一Scarlett一

It had been a long and tiring flight for everyone before we finally arrived in Lyon. Luc had called up his grandparents once we found a nice sidewalk to relax on, asking if they could give us a ride. Of course, the conversation was entirely in French, so I had no idea what was being said. By the time he had hung up, he told us they were already on their way.

So there we were, five teenagers with an unconscious preteen just sitting in the middle of a sidewalk as if nothing was wrong, most of us never have been here before at all. Of course, our clothes were in tatters and we had barely managed to salvage our suitcases, which were covered in soot, ash, and Luc's probably in jet fuel. However, Bailey had checked inside of them and assured us that our clothes were still in tact.

Since I was completely tired out of my mind and had nothing better to do to pass the time, I reflected on everyone's dragons. It had astonished me to see how different they could all be. For example, Adrian's dragon was long and lithe, with a pale grey body and bright fuschia markings all over. He also sported a white mane that ran from around his face to halfway down his tail. His dragon had no wings, but somehow he could still fly.

Luc's dragon had a streamlined body with two large falcon-like wings and powerful limbs that looked like they belonged to an eagle. His dragon was white as a cloud with a golden belly and flecks of brown adorning his feathers. However, as avian as his body seemed, his face was remarkably similar to Xiao's, but white.

And even though Bailey was my sister, she looked little to nothing like I did. She had bright vermillion scales with patches of charcoal black that stretched from her jaw to midway down her tail, and on her forehead, paws and in between the spines along her neck and tail tip. Her build was much more muscular than mine, whereas my own dragon was more slim and seemed less suited for combat.

I closed my eyes and called upon my dragon. She appeared before me and I couldn't help but smile. She seemed to have changed a bit since I last saw her. Her black body had bulked up with a bit more muscle and her horns had grown larger. I chuckled. Maybe she was growing the same way I was.

"Your name's Ashana, right?" I asked her, remembering the name when I had summoned her the previous day.

The dragoness nodded, her tail whipping back and forth excitedly.

I chuckled again. "Holy Spirit Ashana, what a lovely name. I guess I wanna thank you for all you've done. After all, we're friends, aren't we?"

She snorted in affirmation and spread her wings as she stood up on her hind legs. I took that as a yes and grinned. I should stop comparing myself-and her-to everybody else. Sure, we still had a long way to go in our training, but that didn't mean that we were weak. Who knew, maybe we'd end up more magnificent than we'd ever imagined.

As Ashana laid down and crossed her forearms over one another, I noticed that there was a word in Vistra that stained her skin white. As I looked closer, I could make out the letters.

X-A-N-D-E-R

I smiled. That must have been the name of Luc's dragon. Looks like both of us had been marked after last night. I opened my eyes and gazed at my own forearm. Luc's name popped out a bit from the long-sleeved shirt that I wore. Part of me still couldn't believe that it had all happened. It seemed too surreal, like a dream. However, this mark was proof that it did, in fact, happen.

I sighed as I rested my head on top of my fists, letting out a far too obnoxious yawn. After all, it was six in the morning back in New York and with all the flying we had done, my body ached like nobody's business. I had no idea why Luc was still wide awake, or everybody except me and Twyla.

Oh right...they were in better shape than I was. I didn't keep working out like I should have. I knew better than anyone that those four had their own workout routines down to a tee. Luc would go and run every morning, Madia would swim laps every other day, and Bailey did intense aerobics once a week. Even Adrian lifted weights--no, that's not a joke. I sighed. I had a long way to go if I wanted to get stronger.

Before long, a car appeared on the other side of the street and an elderly couple walked out. The man was stout with thinning grey hair and a kind smile. The woman was lite with her greying black hair tied up in a bun. The man looked around for a bit and smiled as he saw us.

"Lucian!" He ran over to my boyfriend and hugged him, to which Luc smiled and returned the familial embrace. "Je suis tellement heureux de vous voir! Comment est mon petit-fils préféré?"

"Pas mal." Luc returned. "Notre vol a pris plus de temps que prévu, mais nous allons bien."

"Boys, you can have your reunion later." The woman scolded them in a thick French accent. She then looked at all of us and smiled gently. "So one of these girls are the princess you've been dying to introduce us to?"

"J'espère que c'est la fille aux cheveux roux. Elle est très charmante." His grandfather commented, which I had no idea what that meant.

Luc nodded. "Yes, one of them is indeed that girl." He cleared his throat and helped me to my feet. "I'll give introductions at a later time, but we really need a place to stay. Some of us desperately need sleep and the rest of us need to do some research. Grandma, I hate to rush our reunion, but is it okay if we get driving now?"

"Mais vous ne nous avez pas dit qui est votre amoureux!" His grandfather complained, making big hand motions in an almost begging fashion.

"Grand-père, s'il vous plaît."

Once his grandfather gave in, we all started to hop into the car. Luc struck up a conversation with his grandparents, saying stuff about me. I didn't understand what, but I wasn't deaf enough to not hear my name. Have you ever been in a nail salon with bilingual manicurists talking in Chinese or Vietnamese and you don't know what they're saying so you fear that they're gossiping about you? Yeah, that basically summed up how I felt in that situation. I seriously needed to start learning French.

