Silent Year

My, my; aren't my chapters short? Please forgive me for the shortness of the chapters, but I assure you, the next couple chapters are much longer. Thank you for the lovely reviews, and we have questions this time! Wewt!

Question #1: How many students have been claimed by the "killer fish"?
I'm not quite sure, but I'm positive the fish knows. ~_^.

So, now to start the chapter!
``````````````````````````````````````````````````
Chapter Six: A Visitor


Quiari didn’t come down for Gym class the next day, or the next. And nobody saw her; no teacher seemed to want a book. What she’d done in the Potions class had spread around the school like wild fire. There were whispers, whispers of fear and awe. Quiari stayed in the library tower, sitting at a window, stroking the smooth scales of the new dragon, which had gone from a grey color at its birth to a soothing blue. The mane and tail glowed brightly, even in the daylight. Of course, clouds always obscured the sun, and even with the large windows, the library was only able to be lit by torches. Outside it was snowing, always snowing. Always dreary, always dark; and no matter how fires were lit, always cold. Quiari looked at the dragon snuggled down in her hands, gathering warmth from her hands, from her body.

“Little one…” she spoke softly, and the dragon’s ear perked slightly. “Are you warm enough, little one?” her voice was barely a whisper, so quiet that only the dragon could hear it. The dragon snuggled further into her hands. “I…I am sorry, little one. I didn’t mean to wake you.” She closed her hands, but the dragon squirmed its head out of her warm palms and looked at her with golden eyes. They’d changed color from fiery red. “I…I do not like this place, little one.” She said softly, and the dragon coughed slightly, a bit of ice flew from its mouth and froze some stone of the windowsill. “They talk of me, little one, they talk of you…I can hear them whisper, but I can do nothing.” She said quietly, looking out the window again. “They see me, little one. They watch with eyes that never close.” She spoke even quieter, looking around the empty library as if someone was lurking behind a bookshelf. “And they hear everything, they watch and listen, but what do they see, little one? What do they hear?” the dragon gave a large yawn, bending its head nearly in half like a snake about to swallow an overly large rat.

She stared out the window, watching the snow fall, and soon the dragon fell back asleep, curled into her hands. Her eyes clouded over with memory, and soon a tear rolled down her cheek. “Come now, my love. Please don’t cry.” Quiari jumped, gasped, and nearly dropped the dragon at the voice. There stood a black cloaked figure; standing calmly in the library, and Quiari wiped her eyes quickly. “I…I wasn’t crying. Y-you shouldn’t sneak up on me like that, Radu.” She said quietly, and the dragon slithered under Quiari’s sweater vest at the loss of her warm hands. “Eep!” The black cloaked figure laughed quietly as the lump underneath her shirt moved and the dragon poked its head out of her collar. The black cloaked figure moved forward and reached out a hand. “I miss you, my love.” He said, and Quiari looked away. “Come on now, things here can’t be that bad. And nobody’s watching you…except maybe me.” There was a smile behind his voice.

Quiari looked up. “I...” she started, but then closed her mouth and dropped off. The black cloaked figure took another step forward, drawing Quiari into a loving embrace. “Look, you’re in the middle right now. The Elders are still deciding what to do with you. Don’t prove them right, my love.” Said the cloaked figure, and Quiari shook herself from his gaze. “I am not yours.” She said softly, and then turned her back to the boy and faced the window again. “I know, but I can dream, can’t I?” the boy asked, moving forward. “That is what the Elders tell us, isn’t it?” asked Quiari, and the dragon sneezed; a window pane instantly became frosted. “Where’d he come from?” the boy’s voice seemed tense. “I made her.” Quiari said simply, softly. “Quiari!” the boy sounded shocked. “I had no choice!” Quiari swung around, braid following. Her chest was heaving. “He…he wouldn’t stop…he said…” Quiari couldn’t finish, she closed her mouth and looked to the stone floor. “You should go, Radu.” The boy took a step forward.

