Reeling back again, she opened her jaws, revealing rows of sword-like fangs, and I was close enough to see the white-hot ball of flame kindling inside her. Any second now she would release it, and my daughter, who was pushing Maisy forward from behind, would catch the brunt of the blast.
Carter leapt over the railing, wand extended, as he dashed to my rescue. We were both inches from the dragon, but also right beside her baby, and with a terrified cry, the dragon turned her attention to us.
“Medium circulus!” Carter cried. A protective half-circle formed around us, deflecting the blast of flame that would have burnt us both to a crisp.
Infuriated, the dragon turned, tail lashing, hitting our shield in her fury. While Carter kept his wand trained on our protective circle, I turned to check on the others.
Björn and Pike had pushed Maisy to the tunnel entrance. They were almost out of the dragon’s reach, and she knew it. The great beast sat back, kindling another ball of fire, then unleashed it on the retreating witches. Björn picked Maisy up as if she weighed nothing and tossed her over his brawny shoulder and ran with her, his other hand holding Pike’s.
“Glacies murum!” I cried. A white-and-blue jet shot out from the tip of my wand. It ended in a shimmer of sparkles, and a great sheet of ice formed between the flames, my daughter and the others, protecting them. With a sigh of relief, I watched as at last they all disappeared inside the tunnel, safe from the fire which fizzled in a hiss of steam on my icy wall.
“Run!” I shouted, fearful Pike would return to save me, now that Maisy and Björn were secure inside. “Don’t let her wait for us!”
Ignoring her protests, Björn and Crystal, who had come back for her friend, dragged Pike away.
Gaia bless you both, Björn and Crystal, I thought.
Frustrated and wild with fury, the dragon lunged at our circle, only to ricochet off the protective barrier. Carter had only formed half a circle, so our spells could help the others escape, but now we were vulnerable from the rear, and the dragon was circling.
“Quick, form a second circle,” I cried, but it was too late.
The sleeping baby dragon had woken from its slumber, and confused and stumbling, reeling from side to side, it had taken us by surprise and infiltrated our half-circle. Before we knew what was happening, the baby had crashed into Carter, knocking him head-first into his own protective circle. He staggered, his knees gave way and he pitched forward onto his face, unconscious. The protective circle crashed like a shattered glass mirror.
Shit, shit, shit! I didn’t know where to train my wand: on the angry mother circling around us, or the screeching, washing-machine-sized baby dragon who might kill me or Carter by accident as it stumbled unwittingly around, trying to find its mama.
A great flash of silver light filled the cavern, and both the dragon and I turned to the tunnel. Just inside the entrance was a haze of silver light, which cleared to reveal a great silver-and-blue dragon. It was a little taller than Mama dragon, and had a magnificent, spiked tail that swished from side to side.
Its slitted eyes were a deep purple and its focus was on me––and was that amusement I saw? And then I realized.
Björn!
The great dragon thumped across the vast cavern like Godzilla, placing himself between me and the angry mother, waving his tail suggestively to distract it.
Seeing my chance, I dashed to Carter who was still out cold on the floor. I tried gently slapping his face and calling his name, but he didn’t respond. Oh, shit!
“Aqua de situla!” I shouted, and a red “FIRE” bucket full of water appeared between us. Grabbing it, I tossed it in Carter’s face.
He woke, spluttering and gasping. “What the––!”
“Get up. No time to explain. Dragons.”
“Oh.”
He got up, collecting his wand from the floor, careful to avoid the injured baby who was still reeling about in pain.
“Need my help?” I asked Carter.
“Nope.”
My attention turned to the baby. I was desperate to help it, but as soon as I pointed my wand at its leg, Carter pulled my hand up.
“Leave it.”
“But it’s hurting!” I cried.
“I know, but you don’t know a thing about dragons. We’ve gotta go. We can see to it later!”
“But…”
Carter took my hand and pulled me reluctantly away. Together we began to back away from the two dragons.
