Hiking on an unfamiliar trail for the first time in years was thrilling in a way I hadn't expected. But it was strange doing it alone. I couldn't be sure how far along her route Celica was. We had split up at the beginning.

The trail itself didn't look very worn. Just a little too wild to be used frequently, but just worn enough to be visible amongst the rocks and bits of moss. Or maybe there was some kind of magic thing to keep it even when there weren't random students using it to solve a dispute.

Sometimes, I forgot that we were so far north. But right now the fact that I was far, far closer to Greenland than home was making itself very clear.

Massachusetts certainly didn't have folded and twisted layers in the rock that were evidence of a glacier some tens of thousands of years ago.

No amount of lichen could hide the veins of pale and dark rocks blended together to make a tapestry that told the story of the moving of the Earth.

The layers only became more pronounced and chaotic as I ascended upwards on the trail.

But then the trail ended. And I was staring up at about ten feet of rockface between me and the top.

One good thing about having a rock face made of so many different sediments was how erosion worked on them differently. The pale layers were sunken in at least a few inches more than the dark ones.

Free Soloing was not something I had done often on natural rocks. But I had climbed enough boulders to start mentally planning a few routes up.

Definitely doable.

I stretched as I continued to look up at the rockface.

"Up we go," I said to myself as I placed my hands in the first holds I had picked.

Right hand, right foot, left hand, left foot. Deep breath. Repeat.

The real trick was keeping my hips in the proper position.

But I found a rhythm and it didn't feel like long before I was up on the edge and lifting myself up.

My first impression was that it was freezing.

My second was that I was alone.

I cheered and threw my hands up in the air. "I win!"

I sat down with my legs out in front of me and let out a yawn. It's been a long day. But at least the view was nice. Gods we were far. I knew we were close to the Artic Circle, but I never imagined we'd be able to see the ice from here.

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I tucked my legs up to my chest and wrapped my arms around my knees. I couldn't keep the small smile off my face.

"How in the hells did you get here first?!" Celica demanded after a few minutes.

I turned my in her direction and grinned. "I win. And we both know I can't cheat."

"May Hades come for you early."

I laughed. "And may the Fates weave your thread forever."

She sneered at me before sitting down next to me.

"I win," I repeated. "So now you can't bother me about the dance thing."

"Why are you so opposed to going? Is it getting a date? I could find you one."

"I assure you I will never be taking you up on that offer and it's not dating. I just…it doesn't appeal to me."

"That makes no sense to me."

"I can't explain it. I just…don't want to. The thought makes me shudder."

"You are the strangest person I have ever met."

"I choose to take that as a compliment."

She rolled her eyes. I laughed.

"It's probably for the best. I haven't heard any rumors of anyone wanting to ask you anyway." She leaned back and reclined herself into a laying down position. "What would you even do if you got asked? Something tells me you don't know the first thing about dates."

"Well…you're not entirely wrong. I've never been on a date before. I was asked to a dance once but that's the limit of my experience."

"Ooh, I smell a story here. What happened?"

I wasn't sure why I didn't expect her to say exactly that. "He was a long time friend of mine. We'd known each other most of our lives. My only friend."

"Oh no."

"Yeah…" I sighed. "I hadn't even realized he had plans to go. One day we were heading to class and he just blurted out the question. I don't think he intended to ask that way, but once it was out there the damage was done."

"How unromantic. I'd have turned him down too."

"I didn't turn him down because he's the most awkward person alive, I turned him down because it didn't seem fair to him or me."

She let out a hum in response.

"I mean…I didn't feel that way about him. I shouldn't be forced to do something I'm not comfortable with just because other people think it's not okay for a guy and girl to not like each other that way. And what, I give him false hope and break his heart even more when he finds out later? He deserves the chance to move on and find someone who does reciprocate his feelings and I'm not responsible for how he feels about me."

Celica was sitting up and giving me a look.

I continued, "His brother found out about what happened. And decided to harass me about it. I don't think Ethan was involved. Every day I found notes calling me all kinds of things. Accusing me of leading him on and stuff. Then Ethan found out what his brother had been doing. The notes stopped but then there was a…physical altercation."

"Sounds like a prick."

"You have no idea. He grabbed me. I pushed him. He stumbled into a trash can. I don't even think he got a bruise. I got expelled. Now I'm here."

"Assholes. Well, you're a Dragon now. And I am not going back to Kraken Tower so you can't go back."

I laughed. "I have no desire to go back."

"I'm still annoyed that I lost. But there will be other dances. I just need to find something you're bad at."

"Any challenge that requires magic won't work."

She scoffed, "I'm working on figuring out your tells. Everyone has them. I will defeat you in something."

"You are welcome to try."

"How did you even get up here before me? There's only one trail that leads up and the one I saw you take ends in a dead end."

"I climbed it."

"What?"

"It ended in a rock wall and I climbed it."

"You-!"

"I've been hiking and climbing since before my magic failed to show itself," I admitted.

"I take it back. I hate you and I hope you go back home to human school with the assholes."

I laughed again.

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