This was my first dragon book that I wrote. Oftentimes my inspiration comes from two places: Dreams, and what if?
Dreams are funny things. I don’t write down all my dreams. Some of them I roll over, open my laptop, and start typing out, and I can never quite get the feeling of intensity I had when I was dreaming, but a story comes from that snippet. Flip Side 1 came from a dream, the scene where the kidnapping at the end happens. There were other strange details that did not make any sense (like somehow my high school basketball gym was the setting for it?), but that snippet spawned a book and then a series.
My other main inspiration is what if? I walk by a classroom and the light is on, but it’s empty. “No one’s there,” I think to myself. Then I think, “What if there was? Who is in there and why can’t I see them?” Then I go back to my room and type up 30 pages. (True story, by the way. Didn’t complete that one.)
This story was neither. I was sitting in a car on a long ride and said to myself, “I like dragons. Why don’t I write a book about dragons?” That’s how we get here, with Seyda and Windsong.
Chapter 1
Hatching a dragon is a big responsibility for a fifteen-year-old. Raising one is too, but the hatching came first. So, at fifteen years, I was sitting in a room, watching the egg with all the attention of a cat on its prey. Next to me was a bag with semi-cooked meat. The baby wouldn’t get sick on this, but it would get a taste for raw meat.
In the large dish on my other side was a mixture of liquids that was milk-based and would promote health and growth. All this sat on a warm, sand floor, which would cushion the egg and help provide warmth. I sat on a blanket, where I would stay until it hatched.
The egg wasn’t as tall as I was, but was wider with a pearly sheen to it, and according to the adult dragons the shell was very thin. That was the biggest sign that hatching was imminent. According to the lessons on hatchings we’d gotten, the eggs had a thick layer of a gel-like substance that the dragon ate as it grew inside the egg. When all the substance had been eaten, the dragon would break out of the shell and try to find food.
For five hours, I sat on the blanket and waited. I’d spent the time studying the egg, watching for any sign of movement, trying to see something. When the other nine hopeful Dragonriders had come in and been shown the eggs, this one had called me. It wasn’t the biggest; it didn’t stand out other than something in my gut had said this was the one for me. That feeling was still there and I hoped fervently that I wasn’t imagining it, occasionally speaking to the baby dragon inside the egg. There had been sounds that emerged from the egg, scratches, muffled cries, and then the hatching suddenly started.
We’d been taught that some hatchings took longer than others. This one was very quick. The scratching stopped, and then the baby dragon used the spike on its head and rammed it through the shell. A chunk flew up in the air, another, then the egg cracked. The baby rammed a few more times, then I saw a scaly paw poke out of the hole, bronze in color.
My breath caught in excitement. Bronze dragons were said to be special and very rare. Of all the dragons, in the unofficial ranking order, bronze dragons were at the top. I’d be lucky to have a bronze choose me.
With one last thrust, the egg split in two, and the baby rolled into one of the halves. I held my breath in anticipation. The shell rocked for a minute, then an irritated cry came from the shell. I stood and slowly approached. “Hey, there,” I called softly.
The rocking stopped, and a curious cry echoed off the walls.
“It’s okay,” I called. “I’m Seyda.” Cautiously, I approached the shell. I remembered at the last minute not to stick my fingers over, because the dragon hadn’t eaten yet and it would mistake my fingers for food. “You can do it,” I encouraged. “All you need to do is roll out of the shell, and then you can eat.”
Now it gave a hungry, demanding cry and rocked the shell more violently.
“That’s right,” I answered, putting all the confidence I had into my tone. “You’re almost there.”
With one last violent heave, the shell broke and my dragon came into view.
I stared in wordless fascination. The dragon was barely shorter than me, but that didn’t count the tail. Its hide was a beautiful, unmistakable bronze and it had ivory-colored claws on all four feet. The ivory spike on its head was the same color, short, and its eyes were a stormy grey with hunger.
I was brought out of the trance by the demanding cry as it stumbled forward. I moved to the dish filled with liquid, giving encouragement as it staggered on all four feet. The hatchling stopped at the edge and started to drink. Racing to the bag, I pulled out the chunks of meat I’d already cut up. As it finished the liquid, I tossed in the chunks, and it snapped them up greedily, the head darting for them like a snake.
