City of Fire

Chapter Nine

"Ilona"

Ilona sighed for the umpteenth time that day as she shut her locker door. She rested her forehead against it, the coolness of the metal feeling like heaven to her aching skull. The headaches had started in second hour and it was now after lunch. Another sigh left her lips as she straightened, hefting the bag on her shoulder.

"Are you feeling alright, Dominus?" A small voice asked and Ilona yelped, prepared to see Adrian standing there but instead she found Erin peering up at her with wide, imploring eyes. She sighed and shook her head.

"I'm fine, just a headache and stop calling me that. It's Ilona." Ilona's words were firm and Erin slowly nodded.

"As you wish, Dominus, err I mean," He gave her a sheepish smile as she glared at him, "Ilona," he finished. She adjusted the bag on her shoulder again, shifting back and forth as students milled past them.

"So what are you doing here?" She asked for she knew that his locker was at the end of the hallway. He shrugged a small shoulder.

"I sensed that you weren't feeling well," he reached up and touched her temple with his fingers and she jolted but he didn't seem to notice.

"You sensed it?" Ilona asked, her eyes darting around the hallway as people stared at them.

"Yes, as you might have guessed I have the ability to heal and since you are my Dominus I know when you're feeling ill. A headache, hmm?" He withdrew his hand and ducking his head he dug around in the small pouch he carried around his waist. Pulling out a yellow colored leaf he offered it to her. "Here, stick this on your tongue and it should make your headache go away." She stared at him before slowly reaching out and taking the leaf from him. She opened her mouth and stuck the leaf on her tongue, pressing it to the roof of her mouth and it faintly tasted of mushrooms. Instantly the intense pain dulled and she stared at Erin in shock.

"I feel...better," she murmured and Erin giggled.

"Of course you would!" He patted her arm, his emerald eyes accessing the covered flesh. "How is your arm? Is the skin healing nicely?" He asked and she stiffened. Pulling her arm from his grasp she looked away from him; suddenly embarrassed about her action but she knew she wasn't going to apologize.

"Yeah, it is," she cautiously looked back at him, "So what are you? Some sort of an herbalist?" She asked and Erin shrugged his shoulder once more as they turned to head down the tightly packed hall.

"I guess you could call me that, but I'm really just a healer." He stepped out of the way of a group of girls who were giggling about the latest product from Victoria's Secret and continued, "Most of us were called witches or as you said, herbalists. Today we're just mainly doctors." Ilona glanced down at him.

He acted so casual about it...

"Witches, herbalists, doctors? So there are more of you here?" She asked while looking around and Erin dipped his head in a nod, his blonde hair swaying with the action.

"Oh yes, many of us travel back and forth between the worlds with an escort. When it's time to return home we do so until we're needed again." He kept walking and she eyed him out of the corner of her eye.

"Uh huh," she shook her head, glad that the weird leaf he'd given her was working. "So does everyone do it?" She asked while stepping out of the way of a guy's path, which was having a heck of a time getting his book bag out of his tiny locker.