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 Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 10:46 am
Chapter Nine
Cairien didn’t see much of Damian over the next few weeks. She knew he was there, but almost never saw him. Much of her time was spent in her library studying with Analia, Murky, Sean, and Rosalynn. They all gained strength in each others company as well as good scores on papers thanks to Murky’s coaching.
Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays were what were called “Normal” classes: shape changing, spells, potions (which was the same for them as it was for wizardry students), and other such classes. Wednesdays, for everyone except Cairien, was “Career Planning.” Cairien instead had “Royalty Lessons,” or what she called, “How to Run the Magical World 101.” Every other Wednesday the first year students of Kruz Academy of Magic had Myths and Legends courses. That class covered the myths and legends of the magical world, non-magical world, and even the demon world and books were ordered for the students for each unit.
Cairien was diligently taking notes in Magical History and trying desperately not to fall asleep. Class was nearly over when Professor Skrewit put down his chalk and announced that they would be having their first test the following Monday. Every student was suddenly wide awake after that announcement and Analia leaned over to Cairien to hiss, “Can I borrow your notes, Cai? I don’t know how much I’ve got and Murky won’t let me borrow his.”
“Why don’t you and the others come to my tower after dinner and we’ll all study together?” Cairien suggested.
“Sounds good to me!” Analia agreed, relieved. “You eating lunch with us today?”
The bell rang and the group stood to go their next class, Divining the Future. Cairien nodded. “Yes, but I don’t think I’ll eat dinner with you guys. I can only handle so much of Marty and Rose without killing them,” she replied.
Augustus P. Martese Jr., a.k.a. Marty, and his girlfriend (who just happened to be Cairien’s cousin, Rose Dark) seemed to want nothing more than to lure the princess into a fight nobody wanted.
Divining the Future, or “Fortune Telling” as Analia jokingly called it (except for around the professor), was Cairien’s absolute worst subject. Not only was she horrible at and failing the class completely, Professor Centari insisted that because she was the princess she had to sit front and center.
“Your Highness,” Professor Centari began. “You absolutely must pay attention! It is imperative that you learn this subject! As the future ruler of the magical world you absolutely must be able to see what lies in the future.”
Cairien said nothing.
“Now,” continued the professor. “What do you see in your tea leaves? We are having a test on this next Monday. What do you see?”
Cairien sighed as she stared into her tea cup. All she really saw was brown goo at the bottom. And thought How could this possibly be accurate? very privately in the back corner of her mind. Giving up on seeing anything she lied, “I see a dog, which might be my alternate form.”
Taking the princess’ cup, Professor Centari examined the dregs and snapped, “I see a cat, not a dog, as your alternate form, Your Highness. Please do not simply guess. Tell me what you see.”
Crown Princess Cairien Divine Kruz stood and slammed her desk with her palm. “All I see, Professor,” she shouted angrily, “is a bunch of brown goo at the bottom of a little tiny tea cup and myself leaving this class right now!” Grabbing her bags, Cairien stormed out of the classroom. Two minuets later the bell rang.
Analia and the others caught up to Cairien and Analia put her arm around the princess’ shoulder. “Hey,” Ana said. “I hate Fortune Telling too. Even Murky hates it, don’t you Murky?”
Arthur nodded his agreement. “I don’t understand why they make sorcery students take that class,” he huffed. “It’s a power almost exclusively for witches and wizards.”
They reached the dining hall and sat at a table. Cairien grabbed a sandwich and started eating. “I can’t believe Professor Centari keeps insisting that I have to be able to do it! It’s so stupid and if I want to know what’s in the future I can just hire someone else to tell me, can’t I?” she complained.
Marty and Rose walked by a moment later and Rose taunted, “Nice tea reading today, cousin. What was it? Oh yes, ‘I see a cup with a bunch of brown goo and myself leaving this class right now!’”
Somehow, Rose Dark ended up against the wall furthest from Cairien. She slid down it, unconscious. All the sorcerers and sorceresses in the school heard the head-splitting roar that signified the use of sorcery. Cairien, livid with rage, grabbed her sandwich and stormed out of the dining hall.
Professor Athens followed calmly and stopped the young woman outside the large eating place. “Your Highness,” called the headmistress.
Furious, Cairien whirled around. “What?” she snapped.
The headmistress sighed. “Please come with me,” she instructed, leading the enraged crown princess to her office. She sat behind her desk and gestured for Cairien to take the other seat.
Cairien, still fuming, sat obediently.
“Your Highness, royalty or not I cannot condone what your actions just now. In fact, because you are the future ruler of this world it is imperative that you never do what you just did again. Explain, please,” Professor Athens said severely, crossing her arms over her chest and watching the princess with patient, firm, green eyes.