When it had filled, it raised its head and inspected me, eyes now a curious dark blue. I stood still as it approached. I could now see the neatly folded wings on the back, the same bronze shade, and I knew when they spread, they would be as long as the body.
It stopped a step in front of me, looking me over curiously. I still didn’t move, waiting. The dragon would have to make the next move. If it believed I would make a good Dragonrider and a good caretaker, it would choose me. If it didn’t, if something made me unfit to be a Dragonrider for this particular dragon, it would leave and find another. There were several dragons and other hopefuls that might make good Dragonriders. And bronze dragons were notoriously choosy.
Finally, it stretched its neck and touched its nose to my forehead.
I’d never experienced a mind-link before, but I felt one forming at that moment. She, because I knew now that it was a she, formed the invisible tie that linked our minds together for silent communication, and with it was the emotional bond that would stay with us until death.
“You are Seyda,” she said. “Who am I?”
I remembered the ringing cries, like music, and the bronze color that made me think of the wind chimes at home. “Windsong,” I offered.
She considered that. “Yes,” she said, pleased. “I am Windsong.”
I left the hatching room with Windsong and went to the main room, where everyone would be waiting. Along one side of the huge room were stands, stretching from the side of the door to the other side of the room and going to nearly the ceiling. I couldn’t guess the number of people that were fit in here. Families, friends, just about anyone in the government who would want to know who the new Dragonriders were, and those who were simply curious packed in with their children and anyone they could bring. It was a dizzying wave of people. As I headed for that room, I passed doorways on either side that lead to other, smaller rooms beyond.
When I stepped into the light with Windsong, there were gasps and murmurs.
“Why are they excited?” Windsong asked curiously. I remembered that she, as a dragon, was sensitive to emotions.
“Because you’re a bronze dragon. They aren’t often born.”
She was pleased by this and gave a keening cry, preening a little. I giggled.
The five Elders, sitting in a row on the lowest stands, all nodded. “Seyda, what has your dragon been named?” one of the Elders asked me.
Windsong stretched her neck and sat up. “I am Windsong,” she said. It wasn’t that she spoke aloud, but that she sent her mental voice to everyone. Dragons could control who they spoke to. They could speak to a select few, or to one in particular, or to all of them, and now she spoke to everyone in the stadium, her song-voice ringing.
“And do you, Windsong, accept Seyda as your Dragonrider and caretaker?” the same Elder asked.
“Dragonrider?” Windsong said curiously. “What is a Dragonrider?”
One of the adult dragons, white and about four times Windsong’s size, approached, and leaned down, pressing her nose to Windsong’s forehead in greeting, as Windsong had done to me, and I knew she was speaking to her. After a minute, while Windsong considered this, she said clearly, “Yes. I do.”
“Then, Seyda Yorkson, I welcome you as a Dragonrider.”
There came a roar of approval from the crowd and I flushed in pleasure and excitement. I’d been terrified that Windsong wouldn’t think me capable or fit, but she had accepted me as her Dragonrider. I wouldn’t disappoint her.
Dragons and Dragonriders came out one by one. They announced their names, and smiled as their dragons accepted and their families cheered. Not one was turned down.
I knew there were ten dragon eggs, and therefore, ten dragons. So when I looked and counted nine, I wondered who was last and where they were.
I was answered when I saw the dragons’ heads turn towards the cave entrance. Everyone looked eagerly.
There was a collective gasp as Erik came out, wearing a proud smile, and a second bronze dragon walking beside him. Windsong stretched her neck and trilled in greeting. The bronze trilled back in greeting. But unlike when I’d come out, the excitement was tempered by agitation. Erik stood stoically still, braced as if for a fight, and the other bronze dragon curved almost protectively around him.
As rumble of uneasiness from the crowd grew, Windsong asked, “Why are they not happy now? Are they not happy to have a second bronze dragon?”
“They aren’t happy Erik has a bronze dragon.”
“Why?”
