Soul Fire (18 page)

Her eyes flickered and she began to slip closer to the
surface. I growled and forced my aching limbs to go faster,
using the current of the water to close in on her. Her arm
slipped from the log and she sank out as sight just as I
reached her.
I heaved a breath and dived to the spot where she’d
disappeared. I opened my eyes, but it was useless; I
couldn’t see anything at all.
Suddenly, something brushed my outstretched hand. It
felt like fine tendrils, and I realised her hair was flowing
around my hand as she sank.
I grabbed a handful of it and not very gracefully pulled
her up to me as my breath began to run out. We were
both being buffeted by waterlogged logs that had sunk, as
well as the current. I wrapped my arms around her torso
and kicked my legs furiously. I felt heavy, trapped by the
water, and I quickly kicked off my boots, remembering
what my old swim teacher had said.
I strained, beating my legs as fast as I could. I had no
idea how close I was to the surface, but the pressure in my
lungs was beginning to build and I knew that soon I’d
reflexively inhale, consigning us both to the muddy depths
of the river we’d freed.
It almost came as a surprise when my head burst
through the surface of the raging river. It was beginning to
calm now, slowing down as it reached the wider section
that Petre had mentioned. I quickly pulled Yasmin’s head
up to my shoulder so that she could breathe.
As the river began to slow even more, I struck out a one
arm stroke towards the river bank. I could hear
thundering hoof beats as the others searched for us. I
could only hope that Rain was with them; I hadn’t seen
her at all during the course of my mission to get to Yasmin
before she slipped off the log.
My feet scrabbled against the bottom of the river,
sinking into the icy mud. I heaved myself upright, water
gushing from my clothes. I half carried, half dragged
Yasmin up the slope, laying her on the grass just as Dena
and Theresa arrived.
“Sky!” Dena was running towards me. “Is she-“
“I don’t know,” I wheezed. “She was conscious just
before I reached her.”
I sat back on my haunches as Dena worked on her.
She’d rolled Yasmin into the recovery position, checking
her airways.
“She’s breathing,” she announced and I thought my
heart would burst from relief. Dena moved some of her
wet hair aside, and in the pale magelight Theresa was
casting, we could all see the nasty lump on the side of her
head. “I’m guessing she was hit when the dam burst. She
probably clung to consciousness as long as she could.”
I began shivering violently, not just from the cold that
was beginning to bleed into my bones, but from the
thought of Yasmin losing consciousness before I’d spotted
her, or if I hadn’t noticed her in the water at all.
Petre and Ispin barrelled out of the darkness, having
run as fast as they could when they heard the hoof beats. I
was relieved to see that Rain was with them, damp and
shivering, but alive.
Petre fell with a cry to Yasmin’s side. I think he
thought for a moment that his soul mate was dead. Dena
reassured him quietly, but that didn’t stop him from
checking her vitals himself.
“We need to get her back to the manor house,” Dena
said to us all. “She needs warmth.”
We all did. Rain and I were both frozen to the bone,
having been the only ones to experience the icy water.
The other four, though cool, weren’t feeling the ice crawl
into the marrow of their bones and set up camp. My teeth
chattered, breaking the silence that had fallen between all
of us.
We all managed to climb back onto our horses. As we
rode, I showed Dena and Rain the charm to dry clothes
and we set about drying ourselves, with Dena working the
charm over Yasmin, who was slumped in front of her.
The ride back was dismally slow. After the eager ride
there, anticipation flowing in our veins, we plodded back
towards Riverdoor with heavy hearts. The sun was just
beginning to rise as we turned into the estate. For once,
when we reached the stables, we turned the reins of our
horses over to the stable hands who were up and about.
We were just too exhausted to look after them properly.
I rolled into my bed gratefully, the soft blankets
enveloping me like a cloud. Petre had pulled a mattress
into Yasmin’s room to keep an eye on her. Dena had told
us that she should wake up in a few hours, though
someone would need to be with her at all times to make
sure she didn’t have concussion. I would take my turn
come daybreak if she still wasn’t awake, but for now I
certainly did not begrudge Petre the gruelling task of
waking up every half an hour to check on her.