“I don’t know what I did, Professor,” Cairien retorted.
“You sent Lady Dark into a wall,” the headmistress reminded her.
“Whatever happened, Rose Dark deserved it! She has been provoking me since we first met on the train and is continually mocking me,” Cairien insisted, her tone and expression rebellious.
Professor Athens sighed and placed her dirty-blonde head in one hand. “Regardless of whether Lady Dark deserved it or not, Your Highness,” she insisted, “I shall have to give you detention and speak with your bodyguard.”
“Fine,” the crown princess snapped. “Are we finished here then?”
There was a knock on the door and Damian walked into the room. He bowed to Cairien and nodded to the headmistress before walking over to stand behind the princess.
“Yes, Princess Cairien, we are finished,” Athens assured her. “Please go directly to your next class.”
Cairien stood and walked out the door. When Damian moved to follow her the headmistress called, “Damian, I would like a word with you before you go.”
The half-demon bodyguard stopped and returned to take the seat Cairien had just vacated while Cairien left to go to Defense class. “Yes, headmistress?” Damian replied.
“Explain to me what just happened in the dining hall,” Professor Athens ordered, her green eyes hard and stern.
“Rose Dark and Augustus Martese will not stop doing the very best they can to provoke Princess Cairien into fighting every chance they get,” Damian explained. “Since they met on the train they have not left her alone and I’m sure it does not help matters that Rose Dark’s mother murdered Queen Atira and Lady Dark is the mirror image of her mother.
Athens nodded. “I have given her detention,” she explained. “I realize that it may make matters worse, but the incident cannot go unpunished.”
Damian nodded his acceptance of the headmistress’ logic.
Suddenly, the headmistress changed the subject slightly. “Were you not given the job of protecting the crown princess?” she demanded.
“I was,” Damian agreed. “You yourself requested to the palace guard that I protect the princess from harm.”
“Part of protecting her, Lord Storm, is keeping what just happened in the dining hall from happening in the first place,” Athens said severely. “Would you like to know the full extent of the damage done to the daughter of the Black Rose?”
Damian leaned back in his chair with a sigh. As he placed his right foot on his left knee he nodded to Professor Athens.
“The message I just got from our healers is that she is suffering internal bleeding, is in a coma, all her ribs are broken, a lung was punctured, and she possibly suffered loss of some power,” the headmistress informed the half-demon.
Damian’s mouth dropped open. “Professor, she was only sent into the far wall!” he choked.
Athens nodded. “I realize that, Damian, but she was sent there magically by a very angry, very powerful, young woman. There was more force behind that slam than there would normally have been and I fear that next time the damage will be much worse. The princess could cause Lady Rose Dark to go insane, or even to die. You must ensure that this never happens again. If it did it would be devastating for the princess to say the least.”
Damian nodded and Professor Athens dismissed him.
Crown Princess Cairien Divine Kruz stormed into the Defense classroom with a stormy expression and flashing eyes. Professor Guardini, about to reprimand the princess for tardiness, closed his mouth when Cairien turned her furious gaze to him. Sparks seemed to fly out of those normally sky blue eyes that were now a steely grey.
Analia, Murky, Sean and Rosalynn stared at Cairien in shock and everyone stepped carefully around her for the duration of class, including Marty.
Damian met Cairien just after the final class of the day. She was still furious so Damian grabbed her wrist and led her away from the dining hall.
“What do you think you are doing?” Cairien shouted at the half-demon, jerking her arm out of his hand.
“I’m taking you to a place where you can calm down,” Damian replied calmly. He took her wrist again and led her to a deserted area. It looked similar to a non-magic shooting range.
“It is very similar to what the non-magic people call skeet shooting,” Damian explained. “You throw fireballs at the clay pigeons that I’ll throw for you.”
Cairien nodded and two fireballs appeared in her hands, blazing and hot.
As each clay pigeon flew out a fireball met it within seconds. None of them got away, even when Damian sent five or more. After two hours the pigeons were gone and Cairien hadn’t even broken a sweat. She hadn’t calmed down either.
Damian sighed. He was tired from controlling the clay pigeons but he couldn’t take the princess back to the rest of the school until she had calmed down. Pointing at a plain door, Damian said, “There’s china in there. Feel free to make it explode if it will make you feel any better.”
Cairien walked through the door and pointed at each individual piece of china. Each piece exploded as she pointed at it. Fifteen minutes later, Cairien had finished with the china. Waving her hand, the dishes were repaired and she exploded them all over again.
