy said in a flirty way.
"Hi, Sammy," the dark-haired boy with beautiful legs said in a singsong tone. She giggled in response.
Lucian jumped, cannonball-style, into the deeper part of the lake, with Dean right behind him.
Dean came up first, and I looked anxiously for Lucian. There was no way he could stay under water that long. A small scream left my mouth when he emerged right in front of me, sending water flying everywhere.
Lucian laughed as he stood before me, dripping water. "Hello, Elena," he said in a seductive voice.
I couldn't help but smile, thinking about what Becky and Sammy had said. I would give anything for the girls' speculations to be true.
"Hi, Lucian. What are you doing here? I thought you were one of the spoiled brats that went home over weekends." The words had slipped out without me even thinking. I didn't know where I had gotten the guts to say that.
He bit his lower lip, which made me lose my breath.
"I'm not a spoiled brat," he said in a serious tone, and splashed me. The corner of his mouth twitched.
Dean emerged from the watery depths, like Rambo, Dean took him under the water with him. We all laughed at the two playing with each other and eventually the game dissolved into a big dunking contest.
I tried to swim away and yelled when Lucian caught hold of my foot, yanking me under. When we came up, his arms were around my waist and his face was only inches from mine.
My heart was pounding again and I wondered if he could feel it too.
He stared at me with those smoldering eyes, searching for something hidden in my gaze, and then gave me one of his million-dollar smiles.
I smiled back like an idiot. He leaned in closer. My body shivered from head to toe as our lips touched.
It felt like a dream, and I decided if it was, I needed to make that kiss last for as long as I possibly could before I woke. I opened my mouth and started to kiss him back passionately. My hands got tangled up in his wet hair as I leaned in for more. It was the most amazing and perfect first kiss a girl could ask for.
His mouth felt as if it was made to fit mine. There wasn't a nose or chin in the way, and our tongues danced in perfect rhythm. It made me want more.
He pulled away softly. With my chin cupped in his hand, he made a satisfying grunt as if he had just finished his favorite meal.
Heat jolted up to my face and I was glad that he couldn't see me blushing in the dark.
"I've wanted to do that since the first day I saw you," he whispered, and wrapped his arms tighter around me.
My legs curled around his waist. I just wanted to kiss him again, I couldn't get enough.
"I hope you don't mind."
"Oh, you would have known if I did," I said as our lips found each other again.
Lightning flashed in the distance, making us both break away and look up at the threatening sky.
"I think we should call it a night," he said.
I complained silently, as I wanted to spend more time with him. Reluctantly, I untangled myself and looked around for my friends.
Becky and the others were already busy getting out of the lake as we swam over to them. I felt insecure that I wasn't wearing shorts too, just my bikini bottom.
I made a run for my towel as lightning sliced through a tree nearby. Red sparks shot in all directions from the impact and jumped off the branches frantically.
I shrieked, terrified, and found myself in Lucian's arms once again.
Lucian laughed, but stopped and immediately let go as something caught his attention. He darted toward the clearing behind me.
I turned around and found Becky lying flat on the ground. My hands covered my mouth in horror as electricity danced along her body. She shook violently as if she was having a seizure.
Lucian crouched beside her and started to search for something. He shouted orders to us, but they sounded hollow.
I just stared with huge, unblinking eyes at Becky lying helplessly on the ground.
Sammy reached her and fell to her knees. Her arm stretched out toward Becky.
"Don't touch her, Sammy!" Lucian smacked her hand away.
"But, Lucian!"
"Touch her and your ass gets fried too," Lucian said. "Elena, go get Constance and Master Longwei."
My feet were nailed to the ground as I tried to process the situation playing out before me.
"Elena! Now!" he roared, this time waking me from my stupor.
The fear that had consumed me disappeared and I ran as fast as I could back to the main building.
At about the halfway mark, the trees started to blur around me. I realized my tears were making it difficult to see the path and wiped them away determinedly with the back of my hand.
I found the main building and yanked the door open. Pain crawled up my legs and my lungs burned as I kept running. I was heaving like a vacuum cleaner by the time I reached Master Longwei's dorm.
"Master Longwei, come!" I shouted.
"Elena, why are you wet?" He clutched a pot of tea in his hands.
Tears streamed down my face as I tried to control my breath. "Please, there's no time to explain, just come with me."
As I looked at him, my eyes begged him not to ask questions. Realizing my urgency, he called Constance over the phone and told her to meet us down at the main entrance. With me leading the way, we ran down the stairs back to the lake and met Constance near the entrance carrying a doctor's bag.
"Elena, the lake is off limits at night!" Master Longwei roared once he realized where we were heading.
"I'm sorry, sir. Becky said..." I couldn't finish my sentence as my throat began to close with emotion.
Tears rolled down my face in torrents, and I was so scared it might already be too late.
"Becky knows the rules. She should've known better. What happened?" he asked.
I couldn't speak.
"Elena, we need to know what happened," Constance tried.
I could tell she was just as concerned. "Lightning!" I managed to squeak out.
The instant the word escaped my lips, Master Longwei and Constance found a faster speed that left me far behind.
When I finally made it back to the lake, I heard Master Longwei scolding someone.
"Becky, how could you be so irresponsible!" he said. The sound of her name lifted my spirits instantly.
I saw Becky. Where I had left her on the ground, with thousands of volts of electricity running through her, she was now standing, facing off against Master Longwei.