“They don’t think he deserves a bronze dragon. Erik is…very poor and not very connected. They weren’t eager to have him as a Dragonrider, much less have him connect with a bronze dragon.” I didn’t know Erik that well; we’d only met yesterday and for a short time. He was a servant, one of the lowest of the working class, and he had been very lucky to get in despite that he’d worked among dragons.
“He will make a good Dragonrider,” she said with certainty.
“Erik, what has your dragon been named?” There was slight disapproval in the Elder’s voice, as if he were saying, “Erik, what have you done?”
Erik stood his ground, defiant. “He’s been named Firestar.”
“Firestar, do you accept Erik as your Dragonrider and caretaker?”
“I accept him,” Firestar said, his voice full of strength and fire.
There were some enthusiastic cheers, some half-hearted ones, but it was all drowned out by the roar of approval from the dragons. Windsong trilled strongly among the clamor. Erik looked slightly surprised, but pleased by the approval. He’d been around the dragons all his life. Before, he had worked as a servant on and off in this building and occasionally at the Training Center. I didn’t think he’d had any problems convincing the dragons that he belonged here. People were a different story. I was sure it was the fact that the dragons knew him so well that he’d gotten in. The word of a dragon was inarguable.
I decided that I needed to make a statement and stepped forward. If the Elders weren’t going to welcome him, someone needed to. “Dragonrider Erik!” I called. “Do me the honor of standing by me with Firestar!”
His blue eyes flickered with relief as he came to stand by me, Firestar standing on his right. The Elder’s faces looked slightly pinched at my offer of friendship to someone of such low class. I couldn’t help but wonder what my family would think when they heard of tonight. Then all thoughts were swept aside as the middle Elder rose, hands outstretched imperiously.
“Dragonriders,” the Elder said, his voice strong. “Welcome to the Dragonrider Training Center, where you will train with your dragons to defend our nation. You have already achieved much to be here, and you will achieve much more. I congratulate you all on your partnership with your dragons as we all thank you for choosing to be our greatest defense. Dragons, we honor your choice to partner with your human companions and keep the friendship between our races alive. I wish you all success and safety.”
The entire room exploded in cheers, and then the people started to swarm down to congratulate their loved ones, admiring and greeting the dragons.
I turned to Erik. “So, you’re a Dragonrider now,” I said warmly. “Congratulations, Erik.”
He flushed slightly. “Thanks. I never thought I’d get in, much less that a bronze dragon would choose me.”
“I’m glad he did,” I said sincerely.
“When will we be moving into the Dragonrider barracks?” he asked.
“I don’t know. It has to be soon. After all, our dragons have to sleep somewhere.”
We both looked at our dragons while they inspected each other, sniffing, trilling, and speaking silently to each other. Firestar was a little bigger than Windsong, but she was more graceful, every movement looking like it was choreographed to music.
“Dragonriders!” This was from a man five years my senior, hair a sandy blond with stunning blue eyes, and the mark of a Dragonrider on his right wrist. I instantly felt my heart skip a beat because his eyes were trained directly on me. The man turned his gaze to Erik, then smiled at both of us. “I’m to show you to the Training Center. If you would come with me?” He nodded to a door in the back. “I’ll help you settle in.”
“How come you don’t have anyone congratulating you?” Erik whispered as we made our way around the throngs of people.
I flushed. “It’s…complicated. You?”
His face tinged with red. “Same.”
“So, I’m Danny Cantle,” the Dragonrider said as we exited the building, crossing the sandy ground towards the very tall, circular building close by. We passed by the dozens of carriages who would carry everyone home. The few people who had already left the building stopped and stared at us and our dragons. “And my dragon’s name is Spiritheart. She’s a white dragon.”
“I’m Seyda,” I said shyly.
“Erik,” he piped up quickly.
Danny smiled at us both. “I know. Congratulations. Right up here.” He started up a ramp winding around the outside of the building. “Windsong, Firestar, if you’ll go straight, please.”
“We aren’t staying with them?” There was a note of worry in Erik’s voice.
“You are. There are different entrances. This one will allow you to see what the Training Center looks like.”