I eventually tuned out their conversation and looked out the window. Lyon was so beautiful. I never could have imagined that Luc grew up in such an amazing city. I almost preferred what little I had seen of Lyon to my idea of Paris.

It was filled with ancient Roman architecture and modern buildings at the same time, giving the impression that the two eras had collided all at once. I was filled with such wonder and awe as I continued to gaze at everything around me. If anyone would have asked me how I was doing then, I would have replied that I had stepped into my own personal wonderland.

As we drove out of the main city, we came into this quaint little suburban area with beautiful cottage-type houses scattered everywhere. It wasn't too long after that until we pulled into the driveway of one of them and began to file out of the car. I couldn't help but stare at this house. Is this really where Luc had been raised?

It was a three story home with yellow siding and an ash-grey roof. It was bigger than a house in any American suburb and about six times the size of my mom's apartment. Shaking my head, I stopped drooling over the house and decided getting my bags would be a better use of my time. Unfortunately, Luc and his grandfather were already taking care of that.

I followed close behind Luc as he walked into the house, which seemed exactly like one of those upper middle class homes you would see on TV. Yet again, I was in awe of this house. I stopped for a moment, as some pictures on a mantle caught my eye. One in particular had drawn my attention.

It featured a beautiful woman who appeared to be in her early twenties, long platinum blonde hair falling over her shoulders in loose waves, her bright yellow eyes staring at a swaddled newborn in her arms. I picked up the picture and took a closer look. The newborn had a blue hat on his head like what the OBGYN's gave to baby boys in the hospital, barely covering a huge tuft of white hair. His eyes were closed peacefully and his mouth hang open. I smiled. They looked like angels.

"Are you interested in that photograph?"

I jumped as I placed the frame back on the mantle, turning around like I had just been caught by the police. I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw that it was Luc's grandmother. Wait, why was I relaxing? I had to make a good impression. If I didn't, I'd be an outcast in Luc's family and then we'd have to move to Idaho somewhere. No. That wasn't going to happen. I needed to stop worrying.

"I-I'm just curious about the woman and her child." I said with a slight stutter.

She gave a gentle smile. "Ah. That is our dear Lucian and his lovely mother, Haizea." She explained calmly. "She's one of the most beautiful and kind women that I have ever met. When our boy Mattieu came home to introduce her to us, I wondered how someone as dainty and elegant as Haizea could fall for someone as impulsive and headstrong as our boy. Of course, she told me that she fell in love with the way he played music and how he treasured her above all else.

"The two soon married and gave birth to our grandchildren. Of course, Mattieu passed away from his condition and Haizea was captured shortly after that. She had brought him home and told us to protect him, carrying a baby girl and with two others following her. Only recently has he found the fourth heir, if I remember correctly."

"How long has Luc been looking for her?" I asked, not quite wanting to reveal that I was her.

"Ever since he was able to recall his memories of his life in Eterna." She answered simply. "He used to tell me that he remembered playing with her as a little boy, and that fateful day when she gripped his finger, he knew the two of them were destined to be together. Of course, he was repulsed by the idea until he turned fourteen, when he started to get serious.

"He found Talia on a trip to Russia after she had run away from her family in a town called Andreapool. He found Kallan not long after in Moscow, looking around the city for her adopted sister. He was glad to have found them, but he often came home frustrated when he could not find Scarlett." She smiled gently. "You know, that boy always carries around the amulet his father gave to Haizea so one day, he may give it to her, showing how patiently he's waited for her."

I grasped my pendant, holding it tight to my chest. Was that true? Had Luc really been searching for that long to find me? I smiled as I ran my thumb along the metallic backside of the pendant, smiling as I looked back on everything he had told me.

The reason he hadn't had a girlfriend before me, even though he easily could have, was because he specifically was waiting for me. The reason he had asked me to be his girlfriend as early as he did was because he had been waiting for over three years to find me. He had even held back on having sex with me because he knew it was going to happen eventually anyways. I smiled. Luc really was dedicated when it came to me, and that made me the happiest girl alive.

Luc's grandmother chuckled as she looked at me. "What's got you so happy all of a sudden?"

I giggled. "Well, Luc and the fourth heir are now dating, and he's properly conveyed his feelings to her."

She laughed. "Oh, has he? He has to introduce us to her."

"Well, she's here with us." I muttered under my breath. I dropped my pendant down my shirt, deciding not to reveal my identity, but rather to let Luc do it for me. I figured he'd appreciate being able to do so.

It wasn't long before everybody was gathered in the living room and Twyla had been laid down in one of the nearby guest bedrooms so we could hear her if she woke. Everybody else was sat on the chairs or couches as Luc's grandparents served us some tea.

Luc had his arm around me as I struggled to stay awake, absolutely exhausted from flying for thirteen hours straight. Luc gently ran his fingers through my hair, which had made it even harder for me to keep my eyes open. Sleep was as tempting as a siren's call to the gullible soldier.

