CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

My feet slip as I hurry down the last ladder, and my knee scrapes against the wooden rung. I jump down the last distance, my hair plastered against my head and my dress heavy with water. When I round the bend of the platform, I see that I’m not the only one prepared for dinner. Piper and Lily along with Finley and the others are seated beneath the awning of the dining hall’s entrance. Finn leans against one of the stoop’s supports watching as I run toward them. My sandaled feet splash on the wooden surface with each bound. The glow escaping through the doorway proves that it is late evening, and I feel its warmth as I step up onto the porch and out of the rain.

“Oriana, you’re soaked!” Lily says in dismay. She sits upon a wooden bench situated on one side of the door.

“Well it’s raining,” Piper smirks. She stands upon the edge of the porch and stares into the downpour.

Lily gives her a look and shakes her head in exasperation. “I’ll get you a towel.” She disappears behind the door flap.

“Here.” Finn drapes a heavy brown cape over my shoulders.

“You should really get some better clothes than that University silk,” Piper adds. “Me and Lily will find you something better.”

Dugan and Jagger make room on another short wooden bench pressed against the face of the building, and I take a seat, pulling the cape beneath my chin and allowing a wave of shivers to pass over me.

People are still filing into the dining hall in groups. Malise and her brother rush out of the storm, hugging similar cloaks to themselves. I don’t realize who they are until they have pulled back their heavy hoods, and join us beneath the protection of the awning. I nod with recognition, and Aaron waves emphatically. Malise responds with a soft smile. Toby appears shortly after, and he sheepishly grins before hurrying inside.

Lily returns with a thick cloth, and I reluctantly reach out from within the warmth of the cloak to begin drying my hair. Lily remains standing over me, staring hard at my face. I avoid her gaze by hiding behind my hair.

“Oriana … is there something wrong?”

I gaze up at her, knowing that there will be a visible redness in my eyes. Knowing that her look of concern may cause me to lose control of myself.

“What happened?” she exclaims, kneeling down to my level. Now everyone is looking at me, except Finn, who stares out into the storm.

“Lily … maybe she doesn’t …” Piper begins.

“I’m fine, I just … Dorian is acting … different.” I’m not sure how to explain the way he snapped at me. I’m not even sure whether to feel angry or upset.

Weasel shows up beside my knee, an oversized leather cap on his head has two bent-up flaps that give the appearance of ears. His large eyes watch me with concern. “It’s because of his destiny,” he squeaks—and then jumps as Buck’s large hand clamps down on his shirt at the back of his neck, pulling him off his feet and backward to Buck’s side at the edge of the porch.

“Wease, hold your tongue!” Jagger hisses from beside me.

Another wave of cloaked people rush inside and out of the rain. We remain silent a moment longer after they’ve passed.

“It’s all right,” I sigh. “I know about Dorian. Tor told me the big secret.” I finish drying my hair. The towel now damp, I lay it next to my feet and lean back with a sigh.

Dugan follows my example, resting his hands behind his head as he settles upon the face of the building. “Then you understand the pressure he is under.” Dugan’s smooth voice is calm and confident. He looks at me with serene black eyes.

“Yes …” I say slowly.

“Most of the others have taken their seats,” Piper remarks while leaning in through the doorway.

Jagger is already to his feet and beside Piper. “Good, I’m starving,” he says. In a moment of brightness the building’s light floods the stoop and he has vanished behind the flap.

Piper follows, and the others are quick to stand and head inside. I hang back to hand Finley his cloak, give a quick “Thanks,” and then enter the building.

Once inside, I am struck with the warmth of the blazing fire at the center of the building. It causes me to realize how cool my skin is, and I rub my arms in response. Lily is in front of me as we pass down the side of the table. The room hums with a pleasant murmur of voices. Above is the pounding of the rainfall in a steady rhythm, which almost completely drowns out the talking. I see the fire in front of me hiss as droplets that have entered through the smoke hole dive into the hungry flames.

