The ancient Fae looks at me, his eyes probing. "Arianna Spero, your spirit is untrained, young and impetuous. From what I've heard, he is much like you."
I bristle at that. "It is not through any fault of ours that we are young and untrained," I say.
A grin plays on his lips. "And impetuous?"
"Often an insult levied at the bold by those too set in their ways to take chances or seek change," I say.
He nods. "I heard many tales of you last night, some favorable, many not. It is good to see the truth of things in your eyes. It seems my people have indeed become too set in their ways to see the Wild One in you."
He flicks his fingers, and the owl lands on his left hand, gripping the brown leather fashioned there. "This is Zyra, my Air Spirit. She is ancient, wise, and… very proper." The owl flashes him a look. A frown? The eyebrows are very expressive. Varis grins. "It will be interesting to see how your Yami does with her."
Yami screeches at the sound of his name, and I make hushing sounds at him, hoping to soothe the spirit. "You can see my dragon?" I ask.
Varis nods. "He has shown himself to me and Zyra. But it is critical he show himself at the presenting this evening."
"He won't," I say. "No one can see him but you and I."
"That is why you must train. I will teach you how to harness and control your powers, how to wield your spirit for the greatest good. Are you ready to learn?"
I nod.
"Very good," he says, hopping back to the rock. "We will begin with the simplest of castings. That of Illusion. Madrid told me you will be returning to the Seven Realms. You will need Illusion to hide your true identity from the demons. This is a casting our youngest Fae learn as children, so it should not take you long."
Famous last words, Druid. Famous last words.
I am stiff, cold, tired and hungry, and still I sit in lotus, meditating on the 'ember within that burns with magic.'
There is no ember.
There is no burning.
There is no magic.
I'm beginning to fear I do not have enough Fae blood in me to be what these people need. I tell Varis, and he shakes his head. "Yami would not have come to you if that were true. I would not have woken. The ember is within you, but it is buried deep. We must bring it to the surface."
"If you say so." He and I haven't done much talking, and there is much I'd like to ask him about, but the training comes first, and apparently the training involves silence and meditating.
A bell sounds in the distance, and Varis stands. "That is all for today. You must return to your room and prepare for the presenting this evening."
I stand and stretch the parts of my body that have fallen asleep. All of them. Yami yawns and snuggles deeper into my hair. He slept through most of the day, lucky dragon.
Varis turns to the exit.
"Wait," I say. "What do I feed Yami?"
"Feed?" He raises an eyebrow. "I’m sorry. I forget how little you know of our ways. Yami will eat meat. He will eat a lot. Be prepared."
I glance at the little dragon, not quite believing Varis. "He hasn't had much food yet…"
"He is a spirit, but he has taken physical form. Soon, he will begin to crave physical things. Keep him fed and exercised. Oh, and he likes it if you tickle his spikes."
I try some tickling, and Yami purrs in his sleep. "Thank you, Varis. Will you be there, at the presenting?" I ask.
He nods.
I fidget with my hands. "I won't have to undress, will I?"
He frowns. "Why ever would you have to undress for a presenting?"
I let out a sigh of relief. "Don't ask."
Madrid informs me the presenting will occur in the Crystal Palace, so we must fly back. Asher escorts me to Gryphon International, and says others will follow soon. It seems the golden gryphon remembers me, and I certainly remember him—particularly the sharpness of his claws. I climb on him gingerly, but soon find that I haven't lost my delight in flying. Yami wraps his tail around my arm and opens his wings, taking pleasure in the wind pushing against him as we soar. He never lets go of me though; it seems my dragon has yet to learn how to fly.
Once back at the Palace, Asher escorts me to my room where a staff of three await. Once again I'm scrubbed, pampered and dressed, this time in a silver gown with a long train covered in rhinestones. My hair is pinned and braided and curled until Asher deems it perfect, then he sets a small velvet box on my dresser. I open it and catch my breath.
He smiles. "This crown has been in your family for more years than you can imagine, princess." It's a delicate platinum circle of vines, with small leaves embedded with emeralds and accented with tiny sapphire flowers. He sets it on my head and weaves it into my hair so it doesn't fall off.