I barely heard her as I kissed her throat. “Okay,” I said, savoring her shock at the tender caress.
I wasn’t sure how much time passed before we were interrupted; I only knew that it was too short of a time. I nearly fell over in surprise when Rachel knocked on the door.
“I did warn you,” Raiya said with a giggle. Her arms pulled back from me, moving to straighten her hair and smooth the wrinkles out of her dress.
I was only a little disappointed to see the corsage I’d given her was crushed.
“Fair enough,” I replied, trying to catch my breath as well as my balance.
Rachel came in just as I managed to steady myself.
“There you are,” she said. “It’s almost time for the prom to start.”
“We’re ready,” I said, grabbing Raiya’s hand.
“Great! Let me get some pictures and then you guys can head out.” Rachel grinned. “Do you want a coat, Raiya? I heard on the news it’s supposed to snow tonight.”
“Snow?” I asked.
“It’s an onion snow,” Rachel explained. “They come sometimes, at the end of April or the beginning of May. The temperature’s been dipping since earlier, so I thought I’d warn you.”
Huh, I guess it was the weather earlier, rather than Elysian. I was surprised.
“I’m okay,” Raiya said. “I don’t think I’ll need a coat.”
“She can have mine,” I said, tugging at my suit, “if she needs it.”
Once I stepped outside, I realized Rachel was right. The downside of being a Star, I thought. I could no longer appropriately dress for the weather on my own.
I was comforted that I had all the warmth I would need. Raiya was beside me, and a night of adventure was ahead of us.
“Ready to go?” I asked her.
She gave me a quick smirk. “It would be my pleasure,” she assured me.
☼12☼
Last Dance
When you are popular, especially in high school, it is necessary to have some contingency plans. You never know when your ex-girlfriend will launch herself at you, trying to convince you it was all your fault you ran into her, because you were still in love with her (to which you respond, “I was never in love with you”). You’ll also likely never expect your friends to stare at your date in disbelief, making her increasingly uncomfortable, to the point where she asks you if it was time to leave just fifteen minutes after finally getting into the main room.
The prom was set up in a small conference hall close to the marina. We could see some of the ships coming in and going out as we waited in the welcoming line.
The theme was “A Night on the Sea,” probably loosely based on the Titanic, guessing from some of the decorations. I didn’t bother to dress up in anything nautical, and I was glad to see I wasn’t the only one who hadn’t bothered to learn the theme ahead of time.
But despite some of the tackier elements, there were some really nice furnishings, and the setup for the dance floor was nice. As I’ve said before, credit where it’s due.
Raiya’s hand stayed firmly in mine, but I could feel her fingertips digging into my hand every time Poncey or Drew looked at her, as if they weren’t sure if I’d been telling the truth about her identity.
Jason, for his part, welcomed her, and even complimented her nicely, which set her a little more at ease. He’d seen her around Rachel’s enough that he knew who she was, and I suspected he knew we’d been close for some time.
“Good job, man,” he said, slapping me on the back as Brittany began chatting with Raiya about her GED.
“Thanks,” I murmured back.
“I thought you might bring her,” Jason added. “Rachel’s been bubbly and ecstatic all week, but she wouldn’t tell me who Raiya was going with to the prom.”
“Well, that’s Rachel for you,” I remarked. “A sucker for true love if I ever saw one.”
“True enough,” Jason said.
“Brittany seems like an odd choice,” I said.
“Hey, I complimented you.”
“We’re friends. I’m allowed to ask you awkward questions and say less than nice things.”
Jason grimaced. “I didn’t have a date, and I thought it would be a nice event. See if I couldn’t smooth over her Poncey-hatred.”
“Did it work?”
“I’ll let you know later,” he said with a grin.
I didn’t want to know what he meant by that. Thankfully, I was distracted as Simeon came along and met us with his date, a senior girl, but one I didn’t recognize. I think she said her name was Casey or something similar.
She was nice enough, joining in with our conversations about the latest music, food, entertainment, etc. Felicia, Poncey’s date, heralded us with tales of his success in their cooking elective, which was how they met, apparently.
Simeon had to be on his toes some, I noticed, when his younger sister, Phoebe, arrived and met up with Drew, who was her date. He eventually calmed down some, but he made sure he was close enough to them that they never left his sight.
We talked, we ate, we took plenty of pictures, and we celebrated.
I didn’t get many more questions about Raiya from the guys, so long as she was nearby. When she went to go get some punch, Drew came up to me and asked me if that was really the Raiya I’d told him all the stories about.
“I didn’t hire someone to play her,” I retorted. “Is it so hard to believe?”
“No,” he admitted. “Just surprising.”
“Why?”
“You didn’t seem to like her very much. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she’s cute, but … ”
I half-listened as Drew started reiterating some of my more pompous arguments I’d mentioned to him, recounting some of our more tense disputes from Mrs. Smithe’s class and even some from Mrs. Night’s class. (How old was this information, exactly?)
As he continued to let them roll off his tongue, I glanced over at Raiya. She seemed to sense my gaze, and turned to give me one back. Her eyes were bright and her smile was immediate, as she saw me. I held her eyes until she finally turned away, her cheeks flushed over with crimson.
