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tamingthemuseTitle: Bat’s Ordeal
Fandom: Original
Prompt: #85 Topaz
Warnings: Hints(?) of slash. This story takes place in my The Sight of the Future story arc. This world is the same one that Nolyn is from. You don’t really need to know much about that story to understand this one. Spoilers for This Path and The Sight of the Future. Never mind the Roman numerals. <3
Rating: PG 13
Summary: A thief, captured trying to steal from a king, is hired to steal from a dragon.
It was in a puddle of blood, where I found him.
I almost hadn’t seen him, laying there just beyond the path, covered in a heavy brown cloak that blended into the leaves littering the forest ground.
It was the blood, the smell of it heavy and hinting at something other worldly, that led me to him, literal pools of it trailing the path. I took him for dead when I first spotted the body, hidden, with only one hand visible from under the blood-soaked cloak.
Gasping in shock, I rushed to the body, praying to what gods were left to me that I wouldn’t uncover some horrid mutilation. Any past squeamishness I had once had, were long gone, living in this vile, dirty, and repugnant time. Instead of death, I found the boy alive, if barely. He’d been beaten and left for dead, but he still clung to life, his breathing haggard.
I pulled out my handkerchief, wetting it with a little water from the bottle tied to my belt before pressing it to his bloodied, chapped lips. He woke a little to open his eyes and blinked at me, clearly not really seeing, blood caked hair hiding the majority of his face. I wiped his bangs away, pressing the wet cloth to his lips again.
Suddenly, he jerked, his eyes snapping around him, looking for his attackers, I presumed.
“Shh, ‘tis alright. Only you and I are here, this late. Everybody else fears the night wind and what evil it brings,” I said. Even I noticed the scorn I couldn’t keep out of my tone. I wondered at that, for hadn’t I made my peace with being trapped in such an uneducated time? Hadn’t I learned to live with the ignorance?
Shaking my head, I decided to stop here for the night and help the frail boy. I quickly did away with his cloak, and mine, to inspect his body for broken limbs. His breathing was in heavy pants, his eyes always searching the night. Whoever had attacked him had really done a number on him, making him so jumpy at the slightest sounds of the forest around us.
Satisfied that he was whole of limb, I set about starting a fire, albeit a small one, to warm water to clean his cuts. He was covered in blood, some of the cuts still bleeding sluggishly. He was a sight, I’ll give him that. I guessed his hair to be on the darker shade of blonde, but with all the mud and blood, it was really hard to tell. His wide eyes were a strange shade of brown, glowing in the moon’s light, but that I attributed to the night.
Or perhaps fever. I’ll have to remember to give him some herbs to counter that, I mentally noted as I found the spring the road followed faithfully. I knelt and filled my water bags and bottle. It wouldn’t take long to fix the boy up right and then be on my way.
Two days, perhaps three, more and I’ll be in the king’s own city. Once there I will sell my herbs and hopefully find myself a place to live. Maybe if I made enough money I’ll visit the king’s mage and perhaps find my way home. In the future.
I sighed and looked up at the moon, larger now than I had ever seen it in my own time. Distantly, I remembered something about how the orbit was taking the moon further and further away from the planet with every passing. Hadn’t really thought about until I saw the moon nearly thirty thousand years in the past.
Like the moon, magic was bigger in the past as well. Magic was still rare among the general populace, but it was still there, much like science was in my own time. But still, there was no time traveling.
I shook my head, turning away from the moon’s face. There was nothing to gain from woolgathering, so I returned to my self-appointed charge and set about cleaning his wounds before they became infected.
He moaned as I pressed the cloth to open wounds, hissing as warmed water washed over his flesh. He cursed me very vocally as I brought out my sewing kit and put needle t o skin.
“You’re very cold hearted for a woman of genteel breeding,” he snarled.
I looked up at that, startled. “What makes you thing I’m of genteel birth?”
Another hiss as I passed the needle through yet again. “Your hands are far too fine for a commoner’s, callouses notwithstanding. Your language gives you away as well.” He knocked my hand away as I pulled at his hair, attacked to his cheek from dried blood. It seemed he merely looked worse than he really was. I raised a brow and let him alone.
I sat back and took a long look at the boy. He really wasn’t a boy. I gave him about twenty-five years, if his life had been easy, twenty if it hadn’t. His hair was short for this time period, nearly reaching his shoulders and looked as he’d taken a dull knife to it himself. His hands were thin, almost as slim as mine, and his fingers long.
His face was all sharp angles, his nose a little up turned at the tip, giving him an impish look to counter the harshness of his other feathers. His eyes were large, making me think that perhaps I had found something that wasn’t wholly human. When he took my water bag from me to wash the blood from his mouth, I saw his teeth and knew he wasn’t fully human, for his teeth were pointed, sharp and deadly looking.
Rather than press my luck, who knows what I’ve found, I turned my attention to the small fire and set about making something to silence my growling stomach. Within moments, I had a skillet sizzling with bacon and bits of bread heating on stones. I glanced up when it was done to find my sullen companion eyeing the meat, nearly salivating himself. Chuckling, then gulping the laughter as he glared, I offered him his share and set about making my way through my own.
He asked about me. How I had come to be upon the road so late at night. Where I was going. Where I had come from.
I answered as truthfully as I could. The best lies were the ones closest to the truth, right? I told him the name of my hometown, offering that it was small enough that if he hadn’t heard of it, it didn’t surprise me. I told him of my plans of the future, hoping that he wasn’t a thief and planning on robbing me blind.
I turned the tables on him when he started to ask questions I couldn’t, or wouldn’t, answer.
Vaguely, he told me that he was from the east and was on his way to meet with a long lost friend who had relocated in the king’s city. He claimed to have run afoul of a band of thieves, fighting them with everything he’d had, and escaped with his life and few belongings. I had no reason to not believe him, for he had on him only his cloak and clothes. He’d no money or rations, as far as I could tell. Somehow, I felt that he was lying, but it was none of my concern.
I wondered at his culture, for his language was as fine as mine, his manners sweeter than most I’ve meant on the street. But, it wasn’t my place. No doubt, we would part in no time at all.
I kept the boy awake long into the night, fearful of him having a concussion. Most of his blood had come from wounds on his head. As the fire died down, I started to nod off, and decided to give him up for the gods to decide his fate. I settled down with my warm cloak, thinking that I’ll wash his in the stream before we brake camp in the morn.
It was the sound of running horses that woke me. Sunlight was streaming through the trees and birds were chirping merrily. Yawning, I sat up and glanced around the camp site.
The boy was gone.
I blinked, groggily. Where had he gone off to?
Caulking our meeting up to fate, I set about breaking camp, noticing that the boy hadn’t stolen anything, leaving even the water bottles behind.
II
The king’s city was just the same as any city in this rustic time, only bigger, with more people. Within moments of arriving I had to smack three thieves’ hands away from my bags and dodge one horse else be trampled under its hooves.
I made my way to the market, looking for medicine men and apothecaries to sell my herbs to. My food bags were light, lighter than I was comfortable with. I had to sell as much as I could and hope for work.
I was better off than most. I could read as well as write. I knew herbs, although I was still learning. My formal teaching was with chemicals already derived from the herbs, labs and tablets with ailments and cures already tried and true laid out upon them. The hospital. I missed it. Really, I missed it all.
Setting my jaw, I waved down an old man in tall hat that symbolized his profession. By the end of the market day I had my wares bag much lighter and food in my belly. I still hadn’t found work, but I figured that I was doing good on my first day.
In a run-down inn in a seedier part of town, I found a surprisingly nice room and soaked into the plush bed and was asleep in an instant. I hadn’t had a real bed in ages.
III
I found work with an apothecary. Every day, before sunrise, I would leave my rented room and head outside the city gates and hunt down the herbs the man required. Once my basket was full, I would return to his shop and set the greens out to dry, hanging by their stalks over head, or in jars that lined the shelves. After that part of the day was done, I was allowed a light lunch before I set to cleaning the small shop.
