Theron tented his fingers together, staring down his ally. It was not a creature he would ever have considered himself working with before, but hard times called for hard decisions. It was, also, hard to deny that he and the creature wanted the same thing, in some respects at least. Both were looking for the fall of the dragons (each for their own reasons, but the end goal was the same so reasons didn't really matter) and Theron was, in addition to this, looking to recapture his Clan and, more importantly, his Huntsgirl.
He still felt bitterness rise within him at the thought of her. She had abandoned him, thrown him to the side like some useless low-level Huntsboy cadet. He was nothing of the sort. He was Theron and he would forever be her Master.
He just needed to remind her of it.
His eyes met the red ones of his ally – the Dark Dragon. It was merely by coincidence the two had run into one another, and it was merely fate that they had held off killing one another long enough to have a conversation and to realize they could work together.
Of course, Theron was planning on killing him once he was no longer of use but that was neither here nor there.
"A Dragon Council meeting, you say," Theron hummed. "Can we get near the place?"
"It would … be a risk," the Dark Dragon purred. "I suppose we could but is it worth dying over?"
"You don't think we'll learn anything of use?"
"The Council is full of puffed up, useless dragons," the Dark Dragon snorted. "Hardly worth listening to. Our efforts would be better concentrated on what we're going to do once they return from the Council meeting."
"I want her," Theron growled. "You will not dissuade me from this fact. I want to capture her and bring her back here."
"An enemy in our territory is definitely preferable," the Dark Dragon remarked sarcastically.
"I will turn her into an ally. I will bring her around to our side. The Huntsgirl has merely lost her way."
The dragon growled, deep in the back of his throat. "I will give you this, but only because in the last year and a half, you have not been wrong on anything."
"I'm not about to start," Theron muttered darkly.
She would be his again.
(-.-)
"Watching that never gets old."
Rose straightened as the deep voice came from the shadows of the training center. A smile graced her lips. "Watching what, Kyle?"
"You train," the dark skinned boy shook his head. "I'll always be jealous that we didn't get the enhanced reflexes and whatnot that you did."
"It was a stretch that it would happen at all," Rose reminded him. She strode over to him, plucking the water bottle out of his offering hand. "Plus, I don't know if you'd want them – to be honest, it's a little freaky."
She remembered back to when her enhanced senses had first begun to emerge. She remembered how scared she had been when she had gone out for a jog and had ended up outdistancing a passing vehicle. The enhanced hearing had kept her wincing at anything above a whisper for days; as the more powerful sight had kept her in sunglasses for over a week.
Kyle shrugged. "I still think it would be interesting."
"Where's Nicholas?" Rose inquired. It was becoming rarer and rarer to see the duo together since their duties often kept them in different corners of the Clan but it had done nothing to lessen the bond the boys had developed.
"It's his turn for Suggestion Day," Kyle explained, referencing the day – once a month – when any Clan member could come forward and make suggestions on how to improve the Clan.
"Poor guy," Rose sympathized. Though she liked getting to know her Clan members, Suggestion Day was tedious at best.
"So," Kyle said as the two exited the training grounds, heading toward Rose's room so she could change out of her work out clothes. "Are you going to be travelling again anytime soon?"
Rose shook her head. Since the prophecy had come to pass a little over a year ago, and she had been named Huntsmistress, she had been travelling to all of the Huntsquarters around the globe, establishing her authority as well as putting several new policies in place. Since the Huntsclan was no longer going to be hunting magical creatures but, rather, helping them, it was taking a lot of readjustment.
"I need to be home for a little while," Rose revealed.
"You mean you need to hook up with your boyfriend."
Rose smirked at the boy's gall. "Don't you have somewhere you need to be?"
Kyle recognized the dismissal. "Ah…probably. Later, Huntsmistress Rose!"
"Later, Huntsboy Kyle."
Rose went into her room and took a deep breath. She changed out of her workout clothes and put on something more respectable. She checked her cell phone and found a text message from Jake.
Jake: u still want 2 go 2 Spuds lake cottage
Rose: yes
Jake: we r leavin 2
Rose: I'll be ready.
Jake: need 2 b picked up from the clan?
Rose: Yes
Jake: c u then
Rose smiled. Though she would never be a normal teenager – she had too much blood in her past and too much responsibility on her hands – it was nice to pretend sometimes. And spending the long weekend at Spud's lakeside cottage with Spud, Trixie, and Jake seemed like a perfect thing to be doing, especially since she hadn't seen her two friends or her boyfriend in months due to aforementioned responsibilities. It was time to take three days and pamper herself before something else came up and tore her attention away again.
She summoned Nicholas and Kyle to her bedroom as she packed.
"Take the blue bathing suit," Nicholas advised as the two sauntered into her room.
"Much more flattering," Kyle added.
Rose dropped the red suit she'd had in her hand in favour of the one they had recommended. "I didn't ask you two here so you could critique my outfit choices," she grumbled.
"And yet you listen to us."
Rose shrugged. "The point: I'm going away for the next three days."
"Have fun!" Kyle encouraged.
"You deserve a break!" Nicholas agreed.
The two looked at each other and chorused, "Do we get a vacation?"
Rose smirked. "We'll talk when I get back. I just want to make sure that you two are equipped to handle things while I'm gone."
