by Martha Carr
“That is so cool,” Daniel muttered. “See ya, Raven. And Raven’s dragon.”
“His name’s Lean—”
“Maybe I’ll eat him instead, Raven.” Leander snorted and the boy’s smile vanished as he turned and walked quickly across the field.
“I’m coming.” She pulled the gate open, lugged the sack inside, and made sure the latch was locked. “Sorry about that. He’s gone now.”
“I know.” He paced on the opposite side of the pen and watched her drag the feed toward the trough. “Everything’s so cool until there’s something real to fear.”
“Well, at least he’s smart enough to be a little afraid. I had honestly begun to wonder.” Raven took the dagger from her boot to open the top of the bag, then tipped the contents into the trough. She yanked the empty burlap away in time to prevent it from being gobbled with the red dragon’s first starving bite. “Woah. You weren’t kidding.”
“Not about food.” Hot breath from his nose blew a few pellets of feed out of the trough as he guzzled another huge mouthful.
“Not even when you’re threatening to eat a mage in training, huh?”
“Adolescent boys taste too much like they smell.” The feed crunched between the razor-sharp teeth in his massive jaws, and she bundled the burlap sack before she tossed it on the grass beside the gate.
“I choose to believe that was a joke and not based on your own experience.”
The dragon made no response.
She stood in silence and watched him eat for another five minutes before the trough was completely empty again. Leander raised his head for the first time since he’d started and released a massive belch. She clapped a hand over her nose and turned away.
“More.”
“More? I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“I’m getting restless, little girl. My appetite returned and if I can’t stalk all these children telling ridiculous stories, at least let me get my satisfaction somewhere.”
“No. I’m not about to let you start down the road toward emotional eating.”
He reared away from the trough and stalked across the pen again, his wings twitching. He raised his head with another wary sniff and growled.
“Okay. You just ate, so we can scratch being hangry off the list. I know what you need.”
“That is doubtful.”
Raven considered going to him and trying to settle him with a little affection, but she decided the surprise would be better. “I’ll be right back. Just hang tight.”
“I’m not a bat, either.”
Choking down another laugh, she slipped out of the gate, closed it a little firmer than necessary—just to be sure—and headed into the stables. When she returned and thumped Connor Alby’s old dragon saddle and harness into the grass, the dragon froze. His yellow gaze settled on the tack and remained fixed on it.
“I told you this morning, didn’t I? We have the all-clear to fly and right now, what you need is to get your head in the clouds and leave everything else down here behind you. So do I. Are you up for it?”
His great red head lowered almost to the ground before he turned away from the wall of the pen and took two steps toward her. He lowered his belly to the ground and snorted. “A long flight.”
“A long flight. I just got out of class for the day so we have enough time.”
“Then let’s use it.”
With a broad grin, she picked up the saddle and harness, brought it to him, and swung the saddle with expert skill after so many months of practice. The harness slid over his head and down his neck, and she slipped the straps quickly through the buckles beneath his underbelly when he stood.
She rushed toward the gate, pulled it wide, and gestured for him to follow her out. With a snort, Leander raced across the area and his lumbering footsteps made the ground tremble beneath them. With his head outstretched on his long neck and his wings tucked tightly against his back and twitching at the ends, he could have been a one-dragon stampede.
He’s gonna crash through the pen. “Careful—” She darted aside as her streamlined dragon thrust through the open gate. He slowed immediately once he passed her and turned to snort at the horses that made wary, startled noises inside the stables. “That’s one way to do it.”
Raven shut the gate and moved quickly toward her dragon. “Leander, are you—” She laughed and stepped aside when his wings stretched with a heavy, thick blast of air. “Are you prancing?”
“I said restless. Get on or stay here.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice.” Her smile had almost become a permanent fixture and she ran toward him and leapt into the saddle as he lowered himself to help her reach. Her boots slipped quickly into the stirrups before Leander broke into a run across the field. “Go, go, go!”
A laugh burst from her mouth but cut off when the dragon launched them into the air and the wind streamed down her throat and made her gasp. He climbed almost vertically, his wings beating mightily, but she squeezed her knees against his flanks and bent almost completely forward over the saddle to run both hands along his neck.
“You weren’t kidding.”
“Not about flying, either.” He leveled out high above the treetops of the forest behind Fowler Academy, the barn and the field, and the tallest tower of the school’s main buildings.
Somehow, everything looks so much smaller in the daylight. She spent only a few minutes studying her school and her new temporary home from a birds-eye view. A thin stream of students, so tiny below them, rushed through the stone archway and out onto the field to watch Raven Alby flying on her dragon familiar.
This time, when she laughed, it wasn’t forced away by the wind. She blinked the wind-buffeted tears from the corner of her eyes and spread her arms at her sides. Take the wheel, Leander. Wherever you want to go. Just fly.
She didn’t have to tell him. The dragon felt each of her movements as clearly as she felt her own. He dipped forward and the tips of his wings angled down until they dropped in a breathtaking dive. She whooped with joy and fought to catch her breath again, while her feet slipped from the stirrups.
