Oriana's Eyes Page 12

  People are still filing into the dining hall in groups. Malise and her brother rush out of the storm, hugging similar cloaks to themselves. I don’t realize who they are until they have pulled back their heavy hoods, and join us beneath the protection of the awning. I nod with recognition, and Aaron waves emphatically. Malise responds with a soft smile. Toby appears shortly after, and he sheepishly grins before hurrying inside.

  Lily returns with a thick cloth, and I reluctantly reach out from within the warmth of the cloak to begin drying my hair. Lily remains standing over me, staring hard at my face. I avoid her gaze by hiding behind my hair.

  “Oriana … is there something wrong?”

  I gaze up at her, knowing that there will be a visible redness in my eyes. Knowing that her look of concern may cause me to lose control of myself.

  “What happened?” she exclaims, kneeling down to my level. Now everyone is looking at me, except Finn, who stares out into the storm.

  “Lily … maybe she doesn’t …” Piper begins.

  “I’m fine, I just … Dorian is acting … different.” I’m not sure how to explain the way he snapped at me. I’m not even sure whether to feel angry or upset.

  Weasel shows up beside my knee, an oversized leather cap on his head has two bent-up flaps that give the appearance of ears. His large eyes watch me with concern. “It’s because of his destiny,” he squeaks—and then jumps as Buck’s large hand clamps down on his shirt at the back of his neck, pulling him off his feet and backward to Buck’s side at the edge of the porch.

  “Wease, hold your tongue!” Jagger hisses from beside me.

  Another wave of cloaked people rush inside and out of the rain. We remain silent a moment longer after they’ve passed.

  “It’s all right,” I sigh. “I know about Dorian. Tor told me the big secret.” I finish drying my hair. The towel now damp, I lay it next to my feet and lean back with a sigh.

  Dugan follows my example, resting his hands behind his head as he settles upon the face of the building. “Then you understand the pressure he is under.” Dugan’s smooth voice is calm and confident. He looks at me with serene black eyes.

  “Yes …” I say slowly.

  “Most of the others have taken their seats,” Piper remarks while leaning in through the doorway.

  Jagger is already to his feet and beside Piper. “Good, I’m starving,” he says. In a moment of brightness the building’s light floods the stoop and he has vanished behind the flap.

  Piper follows, and the others are quick to stand and head inside. I hang back to hand Finley his cloak, give a quick “Thanks,” and then enter the building.

  Once inside, I am struck with the warmth of the blazing fire at the center of the building. It causes me to realize how cool my skin is, and I rub my arms in response. Lily is in front of me as we pass down the side of the table. The room hums with a pleasant murmur of voices. Above is the pounding of the rainfall in a steady rhythm, which almost completely drowns out the talking. I see the fire in front of me hiss as droplets that have entered through the smoke hole dive into the hungry flames.

  Dorian’s empty bench space halts me, and I break away from the others to take a seat. Finley watches me for a moment but says nothing and continues forward. The area to my right is bare; neither Tor nor Dorian has arrived. I grasp for the mug in front of me and am grateful for the taste of cool water.

  “He’s not coming tonight.”

  I look up from my mug. Azura stares at me across the table. Placing the cup back on the table, I notice that Liam is not beside her.

  “Tor and Liam are taking their meals inside their cottages,” Azura continues. “Today was overwhelming for us all.”

  “Then why have you come?” I ask. The tension between us is strong. My intentions were otherwise, but I’ve grown to dislike Azura.

  “For me, being around others takes my mind off everything.” She looks down the table into the line of faces, as though our conversation bores her. “I thought you might wait for him. Especially after Tor had filled you with false hopes at lunch.” Azura looks sideways at me. “It’s a good thing I came; you would’ve been waiting here all night.” She gives a short laugh.

  I’m not sure whether to smile or be offended. Instead I stare into my mug, feeling hopeless and, despite the company, very much alone.

