FireDrake (6 page)

Drake started with a few runs on his lute, limbering up his fingers and teasing the audience to silence with the soft music. Jenet’s ears perked up and a toothy grin lit her dragonish face. It was an expression Drake knew well, though few of the others in the room were able to read the face of a dragon as well as he.

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When the room was silent, Drake began to sing. All his songs that night were for Jenet. He’d written many over the years with her in mind, and tonight she would hear them all. He’d stored up fifteen years’ worth of tunes that he wanted to share with her, some that had become famous throughout the Five Lands he’d called home for far too long.

The crowd recognized many of the tunes and clapped or tapped their feet along with his rhythm. A few Jinn musicians even found enough courage to approach the cleared area around Jenet and set up their instruments to join in.

After twenty minutes, Drake had a regular little band formed complete with drums, pipes, flute and another lute as well as a young girl with a bell-like voice who sang clear, pure harmony with him. The tavern was packed to capacity and all within were clearly enjoying the rare talent of the Jinn musicians as they performed songs Drake had written and made famous.

Drake sang for Jenet and she seemed to love every moment of it. He could tell by her sparkling eyes and mobile facial features when a poignant line in one of his songs touched her tender heart, or when one of his little musical jokes struck her funny bone.

The other musicians became more at ease with her presence as well, as did the inn’s patrons, though few dared go any nearer than just a few feet away from her scaled body.

“So what do you think?”
Drake couldn’t help but ask after the first few songs. Jenet had been surprisingly quiet, listening intently, judging by the slight mobility of her ears.

“You were always gifted, Drake, but you are world-class now. I’ve heard some of
these songs before. Traveling minstrels have played them for us in the castle from time to
time, but I had no idea…I mean… You wrote them, didn’t you?”

Drake felt a little uncomfortable. Jenet was never hesitant in her speech, except when she was emotionally overwrought. He didn’t want to be responsible for making her sad or upset. He answered carefully.
“I wrote them, sweetheart.”

“Oh, Drake!”
Jenet took a moment, raising her head a bit as she shifted just slightly.

Drake knew it was a sign of her distress and his heart seized.

“What is it, honey? You know you can tell me anything.”

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Her jeweled eyes rolled back down to meet his gaze.
“You’re even more famous than
I thought you were, aren’t you? You truly have a life in the lands beyond. Without me.”

Her tone was flat, somewhat defeated, and Drake hated the sound of it, but was powerless to contradict the truths she spoke.
“I’m so proud of you, Drake. I knew no matter where
you went or what you did, you’d succeed. Though I often wished I’d been able to go with
you on your adventures. But a dragon’s place is here, in Draconia. No matter how many
times I contemplated flying off to find you, our parents reminded me it just wasn’t that
simple.”

“Oh, baby. I wish you could’ve come with me too. But I had to do it on my own. I
had to learn who I was, outside of the duty I could never fulfill. I had to make my own
way.”

“I’m sorry you saw it that way, Drake. Truly.”

The crowd cheered as the instrumental tune they were playing came to an end and Drake moved quickly into the introduction for a new song. He couldn’t win this argument with his words, but perhaps he could express his feelings in one of the many songs he’d written over the years to explain the things he’d learned on the lonely road he’d chosen.

The other musicians followed his lead and some of the crowd seemed to recognize the opening bars of one of his most poignant tunes. Sighs met the first clear notes of his voice as he sang the opening bars.

And he sang his song, “The Golden Beauty”
,
finally, for the dragon he’d written it for, all those years ago.

When the song ended, the crowd was hushed for a long, sweet moment while the last clear notes rang through the room. Then a cheer erupted, louder than all that had come before, and coins were tossed toward the wide-brimmed hat one of the other musicians had placed on the floor in front of the make-shift group.

“‘The Golden Beauty’ isn’t about a human woman, Jenet.”
Drake wanted her to know the truth.
“I wrote that song—and many others—just for you.”

