Page 51 of Under Restless Skies

We’re walking away from that dreadful office, when I whisper, “Is Commander Mallor the person who doesn’t want me to join the academy? He’s the one who sent me to the cleaning crew, right?”

Alayel bites his lip, his expression thoughtful. “Maybe. I wasn’t sure at first if it was his orders or someone else’s, but… Maybe.”

“I don’t understand why.”

He shrugs. “Me neither. Who knows, maybe he likes your stew at the Grease & Spice?”

The idea sounds ridiculous, but then… “He mentioned the restaurant. He knew my name. Even knew I worked there. But I’m not the only cook.”

“I don’t know. It makes no sense to me.”

“If it is because of my stew, that’s extremely unfair.”

Alayel clicks his tongue. “Life isn’t fair.”

“I sort of noticed it.”

“We’ll make it fair.” He gives me that breathtaking smile again. “Where are you headed?”

“I don’t even know.” Amidst my confusion, my gloomy bedroom comes to mind, as if calling me. “My room, I guess, for now. Then I’ll… walk around.”

“I have to get down to class. To get to your room, climb two floors, and turn right.” He points to a door leading to a staircase. “What do you say we go out tonight? For dinner?”

That sounds so intimate, so… And yet I’m not even sure it makes sense.

“Are we allowed to leave the academy?”

“I am. And so are you, if you’re with me, or on your days off.”

I can’t deny that he makes my heart beat faster. Perhaps I shouldn’t feel anything for him, and then perhaps getting to know him isn’t the end of the world. Maybe I’ll convince myself he’s an asshole and stop swooning. And there’s another reason why his invitation sounds tempting.

“Can I pass by the restaurant? To see my brother?”

He blinks. “Of course. We can leave after the storm, so you have time to see your family, and we can catch up. Don’t fall asleep where you shouldn’t.”

“I won’t.”

He goes down the stairs, while I climb, unsure what I’m going to do this afternoon. No. I am sure. The eggs come to mind again; I’ll find a way to slip into that strange room to check on them and smother the fires if they’re too hot.

But first, I head to my bedroom. The confrontation has left me drained, and now I need a moment of quiet, a moment to recompose my thoughts. Can I even think, knowing I’m going to have dinner with Alayel?

I turn my key, open the door—and a flicker of movement in the shadows stops me cold.

The shadow moves over my bed again.

Is it an intruder? A rat? I close the door, then lift the lumos jar, casting its light across the room. Something dark crawls on the bed. I should be scared, but instead, I’m drawn to it.

As the jar illuminates the shape, I wonder if I’m going insane—or dreaming.

A tiny dark blue dragon is moving on my bed. I reach out and feel smooth, warm skin under my fingers, then pick up the hatchling and bring it to my lap. It’s the cutest thing ever, barely bigger than my palm, with tiny, semi-transparent wings. And it’s a girl; I feel it.

Ava, I decide to name her. She wiggles, then rests her tiny head on my lap, and makes a sound like a chirp. I bring her up to my heart, holding her little body carefully with both hands. She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

And yet it doesn’t make sense. How did she get here, when the eggs were a few floors below? How did she enter, if the door was locked? Sure, there are master keys, but a baby dragon wouldn’t have one.

Would Alayel have placed her here, to cheer me up? Does he even know where the eggs are? But I don’t think he’d take this kind of risk.

“Ava, how did you get here?” I whisper.