  “Listen,” Azura begins. “It’s nothing for you to feel upset about. He’s just going through a lot.”

  I glance up at her, surprised. Is she really trying to cheer me up? “I know that, but he’s different. Something has changed inside him.”

  Azura leans toward me, her face serious. “He has a lot to deal with. I can’t imagine it not changing him.”

  “No … I mean … I know, it’s just …” I look off into the distance, remembering the moment. “If you saw the way he spoke to me. I don’t know what I did to make him so angry, but …” At that I feel myself break a little. I lower my face, trying to conceal my reaction.

  I know Azura sees it anyway, because her lips flinch to the side and she watches me intently. There is a moment of silence, and I sense that Azura is thinking of something to say. I avoid her eyes.

  “Oriana.” She is trying to sound soothing, but I can tell it is hard for her to find sympathy for me. Finally she sighs, and it is as if the tension breaks at last. “I haven’t made it easy for us to get along, but I think that I understand how you feel.” Now it’s her turn to stare into her cup. I watch her, thinking that somehow a small victory is occurring for both of us. “It’s different for you though. Dorian …” She swallows, and her voice gets stern as she forces the words out. “Dorian cares for you, I can tell. I’m sure whatever he said, he didn’t mean.”

  I lose my breath in surprise as Azura finishes. I hadn’t expected her to say anything like that, and I feel a twinge of guilt at having stolen him from her. After all, she has known him for much longer than I have. “Thank you.” I say with sincerity, trying to hide any awkwardness. I wonder for a moment if we might ever form a friendship.

  Azura takes a drink from her cup in an attempt to cover the following silence. When she sets it down, I decide to attempt a conversation. One that is separate from our connection to Dorian.

  “May I ask you a question?”

  She brightens at the prospect of a different subject and nods.

  “How were you captured if you live here at the Great Oak?”

  Azura settles, and any awkwardness dispels. It’s as if we have been close our entire lives, and nothing is between us. “I lived in the University, for most of my life. I’ve only recently settled into a new life here.” She gestures to the area around her.

  “I never knew my mother or father, only those prison white walls. Still, I never bought into their teachings, and I cursed Odon every chance I had. My temper got me into a few fights”—she pauses, and her eyes shift uneasily—“with purebloods, girls who thought they were too good to breathe the same air as me. Of course I was caught and sent to the Odonian, their usual punishments are mind distortions. It was cruel, but I remained hopeful that they were wrong about part-bloods. I just couldn’t understand what made us so much worse.” Azura sighs. “But that was when I was still young and attending the elementary levels. Things were different even then.”

  “What do you mean?” I lean toward her, knowing that her willingness to share will not be frequent.

  “Odon was only just getting settled into his stronghold and as children we were the least of his worries. That has changed as the years went on. I suppose he realized our minds are best molded when we are young.”

  I nod, remembering how the boundaries were less strict and the races not so forcibly separated.

  “I wouldn’t have lived very long if I’d been any older. I learned that soon enough. A few of my friends disappeared. At first harsh discipline meant a trip to the Odonian, where they would hammer the teachings into us and then return us to classes. Slowly the part-bloods were taken away, but never
returned. The rest of us quickly fell in line, we were all so afraid …” Azura’s brow clenches, and she is not looking through her eyes but in her mind, reliving that time long ago.

  I think of Lenora and the boy so young and innocent, and it causes me to shudder. I was there the whole time but never realized how barbaric Odon was, still is. I wanted to believe I could trust them, believe that what they were doing was the right thing. Now I know there is nothing right about it. “I’m sorry,” I say, knowing it gives no comfort.

  She shakes her head waving the apology away with her hand, “It’s not your fault, you were just another victim, like me.” I know she only half believes the statement but am grateful she is at least trying to believe it.

  “No, I was there, I just let it happen. I was one of their pawns. Doing nothing is the same as helping their cause.” The words flow out of my mouth, and as I hear them, I realize that I have been saying them inside of my head for a while.