When she had finished shattering the china for the third time she repaired them and exited the room to find Damian waiting for her. Her eyes had returned to their normal sky blue color and she seemed perfectly under control.
“Feeling better?” Damian asked.
Cairien grinned at him. “Much better, thank you,” she agreed.
Damian’s stomach complained noisily and he grinned back. “Great. Can we go and get dinner?”
“Isn’t the dining hall closed by now?” Cairien asked.
“Yeah, I guess it is,” Damian agreed mournfully.
“Don’t worry,” Cairien laughed. “I can cook. The only problem is my cupboards are bare in the tower’s kitchen.”
Damian beamed at the princess. “That’s all right, come with me and we’ll get them restocked.” He led her down the halls of the school, through several doors and down a dozen flights of stairs before he stopped in a large room with huge ovens, stoves, counters and sinks.
An elf approached them and bowed. “How may we be of assistance, Your Highness?” the elf asked. The elf appeared young–though among that race it was difficult to tell as they did not age quickly–and was male with the blonde hair of all members of the elven race.
“The princess requires that the cupboards of her tower’s kitchen be restocked, Lycaren,” Damian replied. “Would you see to it?”
“Of course, Lord Damian,” the elf agreed. With another bow, Lycaren turned back to Cairien. “Is there anything in particular that you wish to be put in your kitchen outside of the regular ingredients?” he asked.
“No, that’s alright. I would like everything that is commonly used in kitchens,” Cairien replied, smiling.
Lycaren nodded and turned to give orders to the other elves in the kitchen for some of everything to be sent up to the kitchen in the princess’ tower.
“This is good,” Damian complimented Cairien as he shoved a fork-full of home made Macaroni and Cheese in his mouth forty-five minutes after they had returned from the kitchen. “What is it?”
Cairien, princess of the magical world, famous singer in the non-magic world, wearing a lovely sky blue dress that matched her eyes stared at the half-demon guard in dumbfounded amazement. “You don’t know what this is?” she asked incredulously.
“Nope,” Damian replied, confused. “Why?”
Cairien stared at him, stunned. “It’s macaroni and cheese! It’s one of the most commonly eaten things in the United States!”
Damian shrugged. “I’m not from the U.S.,” he pointed out. “I’m from the capital and I’ve never had Macaroni and Cheese before.” He shoved more food into his mouth.
((end chapter nine))
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Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 7:55 pm
Chapter Ten
“You will have a test in this class next week on everything we have discussed so far,” Professor Moss, the Care of Magical Plants and Creatures teacher informed her class two days before the tests in three of their other classes. The entire class let out a groan.
“What day, Professor?” Rosalynn asked in her sweet soprano voice.
“Thursday,” Moss replied. “There will be two of them, a test on what we have learned and a safety test for our next unit. Make sure you are prepared.”
The bell rang and they all headed to Potions.
“Hey Murky,” Analia said, throwing an arm around his shoulders as they walked back toward the school building from the greenhouses. “Will you help us study some more?”
“Ana, when have I not helped you four study?” Murky sighed.
“Yeah, well, I don’t just want help, Murky,” Cairien cut in. “I need it, desperately. I’ve failed every test I’ve ever taken.”
Murky grinned. “I get to use your library then,” he declared.
Cairien rolled her eyes. “Fine, but you have to help with my homework and eat dinner in my tower with me.”
Everyone grinned as they walked into Potions class.
Cairien and her friends enjoyed their dinner together and all three girls started to laugh when Sean made a comment and his voice broke.
Damian walked in while everyone was laughing. “Your Highness,” he called. “Alex says that he is finished.”
The young princess nodded. “Would you have him come here at 9:30?” she asked. “I have some studying I need to do before he comes over.”
“Of course,” Damian agreed. He left the room and went to his own to make the contact, trying to shove away the fact that Princess Cairien seemed to care no more for him than as a messenger boy or guard.
Cairien and the others walked up to her library after she had finished the dishes and started studying. For a few minutes, the princess was slightly distracted with the fact that Damian didn’t seem to care for her as more than his job. Soon, however, the conversations and laughter of her friends brought her mind back to earth and the studying she so desperately needed to do.
The group finished studying early and Analia stayed behind with Cairien to talk while the others left.
“You seemed a little preoccupied after dinner,” Analia noted. “What were you thinking about?”
Cairien blushed. “It probably doesn’t really mean anything,” she admitted. “But Damian doesn’t seem to care much about me as more than a job.”
Analia’s eyes instantly filled with sympathy. “You like him, don’t you?” she asked.
