Legacy in Ruins: Dragon Rider Book 1

Chapter 1: The Start

 Author Notes: 

Hey, guys! It's me, Lexi. I hope you all enjoy my book as much as I enjoyed writing it. I've written a few books before this, some about Transformers, Supernatural, and of course dragons. But I've posted this one first since I felt like my writing was better in Dragon Rider than it was in my other previous books. I don't expect this book to get many readers and am just writing for fun, but any viewers and comments are most welcomed. 

Edit: Hey everyone! As I'm writing this it's been almost three years since I've posted this first chapter, and WOW, how far this story has come!  I am eternally grateful for those readers who have stuck through this unedited writing, and I'm eternally grateful for you new readers who have just found my story. As I've written this series, my writing gets tremendously better and I find an editor to proofread my chapters. 

I do plan to rewrite this story sometime in the late future with new plots and characters and much deeper, more thoughtful world-building. I really hope you guys can look past the grammatical errors and any other mistakes because the book is definitely worth giving a chance!

My mother walked around the long white marble table, tapping her hand against my spine. "Back."

Immediately I straightened my back to something so straight it would make a ruler proud. And during the process I groaned, stifling the urge to throw my head back and whine. We had been at this for almost half an hour and I had grown bored of etiquette and people-pleasing twenty minutes ago.

My mother stepped beside me, her posture picture perfect and hands neatly clasped together as they rested on her stomach. "You must fix your posture, dear."

"I know, mother." I sighed, slouching. Within moments my mother had tapped on my shoulder.

"Sit up straight." She commanded softly.

I shot back into the correct posture once again.

My head lifted to see my mother. Renora Crimson was the picture-perfect definition of a rich and powerful woman, from what people saw in public. She always had her hair so that it leveled with her chin, it was straight and styled so that not a single brown lock dared to stray. A black dress hugged her lanky figure, something my older sister took after.

A professional yet soft expression soothed the harsh edges of her jaw, emphasizing her high cheekbones. Throughout the years, from the earliest time I could remember, I had watched as my mother's expressions grow more and more impassive from the years of dealing with diplomats and military generals. Though, whenever she was around her family, the walls would drop and a smile would spread across her lips.

"We have five hours until your guests arrive and you still have much to do, dear, but the one thing I refuse for them to see is you slouching." She said like it was going to make me magically get my act together. But if I had been slouching for seventeen years, almost eighteen, then I doubt that one little sentence would make me fix my posture.

Another silent sigh slipped past my lips. I knew where this was going. "Here we go again."

My mother paced behind me. "Honestly, Norah, you're going to be eighteen tomorrow, you should be able to talk to simple people without slouching."

I raised a brow, my gaze never drifting from my mother. "By simple people you mean, highly respected diplomats and mages?"

Mother stopped, her brows creasing together ever so slightly as she turned to me. "They are our closest friends, dear, not diplomats."