Gloria Oliver by Cross-Eyed Dragon Troubles Read Free Book Online

before. Magic was something for the rich and powerful. Was the guild so well off they could use it on such trivial things?
    “We’d better be going,” Mandee said. “I’ve a feeling Yllin and I have filled you with way too much to think about already.” She smiled. “See you at breakfast tomorrow?”
    Talia nodded quickly. “Yes, that’d be great. Thanks for showing me around.” She walked them to the door. Yllin took off the bar.
    “No problem. Good night.” Mandee and Yllin stepped outside and waved as they moved on down the hall.
    “Good night.” Talia watched them as they walked away and then slowly closed her door.
    The room suddenly seemed incredibly quiet except for the barely audible trickling of water from the clock. Though she’d seen earlier the rooms to either side of her were occupied, she could hear nothing through the thick stonewalls. At home, though she had her own room, she could normally hear anyone moving about downstairs or hear the wood of the house creak during a strong wind. It seemed much too quiet here.
    Sighing, she walked to the balcony doors and opened them wide. She stepped out, sighed again, then let herself be embraced by the calm darkness there. The moon was shining brightly above. Looking to either side she noticed others were also out on their balconies. It eased her heart a little to see them there.
    Unexpectedly, something caught at her attention from the corner of her eye. Talia looked up just in time to see a large shadow cross over the moon. She followed it with her gaze and noticed how it wove up and down in no constant pattern.
    Not sure what it was, she leaned over the rail as the object came closer. Trying to look up past the balconies above her as it flew overhead, she jerked back with a gasp as it suddenly dropped past hers toward the ground.
    A light scent of oil rushed by with the wind. She recognized the smell as the shadow rose again, zooming past. Light shone on dark green scales and a figure made of metal. It was Clarence and Kel. Were they both mad? What if Clarence careened into one of the balconies? It was dangerous enough flying a cross-eyed dragon during the day. It was lunacy to do it at night.
    As if to accentuate her point, all the lights in the students’ rooms went out at the same time. Faint, voiced protests reached her ears as bedtime arrived. Talia forced herself to take deep breaths, her heart still at a gallop in her chest. From what Mandee and Yllin said, Kel’s and Clarence’s practice was a normal occurrence, and from the disappointed sounds of the students so was the dousing of the lights.
    Giving the dragon and the squire one last glance, she went back inside and closed the balcony doors behind her. She changed clothes with what moonlight filtered in from the outside and then crawled into the strange bed.
    Sleep was a long time coming.
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Chapter Three
    TALIA WOKE TO the call of birds again. The lilting chirps were high and strong, nothing like the familiar whistles of the red speckled Talerns or even the noisy cacophony of the rooster in the hen house.
    The call came again and this time was answered by one closer still. She slowly sat up in her bed, glanced out toward the balcony doors, and spotted a bright blue and green bird eyeing her from the rail. It dipped its head as if bidding her good morning and then left with a flurry of wings.
    She smiled at the greeting but soon sobered. The sun was out, and she had an appointment. In a half panic, she scrambled out of bed and glanced at the clock in its niche in the wall. She felt suddenly foolish, as she saw it was only ten minutes to six. By this time, her mother would already be up, busy preparing breakfast, while her father would be out looking over the fields making his plans for the day.
    She wiped at her face as she felt a warm tear trickle down her cheek. She was being silly and she knew it. She’d never thought of herself as the sentimental type before.