Erik and I followed him. After we climbed the ramp, passing by a few windows that allowed shadowy glimpses of inside, we walked through a door, along a wooden platform, and then we were looking down at what appeared to be entrances to caves or stables for the largest horses I’d ever seen. I quickly realized it was where the dragons stayed. The hard, clay floor was divided into different sections with wooden walls that dropped back into stone and the paths to those rooms disappeared. Above the dragon rooms were rooms for us. The center of the room was clear, covered in marble to the entrance to the caves, and in a large circle, except the walls were straight where each room was, so it was a twenty-sided figure. The walls and walkways that led to each room on our level were made of wood, and the doors to our rooms were made of glass. Windsong and Firestar were standing in the middle, inspecting this new room with interest, and I felt glad to see her.
“You’ll sleep above where your dragons do,” Danny informed us. “And this will be where you stay during your training. Pick.”
Erik and I looked around, then simultaneously looked at our dragons. “Where do you want to stay?” I called to Windsong.
Firestar must have spoken mentally to Erik because he nodded. Both dragons started to explore, poking their heads in the rooms below, making noises of approval or disapproval, or noises I couldn’t identify, and as they circled the room, they both stopped at two caves right next to each other, Windsong’s next to the entrance. “Here,” Windsong told me, and disappeared inside.
Erik and I both made our way down the winding staircases and over to the rooms, with only a narrow window providing separation between the walls of our rooms. Inside I found a bed, a tall, wooden wardrobe, and a cabinet, nothing else.
“Baths are on the upper level,” Danny informed us, standing outside our rooms on the walkway, leaning against the rail. “There’s a bath for men and a bath for women. Tomorrow you’ll be fitted with a uniform and given tools to clean your dragon with. You’re in charge of your dragon’s health, and making sure they’re fed, cleaned, everything for the first two weeks. After that, and you and your dragon get more acquainted, you will begin training to become Dragonriders.”
“What if we don’t know how to take care of a dragon?” I asked, flushing slightly.
Danny chuckled. “That’s what we’re here for. We’ll be making sure you raise your dragons properly.”
“But dragons can survive on their own,” Erik protested. “Why is it so important we take care of them?”
“It is possible for dragons to live alone,” Danny agreed. “But it’s hard, and not all of them make it. The babies need to be taken care of until they learn to fly. More importantly, this is about creating trust between you and your dragon. They have to know they can depend on you, and you can learn what they need, what they like, and both of you will develop a stronger connection. That’s what’s important.”
“Others are coming,” Windsong informed me.
“Is everyone staying here?” I asked.
“Yes. You’ll be staying here and learning to get along and tolerate each other.” He scrutinized us both for a minute. “Success and safety to you both,” he said at last.
I headed down the stairs to Windsong’s cave entrance. I realized that there was a short tunnel, leading downwards, so it was like an actual cave. “I need to get my things,” I called. “Is that all right?”
“Yes,” Windsong said. “I will stay here.”
“I need to get my things too.” Erik headed down the stairs.
We headed to the door and had just stepped outside when I came to a sudden stop. “Maribell?” I got out.
Her pretty face was furious, her green eyes sparking with anger. “Seyda, I ought to kill you!” she cried. “Disappearing like that? I came home and you weren’t there! You’ve been gone for three days and I had no idea where you were!” Her voice hitched, and now I saw tears as well. She’d been truly scared. “I couldn’t find you! You weren’t supposed to leave for school for another week!”
“How did you find me?” I demanded.
“Ulric said he was coming, so I knew that’s where you had to be. Seyda, I swear, you’re insane! What are you doing here?”
I stiffened. “Thank you, Maribell. I’ve become a Dragonrider, and the first thing you do is criticize me.”
“You shouldn’t be here!” she cried again. “You have no idea how to be a Dragonrider!”
“Most people don’t. That’s why they come here,” I said with limited patience, pretending as if I hadn’t just been worried about that very thing. I didn’t want to put up with Maribell right now. My beautiful, perfect, older sister was part of the motivation for my coming here. I wouldn’t be compared to her here, nobody asking me every day why I couldn’t be as smart or successful as her. “This is an honor, Maribell. I would think that you’d understand.”
