He stepped away, leaving me quivering against the door with so many emotions I couldn't begin to separate them. I clutched my arms around myself as he left, wanting to sob out my pain, wanting to follow after him and fling myself in his arms, wanting everything to be the way it was before he had stomped all over my heart.

That's how Nora found me a few minutes later, glued up against the door, slow, hot tears leaking from my eyes, dragonfire licking my feet.

"h.e.l.lo, everyone. We're back a bit early. The kobold attack turned out to be a false alarm-Aisling? Oh dear, you're on fire again." Nora set down the dog carrier she used to transport Paco. She squinted, adjusted the bright red gla.s.ses that perched so jauntily on her nose, and touched a finger to my shirt as I stamped out the last of Drake's fire. "Dragon scales." Her eyes lifted to mine, considering me in the cautious, thoughtful way she had. "A dragon visited you? A green dragon?"

I swallowed back a big lump of unshed tears and pushed myself away from the door, staggering over to collapse on her couch, my pounding heart slowly returning to normal.

Nora looked from me to the door, tipping her head on the side to examine it. "Judging by the Aisling-shaped outline that appears to be scorched into the door, I'd say it was the green dragon who visited you. How is Drake?"

"As stubborn as ever. Oh, Nora. I thought I was past this!" Both Jim and Nora watched me as I slumped into a giant wad of misery. Paco, released from his confinement, ran over to wrestle with my shoelaces, as was his wont. "I am so ready to move on. Here you are, poised to start my training-oh, that reminds me, there's something I need to tell you about that-and whammo. Two minutes with Drake, and I'm a mess. How am I ever supposed to get over him?"

Nora sat down next to me, her dark eyes watchful as they peered at me out of her gla.s.ses. "Perhaps you are not meant to get over him," she said simply.

"Huh? Not get over him? Nora, do you have any idea how crazy that man... dragon... whatever he is, do you have any idea how crazy he makes me?"

"You know, normally I just can't get enough of you whining about Drake, or crying over Drake, or ranting about Drake, or any of the other gazillion 'about Drake' things you constantly do because you're obsessed with the man but refuse to admit it, but since you insist on starving this fabulous form I've taken simply because I'm a few pounds over the standard Newfie weight, I just don't have the strength for it today." Jim turned around and marched off to the room Nora had turned over to me.

She raised an eyebrow at the retreating demon. "What's gotten into Jim? I know you and it have a special relationship, but I've never heard it be outright rude before."

"It's mad that I won't take it to Paris because Drake is there... Although he's not there, he's here. So I guess there's no reason not to go visit Amelie, except now I have this dragon thing to go to." I sighed and slumped even more, feeling far from the confident, self-a.s.sured person I so desperately wanted to be. "Nora, do I talk constantly about Drake? I don't sound obsessed, do I? I just sound... weary, right?"

Paco pounced on the paper that had fallen from my hand. Nora got it away from him before he did any damage to it, smoothing the sheet over her knee as she sat next to me. "Well... since you asked, I'm afraid I'm going to have to agree with Jim."

"What?" I shrieked, sitting upright in order to glare. I didn't, of course-for one thing, Nora was my friend, not just my mentor, and for another... well, there was a pesky little voice in the back of my head that was whispering its agreement with both Nora and Jim. The roots of denial, however, were strong and difficult to dig out. "You think I'm obsessed with him, too?"

"I think you're in love with him, yes. And despite the differences you have, I believe you are meant to be together. Further, I believe that you know this, but are too stubborn to admit it to yourself."

There's nothing like a bit of plainspeaking to knock the wind from your sails.

"But... but..."

She shook her head, picking up the paper to glance at it. "I was going to address the issue with you in a few days, when we begin your proper training. A Guardian's strength comes from within, Aisling. To deceive yourself is to weaken your power."

"He betrayed me," I said, wanting to scream the words. "He broke my heart!"

"He betrayed your trust, yes. But you betrayed an oath to him. You both have to learn how to make compromises in order to happil-What on earth?"

The fury in her voice yanked me from the dark musings about my life. "Oh! I'm so sorry! That's what I was going to tell you, but then Drake came in and distracted me. A man named Mark Sullivan was waiting when Rene dropped us off at the door. He said he's with the Committee, and he's slapping a restraining order or something on you that says you can't teach me, because there's an investigation going on."

Nora nodded, her lips moving slightly as she read the letter.

"Rene?" she asked, looking up, a finger marking a spot on the letter. "You saw Rene?"

"Story for another day. Does the letter say what this is all about?"

She went back to reading, her face impa.s.sive. I hadn't known Nora long-it had been about a month since we'd met in Budapest-so I wasn't too good at reading her body language. There was no way to mistake the anger in her ebony eyes, however. They positively flashed black sparks as she crumpled the letter up and threw it on the floor for Paco to bat around.

I waited impatiently for her to say something. When she did, my eyebrows rose in surprise."The fools. The b.l.o.o.d.y ignorant fools. I've half a mind to curse the lot of them."

"I know how you feel. I was shocked when Mark said you were not going to be allowed to teach me. Why are they doing this?"

