A Tale of Sorcery - Ryder's POV

Have I Seen You Before?

Hey guys!! Guess what!

I WON AN AWARD!!

I'm very proud of it: The Most Inconsistent Wattpad Writer in History!

Thank you, thank you! Where's my trophy?

In all seriousness, I am sorry that I haven't posted anything in a LONG time. I hope you can somehow forgive me.

Enjoy!

The next nine months were weird.

Now, I've had my share of weird. I mean, I've grown up with dragons, my water dragon, Goldfish, is a kleptomaniac, and I've had to live on an island with 200 people, max.

But something must have happened overnight. Something I wasn't aware of.

Every time I chatted with the Caretakers, they've been walking on eggshells - figuratively, I mean, though there was that one time...

They had to think about their words, and sometimes they'd open their mouths, then shut them before they could tell me what they were thinking. It was like I was a part of a rumour I didn't even know of.

Even Kitty was acting strange. She kept on waiting for me at odd hours of the night. When I told her that I didn't feel like a midnight flight, she would look at me weirdly, like she wasn't sure what kind of joke I was playing at. After a month, she realised that I was serious and stopped showing up.

My room was a complicated case. You know that feeling when everything looks exactly the same from the outside, but there's a lingering feeling that someone has tried to look through it (sorry, mum, tidy it up) but had to cover their tracks? Yeah, that feeling.

Everything was in order, but I could have sworn that my drawers contained more sketches, and that my desk had more books piled on them. When I checked my diary, it looked fine, but there was a ginormous gap where I didn't write anything - almost 3 months. There was no way that I wouldn't write anything, even if nothing interesting was happening.

The library looked different, too. It used to be jam packed with books, every nook and cranny filled with them. Mother had been arranging for someone to extend the building just so we didn't have to pile it all in the records Now, there were a few gaps, and the books had more breathing room. When I was flying with Kitty, I could have sworn I saw someone tossing a book into the hearth.

Mother's been acting strange. She'd been drowning herself in work and business, only ever seeing me in the mornings and even then, she said she was too tired to talk. I wanted to confront her about it, I couldn't just accuse her of lying. My mother is many things, and one of those things is scary.

After about a month of trying to figure out what on Earth was happening and having absolutely no leads, I just couldn't do it anymore. It was exhausting. I was rushing around all day on Kitty, reading as much as I could - it just wasn't worth it. I probably just wanted some excitement in my life. I'm sure it seems like riding and training dragons is cool, and it is, but it's normal for me. It's not new. I've always wanted something refreshing in my life - something cool. I was probably just forcing it.

Yeah, that was probably it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm not sure how much time went by before I realised how stupid I was.

Time here is hard to tell in the Dragon Keys. The dragons go through cycles each month. Their mood changes, their feeding habits become more regular - the list goes on. You can't exactly predict the date, but it's always around the same time.

But as a few cycles go by, it's hard to keep track. It's especially hard considering there's always new dragons and we have to help them get used to the world. Time flies by here - much like the dragons - and it's hard to tell how much time has passed.

All I know is that a lot of time had passed when a veil was lifted from my eyes.

Kitty and I were flying around the Dragon Keys, trying to find something to do. Usually, there's always a dragon who needs saving or a kid who needs help. But that day was different. Nothing odd was happening, and throughout the day no one beckoned me over, asking for assistance. It was unusually quiet, and that disturbed me. It felt like the island was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.

After 3 laps around the Keys, I almost told Kitty to take a break. Then I noticed that, past the horizon, a burst of light came and went from my sight, almost as if something had exploded midair. It could have been the sun in my eye, but Kitty noticed it too. Her ears picked up and she looked at me, her eyes asking the silent question. I nodded.

Kitty zoomed over the village, past the tiny houses and over my home in record time, circling over the beach. My eyes scanned horizon. Wood and metal were sinking in the water, and even on a flying dragon, I could hear the Boulder Bandits growling. That could only mean one thing: we had castaways.

The Dragon Keys is secluded, but not impossible to find. Every now and then, people get shipwrecked and rely on us to nurse them back to health before sending them on their way. Occasionally, people do stay to take care of the dragons with us, but most leave and never return.

But the Boulder Bandits see humans as their favourite snacks, tired castaways especially. If they found the people before I could get to them . . .

Kitty flew over the beach, searching for the Boulder Bandits. Their growling was becoming louder, but that didn't reassure me. She followed the source of the sound until we reached the other side of the beach.

Underneath, the several people were sprawled on the ground, wounded and unconscious. The Boulder Bandits were creeping up on two girls: one, short and fat with feathers for hair, the other, tall in a pantsuit with braided brown hair with decorative flowers. Even from a distance, I could see their terror.

"Down, Kitty!" I shouted, and she dove. She blew fire from her mouth and roared, promptly scaring the Boulder Bandits away. I looked around and made sure none were hiding nearby, then turned back to the girls. The short one had fainted now, no doubt scared and confused. The other was looking at Kitty and I, looking more terrified than before.

Now that I was closer, I could see how beautiful she was. Even more, she looked so familiar for some reason. I tried to place her. Her blue eyes were wide and sparkled with something in between cautiousness and curiousity. Her lips were a tan pink, and I didn't doubt her voice was as pretty as her face, and I suddenly couldn't remember my own name.

Seeing me, however, in my armour and riding a dragon, must have scared her. Her blue eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she collapsed on the ground. Immediately, I rushed over, checking to her pulse. I sighed in relief when I saw the rise and fall of her chest. I looked over. The others were in similar conditions. I tried not to dwell on their odd features - feathers for hair, pointed ears, and green skin - and focused on the matter at hand: they were injured. They needed help.

Even so, I looked back at the girl in front of me, then back at Kitty. A small smile tugged at my lips.

"We have guests," I whispered.

Well, that was a wait. Sorry guys for that.

If you have any suggestions, feel free to comment! Thanks

Until next time, dear readers,

Chloe :)