“Because of Ulric? Because he’s…” she stopped herself before she said what wasn’t supposed to be said in front of others. Erik was watching us with wide eyes, looking like he didn’t know whether to stay and watch or back away and hope he wasn’t noticed.
“Because you know that Dragonriders are important to our nation,” I snapped. “And because it’s one of the highest honors to become a Dragonrider. A dragon has chosen me, Maribell, and not just a dragon, a bronze dragon! She has chosen me to take care of her, to train with her. You know just as well as I do that if we didn’t have Dragonriders, nothing would stop our enemies from coming in and destroying us. We are the best and biggest line of defense our nation has.”
“We,” Maribell said with such heat that it actually surprised me. “You already speak as if you’re one of them.”
“I am one of them! And if you don’t like it, you can go back to your university and be perfect,” I said with nearly as much heat. “Go tell Mom and Dad that Seyda’s done it again. Go be the perfect daughter like you’ve always been.”
“Seyda, that’s unfair. It’s not my fault our parents…”
“What?” I demanded. “That our parents prefer you? That they view me as a failure? That the only thing you apparently think I can succeed at is going to the wife school? I knew they believed it, but I thought you knew me better than that.”
The bitterness in my tone took the wind out of her sails. Maribell had never been good at confrontation. “Seyda, I don’t think that.”
“It sure seems like it.”
“It’s just that this is going to be dangerous,” Maribell pleaded. “I mean, think about it!”
“I didn’t blindly rush into this. I’m not an idiot, Maribell, despite the fact I can’t be as smart as you.”
“Seyda! Stop it! It’s not my fault!”
“No, of course not.”
“Seyda, please!”
“Girls,” came a familiar, deep voice. “Don’t fight. I don’t want to listen to it.”
“Ulric…” Maribell said, turning to him.
Ulric held up one, black hand. “If either of you wakes your sister, you’re both going to be in trouble.” On one shoulder was Betsy, my younger sister, four years old. She’d recently been ill, and so she was asleep on Ulric’s shoulder, her young face peaceful, her golden-blond curls a mess.
“Remember your manners, both of you,” Ulric said calmly. “Seyda, your friend is?”
I flushed slightly. “I’m sorry. Erik, this is my sister, Maribell, and this is my guardian, Ulric Hanson. And that’s Betsy, my little sister, sleeping,” I added. “Ulric, Maribell, this is Erik Brown. We were headed to get our things.”
My guardian nodded to Erik. “Your friends are on the way with yours. I heard them talking on my way here.”
Erik nodded, a sense of relief on his face. “I…um…thanks,” he got out. Ulric was an intimidating sight. Being at eye level with someone’s shoulder tended to make people a little fearful. He had a glare that I was sure could stop a dragon in its tracks.
“If you don’t mind, please excuse us. We need to have a discussion.”
Erik nodded hastily. “I’ll wait inside. Thank you, sir.”
Ulric’s face lightened a little. “Ulric will do fine, Erik. There’s no need for formalities.”
Erik nodded, glanced to me. “Um…I’ll see you later.” It was sort of a question.
“Yes,” I said, sending a glare to Maribell. “You will.”
Maribell and I followed Ulric silently around the Training Center and Erik went back inside. I was the first to speak. “Thanks for coming, Ulric.”
“Ulric, how could you let her go?” Maribell demanded in a whisper. “Mother and Father will be so upset! They have no idea…”
Ulric hushed her as her voice was rising and Betsy was starting to stir. “Maribell, your parents left me in charge of Seyda,” he said calmly. “And I was doing what was in her best interest.”
“By letting her come here? Ulric, being a Dragonrider is dangerous!”
“Like I’ll never be in danger otherwise,” I hissed at her.
“You should be concerned, if not for yourself then for Ulric.”
“Ulric is capable of handling himself,” I retorted. “And he’s not in any danger. Our parents won’t fire him because they don’t trust their family to anyone else, and because they’ll mark it down to my being a failure because I’m not you.”
“What about me?” Maribell checked her tone before she got too loud. “Why didn’t you tell me? I had no idea where you were!”
