Blood + Tears (all 15)

Chapter 13

I stared at him emotionless. My heart was beating quickly, and I knew that I had to something. I could either ignore what he said or ask him what he meant. Forcing myself to relax, I feigned confusion. I smiled towards the headmaster. "What do you mean?"

Headmaster Roberts gave me a warm and knowing smile. "I mean that I know what animal you actually are."

I sighed, slumping over. Barely one day in the Capital and my secret is already out. "So are you going to turn me in?"

He threw his head back and laughed. "No, my dear. In fact, I am here to protect you."

"Protect me?" I said with a bit of sarcasm. Where was he when I was beaten by my stepmother? Where was he when the townspeople ridiculed and threw object at me? Where was he when I ran away from my horrible family?

Amara sent calming and comforting emotions into me. He's a friend. She repeated, assuring me that I was safe. If not, I can just eat him.

I refrained myself from rolling my eyes. Amara's way is to just eat the problem.

Headmaster Roberts gave me a sad smile as he took a seat before me. "I know what you are thinking, Ms. Sorenson. I wasn't allowed to interfere. Otherwise, I would have snatched you away from your abusive family and would have taken care of you myself."

"Not allowed to interfere?" I looked at him in confusion.

He nodded. "My special powers is that I can see scenes of the future. Twenty years ago, I started to have visions of you. I saw your torture. I saw your sadness and yearn for love and family. I wanted to save you, but I couldn't. Another part of my powers is that I can change something in my visions and see the outcome. Every time I tried to save you, the future will end in darkness and death."

I gave him a wry smirk. "Darkness and death? I was surrounded by that for years. The only reason I didn't give up is because of Amara."

Headmaster Roberts reached out and grabbed my hand. His warm hands patted mine, giving me comfort that I haven't had by a human in years. "I know this might not sound right, but your experiences have made both you and Amara stronger for what the future holds."

"And what does the future hold?"

He smiled. "First, we have to go to the past. The history that has been told for hundreds of years is wrong." He paused for a moment to retrieve a worn leather book from his dimensional space. Roberts opened the book to a picture of three men. In the middle was a man with blonde hair and blue eyes. The painter had managed to capture the kindness and warmth in that man's eyes. He wore a blue outfit that was topped with a red cape lined with white fur. The top of his head was adorned with a gold crown.

To the man's right was a man who was larger than him. He was the opposite with fiery red hair and sparkling green eyes. I smiled at the emotions the painter had captured in that man's gaze. There was a playfulness that reminded me of a certain boy, but the muscles on his body were significant, telling me that he was strong. He wore a black uniform and a silver medallion of three crossed swords crossed behind a crown.

To the left of the king was a man who was different than the others. He was shorter but was no less handsome. His hair was long and black as onyx. His skin was pale and smooth like marble. His eyes were a bright blue that contrasted with his hair and skin. But what troubled me was the look in that man's eyes. There was an emotion almost seemed slyly. He wore a green outfit with a medallion that resembled a two snakes wrapped around a shield.

"This is King Cassian in the middle," Headmaster Roberts pointed at the man with the blonde hair. "He was a great man who rose to take over the several kingdoms to stop the useless wars. The man next to him in the black suit is one of his closest friends and advisor, the dragon shifter Kai. The other man in the green suit was his other closest friend and advisor, the mage Marley.