49- Why'd you want to know me?

" What's your favorite season?" I ask Xaden as he escourts me back from combat the following day.

He gives me a look mixed with confusion and hesitance. " Fall... You?"

" Spring."

He nods as he walks me back to my room.

The next day as he walks me back I ask what his favorite food was, again he gives me that look that he doesn't exactly wants to tell me but he always decides against it and tells me anyways. " I like Chocolate, especially chocolate cake with chocolate frosting."

I smirk, " I'm a chocolate lover myself, especially dark chocolate."

He looks back over at me, " You seem like one of those people."

" One of those people?"

He nods with a faint smirk, " Yea.. one of those..people."

" Please, go on.." I urge crossing my arms to look at him fully.

" I'll see you tomorrow. Pretty girl.." He answers back in a tone that's anything but sweet.

" Stop calling me that." 

" Why? Mairi calls you it." Xaden says back crossing his arms to mirror me. " Am I not allowed?"

" No, your not." 

He raises a single brow, his features tightening just a little in annoyance, " And..why not?"

" Because.."

" Because isn't an answer Fury."

" You have Fury and he calls me that nickname." I say finally.

He stays quiet for a moment before speaking again, " I'd gladly switch names with him if that means I'd get to call you pretty everyday." 

I glare at him, though my body betrays me feeling like there's a million butterflies in my stomach. Instead I turn around going into my room not bothering to answer him.

Once I close the door I lean on it exhaling... I don't know how one could be so overly flirtatious and cold at the same time...

The day after that, we just got finished with a flight lesson with Xaden. I've noticed Rhys has been pretty quiet in my mind these last few days, which I don't know if I like or hate. He hasn't given me to many comments either, other then stop embarrassing him and hang on tighter...

We call it a day and decide to rest on a perch not to far away from the college. I slide off leanign against a rock, my stomach not deciding if it wants to throw up or not.

" I was barely plummeting that fast..." Rhys says lowly cocking his head to look at me.

" I don't think you realize how fast or.. forceful you actually are."

" I've still been taking it easy on you... get tougher."

 I flip him the finger closing my eyes momentarily, " I think I'm going to puke.."

I feel something cold on my head, opening my eyes once more to look at Xaden.. pressing a cold water tin on my head that he must've had. " Helps with the nausea."

I press it tighter while he removes his hand leaning against the same rock, " She's right, Segyl could barely keep up." Xaden directed at my dragons making a low growl come from his throat, though Xaden looks less then threatened as he stares at him for a few more seconds before looking at me. " Drink."

I don't fight him, taking a couple little sips from the bottle closing my eyes again, " I have another question."

I could feel him looking at me, there's that feeling I get. " What's with all the random questions?"

" I'm just trying to know you.. in case you forgot we're bonded...for life."

" You know me well enough..."

I open my eyes again looking up at him, " All I know it that your sarcastic, you seem to strive in everything you do, and under that scary death itse;f facade you have some underlying human emotions. Plus, you like blood red and the colors of my eyes, and cake.. chocolate cake with chocolate frosting."

He blinks straightening, he turns to walk to Segyl. " Pretty much sums me up."

" No, theres more then that. You just don't want to tell me." I call after him, " Please, just tell me something of value, something real.."

He stops for just a second examining Segyl's sapphire blue scales " Everything else about me is depressing as shit. You don't want to know anything else. Now let's go.. I need to get you back before curfew."

I shake my head in disbelief as I stand. I toss him his water tin climbing back on Rhy's back, mumbling a 'let's go' taking off again in the sky, much gentler then the previous lesson. Even when we reach the flight field once more I dismount and start walking almost instantly.

Xaden doesn't walk directly by me, but close enough until I reach my room where he leans on the wall watching me. " You don't want to know anything else." He says quieter still watching me.

" How do you know I wouldn't."

" Because.. I just do."

I was about to leave, to slam the door in his face, but my anger that's slowly rising once more refuses to just walk away. " No.. you don't. It's no fair you can know every single thing about me and I know nothing about you."

" You do know things about me." He says clamly though I can hear the faint edge in his voice.

" I want to know things that matter!" I snap again making us stand in tension filled silence. " The hell am I going to do? I'm stuck with you... Can't ignore you.. I can't kill you.."

" You know enough..." He repeats. " Now walk in that room and STAY in that room."

I clench my jaw opening my door, about to walk in but then I stop once more looking at him. He's still looking, barely blinking.

" Liam would tell me." I say simply.

He tenses, his face reddening. He makes the step to push me, not enough to make me stumble or even fall just enough so he could close my own door, shutting it in my face. " Xaden-"

I try to open it.. he locked me in my own room.

" Xaden!"

" You can think about all the questions you want to ask him, I won't keep you any longer." He spits bitterly before I hear his footsteps walking hastily away.

" He does care about you, you know." Rhys voice chimes in. " Your pushing him."

I don't even respond, instead I throw myself on the bed for the night.

It's war games. It's part pf the whole Squad battle process where we'll be getting challenges and ranks for the rest of the year basically.

We meet with our team, Xaden barking demands to out other officers before relaying the messages to our Squad. I could tell he's still pissed, maybe what I said was a little.. out of pocket but again.. my mouth seems to get me in trouble.

After a little waiting Dain comes over...pulsing with tense and excited energy. " And why do you look so.. tense?" Imogen asks looking Dain over.

" We're against First Wing, they have an egg that they're going to hide and try protecting. Our goal is to get it."

I know enough about the games from Brennan's guide that an egg is a huge plus in points for our squad. " So.. we're offense?" Hetta asks.

" Both." Dain answers, " We'll also be carrying Fourth Wing's flag that they could get it from us."

" So, what's the plan then?" Liam asks.

I happen to glance around for Xaden, seeming like he'd be a good one to help plan this out, but he's gone... again. He's in on this too, where did he go? He wants us to win yet he's not going to talk over the plan with us before we actually need to do it?

Dain takes a breath, " Well... I feel it'd be to easy for just one to be carrying the flag, plus try to get the egg and defend.. so I thought we could all switch, as often as one would like. so they never really knows who actually has it." 

We all agree, nodding. 

Ofcourse it needed to be First Wing as the first challenge, ofcourse I'd need to be with my best friend Jack freaking Barlowe....

He's been... quiet.. lately, at least not trying to kill me since we've been on the mat. But I still see him take fowl looks at me, I can still feel the hatred behind those dead blue eyes of his. I know he probably had about 100 different ways he could kill me slowly.

I bet right now, he's thinking of a way to kill me knowing damn well I'm in Fourth Wing.

" If he tries anything, him and his dragon will be floating ashes by the end of this..." Rhys threatens which is almost comforting.

"  If you just burn him it'll suffice."

" Baide will do whatever he tells her to. If he wants to kill you, she does too."

" I thought it was frowned upon for dragons to kill dragons.."

" I'm not a normal dragon now am I?" He questions. " Who would stop me? Dragons aren't supposed to burn yet here I am turning them into ash. They won't question it."

" Remind me not to get on your bad side.."

" Your on my bad side daily, I just seem to like you a bit to much.." He jokes... I think.

 I roll my eyes smirking.

" What's so funny?" Dain asks glaring in my direction.

My eyes snap to his widening. " Oh, nothing.. Just..Rhys." I admit. His gaze doesn't lighten up as he gives a stiff nod, while everyone glances at me... kill me now. " Let's get to the flight field and win this thing."