Kyle raised his eyebrows but it was Nicholas who spoke. "Seriously? We handled things while you were on the other side of the world. I'm sure we can continue to handle things when you're an hour and a half away."
"I didn't doubt you," Rose said quickly, zipping up her bag. "But even when I was halfway around the world, we were still able to communicate. I'm not going to have any service."
"We will survive," Nicholas assured her.
"Unless you come back and the Huntsquarters is a pile of ash." Kyle shrugged. "Then he was wrong."
"You two," Rose sighed, though good-naturedly. "Why do I trust you guys again?"
"Who knows."
"Bad judgment, maybe?"
"But then again –"
"We trust you –"
"So what does –"
"That say about –"
"Our judgment."
Rose hated when they finished each other's sentences. It made her head spin and she struggled to keep up with how seamlessly their thoughts blended together.
"You sure you're going to be fine?"
"Yes!" Kyle and Nicholas said together, equally exasperated.
"Go have fun, crazy kid!" Nicholas added.
"I'm older than you," Rose pointed out.
"Only by a year," Kyle retaliated, adding under his breath, "old maid."
"Maybe I should stay here just to kick your ass."
Kyle grinned at her. "That won't be necessary.
"Bye!" Rose waved at them and headed for the elevator.
The ride down was relatively quick and soon Rose found herself on the heated streets of New York. Spud, Trixie and Jake were already waiting for her – Spud's dilapidated van pulled up on the curb. The side door slid open and Jake greeted her with a smile. Rose grinned, unable to hold in her happiness as she leapt into the van next to him.
"Next stop, the lake!" Trixie crowed as a welcome.
Rose was unable to pay her any mind, however, as Jake had pulled her tight to him, kissing her thoroughly.
"No making out in my back seat!" Spud chastised.
"Why?" Rose shot back, "I bet you do it all the time!"
"I hope that's all they do in the back seat," Jake added, just loud enough so that his friends could hear him.
Both Spud and Trixie had the decency to blush.
Their blushing quickly gave way to a squabble over what radio station they were going to listen to. Jake put his arm around Rose, drawing her to him the best they could with their seatbelts tightly around them.
"I missed you."
"I missed you, too." Rose replied, threading her fingers through his. "But I shouldn't have to go anywhere for a while."
"Good." Jake sighed.
"What is it?"
"What?" Jake looked down at her, confusion written on his features.
"Is something wrong?" Rose pressed. "You have a look."
"I have no such thing," Jake argued but Rose continued to stare at him. Eventually, he had to give into her look. "I wasn't going to bring this up until after the weekend."
"Or you could just get it out of the way now," Rose suggested.
"Gramps got a summons from the Dragon Council. We – that is him, Fu, you, and I – are to attend their next meeting to discuss the Huntsclan. Apparently, they think you have us all brainwashed and are manipulating us into revealing magical secrets."
Rose shook her head. Couldn't anyone believe the Huntsclan had changed? She knew it was going to take a long while for the Huntsclan to break out of their previous bad reputation, but it was still disheartening to hear that people were that suspicious of their motives.
"Why do they want me to go?" Rose asked. "The last time Lao Shi received a summons, he simply sent them a copy of Mercer's diary."
"It wasn't enough. They want to discuss things in person."
"I suppose it's fair. If this is going to work, both sides have to be cooperative. Thanks to my travels, all of the Clan members are on board with the new plan of action. We just need magical liaisons in every country to work with ours."
"Which will all be set up at the Council meeting," Jake added.
"One more reason why it has to go perfectly," Rose acknowledged. "When is the Council meeting?"
"Next weekend."
"Where?"
"There's this secret island, only for dragons. It's there."
"Do I get any more of a location than that?" Rose inquired, intrigued by the idea of an island only for dragons.
"It's tropical so bring a cute bikini," Jake sarcastically leered at her.
Rose shoved his shoulder. "Just for that," she sniffed, "I'll do no such thing."
"Ease off you two," Trixie barked, "I can smell the hormones."
"Sure they're not yours?" Rose taunted back, gesturing for Spud.
"Like that boy could make any girl hot and heavy," Trixie scoffed through her blush. Despite having been Spud's girlfriend for many months now, it was hard to break the 'friends' label they had lived in for so long. Though she loved him, it was sometimes instinct to make absolute fun of him, especially in front of Jake. Spud never seemed to mind her teasing, however, often teasing her right back.
"Is that why I found you naked in his bed one night?" Jake asked, picture of innocent.
"Quiet you!" Trixie screeched.
Spud chuckled to himself. "You know, I almost forgot about that."
"It's really not that funny," Trixie chastised.
"Oh, but it is," Rose chimed.
Spud, wisely, chose to stop laughing. He pulled in front of his family's cottage.
"We made it!" He announced.
"Thank God. I thought I was going to boil to death in this van," Trixie groaned, hopping out of the vehicle.
Spud came up behind her, dangling the keys in his hand. "Oh my poor darling," he sympathized, before grabbing her up in his arms.
Trixie shrieked, kicking her feet out. "Spud, you put me down! Right now!"
Spud waltzed up to the door, Trixie in his arms, and unlocked it before carrying her into the cottage.
Rose turned to Jake. "Let's get the bags so they can have a second."
Jake agreed with a smile.
I don't own anything recognizable. Thanks to my beta: Gift Of The Dragons.
~TLL~