When the princess nodded Analia wanted to cry. From watching Damian watch Cairien she knew the half-demon liked–and maybe even loved–the princess but both he and Analia knew that Cairien could never marry the half-demon unless a certain law was changed. A law Cairien probably didn’t even know existed.
“Don’t worry about Damian, Cai,” Analia suggested. “I’m sure he doesn’t mean anything by what he does. You are his job after all. He’s supposed to protect you.”
“But does he have to be so apathetic?” Cairien complained. “He could at least try to be my friend!”
Analia bit her lip. She wanted more than anything to comfort her friend, but she felt that Damian was being wise to keep his distance. Taking a deep breath she said, “Do you want me to talk to him? I bet I could do it without making him suspicious!”
Cairien beamed at Analia. “Would you?!” she exclaimed. “That’d be great! Thanks!”
Analia laughed and hugged Cairien. “Sure. No problem,” she replied, even though she was thinking, This could be bad...very, very bad...
Damian opened the door to his suite with magic when he heard the knock and stood, expecting Cairien to come in to discuss what had gone well and what he felt she could do better like she so often did. To his surprise, not Cairien but Analia walked into the sitting room.
“What can I do for you, Lady Woods?” Damian asked calmly, hiding his surprise.
Analia grimaced. “Just call me Ana, please,” she requested. “Lady Woods is my mother.”
Damian chuckled. “I know how you feel,” he agreed. “Very well then, Ana. What can I do for you?”
“I’ve been watching you for months now, Damian,” Analia stated without beating around the bush. “Especially when you’re around Cai.”
Damian grimaced. The Woods girls were noted for their abilities of observation, even though the often acted like complete ditzes. “And what have you noticed, Ana?” he asked.
“You like the princess,” Analia replied, “maybe even love her. Is that why you’re keeping your distance?”
Damian groaned. “You’re very observant,” he noted. “And you’re right. I’m not going to be stupid and try to hide it from you.”
Analia chuckled. “Smart boy,” she agreed. “Trying to deny it would undoubtedly only get you in trouble. I have a suggestion for you though.”
“Oh?” Damian asked warily. “And what would that be?”
“Be her friend,” Analia said. “She feels the same way about you that you feel about her and unless she changes that law all you can be is her friend. The thing is, she can’t change a law she doesn’t know exists and there will be no reason for her to find out about it if you never get closer to her. Maybe the real solution to your problem is not distancing yourself from her but getting closer.”
Damian sighed. “I’ve thought about that,” he admitted. “But I still don’t think that I’m the best choice for her.”
Analia raised an eyebrow. “Why not?” she demanded.
Damian gave her a pointed look and gestured at his hair, black with red tips. “Does that tell you nothing?” he asked, his voice slightly sarcastic. “I’m a half-demon. I can’t be sure I won’t someday hurt her. Distancing myself from her is my way of protecting her from me.”
Analia sighed. “But what will you do if she decides that you are the best choice for her?” she whispered. “I told you she likes you too. The fact that you keep distancing yourself from her is hurting her.”
“I’ll think about it,” Damian assured her, glancing at the clock. He stood. “But her band is going to be here and I don’t trust Alex, so I have to go.”
Analia laughed. “I should head back to my own suite anyway,” she agreed, standing as well. “See you tomorrow and make sure you think about what I said.”
“I will,” Damian promised as he escorted Analia out of the tower just as Alex, Kyle and Johnny arrived. “Good night.”
“Hey Analia, Damian,” Kyle greeted the two. As he was on the best terms with Damian and not afraid of him, Kyle had been designated spokesman for his brothers when the half-demon was around. “Which floor is Cai on?”
“I’ll get her for you,” Damian replied.
“She was still in the library doing some extra studying when I left to talk to you,” Analia said helpfully.
Cairien was indeed still in the library pouring over her notes when Damian walked up there to let her know her band had arrived. It took him several tries to get her attention.
“Princess Cairien!” Damian exclaimed for the tenth time. His voice was heavy with exasperation.
Cairien’s head snapped up, an innocent, surprised expression on her face. “Yeah?” she asked.
“The triplets are here,” Damian sighed. “Are you going to go down to practice with them?”
“Yes, thank you,” Cairien replied, her face reddening. She followed Damian down the stairs to the music room where her band waited for her.
As the two of them walked into the music room Alex handed Cairien a small stack of sheet music. “Tell me what you think,” he requested.
Cairien moved over to sit at the piano as she flipped through the music. Sitting down she started to play the vocal parts. It didn’t sound right, so the princess looked at the key signature then turned to glare at Alex. “You picked that key on purpose, didn’t you?” she demanded. “I hate that key signature!”
Alex shook his head mournfully. “That’s the only key that sounded good, Cai. Why do you hate it so much?”