  Hearing them, Azura pauses, and her gaze falters. We are interrupted as food is being passed down in front of us. I can’t think of eating, so when I receive my plate, I lay it to one side. Azura does the same, although her mind is elsewhere as she maintains her changed expression.

  “I once thought that to be true, but now I can’t bring myself to blame you. We were all young; there was no way any of us could have stopped them. Being angry at you would only serve Odon.” Azura notices her food and plucks a steaming vegetable from her plate and in a final act of satisfaction takes a bite.

  I give a small laugh, and she smiles at me, a new aura of peace surrounding her. “So then how did you wind up below ground?” I inquire, now finding my appetite and picking from my own plate.

  Azura nods, finishing the bite in her mouth and washing it down with a gulp of water. “That was after I met Tor, which was while I attended the University. He was one of the rebels who first established the Great Oak. When he was younger he would sneak into the University with other part-bloods and free as many as he could. This became more and more dangerous as the years went on. I was lucky. They brought me here and told me the truth about Odon and their plan to stop him. That’s how I met Dorian …” She looks away. “I thought he was the bravest boy I’d ever met, and still so young. He carried his burden well—even now when we’re so close.”

  She’s right. I never met anyone like Dorian. All it took was his smile that day when I was still just Oriana the pureblood, and I was completely changed.

  “More guards appeared and it became impossible to sneak in. Getting caught meant certain death, but Dorian insisted on returning. It was for personal reasons. He could never let the past die. He wanted to know everything he could about his parents.”

  “His parents? He never spoke of them to me.”

  “It’s a difficult subject for him. They died when he was very young.” Azura shifts in her seat. “It’s a terrible story to even think of.”

  “Oh.” I feel uncomfortable after asking and am grateful when she continues her story.

  “It made me nervous to know he was still over there. Risking his life and the future of us all by snooping around the University. Tor didn’t like it either, and after a period of time when he didn’t return, I decided to go in myself and bring him back to safety.” Azura runs a hand through her hair as if trying to stop her past self from making the mistake again. “I should have known it was too dangerous and I was still inexperienced. Dorian had always been the best at fooling the guards. I think he liked the idea that he had found a way to beat Odon inside his own domain.”

  She shakes her head. “But I made things worse by getting caught. I knew he would come to save me. He was the only one who could do it, but it was still so risky, and I didn’t want to be the cause of his demise. I guess it all worked out in the end,” Azura says, plainly trying to reassure herself that the past is over. “I think I earned my punishment for my mistake.” She visibly trembles and then reaches for another morsel of food.

  “Has your ankle healed?”

  “Yes, well enough for me to walk properly.” She gives a half smile.

  Something flickers in my mind, and I find myself asking, “Do you remember everything that happened down there?”

  Azura shoots me a look that frightens me and answers hurriedly, “It’s all a blur, I don’t think I want to remember.”

  I nod and shift my attention back to the food on my plate. Talking to Azura allows me to forget about Dorian’s confrontation earlier. Knowing some more pieces of the past settles me as well and by the time we have finished discussing earlier times our plates are empty and I am ready for sleep. Azura and I leave the dining hall together and separate on the fourth landing. Once inside I gratefully fall into the blankets and am instantly asleep.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  At dawn I wake with a start, feeling much as I had the previous morning. I know I have dreamed something terrible, yet I can’t remember any part of it. As I wipe the dampness from my brow, I can hear two voices approaching. One is high and fluttering like birdsong, which can only be Lily. The other is smoother and steady: Piper. They enter my room with smiles and early greetings.

  “Here, just as we promised!” Lily grins, extending her arms laden in clothes toward me.

  “They should fit you just fine,” Piper adds. Her long brown hair has been tied back in a braid that is draped over her shoulder.

  I slide my sheets back and lean forward to pick up the first article of clothing, which is a fresh cloth dress the color of the morning sky. My own robes once a crisp white, have been stained along the hem a yellowish green by the grass. The rest is darkened from dirt.