It felt like I’d only just fallen asleep when the servant
who brought me my pre-breakfast (I liked to have two
breakfasts) knocked on my door. I was so tired that it felt
like trying to drag open my eyelids from drying concrete.
She began to approach me with my rolls and tea, and then
stopped when she saw the mud still caked on my face and
the river water tangling my hair.
“I shouldn’t ask, should I?” she said.
I shook my head once and fell back asleep.
When I woke again, the sun was high in the sky. For a
second I was confused; why did I feel guilty? Then I
remembered that I was supposed to have relieved Petre so
that he could sleep.
I burst into Yasmin’s room, still blinking away the
heavy sleep. I was surprised to see her sitting on the edge
of her bed, slowly brushing her hair free of river muck.
“Good afternoon,” she said breezily as she saw me in
the doorway. “Dena tells me I’d be dead without you.”
What did one say to that? Uh, yeah you would?
I settled for giving a noncommittal shrug, combined
with a jerk of my head that could have been a nod or a
shake of my head.
“Oh, Sky,” Yasmin sighed. “One of these days you’re
going to have to start owning up to the fact that you are a
hero.”
“I’m not,” I protested immediately.
“You are,” she countered, laying the hairbrush down on
the table next to her. “Dena says that when you saw me in
the water, you took off after me without even hesitating.
We both could’ve died last night.”
“But we didn’t.”
“We didn’t, because of you.”
It had been my idea to go to the dam at all. Didn’t she
remember that? She should be blaming me, not thanking
me.
When she led me out of the room to meet the others, I
followed with a heavy heart.

We went down to breakfast together, meeting Lord
Hugh and the others in the dining room.
“So,” Lord Hugh began slowly. “The Orthandrellian
dam burst last night. You didn’t have anything to do with
that, did you?”
“Of course not,” I replied airily, sitting down next to
Dena and beginning to tear up a roll for Sammy who was
due any moment. “But does that mean the river is flowing
again?”
“Flowing fuller than it ever has before,” he replied with
a raised eyebrow. “The mill began operating for the first
time in months today. We’ll be able to start producing our
own bread again, rather than relying on Nurmin.”
I looked at the bread roll I was devouring with new
appreciation. Who knows where it had come from? I
wolfed the rest of it down – leaving half for Sammy –
deciding not to wonder anymore.
“I suppose the mud you’ve taken to dressing in didn’t
come from the river either?”
“Nope,” I replied airily, as Sammy ran to me and
crawled up onto my lap just like every morning. I gave
him the bread roll. “A new overnight treatment I was
trying.”
“I’m going to be a mage like you,” Sammy interrupted
suddenly.
“We hope,” Matilda said, gliding into the dining room
and kissing her husband on the cheek. “Samlin is going to
the magic tester today.”
“I’ll be just like Jonathon and Sky!” he declared,
completely certain. I was confused for a moment until I
realised Jonathon must be Petre’s real name.
I spent a moment wondering why the Academy
renamed us. To rebirth us into the life of a mage? I rolled
my eyes as Sammy stole the next roll. Knowing Iain and
Netalia, it would be some wishy washy excuse like that.
For the first time since arriving in Riverdoor, we were
able to enjoy ourselves in the city. We went shopping at
the market, and I bought Larni a beautiful length of red
silk. I looped it around my arm, knowing that she’d love it
and be terribly embarrassed.
The townsfolk treated us like royalty, but I was glad
none of them knew that we’d destroyed the dam. It was
bad enough we’d rescued the youngest heir to the Lyon
estate (I was again confused, until Petre let on that that
was the name of his family) and repaired the bridge; I
couldn’t imagine what they’d do if they knew about the
dam as well.
We ate our lunch next to the river, in the shadow of
the bridge we’d repaired. It was bustling with horses and
carts and their traders. I desperately wanted to see
Nurmin, but I knew that we had to return to the Academy
the next day.
We dragged our feet back to the estate, but were
surprised to see that the manor was a hive of activity.
Servants were pinning small lamps in the trees lining the
drive, whilst others were trimming and tidying up the
garden. The reason for such activity became apparent
when Matilda met us in the hall.
“We thought that tonight we’d throw you a bit of a
party,” she said, clasping her hands. “And also to celebrate
the fact the Samlin was declared to be a mageling today.”
