by M. J. Caan
“So much for that, huh.”
Torie returned to the fridge and tried orange juice, placing it on another saucer, only to receive the same rejection as before.
“Okay, so maybe unlike babies, you don’t do liquids.”
She looked around and her eyes settled on a bowl of fruit that was on one of the countertops. She took an apple and grabbed a banana that was hanging from a hook and took them to the island. Peeling the apple and cutting it into slices she placed one in front of the dragon and then did the same with the banana before crossing her arms and stepping back to watch what would happen.
The dragon bent down to sniff at the fruit before using its little paws to push it away. Then it sat up and again looked intently at Torie.
“Okay, I don’t know what else to try,” she said. “There’s nothing else here, and I have no clue what a baby dragon eats. Unless…”
She returned to the refrigerator and peered inside, reaching to pull out one of the drawers. Inside she found a packet of hamburgers she had picked up. She and Elric were going to break in the new grill when it was ready by making some good ole burgers for dinner one evening.
She dropped it onto the island and slowly broke the tape securing the paper around the meat. As soon as the packet was unwrapped, the little dragon perked up, standing on its hind legs as it sniffed the air.
“Well, that certainly seems to have gotten your attention.”
Torie tore a chunk of the raw meat free and placed it on a paper towel in front of it. Immediately the dragon was on it, biting into the soft meat and swallowing chunks. In no time the towel was cleaned, and it looked up at her expectantly.
“Alright. A little more, but until I find out more about you and your digestive system, let’s not overdo it.”
She tore off a bigger chunk of meat, plopped it down, and watched in glee as it met the same fate as the previous piece.
Once the dragon finished, she put the rest back into the fridge, despite the longing look the dragon gave her.
“That’s enough of that, little dragon. I suppose I now have to watch you for signs that you need to go. Or do I just walk you? It would be a lot more helpful if you could just speak to me like other supernatural creatures.”
She extended her hand and let the little creature scamper up her arm to again perch on her shoulder.
“Plus, I suppose I should come up with a name for you. I can’t just keep calling you dragon.”
She thought about it, trying to decide what an appropriate name for such a cute little beast would be. She had no idea if it was male or female, so something gender neutral would be in order.
Her thought process was interrupted by a clamor that came from the back of the house.
Effie.
Without thinking, she hurried to the guest room to find the elderly woman on all fours, desperately feeling around to collect pieces of a broken table lamp that had hit the floor.
“Oh, Torie, I am so sorry,” she exclaimed. “I’m still not used to where everything is in this room and clumsy old me broke your light I believe.”
“Effie, don’t worry about it. I’ll clean that up. Let me help you—”
Before she could take a few steps forward and bend down to help the woman up, she felt a rustling on her shoulder. The dragon rattled its tail in a way that made Torie’s hair fly about as it leaned forward and issued a deep hiss at Effie.
Then, with no forewarning at all, the little creature leapt off Torie’s shoulder and raced across the floor at the blind woman.
8
Torie shrieked, and scampered after it, throwing herself onto the floor in her attempts to reach the flurry of tiny claws and fangs. She managed to grab it by the tail just as it was about to reach Effie.
She hauled the struggling dragon back and held it tightly as it twisted and squirmed, hissing all the time.
“Oh my, Torie. Is that your cat making such a fuss?” asked Effie.
“Oh, um, yes, it sure is. It’s still getting used to the new house. Let me just put it outside the door and then I’ll help you. Just don’t move.”
Torie stood and rushed over to the door, setting the dragon down just outside in the hallway. She held up a single finger, getting its attention.
“That is no!” she said sternly. “You understand? No.” She pointed to the room where Effie was staying. “You wait here, I’ll be back in a moment.”
The dragon didn’t move but instead was focused on Torie. She squinted, looking closer as something caught her eye.
Was that…smoke! Little wisps were coming from the dragon’s nostrils as it huffed, focusing intently on the space behind Torie.
Again, she shook her finger at the dragon and backed up until she was in the bedroom and gently closed the door after her.
“Okay,” she said, using one hand to brush her hair back in place. “Let me help you up.”
She carefully took Effie by the arm and guided her to her feet. She led the woman back to her bed and helped her to lie back before walking around to the lamp and picking up the pieces. Luckily, it hadn’t shattered, but only cracked into a couple of large pieces that were easy enough to gather and put in the wastepaper basket.
“I am so sorry,” said Effie.
“Don’t be. I wasn’t sure about that light anyway. Now I have a reason to get a new one.”
“I…I hate being such a bother to you, Torie. I feel like I’m just taking up your space here.”
“Not at all. I like having you here. It’s nice having someone else to talk to.”
As she said it, she realized she truly meant it. It was amazing having Elric around, and she certainly never tired of Fionna and Jasmin; but there was something different about having the elderly woman to care for.
She reached out and pushed a stray strand of gray away from Effie’s face. “How are you feeling? You seem to be moving around much better.”