“It’s a pain in the butt to sing,” Cairien snapped. “And look at the notes! I can’t sing that low!”
“Of course not,” Alex replied. “That’s a male vocal’s part.”
Cairien pursed her lips. “Who exactly did you have in mind, Alex?” she demanded. “Neither you nor your brothers can sing at all and I don’t know anyone here who can!”
Kyle pointed at Damian. “Have him sing it,” he suggested.
“No,” Damian replied firmly when Cairien turned to him.
“Can you sing?” she asked hopefully.
“Yes. But I’m not going to,” Damian answered.
“Will you at least try it? Please?” Cairien pleaded, her eyes widening and her hands clasping in front of her.
“No.”
Cairien’s expression changed to one of irresistible pleading. “Please?” she begged in a small voice. “It’d be really helpful.”
Damian suddenly found he could not resist Cairien’s pleading expression. In fact, it made his heart melt and he decided right then that he would be her friend, not just her bodyguard. He held his hand out for the music.
Cairien beamed at him and held it out while the boys realized how truly beautiful the young princess was, especially in the beautiful, perfectly fitted, dusty rose gown she was wearing.
“Will you play my notes for me, Your Highness?” Damian asked as he handed Cairien the music.
“If you will turn the pages for me,” Cairien agreed. She glided back to the piano and sat down. Damian moved to stand beside her and started to sing as she played his notes. When the princess’ part started, Cairien joined in and the two sang together, their voices blending in perfect harmony. When the song ended, they both sighed.
Everyone was still for several minutes and no one spoke. Cairien sat with her eyes closed and a content smile on her face. Damian stood and looked quite satisfied. Alex and his brothers were dumbfounded.
Johnny was the first to break the silence. “If you don’t sing with Cairien it will be a real shame,” he said softly. “A real shame. We’ve discarded three different songs because nobody sang with her well enough to satisfy her or if they did she hated them.”
Damian chuckled. “I’m not surprised,” he answered. “From what I’ve heard a lot of the celebrities in the non-magic world are extraordinarily cocky, and from what I’ve learned about the princess she doesn’t like that kind of attitude.”
Cairien made a face. “No, I don’t,” she agreed. Turning to look up at Damian she pleaded, “So will you sing with me?”
“I would be delighted, Your Highness,” Damian agreed with a little bow. “I believe Johnny was right and it would be a shame if I did not.”
Cairien grinned at Alex. “Why don’t we resurrect those songs?” she suggested. “After rehearsal, of course.”
“Princess Cairien, Analia, would the two of you please demonstrate what you just did?” Professor Guardini requested in their Defense the next day.
Cairien and Analia grinned at each other and moved to the front of the large room. The desks had been cleared after the first day and the room now represented more of a dueling room.
“This time, Your Highness,” the teacher said before the two girls began their demonstration. “I would like for you to attack and for Lady Woods to defend.”
A ball of concentrated energy appeared in Cairien’s outstretched hand and shafts of lightning shot at her best friend. Analia formed a force field around herself. The force field absorbed the lightning and shot it back at Cairien, who had also created a force field that did the exact same thing. This went on for a few more minutes and by the end the two girls were panting and sweating.
Professor Guardini and the other students clapped, except for Marty and Rose who stood there glaring at the demonstrators.
“Excellent, ladies, truly excellent!” the Defense teacher declared.
Two days before the Magical Creatures and Plants test, Murky had started giving them practice tests. Cairien hadn’t passed a single one.
“I’m going to fail this test!” Cairien wailed. Her eyes filled with tears and she buried her head in her arms.
“Not if I can help it!” Murky declared. “Don’t say you’re going to fail again Cairien.”
“But I am!” the princess cried. “I’ve never been able to pass tests! I know what I’m doing and I know the answers, but I always seem to fail the tests!” Cairien burst into tears and her four friends looked at each other, at a loss for what to do or say.
Damian walked into the library and took in the situation with a glance. He sent the others back to their own rooms and sat next to the sobbing princess.
“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked calmly.
“No,” Cairien sobbed. “I just don’t do well on tests, that’s all.”
“Why not?” Damian pressed.
“I don’t know, I just don’t. No matter how much I study or how well I know what I’m doing I can’t seem to pass a test.”
“There has got to be more to this than just a simple test coming up, Cairien,” Damian pressed, for the first time using her name. “What is going on?”
“Everything,” Cairien wailed, throwing herself at Damian and sobbing on his shoulder.
Surprised, Damian wrapped his arms around the princess and pulled her more firmly into his lap so she wouldn’t fall. He kept his arms around her while she cried. “Like what?” he asked.
