by Lola Ford
That’s why it would be an emergency.
Graith shook his head at her sudden excitability.
All right. You do whatever you need. You’ll be able to hear me?
I should. I’m going to hunt today while you travel. And I’ll stay in touch, that way, if you do get too far away, I can follow you.
She sounded so pleased with herself that Graith nodded along, there would be no convincing her otherwise.
It didn’t take Graith nearly as long as he thought to reach the town. Dunlaith home to one of the five Councilmen of Lutesia, Lord Arish.
Dunlaith was a large castle surrounded by a bustling market, protected by low walls. The town overflowed from the walls though, with houses becoming smaller and more bedraggled as they strayed outward.
As he drove his cart through the streets Graith felt more than a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of people. He’d been to Dunlaith once as a boy, and it had seemed huge then.
He had been expecting it to be much smaller than he remembered, as most things from childhood are. However, faced with the settlement before him he had trouble even calling it a town. It was easy to see the districts as they rose above him but at the same time it didn’t fit his mental arbitrary definition of a city either.
Graith frowned, trying to categorize the place, but his attention was brought back front and center as a woman screamed at him, saying his cart was blocking her way. Which it was, but that was no fault of his own. The town had gated entrances, and the line to enter the town proper was quite long this morning, so his forward progress had stopped.
He gave a brief apology, and then took a moment to look around. He was nearing the gates and could see that the homes and shops that lined this section of the road looked to be prospering. Not that even the most far-reaching houses had looked that worse for wear. This region of Lutesia was doing well, that much was sure.
Thinking about his harvests over the last few years, Graith’s profits had risen and the tithed and taxed portions while large, had been reasonable. This section of the road was mostly taverns and inns, which he thought about stopping at for information, but decided that something as valuable as dragon eggs would have been taken straight to the castle, or at least the upper district.
Reaching the gate after nearly two hours of slow progress, Graith barely had to urge Mero before the horse pushed his way through. The guards on duty looked bored and relaxed in their black and red uniforms. None of them even gave Graith a second look.
Why would they? The country wasn’t at war, and he was coming in the western road, the only thing from that direction was the mountains.
No one even knew about Zel, and most of these people probably had forgotten that a dragon had been spotted months ago.
Zel’s amusement at his thoughts bubbled forward, and Graith found himself calmed. She was still there, even if she was out hunting. At the thought of her hunting, she sent him the feeling of being full. Which made his own stomach grumble as he had forgone the morning’s bread. While thinking of Zel, Mero had continued his way onward without direction, and the surroundings while still the same as before, seemed nicer.
Houses had gilded paint, stores had hanging signs, and the clothing worn was made of slightly nicer fabric. He saw far more silks and satins than cottons or wool.
This would be where Graith started his search he decided, and he started to look for an inn.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Graith
As Graith urged Mero along the crowded road his eyes alighted on a clean looking inn. It had a large covered stable that pulled his attention. As he drew closer, he saw a young boy attending the few animals already inside. He slowly backed the cart along the far side, and once he was done, the boy was waiting for him to unhook Mero. As he jumped down to the cobbled ground, he patted his hip, checking to make sure his gold pouch was still attached to his belt. It gave a cheerful little jingle.
The boy, who could be no older than ten, was looking at Mero with large round eyes. Being the only horse Graith was using, he had forgotten just how large the gelding was. He was nearly head and neck taller than the other horses stabled. An easy eighteen hands tall. The boy barely came up to his withers. As Graith finished unhooking Mero from the wagon there was suddenly a lead next to him, and the boy was looking between him and Mero.
“There’s a good boy, Mero!” Graith said loudly, patting the horse on the neck.
“Now lad, you take good care of Mero here. He’s been traveling nonstop for several days. You clean him up and get him some warm food and there’ll be a reward for you.”
He winked at the boy, who’s round eyes now went from Mero to Graith.
“Yes sir! Though I might need to find a larger stool to stand on to groom him,” he said quickly, his excitement at the thought of his reward showing.
He grabbed the lead and Mero followed him like an over-sized puppy.
The large horse taken care of, Graith turned to the inn. He’d been trying to think about how to ask about dragon eggs in a normal conversation all morning, but everything he thought of just seemed well, like he would end up having questions asked about himself.
He opened the door to the inn, the handle smooth from wear over the years and stepped inside. The inn was bright and warm. A large fire crackled on the near wall, and the tables that didn’t have patrons at them gleamed in the light. The ones that were occupied with patrons had large drinks and steaming bowls of food in front of their owners. He’d barely gotten inside the door before a young serving girl had called a welcome and was working her way towards him.
“Good afternoon sir! Please have a seat wherever you’d like. I’m Daisy, what can I get for you!”
Her personality was bright, and she had a large smile on her face. It was almost infectious.
Almost.
Graith had overestimated how many people would be here this early in the day. It had only taken him a couple of hours to get here from his camping spot from the night before, and another hour or so to get into the city and make his way to the inn. It just wasn’t the kind of atmosphere ripe for rumors or stories. He sighed and made his way to a central table.