“Except for when I’m knocking stuff over,” Effie quipped. “But I feel much better. Not as sore. And I think those spots on my back are all gone now. Thanks to that nice lady doctor and her creams.”
Torie laughed. She couldn’t wait to tell Glen she had been elevated to the role of doctor. She would definitely get a kick out of that.
“Well, I’m glad to see you’re feeling better. Tonight, why don’t we plan to have some dinner out on the patio? Everything should be ready by then. I’ll have Elric pick us up something special to break in the new outdoor area. Is there anything in particular you would like? Any allergies?”
The old woman smiled, her face seeming to light up.
“Oh, I’m not very particular; I can eat just about anything. But you know what would be really good? Some kind of meat. Red meat if possible. My son would never let me eat red meat. He said it was bad for my health.”
Torie smiled. “Red meat it is then. Try to get some rest and I’ll be back in a couple of hours for your next dose of antibiotics. If you need anything, just call out.”
She left the room, carefully pulling it closed behind her. Then, worried that she wouldn’t be able to hear Effie if she called out, she decided to leave the door cracked open. She frowned, making a mental note to always be aware of where the dragon was just in case it decided to venture back toward the room later.
The dragon wasn’t in the hall where she had left it, so she headed back towards the main living area, giving little whistles as she went, hoping the dragon would respond just as any other pet might.
She found it perched on the island, curled into a little ball. At her approach, it unfurled itself and gave her its full attention. Casting a sly look from the refrigerator back to Torie, it sniffed the air, a dark red tongue snaking out to lick at its chops.
“No, I don’t think you need any more food right now. Were you huffing smoke back there? Are you a little fire-breather? And how did you get up onto this island?”
She looked around. The island was more than waist high for her and the chairs that were made for it h
ad not been placed along the back side yet. Were baby dragons able to fly? Its little wings didn’t seem capable of supporting the creature, but who knows?
All of that aside, she was more concerned about the behavior it exhibited towards Effie. The way it charged at her had taken Torie by surprise. It hadn’t shown any aggression around her friends and had seemed nothing but loving towards Torie.
Maybe, since it was a supernatural creature itself, it sensed some form of kinship with the shifters around it. With Effie being human, the dragon had responded completely differently. What if it had never seen a human before? Would it perceive it as a threat?
“Well, we can’t have that,” said Torie, reaching out to playfully tickle it. “Also, I really do need a name for you. Hmmm, maybe there is a way that you can tell me a little more about yourself. Hold still, don’t move.”
She extended her finger and placed it lightly on the dragon’s head and closed her eyes.
“Spirits of magic, strong and kind,
let me see inside this creature’s mind.”
Instantly, images flooded into Torie’s mind. It was like a kaleidoscope of images that flashed and swirled too quickly for her to decipher. The one image that she did see, the one that seemed to dominate everything, was that of hunger and blood accompanied by bones snapping and flesh being torn.
Torie jumped back, her head aching at the sudden onslaught of images.
She stared at the little dragon, not quite sure of what to think. Were those memories? No, they couldn’t have been. The dragon was too small to cause the carnage that she had seen. Perhaps they were images of something the dragon had seen. That seemed more likely. Either way, it was a behavior that she wasn’t going to risk happening with this little guy, especially not after seeing his reaction to Effie.
Especially not in a town filled with humans.
An idea came to her, one that she knew she should run by Jasmin first. But Jasmin was busy at the moment, and hadn’t she been telling Torie more and more to trust her instincts? Well, Torie’s instincts were telling her to do what she was about to do. If this was her familiar, then that meant she was responsible for its behavior. She smiled at the dragon and gave it a nod.
“Hear my plea and do my will,
let this creature of myth’s mind be still,
though you’re strong in claw and fang,
I bind you from harming any human thing.”
The dragon seemed to flinch as it stared at Torie for just a second, before once again resuming staring at the refrigerator and then back at Torie longingly.
“Okay, maybe just a little bit more, but then I’m taking you outside to hopefully do your business.”
She studied the creature as it gleefully choked down more raw meat, oblivious to her and the world around it. It really was like a puppy, she thought, the way the world would cease to exist around them when it came time to eat. The dragon’s tail even waved happily back and forth as it fed.
“I think I am going to call you Leo.” She wasn’t sure why that name had suddenly popped into her head, but she was pretty sure it worked for the dragon. She was also certain the dragon was a male, though she wasn’t sure how she knew that either.
“Leo the dragon. I like that. Okay, Leo, enough food for today. Hopefully my friends will have some luck finding more information about you. But in the meantime,” she picked Leo up and perched him on her shoulder, “let’s go walk you and see what happens.”
As it turned out, it was a very productive walk.
Torie had never really owned a pet so she certainly had no need for a leash and collar. She had briefly wondered how that would even work with a baby dragon; eventually deciding against it. Turned out, she didn’t need to bother worrying about it at all. Little Leo was intent on her every move and stayed very close to her; when she stepped he stepped, when she stopped, he stopped.