Jenet sighed, a fine mist of cinnamony smoke wafting into the air above their heads as Drake saw her struggle with her emotions. When she reached down to butt him in the www.samhainpublishing.com 41

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chest with her snout, soft chuckles came from a few in the crowd, but when a single, magical tear leaked from her eye to land in his palm, the crowd was silenced. This was magic. True magic, in their midst.

The dragon gifted him with the rarest of the rare—a tiny bit of her magic made real—a gem of the finest quality. A fire opal that flashed like the faceted fire in her eyes.

Drake was very conscious of the crowd sharing this special moment with them. He was still the Spymaster of the Jinn, and he had a reputation to uphold.

He displayed the rare gem, holding it up to the crowd. “A kingly gift for a poor troubadour.” Drake stood and bowed low to the dragon. “I thank you, Lady Jenet, from the bottom of my heart.”

Jenet bowed her head as well.
“You play nicely to the crowd, Drake. I loved your
song. Almost as much as I love you.”

“And I you, sweetheart. No matter where I go or what I do, you are always in my
heart.”

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Mace was a handsome fellow, if a bit quiet. Krysta had taken to him right away, and enjoyed the solid camaraderie of the knight who seemed wise beyond his years. She guessed he was about the same age as she, but his eyes seemed older somehow. Perhaps, she thought not for the first time, there was some truth to the rumors about knights and how they stopped aging when they bonded with their dragon partners.

It was a well-known fact in Castleton that the royal family and the dragon knights outlived other people by many years, if they weren’t killed in battle first. There was a price to pay for the added years—if you lived to see them. The price was a life-long duty to the dragons and the land named for them. A life-long promise to protect and serve Draconia’s inhabitants.

But the trade off wasn’t too bad. Increased lifespan and a dragon to call friend and partner. No, Krysta thought that was a pretty good deal, and if she’d been born male and had the ability to bespeak dragons, she’d pray to the mother goddess every night to grant her a dragon partner of her own. As it was, Krysta was female and not of this land she’d come to call home. It was highly unlikely she would discover a rogue gift of dragon speech at this late date, and even if she did, women were never chosen to be knights, no matter how skilled with a sword.

All in all, she didn’t mind, though upon meeting Nellin, Mace’s dragon partner, she felt a pang of longing for the close bond she could sense between the two males.

Wherever Mace went, Nellin was not far behind. Even now, while Mace and she enjoyed lunch in the small cafe, Nellin lounged outside in the square, entertaining curious children with puffs of warm air and waggling his wings to make them laugh. He was good with little ones in a way she hadn’t expected. Who knew a fearsome fighting dragon could have a playful, almost paternal side?

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“Nellin gets silly around children,” Mace said, following the path of her gaze out the small window to the dragon. Mace seemed almost embarrassed, misunderstanding her interest.

“I think it’s charming. I mean, it’s obvious he can be fierce with such sharp talons and his large size, but I had no idea he could be gentle like that. I’m frankly amazed and altogether enchanted by him.”

“You hear that?”
Nellin said into Mace’s mind, clearly eavesdropping with his keen dragon senses.
“She finds me enchanting.”
Smug satisfaction filled his playful tone.

“Now if only she found you at least interesting, we might make a go of this.”

“Leave off, Nellin. Let me court her in my own way.”
Mace fought to suppress the annoyance he felt at Nellin’s interference from showing on his face. Krysta didn’t know how closely he and the dragon were linked, and he didn’t want to scare her off just yet.

She was far too lovely, too intriguing, too sexy, to let her scurry away from him and his dragon partner on the first date.

“Courting? Is that what you’re doing? Could have fooled me.”

“Everybody’s a critic.”

The serving boy came over to ask if they wanted a sweet roll to follow their meal and Krysta declined, opting instead for a hot drink. Mace held up a finger to indicate he’d have the same and the youngster left. Seizing the moment, Mace thought himself daring when he leaned across the table and took Krysta’s hand in his.

“I’ve really enjoyed this lunch with you, Krysta.”