He’d just have to wait.
Daisy had followed him to the table and was eagerly awaiting his order. Graith felt rushed but pushed it aside. No need to let his irritations rub the serving girl the wrong way. He was going to be here for a while and ostracizing one of his hosts right off the bat was never a good idea.
“I’ll take an ale and whatever is freshest.”
“Oh, aren’t you just in for a delight! Pa’s just finished cooking shepherd's pie!”
She giggled and was off.
Daisy returned a few minutes later carrying a large bowl and mug. Graith could see the foamy head on the ale just waiting to slide over the rim, and before the bowl was even set in front of him, he could smell the delicious aroma.
Once the bowl was before him, he saw the most exquisite shepherd's pie he’d ever seen. The potatoes were whipped into clouds and the beef was falling apart from what he could see of it. Vegetables had been chopped fine and mixed into the thick brown gravy. His mouth watered and he had to try his hardest not to just shovel it into his mouth.
“Thank you, Daisy. I’ll be here awhile today, please just keep the ale coming.”
He fished out a few coins and gave them to the girl, who smiled largely at him and did a mock curtsy.
“I’ll be around! Just call my name if you need anything else!”
She gave him a wink before turning and making her way back to the kitchen.
Graith looked around. The people currently in the inn were well dressed, and either looked like they were guests staying in the upper floor or locals who frequented the place for their midday meal. None of them had given him more than a cursory glance when he first entered, and all had gone back to their food and conversations.
He looked down at his food and picked up the spoon that had been shoved into the soft po
tatoes. He took a bite and his eyes nearly crossed in delight. He was sure he would never again appreciate eating a loaf of bread with cheese again. Hell, he might stay here forever, just to eat more of their amazing food. Waiting for more patrons to arrive now seemed like a trivial matter - all he had to do was continue to eat the food.
Several hours and three, no, four? bowls of the shepherd’s pie, and more than a few pints of ale, Graith was feeling full, tired, and ready for some news.
He’d chatted with Daisy about the weather, the harvests, and other generic conversation topics throughout the day. In return she’d been quite attentive to his needs.
He sighed.
He’d never been a city man, but if this was what it was like all the time well maybe he should reconsider.
Zel had been silent the whole day, and Graith got the distinct impression she was sleeping her own meal off. Not that she wouldn’t wake if he even thought in her direction too hard. The trip had been rough on her.
She was a creature of flight after all and for most of the time he had known her she had traveled by foot… paw? Claw? He shook his head slightly.
No need to get caught up in the semantics of dragon anatomy.
He felt sad thinking about her situation. He couldn’t imagine being left to raise a family by himself only to then have them kidnapped away. But he reminded himself, that was why he was here.
To help.
People were slowly starting to fill the large space. A musician with a lute had begun to set up, quietly tuning his strings. Daisy was going from table to table bringing out mugs and bowls of what smelled like chili. Graith supposed that the shepherd’s pie was more for the high paying customers. He smiled, more than glad he’d gotten more than his fair share earlier.
He grabbed his current mug and stood, walking toward the group of people who were pulling chairs over near the musician. He must be a regular occurrence with the way people were flocking in the door. He had started a mellow but fast paced song. Graith found himself tapping his foot along to the beat.
While he listened to the music, he also listened to the crowd forming around him. Most were talking about the musician, Dominic, from what Graith could gather. It seemed like many people wanted him to perform at their own taverns and inns, but he would only come here.
A few others were talking about the tail end of harvest season, taking bets on when the first hard frost would hit. Graith even chimed in on that one, saying he didn’t see it being more than a week away.
“So, pal, what do you do? Haven’t seen you around before.”
An arm rested on Graith’s shoulder and he involuntarily tightened up. A man, younger than himself, but not by much, was the one with his arm on Graith. He was wearing a brocaded vest and a pair of tights that Graith would’ve been ashamed to be seen in. The man seemed to be eying Graith’s new cloak that most certainly did not match the rest of his older clothing.
Graith frowned then cleared his throat. It would do him no good to stomp out a conversation before getting any information.
“I’m a farmer from the westernmost village. Doesn’t even have a name it’s so small. Finished my harvest and wanted to see Dunlaith for myself.”
The man nodded along, smiling a smile that didn’t seem altogether friendly. When there was an uncomfortable silence, Graith pushed on, “How about yourself? You a local?”
“That I am. I live in the upper district. I’m personal acquaintances with Lord Arish.”
“Oh. That’s nice. He’s a good fellow then? Last time I was here his father, Dirk was still Lord.”
The man sneered, and Graith could see the man’s estimation of him fall lower.
“It’s ah - been a while then?”
“Yes.”
The conversation had gotten awkward, and Graith did the only thing he could think of. He stood up and walked away. The man glowered at him, but Graith made a point not to look over.
During their conversation the music had picked up its pace, and most of the patrons were now working on their second mugs of ale. The volume had started to rise, and a couple of people were dancing. This was the atmosphere that Graith had been waiting for.