Raven tightened her hold with her knees and watched the ground rush up to meet them. I don’t even need stirrups. I’m on and I’m not coming off.
Leander pulled up, banked left again, and climbed once more into the sky. The excited shouts of the students on the field were a thin, wordless hum from up there. She laughed and patted his neck in front of the saddle as he took them over the tops of Fowler Academy and off the grounds, heading north. “Now you feel like showing off, huh?”
He turned his head slightly toward her as his wings pumped through the sky. “No more rumors.”
That looks like a smile to me. She grinned in return. “Yeah, that’ll take all the guesswork out of it.” She brushed the loose hair away from her face, her thick red braid streaming out behind her, and glanced at the harness leads wrapped loosely around the saddle horn. I didn’t use those, either. Maybe we really can ride without any of this.
For now, she tilted her head back and let the sun warm her face as the spring air brushed over her. We shouldn’t have waited so long for this.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Leander took them out toward the huge wall surrounding the kingdom, although they didn’t cross it this time. Raven thought they might until the dragon snorted quickly and wheeled away from the top of the wall so far below them. “Is everything okay?”
“I changed my mind.” His response didn’t sound either enthusiastic or unconcerned.
Or he feels something’s off over the wall. That’s been coming for a while, hasn’t it?
She turned to look over her shoulder at the wall again as they changed direction, but there wasn’t much to see before he soared across the kingdom and deeper into the safety within those walls. He knows my intentions and knows I’m curious. And he still turned away.
Her thoughts turned quickly to her grandfather and the things she’d grown up hearing o
ver and over. “The wall keeps us safe, granddaughter. But sometimes, a physical boundary is simply that. Don’t assume that anything is truly safe. That’s the best way to protect yourself and those around you.”
The tears returned to her eyes and she sniffed, but they weren’t from the wind brushing across her face and buffeting her clothes. He knew something was coming even when I was small. Is that why he left?
“What’s wrong?” Leander turned his head toward her again as he caught another current and glided across open fields and ranches within the kingdom’s allegedly secure borders. His broad, winged shadow was only a little bigger than one of the Alby dwarf goats as it moved across the grass below.
“I’m only…” Raven wiped at her eyes and shook her head. “I didn’t know I missed my grandfather as much as I do. Until right now, that is.”
“I understand.” The dragon faced forward again and said nothing more.
He can feel it, can’t he? Because he knows what it’s like to miss someone close to him too.
“Okay, Leander.” She leaned forward and patted the base of his long, majestic neck. “Let’s make a stop at Moss Ranch.”
For a few seconds, he didn’t reply and he didn’t alter the course of his route. Then, his low voice rumbled and she felt it vibrate through him beneath the saddle. “For you or for me?”
“Both of us, I think.”
Leander banked sharply and moved to the southwest but skirted the town center of Brighton like they had on their flight to Fowler Academy. She nodded. He doesn’t want to scare anyone either.
In only a few minutes, they passed over the outer fences of the Moss Ranch property and descended gently toward the dragon stables and the pen that no longer belonged to a headstrong red dragon who couldn’t be trained. Leander’s shadow rippled over the other dragons spending the fine spring day in the massive field and his feet touched lightly on the trodden dirt on the opposite side of the barn.
“Do you feel better?” She patted his neck again and he lowered himself to his belly so she could dismount.
“As much as I expected.”
“Yeah, me too.” Not all the way better, though. We’re about to fix that. A plume of dust puffed beneath her boots, and Leander rose again before he took a few steps away from the barn. “Hey, where are you going?”
He pointed his muzzle fully toward the end of the building, where William stalked toward them with a grin. He ripped the broad-brimmed hat off his head, slapped it against his other hand, and laughed. “Did you miss me already, huh?” He spread his arms wide and forced himself to slow his approach to the young mage and her familiar. “It’s only been a few days.”
“It feels like much longer,” she called in response and glanced at Leander. “I was about to take that saddle off. Unless you feel more comfortable wearing it for fun.”
The dragon uttered a low rumble and stepped toward her. “I didn’t expect this to be a long visit.”
“Hey, you trust me, right?” He didn’t move when she stepped toward him and stretched under his belly to undo the straps. The old saddle thumped into the dirt. “Good. You’ll want this off anyway while we’re here.”
“I always want it off.” He pawed the ground once and lowered his head slightly when William approached.
The dragon trainer maintained a respectable distance, grinned, and scratched the side of his face. “You two sure know how to make an entrance.”
“Why, thank you.” Raven patted Leander’s side and walked toward her friend. “At least you’re glad to see us.”
“I always am, Raven. Are you kidding?” He smirked and folded his arms to regard her curiously. “How’s dorm life?”
“It’s convenient, mostly. Which I guess is the whole reason I’m there.”
“And Leander likes the new pen, huh?”
“Mostly.”
“Okay, now it sounds like you’ve left a few things out.” He gestured toward the fence around the huge dragon enclosure. “Is everything okay at mage school?”
When they reached the section of the fence that continued behind the stables, Raven folded her arms on the top rung and sighed. “He says he feels like something’s off.”