Petre immediately went off in search of his little
brother whilst the rest of us congratulated Matilda. I
couldn’t help but think of Niko, Larni’s brother, who
wanted to be a mage so much that he’d asked me to put a
spell on him.
I frowned. Why was that memory so difficult to access?
Niko. Larni’s little brother. He’s going to the magic tester
soon...
Wait. Who’s Niko?
I was shaken out of my confusing thoughts as Sammy
ran at me and catapulted himself up into my arms.
“It’s because of you,” he told me. “I’m going to be a
mage because of you.”
“Why is that, young man?” I asked.
He stared back at me with eyes already beginning to
turn the colour of storm clouds, the colour of Petre’s
magic.
“Because of the lightning,” he replied, like I was stupid
not to have noticed.
Before I could even begin to wonder what he was on
about, Sammy was being chivvied out of my arms by his
mother.
“Leave the girls alone, Samlin,” she chided. “They need
to go and get dressed for tonight.”
Yasmin took that as a cue to begin to pull me up the
stairs. She ignored my protests, and Rain quickly took up
my other side.
“You are the belle of tonight’s ball,” Theresa told me as
I was pulled backwards up the stairs by the other two.
“Well, it’s not exactly a ball, but this night is for you.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I retorted, not even trying to
struggle against their iron grips. “It’s for all of us. We all
repaired the bridge. We all destroyed the dam.”
“Yes, but you’ve saved two lives,” Yasmin reminded me
as we reached the bathroom. “So you can fuss and
complain all you want, but this night is for you.”
I couldn’t do anything but pull a face, which they all
ignored as they seated me on a chair in the middle of the
bathroom. Dena set about washing my hair again,
patiently removing bits of river muck from it – “You could
make a living out of getting your hair disgusting.” – And
brushing it smooth. It had grown since we’d started our
schooling at the Academy; it now reached the small of my
back when I let it hang loose.
Artfully, she twisted it on top of my head and secured it
with the pin that I’d had in my hair the day I rescued
Sammy. I held my breath as she pinned it, hoping she
didn’t notice the missing charm; I still didn’t want her to
know where it had come from, for reasons I couldn’t
fathom just yet. I let my eyes flutter, and I was almost
asleep as Rain began painting my face with makeup.
I did fall asleep. I woke up to Dena telling me to put my
tunic dress and tights on. I began to wake up as the others
got ready. I’d just pulled on my ankle boots (my other
ones were lost in the river – how was I going to explain
that to Jett?) when we were summoned downstairs.
The transformation of the manor house was stunning.
Garlands of flowers hung everywhere and candles
glimmered on every surface. The dining room had been
transformed into a dance hall, the large table replaced by
smaller ones around the edge and a band. People milled
throughout the hall, and as such we were able to enter
relatively unnoticed. I tucked into the food as soon as I
saw it, savouring the succulent tastes. In fact, I’d just put a
cherry tomato in my mouth when Lord Hugh ascended to
the band’s dais to begin his speech.
“Good evening, my friends,” he began, sweeping his
arms wide. He was wearing a sweeping crimson cloak that
made him seem twice as large. “I thank you for joining us
on such short notice. We’ve gathered everyone here
tonight to celebrate the return of my youngest son,
Samlin, and the vanquishing of the evil that has stalked
our lands for the past few weeks,” I winced at
‘vanquishing’, chewing the tomato furiously. “My son and
his friends join us from the Stanthor Academy, where
Samlin will be headed in just a few short years to
commence his education,” there was polite applause
which I joined in enthusiastically, still working the tomato
out of my cheek. “And it is them we have to thank, not
only for the safe return of my son and the slaughter of the
Du’rangor, but for the repair of the bridge to Nurmin as
well.” There was more applause as everyone swivelled
towards us, beaming. Deeming the situation safe, I popped
another cherry tomato in my mouth just as Lord Hugh
said: “But I’ve been informed that the particular person I
have to thank for the return of Samlin is Sky,” he gestured
towards me, and everyone turned to look at me, smiling. I
attempted to smile back at them.
You do not, I thought frantically, have a cherry tomato
in your mouth. You will not show people that you have a
cherry tomato in your mouth. You will not bite down on
the cherry tomato and make people think your tongue is
bleeding.
