chapter 19

Lucian's promise to Blake

The weekend flew by. I knew by Sunday night, something was really wrong with Lucian. He didn't even come to say hallo, but then again, he didn't said on Friday goodbye either. Could he really be that Shallow.
            I found him Monday morning in the cafeteria and was surprised when he got up to give me a kiss. "I hate going away on weekends" he mopes.
            "When did you get back?"
            "Late last night, my mom's birthday is next Saturday and it was chaos with all the event planners there that Emanuel only had time to drop me off around ten. Why? You missed me" he was himself and felt that I could breathe again.
            "Yes, a lot" I reply and kiss each other softly before I went to the buffet line to grab some breakfast.
            He was close that afternoon with Arianna. She didn't like it one bit but kept her comments to herself today.
              Sammy and Becky rehearse the most common protection spell there is. It's one of the star spell and it's only purpose is to sting people. A must for every beginner.
             It was the very first time anything I said worked.  Arianna didn't like it one bit and try to hit it off her like it was bee's stinging her.
            Tuesday was Cheng's turn. We spoke about the Rubicon. Not just Blake but the previous one too. “So they waited almost a thousand years for Blake?”
            “Yes, the new Rubicon will hatch a thousand years after the previous one dies. There was some that welcomed his birth and others that were scared. The Seer got his foretelling as his egg started to hatch. She saw that he might be different but needed to be claimed in a certain time.”
            “How many Rubicon's were there in total.”
            “There were four that we know of but the museum in Elm only carries two” he answered.
            "How did the previous one died?"
            “ He was evil and killed by a knight with the name of William. He became the first king after he slay it. The people celebrated for a whole month” and I raised my eyes out of surprise.
            “A whole month.”
            “Yes, I can just imagine how wasted they must have been” he jokes and we both laugh. “Have you ever been in the museum of Etan?”
            “No, the first time that I went to Elm, we were too busy with shopping and there was no time to go.”
            “If I get tickets will you come with me Saturday.”
            “To the museum” I sound exited. Lucian's mom's birthday jumps to my mind and I know I'm not going to be invited to it. All the invitation has gone out already.
            “Yes Elena” he chuckles and I nod my head. “Okay, I will ask Master Longwei to make the arrangements. Usually if it is for educational purposes he makes a few calls."
            “That will be so cool. Will it help me understand things better?” He nods his head.
            “Everything is in that museum. So much history.”
            “Then I can’t wait” I smile. We call it a day and he told me to meet him at the main gate early Saturday morning.
            I enter the dorm whistling. The  two girls just look at me.
            “What” I protest. “I really like spending time with Cheng.”
            “Elena, he is a geek.”
            “So, he is the geek that is going to help me pass History Becky.”
              She rolled her eyes and went back to her pedicure.  “Just don't fall for Cheng Elena. Lucian is already worried about the other guys tutoring you.
            "What is that suppose to mean?"
            "Nothing, I'm just saying." I rolled my eyes.
            Wednesday morning I met Lucian for our two mile run again. I was glad that everything is okay between us, he really scared me.
            "Why are you so quiet today" he asks as if he could read my mind.
            "I was scared after I told you about my mom that you would leave me."
            He stops and gave me a chance to take a break. I got pushed up against a tree and saw the serious glance in his face. "Nothing about your past would ever make me leave you, you get that." I nod my head, scared that my voice will break. "Why would you think that Elena" he asks after a couple seconds.
            "You were in your own little bubble on Friday and didn't even said goodbye" I sulk.
            "You didn't get my message" he asks with a big question mark dented on his forehead. "Off course you didn't. I'm sorry, that will never happened again. Emanuel didn't give me time to say goodbye" he gives me a short explanation. "But still I don't like the way you think about me Elena."
            "I didn't know what to think Lucian" I didn't want to fight. "You should have seen it through my perspective, the look on your face when I told you about my mom and the way you distant yourself off during Friday. I didn't like that and don't know what else to think."
            "I thought about you and what it must have been like for you" he replies and I got a lump inside my throat. He really is a dream.
            "Well if you told me that then I would not have had such a horrible weekend."
            "You think your weekends are the only horrible ones" he finally jokes. "Come with me to my mom's birthday please" he begs.
            I stare at him with big eyes.
            "You told them about me?"
            "Not really but thought that this weekend might be the perfect time" he smiles.
            "No Lucian. Please don't do that to me or to them. I am sure me being dragon offspring is hardly something they want for you" my voice breaks and I struggle to swallow. "Besides, I'm not good with the lime lights and fame. I'm more of the hiding type if you get what I mean" I try to joke but fail miserably.
            "What do you mean by hiding" he wanted to know and I cringe. I should have known that he was going to read more into that sentence.
            "My dad use to run every three months. I don't know why" I add on quickly, knowing he is going to ask that question.
            "He moved every three months" he asks surprised. I nod my head. I really don't want to get into this too. "Where did you stay Elena."