“Huh. You know, if it were any other mage in training talking to me about any other dragon, I’d offer to help you find out what.”
Raven chuckled. “Good luck finding another mage with a dragon familiar running around.”
“Exactly. You know him better than I do and I know you. Whatever it is, you’ll take care of it.”
She nodded, her gaze fixed on the other dragons in the distance. They lounged in the sun, stamped around each other, jumped into low flight, or released short bursts of fire or ice. “We had a little incident last night, too.”
“That’s…not what I expected you to say.”
Raven frowned at her friend. “Not with Leander. He merely woke everyone up.” William snorted and shook his head. “I know. It sounds funny and it kind of is now. But it doesn’t change the fact that two vagreti panthers ignored—or someone pushed through—Fowler Academy’s wards to reach the forest on the grounds. They stalked across the field past Leander’s pen and all the other animals.”
“Vagreti?” Her companion rubbed his chin and closed one eye in a thoughtful squint. “They don’t generally roam close to a group of people and especially not close to dragons.”
“I know.” She turned to look over her shoulder and caught a glimpse of Leander, who stretched his wings again before he settled into the dirt. Our flight took the restlessness out of him, at least. “Leander said they were running away.”
“From what?”
She shrugged. “Whatever it is, I doubt it’s good.”
They leaned against the fence a little longer in silence, then William smacked a hand on the top rail and leaned back. “All right. There’s no way everything that’s happened to you living at that school is all worries and no fun. Otherwise, you would have come for a visit much sooner.”
“I would have, huh?” Raven laughed. “You sound so sure.”
“I like to think you enjoy the company.” He gave her a crooked smile.
“Of course I do. Let’s see.” She grasped the top rail of the fence and bent away from it to stretch her back. “Spells are fun. Leander and I get to start training with Professor Worley and the rest of the class tomorrow. You know, familiar training.”
“They’re gonna let Leander out of that pen to go to class with you.” William raised an eyebrow.
“Not quite.” Raven nudged him with her shoulder. “I’m fairly sure they’re taking the class to him. Not in the pen but next to it. I think.”
“Wow. That’s some serious student-professor trust.”
“We’re finally convincing people that Leander and I trust each other enough to make it work.” She straightened and tipped her head back to stretch her neck. “Hopefully, no one tries anything. We came close before we headed out to come here.”
“Some kids tried to jump on the dragon pen to have a look at the beast inside it, huh?” With a low whistle, William shook his head and shoved his hat onto it. “It’s one more reason why Moss Ranch isn’t open to the public. Or near a school.”
“Not exactly. You know, for the most part, I think everyone at Fowler knows enough about dragons to want to keep their distance. Except for this one guy today. Daniel Smith.”
“Please tell me that big softy over there buffeted this Daniel Smith around a few times.”
They both glanced at Leander, who’d now rolled halfway over in the dirt and squirmed on his side to enjoy a nice scratch.
Raven barked a laugh and watched the dragon enjoy himself for a little longer. “If the guy had gotten into the pen, it would’ve been more than a game of cat and mouse.”
“Dragon and mage.”
“Beast and boy.”
They laughed and she rolled her eyes. “I hadn’t even fed Leander yet, and this guy wouldn’t take the hint that he needed to leave us alone a
nd get out of the way. Maybe he’s smart enough to stay away from a dragon, but I don’t think he’s capable of staying away from me.”
“Oh…” William’s eyebrows raised. “One of those problems.”
“I guess. We have this spring gala coming up in a week. Daniel asked me to go with him and he wouldn’t leave me alone about it. Anyway, I finally said yes to get him off my back.” She wrinkled her nose and glanced at her friend. “I think I might be regretting it already.”
“Raven Alby has a date.” He said it jokingly enough but his smile faded.
That’s a new look. William Moss doesn’t normally wear disappointed. “Everyone calls it a date but it’s more like showing up together. I’ll probably end up walking away as soon as we get there.”
He sucked a breath in through his teeth. “Harsh.”
“No, not like that. Daniel Smith has girls fawning over him all the time. He’ll be fine.” She studied her friend’s easy smile when he chuckled. No, it’s definitely not disappointment. Maybe he’s as surprised about a magic-school dance as I was.
“Well, if you have to let him down, let him down easy. Thanks, but no thanks. It’s not you, it’s me. That kinda thing.”
Raven turned away from him and leaned sideways against the railing. “We’re not dating. It’s one dance and he only got a yes from me because Leander threatened to eat him. It’s not like the guy has any serious misconceptions.”
William pursed his lips and shrugged. “Or he’s too into you to notice the serious misconceptions.”
“William Moss.” She leaned one arm on the fence rail, rested her other hand on her hip, and regarded him with a challenging look. “This is a ridiculous conversation. And it’s not why we came here.”
“First, agreed. Moving on. Second, if you didn’t come here to gaze upon your friend’s smiling face, tell me your reasons.” He slid another glance toward Leander and laughed. “There’s not enough dirt at Fowler Academy.”
