On the way to Solvein, they didn't talk about anything in particular. On the one hand, Draco was pleased because he could spend some quiet time with his master; on the other, however, he had been hoping for a conversation about magic and the consequences of the source running dry. Fortunately, Gizel, who had unexpectedly announced that she would be travelling with them to escort the dragon to the Academy, livened up their journey with stories straight out of elven mythology.
It was only when the carriage came to a halt that Draco realised they were not standing in front of the main gate of the complex. This gate was narrower, and the road winding between the trees was of standard width. Only the traffic was similar to that at the main entrance.
'You're on a mount today, so you'll need to leave Fen in the stables first.' Darius seemed to be reading his pupil's mind. 'First right after the gate, then straight on. You'll find it for sure.' The wizard smiled with a hint of nostalgia. 'Just don't miss the turn-off, or you'll end up amongst the halls of residence, and it'll be tricky to get out of there.'
'I'll bear that in mind.' The dragon nodded vigorously and leapt out of the carriage. He couldn't wait for even a short ride on bess.
'Have a lovely day, my dear,' Gizel called after him.
'Will we see each other this afternoon?' The boy hesitated, unsure whether he should ask.
'Certainly.' The elf smiled more broadly. 'Now off you go, so you don't run late.'
'See you later.' Draco waved to them both and hurried over to his mount, which had already been untied by the coachman and was standing there restlessly, growling softly at the soldier time and again. 'Thank you.' The boy took the reins of the pitch-black creature, which the bess accepted with obvious satisfaction. It immediately began nudging its rider with its muzzle, as if wanting to hurry him along or to snuggle up to him. 'All right, all right. We'll go for a little ride, but later you'll have to wait patiently for me.' He took the snort as a good sign and carefully clambered into the saddle. It wasn't particularly difficult, but he preferred to keep an eye on Fen's reactions. If bess suddenly decided to set off, the dragon might get a bit of a knock about.
Once seated on Fenrir's back, he waved once more to the master and Gizel and steered his mount towards Solvein's side gate. Bess, having been repeatedly told to behave himself, walked calmly and smoothly. He, too, was looking around with curiosity.
The traffic, though he could have sworn it should be heaviest in front of the main gate, seemed to be thickening in this spot with every passing second. One carriage after another stopped just long enough for their passengers to step out. The types of vehicles also differed significantly from the aristocratic carriages that pulled up elegantly at the Academy's main entrance. Here, too, one could see such carriages, but alongside those bearing coats of arms, there were plenty of more modest ones, as well as those available for hire in the city. A little further on, the dragon also spotted an approaching omnibus drawn by a massive karven.
He gently steered the bess and they set off through the gate. In his heart, Draco was grateful that everyone seemed to be trying to avoid getting too close to the approaching Fenrir, although many people did stop to take a look at the rarely seen mount. In the passageway itself, they were even let through by a few cadets on horseback, clearly from a senior year, who set off after the reptile, chatting amongst themselves and complaining aloud that they would have given an arm and a leg just to be able to ride a bess.
Mindful of his master's warning, the reptile turned immediately after the gate, though he couldn't imagine how anyone could have missed it, given that all the riders were heading in that very direction. Once they'd left the crowd of pedestrians behind, it was possible to pick up speed, which many people were only too happy to do. Leading the way were the older cadets, who galloped past Draco at the first opportunity. Their frequent glances over their shoulders betrayed that they were hoping for a race with Fen, but the dragon didn't feel confident enough in the saddle to go along with it. He merely smiled and waved, appreciating the provocation.
He reached the stables at a decent pace, although the number of people who overtook him was by no means small. The mage, however, found some pleasure in this, being able to observe all manner of mounts. For the most part, these were various breeds of horses or, though they were rather reluctant to approach the bess, wolvens, but there were also a few more interesting ones. He remembered best the majestic bull belonging to Karsun Doe and the orvang, which reminded him of a giant monitor lizard, though it was certainly faster, and riding on its back didn't feel quite so rocky.
Stablehands were waiting at the entrance to the stables. It seemed that the arriving cadets were heading towards specific individuals, and after handing over the reins, they briskly walked away, leaving their mounts in the care of the professionals. Not knowing whom to approach, he chose the person who looked the least busy at that moment. All he had to do was give bess a gentle squeeze on the flanks, and Fen immediately set off in the right direction.