A couple of men roared with laughter, and Graith made his way over to them. They seemed to be well into their third pint by now. Hopefully they would be coherent enough to answer his questions but drunk enough to forget who was asking.
“Hello gentlemen! How goes your evening? Enjoying Dominic’s music?”
They looked at Graith and smiled.
The first, a blonde man in his early twenties replied, “Yussir! We come just about every night!”
He took a long drink of his ale and grinned at his friend. The second man was also in his early twenties, but dark haired. Both were wearing finer clothing than Graith, but nothing like the man from before.
“I’m new to town. Just finished up my harvests. I was wondering if you lads had heard anything about a makeshift militia a while back. They came to my village, preparing to hunt a dragon. I couldn’t go, as it was harvest season, but I was hoping to find out how their hunt faired.”
The two looked at each other, trying to remember past their current pint.
“I do think I remember that. Heard a lot of folks died. Seem to remember a group going up to the keep,” the blonde replied.
“Bunch of wagons and people went up their oh… a week or two ago. Wanted to speak to Lord Arish. Don’t remember anything coming of it though.”
The dark-haired man seemed to think hard, but Graith could see him losing concentration within moments.
“Thank you both. Next round is on me!”
Graith waved Daisy over and let her know. The two men slapped him on the back and thanked him.
Laughing and dancing in time with the music continued on, but Graith was ready to go. He had his information, and now he needed to use it.
But it was late.
He was sure that the city gates were closed by now, and where was he going to go? He thought he should go visit Lord Arish and see if he could get any more news.
Graith sighed.
It would be a waste to leave the inn that evening.
He waved Daisy over once again. She tried to approach but couldn’t squeeze her way through the middle of the crowd. She instead grabbed his hand and pulled him out. Graith was tired and let himself be pulled.
A twang in the music caught his attention, but the crowd’s laughter swept the moment away.
“Yes hun? What can I do for you this time?” Daisy smiled up at him, and leaned in.
“Can I get a room? It’s a lot later than I thought. I’ll be staying the night.”
“Of course! Let me show you the way.”
She didn’t let go of his hand as she pulled him towards the stairwell. They were about halfway up the stairs when the crowd’s volume seemed to increase and Graith realized the music had stopped.
They reached the landing and she showed him the first door on the left.
“In here hun. Anything else I can do for you?”
She was leaning towards him, completely blocking his entrance to the room. She still had his hands in hers and was pulling him closer.
“No, that’s all -”
He never got the change to finish his statement.
Dominic came rushing up the stairs, and by the time he reached Graith had quite a bit of momentum going. When the punch landed Graith went sprawling across the floor. Daisy screamed and grabbed Dominic, pulling him away.
“What are you doing Dominic?!”
“I saw the way he was looking at you Daisy!”
“Looking at me? I was looking at him! What’s it matter to you anyway?”
“Why do you think I only play here Daisy? When even Lord Arish is asking me to play for him? It’s certainly not because I like this shitty little inn!”
The two continued to fight as Graith’s ears rang loudly.
As did a roar from outside.
Graith! What happened
? Zel’s mental voice was panicked.
Zel. Hide. I’m fine. Some lovers tryst that I got caught up with, I think.
No. I need to come to you.
No, you don't! I’m fine. Going to have a hell of a black eye, but I’m fine. I’m not in danger.
He could hear another roar. Hopefully people would think it was thunder. But the patrons of the inn, who had been quite loud until now, had quieted.
“YOU!” Dominic roared, pointing at Graith, who had managed to push himself into a sitting position.
“You’ll leave Daisy alone. Don’t you touch her again!”
Graith just stared at the man. Why would he want to touch Daisy in the first place? She was basically a child to him.
“I have no interest in her. All I wanted was a good night’s sleep,” Graith said, while trying to stand.
“I saw the way you were looking at her. How close you were!” Dominic just wouldn’t back off.
“Dom! He didn’t do anything. And you’re a fool to not have realized before now that I would do anything to keep our customers happy.”
Dominic was in a black rage but seemed to realize that Graith really was not interested in Daisy. He stomped off and Daisy looked between the two men before following Dominic down the stairs.
Graith rubbed his head and reached out to Zel again.
Stop your roaring. The whole damn kingdom can hear you.
I want to eat that man.
You just ate earlier.
I could eat him if I tried.
Please go hide. I need to go see Lord Arish in the morning, and then I’ll meet you on the eastern side of town.
He could feel her discontent but ignored it. She did stop roaring, but the inn - so loud before - was now silent. Graith was left wondering just how many people had heard her. How many knew what a dragon’s roar sounded like.
Wearily he opened the door to the room that Daisy had shown him to. Kicking off his boots, he didn’t even bother to undress as he made his way into the thankfully soft bed and was asleep before he knew it.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Graith
Graith woke up more comfortable than he could remember being in weeks. It was bright outside and he could hear people out in the streets. He was surprised the commotion hadn’t woken him up sooner. He stretched as he got out of bed and walked to the window, peering down onto the street.
