"Where are we going?" I asked as Celica continued pulling me by the back of my Dragon Red coat.

"Emergency Dragon Tower meeting."

I was pretty sure the only ones who could technically call one were me and Vivian. But whatever this was must have been at least somewhat important to her, so I didn't fight it.

I appreciated that it was the real Celica, and not the other one.

She released me as we got to the foot of the stairs. "Up you go, we're meeting in the attic."

"Why the attic?"

"Because the walls have ears." She pushed me towards the stairs. I started to ascend out of fear I was going to fall on my face.

The ladder to the attic was already active, Jarec Blue.

I went up first, the hatch was open and the boys were all there already.

"Um…hi?" I said as I moved out of the way for Celica. I opted to stand toward the back of the narrow room. Jarec was by the small window, Russel was leaning on the wall to the right, and Fethris had his arms crossed on the left side of the room.

"We have got to find a better way to get a hold of you," Jarec said.

Which, while true, was not what I believed the meeting was for.

"We really do. But we have more important things to do," Celica complained.

"We have a problem," Fethris said.

"Several problems, depending on who you ask," Russel added.

Oh no. "Start from the beginning, what problems?" I asked, hopelessly lost.

"Rumors, for starters," Fethris commented.

"What rumors?" I was starting to get frustrated.

"I've heard bits and pieces. Lots of people have seen your mother wandering about campus with you," Jarec commented. "But nothing too unexpected. I'm almost surprised at how few have pieced together who the Dragon Tower Representative is."

"It's not like I talk to older students much. Or any students really." Which might have been sad, but the few interactions I'd had didn't exactly leave me eager for more.

"I'll keep an ear out, see if any of it develops beyond scraps of gossip," Jarec volunteered.

I was failing to see what the purpose of calling this meeting was.

"Kraken Tower really bought into those Aplos rumors that went around about you. Kelpie too, I think," Celica pointed out.

"Sounds like a them problem," I countered.

"It could be our problem," Fethris commented, "Horus is more fond of Anubis then he lets on. And I've heard she's still upset about the whole duel thing."

Jade's words about Horus planning something came back to me. "Jade Runebringer told me a while ago that Horus seemed like he was up to something. They didn't know what though."

Had Mom's presence added more to a boiling over pot? But what was I supposed to do about it now?

"Is there anything we can do until they do anything?" I asked out loud. Fethris had been in Kelpie for a little while, maybe he had some insight.

"Probably not. It's harder when we don't have people in later years. Outside of your meetings we don't get a lot of chances to talk to older students," Fethris responded.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

"And I'm terrible at it," I told them. Yes, they should already know that, but it needed repeating. Or I felt the urge to make sure it wasn't forgotten.

If they tried to make a plan that depended on my ability to socialize, we were all doomed.

I scratched at my cursed wrist.

"Fethris, you were in Kelpie, what do you think is the most likely outcome if we just leave it be?" I didn't see any of them going along with that idea, but speculation would only get us so far.

"My guess is that he's going to try what Anubis tried, but with less confrontation and more strategy."

"If he wants me gone, then he'll probably try to have you take my place," I told him. Horus had said as much, hadn't he?

"No thanks to that," he responded.

"If he wants to use force, a duel is the most likely option, right?" I asked Jarec.

"Yeah, but Vivian Hearth isn't going to let you duel with the curse," Russel commented.

Way too risky. For both me and the other student.

"But Horus and whoever he gets to help him won't know that," I mumbled.

"Horus will need help. He can't duel you himself, he'll have to get a younger student to do it. Probably a first-year to give Grandmother less excuses," Jarec added.

"Probably one of his own, right?" I turned to Fethris again. He was still the one with the most experience with Kelpies.

"They'll be easier for him to convince. Being tutored by a fifth-year in exchange for a duel or two isn't a bad deal," Celica said while frowning. "I don't we could do anything that would be worth more."

Again, only five of us and all first-years. It was a bit like playing chess but all we had were four pawns.

And an hour before I had to meet up with the other Tower Representatives with my mother.

"Forgive my ignorance for a moment, but why would he bother? Like what does he get out of changing Dragon Tower?" I asked. Maybe it was a stupid question, but I felt a need to ask anyway.

"He either thinks one of us will be easier to control or he really doesn't like you," Fethris explained. "When there were eight of them, ties were always a risk. With nine there's always going to be a majority. And since less is known about what makes someone a Dragon that makes us, and you, harder to predict."

It would almost be funny, the fact that the others would probably be worse. But if Horus was willing to hear me out on that, we likely wouldn't be in this mess.

Words were out. We had nothing to counter offer anything from Horus.

"Think it's possible to scare them off?" I pondered. "Make the thought of dueling me so bad that any benefit Horus can give just wouldn't be worth it?"

"How exactly do you think you'd do that? You're not exactly intimidating Serafina," Russel scoffed.

"Celica, what exactly are the rules of the Creature Cage?" I asked as ideas began to swarm.

I could tell by the look on Fethris' face that he was piecing together what I was thinking.

"It's a little late to sign up," Celica said.

"Mom apparently signed me up weeks ago."

"What?!" Celica screeched, "Why?"

Fair.

"I don't know. I just found out about it."

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "For first-years enchanted objects are not allowed. Tools like Occuli and Focuses are. As are non-magical objects smaller than five inches."

"I have a really bad idea, and I need you guys to trust me."

"How bad of an idea are we talking about here?" Jarec asked warily.

"Think we can get a bunch of Kelpies to watch the Creature Cage?" I asked.

"Yeah, but what do you think you can do that could scare them off any plan to duel you?" Celica demanded.

"Your magic doesn't work, at best you might make them laugh themselves to death," Russel added because he was being unhelpful.

"I have a way around the curse. Kind of."

"But I thought it only weakened when you were bleeding," Celica started to rant then stopped. "That's so stupid!" She exclaimed after a moment.

"I said it was a bad idea!" Probably.

"I thought you were going to prank them or something, not use your broken Focus and risk exploding!"

"I'm not gonna explode, it'll be fine."

And it wasn't like they had offered ideas.

"Can you be sure of that?" Fethris asked.

"Yes! Probably. Look if there was a high risk I'm pretty sure my mother would never have forced me into this." Probably. I hoped. But they didn't need to know I was less than certain about this.

Resting poker face don't fail me now!

Jarec was frowning, but spoke up. "Our Tower Head can deny any activity we're signed up for. Even by parents. Which means you have her approval."

"And she let me have my Focus. And she knows the same amount about the curse as I do."

It wasn't actual approval or permission to do things, but it was a risk she took letting me have my Focus.

"There's only five of us, and if we want them to take us seriously as a Tower in our own right we'll need to be bold," Fethris said.

I think I was starting to win them over just a bit.

"Russel?" He hadn't chimed in in a while.

"People think they can force their will on us because there aren't a lot of us, if you really think you can show them that they're wrong, go for it," Russel didn't look as sure as I would like, but I would take it.

"Thank you. All of you. You guys are the best," I told them. I didn't say that kind of thing enough, but when they weren't being the worst it was true.

"Ugh no, why did you make it sappy?" Celica complained.

"Don't worry, I have to go. So neither of us will break into hives over it. I'll see you all after the Representative meeting."

"Haven't you been running around all day?" Celica complained as I began to head down the ladder.

"And whose fault is that?" I yelled back from the bottom.

I had the best worst Tower.

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