“Go on now, go do your business,” she chided. “Isn’t there a children’s show about how to train your dragon, or something like that? I wonder if there is one called how to housebreak your dragon. Now that’s what they should focus on.” She was mostly talking to herself and only partially to the dragon. He sat on the ground staring up at her intently, head cocked to one side as if he were trying to decipher her words.
She moved to a small clearing on the other side of the freshly paved driveway and waited, staring at the dragon.
“Okay, let’s try something else.”
She bent over and looked deeply into his eyes, creating a mental image of what she wanted him to do, and then, very firmly stated, “Go potty.”
To her surprise, he immediately did just that. Moving away from her just far enough to comfortably go to the bathroom before gleefully hopping back over to sit at her feet, patiently waiting for her next command.
“Well, that was easy.” She looked over at what he had left on her lawn and wrinkled her nose. “And I think I just found yet another job for Elric to do. Come on, Leo, let’s get back inside.”
She checked her watch, wondering when her friends would be returning with news of some kind. In the meantime, she had things that required her immediate attention.
First, was creating a to-do list for Fionna’s birthday party. The thought of that made her light up. If there was one thing she had always been great at, it was throwing parties. The minute it was suggested that she host, she had started creating a running list in the back of her mind of everything she needed to make this a truly standout occasion.
The other thing she needed to do was start thinking about what she was going to create for entry in the chocolate competition. Granted, she had not been thrilled about it, but she could see how important it was to continue the tradition her mother had always been a part of, so she wanted to make sure that she represented by bringing her A-game. No chocolate cake or pan of brownies for her. No. She needed something different and new.
Entering the house, she made her way to her study, which was on the opposite side of the house from the guest suite where Effie was resting. She was tempted to check in on the older woman but thought better of it when she remembered the way Leo had reacted to her.
“That’s another thing for the list,” she said, looking down at Leo as they walked into her study. “Finding out what to keep you in while we figure out what to do with you.”
She briefly thought of purchasing a dog crate for him, but immediately cast that thought aside. She couldn’t bear the mental image of him locked in a crate, looking up at her with what she could only assume would be enormous, sad green eyes; possibly with a single tear running down his little snout.
No. No crates.
So that left creating a space inside a room for him.
She looked around at her study, and it hit her that this could very well be that space. The floors were a beautiful gray vinyl that would stand up to his little claws, and there was a wall of windows that faced the woods to the side of her house. There would be plenty of natural light for the little guy, and more than enough space for him to roam around in when she was not home.
She moved to the desk that sat on one side of the room, flanked by floor-to-ceiling bookcases. Taking a seat, she took out a leather-bound notepad and pen and started creating her list. A flurry of movement caught her eye as Leo effortlessly leapt onto the desktop to see what she was doing.
“Well, that explains how you got onto the kitchen island,” she said, reaching out to scratch his back with one of her fingers. “And here I thought you could fly.”
She was deep in thought, working on the guest list for Fionna’s party when her cell phone chimed. It was a text from Elric. He had found someone who knew a lot about dragons.
Torie picked up the phone and dialed his number.
“That is great,” she said. “Do I need to go to him? Should I bring Leo…oh yeah, that’s what I’ve named him.”
“Ummm, that sounds like a great name for a dragon, but I think it would be a lot easier if I bring this guy to you. If
you’re okay with that?”
“Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be? You sound weird, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. It’s just…the guy that Max and I know who is knowledgeable about these things, lives down in Trinity Cove. And, well, you’ll definitely need to be home when we arrive. You’ll have to…how should I put this…invite him in. And you’ll definitely need to allow him to pass through your wards. And I have to wait for the sun to go down to pick him up.”
Torie didn’t say anything at first.
“I see. Well, I trust you. So, if you think this is the best way, I’ll be here when you get back.”
She hung up the call and sat back in her chair, releasing a deep sigh.
Trinity Cove was the sister town to the south of Singing Falls. Like Singing Falls, it too was known to be a haven for the supernatural. Only, Trinity Cove’s supernatural population was more of the darker variety of beings. Ones that you really didn’t want to cross paths with.
The kind that liked to go bump in the night.
And going by what Elric said, there was only one kind of supernatural that needed to be invited in and would only come to visit after dark.
Vampire.
9
Torie left Leo in the study while she checked in on Effie. The older woman was napping peacefully as Torie adjusted the blanket up around her a little and then quietly shut the door as she backed out of the room. Then, retrieving Leo, she headed into the kitchen to put on a kettle of water for some tea. She had reached out to Jasmin and Fionna to let them know what Elric had relayed to her. To no surprise, both had stated they were dropping what they were doing and were heading right over.
Truthfully, it made her feel better, knowing they were going to be at her side when a vampire crossed the threshold of her home. The only experience she had with vampires since moving to Singing Falls had been with Arnold, the town lawyer and accountant who maintained the trust from which she withdrew the financial means to make everything around her possible.
