“Now I know the two dark haired children, their parents raise sheep and horses on the Sloping Hill. But the blonde girl I’ve never seen before.”
A casual change of subject in Cohrbin’s eyes perhaps, but not in Hroombra’s. His friend’s first mention of the prophecy and now this curiosity about Jahrra, as innocent as it may seem, made Hroombra even more uncomfortable. He trusted Cohrbin, but not nearly enough to convey to him the deep secret he kept.
The dragon took a deep breath, “She came to two friends of mine as an infant. Her parents died shortly after her birth but she’s been a blessing to my friends Lynhi and Abdhe.” Hroombra kept his answer short and simple.
“Well, I have my hands full with the usual privileged, troublesome children this year but those three are definitely a delight to have in the class.”
Hroombra breathed a mental sigh of relief, grateful that Cohrbin’s interest in Jahrra didn’t linger. The two adults spoke for a little while longer until the children came skipping up, ready to be on their way home. The group said their goodbyes and soon they were once again atop Hroombra and heading south. Once outside of Aldehren the three children spilled everything about their first day at school.
“Our teacher is great!” Jahrra remarked. “He let us decorate our desks.”
“Yeah, and we got to draw and learn about the history of Oescienne. Did you know that humans used to live here?” Scede said in wonderment, no longer the timid boy he had been earlier that day.
“Really?” Hroombra smiled, knowing all too well that they had. “You don’t say.”
“It was fun,” Gieaun added, “except for the twins.”
And then the three went into great detail about Ellysian and Eydeth and how they had turned the whole class against them.
“Don’t worry, young ones. Most of them will grow out of it and learn that there’s nothing wrong with being different from one another. Just have patience.”
“Like when growing a beard!” Jahrra piped, remembering what the mailman had once said.
“What?” asked Hroombra in bewilderment.
Jahrra told him all about the beard and the conversation soon returned to more pleasant talk. By the time the dragon and the children arrived at the Castle Guard Ruin it was late afternoon and Dharedth was already waiting for them at the top of the hill.
“So, how did the first day go?” he asked with much eagerness.
“It was alright,” Jahrra said simply.
“Alright? That’s it?”
“The other children weren’t very nice,” Gieaun explained solemnly.
“Oh, I see,” Dharedth said knowingly. “Don’t you worry, they’ll soon see what wonderful children you three are, just give it time.”
Jahrra looked up, feeling a little better. Maybe Dharedth and Master Hroombra were right. Maybe their classmates just needed time to get used to school as well.
In no time the mail cart was clacking down the road carrying the new friends in the direction of home. Hroombra watched them slowly fade into the distance, looking rather grave in the rich light of the approaching sunset. He smiled as he recalled the first day Jahrra had been brought to him. She’d been all alone then, a human being in a world of Resai and Nesnan elves. He smiled once more as they turned to wave one more time before disappearing over the rise in the road, feeling truly grateful that Jahrra had made some real friends today. They’ll be a great help to her in the coming years, he thought soberly.
The old dragon exhaled strongly, stirring the dust upon the road and mixing it with a plume of acrid smoke. He only wished that Jaax would visit soon. The younger dragon needed to see how big Jahrra had grown and he needed to update Hroombra on news of the outside world. The conversation with Cohrbin had shaken him at first but it was good to know that there was still uncertainty about Jahrra’s existence.
The great reptile yawned and stalked into the one huge, remaining room in the Ruin. Winter was approaching and Jahrra would soon turn seven. The past six years had already gone by so quickly, Hroombra was afraid he would blink and Jahrra would be grown. He only hoped he was doing the right thing by withholding the truth from her until she was old enough to understand. As long as she was satisfied with school and her friends, however, he didn’t have to worry, at least not for now.
-Chapter Five-
Tricks and Traps and Fighting Back
Jahrra’s first day of school was definitely not what she’d expected it to be, but with the encouragement of her parents, the companionship of her two new friends, and mostly from the promise that Hroombra would teach her on her days off, she willingly faced the inhospitable Resai twins day in and day out.
To Jahrra’s great relief, the school week only lasted four days, leaving the last day free for her lessons with Hroombra. The old dragon would help her refine her writing and reading skills and teach her about the history of Ethoes through stories of times long past. Jahrra always looked forward to these lessons; at the Castle Guard Ruin she didn’t have to fear the laughter and taunting of her classmates.
On weekends, Jahrra would either help out at home or go over to Gieaun’s and Scede’s ranch where she would learn how to ride horses. Learning to ride quickly became Jahrra’s favorite thing to do, especially since it meant spending time with her two best friends.
Wood’s End Ranch was the largest piece of land on the western end of the Sloping Hill, easily a hundred acres if not more. It was called Wood’s End Ranch because it backed into the Wreing Florenn on its southern side. Jahrra didn’t hesitate to mention that her own orchard met the feared forest and asked her friends if they’d ever seen the terrible beast that was said to live there.
“Father has told us many stories about the monsters of Oescienne, but we’ve never actually seen them,” Scede said matter-of-factly.
Jahrra looked at him with wide eyes, too distracted by the fact that there were many monsters living in Oescienne to be disappointed that he already knew about the one in the Wreing Florenn.
“Don’t worry, if you ever get to go camping with us I’m sure father will tell you all about them,” he continued after seeing Jahrra’s reaction.
Jahrra crossed her arms and squished up her face, “I would like to hear about them,” she claimed. “I need to know what exactly is in the Wreing Florenn. I’m going to go looking for the monster someday when I’m older and braver.”
Gieaun looked simply terrified at this comment but Scede, surprisingly, looked as if he’d nurtured the same idea for a long time. After much pleading and teasing Gieaun said that she’d only go with them when they were much older and only during broad daylight. The children laughed at their bravado. If only they could be so bold at school. The schoolhouse was Jahrra’s least favorite place to be since it had become a place of both emotional and physical conflict inside and outside the building.
Her first few months studying with the other children had proven a challenge, especially with the twins and their devotees. They always had something negative to say to her and the younger students dying to be part of the popular crowd would chuckle and snigger in support of a recent slight to prove they disliked Jahrra just as much as the twins did.
Eydeth and Ellysian often tried to corner her on her own, but luckily they often failed since Scede and Gieaun were always at her side. Jahrra was able to ignore them most of the time since she wasn’t completely alone, but they always found a way to get to her. She was convinced that if Eydeth and Ellysian hadn’t been part of the class her other classmates wouldn’t be so eager to ostracize her.