Attanya

Naif

Melody

The next morning they were in the air long before Melody was even aware what was going on. The plan was to ride all day and find another camping spot. With questions unanswered and more arising, Melody pondered what she could as her new senior in order to understand more about the place she will be staying in from now on.

            After flying in the chilled air for an hour, Melody was taught how to touch the minds of other by Kaleigh. Although they started yesterday, today was the day Melody planned on using the information to help her. The best way to learn how to do something is to put it into action.

            Easing her mind away from Kaleigh’s strawberry scented mind, she reached out with her thoughts for the idea of Rider Samsel. At first it was like groping for the light switch in the dark but as soon as a pressure that seemed faintly familiar pressed against her mind she felt the light come on. :Samsel, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?:

            After finishing her very focused thought she reached out for the idea of Dirik. His was easier to find after finding Rider Samsel’s mind. His voice trickled into her head as she tried to contain her joy.

            A curious tone filled her head, Rider Samsel’s surprised voice sounded like he was standing right next to her even though they were a thousand feet in the sky. Felix’s body floated in front of them, if she looked close enough she could see him turn around in his seat. :You can Mind-Speak?:

            :Kaleigh has been teaching me, she said that if I could talked to her so easily then I should be able to talk to humans.: She is able to feel his feelings as if they were her own.

            :I see, when have you had the time to practice.: He thought of something else, it was as if he was thinking and abruptly stopped thinking the thought all together.

            :Yesterday, we flew all day and I got bored. Kaleigh offered to explain it but I wasn’t sure if I could find you guys without her help. But I did.: A smile cracked her face. :I actually had a few questions that I hoped you could answer.:

            :I don’t see a problem with that.: Rider Samsel hesitated almost out of uncomfortableness. :I do have to request that you call me by my title though, at the Collegium you will have to call all by their titles so it is best to be in habit.:

            Sitting straighter in the saddle, she pulled the hood tighter to her head. :I’m sorry, where I’m from its mostly informal. I’ll do as you ask Rider Samsel. How is this country ruled? Democracy, a hierarchy?: Kaleigh said that Rider Samsel was already aware she wasn’t from this country so it was best that she ask as many questions before arriving at the school. Although he won’t ask where she is from, he won’t keep from telling the higher up what he believes.

            :Queen AraLynn is responsible for directing the Kingdom while her husband, the King Kelvin goes on official affairs. He is responsible for the front lines and all its disbursements. Although he is the King, he isn’t in the Palace often.: They were forced into a steep climb when they hit an air pocket, they stay silent until they level out just below the clouds. :There is a Royal council that may overturn the Monarch’s decisions, you will have a session that will explain it in detail later on.: Rider Samsel looked back at the Dragon behind him, almost like checking to see how close they were. :The Queen is still new to the throne, her older twin brother was assassinated four ini ago. The Lady never intended to take over the thrown however the late King’s twin children were too young to take the throne and not yet blessed. The Lady decided to send his children to her younger brother to be safe. Keep that in mind.:

Dirik shifted behind Melody, half-heartedly tightening the cloak around them. :Next question?:

            :How long is the schooling going to take?:

            Although all of the first questions were directed at Rider Samsel, Dirik had his full attention to what they were talking about. :That depends on you. Training students are all different, some areas you will finish quickly and others you will struggle. You will go undergo harsh training and until that is complete you will stay as student. After you graduate you will be sent onto missions with a team, a full cycle of that and you will receive a moon if you have earned it.:

            :What will I be learning about anyway?:

            :Politics, how to read the stars, different languages, history of this land and other lands. There are many areas of study that you will have to learn to do the job you will have.:  And so they day went, hours of talking that exhausted her mentally and physically. The sheer amount of things she didn’t know was astounding. By the time they swirled down from the sky it was almost dark. Melody could barely contain the information she was given and knew she would have to spend some time writing it down.

            She slowly pulled the saddle from Kaleigh while Rider Samsel set up camp and Dirik started the fire. Dragging the heavy leather saddle to the forming saddle, she glanced over to the furthest place away from the fire. Just as Rider Samsel said, there was a small cabin hidden under the snow. Although it would be convenient to sleep in a less cold place, Rider Samsel said it was necessary for the newly paired to be as close as possible to each other. The bond in the beginning was tender, it had to be nurtured and taken care of to help it become the strongest possible. Shivering against the cold, she ruffled through the bags until she found a new set of clothes.

            Setting them out, Melody grabbed everything she needed for her bath. Bundling them into a ball, she left them on her bag so she could just grab them after she finished putting snow in the water pouches to be melted. Walking over to Rider Samsel, Melody watched as he brushed down Flyer Felix while horse hair got everywhere. Brushing through a spot between his shoulder blades, Flyer Felix’s face showed his contentment as Rider Samsel worked. Chuckling Melody grabbed the teardrop shaped bags and walked away, trying to hide her amusement.