“Do you really want me to go?” he asked, and Quiari looked at a bookshelf, not looking at the boy. “You should go.” She said again. “I know I should. But I don’t want to.” He said, and wrapped his arms around her again. “Don’t you want me?” he asked, Quiari just stared at his shoulder, taking her time to gather her thoughts. “We are different breeds, you and I.” she said softly. “Are you still on about that?” his voice was angry, he held Quiari at arm’s length. “I love you!” Quiari kept her gaze to the ground before she swiped his hands away. She turned away and walked to the right. “And…and I you…but it does not matter.” The boy took in a breath to say something more, but Quiari turned sad eyes to face him. “Let me be, Radu.” She said gently, and the boy let out the breath and slumped slightly. “Please, Radu. Go home. Let me be.” She said softly, keeping her gaze in his. Her eyes were filled with longing, with sadness, with unshed tears. “But I…” “Let me be. Let me survive this on my own. Please Radu.” She said, and the boy sighed before straightening. “Very well,” his voice was cold, as if he were forcing calm.

“I’ll call on you once a month.” She walked forward and put her hands against his chest, her body soon following. She kept her eyes to the floor. “Thank you, Radu.” She said, and the boy wrapped his arms around her tightly. “Just one year, Quiari my love. And then you can speak again. Aloud.” He said, and Quiari nodded against his chest, closing her eyes. “Yes, Radu, but…it won’t be enough.” She said, and the boy sighed and held her closer, squishing the dragon slightly. “It’s only a trial, Quiari love. One year of silence, for an entire lifetime of speech.” He said. “It is a small price to pay.” He added. Quiari’s fingers curled into his shirt. “But a lifetime of silence is not enough to restore their honor, Radu. Nothing will be enough.” She said softly, and the boy chuckled slightly. “You’ve earned their honor over and over again. The Elders just haven’t seen it yet.” He said, and Quiari allowed a small smile to curve her lips. “And they never will, but I will survive them, Radu.” She said, and then drew away to look up at the boy’s hooded face. “But I must do it on my own. Please, Radu, let me be now.” She said, and the boy stepped away and then disappeared. Quiari’s smile faded and she walked over to the windowsill and sat down, stroking the dragon through her sweater vest. It made a rumbling sound, a sign of happiness.

Quiari stared out at the storm. “But, little one, I cannot tell Radu.” She said, and then sighed. “He must not know…how afraid I am…” the last part came in a whisper. “So afraid.”

Meanwhile, Radu appeared back in his home in the trees. He stepped onto the smooth wood of his floor and looked around the single room. There was a bed in the corner, and a warm fire crackling softly on a stone platform in the middle of the room. A fire made of purple flames. He let the cloak fall, short red hair falling to his jawbone, and he hung the cloak up. “I can sense you, stop hiding.” He said, and there was a soft chuckle before a figure in white stepped out of the air. Radu bowed low. “How may I be of service to you, Elder Rillia?” he asked, and the white cloaked figure chuckled even louder. The white mask the figure wore covered her face. The white robe hung loosely around her body, hanging off of the chest and shoulders. “How’s our little Quiari?” she asked, and Radu looked the Elder in the eyes. He shrugged. “I don’t know.” He said and the Elder chuckled again. “It’s difficult to gauge her moves, isn’t it? She says one thing, but means another, doesn’t she?” asked the Elder, and Radu looked to the ground. “Come on.” Said the Elder, and she reached up and unclasped the cloak, it fell to reveal meaty curves. She was wearing precious little. Radu closed his eyes against the sight. “You know you can tell me anything.” Said the woman, walking forward, and she let her black hair loose from its bun. She pushed Radu against the wall and threw the mask aside before kissing Radu, whose eyes were closed tight.

```````````````````````````````````````````````````
So, there you have chapter six. Please forgive the shortness, and I know tha thte next chapter will explain things. Please be patient with me. Thank you again for all the wonderful reviews, and please don't be afraid to ask questions! See you soon! ~Nezumi-kun~