By mid afternoon, after customers had come and gone all day, I was finished with the work and went home to get ready to do it all again the next day. Except for every ninth day. That was my free day.
Today.
It had been nearly a full month since I had first entered the city and gained this job. I had yet to meet any of the people save for the woman who let the room to me and her two grown children.
One, the elder, was a hand at the local stable for the nobles, and the other was a maid in a bar not two blocks away. They were both lively girls and loved their mother greatly, often coming by several times a day to check up on the old woman and bring her gossip.
On this day they both arrived at the same time while I was sitting in the woman’s kitchen enjoying hot tea.
“Oh momma, have you hear!?” Emily, the elder, strode in, hanging her hat on a peg next to the door before grinning at her mother.
“Girl, take those muddy boots off now! I know I taught you better than that.”
Chagrin, the young woman toed off her boots, leaving them next to the door to pad over in socks that had more than one toe peeking out of holes. She sat at the table, rocking back in her chair.
“Somebody tried to steal the king’s prized jewel, the Star’s Stone.”
I lifted my head from my tea. “What’s the Star’s Stone?”
Emily laughed. “You’ve not heard of it?” I shook my head.
“You forget, she’s new here.”
We all turned to see the younger sister, Trista, enter. She looked very much like her sister, the same flaxen hair and bright eyes and smiling lips. She took her place at the table and smiled at her mother as the elder woman put a cup of tea before her.
“The Star’s Stone is a topaz the size of my fist.” She held up her fist in proof. “It’s clear of any blemish and color. The king had a master jeweler set it in a torc of pure silver. Rumor has it that his father’s father’s father stole it from a dragon.” Her eyes were wide as she told her tail.
I gave a start at the word dragon. Dragons had once existed on our world, ages upon ages ago. As far as I knew, Lord Sammy, right hand of the creator god, was the last being with any dragon blood in him. Even he was several thousands of years old.
In my time. I muffled a startled, nearly hysterical laugh. I was now living in a time long before he was born. Long before the creator god changed himself into the form we knew in the future.
But dragons? Dragons had been gone for longer than Dar had been dead, longer than any written history ever went. While I knew that Dar was well and alive, seated upon his throne in the afterlife, I had not encountered a single dragon during my time here and assumed that they were extinct, even now.
I found my voice, “A dragon?”
“Sure, in his time, dragons were more numerous than they are now,” Emily said with a wave of her hand. “Anyway, someone tried to steal it.”
“The fool got caught, didn’t he?” Their mother cackled.
Trista nodded solemnly. “The punishment is death, momma. I heard the thief is naught but a boy.”
“Really? I heard that he was a mage.”
Trista arched a fine brow at her sister. “If he was a mage, why did he get caught?”
Emily shrugged. “Maybe he’s a weaker mage than that of the king’s own?”
The two girl descended into squabbles as I shared a look with their mother. While I watched on, I felt my age on me. I was closer to their mother’s age than theirs.
I was suddenly overcome with longing for things that I’ll never have. A husband, a passionate love affair and children. Had I stayed in my own time, perhaps, but in this time I was way past my prime and considered well and truly on the shelf. I felt tears in my eyes as I realized once again that I would never have a child of my own. Excusing myself, I headed away from the small family and outside. I could do with some fresh air.
The rest of the morning was spent in the open market, keeping a close eye on my purse. There were things I wanted, and things I needed, but most of all, I wanted a chance to see the king’s mage. Rumor had it that he was powerful. Perhaps he could find a way to traverse time and send me home.
I didn’t have much hope, at this point. It was more of something I had to do, just because I knew that if I didn’t I would always wonder.
After a light lunch, I bought my way into the royal court, behind the commoner’s stalls, far away from the king and his court. I was surrounded by the dirty, unkept, and smelly. Wrinkling my nose, I pushed my way past several tall men until I could see the open court. I found myself standing not far from the prisoner’s stall and gasped at the boy therein.
It was my injured companion from before.
He was cleaner now than he was before. Less blood, more dirt than mud. His hair was not blonde, but light brown, but off, as if it were grey dusted with brown. And his eyes still had that odd look about them that she couldn’t place. He still had the same sullen expression set to his face that he wore when he was sitting across from my campfire. His thin hands were chained as were his ankles. Two guards stood at his sides, hands on hilts.
He must have felt my gaze, for his rose and meant mine and he grinned at me before turning his eyes back to his judge, the king.
Not having seen the king before, I took the opportunity to survey the man. He was older, much older than myself. His hair had once been black but was now splashed with grey. The grey also spread to his beard, a beard I feared hid a weak chin. His frame was overly large and well muscled, but given to fat. He sat his throne lazily, his chin propped upon a fist and his legs spread. He was clothed better than any of his subjects, for sure, in silks and furs imported from the far west, and his finger were sparkling with jewels.
On the king’s right stood none other than the high mage. This man was tall, thin and nearly as dark as night. His black hair held not a trace of any shine as it was pulled tightly away from his face in a plait down his back. His robe, Tharônian in style, were cotton and as black as his hair. Startling, his eyes were green, nearly clear in their luminosity.
It was he that spoke. “Thief, you have been caught red handed attempting to steal from your king. The punishment for such a transaction is death. By law, you are to be set before the people of our city, your hands removed. Afterwards, you will be taken to the prison, where you will accept the hangman’s noose.”
The boy snorted, turning his head away from the mage. Said mage’s lips thinned, but he continued in the same steady voice. “We seek to offer you another option.”
Suddenly the room was silent around us. Startled, I glanced at the people and found them frozen in place. Not a muscle moved, nobody breathed. It was as if time had stalled. Covering my lips with one hand, I found I remembered this spell from the history books. It was a very difficult spell of time. The most any mortal had ever done to affect time.
But . . . Why hadn’t it affected me? I chose to hide myself, not moving, holding my breath while the mage and thief talked.
The boy’s eyes widened in shock before he schooled his expression. “What do I want with your offers?”
A curve of the lips was all the mage allowed himself. “If you accept, you will leave here with your life.”
The thief’s eyes flicked to the king, who was also unaffected by the spell. The man nodded. “You’ve my word, if you keep yours.”
The odd eyes narrowed. “What do you want?”
The king leaned forward, settling his elbows on his knees. “You’re the first person to get past my mage’s barriers. We’ve no idea how you have done so, but that is of little consequence. That was the whole reason we set this up. We want your skills. We want you to use your skills to get me a jewel.”
I barely kept my jaw from dropping. The king had just admitted to setting a trap for the thief. The thief didn’t seem too keen on that either, his jaw hardening and eyes spitting fire at the king and mage. Noticeably, the mage refused to meet that odd gaze.
“What jewel,” the thief ground through clenched teeth.
The king leaned back. “It’s a diamond, set in a chain of gold. It is said that this diamond once held the magic of twelve sorcerers of Tharôn. Whoever owns it will gain power unlike any known in this world. You will retrieve this for me and I will allow you to live.”
“And if I agree only to run away?”
The king sneered then waved to his mage. “You’ll be put under a curse. You shall be given a time limit; from the moment you touch the jewel, any jewel, you will have one week to return here and get the curse removed from you.”
I could see the thief fighting with himself, his jaw working. Finally, he gave one short nod.
The mage approached and touched a had to the younger man’s shoulder, placing the curse on him, invisible to my eyes.
Then the thief suddenly sprung into motion, leaping over the prisoner’s stall and past the frozen guards. Within seconds he was out the door and into the sunlight.
The room sprung into life around me. Yells filled the hall as the people realized that the thief had disappeared into thin air. Suddenly the air was filled with malicious intent. People shouted, shoved, and a fight broke out. I grasped the wooden rail that divided the court as men and women moved chaotic. Something struck over my shoulders and I couldn’t hold back a cry of pain.