“They expect too much of me!” she declared. “I can’t be a princess, I can’t even pass a test! I already failed the first three I had this week. I’m no good at leading people and I don’t know anything about this world. I didn’t even know it existed until August when I got my letter and now they’re expecting me to rule it!”
“You have four years to learn about this world,” Damian pointed out calmly. “You’ll have advisors to help you as well. A lot of the teachers will give practical exams because students always do better on those but there will be a few written tests. The only class you’ll never have a practical exam in is History.”
Cairien sniffed and nodded. “I’ve never taken a practical test before,” she replied.
Damian grinned down at the princess. “I’ll bet you’ll pass just fine,” he told her. “Or at least you’ll pass all the practicals.”
“Thank you, Damian,” Cairien sniffed, smiling a little bit.
“Do you feel better now?” the half-demon asked.
Cairien nodded. “Yes, thank you.”
Princess Cairien Divine Kruz woke with a scream on her lips as she sat up in bed. Two minutes later, Damian Derux, her half-demon guard and protector, charged into the room.
Damian’s red silk shirt was on, but unbuttoned and looked like it had been thrown on in haste, revealing his muscular tors
o. He looked around the room for the danger to the princess then stopped when he heard her start to sob. The half-demon sat on Cairien’s bed and pulled her into his arms. “What happened?” he asked.
Cairien clung to Damian and sobbed, “Brad.” She couldn’t get any further than that, but she started to cry harder.
Damian pulled the princess into his lap and held her closer. He wanted to be able to tell her that everything would be alright, but the royal family’s dreams had a longstanding habit of coming true. He continued to hold the sobbing princess and stroked her long, soft, black hair and twirled one strand around his finger. When she stopped crying, Damian asked her gently, “What did you see?”
“Bradley,” Cairien sniffed. “He’s...he’s going...to die,” she whispered, a quiver in her voice.
((end chapter ten))
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Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 10:30 pm
Chapter Eleven
The day of the Magical Creatures and Plants test Cairien’s mind was in a fog. Both Professor Spell and Professor Arthenis asked her if everything was alright and she nodded mutely. Most of her spells went wrong and she nearly caught Analia’s hair on fire. As it was, her best friend’s hair turned flaming red, a sure sign she was angry about something. Not even Cairien’s friends could get an answer out of her as to what was wrong.
“What in the name of magic do you think you are doing?” Rose shrieked at Cairien while Marty frantically extinguished his girlfriend’s hair after another spell went wrong.
Cairien said nothing, which only caused Rose to screech louder, which Cairien unintentionally ignored.
The professor stepped in before Rose could get any more angry by threatening her with detention for disturbing the peace of the classroom and saying that accidents could happen to anyone.
The Magical Plants and Creatures test was a written exam as it turned out and Cairien wracked her brains to remember the purposes of snakevine oil, unicorn horns, and creeping terantecula as well as the medicinal purposes of telancer, what to do if you didn’t know the answer to a sphinx’s riddle and how to avoid getting salmanders in your fire. By the end of class, her mind was no longer in a fog and she was sure she’d failed the test, even with Murky’s help and the questions he’d asked her during lunch.
As Cairien, Analia, Rosalynn, Sean , and Murky walked into the castle, a group of students were gathered around the bulletin board.
Sean, the tallest of the group at six foot four, read the notice and told the others, “There’s a school dance on Halloween. It’s a date dance and if you don’t have one you won’t be allowed in.”
“A dance!” Analia exclaimed cheerfully. “That should lift your spirits Cai!”
“Hey Lynn, would you like to go with me?” Sean asked, turning to Rosalynn with a smile.
“Sure!” the pretty blonde answered happily.
Cairien told her friends they should get going or they would be late for potions and they all headed off to class, the others watching Cairien with concerned expressions.
Professor Murkwood took one look at Cairien’s face when she walked into the potions room and made a mental note to speak with Damian before starting the class. Today they were making memory potions.
When Damian walked into the diamond tower that evening after dinner and his discussion with the potions teacher he was already warned that the princess was upset about something. He smelled cake and other baked goods coming from the kitchen and knew something was indeed very wrong.
After running up the stairs to the kitchen, the half-demon found Cairien taking a cookie sheet loaded with ginger snaps from the oven, slamming them onto the stove to make them flatten, and leaving them to cool while the mixer dried itself and started filling with ingredients for the frosting to go on top of the chocolate cake that sat on the white marble counter.
“What’s wrong?” Damian demanded as he swiped a ginger snap from the cookie sheet.