I gave her arm a friendly pat as she looked blindly at her hands.

"It's Marvabelle, of course," she answered.

"Marvabelle? O'Hallohan?" I asked, even more surprised by the name she'd mentioned. "The Marvabelle who was in Budapest?

The one with the wimpy oracle husband? The one who used to be your roomie when you were studying to be a Guardian? That Marvabelle?"

"One and the same." Nora jumped from the couch, striding across the living room with her chin high. She turned and paced back. "She's had it in for me ever since we were recognized for stopping the Guardian killings. She warned me then she would not stand around watching me have glory she felt she deserved."

"She deserved! She did nothing to catch the murderer!" I got to my feet and stomped around in sympathetic indignation, keeping a tight rein on my anger lest it manifest itself again in dragonfire. "We did all the work! We figured it all out. All she did was get in the way."

Nora stopped pacing in order to grab my sleeve as I stomped by her. "To be honest, you did all the work, and you figured it out. But I thank you for your outrage on my behalf."

"That doesn't matter," I said, waving away her thanks. "What does matter is that Marvabelle thinks she can mess with you. Us. I didn't know she had this sort of clout with the Committee."

"Neither did I." Nora picked up a stuffed toy and managed to exchange it for the letter Paco was gnawing on. She smoothed out the letter and read it again. I peeked over her shoulder, my eyes narrowing at the officious language mentioning a complaint against Nora and the investigation that would subsequently follow.

"In concordance with the precepts of the code of the Guardian's Guild, you are hereby ordered to cease and desist any form of Guardian training until otherwise notified, pending the outcome of this investigation," I read aloud. "Oh, that is such bull!"

Nora nodded, folding the crumply letter and setting it in a basket that held her correspondence. "I agree. But don't let it upset you. I have nothing to hide, and I have committed no violations of the Guardian's code. This is just a minor setback, and not worthy of our concern."

"Not worthy? It's utter c.r.a.p, and I for one don't intend to sit around while..." I stopped at the determined look in her eyes. This was her profession, her life that we were discussing. Just because I wanted to punch the Committee in the nose for believing Nora could do anything unethical didn't mean I could act on those desires. "OK. Just a minor setback. Gotcha."

"We will begin your training tomorrow, as planned," Nora said firmly as she carried Paco's carrier to a closet. "Hopefully it will have the side benefit of helping you control Drake's fire."

"Er... I don't mean to question you, but didn't that letter say-"

"I do not intend to allow one spiteful woman to waste any more of our time than she has," Nora answered. She pulled a book out of the floor-to-ceiling bookcase that lined one wall and held it out for me. "Although it grieves me to do anything against the Committee's dictates, in this I know they are wrong. We will proceed as planned." She paused in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Unless you have had a change of heart?"

I laughed so hard tears wet my eyelashes. "Nora, I've broken just about every rule there is. I don't know why you'd think I'd balk at breaking another one."She smiled, warmth glowing from behind her gla.s.ses. "I didn't think you'd mind. I'll make an appointment with Mark to discuss the issue. Now, as for your problems with Drake-why don't we have a nice cup of tea and talk it over?"

Whether I wanted to admit it or not, Jim's (and Nora's) words had hit me hard. I raised my chin and shook my head. "No, I'm through obsessing and monopolizing the conversation and whatever else I've been doing over that annoying man. I'm just going to have to work things out on my own. Er... would it help if I talked to the Guardian people, too?"

"It certainly couldn't hurt. Don't worry about that now-I'm sure we'll get everything straightened out once I can sit down and talk to them. And as for you... Aisling, I didn't mean you couldn't talk to me about your troubles," Nora said, opening the shutters that closed off a small bar from the kitchen area. "I will always be here to listen to you if you need a friendly ear."

"Thanks. I appreciate that." I gathered up my things and the book she'd handed me, and glanced at the clock. "I'll let you know if I need a shoulder to sob on. Right now I have an outfit to pick out for tomorrow's dragon conference, a book of demonic cla.s.s types to memorize, and a demon to appease. If I leave now, I think there's time for me to zip over to Paris and make it back by midnight. I'll bone up on the texts you gave me once I get back."

She looked skeptical as I rushed into my room, grabbed my purse and pa.s.sport, and ordered Jim to follow me. "Aisling, you'd really go all the way to Paris and back in twelve hours just to make your demon happy?"

"Paris?" Jim asked, shuffling its way out to the living room. At the word, its ears p.r.i.c.ked up, its eyes lit, and it suddenly looked a good ten years younger, not to mention five pounds lighter. "Did I hear that right? We're going to Paris? Right now?"

"Yes, I would," I answered Nora first. "You and Jim are both right-I have been obsessive and moody. I owe it a trip. By my voice, by my blood, by my hand, demon, I banish thee to Akasha."

Before Jim could do more than open its eyes wide with delight and surprise, it disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

"Man, that's a handy little spell," I said as I ran for the door, waving at Nora as I went. "See you later-I'll be back by midnight.

Don't let the Committee get you down. It can't be anything serious or we'd know, right?"

Honestly, there are times when I think I should be teaching a cla.s.s called Famous Exit Lines You'll Later Regret.