            I kept quiet for a long time. I really didn't want to tell him. His hand fold around mine and pulls me back into his arms. "Nothing will make me stay away from you."
            My teeth dents into my lower lip and I took a deep breath as he was looking down at me. He lifts up my chin softly. "Where did you stay" he asks again in a soft whisper.
            "Motels" I answer and could feel my eyes stinging up again. He daps one softly with his thumb and kiss me gently.
            "No that wasn't so hard, was it" he jokes softly and I give him a soft smile. "So you are not into the lime light and fame huh." His smile was back and I giggle.
            "Hell no" I joke back.
            "That is something we have to fix otherwise it's going to become a huge problem Elena." I had to suppress my smile. "You know if it was any other girl, they wouldn't hesitate to come to this party."
            "I'm not any other girl" I snap back playfully but hate how people always weight me up against others.
            "That you are" he agrees and I laugh. I was in his arms again. "It is one of the reasons I'm so crazy about you."
            "You crazy about me now" I flirt and my heart start to bounce fast as he bite his lower lip. Crap that is so hot.
             "You know you makes me crazy" he admits and I just kissed him. It was a long one and we were out of breath when we were done.
            "No running today" and he chuckles.
            "There is still time" and he taps me hard on my a*s and runs away. The chase was really stupid because he was crazy fast, but stopped and run on one spot to give me a chance to for me to gain up.
            We laugh and joke the whole time, did again like a trillion sit ups and head back to the dorms. He started to tell me about the vow of silence and how it can enhanced his hearing ability.
            "They said that Queen Catherine took a vow of silence for five months. My father said that nobody knew where she was in that time and that she fell so deep into it that she hardly spoke when she came back." It would suck if Lucian doesn't speak anymore.
            "And why do you want to do that" I ask.
            "Thought it might be useful for trying to claim Blake again."
            Cheng's theory popped in my head.
            “You know Cheng, he helps me with History” and he nods his head.
            “He doesn’t believe that anybody would claim Blake” he took the words out of my mouth. “Just like everyone never believed King Albert would be able to claim any dragon."
            "What do you mean" I ask, the way he said it was completely different to Cheng's version. He smiled.
            "He wasn’t born with a mark Elena.”
            “What.”
            “You heard me. He never had the mark. Deep down in his heart it didn’t matter. He always believe what is in here” and he taps on his chest. “If your mind and heart is in the same place you can do whatever you want.”
            “But didn’t you have to be special to claim a dragon with abilities?”
            “Or just really smart” he replies. "Why do you think Master Longwei allows the rich to pay so that their non gifted kids can attend Dragonia."
            I huff. I remember Becky was complaining about that at Jimmy's. Did she meant King Albert? 
            "He really claimed a Night Villain without a mark” and he nods his head. “How did he do that?”

            “It is one of the legends you will cover soon. Some say that he studied one for years. King Albert was really good with his hands, enhancing equipment was his specialty. He made a shield of the thickest metal that helped him with blocking their acid breath and slob. They are veil dragons and why he chose a Night Villain, no one knew.”
            “What do they look like?”
            “Extremely ugly, their faces look burnt. It’s almost like they aren't immune to the acid themselves. It’s said it was one of the reasons King Albert chose the Night Villain.”
            “So he claim one of the most evil dragons just by studying them for a long time” and he nods his head.
            “ That is how I know that deep down inside I don’t have to be the royalty that the Seer was talking about.”
            “But the Seer said that only the spawn of King Albert and Queen Catherine can claim Blake."
            “Elena, didn’t you hear anything I just said” he asks.
            “The Seer has never been wrong” I reply.
            “I don’t care. She will be with this. I have to claim him” he didn’t look at me when he said that.
            “Why on earth do you want to claim him?” I started to lose my patience. I stopped but he still carried on for a couple of feet.
            “Because he used to be my best friend.” He says as he turns around to face me. It took a long time for it to sink in. I struggle to imagine Lucian and Blake walking arm in arm next to each other the way Becky and Sammy always does.
            “You used to be best friends!”
            “Yes, both our fathers serve in King Albert's court. We used to play outside while they were attending meetings."
            “Why are you no longer friends?”
            The look on his face tells me that it is not an easy topic for him to talk about. “It’s not his fault Elena. It’s the dark side that starts to take over. He hardly has control over it. I promised him when we were thirteen that I will do anything in my power to try and claim him” he replies. He stroke his face hard, maybe to hide a tear or he started to realize how difficult that promise is to keep.
            “I am so sorry Lucian. I didn’t know.” He gives a crooked smile.
            “No one does, accept for Sammy. If I have to tell you how many times we tried to ditch her a*s, I would be lying." I giggled imagining them as children, running away from a small babble mouth.
            “So when did you stop being friends?”