The she-dragon was clearly confused, walking from side to side, her head submissively down in front of the male-dragon, who I suspected was offloading as much male scent as he could manage. All the while, she was eyeing her baby who was alone and defenseless, and somehow watching us at the same time as we inched our way back to the tunnel entrance, making good on our escape.
Björn was marvelous––every time the she-dragon looked like she would make a run for us, he would block her path and tickle her chin with the tip of his exuberant tail. In a flash, her lovelorn-slitted eyes would flutter and she would yield. She-dragons!
I glanced over my shoulder, and seeing how close we were to the tunnel, I turned on my heels and ran like hell, with Carter a half-step behind me.
12
Like Father, Like Son
In the dim light ahead, I could see most of the students and teachers had reconvened in the first cavern. They were gathered around Maisy, who I could faintly hear sobbing apologetically in the center of them all. At the end of the tunnel we found Bo, anxiously waiting for news of his dad.
I stopped as soon as I reached him and gave him a big hug. “Oh, Gaia, Bo,” I said glancing back over my shoulder. “Your dad totally saved us!” My voice sounded high on adrenaline.
“Is he okay?” Bo asked, looking fretfully down the tunnel.
“Yes, he will be. He––” I remembered that Björn’s shifting was a secret.
“Did he become a dragon?” Bo peered up at me in question.
I glared at him in surprise. “You know?”
“I suspected.”
“Well, then,” I said. “You should have seen him; he makes a magnificent dragon. He was amazing.”
Anxious, Bo looked back along the tunnel.
I put my hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure he won’t be long.”
The young man nodded.
Reassured, I turned to Carter who stood quietly beside me, appearing a little dazed, not to mention soaked down to his waist.
“It had to be a bucket of water, right?” he said. “Excoquatur me!” He dried off at once.
I grinned. “It seemed like a good idea at the time. Are you okay?”
His head was red where he’d crashed into his own protective circle, and I guessed he was gonna have one hell of a bruise there.
“Yes.” He lifted his hand to his forehead. “Nothing that won’t heal.”
“Thank God.” I looked back along the tunnel and prayed to Gaia Björn was still doing okay.
“Should we go and rescue him?” I suggested.
Carter shook his head. “As long as he shifts back quickly, he should be okay. He becomes weaker the longer he stays in that form.”
Next, I looked for Pike. She was standing with the others, holding Maisy’s hand as they all tried to calm the distressed woman down. Evelyn and Crystal were both by her side, and I could tell they were both in awe of what Pike had done, as was I.
As we ran over to the others, my daughter’s voice carried through the cavern. “She’s still shaken, but she’ll be all right in a bit, I think. Just give her a little space.”
Pike removed her scarf and wound it around Maisy’s half-bald head at an angle. She let the end flop down, so it helped conceal her horribly damaged face.
Maisy stood dazed and confused, horrified that her dreadful secret was out at last. The other children just stood staring, their mouths open, and I could almost read their thoughts––what is wrong with her face?
“It’s okay,” Pike whispered. She took
hold of Maisy’s hand, then rearranged the scarf a little so Maisy could see better. “We’ll get you back to the cabin and my mom will take care of you. She’s a clever witch, she’ll think of something I’m sure.”
It was my turn to burst with pride. It felt better than amazing knowing I’d spawned a young witch who could more than handle herself. And had a sensitive side, too. Oliver would have been so proud.
“You okay?” I asked, forcing my way through and checking her all over for cuts and bruises.
“Mom!” she said, pulling away and blushing. “I’m good, really.” Her attention returned to the school governor. “But I think Miss Beauchamp here could use your help.”
Maisy was shaking, her fear genuine, her distress pitiful. I took in her altered appearance and hated myself for every jealous thought I’d ever had of her. She’d clearly been through some crap, and Carter had obviously been helping her. Sometimes I could be such a jerk.
“Harrison,” I said, “Why don’t you and Evelyn take Miss Beauchamp and the others back to the cabins? Principal Carter, Mr. Reynolds, and I will wait for Mr. Van Asker. Bo can stay with us. I don’t think he wants to leave his dad.”
“Can I stay with you, Mom?” Pike asked.