Guards entered the foray, shoving their spears into the crowd, herding everybody outside. I was knocked from my feet. I curled into a ball, fearful of being trampled. Strong hands suddenly were gripping my forearms, pulling my upright and out of harms way. Instantly, guards were surrounding me, protecting me from the riot.
Gasping for breath, I realized that I was clinging very tightly to the arms that were wrapped around my shoulders. I looked up at the profile of the mage. I broke out of his hold, missing his strength as soon as it was gone. Stiffening my back, I bobbed my head in a bow.
“Master mage,” I started, but he interrupted me.
“Wait.” His hands settled on my shoulders and he steered me out of the courtroom into the late sunlight. I followed him in silence, wondering at his reasons for pulling me from the masses. We exited to the left of the main doors, where the crowd was leaving. Once the people were out of the courtroom their boiling anger seemed to dissipate and the people went about their lives without much trouble from the guards.
We were separated from the general populace by a short stone wall and high bushes. Afer a few moments, the sounds of the city resumed to normal levels as the people were gone. The mage lead me to a gate, which lead to the street. He opened it with a wave of his hand and motioned for me to proceed him. Before I could pass him, he held out his arm, blocking my path.
“You will travel with the thief. What you seek, he will lead you to it. The two of you, your destinies are intertwined.”
I looked up into those startling green eyes and felt his magic pressing down upon me. The thief had a large head start, but if he was my only chance of getting home, I’ll take it. I nodded to the mage and left him. After I quit the sorcerer’s presence, I wondered just how the bat was going to get me home again.
IV
“The mage said you would lead me to what I wanted.” I said as I fell into step with the boy. He gave a start, hesitating over his next step as he eyed me.
“What? Why are you following me?”
I rolled my eyes. “The mage said you would lead me to what I wanted. I want to go home, so you’ll obviously know how to get me there.”
The brown eyes took on a look of confusion, or more aptly, he looked at me as if I had lost my mind. A look, I was afraid to say, I got a lot in this time period. He looked back at the city. “Your home’s that way.”
I shook my head. “No, my home is lost to me, until you lead me to it. So I’m following you.” I grinned. “Besides, you need someone to keep a look out for thieves.”
He glowered at my snide remark, stomping away from me. I stifled a laugh and walked along behind him.
“Do you even know where this diamond is?”
I saw his body jerk, anger all but steaming off him.
“Yes.” He bit out.
“Where are we going then?” That earned me a glare from over his shoulder. I smiled at him.
He held up a sheet of parchment. “There’s a dragon living three day’s hike from here.”
I stumbled over my feet. “A dragon? Seriously?”
He grinned, showing his sharp teeth. “Do you still want to come? You might be mistaken for a piece of gold, with all that hair of yours. Do you want to risk becoming a jewel in a dragon’s den?”
I swallowed, heart, pushing my heart back down where it belonged. “Sure, why not? You only live once.”
We walked the rest of the day, stopping only to eat twice, once at lunch and again at dusk.
When night fell, I was surprised that the thief kept walking, as sure footed as if he were walking in the noon day sun. I kept tripping over rocks that jumped into my path and pot holes that sank just before my foot touched ground. Every time I stumbled, I heard him chuckle.
Finally, my temper snapped. “All right, boy, thief,” I snarled at a rock, kicking it off the path. “What is your name,” I all but growled at him.
He had stopped to watch me with a smile curving his lips. “You can call me Bat.”
“Bat?”
“Bat.”
“All right, Bat. May we please stop for the night, I can’t see a thing and I really don’t want to die from a pot hole.”
It was his turn to roll his eyes before he stepped off the road and sat on the thick grass. I blinked at him, startled that he had agreed, just as much startled that this was where we were to camp. Shrugging, I followed him, setting my pack down and myself with a moan.
My feet hurt. And there was only more of this tomorrow.
Before my tired eyes, Bat built a fire, and it didn’t go unnoticed that he used magic. I gaped at him, remembering the sister’s conversation. Huh, he was a mage.
He made a strong tea and over my cup I informed him that he really failed at the tough guy image, he was by far too considerate.
V
It was a bird that lead us to the dragon.
We had come upon foot hills thickly splattered with caves carved by nature into the soft rock. Short trees were scattered about, offering shade from the summer’s heat. I was about to protest for a rest when Bat suddenly held up a hand, his other pointing to a tree.
A blue bird sat in the lowest branch, singing a beautiful song. I didn’t recognize the bird, having never seen its type before. I stepped closer to Bat.
“What is it?”
“The bird’s talking to something.” I felt his body tense, the lithe muscles of his body straining as he prepared to move. “Stay here, I think it’s the dragon.”
Before I could protest, he was off, moving as silently as a shadow. In seconds, he disappeared into the background. Cursing him, I found a rock and sat, cupping my chin in my hands as I fumed. Some companion, leaving me here where a dragon could come at any moment and off me.
All was silent save for the bird’s song when I heard a branch snap off to my right. I jerked around and found myself looking at another youth. He was younger than Bat, about seventeen years of age, with blonde hair and large yellow eyes. His skin was tanned, as if he spent all of his time in the sun. He sat as still as a tree, only his hair moving in the light breeze as his eyes stayed upon me. In his hands, he held two halves of the branch I’d heard snapping.
I swallowed my fear, somehow knowing that this was the dragon we were searching for.
Then I noticed his eyes were on my hair. I stiffened. I really didn’t want to become part of some dragon’s treasure, even if said dragon was a cute little boy.
I risked a smile, holding out my shaking hand. The dragon reached out, taking my hand and bringing it to his face. He must have scented my fear, ‘cause he paused, yellow eyes flickering to me before he sniffed my hand. Then his tongue flicked out to taste me.
Gasping through a hysterical laugh, I jumped when the boy suddenly stood and turned to Bat, who had returned.
The elder, darker boy stood under a tree, his hand braced for balance on the rocky terrain. His eyes were focused on the dragon with a look I’d never seen in them before. It took me a moment to place that look, and once I did, I covered a smile with my hand.
I turned back to the dragon and put my hand in his soft hair before I knew what I was about. Instantly, he moved into my touch, his eyes closing. He stepped closer, seeking my body’s warmth.
Bat moved to cross his arms and the dragon’s eyes snapped open and he pressed his body against mine, seemingly trying to hide me from the other boy. I laughed, I couldn’t help myself. This was unlike what I had expected a dragon to be like. The boy’s yellow gaze returned to my face.
“You’ve been claimed by the dragon, I don’t think that’s a laughing matter.”
“What?”
Bat motioned. “He’s claimed you, in his own mind, trying to keep you away from me, hiding his treasure.”
The dragon was pushing his body against mine, making me move away from Bat.
“What do I do?”
Bat tilted his head. “This could work out for us.” He murmured before walking closer. “We’ll camp here.”
VI
The next several days were spent entertaining the dragon and his bird.
We cleared out a space and made that our camp, the dragon never leaving our sight. Often he would help out with my chores, carrying water from a stream just on the other side of the hills, or simply watching as I worked.
His bird seemed to have taken a liking to me, also following me around, tugging at my hair and singing for me on my shoulder.
At night the two would sleep with me, the dragon curled up at my side and the bird roosting on my stomach.
I was happy, I realized, startled.
It was like having a child, staying with the dragon. He seemed simple, never speaking, but eager to please. He seemed starved for affection as well, often appearing under my hand so that I would pet his tawny mane of hair. Laughingly, I would spend several moments combing my fingers through his hair, tickling behind his ears before he would lope off and return with a present for me, more often than not a rounded smooth river stone.
Relationships with Bat was far different. The two were tense around each other, Bat always watching for the dragon to strike out and the dragon wanting attention from the other boy, but too afraid to approach. Too afraid of rejection, I had come to realize.
The dragon would stare after Bat, longing in his eyes, but when the elder boy turned his attention to the dragon, he would retreat to hid behind me, begging for the motherly attention that I was glad to give.