'Draco Ignis?' came a voice from somewhere to the side. The dragon pulled on the reins and looked around, searching for the source of the voice. Right next to Fenrir stood a petite halfling with a cascade of chestnut curls and a pleasant smile on her freckled face. 'I'm Rosa Starwood, and I'll be looking after your bess, sir,' she announced, holding out her hand for the reins. Fen merely snorted and turned his head away.
'I'm sorry about him.' The reptile jumped down from the mount's back and gave him a light nudge. 'Behave yourself.' He almost hissed through clenched teeth, but the bess's only reaction was to roll his eyes.
'Don't worry, I'll manage.' The halfling repeated her gesture, this time more firmly.
Draco looked around, but no one else was in any hurry to approach. With a certain hesitation, uncharacteristic of him, he handed her the reins. He also gave Fen a stern look, hoping that would stop him from causing trouble.
'I'll take care of everything, please don't worry.' Rosa's self-assurance seemed all too exaggerated to the dragon. 'You'd better hurry so you're not late for class.'
'Yes, yes… you're right.' The dragon glanced over his shoulder at the Tower of Light towering above everything and shook himself slightly. 'This afternoon…'
'You have a riding lesson.' The halfling interrupted him. 'I know; we receive the timetable for everyone using the stables. Don't worry,' she repeated. 'Your mount will be waiting for you.'
'Thank you,' he said, not particularly eager to leave. 'I'll be back this afternoon,' he said to bess, leaning in close to his muzzle as if he wanted to give him one last cuddle. 'Behave yourself, Fen, and watch what you're doing.' He stroked the mount once more and, shuffling his feet, walked off towards the main building of Solvein.
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Today's classes were almost identical to yesterday's. The lecturers often focused solely on aspects of future lessons they had chosen themselves, and only explained those in greater depth. One could get the impression that both the cadets and the teaching staff were only thinking about getting the technicalities out of the way so they could move on to something else.
The other students in their group didn't find this at all strange, and Warren even remarked that this was how it was every year. The others' attitude towards the dragon had also changed slightly. During breaks between lessons, Noah asked the reptile several times if he was all right after yesterday's exhaustion. Goblin and Eric approached Draco with a certain reserve, but it didn't seem to stem from prejudice. Sheth exchanged a few words with him, but generally didn't seem very talkative and preferred peace and quiet. Zane was the one who opened up most to the dragon, and it was clear he was paying him a great deal of attention, whilst also telling him a lot not only about the school itself and the lecturers, but also about the subjects and various points of interest. His complete opposite was Cedric, who behaved as if Draco weren't there. In the rather good atmosphere prevailing within the group, one could easily forget about the latter.
'Riding's about to start,' Warren changed the subject, casting a wistful glance out of the window. 'What do you reckon we'll be starting with?'
'On horseback or on wargs.' Zane nipped the goblin's dream in the bud before he'd even had a chance to voice it. 'Don't count on anything more.'
'You could at least let him daydream a bit,' Noah interjected. Parthir had approached them unnoticed and immediately turned his gaze to the dragon. 'How's your hand?'
'All in one piece.' Draco held out his left hand, suspecting he'd have to do it anyway. 'Thanks to your help, there's not a mark on it.' He waved it slightly.
'Be careful today, because I've no intention of making a habit of patching you up every time we have practical lessons,' Noah wagged a finger at the dragon and went on his way.
'What's he on about?' The elf rolled his eyes. 'It all turned out fine, so why pick on you?'
'He's got a point.' Eric looked at Zane sidelong. He hadn't particularly taken to the elf's comments, and certainly not his dismissive tone. 'Falling off a cliff, exhaustion, the last thing we need is for him to fall off his saddle and break something.' The lad might have been exaggerating a bit, but Draco didn't want to correct him.
'Break something? Please.' The elf waved his hand dismissively. 'If he takes a tumble or two…'
'Then I'll be very displeased,' Noah finished for him as he returned to his seat. The parthir's gaze had a better effect on Zane than anything else.