Cairien handed him a glass of milk. “Nothing,” she insisted in her musical soprano as she sent all the cookies into a glass container nearly full of ginger snaps. When the icing for the cake was finished making itself the princess, with small beads of perspiration on her forehead, had the cake frost itself with the chocolate icing.
“Why don’t you take a break?” Damian suggested as he gently took control of the now empty mixer and started having it wash itself.
Cairien sighed and sat down, then turned to look at the pieces of parchment on the table. She grimaced and looked away from them.
“What are those?” Damian asked as he picked up the papers. “Oh, your test results.” He set them down again. “You didn’t do to badly,” he remarked.
As soon as he had finished speaking Damian regretted that he had. Cairien got up, said, “I didn’t pass,” and left the room. Damian winced when he heard the door to her suite slam shut and followed her up the stairs while he contacted her band.
What do I do guys? he asked after he had explained the situation.
Leave her alone, the Kyle and Alex said simultaneously.
Well, leave her alone for tonight, Kyle amemnded. And then tomorrow ask her to the school dance. I know it’s bothering her that all her friends already have dates and she doesn’t.
Damian broke the contact and listened at Cairien’s bedroom door for a few minutes but didn’t hear anything coming from it so he went downstairs to his own room and went to bed.
The next morning Cairien seemed fine when Damian entered the kitchen where she was cooking a breakfast of toast and eggs.
Soundlessly walking up behind her, Damian said, “Good morning, Your Highness.”
Cairien jumped and fortunately did not burn herself with the pan. When she realized who had snuck up on her, she glared at him. “You scared me!” she declared.
Damian apologized and took the plate Cairien offered him. “How did you sleep?” he asked when she sat down across the small table from him.
“Alright,” Cairien answered, shrugging. Her expression was thoughtful and it was a few minutes before she said anything else. “When can I change a law?”
The question caught Damian by surprise. “You’d have to ask my mother that,” he replied, slightly stunned. “Why?”
Cairien shrugged. “Your mother told me something I thought rather stupid, so I would like to change it.”
Now Damian was curious. “What did she say?” he asked.
“Something about a law that prohibits certain people from marrying certain others,” the princess replied. “I don’t think that’s right. People shouldn’t be restricted in whom they can fall in love with or marry. It will only cause problems nobody needs.”
Damian could barely keep his jaw from dropping, amazed that his mother had actually told Cairien about that law and delighted that Cairien fully intended to change it as soon as she could. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and said, “There was something I wanted to ask you when I came in here.”
“What was that?” Cairien asked as she took a bite of her breakfast.
“Would you go to the dance with me this weekend? It’s technically in your honor, but I would be honored if you would let me take you.” Damian watched Cairien, not realizing that his expression fully showed how badly he wanted her to go with him.
Cairien was delighted and her sky blue eyes sparkled with joy. “I would be delighted to go with you, Damian,” she replied. She breathed a mental sigh of relief and joy, feeling like a weight had just been lifted off her chest.
Damian couldn’t help it as he grinned broadly. “Great!” he declared as he stood up and took the dishes from the table, magically cleaned them and put them away. “If you’re ready I’ll walk you to class.”
“Oh,” Cairien added. “And I forgot to tell you that your mother wants to ta–speak with you.”
“Mom always wants to talk to me,” Damian shrugged, nodding his approval of the quick correction in the American-raised princess.
“Your Highness,” Damian’s mother, Duchess Loralen Storm, said with a graceful curtsy when Cairien and Damian walked into a small room set up like a sitting room.
“Your Grace,” Cairien replied, returning the curtsy but making hers less deep. The two ladies rose together.
“Mother,” Damian greeted, walking over to kiss his mother’s beautiful cheek. “You are looking well.”
“As are you,” the petite, older woman answered with a smile. “Did Her Highness tell you I wished to speak with you?”
Damian nodded. “What was it you needed?”
“I’d like you to stay here during the lessons, if you don’t mind,” Loralen informed her half-demon son.
Damian raised an eyebrow. “You want me to stay here during princess lessons?” he nearly choked. “To what purpose?”
Loralen smiled. “As an observer. You may catch something that I have missed in the lessons. Also, you are her guard and as such are required to be at her side for any meetings she has and she will need to get used to you watching literally over her shoulder. I’ve already spoken with your teachers and the headmistress and they have agreed to release you to your duties instead of what would normally be a preparation class for you to go into the classes for your chosen career,” she said.
With a resigned sigh, Damian nodded. “I will stay then,” he agreed, following Cairien to the sofa. He pushed a stray lock of his red-tipped, black hair out of his eyes and bowed to the princess then walked over to hold first Cairien’s chair and then Loralen’s before standing behind Cairien.