Not long after we settled into a routine did the dragon show his true form.
He was beautiful, all golds and bronze. He was smaller than I had expected a dragon to be, but it really didn’t surprise me. He seemed half starved in his human form. In dragon form he came only up to my hip, heavy wings, when stretched out, reaching far above my head. He was very lizard like, scales that were soft when brushed one way, but sharp when brushed the other. His tail was like a whip, swinging back and forth as he lapped the water from the stream, yellow eyes on Bat the whole time.
It wasn’t until I spotted Bat offering an overly large bloom to the dragon that I realized he had admitted his attraction for the dragon. The dragon was extremely shy, accepting the flower and gently nibbling at a petal, gazing up at Bat through thick eye lashes. I began to see the world through rose colored glass, for I had forgotten why Bat was here when I watched the two of them together.
They were a beautiful couple, all golds and browns. And Bat really knew how to court, stealing kisses and presenting gifts to the innocent.
And as Bat courted the dragon, I felt that I was being courted as well. By the bird. I would often find the bird knotting feathers into my hair, sings sweet songs to me, or grooming me. I found it sweet, if a bit strange.
We had been living in the strange family unit for over two months when I was awoken one morning by the bird whistling shrilling in my face. I jumped up, looking around me to find that I had been left alone. Our fire had burnt itself out, leaving the air chilly and silent.
The bird tugged at my hair, then flew off some ways before coming back to tug at my hair some more. Dragging myself up, I followed the bird deeper into the hills, a hollow pit in my stomach. Something horrible had happened, I just knew it.
The bird led me to a cave that had been long ago cleared of nature’s debris. The opening to the cave was low to the ground, tiny. This had been where the dragon had been living, before we came, I figured, spotting the dragon in his animal form laying on a plush pillow that made for his bed, covered in a silk sheet of the richest blue. Around the floor pillows of varying colors and sizes were thrown about. I stepped around them, heading for the still dragon.
“Little one?” I called out, kneeling next to the bed. I placed my hand on his brow, rubbing softly against the cool scales. He didn’t acknowledge my presence or touch. I grew more worried. I lifted his head with both my hands to make him face me. He closed his eyes.
“What’s the matter, little one?” He jerked his head away and replaced it on the bed, melancholy rolling off him in waves.
The bird whistled, drawing my attention to the back of the cave. I gasped in surprise to see the large trunk overflowing with treasure.
It was about the size of a clothes trunk, the top bowed to allow for more space. Opened, the gold and jewels spilled onto the floor, glittering in the early morning light. I knelt next to the trunk and heard the dragon hiss, a should I hadn’t heard before.
A glance in his direction proved that he hadn’t moved a muscle, although one of his yellow eyes was on me. I gave him my most motherly smile and set about scooping up the jewels and putting them back in the trunk.
A memory struck a cord within me as a surveyed the spilled jewels. It looked as if someone had been digging through the trunk, pushing out the coins as they failed to find what they were searching for.
Bat. He had found the diamond he’d first come here for. I had hoped he had forgotten about that, leaving the curse to lay dormant within him for as long as he never touched another jewel again. But he hadn’t.
He had seduced the innocent dragon into showing him his treasure and then took the diamond and left. Tears overflowing, I rushed to the dragon’s side.
“I’m so sorry, little one,” I sobbed, “I should have known he was like that.” I held the dragon and cried as he tried to pull away from me.
VII
I had moved our camp into the dragon’s cave, for he wouldn’t leave it. He also refused to turn back into his human form. He would eat, but only if I placed a bowl of food on his pillow so that he didn’t have to move very far. The air was thick and one could feel the sadness laying heavily on us all.
The bird twittered only a little, then, on the third day, disappeared altogether. I raged at the bird’s disappearance, for he had seemed to be the dragon’s only companion, a parent, if you will. Why would he abandon his charge?
I had to trek out to procure food, meats and fish from the stream. I was just on my way back from one such hunt when I felt the ground under me shake, knocking me to my knees. Rubbing at my sore knees, I returned to the cave to find that the entrance had been carved out. I dropped my basket, rushing forward when a much larger dragon appeared.
I slid to a stop, scraping my thighs as I fell to a stop behind some rocks. I covered my mouth with my hands, staring wide eyed as the creature demolished the cave before taking to the air with powerful strokes of its massive wings.
In its deadly talons, it held my little dragon’s treasure chest.
Panicked, I rushed to the cave, pulling at what rocks I could move, screaming. Perhaps he was alive still. I begged what gods I still had faith in to protect him. He was a child, an innocent, Nolyn, in all his mercy, should protect him. He was a dragon, graceful creature of magic; Sammy, last dragon born, in all your wisdom, protect him. Kendar, god of the dead, opener of the way, do not seek out his soul just yet. But these gods were not yet gods, I remembered.
I’d never prayed to Dar, that god being long dead before any of the others were born. Now I grasped onto his name as a grasped the sharp rocks, throwing them away from me.
Dar, god of fire, visions, and of the dead, before Kendar was born with your soul, protect my boy!
I felt hot tears tracking down my face as I pushed away the thought that he was dead, that the other dragon had killed him. He was my boy. I laughed as I realized that mage’s words were true. That damned thief had lead me to what I wanted. A child of my own.
Finally, with a crash, I fell through into the cave. I hissed in pain as rocks fell on my body, marking me in blood. Instantly, I was on my feet, calling out into the darkness. I could see nothing beyond the small beam of light from my entrance. I could hear the hint of hysteria in my voice.
Then there was something under my outstretched hand. I grasped tightly, pulling his face to mine, unmindful of the rough scales rubbing my cheek. “I’m so happy you’re all right.” I broke down crying then, falling to my knees with my arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
Once I stopped crying, I noticed that he was shaking as hard as I was. Pulling away, I set my hands to exploring his body for hurts. He had none, but there was blood on his flanks and he wouldn’t let me near that region. He licked me, trying to distract me from my explorations. One I sat back and wiped the tears from my eyes, he brought me my pack, the straps held in his muzzle.
“What?” He dropped it in my lap and began to paw at the blankets of his bed. He gathered them awkwardly into a pile before nudging them in my direction. He then rolled my water bottles toward me. My eyes widened. “You want to leave here. You want me to pack?” He huffed a cloud of dust on the ground, having laid down when I began to understand his wishes. I nodded. “All right, I get it. It’s dangerous to stay here. Who knows if that dragon will return, or even that thief.”
I packed what I though we would need, as quickly as I could, stumbling in the darkness. Before the sun had begun its descent in the sky, we were walking away from the foot hills, away from the king’s city. We followed the road for a while, moving off before we were spotted by anybody coming up the road. After two days of travel, the dragon turned away from the road and set out on his own path.
At night, instead of sleeping with me as he had before, the dragon found a tree strong enough to hold his weight and perched on the thick branches to sleep, leaving me alone on the forest floor. I missed his human form as well, for he still refused to assume it.
I felt sorry for him. First, Bat had betrayed him, leaving him after he had apparently given in and placed his love and trust upon the thief. Then the bird had disappeared. Then the other dragon had come and stolen what Bat hadn’t. I cried myself to sleep, for I knew that my dragon wouldn’t shed tears for himself.
We were a week on the road when the bird caught up with us. The blue creature first landed on my shoulder, whistling a sweet tune. I gasped in surprise, pausing in the process of spooning out a soup into a bowl.
“Where have you been? Do you have any idea what’s happened!?” The bird tilted his head, turning one green eye toward me to look at me fully. It whistled, then fluttered off to land on the dragon’s shoulder.
The dragon was once again perched on a tree, his belly pressed to the branch, his yellow eyes heavy lidded as he stared at nothing. The bird whistled, seemingly talking to him. When the dragon made no movement, the bird took to the air, coming in my direction. In mid-flight, it suddenly transformed into a human.