“Whoa, a little too intense there, friend,”
Nellin coached him from the square.
“Ease
off before you scare her.”

But Krysta smiled and folded her other hand over his. “I’ve enjoyed it too, Mace.”

He rubbed his thumb lightly over her skin, liking the way she shivered and her smile deepened. He could have sworn her eyes even twinkled, but perhaps that was a trick of the afternoon sun, and his own overactive imagination.

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“Enough to do it again? I mean,” he stumbled a bit, “would you share another meal with me? Tomorrow, or the next day, perhaps? I really want to see you again.”

She nodded, the lovely smile still in place on her plump lips, and his heart lifted. “I’d like that, but I’m on duty all day tomorrow. How about the day after? I could meet you for lunch again. Or dinner.”

“Dinner!”
Nellin counseled.
“After dinner you can take her for a moonlit stroll or a
night flight, if she’s game.”

“Dinner would be perfect. Shall we come for you at sunset? Nellin and I know a great little inn on the outskirts of Castleton where he can have as good a time as us, chasing his dinner with the other dragons who frequent the place.”

“Pushing it, don’t you think?”
Nellin’s worried voice sounded in Mace’s mind.

“What if she’s still afraid of me?”

“She’s not. You should see the way she looks at you. She wants to keep you as a pet,
Nel. Trust me on this.”

“You mean…ride on the dragon’s back with you?”

Mace liked the way her eyes lit up as she shifted her gaze back to where Nellin lay, lounging in the sun with his flock of childish admirers.

“If you’re not afraid. As you can see, Nellin and I are pretty much a pair. Where I go, he’s usually not far behind.” Mace tried to look sheepish, but the excitement in her gaze reassured him that his fears on this topic at least, had been unfounded.

“I’m not afraid of dragons,” she said, and he inwardly crowed. “I haven’t been around them much, I’ll admit, but I’m not afraid of them. I’m actually kind of fascinated by them, I think.” She turned to look straight at Mace with those lovely grey eyes of hers.

“I’d love to fly with you and Nellin, if he’s willing to carry me.”

“Do you have to be anywhere this afternoon?” Mace pounced.

She shook her head. “I was just going to do some chores. Washing and such. But that can wait.”

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“Then how about we get the proprietor to pack two sweet rolls and some mead for us, and Nellin can fly us out to a little meadow we know where there’s a nice shady grove by a bend in the river. We can have our dessert picnic style.”

“And the little lady can get to know us better. Oh, you are much more nimble than I
gave you credit for, Mace. Good work.”
Nellin’s congratulatory words sounded in Mace’s mind.

“I think that would be amazing. I’d love to go with you and Nellin.” Once again Krysta peered out the window to the square, her gaze lighting on the reclining dragon with both admiration and awe. Mace thought it was a very good start indeed.

Who was this knight, after all? Just when Krysta thought she had Mace figured out, he surprised her. She’d just about decided he was shy and somewhat staid when out of the blue he suggested a spontaneous picnic by the river and a dragon flight to get there.

He’d surprised her in a totally wonderful way.

Not that she didn’t like steady men. Krysta actually craved a bit of solidity after the years she’d spent roaming with her Jinn family, but there was something to be said for spontaneity as well. Still, she would never have pegged Mace for the type to come up with such a plan, and it thoroughly enchanted her.

He was such a dear man. So thoughtful and strong in character. That a dragon such as Nellin had chosen him spoke volumes about his commitment to duty and to serving the people and dragons of this land. All knights were special men, but Krysta had felt drawn to Mace from the moment she’d first seen him.

Tall, dark and handsome with a solid build and muscles that hinted at enormous strength, he had kind eyes and a tender manner with his dragon partner and his friends.

He also moved well, like a well-trained warrior should, and she admired the fluidity of his steps. He’d be an excellent fighter…and a talented lover, if she were any judge.

They finished their after-meal drinks while the proprietor packed up dessert for them and Mace tipped the woman well for her good service. Within minutes, they were heading out into the square. To the waiting dragon.