“You shouldn’t have worried if Ulric wasn’t worried.”
“Ulric never worries.”
I crossed my arms. “If you came hoping to convince me to leave, you’re wasting your time.”
“I just don’t think this place is right for you.”
“Where do you think my place is?” I demanded. “At the marriage school?”
“Ulric,” Maribell pleaded, her green eyes intent on his face. “Tell her she needs to come home.”
Ulric rubbed Betsy’s back as she slept. “That isn’t where she belongs, Maribell. Seyda needs to go out and find where she belongs, and it appears she belongs right here. She wouldn’t be a Dragonrider now if she wasn’t meant to be here.”
“Ulric!”
He shushed Maribell again as Betsy shifted, and we all quieted, watching to make sure she wouldn’t wake up. She didn’t and settled back into sleep with a sigh.
“Being a Dragonrider is like being an Eagle,” he said softly. “It’s a calling. What she has become is part of a privileged calling. It takes the perfect pair to become a dragonriding team, and Seyda seems to be the other half of that perfect pair for her dragon.”
“If she hadn’t come, her dragon would have picked someone else,” Maribell said stubbornly.
I opened my mouth to scream furiously at her, but Ulric’s hand on my shoulder stopped me. “Dragons don’t just choose another,” he said while I seethed. “I’ve heard stories of dragons that waited until they found the right person to connect with. As a bronze, I believe…Windsong is her name, correct?” he inquired.
I nodded, still seething.
“I believe Windsong would have waited until she found Seyda. This is a deep connection, Maribell. This isn’t by chance. Do you think your sister isn’t up to the challenge?”
Maribell let out a sigh. “I think she is.”
“Are you quite certain?” I asked snidely.
“Seyda,” Ulric said gently. “Your sister was concerned about you. Don’t spurn that.”
I glared at the ground.
“I’m sorry,” Maribell said hesitantly.
I suppressed the snort, but barely.
“Maribell, go get Seyda’s things,” Ulric said. “We will wait here.”
Maribell hesitated, then headed off across the sandy ground. Ulric waited until she was gone, then tipped my chin up. “You had her scared,” he said gravely. “You should have told her where you had gone.”
“Then why didn’t you tell her?” I demanded, still hurt by Maribell’s words.
“You are a lady, Seyda, and I treat you as such. You asked me to keep my silence, and I did. Next time, tell your sister.”
I was sure he’d made certain that Maribell would come. He hadn’t told her, but he’d made sure she’d found out. “Do you think I should tell my parents?” I was honestly afraid he’d say yes.
“It’s up to you,” he said simply. “They’ll have to know someday.”
I knew that, but it wasn’t going to be today, or tomorrow, or probably even this month. I wasn’t going to tell them until I was comfortable being a Dragonrider and I was certain they weren’t going to be able to take me from Windsong.
Maribell was slightly out of breath when she came back five minutes later, and she looked irked. “I found Erik’s friends,” she informed us. “One of the Elders was accusing them of stealing his stuff. I had to vouch for them. I swear, the Elders are scum. And you have to put up with them,” she said, handing me one of the bags. “Anyway, that’s what took me so long.”
Betsy shifted on Ulric’s shoulder, let out a cough and settled back down with a fitful whimper. Ulric rubbed her back soothingly. “I’ll take your sister and go back to the carriage,” he said. “Half an hour, Maribell.”
Maribell nodded.
“Give my greetings to Windsong,” Ulric said, then he made his way across the ground Maribell had just covered, leaving us to go inside.
As my room was right next to the stairs, we would have gone straight up and inside, but Maribell paused at the entrance of Windsong’s cave. “May I…meet her?”
There was clear longing on her pretty face. Because I understood a little of that feeling, I nodded and stepped into the cave entrance, just a few steps down the ramp. “Windsong? My sister wants to meet you.”
Windsong padded out on all fours, her eyes back to the curious blue. My sister’s eyes widened as she took in Windsong, and she set the other bags down. “I’m Maribell,” she said, curtseying slightly.
Windsong stopped a few steps from her and sat back, inspecting her gravely. “You are Seyda’s sister?”