A human I recognized. I gasped, anger staining my cheeks red. I stood, my arms akimbo as I glared at him. “What is going on?”
He stared at me, green eyes swirling with several emotions I didn’t want to put a name to. “His treasure has been taken, hasn’t it?”
“What do you think? You’re the one that set that thief up to it.”
The mage waved a hand through the air. “The thief only took the diamond. I made sure that was all he took.”
“Why?”
Green eyes blinked at me, debating wether on telling me or not, no doubt. “It would have killed the boy had Bat taken any more. A dragon’s treasure is its pride.”
“Oh, but it was alright for Bat to take his heart instead?”
At least the mage had the decency to wince at that. “I hadn’t planned on that.”
“And just what had you planned on?”
“That king had heard of his treasure, the diamond. I knew he would never part with it willing, so I put it to the king that if he hired a thief, one capable of surpassing my magic, he could have the diamond. I never expected the thief to play with the boy like that.” He shook his head. “But, it had to be done. The king had been sending out knights to kill the dragon. I couldn’t let that happen.”
Stupidly, I felt my anger dissipating at his logic. He couldn’t have known that the dragon would give his heart to the thief. I dropped to the ground, removing the soup from the flames. The mage knelt before me.
“Who took his treasure?”
“Another dragon.”
He hissed, eyes turning to the dragon in the tree.
“What?”
“That was probably none other than his brother.”
“His brother!?”
The mage nodded, his long hair sliding over his shoulders. I was suddenly reminded that, as a bird, he had flirted outrageously with me. I felt a blush coming to my cheeks. I had bathed in the stream with that bird floating alongside me like a rubber duck. My hand went to the feathers that he had braided in my hair. I ground my teeth together so I didn’t do something stupid, like flinging the scalding hot soup in his face.
“Indeed. Our little friend there is the runt of his litter. As such, his larger brother often humiliates him by stealing what treasure he gathers.” The mage’s lips thinned. “I should have been here.”
“Yes, you should have.”
His shoulders flinched at that, but I felt no pity for him. He walked back to the tree, reaching up to touch the dragon’s claws. I couldn’t tell from this distance, but it looked like the scaled hand curled around the mage’s.
VIII
We continued walking for days on in. The mage, who’s name, I learned, was Scheal, spent most of that time in his human form, walking beside me, talking with me. He would still assume his bird form and perch on the dragon’s shoulder and whistle songs, or fly high above our heads and scout ahead. Sometimes, he would disappear from sight only to return with some trinket that glittered brightly in the sun.
The dragon would sit, pawing at the glistening piece for a bit before mouthing it and pulling at my pack until I opened it for the dragon to hide his new treasure. My bag quickly became very heavy.
Once in a while, we would find ourselves stumbling upon a village. The two men would find a place to hide and send me in to sell the herbs I had collected on the road and buy supplies. What money I had left over I bought trinkets to give to my boy, to help rebuild his lost treasure.
I think it made him happy. He didn’t walk with his head lowered as often. He sat with us while we ate, although he did still sleep perched in a tree, his bird sleeping in the crook of an elbow.
During our walk, Scheal made his suit known, drawing the dragon out of his stupor to glare at him whenever the mage would hold my hand, or touch my hair. Whenever the two of us would sit close, our heads together, the dragon would suddenly appear between us, nudging me for attention that I was hard pressed to deny.
At night when Scheal held me in his arms, our dragon would come from his perch and settle next to us, sharing our warmth. He was healing, slowly, but I had faith that I would see his human form again.
I felt it was close the night that Bat reappeared.
We were camped, sharing a rabbit that the dragon had caught, eating in near silence when he stepped out of the shadows into the circle cast by our fire’s light.
Instantly, the dragon was on his feet, teeth showing in a silent snarl. Scheal stiffened beside me, probably because he hadn’t shown himself to Bat before. I stood, glaring at the thief.
Blood was dripping from cuts on his hands, and from his nose. His chest heaved as he breathed heavily and fast, as if he’d run a great distance. He looked worse than when I first found him outside the king’s city. He had bags under his eyes, his ribs showing through his skin that peeked through holes in his shirt. Again was his face covered in bruises, blood dripping from his scalp.
“What do you want here?”
His eyes were on me, but on the dragon, who had taken several steps away, hiding in the shadows. Then he turned his gaze to Scheal. “You-”
“I.”
Bat shook his head, returning his glowing brown eyes to the dragon. “The cave . . .”
“Was destroyed,” I answered. “You’ve gotten the diamond-”
“And your freedom from the curse.” Scheal put in.
“Why are you here?”
Bat held up a drawstring bag. “How could I live with a dragon with that curse on me?”
I stared at him, eyes wide, stupefied. “But you . . .”
He walked forward boldly, toward the dragon who backed up, but was blocked by thick brush and trees. Bat knelt and drew open his bag. Out poured two objects that glittered by firelight.
The dragon’s gaze immediately turned to the large jewels presented him. One was his own diamond, pale pink and attacked to a thin gold chain. The other was the king’s clear topaz attached to a silver torc. Bat grinned. “Without his mage, that king’s defenses were nothing for me.” Then his eyes rolled up and he passed out, face first to the ground.
His form faded until a tiny fruit bat lay in his place, tiny chest heaving still. My hands flew to my mouth as I realized that he had flown here in that form and was probably exhausted. The dragon must have agreed, for he put out a foot and gathered the tiny mammal close and settled down to sleep, curled around his two new treasures. The bat gave a chirp, probably very uncomfortable laying rather than hanging.
Smiling behind my hands, I silently apologized for every bad thought I had had about the bat, Bat. Maybe he wasn’t as callous as I had put him out to be. Scheal placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled at me when I looked at him.
I went into his arms, happy that our family was again whole.
Fandom: Original
Prompt: #85 Topaz
Warnings: Hints(?) of slash. This story takes place in my The Sight of the Future story arc. This world is the same one that Nolyn is from. You don’t really need to know much about that story to understand this one. Spoilers for This Path and The Sight of the Future. Never mind the Roman numerals. <3
Rating: PG 13
Summary: A thief, captured trying to steal from a king, is hired to steal from a dragon.
It was in a puddle of blood, where I found him.
I almost hadn’t seen him, laying there just beyond the path, covered in a heavy brown cloak that blended into the leaves littering the forest ground.
It was the blood, the smell of it heavy and hinting at something other worldly, that led me to him, literal pools of it trailing the path. I took him for dead when I first spotted the body, hidden, with only one hand visible from under the blood-soaked cloak.
Gasping in shock, I rushed to the body, praying to what gods were left to me that I wouldn’t uncover some horrid mutilation. Any past squeamishness I had once had, were long gone, living in this vile, dirty, and repugnant time. Instead of death, I found the boy alive, if barely. He’d been beaten and left for dead, but he still clung to life, his breathing haggard.
I pulled out my handkerchief, wetting it with a little water from the bottle tied to my belt before pressing it to his bloodied, chapped lips. He woke a little to open his eyes and blinked at me, clearly not really seeing, blood caked hair hiding the majority of his face. I wiped his bangs away, pressing the wet cloth to his lips again.
Suddenly, he jerked, his eyes snapping around him, looking for his attackers, I presumed.
“Shh, ‘tis alright. Only you and I are here, this late. Everybody else fears the night wind and what evil it brings,” I said. Even I noticed the scorn I couldn’t keep out of my tone. I wondered at that, for hadn’t I made my peace with being trapped in such an uneducated time? Hadn’t I learned to live with the ignorance?
Shaking my head, I decided to stop here for the night and help the frail boy. I quickly did away with his cloak, and mine, to inspect his body for broken limbs. His breathing was in heavy pants, his eyes always searching the night. Whoever had attacked him had really done a number on him, making him so jumpy at the slightest sounds of the forest around us.