"March!" Master Longwei shouted, looking pissed off.
I struggled to take my eyes away from her. She looked fine, except for her hair. It was standing straight up in every direction. The smell of burnt hair lingered in the air and electricity ran from the tip of her strands to the roots, releasing a spark every once in a while. She looked petrified, with big round eyes that were forever changed by the horror of tonight.
"What happened, Lucian?" I asked when I finally found my voice.
"I don't know. One minute she was down and the next she was back on her feet shaking it off as if it was nothing," Lucian said, rambling fast. His voice broke on the last part.
"Are you okay?" I could see how shaken he was by the whole event.
He was pale and looked as if he was about to faint. "Yeah, I'm just trying to figure out what the f—"
We were all ordered to return to the castle and were escorted straight to Master Longwei's office.
"Master, I have to examine Becky," Constance said, as she led her away. Becky started to protest, but Constance hissed something in her ear that silenced her.
Lucian, Dean, Sammy, and I entered Master Longwei's office, and the look he gave the four of us was worse than the scolding.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Master Longwei, she got hit by lightning and went down. I don't know how she can still be alive. There was so much voltage running through her. I know for a fact that she should not be here." Lucian spoke fast; it must be something he did whenever he was nervous.
"Lucian, how could you go to the lake at this time of night? You of all people know better. Anything could have happened—"
"It wasn't entirely his fault, we were all there too," I said.
Master Longwei's eyebrow arched and then he turned his glare at me. That one look made me wish I'd never found Paegeia. "I don't know how things work on the other side of the Wall, young lady, but here we have rules. You risked your own life and the lives of your friends when you disobeyed them. We also do not speak out of turn when an elder is talking."
I bit the inside of my lip, keeping me from saying another word. My father had always told me to share the blame if I was a culprit too. I wasn't being disrespectful and started to become angry that he had insinuated that.
"I will have to think about what punishment to give you four. You can be glad Becky is still alive. You may go. If I ever catch you going for a midnight swim again, I promise that none of you will see the light of day until you graduate!" he roared, allowing us to make our escape.
My knees wobbled as I walked down the stairs, and I had to catch my balance on the handrail several times.
"It's going to be fine, Elena," Lucian said soothingly, rubbing my arms to try to restore the blood that had drained from my body.
I just nodded, trying hard not to cry.
"My father is so going to kill me," Dean said, walking next to Sammy.
"Let's just hope that was a warning." Lucian took a deep breath, clearly still shaken.
Sammy didn't say anything about her father. He would probably laugh at it after having to deal with Blake's shit all of the time. Her punishment would probably be a breeze. She did seem anxious, though, as we got closer and closer to our room.
Dad would have been angry too. I silently wished he was still here to yell at me.
"Hey, are you okay?" Lucian asked, as we were about to climb the stairs to the girls' dorms.
I shook my head, not knowing if I was okay, and he pulled me closer.
His arms felt good, but somehow it didn't lessen my anger. "Everything's going to be okay, I promise. See you tomorrow."
I kissed him quickly on his lips and ran up the stairs.
"Goodnight, guys," Sammy said, and I heard their faint grunts in acknowledgment.
We reached our room and fell onto our beds. I felt as if I could have ripped my pillow into a gazillion pieces. My feelings were so messed up. A part of me felt so angry and the other part worried sick about Becky. I didn't know how to cope with it. How could lightning strike someone and the person still be alive?
"It's okay, Elena," Sammy said, coming over to my bed. "Becky's fine."
I laid my head on Sammy's lap and sobbed. "Becky could have died tonight, and then what?"
Sammy stroked my back softly. "It's going to be fine, you'll see."
We both started as Becky opened the door. Her hair was still fanned out in every direction but I just wanted to hug her.
"Stay away!" she ordered both of us. Her eyes were huge and she held her hands in the air as if she was a mime trapped in aglass box.
"How is this possible?" I yelled, not quite sure what or whom I was furious with.
"Are you okay?" Sammy frowned at me and looked back at Becky with soft eyes.
"I'm fine, I have ascended!" she said.
"You have what?" I was still yelling. What is wrong with me?
"I have ascended." She couldn't hold her tears back anymore.
Sammy stepped closer and reached out to touch her.
She put her hands up in the air again, backing away and sobbing. "Don't touch me!"
We just stood there in silence and waited for Becky to calm down. Sammy kept cooing that it was going to be okay and it began to calm her.
Becky took a deep breath. "Constance said that I still have so much electricity running through me that I can power up the entire Academy for a whole week. She actually thought about doing that." New tears streamed down her face and left small sparks in their wake. She didn't even flinch.
I guess she was really immune to it. The image of Constance wiring Becky to draw the electricity from her formed in my mind. It made it hard not to laugh.
"They're phoning my mom as we speak," she explained.
"It's going to be okay, Becky," Sammy said again for the millionth time.
"No, it's not!" she yelled. "Don't you guys get it? I can manipulate lightning. That's my power, stupid freaking lightning."
Sammy and I looked at her as if she had fried some of her brain cells too.
"I would give my left toe for an ability like yours," I said truthfully, irritated that she was so unhappy when all I wanted was to fit in.
She threw me a glare that made me feel like I was back in Master Longwei's office. "You still don't get it, Elena. I have the power of lightning. It means my dragon is a Moon-Bolt. The only one available in this school is George.