Misfits of Aquila (Aquila's Originals 1)

Chapter 10: Training, Part 2

Zvenera

RAIN FEATHERED DOWN over Zvenera as Rhiddyl arrived on the training field behind the Rider offices. A scattering of young humans were already waiting, clustered together in groups. Rhiddyl looked for familiar faces and didn't see any. Unsurprising, since the only person she knew by sight in the city was the rude boy who'd knocked her off the bridge five days before. She couldn't see him and was glad of it.

She walked onto the field, feeling exposed and uncertain as her fellow students eyed her curiously. A self-conscious tug at the bottom of her hat was the only fidget Rhiddyl allowed herself. She was wearing boots, like a proper Rider, and a set of gloves covered her tell-tale hands. There was nothing obvious about her that suggested she was any different from the rest of them. At least, she didn't think there was. She'd spent the last two days ensuring her disguise was as perfect as possible. Not that she thought she could keep it up for long - the boots were too blasted uncomfortable, for one thing - but she wanted to at least get through her first day without drawing attention. She just wanted to get started, to settle in and perhaps make some friends.

She looked around, hoping for an inviting look or a welcoming smile. The nearest group turned away, leaning in to whisper to each other and giggle.

Rhiddyl tried not to hear what was being said, although her sensitive hearing had no trouble picking out the words. She tugged on her hat again, knowing there was nothing wrong with it. She liked the colour - bright pink-purple, like the strike of her lightning when she unleashed her magic. She liked her boots too, although now that she looked at the rest of the students she could see they were rather large and bulky by comparison. They needed to be to accommodate the claws on her toes. Still, they did make it seem like she had outrageously enormous feet. She hadn't noticed before. It made her even more uncomfortable now.

"Nice boots." A familiar voice drawled beside her and Rhiddyl scowled at the rude boy she'd met before. Of all the people to step forward and speak to her it would have to be him, wouldn't it?

"I like them," she said, raising her chin defiantly.

He smiled. "So do I. Very practical. You could wade a hundred rivers in those and not feel a drop, I'd wager."

Rhiddyl looked at her ridiculous boots and thought she could probably carry a hundred rivers in them and not lose a drop either.

"Don't let them get to you," the boy murmured with surprising sympathy. "You'd think a city as open and busy as Zvenera would be used to unusual strangers and yet here we are."

Rhiddyl frowned and looked around again, realising that they were indeed the only two who were standing noticeably apart from the rest. She knew why she stood out, but she looked at the boy again, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. He was dressed a little differently and his hair was straight and silky, compared to the shorter curls and long braids that most of the other students possessed. Beyond that she couldn't see anything to make him stand out. He wasn't overly tall or short, he wasn't too skinny or too broad. His skin was a deep, warm bronze, but he wasn't the only one in the group. She couldn't tell the colour of anyone else's eyes, but there was nothing overly remarkable about his steady brown gaze. He looked human; Rhiddyl couldn't see what the fuss was about.

"I'm Sutheralli," he said, clearly guessing the direction of her thoughts. "They're all wondering why I'm not at my own school, training to become a Rider that way."

"Why aren't you?" Rhiddyl was surprised enough to ask. She'd studied a little about the geography of the Overworld, but her knowledge of the customs of each country was not particularly strong. The only thing she knew about Sutherall was that it lay in the south-eastern corner of the known world and was ruled by a strict religious system. It wasn't a very welcoming country to outsiders, she didn't think, which would make it all the stranger to find the boy here. Rhiddyl was beginning to understand why he was as much of an outcast as herself.