             “More or less the same time that we came here” he says. “My first claim was right after we enrolled. It’s against the law to participate in a claim before you're sixteenth birthday and on mine I tried for the first time. I was down for two weeks” he boast.
            “You mean he almost killed you” and he laughed.
            “Trying to claim a dragon that doesn't belong to you does have risks but we both know it is not impossible.”
            “Lucian why don't you wait till you ascend first” I beg him.
            “I might not even ascend Elena” he answers. “ You know my mark isn't that dark."
             “Then how are you going to use Blake's powers once you have claimed him” my tone was full of concern mixed up with question and disbelieve.
            “It is not mine to use, so it become his” and I frown.
            “I don't understand.”
            “If someone claims a dragon that does  not share the same ability, then it becomes  the dragon's. Emanuel told me that. He also said that it hurts when my father claimed him because they shared the same ability. My dad is a fire fighter but he believes that it would've been ten times worse if they were dents. I think it's why Becky fell."
            “So, you think that has to happened.”
            “ The more I see it takes place, the more that theory makes sense. Like it's their way of surrendering" he replies.
            “What is Blake's ability" I ask thinking that Becky told me he is all of the dragons in one.
            "He's got so many that no one knows. But he used three on me in the two times I  tried to claim him."
            "Three" I shriek. "So he might have more?" he just smiled. "Lucian what if you are just wasting your time. I mean you know of only three. What if he use another one that might claim your life" I sound frantic. My hands got somehow tangled with my hair. I knew that we are about to have our first fight and it's all about a stupid dragon that only cares about himself.
            "Elena, I got no choice. I promised him" he start sounding frustrated.
            "You were only kids."
            "I can't break my promise and let him become evil. Urgh! Forget it, you are just a girl. You will never understand."
            I was glad that we were close to the main building because otherwise I would never got my way back. I felt like crying. He is so stubborn.
            I sigh as I realized today was Wednesday and I am sure that Lucian won't show up this afternoon.
            There was no sign of him during breakfast. Boris a third year came towards our table. He is one of Cheng's friends. “Becky, Master Longwei wants to see you in his office.”
             She jumps up excitedly and done a happy dance before running with George in the direction of the headmasters office. "I think her saddle just arrived" Sammy whispers and I try to look happy.
            The bell rings and the day went really fast. I found Lucian at lunch and decided to suck it up and apologize.
            "Lucian. I am sorry about this morning. I don't want to fight with you" I try to make it sincere as I sit down at his table. It's not easy to say those words. Dad was always the one apologizing. Now that I think about it, he hasn't had reason to be any of them. "If King Albert could claim a Night Villain then you can claim the Rubicon."
            It was a lie, I didn't believe that he could but he needs to think that I didn't doubt him.
            "Sorry too babes. I shouldn't have lost my temper like that. It's not very knightly at all to yell at a damsel in distress" and I giggle as he cupped my face and kiss the tip of my nose softly.
            "Well hopefully I won't be one in a month's time" I reply.
            "How's things going with Latin?" he asks and I curled my lip.
            “You mean what kind of a teacher is your buddy" I whispers. "He is a maniac when it comes to Latin. Get's a hernia every single time I pronounce one word wrong.” 
            He grins. "Latin is like sex to Blake. It has to be perfect" and I blush.
            "Way too much information." I blush scarlet red and tried to hide my face.
            Lucian roars with laughter. "Don't do that. I think I just got my new favorite feature of yours" he teases and kiss my cheeks.
            "Don't, it's stupid" I giggle as he kept on kissing me playfully.
            "So what, you blush every time someone says sex" and I blush again which make him gloat.
            "Stop that" I mumbles. He rest his head on my shoulder and looks at me through his thick eyelashes. His blue eyes bouldering into my soul.
            "Blake will warm up to you Elena. He is not the bad guy here."
            "If you tell me he is just confused, I will kick you" and he chuckles.“I am sure I can fail one subject.”
            “Latin is not one of those subjects” and I complain.“You need to speak it at least fifty present at the end of the year.” I wanted to scream but bite my tongue.
            “I don’t want to speak stupid Latin” and he laughed softly.
            “Everything is connected to Latin, I am afraid you have no choice” he plays with a strand of my hair and placed it back behind my ear.
            “Whatever.”
            He smiles and shake his head. He looks straight ahead and squint his eyes at someone that make me turn my head to see who it was.
            "What is that about" I ask as I saw the table with Blake's usually crowd. The red head, who's name I think is Brian looked away the minute I looked.
            "You are not just driving me nuts" he whispers and I blush again, remembering what Becky and Sammy told me about Brian.
            "You worried about Brian" I ask.
            "Why do you think I'm walking you to every class. The guy is effing hot, and it's wrong in so many ways for me to think that, not to mention saying it out loud" and I roared with laughter.
            "You are so cute when you are jealous" I snicker and he laughs too. I grab jaw with one of my hands and turn his head to look at me. "I only have eyes for you Lucian McKenzie." I kissed him softly and