'We'll all try to stay in the saddle,' Eric promised on their behalf, and Draco nodded vigorously in agreement. He himself had no intention whatsoever of falling off Fen's back, but then again, falling off a cliff hadn't been part of his plans the day before either.
'Everyone, sit down.' The dragon jumped at the sound of a shrill, unpleasant voice coming from the door to the classroom. A short, stout woman, dressed in riding gear that was a little too tight, strode briskly across the room. Her chubby face, glistening with sweat, bore a permanent look of dissatisfaction. At first glance, the lecturer did not seem particularly friendly. 'I am Dolores Taumaturge and, from today, I will be training you in riding.' She swept a cold gaze across the group. 'I'm not here to coddle you. My job is to ensure that, by the end of this term, you're able to ride at least two basic mounts.' She paused and raised an eyebrow questioningly. Silence fell over the room; no one dared even to breathe a little louder. 'Anyone care to suggest?' The question hung over the whole group like the blade of an axe. 'You!' She suddenly pointed at someone roughly in the middle.
'On horseback and on a warg?' The frightened, faltering voice was hard to recognise, though Draco was certain he'd already spoken to its owner.
'Wrong!', a shrill cry caused a collective stir. 'Why on earth would you need the ability to ride two warmounts right now?' The lecturer ground out every word through clenched teeth. 'Horses are too much for you.' A judgmental gaze swept over the cadets. 'You need to be able to ride wargs, even if it's just to work as couriers.' She snorted as though she'd just told an incredibly funny joke. 'But really, you'll be useful if you know how to handle a karven. At the end of the day, someone's got to transport the supplies.' A nasty smile stretched across the woman's lips, revealing her uneven, yellowed teeth. Any enthusiasm Draco had felt for learning to ride had vanished into thin air. 'By the end of the year, we'll need to find someone amongst you who's cut out for racing,' she added, without a hint of enthusiasm in her voice. 'But that can wait.' She dragged out the syllables terribly, emphasising each one heavily. 'For now, we'll focus on the basics, which is what you're certainly lacking.' She turned her back on them, gazing out of one of the windows. 'I ought to tell you exactly what I'll be expecting in my lessons, but that's a waste of time.' Although in the case of all previous lessons such an assurance would have been a relief to all the cadets, now it seemed like a grim foreshadowing of many problems. 'You are to prepare for field training. I'll be waiting outside the stables.' Without further explanation, she turned on her heel and marched out of the hall.
Everyone sat there as if petrified, not knowing what had just happened. Draco turned to ask if this was normal, but the door creaked open and a chubby face appeared in the doorway.
'Just don't keep me waiting.' The shriek ended in a giggle, or perhaps more of a cackle.
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No one hesitated, and the whole group practically raced to the changing rooms, where they quickly split into their teams and rushed off to their respective cubicles. It was only once the door had closed behind them that Draco plucked up the courage to ask a question.
'What on earth was that?' The reptile had had all sorts of experiences with eccentric teachers, but this was the first time in his life he'd encountered someone who could instil an aura of terror simply by appearing.
'Our new lecturer.' Zane was quick to offer a helpful reply.
'Interesting, I wouldn't have noticed that.' The sarcasm in the dragon's voice was almost palpable.
'Stop bickering and get on with changing,' Cedric scolded them; it was the first time they'd heard his voice since the previous day.
'Easy for you to say.' The elf, though he seemed slightly sulky, got up from his seat and began to take off his shirt. 'You've been given a horse, so at least you'll have a choice of what you want to do.'
'I've a feeling I won't be able to wriggle out of the tarian.' The commander's gloomy voice summed up the whole team's thoughts.
'Whingeing won't help you,' Noah said, looking up from his medicines. 'Besides, it's better to have a choice and focus on what's really necessary, rather than what you've got yourself into.'
'You'll finally show us your steed,' Zane chimed in. Clearly, the subject of mounts wasn't being raised for the first time. 'And you, Draco? What do you ride?'
'I wouldn't call it riding, but I'm trying,' a wry smile crept across the dragon's lips.
'And what do you ride?' Even Cedric stopped and looked at the reptile.
'You'll see,' he replied, disappearing behind an open wardrobe.