“I am. Older by four years.” Maribell looked tentative, and it was rare for her to look unsure about anything. “May I touch you? I’ve never touched a dragon before.”
Windsong looked a little surprised, then she nodded. “It is very strange what she feels,” Windsong observed as Maribell approached. “She is a little afraid, and nervous, and…envious?”
“Maribell? She can’t be envious of me.”
Maribell gently stroked her hand over Windsong’s neck, and Windsong closed her eyes and started to hum quietly. Maribell smiled. “Windsong,” she repeated. “Yes, that’s a good name. You’re beautiful. More beautiful than I imagined.”
Windsong liked this and hummed louder.
There was suddenly an explosion of noise outside the cave, and I realized that it was cheers. Erik’s friends had found him and they were congratulating him as noisily and heartily as they could. Maribell’s hand paused at the noise, and she sighed. “I suppose I should help you move in now.” She let her hand drop with some reluctance. “Thank you, Windsong.”
“I will see you again?” Windsong questioned.
Maribell smiled. “I certainly hope so.”
Windsong nodded in approval and turned and walked back down to her cave, and Maribell and I went up to my room. Maribell looked at it skeptically. “Well, I suppose you have the necessities.”
“Dragonriders are trained to be independent,” I said as I started unpacking. “To survive anywhere. I’m sure the university is nicer than this.”
“It is.” She started making my bed and I moved my clothes to the wardrobe. “I tried to bring the clothes I thought you’d need,” she said at last, breaking the silence. “And I brought a few nice outfits, just in case. Ulric made some suggestions, but I have no idea what you’ll need here.”
“Neither do I,” I admitted.
She placed a pillow on the bed, then picked up the second bag she’d carried. “I did talk to one of the Dragonriders on my way back. He assured me these were the best items used for cleaning dragons, and…I figured you could use them.” She unrolled the leather sack to show a series of items, sturdy and gleaming brightly. “Ulric and Betsy and I wanted to get you something,” she said awkwardly. “It’s…only sort of from me since I didn’t even know you were becoming a Dragonrider, but I hope you don’t mind.”
I stared at them, a lump in my throat. “Thanks,” I said at last. “A lot. This will be great.”
Maribell cleared her throat uncomfortably. “I…ah, I have to…oh, I’m messing this up,” she burst out. She hugged me tightly. “Success and safety, Seyda. I’m sure you’ll be the best Dragonrider ever.”
I hugged her back tightly. “Thanks, Maribell,” I whispered.
She pulled back and shouldered her now-empty knapsack. “You’re welcome. I’ll see you soon, I hope.” She smiled, her green eyes shone a little brighter than usual, and then she hurried out in a swirl of skirts and blond hair.
Other Dragonriders made their way here, now free of family and friends and carrying their things. Their dragons investigated the caves not yet taken, they seemed to know which ones were already chosen, and settled in as their Dragonriders settled in the room above. Other senior Dragonriders escorted them in, answered their questions, but then quickly enough we all started to turn in for the night.
Erik knocked cautiously on my door. “Hey,” he said hesitantly. “Everything all right?”
I looked up from arranging my clothes in the trunk. “Yeah. I’m sorry about that. Maribell didn’t know I was coming.”
“I got that. Is everything all right between you two?”
“As much as it ever was.” I blew a strand of hair out of my face. “She’s usually much nicer.”
“She’s really pretty.” His tone was slightly wistful. I rolled my eyes. They all thought so, with her big green eyes and sweet temperament. Apparently she didn’t even need the temperament to get boys to fall for her.
“I’ll be sure to let her know,” I said dryly.
He shrugged, slightly embarrassed. “Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow,” I replied, and he headed to his room next door, and I stood, closing the trunk.
I’d rearranged my room so that the view from my doorway showed my bed at the back of the room, my wardrobe to my right, next to the floor-to-ceiling wooden cabinet, and my trunk sat at the end of my bed. There was one little stand, where a new candle sat. I didn’t bother to light it, but as the sun disappeared, I drew the dark green curtain over the glass and settled in bed, staring at the dark ceiling. And with a sudden giddy smile, I closed my eyes. I’m a Dragonrider!