But I’d seen it—the look of pride on her face, the warmth and approval in her gaze.
Hearing my complaints against her almost made me laugh, half in amusement and half in horror. I was suddenly taken aback by my own selfishness. I’d wanted comfort in telling my friends about the arguments, but I knew I was wrong in some of them, at least, and my friends were all wrong to say nothing about my bias.
I saw now that having Raiya there was the best thing I could ever have, and I didn’t want her to ever leave.
“You know what, Drew?” I said. “You’re right. I don’t like her. I love her.”
I didn’t have to turn my head to see the shock coming off of his expression. His surprise gave me a push of confidence, and I made my decision the moment I heard the music slow its tempo. “Now,” I said, “I’m going to go dance with her. If you’ll excuse me … ”
Raiya met me halfway in the middle of the dance floor. “What are you doing?” she asked.
I plucked the drink out of her hand and passed it to some other person, who, in recognizing me, mindlessly took it. “I’d like to ask you to dance,” I said.
“You’re not really asking if you’re not really giving me a choice.” There was a bit of a smile on her face, and I knew she was arguing with me in a friendly manner.
“I can’t risk you making me look like a fool,” I said.
“You’re not risking that at all, by asking me to dance,” Raiya said.
“So you’ll say yes?”
“If you ask.”
“Okay. Will you dance with me?”
“No.” She laughed as I cocked an eyebrow. “Just kidding.” She took my extended hand in hers, and while I didn’t really do any dancing, I led her around the floor in a respectable-looking pattern.
“I’ve never really been to a dance,” Raiya admitted. “Rachel has music
nights sometimes at the café, but I avoid them.”
“I don’t really dance at these things, much,” I told her. “So you’re in good company.”
“The best,” Raiya said with a grin. I was more gratified when she took a step closer to me. Her eyes met mine, as her lips were only inches away.
“Are you nervous?” I asked.
“Why would I be nervous?” she asked, even as I knew she was, and she was only trying to put on a good face for me.
“Because people are staring at us,” I said. I nodded toward the crowd of people around us, as several people—some friends, some frenemies, all busybodies—tried to look casual when they looked our way.
“Oh. Well, I’m better than what I thought I would be,” Raiya replied. “Your friends aren’t so bad, I guess.”
“That’s what I thought, too.” I laughed.
I held her close for a few long moments. As the music died down, I sighed. I was all happy, except for one, nagging reminder, and I knew I had to do something about it.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m sorry about fighting with you so much lately.”
“Let’s just say that we were both a little wrong. I know there’s nothing wrong with having fun, but I got defensive when you pushed it on me. And I know this was important to you,” Raiya told me. Her voice was quiet and steady, and she was talking to me like a mother would talk to her toddler after having a tantrum. I had a feeling I deserved it.
“It’s not as important to me as you are,” I insisted. “And it’s definitely not as important as protecting the city from Draco.”
She smiled. “Thank you.” Raiya leaned over and tucked her head into the crook of my collarbone, snuggling closer to me. “It’s alright.”
“I don’t always like fighting with you.”
“I know. You lose sometimes.”
“I don’t mean just that,” I told her. “I mean, I hate it when we argue to the point where we hate each other.”
“You and I have a long history of each other,” she reminded me. “Practically none of it has to do with hating each other. A lot more of it has everything to do with loving each other despite our disagreements.”
I suddenly wished I could remember more of all of our lives together; I barely remembered her at all, and the little I knew of my time up on the other side of Time, it had all been through Alora and Aleia’s information, and some of St. Brendan’s, too.
Raiya continued. “We never had to worry about this before we came to Earth,” she said. “And maybe it’s a good thing, to have our affection tested.”
“You think it’s a good thing?” I asked. “Even when I’m arguing with you?”
“In some ways. Even truth has to be tested against the evidence in court,” she pointed out. “Can our affection outlast our anger and pride?”
“Yes, it can,” I affirmed.
“Then it will.” Raiya leaned further up and placed a gentle kiss on my cheek. “Life will test every part of us, to find what is good and what will last. I think saying you’re sorry is a good way to pass that test.”
“Are you going to pass it too?” I asked.
“I’m sorry,” she conceded, though I thought I saw her roll her eyes, “if you thought I was angry enough to stop loving you.”
“Thank you.”
I clung to her as the music’s last note faded away into nothing. “I’ll work on trying to be better. I don’t want to keep forgetting our lives are both here, and past, and ahead of us, all at the same time.”
The world is a strange place sometimes. At that moment, I could see the full arc of our story; I could see Raiya by my side as I studied at Pitt, facing down a tight schedule. I could see her coming along with me when we moved, arguing down the cost of labor and the rental fee from the moving company. I could even see her, standing beside me as we were married, facing down a lifetime of arguing over the TV remote, paying off our bills, and balancing holiday plans—and still saying “I do” an infinite amount of times.
Suddenly, the decision hit me hard and fast. But it was the right thing to do, and I knew it.
I took her hand. “Come with me,” I said, leading her out of the ballroom.