“No, stay with Miss Beauchamp. She needs someone to look after her.”
“Okay, Mom.” She nodded, her back straightening with resolve.
Harrison rallied the group forward, and a moment later, they were all back at the stairs on their way out of the caverns. Relieved to see them go, I turned to the others.
“Mr. Reynolds,” I said. “The baby dragon––is there anything that can be done? That gash looked nasty.”
“Sure, if we can get close enough to her. But I doubt even a frisky dragon will tolerate human interference for long. Especially when they’re all riled up like that one is now.”
“I think I may be able to help.”
It was Bo. My jaw fell open with surprise, and I turned to the young teenager. “Oh?”
“Err, we never talk about it. I didn’t realize it was a family thing, I thought it was just me. I thought he’d be––ashamed of me.”
“Why would he? Wait! What––oh?” The penny dropped. Bo was a shifter, too.
“I can help you get close to it, while Dad keeps the other one, um, distracted.”
“Oh, no, you’re not,” Carter said. “You’re a student in my care. I’m not letting you go in there again with a fire-breathing dragon on the loose.”
“With respect, sir,” Bo said, “I’m not sure you’d be able to stop me. And anyway, that’s my dad. I’m not leaving him alone with a pissed-off she-dragon––um, sorry, sir––I mean, an angry dragon.”
“The answer is still no.” Carter wasn’t backing down.
Bo’s eyes narrowed, and I could see his resolve. “Look, you’re the one who took us in there in the first place. All I’m saying is, someone needs to go in again and help get him out. He can’t stay in that form for much longer. The most I’ve ever managed is five minutes.”
I agreed with Carter; it was madness letting Bo go back to face a crazy dragon, but the young man had a point. His determination reminded me a bit of my Pike.
“Look,” I said. “Are we sure he even needs help? I vote I go take a peek first. He might have calmed her down with his um,” I stole a glance at Bo, “err––snu snu.”
“They’re still circling each other,” said Reynolds, who was peeking into the large cavern. “He’s not going near the little one, so she’s not biting him, but she’s still mad as hell.”
“All right,” Carter conceded, a little chastened, “but that doesn’t mean it has to be you.”
“Look,” said Bo, “I’m not worried. My dad will protect me. In any case, when I shift, I’m fireproof. You’re not.”
Carter remained dubious. He turned to me and I shrugged. “Maybe we ought to let him do this?” For all I knew this might be a Viking rite-of-passage thing and far be it from me to interfere.
Carter scowled at me and turned to Mr. Reynolds, hoping for support. “What do you think?”
“I think we have to at least try. Something’s hurt one of my babies, and I have to do whatever I can to help it.”
Carter’s shoulders slumped, defeated. “Do you know how to treat him if we do go back inside?”
“You bet,” Mr. Reynolds answered. “I’ve been watching over these little ones for most of my life. I just need to summon my dragon kit. Hold on. Laturus auxilium!”
At first, we heard nothing, then a chorus of honks heralded the return of Reggie, the ivory-billed woodpecker. Its elegant wings shot into the cavern, and it soared overhead, clutching a black leather bag, the kind doctors used to carry in its talons. The bird dropped the bag directly into Mr. Reynolds’s outstretched hands, then flew back out of the cavern.
“Your familiar is fantastic,” I said.
“He’s not my familiar, and that’s a pity,” Mr. Reynolds replied. “Reggie’s attached to no one, totally wild and free.” He unzipped his case and poked about inside. “All good. We’d better get a move on before your friend shifts back, and we can’t get to that baby.”
We all turned to Bo.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
Bo nodded. “Um, you’d better turn around, Miss Candlewick,” he said, blushing.
“What, oh.” I suddenly realized what Bo meant and I turned to give him some privacy. Behind me, I heard the crack of bones, and a cry and yelp of pain. His groans became deeper, turning first into a growl and then a roar that sent a shiver down my spine.
“You can turn back now,” Carter said.
I did as I was told. There, standing by a pile of crumpled clothes, was another silver-blue dragon. Still a juvenile, he wasn’t quite as big as his father, but he was taller than me, and looked powerful. “Wow,” I said, wanting to pet him, but there was no time.