Dorian’s empty bench space halts me, and I break away from the others to take a seat. Finley watches me for a moment but says nothing and continues forward. The area to my right is bare; neither Tor nor Dorian has arrived. I grasp for the mug in front of me and am grateful for the taste of cool water.

“He’s not coming tonight.”

I look up from my mug. Azura stares at me across the table. Placing the cup back on the table, I notice that Liam is not beside her.

“Tor and Liam are taking their meals inside their cottages,” Azura continues. “Today was overwhelming for us all.”

“Then why have you come?” I ask. The tension between us is strong. My intentions were otherwise, but I’ve grown to dislike Azura.

“For me, being around others takes my mind off everything.” She looks down the table into the line of faces, as though our conversation bores her. “I thought you might wait for him. Especially after Tor had filled you with false hopes at lunch.” Azura looks sideways at me. “It’s a good thing I came; you would’ve been waiting here all night.” She gives a short laugh.

I’m not sure whether to smile or be offended. Instead I stare into my mug, feeling hopeless and, despite the company, very much alone.

“Listen,” Azura begins. “It’s nothing for you to feel upset about. He’s just going through a lot.”

I glance up at her, surprised. Is she really trying to cheer me up? “I know that, but he’s different. Something has changed inside him.”

Azura leans toward me, her face serious. “He has a lot to deal with. I can’t imagine it not changing him.”

“No … I mean … I know, it’s just …” I look off into the distance, remembering the moment. “If you saw the way he spoke to me. I don’t know what I did to make him so angry, but …” At that I feel myself break a little. I lower my face, trying to conceal my reaction.

I know Azura sees it anyway, because her lips flinch to the side and she watches me intently. There is a moment of silence, and I sense that Azura is thinking of something to say. I avoid her eyes.

“Oriana.” She is trying to sound soothing, but I can tell it is hard for her to find sympathy for me. Finally she sighs, and it is as if the tension breaks at last. “I haven’t made it easy for us to get along, but I think that I understand how you feel.” Now it’s her turn to stare into her cup. I watch her, thinking that somehow a small victory is occurring for both of us. “It’s different for you though. Dorian …” She swallows, and her voice gets stern as she forces the words out. “Dorian cares for you, I can tell. I’m sure whatever he said, he didn’t mean.”

I lose my breath in surprise as Azura finishes. I hadn’t expected her to say anything like that, and I feel a twinge of guilt at having stolen him from her. After all, she has known him for much longer than I have. “Thank you.” I say with sincerity, trying to hide any awkwardness. I wonder for a moment if we might ever form a friendship.

Azura takes a drink from her cup in an attempt to cover the following silence. When she sets it down, I decide to attempt a conversation. One that is separate from our connection to Dorian.

“May I ask you a question?”

She brightens at the prospect of a different subject and nods.

“How were you captured if you live here at the Great Oak?”

Azura settles, and any awkwardness dispels. It’s as if we have been close our entire lives, and nothing is between us. “I lived in the University, for most of my life. I’ve only recently settled into a new life here.” She gestures to the area around her.

“I never knew my mother or father, only those prison white walls. Still, I never bought into their teachings, and I cursed Odon every chance I had. My temper got me into a few fights”—she pauses, and her eyes shift uneasily—“with purebloods, girls who thought they were too good to breathe the same air as me. Of course I was caught and sent to the Odonian, their usual punishments are mind distortions. It was cruel, but I remained hopeful that they were wrong about part-bloods. I just couldn’t understand what made us so much worse.” Azura sighs. “But that was when I was still young and attending the elementary levels. Things were different even then.”

“What do you mean?” I lean toward her, knowing that her willingness to share will not be frequent.

“Odon was only just getting settled into his stronghold and as children we were the least of his worries. That has changed as the years went on. I suppose he realized our minds are best molded when we are young.”

I nod, remembering how the boundaries were less strict and the races not so forcibly separated.

“I wouldn’t have lived very long if I’d been any older. I learned that soon enough. A few of my friends disappeared. At first harsh discipline meant a trip to the Odonian, where they would hammer the teachings into us and then return us to classes. Slowly the part-bloods were taken away, but never returned. The rest of us quickly fell in line, we were all so afraid …” Azura’s brow clenches, and she is not looking through her eyes but in her mind, reliving that time long ago.

