The Dragon Stone ↣ Riven ↢

17: Creeping In The Dark Doesn't Look Good On You

''Never believe the bullshit that fake guys feed to ya''

Rose didn't know how long she had been in the room, she didn't even know how long she had been staring at the book after the vision ended but as she managed to pull herself together, her thoughts came crashing back in. The vision had shown her what had played out in this exact area over all those years, and it had left her feeling rather emotional.

Still slightly confused, she managed to make her way out of the room, and she was relieved when she spotted Professor Green waiting for her, still in in the same spot. It was only when the professor wrapped her arms around her and pulled her into a hug that she noticed the wetness on her cheeks. She was crying.

'Are you okay?', Professor Green whispered softly as she pulled out of the hug and held Rose at arm's length, examining her.

Rose knew nothing was wrong with her physically, it was only on an emotional level that she felt vulnerable. The vision had moved her, and she couldn't even explain to herself why.

'Yes, I'm fine, really.', Rose managed to weakly let out. 'I just have to sit down for a  second.'

So, there she was, sitting next to Professor Green in an ancient fire fairy cave, completely overwhelmed by what was shown to her. Maybe it wasn't exactly what she had seen, rather what she felt during. The knowledge the book had shared with her seemed so sacred, so fragile, like it needed to be protected.

'Do you want to talk about it?', the professor asked after a moment of silence.

Rose didn't know the answer to that question. Part of her wanted to, but it just felt wrong. 'Am I even allowed to share?', she asked sheepishly.

'You are, but you don't have to. The book shows you a part of fire magic history but there's a reason why you can't actually read what's inside the book. That's how the ancient fire fairy tribe has managed to protect the original writing all this time.', Professor Green explained. 'The way you're feeling right now is not uncommon. I have heard stories about fire fairies who have been here. The vision always leaves a lasting impression but after a day or so you will feel normal again.'

Rose was relieved to hear that last part but so many questions were still running through her head. 'How come I've never read about this in the history books, and can just everyone visit this place?'

Her questions caused the professor to let out a laugh. 'This history is very specific to the element of fire, it's sacred information which isn't ours to teach at Alfea. We can't even access the source of the information ourselves. The history we teach at Alfea, the history you read about in the books, is information accessible to everyone. We can tell you about all the great things, or the opposite, the cruelties, that have been done in the past as long as history allows us to.', she explained. 'And for your second question, it's not easy to visit this place. The cave is protected by magic, you can't just stumble onto it. Fire fairies have put a barrier over it, wanting to protect their origin story. To be honest with you, there's something else I've kept from you. I've brought you here with the permission of headmistress Dowling but, you have to realise, it is dangerous to come here as there are always others trying to rob this place of it's magic, wanting to manipulate it for their own gain. To assure your protection, headmistress Dowling put an extra spell over this place. She is keeping an eye on us, ready to intervene if danger were to arise. Headmistress Dowling is powerful but keeping the spell in place to protect us is weakening her. It's best to leave right now.'

Rose was sad to leave the cave as there was still so much she didn't know about it's history, like the inscriptions for example, but she had to follow Professor Green's instructions. She was grateful for the experience, for the information she had obtained, without them, without their help, this wouldn't have been possible. So with that, the professor quickly teleported them back to Alfea.