“Come on,” I continued. “The sooner we take care of this the better.”
Bo led the way back through the tunnel. When we reached the entrance to the dragon’s lair, we found Björn just by the entrance, panting, preparing to transform back into a man.
At the sight of his son, the older dragon appeared confused and reeled backward.
“Don’t worry, it’s your son, it’s Bo!” I said. “We’ve come to help the baby. Can you stay like that for a few minutes longer? We need you to distract the mom again while Mr. Reynolds tends to its wounds. Bo is here to help us.”
Björn nodded, and after taking another look at his son, he returned to the center of the cavern. The she-dragon, perhaps having realized he was not interested in her after all, had retreated to her baby, and was once again licking its wound.
I could hear the baby’s faint cry. It was weak and I knew it could not survive long if it wasn’t tended to.
When Björn approached, at first the mother rose up, seeming happy to see him back, but when she saw a second male dragon in her lair, she recoiled furtively, not quite sure what was going on.
Björn began to swish his tail, trying to keep the she-dragon’s focus entirely on him. She was reluctant at first, and kept peering around him to where Bo was hunkered down, inching forward. We crouched low, hiding behind his bulk, praying she wouldn’t see or smell us. I was close to pooping my pants.
Björn rose to his full height, his silver tint shimmering brightly as he put his colors on full seductive display. I guessed for a dragon this move was pretty hot, because impressed, the she-dragon moved away from her baby, instinctively luring the male dragon to a darker part of the cavern. Naughty minx, I thought. I took a mental note of her movements in case I ever had the need to use them myself. One never knew. Björn followed, and we crept along in silence, hardly daring to breathe.
When we reached the baby dragon, Mr. Reynolds opened his kit at once. I noticed some rather large scissors, some thick sutures, and a tube of luminous blue paste colored the same shade as the mushrooms. There was also the largest syringe I had ever seen. I wa
s thankful that thing was going nowhere near me.
Carter stood in front of us both, his wand trained on Björn and his dragon-love, ready for anything.
The baby’s eyes were closed, I suspected it was unconscious rather than asleep. Its color was pale and its breathing rapid. It didn’t have much time.
“Put a huge glob of that blue stuff on your hand and smear it in the gash,” Mr. Reynolds said.
I squeezed as much as I could into my trembling palm while Mr. Reynolds prepared the suture. I was amazed at how steady his hands were, he didn’t shake at all.
I pushed the torn flesh aside. The wound had a putrid smell about it, and I wondered how long ago it had happened.
“Could be worse,” whispered Mr. Reynolds. “Looks like a boating accident to me. Stupid tourists.”
While he whispered, I rubbed the goop into the open wound. The baby dragon groaned a little, and I looked anxiously around Bo, afraid his cries might return his mother. Thankfully she and Björn remained hidden in the shadows. I dreaded to think what they might be doing. Poor Bo! He must be wondering the same thing.
I picked up the tube and squeezed the rest of it into the open wound.
“Very good,” Mr. Reynolds whispered. “Now pinch the flesh as tight as you can while I sew this young dragon up again.”
I nodded and pushed the flesh tightly together, watching as some of the goop oozed back out of the wound.
“Don’t worry about that,” Mr. Reynolds said. “Just clean it up with some of that gauze.” He cocked his head back to his bag. It seemed whatever he needed appeared inside it. Handy, that.
“Come on,” Carter whispered urgently. “I don’t think Björn can hold her much longer.”
“Almost done,” Mr. Reynolds said as he stapled the last suture. He plunged the syringe into the baby’s scales and slapped its buttocks for good measure.
“Carter, Bo, we’re done,” I said. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
And just in time, too. From somewhere ahead of us, we heard a tremendous roar, followed by Björn backing out of the shadows. I couldn’t speak dragon, but it seemed to me like he was making some kind of dragon apology. The she-dragon came out after him, looking anything but amused. Poor thing, I could sympathize. I knew what rejection felt like.
A Different Class of Magic Page 8