I headed out toward one of the small patios off to the side. I opted for one that was close to the water, under the moonlight, reflecting the stars through the thick cloud cover.
I can’t believe I am going to do this, I thought. But I was turning eighteen in just a few days, and that would make me a legal adult.
It couldn’t be that bad. My dad managed to get my mom to say yes, right? And less deserving people than me married all the time. Just look at Hollywood.
I had nothing to lose in asking her, and a lifetime of everything to gain.
And it wasn’t like Raiya would say no.
We reached the outside, and I saw her briefly shiver at the breeze. Even I felt its sting this time, but I decided ultimately it wouldn’t bother me; I was more concerned with other matters.
I smiled at her, knowing at once it was true. We were here, together, in this place, public with our love, and we both looked good in our prom clothes.
True, I didn’t have a ring, but I had something I knew she would value just as much and guard just as zealously: My pride.
Hey, she’s the one who said before it doesn’t count unless you suffer.
Raiya glanced up at me, a quizzical look on her face. “Why did you want to come out here?”
I took her hand and tried not to shake. I took a deep breath, hoping my years of just winging important speeches would save me once more the greatest impromptu speech I would ever muster—
Only to have the shock of my life, as my wrist burned with blackened pain.
“No.” I shook my head, wanting to howl in pain and raise my fist against the unfairness of the world. “No, not now.”
“What is it?” Raiya asked, and then she stilled. “Draco.”
“Yes,” I grumbled. “He’s back.”
☼13☼
Fight of Destiny
As we turned, another vortex formed over the city, this time encasing it in a crystalline bubble. I felt Time’s pull shift dramatically away from us, as though it was tearing the fabric of space-time apart.
A boom! echoed throughout the night, and then cut off as sharp and quickly as it had come.
I watched the rumble of the world around us stop completely, and I knew we were in big trouble.
Raiya gripped me. “Are you alright?” she asked. “Can you move?”
“Yes.” I looked over at her. “Why? What’s wrong?”
“He’s disrupted Alora’s connection to this world,” Raiya explained. She pointed at the bubble-shield being conjured up in the sky before us. “He’s stopped her power from affecting us. Only those of us who have been born outside of time can move now.”
I glanced around to see she was right. The explosion I heard had stopped, mid-boom, right where Rosemont Academy ruins once stood. Flames, stilled yet slowing and splintering, rose out of the ground.
“We need to transform.”
Her statement washed over me, and at that moment, I realized how loudly she was speaking; the explosion was deafening. My ears popped open.
Without another nudge, I pressed into the mark on my wrist, watching as the blood-red mark glowed.
Seconds later, I was no longer looking at Raiya; I was staring into the violent eyes of Starry Knight, my co-defender and trusted ally.
“Wait,” I said, before she could take off.
“What is it? We don’t have a lot of time,” she warned me.
“I know.” I sighed. “When this is over, I have something I want to ask you, alright?”
She stilled, blushed, and then she nodded. “Alright.” She took my hand and tugged me along as we took off.
Elysian met us in midair. “It’s Draco! He’s gained enough power that he’s already broken through Time’s power.”
“
We kinda figured that it was Draco,” I said.
“Where is he?” Raiya asked. Her bow flashed out, and I was pulled back into the moment before, when he fought with us as he forged his sword.
Suddenly, I knew I had to stop her. “Starry Knight,” I called out, as Elysian turned his attention toward the center of the vortex.
“What?” she asked. “I thought we agreed you can talk to me about other stuff later.”
“It’s not that,” I grunted, regretting all over again Draco’s timing. I pointed to her bow. “I don’t want you to worry about taking Draco out.”
“What?” Both Elysian and Raiya objected.
“I mean it,” I said. “Look, I’m the Star of Mercy. I know your grandfather-turned-evil-dragon-puppet is still important to you. I’m going to be the one who takes him out.”
Elysian snorted. “Good luck with that.”
“I’ll call dibs if needed,” I told her. “I could use your help distracting him. I think that would work best anyway; when we fought him before, after he revealed himself, he still seemed affected by you, too.”
“You really think so?” Raiya’s voice was soft against the building winds.
“I can’t imagine an immortal life like his is full of friendships.” Some part of me couldn’t believe I was actually feeling empathetic toward Draco. I felt better knowing I was using it to destroy him, preventing him from hurting Raiya and other people ever again.
And I’m working to free the remaining Soulfire, I remembered, thinking of Gwen and Mikey.
Elysian nodded. “Alright,” he said. “It makes sense. He’s only connected to Starry Knight and me, so the kid—”
“Boss,” I interrupted, correcting him.
“—will be the better opponent for him, if we want to win.”
“Of course, we want to win,” I exclaimed.
“I don’t think we can really win this war,” Elysian said darkly, his yellow-green eyes dimming as the sky was shut off from the rest of the city.
“We have to,” I yelled back.
“Then get ready,” Raiya said. “He’s coming this way.”
I scanned my field of vision. A spark on the horizon came into view, and then there was no mistaking him: Draco was flying down toward us, his sword out, his power ready.