There was a conversation that began in French, which I still didn't understand. All I could do was try to pick up what they were talking about by their facial features. His grandfather looked at me closely as if I was a sentance he needed his glasses to read. His grandmother just folded her hands neatly in her lap and kept straight faced as Luc explained. At a certain point, Luc asked me to show off my pendant, which I did without question. His grandparents then burst out in smiles, their expression one of surprise and pride. I guess they had been waiting nearly as long as Luc had to meet me.

They began to ask Luc questions in rapid fire French, to which he had tried his best to keep up with in order to answer. At one point, he even pulled down his sleeve to reveal the mark on his forearm, eliciting a collective gasp from everybody in the room. I gave a weak smile. I guess everybody knew about what we did in our spare time now.

I yawned and desperately tried to keep my eyes open, but I guess I must have fallen asleep somewhere in that time, because when I woke up about an hour later, I was being carried by Luc and being tucked into a comfy bed. I let my eyes rest again, letting another five hours pass before I woke up again. Luc and his grandmother were sitting at the foot of the bed, both giving me a warm smile.

"Did you sleep well, princess?" Luc asked with a mischievously cute smile spread upon his lips.

I laughed and nodded as I sat up in the bed. "Yeah. A nice power nap is always a good thing, right?" I said through a yawn as I began to stretch out my arms over my head.

He chuckled. "Not when I'm concerned that my girlfriend has officially left the world of the living." He joked, walking over to me and sitting on my bedside. He then cupped the back of my head and kissed my nose. I grabbed his hand and stared lovingly into his eyes, trying to memorize that unique sun pattern in his irises. He laughed and held up my chin with his free hand, resting his forehead on me, grinning wide enough to show off his cute fang-like canine teeth.

"So this is what a true couple looks like." His grandmother chimed in after a while, sighing wistfully as if she was reliving a memory from her own romance. "The King and the Peacekeeper. Never before has the Crown married within itself in its entire history. This will be a special wedding to attend indeed."

"I wouldn't want anyone else walking down the altar." Luc remarked, seeming very sure of himself as he said those words. He ran his thumb along my forearm, gazing at the letters and tracing them carefully. He lifted up my wrist and planted a kiss on it, making me smile even more, probably making me blush as well.

"The real question is if she'll take the proud D'Ange name or if you'll take her royal one." Mrs. D'Ange joked.

I laughed. "I don't know. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it I guess."

I silently began to daydream. Me and Luc getting married seemed so fantastic. I'd be walking down the aisle in a beautiful white dress, carrying a bouquet of beautiful flowers in my hands. Even better would be meeting Luc at the altar and exchanging vows. I silently wondered if dragon weddings were different than the ones I was used to.

"Oh, yeah, Scarlett,"

I snapped from my trance and focused my attention on Luc. "Yeah?"

"All four of us did some research while you were taking a nap and we came up with what we think is where the Sky artifact is." He informed me.

"Oh yeah, Talia gave us translations of what she could decipher from our artifacts, didn't she?" I mused. "What exactly did they say again?"

"The angel must find where his quest started, give into his potential brokenheartedness, and face his unholy desires before the midnight hour strikes." He recited, as if from memory.

"That doesn't give us much to go on." I pointed out.

"Well, it makes a reference to a clock and holy desires, so we figured it must be in some sort of church or something."

"But which church?" I asked. "We can't just randomly walk into every church in Lyon and expect to magically find the right one."

"But it says 'where my quest started'." Luc pointed out. "I remember the day I got my memories back as if it was yesterday. I had walked into the Saint-Nizier shortly after my father had died, asking God where my mom was and why my dad had to die. As if by some miracle, my memories had all come flooding back. That's when I remembered how Kali had taken over everything, the face of my mother and my fellow heirs. That day, I told my grandparents and they immediately enrolled me in Eternal Academy."

"But it's only open during certain times of the day due to reconstruction." His grandmother informed him. "You won't be able to go until tomorrow and early in the morning."

"That might give us enough time to question Twyla."

As if on cue, that's when Madia had ran in, a crazed and disturbed look on her face. She was breathing heavily and seemed to be on the edge of tears, pulling at the ends of her hair. Bailey came shortly after, looking equally disturbed.

"What's wrong?" I immediately asked.

"T-T-Twy..." Was all Madia could manage to say.

"What about her?" Luc asked, looking ready to protect anyone if need be.

Bailey looked at the floor. "She..."

"Cyanide..."

"She just broke one of her teeth and..."

"Lifeless..."

I sat there in shock. I was scared. Whatever was going on was apparently important enough for a twelve year old girl to commit suicide for. I began to feel nauseous, and all of my veins began to ache. Whatever was going on was definitely not something minor. Not only did we have Kali to deal with, but this disturbing new threat as well.

Nothing was quite the same afterwards.  

Oh my god finally. Sorry about this delay. I had dumb standardized testing this week and just overall was super lethargic and unable to do much. Anyways hope you enjoy this chapter and just a warning, your feels are gonna be broken next chapter. Love you!

Signing off, Kiera Savage