  “We had the weavers dye them light blue,” Lily points out.

  I nod in awe at the beautiful hue and the smell of ripe berries that the material still retains. “I hope it wasn’t too much trouble.”

  “Nah, they were itching to show off their craftsmanship,” Piper assures me.

  “Well, thank you very much.” I reach out to grab the second piece of clothing, which is a long dark cloak, similar to Finley’s, yet sewn to my size.

  Piper and Lily exit the room for a moment as I slip into the clean clothing. It’s a heavier material than my old robes, but I feel like these suit me better. I call for Piper and Lily to return.

  “It fits perfectly!” Lily remarks, walking through the doorway.

  “I wonder if they could make one in green …” Piper thinks out loud to herself.

  “How do they turn clothing this color?” I ask while smoothing away any creases along the skirt.

  “Oh berries and such things,” Piper explains. “It’s funny to think they have time for that sort of thing. It wasn’t long ago that we were all struggling just to survive.”

  “It seems like you’ve come a long way putting a place like this together, it must have taken a lot of work. Are there many newcomers still?”

  “Very few. Dangerous times are approaching, and we wouldn’t want to draw attention to ourselves,” Piper replies. “Our time to rest is just the lull before the storm. If their plans carry through, that would mean the release of everyone under Odon’s control.”

  “Which is hard to say will actually work,” Lily sighs. “Finley even says he wants to break away from the Oak, but that would be a major setback.”

  Piper gives her an uneasy look, but agrees. “Tor needs him; he’s one of the few who is familiar with the University and the guards’ movements.”

  “So why would he leave?” I can’t fathom why he wouldn’t want to end Odon’s reign for good.

  “I’ve never known him and Tor to get along very well,” Lily replies. “On top of that, we don’t get the impression that he actually thinks it will work.”

  I realize my muscles have tensed, and I relax them as I breathe out. I had never imagined this would be so complicated. Who’s to say that Finley doesn’t have a legitimate reason for not helping? Maybe Dorian really can’t defeat Odon, and if that happens, how many lives will
be lost? If only I could understand the reasoning behind these plans, then I could decide for myself who is worth believing in.

  “Do you know what the plans are?” I venture the question.

  They both shake their heads. “We aren’t meant to be there or participate, only a select few, mostly the older part-bloods,” Piper supplies.

  I nod. At least I’m not the only one who is in the dark. Still, I can’t help wanting the whole truth, and my mind touches upon my meeting with Falda today. I will have many questions for her.

  “Well, we should be leaving to help the others. They’re out getting supplies, and it couldn’t hurt to pick some berries and fruit for the cooks.”

  After a quick meal, I follow them down from the Great Oak and to the large field I saw yesterday. Others from the community have already begun harvesting herbs and what other goods are needed back home. We walk past them into the surrounding forest where a row of berry bushes are thickly ornamented with blue ripened fruit. I select a plant that sits nearest to the edge so that when I’m seated in front of it, the warmth of the sun is not blocked by the tall trees.

  Piper hands me a basket that she has retrieved from a group of children seated in a circle. They are weaving more with thin strips of bark. At the center sit more of the finished products. They laugh and talk as their fingers deftly work. Piper takes one basket for herself and Lily from the growing pile before finding her own place beside the bushes.

  Laughter and shouts coming from the field cause me to look over my shoulder. Some of the others have begun some kind of game with a stuffed cloth ball. Part-bloods large and small run after one another, trying to steal the ball from the opposite team. I watch the game in fascination, noticing that Toby is one of the children taking part. He looks happier than I have ever seen him.

  I turn back to fill my basket with more berries and notice a shadow cross the top of my arms. I look toward the sky, shielding my eyes from the glare of the sun to get a good look. There is something flying at a far height, higher than a normal bird. As I study the sky further, I notice that there are others.