Loralen tuned to Cairien and said, “Now, Your Highness, if you remember last week I selected a few laws I felt you might disagree with. Today I will teach you how to change a law by having you change one of them. Have you selected one?”
Cairien nodded and pulled a piece of paper from the sleeve of her mint green gown and handed it to her tutor. “I have selected this one,” she replied calmly.
Loralen read what was on the parchment and her eyes softened marginally. She glanced at her son once before turning her attention back to the princess and pulling out a clean paper and a quill. “This is how we begin...”
On the night of Halloween Damian stood at the bottom of the stairs in the princess’ diamond tower waiting for her arrival. He was dressed in a tuxedo and his hair had been cut to a decent length. Even though it was Halloween and many places would have had a costume ball, Kruz Academy had decided that this dance–and all the others they would have that year–would be formal.
Damian fidgeted, uncomfortable in the formal garb, and glanced up the stairs again nervously. There still was no sign of Cairien.
Crown Princess Cairien Divine Kruz, future queen of the magical world and descendant of the founders of Kruz Academy of Magic, looked at herself in the mirror one last time to make sure that everything was in the right spot. Her hair was curled and pinned in an elaborate up-do, making her look similar to a high school student going to the prom, and she wore a small, dainty, silver tiara, small, silver dangle earrings with a matching necklace, and a diamond bracelet sent to her by her brother for the occasion.
The gown that Cairien wore was violet–not her normal pastel, but a true purple–with an intricate floral design on the neckline that went in a ‘v’ to just below her bust and across the off-the-shoulder, quarter sleeves. The same floral design in a much smaller form was placed at intervals along the a-line skirt of the gown. On Cairien’s feet was a pair of dainty, clear shoes that seemed made of glass but were in fact made of something different and far more comfortable.
Satisfied that she was ready, Cairien took a deep breath and walked out of her suite and down the stairs to meet Damian. When she saw him, she smiled shyly, blushed and looked away, thinking of how extraordinarily handsome he looked.
Damian stared at Cairien, dumbfounded. He had never seen her look more beautiful than she did at that moment. To his delight, she blushed when she noticed him staring at her. As she approached the bottom of the stairs he held out his hand to her. “You look beautiful, Your Highness,” he murmured, his lips brushing her ear. “Are you ready to go?”
Cairien nodded and blushed again. “Yes, thank you. You look very handsome,” she replied.
“Thank you,” Damian chuckled, still slightly uncomfortable in the tux. He opened the door of the tower and led her back to the main part of the school and to the enormous ballroom on the other side.
The ballroom was elaborately decorated for the ball and the door to the gardens was open wide to let fresh air in. Candles were lit everywhere, floating above the heads of the students and teachers and enchanted not to drip wax on the people below them. Young women in gowns were gathered in groups, chatting and laughing with each other, their dates in a group close beside them. Some couples were already dancing to the music provided by an orchestra of instruments that were enchanted to play themselves.
Cairien fought hard not to stare, eyes wide in amazement, at everything and Damian watched her with appreciative eyes.
Analia, Murky, Sean, and Rosalynn were conspicuously absent as Damian led Cairien onto the dance floor and they began to waltz–something the entire school had been practicing since shortly after school started.
“Where did you get that dress?” Damian asked as they danced. “It looks very lovely on you.”
Cairien blushed slightly. “I ordered it and Brad picked it up and sent it to me,” she confessed. “It came from New York in the United States.”
Damian nodded as he spun the princess under his arm then brought her closer to him and put his hand around her waist. “When that law changes, Your Highness, many people are going to be thrilled,” he said suddenly. “You did a wonderful thing in that decision.”
“Thank you,” Cairien replied, looking away and fighting the urge to bite her lip. “It wasn’t right for it to be there. Why was it created in the first place?”
The half-demon shrugged. “I don’t know. I think the prime minister suggested it and because you weren’t there no one was there to stop him,” he replied.
Cairien looked confused. “But why would anyone want a law like that?”
“Because the prime minister is obsessed with control and power. You will most likely have problems with him in the near future,” Damian answered bluntly.
The ball continued late into the night and into early morning before it ended and everyone sought their beds. Once they were closer to the tower Cairien stopped and removed her high heeled shoes with a sigh of relief. A few minutes later Damian picked her up and carried her the rest of the way to her suite then set her gently down in front of her bedroom door.
“Sleep well, Highness,” he said, kissing her hand and leaving the suite to seek his own bed.
“Sleep well, Damian,” Cairien replied, lifting the hand he had kissed to her chest and holding it with the other. She stood there for a few minutes, staring after the half-demon, before she went into her room and went to bed.
((end chapter 11))
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