A Fifth Daughter [Book 2: The Dragon Warrior]

Chapter ~ 21

~ Chapter 21: Home is Where the Heart Should Be ~

I wake up at home. Like actual home. Not the cabin in Legend, not some random castle, but home. The one place I haven't seen in five – or is it six – months. I'm in my room, which I can actually call mine since Carma should be safe in Ravensword. In fact I might be the only one here. Genny Grace is very safe away from all this on Earth. Alice should be with Carma, if I'm remembering correctly.

The door opens. A familiar blue-headed boy walks in and leans against the wall, crossing his arms.

"How long have I been home?" I ask into the air.

"You're getting better at asking questions." He says.

I smile at the ceiling. "I've had someone breathing down my neck about that for a while."

Nyt chuckles softly. "Three days. I have a feeling you're hungry." My stomach agrees. Nyt laughs. "Come on, I'll get something cooking, no one else is here right now."

I sit up slowly. Muscles I'm not aware I used are sore, making movement ache. I haven't felt this sore since Roxanne gave me my bow and said I had to spend all training trying to pull the string back. I didn't understand until I tried to draw. It barely got it anywhere and I woke up the next morning so sore I wasn't ready to do anything other than lay there.

Of course, then I hadn't been hungry... or this hungry. I'm hungrier than I was the first day I met Nyt and ate all his pancakes.

"I want bacon." I say, standing and stretching out.

"Done." Nyt says, then exits the room.

I glance about my old bedroom before following him to the kitchen. It looks the same on my part, nothing really disturbed. But all of Carma's stuff has been removed, leaving her side very empty and giving a sense of loss to the whole room.

I walk down the hall, past all my siblings' room, my mother's, Katie's, past the dining room and into the den. Nyt is at the stove in the kitchen placing bacon out on a tray.

"We have a skillet." I say, sitting down at the island.

He nods, still working. "I know. But I've always baked them, it gives them a thickness and is more filling." He puts the tray in the oven and starts the timer. "Alright. What else are we having?" He walks to the pantry and does shrill whistle. "That's a lot of green beans and broccoli. Your mom keeps this place well-stocked."

I smile. "That'd be Katie. She always says 'Greens shouldn't go hungry or without greens.'"

Nyt laughs and I hear him rummaging through everything.

"Waffle skillet is on the top shelf near the syrup." I say.

The noise stops and Nyt's head peaks out. "How did you know I was looking for the waffle skillet?"

I shrug. "Just did." I'm still getting over having Vin'tery abilities and the mind-reading is sporadic.

He frowns. His head disappears one more time and he emerges with the large, black skillet. "I've never heard of a Multi being able to take a Vin'tery's powers, and I've been around a while."

"Vampires can read minds too."

Nyt gives me a dry look. "You haven't been around Vampires recently."

"True. I did kill a Vin'tery, maybe that did it."

Nyt shakes his head. "I don't know. I mean none of us have ever died before, so maybe..." He shrugs, unbothered by the morbid thoughts going through his head and proceeds to find the ingredients for waffles. He makes me mix the batter while he flips the bacon. It's strange working in the kitchen, let alone with someone. I've never been a cook. Just never enjoyed how long it takes, and I can't stand and watch butter melt or meat turn brown, it's just entirely too boring when there are books to read and trees to climb. But Nyt keeps me engaged with non-stopping conversation about little things that have nothing to do with what we both want to talk about.