            Melody walked further away from the group, with a glance she sees that Kaleigh was preparing her spot. With one quick wave of her forearm, the Dragon cleans the ground around her of snow while showering around her with a hail of snow. Watching each of them Melody found herself smiling, maybe being from Earth and coming here wasn’t so bad. It might not have been so amusing if she had been born here.

            Crouching down near a circle of stones, she wipes down the one nearest her and sits on it. It was the perfect height and shape to sit on. From where she sat she had the perfect viewing spot while far enough away that only those with exceptional hearing could hear her whisper. She slowly backed the containers until they were bulging with snow, once they melted they would be their water supply for the day. Although there was a pond in the Dome not too far away, it unnerved Melody to be drinking the water that someone swam in.

            After filling the five containers she stood and walked back to her Flyer, Kaleigh was as hot as the fire if she pulled all of the heat to her chest. So Melody set the containers just under her body. By the time she returned from the pool they would be warm to the touch. Pressing her hands against Kaleigh’s chest, she feels the sting of cold slowly leave them.

            Before leaving, Melody patted Kaleigh on the shoulder. “Thank you for your warmth, I’ll be back soon.” A hum from deep in her chest told Melody that Kaleigh would be asleep by the time she got back.

            After grabbing her clothes, Melody crunched through the snow until it began receding bit by bit. It was a five minute walk before the dying light of the night revealed the small pond surrounded by weeds. Without thinking she stripped her clothes and waded into the water. Sore leg muscles screamed at her as she let the water overcome her, sinking beneath the gentle warm of water her hair floated out around her. The pool glowed around her, almost like glow sticks were in the water. Holding her breath, she becomes weightless, drifting without moving a muscle. Calm peacefulness fills her from head to toe, making it nearly impossible for her to want to go up for air.

            Ringing filled Melody’s head as she lay motionless in the water, white hair filled her mind startling her up from the water. Gasping for air, she pushed her hair out of her face. Wiping off her face Melody breathes deeply, pushing the memory of a long forgotten boy from her mind. She washed quickly before getting out and lying on the heated sand. A towel lie between the ground and her naked body, yet she felt every ounce of warmth that it would give her. Crunching pulled her from her warm cocoon; Melody sat up and pulled a tunic on. The blue fabric was loose on her, only held to her middle by a borrowed belt. Everything she wore was borrowed, including the thick pants that were tied around her waist and ankles. Rider Samsel gave it to her before leaving this morning, insisting that when she bathed that night she stopped wearing her clothes and start wearing her section color. Although that didn’t stop her from putting a sweater and sweats on underneath, not that anyone would notice.

             “Sorry, I’ll be out in a moment.” Melody stood with water no longer on her skin. She pulled her pants up then fastened her belt making her olden clothes tight around her middle. Although these clothes dated back to the renaissance and before, she was accustomed to the oddity due to her upraising. Her family was part of a group that reenacted medieval times so wearing medieval clothes had become normal for her. Sitting down she began pulling on her shoes. It wasn’t until she was putting on her last boot that Melody realized the crunching was coming from the opposite direction.

            Looking up Melody saw a white wolf strolling toward her, eyes fixated on hers. It didn’t look vicious; in fact it looked quite tame. When he was three feet from her, he stopped and sat in front of her. Standing slowly, she held out her hand. Whispering gently, “It’s alright, I won’t hurt you.”

            Then something peculiar happened. It tilted its head and smiled while a pressure pushed against her mind. :Why would I be afraid of you hurting me?:

            Melody’s first reaction was to stop her hand and fall into a fit of laughter. Holding her middle, she cried from the pain of laughing too hard. It was defiantly a male due to the deep tone that filled her mind, the slight disapproval in his mind was easily picked up by the glare from his face.

:I wouldn’t have thought that I would have picked a jester. It seems that you think I’m amusing.: His sober tone only forced her to laugh harder, if anyone had seen they would have thought that she had lost her marbles.

            It isn’t until shame filled her that she was able to stop laughing. “What are you?”

            He sat there patiently and waited for her to stop; now he appeared calm as ever. :I am a shifter from the Wassail tribe. My name is Naif.: His voice was thick and rolled off her thoughts like chocolate.

            “I don’t know what that is or where Wassail is.” She wiped away her tears, attempting to look more serious but the thought of a talking dog was a bit too much.

            :North of Wasaki.: He appeared amused. :What do others call you.:

            Shrugging off the things he’s talking about, she knows it sounds it familiar. “Melody. Why exactly are you here?”

            :What a bizarre name, I have never heard of the people here having a name like that.: He paused, completely bypassing her question. :Are you’re parents from another country?:

            “I’m not from here. Why are you here?” She crossed her arms, refusing to be ignored.

            :A similar reason as to why Kaleigh’s here.: For some odd reason, she couldn’t disagree. Without resistance, Melody led him back to camp where the others acted like he had always been with them.