Chapter 77
“Every House has a language. Outsiders survive by learning it before speaking their own p>
~ Rebel Beast
No dragon clapped or cheered their arrival. But of course, it didn’t matter to Charlotte. She was finally inside the House of her dreams.
She was living with dragons. Actual dragons.
If someone had told her a few days ago that she’d be sharing the same roof as the creatures she’d spent years obsessing over, she would’ve laughed in their face. Yet here she was, following behind Tamara as the dragonness led the four of them deeper into House Aetheris.
“This is unbelievable,” Zainab murmured, nearly tripping over her own feet as she craned her neck upward.
The ceilings stretched impossibly high above them, supported by enormous stone pillars carved with dragons soaring through clouds. The corridors were so wide they made the girls feel like dwarfs with every step they took.
Charlotte caught her staring and couldn’t help smiling.
“I read about this,” she said, unable to hide her excitement. “Dragons build with their true forms in mind. If they ever shift, they need enough room to move around comfortably without bringing the building down p>
Zainab looked around again in amazement.
“Even then she muttered, “this place is every claustrophobic person’s dream p>
“I bet our rooms are incredible,” Indigo said, practically bouncing as she walked.
“And hopefully,” Meredith added, eyeing the open walkways lining the corridor, “they remembered humans can’t fly p>
She tilted her head toward one of the balconies.
“There aren’t any railings p>
Charlotte followed her gaze, and sure enough, the broad balconies extended outward with nothing separating them from the open air. For dragons, it made perfect sense. Railings would only get in the way whenever they landed or took flight.
For humans, one wrong step was all it would take to be sent to glory.
“What matters,” Charlotte said, lowering her voice, “is that we’re here p>
A smug expression crept onto her face.
“And between us she leaned closer. “I think we got the better deal p>
The girls understood what she meant. They had gotten dragons while Karen and her clique ended up with snakes.
Zainab, Indigo, and Meredith struggled to keep straight faces. After seeing Prince Caelis in action, the thought of spending every day surrounded by serpents made all four of them shudder.
No doubt Karen was going to have a wonderful time there.
Charlotte couldn’t wait. The moment she got permission, she was taking pictures of everything. The halls, the architecture, the dragons… everything!
Back home, no one would believe her otherwise. She’d be the envy of every girl she knew.
Her attention gradually shifted to Tamara.
The dragonness hadn’t spoken a single word to any of them since they’d left the common room. She simply walked ahead with long, measured strides, never once slowing down despite the considerable distance they’d already covered.
Charlotte glanced around once more. Just how enormous was this place? How many acres of land had the dragons claimed to build something this massive?
Curiosity finally got the better of her, and she hurried until she was walking beside Tamara.
“Um… Tamara p>
The dragonness slowed just enough to turn her head, and the look she gave Charlotte could’ve cut glass.
Charlotte immediately swallowed.
“It’s Miss Tamara to you p>
She spat the words like poison.
Would you look at that? She’s quite the delight, Charlotte sassed mentally.
She recovered almost instantly.
“Sorry, Miss Tamara,” Charlotte said with an apologetic smile.
She wasn’t foolish enough to miss the obvious. If Rhydian ruled House Aetheris, then Tamara ruled everything beneath him.
Making an enemy of the dragonness on her very first day sounded like an exceptionally terrible idea.
Tamara acknowledged neither the apology nor the effort behind it. She simply faced forward again and continued walking without breaking stride.
Charlotte had no choice but to jog after her.
“Why aren’t we taking the stairs?” she asked, quickening her pace. “I’d love a room on one of the upper floors. Imagine the view of the academy from up there. I bet it’s breathtaking.” Her eyes practically sparkled at the thought.
Tamara didn’t answer.
The only response Charlotte received was the faintest scoff, so subtle she never noticed it, too caught up in the excitement of finally living among dragons.
The nerve.
Tamara’s fingers curled into fists before she slowly relaxed them again.
If not for Rhydian, what made this human believe she had the right to walk these halls? To breathe the same air as dragons?
Whatever fantasy Rhydian was trying to build, it wouldn’t change the truth. Dragons stood at the top of the food chain. Humans did not.
She would play along for now because her prince had ordered it. Nothing more.
This foolish dream of his wouldn’t last anyway. It was only a matter of time before it blew up in Rhydian’s face, and when that happened, she wouldn’t be held responsible for what followed. She had warned him.
When Tamara still refused to answer, Charlotte finally got the message.
She wasn’t welcome.
Unfortunately for the dragonness, Charlotte had no intention of giving up so easily. She wasn’t naïve.
They were prey living in the home of predators, and Prince Rhydian wouldn’t always be there to protect them. If they wanted to survive House Aetheris, they needed someone else willing to tolerate their existence.
Winning Tamara over was not a choice but a necessity.
Finally, Tamara came to a stop.
“We’re here p>
The girls immediately hurried forward until they were standing behind her.
Before them stood an enormous wooden door carved from golden oak, its surface covered in intricate engravings of dragons soaring through clouds and mountains.
Charlotte’s heart pounded.
If the door looked this magnificent, what did the room behind it look like?
Tamara reached into her pocket, produced a ring of keys, selected one without hesitation, and slid it into the lock.
Charlotte grabbed Meredith’s hand so tightly the other girl winced.
“This is it,” she whispered excitedly. “This is really it p>
The lock clicked, and the heavy door creaked open.
Darkness greeted them.
Not just that, the room had been left untouched for so long that the moment the door moved, a thick cloud of dust billowed outward, swallowing the entrance.
All four girls immediately burst into coughing fits.
“Good grief!” Indigo coughed, waving both hands in front of her face. “Did we just walk into an abandoned tomb p>
Nobody answered.
Tamara simply stepped inside.
Unlike the humans, the darkness posed no obstacle. Her dragon eyes adjusted effortlessly as she crossed the room with ease. She reached the wall, found the switch, and pressed it.
Light flooded the room, making the girls squint against the sudden brightness before their vision gradually cleared.
Charlotte’s excitement vanished. The color slowly drained from her face.
“What the hell?” she whispered, her eyes wide with shock.
She took one hesitant step forward.
“Isn’t this p>