I think of Lenora and the boy so young and innocent, and it causes me to shudder. I was there the whole time but never realized how barbaric Odon was, still is. I wanted to believe I could trust them, believe that what they were doing was the right thing. Now I know there is nothing right about it. “I’m sorry,” I say, knowing it gives no comfort.

She shakes her head waving the apology away with her hand, “It’s not your fault, you were just another victim, like me.” I know she only half believes the statement but am grateful she is at least trying to believe it.

“No, I was there, I just let it happen. I was one of their pawns. Doing nothing is the same as helping their cause.” The words flow out of my mouth, and as I hear them, I realize that I have been saying them inside of my head for a while.

Hearing them, Azura pauses, and her gaze falters. We are interrupted as food is being passed down in front of us. I can’t think of eating, so when I receive my plate, I lay it to one side. Azura does the same, although her mind is elsewhere as she maintains her changed expression.

“I once thought that to be true, but now I can’t bring myself to blame you. We were all young; there was no way any of us could have stopped them. Being angry at you would only serve Odon.” Azura notices her food and plucks a steaming vegetable from her plate and in a final act of satisfaction takes a bite.

I give a small laugh, and she smiles at me, a new aura of peace surrounding her. “So then how did you wind up below ground?” I inquire, now finding my appetite and picking from my own plate.

Azura nods, finishing the bite in her mouth and washing it down with a gulp of water. “That was after I met Tor, which was while I attended the University. He was one of the rebels who first established the Great Oak. When he was younger he would sneak into the University with other part-bloods and free as many as he could. This became more and more dangerous as the years went on. I was lucky. They brought me here and told me the truth about Odon and their plan to stop him. That’s how I met Dorian …” She looks away. “I thought he was the bravest boy I’d ever met, and still so young. He carried his burden well—even now when we’re so close.”

She’s right. I never met anyone like Dorian. All it took was his smile that day when I was still just Oriana the pureblood, and I was completely changed.

“More guards appeared and it became impossible to sneak in. Getting caught meant certain death, but Dorian insisted on returning. It was for personal reasons. He could never let the past die. He wanted to know everything he could about his parents.”

“His parents? He never spoke of them to me.”

“It’s a difficult subject for him. They died when he was very young.” Azura shifts in her seat. “It’s a terrible story to even think of.”

“Oh.” I feel uncomfortable after asking and am grateful when she continues her story.

“It made me nervous to know he was still over there. Risking his life and the future of us all by snooping around the University. Tor didn’t like it either, and after a period of time when he didn’t return, I decided to go in myself and bring him back to safety.” Azura runs a hand through her hair as if trying to stop her past self from making the mistake again. “I should have known it was too dangerous and I was still inexperienced. Dorian had always been the best at fooling the guards. I think he liked the idea that he had found a way to beat Odon inside his own domain.”

She shakes her head. “But I made things worse by getting caught. I knew he would come to save me. He was the only one who could do it, but it was still so risky, and I didn’t want to be the cause of his demise. I guess it all worked out in the end,” Azura says, plainly trying to reassure herself that the past is over. “I think I earned my punishment for my mistake.” She visibly trembles and then reaches for another morsel of food.

“Has your ankle healed?”

“Yes, well enough for me to walk properly.” She gives a half smile.

Something flickers in my mind, and I find myself asking, “Do you remember everything that happened down there?”

Azura shoots me a look that frightens me and answers hurriedly, “It’s all a blur, I don’t think I want to remember.”

I nod and shift my attention back to the food on my plate. Talking to Azura allows me to forget about Dorian’s confrontation earlier. Knowing some more pieces of the past settles me as well and by the time we have finished discussing earlier times our plates are empty and I am ready for sleep. Azura and I leave the dining hall together and separate on the fourth landing. Once inside I gratefully fall into the blankets and am instantly asleep.