Satisfied that he was whole of limb, I set about starting a fire, albeit a small one, to warm water to clean his cuts. He was covered in blood, some of the cuts still bleeding sluggishly. He was a sight, I’ll give him that. I guessed his hair to be on the darker shade of blonde, but with all the mud and blood, it was really hard to tell. His wide eyes were a strange shade of brown, glowing in the moon’s light, but that I attributed to the night.
Or perhaps fever. I’ll have to remember to give him some herbs to counter that, I mentally noted as I found the spring the road followed faithfully. I knelt and filled my water bags and bottle. It wouldn’t take long to fix the boy up right and then be on my way.
Two days, perhaps three, more and I’ll be in the king’s own city. Once there I will sell my herbs and hopefully find myself a place to live. Maybe if I made enough money I’ll visit the king’s mage and perhaps find my way home. In the future.
I sighed and looked up at the moon, larger now than I had ever seen it in my own time. Distantly, I remembered something about how the orbit was taking the moon further and further away from the planet with every passing. Hadn’t really thought about until I saw the moon nearly thirty thousand years in the past.
Like the moon, magic was bigger in the past as well. Magic was still rare among the general populace, but it was still there, much like science was in my own time. But still, there was no time traveling.
I shook my head, turning away from the moon’s face. There was nothing to gain from woolgathering, so I returned to my self-appointed charge and set about cleaning his wounds before they became infected.
He moaned as I pressed the cloth to open wounds, hissing as warmed water washed over his flesh. He cursed me very vocally as I brought out my sewing kit and put needle t o skin.
“You’re very cold hearted for a woman of genteel breeding,” he snarled.
I looked up at that, startled. “What makes you thing I’m of genteel birth?”
Another hiss as I passed the needle through yet again. “Your hands are far too fine for a commoner’s, callouses notwithstanding. Your language gives you away as well.” He knocked my hand away as I pulled at his hair, attacked to his cheek from dried blood. It seemed he merely looked worse than he really was. I raised a brow and let him alone.
I sat back and took a long look at the boy. He really wasn’t a boy. I gave him about twenty-five years, if his life had been easy, twenty if it hadn’t. His hair was short for this time period, nearly reaching his shoulders and looked as he’d taken a dull knife to it himself. His hands were thin, almost as slim as mine, and his fingers long.
His face was all sharp angles, his nose a little up turned at the tip, giving him an impish look to counter the harshness of his other feathers. His eyes were large, making me think that perhaps I had found something that wasn’t wholly human. When he took my water bag from me to wash the blood from his mouth, I saw his teeth and knew he wasn’t fully human, for his teeth were pointed, sharp and deadly looking.
Rather than press my luck, who knows what I’ve found, I turned my attention to the small fire and set about making something to silence my growling stomach. Within moments, I had a skillet sizzling with bacon and bits of bread heating on stones. I glanced up when it was done to find my sullen companion eyeing the meat, nearly salivating himself. Chuckling, then gulping the laughter as he glared, I offered him his share and set about making my way through my own.
He asked about me. How I had come to be upon the road so late at night. Where I was going. Where I had come from.
I answered as truthfully as I could. The best lies were the ones closest to the truth, right? I told him the name of my hometown, offering that it was small enough that if he hadn’t heard of it, it didn’t surprise me. I told him of my plans of the future, hoping that he wasn’t a thief and planning on robbing me blind.
I turned the tables on him when he started to ask questions I couldn’t, or wouldn’t, answer.
Vaguely, he told me that he was from the east and was on his way to meet with a long lost friend who had relocated in the king’s city. He claimed to have run afoul of a band of thieves, fighting them with everything he’d had, and escaped with his life and few belongings. I had no reason to not believe him, for he had on him only his cloak and clothes. He’d no money or rations, as far as I could tell. Somehow, I felt that he was lying, but it was none of my concern.
I wondered at his culture, for his language was as fine as mine, his manners sweeter than most I’ve meant on the street. But, it wasn’t my place. No doubt, we would part in no time at all.
I kept the boy awake long into the night, fearful of him having a concussion. Most of his blood had come from wounds on his head. As the fire died down, I started to nod off, and decided to give him up for the gods to decide his fate. I settled down with my warm cloak, thinking that I’ll wash his in the stream before we brake camp in the morn.
It was the sound of running horses that woke me. Sunlight was streaming through the trees and birds were chirping merrily. Yawning, I sat up and glanced around the camp site.
The boy was gone.
I blinked, groggily. Where had he gone off to?
Caulking our meeting up to fate, I set about breaking camp, noticing that the boy hadn’t stolen anything, leaving even the water bottles behind.
II
The king’s city was just the same as any city in this rustic time, only bigger, with more people. Within moments of arriving I had to smack three thieves’ hands away from my bags and dodge one horse else be trampled under its hooves.
I made my way to the market, looking for medicine men and apothecaries to sell my herbs to. My food bags were light, lighter than I was comfortable with. I had to sell as much as I could and hope for work.
I was better off than most. I could read as well as write. I knew herbs, although I was still learning. My formal teaching was with chemicals already derived from the herbs, labs and tablets with ailments and cures already tried and true laid out upon them. The hospital. I missed it. Really, I missed it all.
Setting my jaw, I waved down an old man in tall hat that symbolized his profession. By the end of the market day I had my wares bag much lighter and food in my belly. I still hadn’t found work, but I figured that I was doing good on my first day.
In a run-down inn in a seedier part of town, I found a surprisingly nice room and soaked into the plush bed and was asleep in an instant. I hadn’t had a real bed in ages.
III
I found work with an apothecary. Every day, before sunrise, I would leave my rented room and head outside the city gates and hunt down the herbs the man required. Once my basket was full, I would return to his shop and set the greens out to dry, hanging by their stalks over head, or in jars that lined the shelves. After that part of the day was done, I was allowed a light lunch before I set to cleaning the small shop.
By mid afternoon, after customers had come and gone all day, I was finished with the work and went home to get ready to do it all again the next day. Except for every ninth day. That was my free day.
Today.
It had been nearly a full month since I had first entered the city and gained this job. I had yet to meet any of the people save for the woman who let the room to me and her two grown children.
One, the elder, was a hand at the local stable for the nobles, and the other was a maid in a bar not two blocks away. They were both lively girls and loved their mother greatly, often coming by several times a day to check up on the old woman and bring her gossip.
On this day they both arrived at the same time while I was sitting in the woman’s kitchen enjoying hot tea.
“Oh momma, have you hear!?” Emily, the elder, strode in, hanging her hat on a peg next to the door before grinning at her mother.
“Girl, take those muddy boots off now! I know I taught you better than that.”
Chagrin, the young woman toed off her boots, leaving them next to the door to pad over in socks that had more than one toe peeking out of holes. She sat at the table, rocking back in her chair.
“Somebody tried to steal the king’s prized jewel, the Star’s Stone.”
I lifted my head from my tea. “What’s the Star’s Stone?”
Emily laughed. “You’ve not heard of it?” I shook my head.
“You forget, she’s new here.”
We all turned to see the younger sister, Trista, enter. She looked very much like her sister, the same flaxen hair and bright eyes and smiling lips. She took her place at the table and smiled at her mother as the elder woman put a cup of tea before her.
“The Star’s Stone is a topaz the size of my fist.” She held up her fist in proof. “It’s clear of any blemish and color. The king had a master jeweler set it in a torc of pure silver. Rumor has it that his father’s father’s father stole it from a dragon.” Her eyes were wide as she told her tail.
I gave a start at the word dragon. Dragons had once existed on our world, ages upon ages ago. As far as I knew, Lord Sammy, right hand of the creator god, was the last being with any dragon blood in him. Even he was several thousands of years old.
In my time. I muffled a startled, nearly hysterical laugh. I was now living in a time long before he was born. Long before the creator god changed himself into the form we knew in the future.
But dragons? Dragons had been gone for longer than Dar had been dead, longer than any written history ever went. While I knew that Dar was well and alive, seated upon his throne in the afterlife, I had not encountered a single dragon during my time here and assumed that they were extinct, even now.
