Starrlings 1: House of Fire

chapter 35

L U M I

The pairs took turns to step into the centre ring to fight, and now that Lumi and Tom had had their turn, they watched other students' battles. Lumi was impressed with the brute strength of some of the wolves, and the playful skill of others.

Then it was Tai's turn in the ring, and Lumi couldn't help but pay attention. She was curious to see how her brother's bond with his tiger was forming.

Lumi had to admit that something had changed in her feelings for her brother in the past week of being in Lombardia. She'd seen a new side to him. Or maybe it wasn't a new side, but she'd never acknowledge it before. Lumi had always considered her brother a strong leader; assertive and sure. But recently she'd seen him as aggressive and domineering, and behind that she'd seen fear. Her brother had been scared when they'd arrived in Lombardia. His fear had displayed itself as aggression, but Lumi was now wise enough to see it for what it was.

"Who is that?" Lumi asked, pointing out the girl that Tai was up against.

"That's Sanna," Tom said. "Her father is married to the Queen of Norrlund, so she's the princess's step-sister and companion." He indicated the Norrlish princess.

"That's Princess Katja of Norrlund?" Lumi asked.

"That is, yes," Tom said. As he looked over, Katja looked up and caught their eye, and then glowered at Lumi.

"Why is she staring at me like that?" Lumi murmured.

"Well..." Tom said delicately. "I suppose it's because up until a week ago, she was dating Raphael."

Lumi stared at Katja.

The Princess of Norrlund.

And Lumi had stolen her boyfriend.

Then Lumi noticed that Tai and his partner, Sanna, had now entered the ring, and Lumi drew her gaze away from the princess to watch her brother fight.

Tai bowed to Sanna, and Sanna responded with a nod. While she was pale, with flowing chestnut hair and rosy cheeks, giving the impression of pure feminity, he bore a stark silhouette in all black, with his hair pulled back into a sharp bun that showed off his defined cheekbones and dark eyes.

Tai's tiger, Yainni, and Sanna's wolf, Sigrún, were pacing around each other. Lumi had to wonder at how evenly they were matched. Both were smaller than Jinni and Kobuk, and leaner. As soon as Rita blew her whistle, both creatures hastened into a running pace, swiftly darting forward in attempts to attack before dodging back in quick succession. Neither was taking an aggressive stance; both acted defensively.

"Attack!" Tai yelled out, and Yainni heeded his demand, launching forward towards Sigrún, but the wolf wove away easily, so that Yainni stumbled and had to right herself.

"Sanna's wolf is fast," Tom commented.

"Yainni is too," Lumi said.

"Sigrún, go!" Sanna cried out, and the wolf leapt up into the sky with a beat of wings, and pounced down upon the tiger. The tiger managed to twist out of the wolf's attack and remain standing, and the wolf and the tiger continued to pace around each other.

Tai called out, "attack again!" and in response Yainni launched forward, almost reluctantly, towards the wolf. But just as quickly, Sanna yelled a command to Sigrún, who ducked out of the way of the diving tiger, weaved away from the tiger's outstretched paw, and then launched at the tiger's neck.

Sigrún sunk her teeth into the attack. Yainni responded by throwing her body weight against the wolf and kicking the wolf's side with her back paws. Sigrún was forced to let go, and instantly Yainni launched another attack. She threw a fiery ball in the direction of the wolf, to confuse it, and then flew higher before diving back down.