When everyone turned away, I almost swallowed the
cherry tomato whole in my relief.
The music started again as Lord Hugh held his hand out
to his wife, clearly asking her to dance. Everyone cheered
as she took his hand, blushing and supporting her
stomach, and whirled out onto the dance floor.
More people began to dance as I helped myself to more
food. I watched Petre shyly offer his hand to Rain, who
blushed furiously but then accepted it. I watched them
dance for a little until I accepted a glass of wine from a
passing waiter, and then headed up the stairs that I knew
would take me to the roof.
I leant against the parapets, sipping from the glass. The
moon was a sliver in the sky, and I turned my face up to it.
When Petre spoke behind me I almost dropped my glass
over the edge in fright.
“You know, I was the first mage in fifty years to be
born to the House of Lyon,” he said, sauntering up next to
me with his hands in his pockets. “I was spoilt beyond
belief; anything I wanted, I got. When I started at the
Academy this year, I thought my parents were going to
burst with pride.”
I sipped wine as I wondered where he was going with
this.
“And because of that, I might have, just a teeny bit,
looked down on all the human born mages,” he dipped his
head in shame. “I’m sorry, Sky. I haven’t always treated
you with the respect you deserve.”
“Don’t apologize,” I told him quietly. “You never hit me
with a fire whip when I told you having slaves was
wrong,” I twitched as something blinked through my
mind. “You never resented me in class when I got better
grades than you.”
“Regardless, I didn’t treat you as you should have been.
You’re a hero, Sky. No, really,” he protested as I made a
noise and turned away. “You have courage beyond
anything any of us has shown.”
“I don’t want to be a hero.” I mumbled into my glass.
He grinned and patted me on the shoulder.
“I don’t think you get a choice in the matter,” he said.
“Now come here. Hug me before I get pulled back down
to dance with Rain again.”
I hugged him tightly. For the first time since I’d met
him, I truly appreciated having him as a friend.
The party wore into the night, and I groaned as I rolled
into my bed, noticing that dawn was breaking. We were
going to have to ride hard to get back to the Academy
within the time frame. I wondered if Echo would notice if
I fell asleep in the saddle, something which had a very
good chance of occurring.
We woke the next morning, packing a breakfast that
we could eat as we rode. Sammy was tearful as we began
to leave. When I hugged him goodbye, he looped his arms
around my neck and pressed his little face against my
shoulder. Tears began to flow as he leant back to look at
me.
“None of that,” I said, letting him wipe his eyes on my
shirt. “No crying for the big strong mage.”
That made him smile. Just as I put him back down on
the ground, he pulled me close and pulled something out
of his shirt. He opened his hand, showing me the charm
that I’d tossed him that day I’d rescued him from the
Du’rangor.
Our eyes met, and I nodded, as though telling him he
was allowed to keep it. He tucked it back into his shirt and
went to his brother to say one final goodbye.
“Goodbye, dear,” Matilda said, hugging me tightly.
“Remember, you can stay here anytime you want to get
away from those two old biddies.”
I laughed at her name for Iain and Netalia.
“Look after my namesake, Matilda,” I said, tears in my
eyes. “I’ll come visit her one day, I promise.”
“You better,” her eyes crinkled, sparkling with tears.
“Oh, come here.”
She hugged me one last time, and the tears were
flowing freely as I pulled myself into Echo’s saddle. Lord
Hugh came over to me as we prepared to ride out.
“Thank you, Sky,” he said, looking up at me. “You’ll
never be forgotten in the House of Lyon.”
He kissed my knuckles and then turned my hand over
and laid something in it. I opened my fingers to reveal a
bright red cherry tomato. I looked up to see his eyes
sparkling with mirth.
“You did it on purpose,” I realised, grinning widely.
“That could’ve been disastrous, Lord Hugh.”
“Please, just Hugh from now on,” and then he added
with just a touch of seriousness. “My Lady Sky.”
As we rode away, out of the drive and onto the roads, I
realised that I’d really miss Riverdoor. Though our time
here had been short, I’d felt I’d discovered more about
myself. We may be missing out on our magical education
at the Academy, but we’d learnt more about each other
and ourselves than we ever would back at our school.
And, I decided, it was all worth it.