I found my voice, “A dragon?”
“Sure, in his time, dragons were more numerous than they are now,” Emily said with a wave of her hand. “Anyway, someone tried to steal it.”
“The fool got caught, didn’t he?” Their mother cackled.
Trista nodded solemnly. “The punishment is death, momma. I heard the thief is naught but a boy.”
“Really? I heard that he was a mage.”
Trista arched a fine brow at her sister. “If he was a mage, why did he get caught?”
Emily shrugged. “Maybe he’s a weaker mage than that of the king’s own?”
The two girl descended into squabbles as I shared a look with their mother. While I watched on, I felt my age on me. I was closer to their mother’s age than theirs.
I was suddenly overcome with longing for things that I’ll never have. A husband, a passionate love affair and children. Had I stayed in my own time, perhaps, but in this time I was way past my prime and considered well and truly on the shelf. I felt tears in my eyes as I realized once again that I would never have a child of my own. Excusing myself, I headed away from the small family and outside. I could do with some fresh air.
The rest of the morning was spent in the open market, keeping a close eye on my purse. There were things I wanted, and things I needed, but most of all, I wanted a chance to see the king’s mage. Rumor had it that he was powerful. Perhaps he could find a way to traverse time and send me home.
I didn’t have much hope, at this point. It was more of something I had to do, just because I knew that if I didn’t I would always wonder.
After a light lunch, I bought my way into the royal court, behind the commoner’s stalls, far away from the king and his court. I was surrounded by the dirty, unkept, and smelly. Wrinkling my nose, I pushed my way past several tall men until I could see the open court. I found myself standing not far from the prisoner’s stall and gasped at the boy therein.
It was my injured companion from before.
He was cleaner now than he was before. Less blood, more dirt than mud. His hair was not blonde, but light brown, but off, as if it were grey dusted with brown. And his eyes still had that odd look about them that she couldn’t place. He still had the same sullen expression set to his face that he wore when he was sitting across from my campfire. His thin hands were chained as were his ankles. Two guards stood at his sides, hands on hilts.
He must have felt my gaze, for his rose and meant mine and he grinned at me before turning his eyes back to his judge, the king.
Not having seen the king before, I took the opportunity to survey the man. He was older, much older than myself. His hair had once been black but was now splashed with grey. The grey also spread to his beard, a beard I feared hid a weak chin. His frame was overly large and well muscled, but given to fat. He sat his throne lazily, his chin propped upon a fist and his legs spread. He was clothed better than any of his subjects, for sure, in silks and furs imported from the far west, and his finger were sparkling with jewels.
On the king’s right stood none other than the high mage. This man was tall, thin and nearly as dark as night. His black hair held not a trace of any shine as it was pulled tightly away from his face in a plait down his back. His robe, Tharônian in style, were cotton and as black as his hair. Startling, his eyes were green, nearly clear in their luminosity.
It was he that spoke. “Thief, you have been caught red handed attempting to steal from your king. The punishment for such a transaction is death. By law, you are to be set before the people of our city, your hands removed. Afterwards, you will be taken to the prison, where you will accept the hangman’s noose.”
The boy snorted, turning his head away from the mage. Said mage’s lips thinned, but he continued in the same steady voice. “We seek to offer you another option.”
Suddenly the room was silent around us. Startled, I glanced at the people and found them frozen in place. Not a muscle moved, nobody breathed. It was as if time had stalled. Covering my lips with one hand, I found I remembered this spell from the history books. It was a very difficult spell of time. The most any mortal had ever done to affect time.
But . . . Why hadn’t it affected me? I chose to hide myself, not moving, holding my breath while the mage and thief talked.
The boy’s eyes widened in shock before he schooled his expression. “What do I want with your offers?”
A curve of the lips was all the mage allowed himself. “If you accept, you will leave here with your life.”
The thief’s eyes flicked to the king, who was also unaffected by the spell. The man nodded. “You’ve my word, if you keep yours.”
The odd eyes narrowed. “What do you want?”
The king leaned forward, settling his elbows on his knees. “You’re the first person to get past my mage’s barriers. We’ve no idea how you have done so, but that is of little consequence. That was the whole reason we set this up. We want your skills. We want you to use your skills to get me a jewel.”
I barely kept my jaw from dropping. The king had just admitted to setting a trap for the thief. The thief didn’t seem too keen on that either, his jaw hardening and eyes spitting fire at the king and mage. Noticeably, the mage refused to meet that odd gaze.
“What jewel,” the thief ground through clenched teeth.
The king leaned back. “It’s a diamond, set in a chain of gold. It is said that this diamond once held the magic of twelve sorcerers of Tharôn. Whoever owns it will gain power unlike any known in this world. You will retrieve this for me and I will allow you to live.”
“And if I agree only to run away?”
The king sneered then waved to his mage. “You’ll be put under a curse. You shall be given a time limit; from the moment you touch the jewel, any jewel, you will have one week to return here and get the curse removed from you.”
I could see the thief fighting with himself, his jaw working. Finally, he gave one short nod.
The mage approached and touched a had to the younger man’s shoulder, placing the curse on him, invisible to my eyes.
Then the thief suddenly sprung into motion, leaping over the prisoner’s stall and past the frozen guards. Within seconds he was out the door and into the sunlight.
The room sprung into life around me. Yells filled the hall as the people realized that the thief had disappeared into thin air. Suddenly the air was filled with malicious intent. People shouted, shoved, and a fight broke out. I grasped the wooden rail that divided the court as men and women moved chaotic. Something struck over my shoulders and I couldn’t hold back a cry of pain.
Guards entered the foray, shoving their spears into the crowd, herding everybody outside. I was knocked from my feet. I curled into a ball, fearful of being trampled. Strong hands suddenly were gripping my forearms, pulling my upright and out of harms way. Instantly, guards were surrounding me, protecting me from the riot.
Gasping for breath, I realized that I was clinging very tightly to the arms that were wrapped around my shoulders. I looked up at the profile of the mage. I broke out of his hold, missing his strength as soon as it was gone. Stiffening my back, I bobbed my head in a bow.
“Master mage,” I started, but he interrupted me.
“Wait.” His hands settled on my shoulders and he steered me out of the courtroom into the late sunlight. I followed him in silence, wondering at his reasons for pulling me from the masses. We exited to the left of the main doors, where the crowd was leaving. Once the people were out of the courtroom their boiling anger seemed to dissipate and the people went about their lives without much trouble from the guards.
We were separated from the general populace by a short stone wall and high bushes. Afer a few moments, the sounds of the city resumed to normal levels as the people were gone. The mage lead me to a gate, which lead to the street. He opened it with a wave of his hand and motioned for me to proceed him. Before I could pass him, he held out his arm, blocking my path.
“You will travel with the thief. What you seek, he will lead you to it. The two of you, your destinies are intertwined.”
I looked up into those startling green eyes and felt his magic pressing down upon me. The thief had a large head start, but if he was my only chance of getting home, I’ll take it. I nodded to the mage and left him. After I quit the sorcerer’s presence, I wondered just how the bat was going to get me home again.
IV
“The mage said you would lead me to what I wanted.” I said as I fell into step with the boy. He gave a start, hesitating over his next step as he eyed me.
“What? Why are you following me?”
I rolled my eyes. “The mage said you would lead me to what I wanted. I want to go home, so you’ll obviously know how to get me there.”
The brown eyes took on a look of confusion, or more aptly, he looked at me as if I had lost my mind. A look, I was afraid to say, I got a lot in this time period. He looked back at the city. “Your home’s that way.”
I shook my head. “No, my home is lost to me, until you lead me to it. So I’m following you.” I grinned. “Besides, you need someone to keep a look out for thieves.”
He glowered at my snide remark, stomping away from me. I stifled a laugh and walked along behind him.
