The School of Dragon Riders [Dragon Riders #1]

Chapter 2 (edited)

It was obvious that father was extremely happy for us. He is as unselfish as Tanya is. He hugged us and told us that he was proud of us.

"Tanya, I'm proud of you," he said, first to Tanya and then to me. After that, he told us to go to sleep. I wasn't tired, but he insisted that we should rest before our journey.

While lying in my bed, I was thinking about everything. Being a Dragon Rider comes with great responsibility. I could manage that. Maybe I'll be the best Dragon Rider one day, and I'll maybe conquer the Ogres. Silly dreams. I scolded myself for stupid thoughts. Finally, sleep found me and I slid into a dreamless sleep.

I woke up to see a face in front of me. I was shocked for a second, but then I realized that it was Tanya, already fully dressed. She was always up before me.

"Get up and get ready! It's an hour till dawn!" she shouted, smiling widely. I rolled my eyes at the sight. She was such a silly person sometimes. And an hour till dawn? I have a lot of time to get ready. I got up to see Tanya's back disappearing through the door. I chose the clothes from yesterday, since they were comfortable and they looked nice. Great for riding dragons. The thought of being on a dragon made me smile, and the excitement from the day before caught up to me.

I entered the kitchen to find breakfast waiting for me on the table. We had chicken and some vegetables, not what we usually eat. Nevertheless, this day is special, so I couldn't complain. Besides, chicken is good. I ate it quickly, wondering where Tanya and Father were. I checked the backyard, and there they were, sitting and talking. My least favourite thing to do. I wasn't very social, and they were always getting along well, even without me.

"I'll go and just have a walk around the village. There is a lot of time before dawn. I'll meet you at the centre at that time," I said, turning around before they could protest.

I wasn't the best at goodbyes and I've always hated emotional things. Well, maybe I was lying about having a walk. I wanted to do a few jokes for goodbyes. Truth to be told, I was nervous. Of course, I couldn't tell that to anyone, since it would ruin my reputation as a cold-hearted, strong individual. Seeing other people in trouble made me relax. As long as it was nothing dangerous, I was able to enjoy it. My first choice was Jordan. He hated me, I found him funny, and that made him a perfect target. He goes fishing every day before dawn. I took the road that led into the forest and to a small lake. After a five-minute walk, I heard voices from nearby. I was there a few minutes after that, and the voices got louder. I crouched behind a bush and peered through it. Jordan was fishing, but he had company. A girl named Marlene was with him. He was totally in love with her, but she thought herself too good for a boy like him, or that's what she told everyone. Now, I could see that they were sitting very close together, their legs hanging a few inches above water.

They were in an excellent position to be pushed. I stepped out of the bushes, as light on my feet as ever. I summoned all my strength when I came close enough, and pushed them hard. Marlene screamed and Jordan yelped. She was trying to hold onto him while they were falling. The water wasn't deep, so I knew that they wouldn't drown. They splashed for a few moments until their panic left, and then they both looked up. I couldn't sustain a grin, and I burst out laughing at the shocked look on their faces. Suddenly, the expression on their faces changed to anger, and Jordan tried to get out of the water. It was slippery, so he fell back when he tried to lift himself. That made me laugh even more, but I decided that it was time to leave. I blew them a kiss and started running towards the town. I didn't want to be late. I noticed a boy standing not far away from these two, so I knew that the story of what I had done would spread.

I hurried out of the forest, speeding up with each step. I didn't want to be late, and I wanted to say my goodbyes. I'm not entirely heartless. I'd miss my father, but it's not as if we were very close. I wasn't a good smith, so since I wasn't very strong, Tanya loved helping father in his workshop. They were happy family even without me. I was always different.