“Do you even know where this diamond is?”
I saw his body jerk, anger all but steaming off him.
“Yes.” He bit out.
“Where are we going then?” That earned me a glare from over his shoulder. I smiled at him.
He held up a sheet of parchment. “There’s a dragon living three day’s hike from here.”
I stumbled over my feet. “A dragon? Seriously?”
He grinned, showing his sharp teeth. “Do you still want to come? You might be mistaken for a piece of gold, with all that hair of yours. Do you want to risk becoming a jewel in a dragon’s den?”
I swallowed, heart, pushing my heart back down where it belonged. “Sure, why not? You only live once.”
We walked the rest of the day, stopping only to eat twice, once at lunch and again at dusk.
When night fell, I was surprised that the thief kept walking, as sure footed as if he were walking in the noon day sun. I kept tripping over rocks that jumped into my path and pot holes that sank just before my foot touched ground. Every time I stumbled, I heard him chuckle.
Finally, my temper snapped. “All right, boy, thief,” I snarled at a rock, kicking it off the path. “What is your name,” I all but growled at him.
He had stopped to watch me with a smile curving his lips. “You can call me Bat.”
“Bat?”
“Bat.”
“All right, Bat. May we please stop for the night, I can’t see a thing and I really don’t want to die from a pot hole.”
It was his turn to roll his eyes before he stepped off the road and sat on the thick grass. I blinked at him, startled that he had agreed, just as much startled that this was where we were to camp. Shrugging, I followed him, setting my pack down and myself with a moan.
My feet hurt. And there was only more of this tomorrow.
Before my tired eyes, Bat built a fire, and it didn’t go unnoticed that he used magic. I gaped at him, remembering the sister’s conversation. Huh, he was a mage.
He made a strong tea and over my cup I informed him that he really failed at the tough guy image, he was by far too considerate.
V
It was a bird that lead us to the dragon.
We had come upon foot hills thickly splattered with caves carved by nature into the soft rock. Short trees were scattered about, offering shade from the summer’s heat. I was about to protest for a rest when Bat suddenly held up a hand, his other pointing to a tree.
A blue bird sat in the lowest branch, singing a beautiful song. I didn’t recognize the bird, having never seen its type before. I stepped closer to Bat.
“What is it?”
“The bird’s talking to something.” I felt his body tense, the lithe muscles of his body straining as he prepared to move. “Stay here, I think it’s the dragon.”
Before I could protest, he was off, moving as silently as a shadow. In seconds, he disappeared into the background. Cursing him, I found a rock and sat, cupping my chin in my hands as I fumed. Some companion, leaving me here where a dragon could come at any moment and off me.
All was silent save for the bird’s song when I heard a branch snap off to my right. I jerked around and found myself looking at another youth. He was younger than Bat, about seventeen years of age, with blonde hair and large yellow eyes. His skin was tanned, as if he spent all of his time in the sun. He sat as still as a tree, only his hair moving in the light breeze as his eyes stayed upon me. In his hands, he held two halves of the branch I’d heard snapping.
I swallowed my fear, somehow knowing that this was the dragon we were searching for.
Then I noticed his eyes were on my hair. I stiffened. I really didn’t want to become part of some dragon’s treasure, even if said dragon was a cute little boy.
I risked a smile, holding out my shaking hand. The dragon reached out, taking my hand and bringing it to his face. He must have scented my fear, ‘cause he paused, yellow eyes flickering to me before he sniffed my hand. Then his tongue flicked out to taste me.
Gasping through a hysterical laugh, I jumped when the boy suddenly stood and turned to Bat, who had returned.
The elder, darker boy stood under a tree, his hand braced for balance on the rocky terrain. His eyes were focused on the dragon with a look I’d never seen in them before. It took me a moment to place that look, and once I did, I covered a smile with my hand.
I turned back to the dragon and put my hand in his soft hair before I knew what I was about. Instantly, he moved into my touch, his eyes closing. He stepped closer, seeking my body’s warmth.
Bat moved to cross his arms and the dragon’s eyes snapped open and he pressed his body against mine, seemingly trying to hide me from the other boy. I laughed, I couldn’t help myself. This was unlike what I had expected a dragon to be like. The boy’s yellow gaze returned to my face.
“You’ve been claimed by the dragon, I don’t think that’s a laughing matter.”
“What?”
Bat motioned. “He’s claimed you, in his own mind, trying to keep you away from me, hiding his treasure.”
The dragon was pushing his body against mine, making me move away from Bat.
“What do I do?”
Bat tilted his head. “This could work out for us.” He murmured before walking closer. “We’ll camp here.”
VI
The next several days were spent entertaining the dragon and his bird.
We cleared out a space and made that our camp, the dragon never leaving our sight. Often he would help out with my chores, carrying water from a stream just on the other side of the hills, or simply watching as I worked.
His bird seemed to have taken a liking to me, also following me around, tugging at my hair and singing for me on my shoulder.
At night the two would sleep with me, the dragon curled up at my side and the bird roosting on my stomach.
I was happy, I realized, startled.
It was like having a child, staying with the dragon. He seemed simple, never speaking, but eager to please. He seemed starved for affection as well, often appearing under my hand so that I would pet his tawny mane of hair. Laughingly, I would spend several moments combing my fingers through his hair, tickling behind his ears before he would lope off and return with a present for me, more often than not a rounded smooth river stone.
Relationships with Bat was far different. The two were tense around each other, Bat always watching for the dragon to strike out and the dragon wanting attention from the other boy, but too afraid to approach. Too afraid of rejection, I had come to realize.
The dragon would stare after Bat, longing in his eyes, but when the elder boy turned his attention to the dragon, he would retreat to hid behind me, begging for the motherly attention that I was glad to give.
Not long after we settled into a routine did the dragon show his true form.
He was beautiful, all golds and bronze. He was smaller than I had expected a dragon to be, but it really didn’t surprise me. He seemed half starved in his human form. In dragon form he came only up to my hip, heavy wings, when stretched out, reaching far above my head. He was very lizard like, scales that were soft when brushed one way, but sharp when brushed the other. His tail was like a whip, swinging back and forth as he lapped the water from the stream, yellow eyes on Bat the whole time.
It wasn’t until I spotted Bat offering an overly large bloom to the dragon that I realized he had admitted his attraction for the dragon. The dragon was extremely shy, accepting the flower and gently nibbling at a petal, gazing up at Bat through thick eye lashes. I began to see the world through rose colored glass, for I had forgotten why Bat was here when I watched the two of them together.
They were a beautiful couple, all golds and browns. And Bat really knew how to court, stealing kisses and presenting gifts to the innocent.
And as Bat courted the dragon, I felt that I was being courted as well. By the bird. I would often find the bird knotting feathers into my hair, sings sweet songs to me, or grooming me. I found it sweet, if a bit strange.
We had been living in the strange family unit for over two months when I was awoken one morning by the bird whistling shrilling in my face. I jumped up, looking around me to find that I had been left alone. Our fire had burnt itself out, leaving the air chilly and silent.
The bird tugged at my hair, then flew off some ways before coming back to tug at my hair some more. Dragging myself up, I followed the bird deeper into the hills, a hollow pit in my stomach. Something horrible had happened, I just knew it.
The bird led me to a cave that had been long ago cleared of nature’s debris. The opening to the cave was low to the ground, tiny. This had been where the dragon had been living, before we came, I figured, spotting the dragon in his animal form laying on a plush pillow that made for his bed, covered in a silk sheet of the richest blue. Around the floor pillows of varying colors and sizes were thrown about. I stepped around them, heading for the still dragon.
“Little one?” I called out, kneeling next to the bed. I placed my hand on his brow, rubbing softly against the cool scales. He didn’t acknowledge my presence or touch. I grew more worried. I lifted his head with both my hands to make him face me. He closed his eyes.
“What’s the matter, little one?” He jerked his head away and replaced it on the bed, melancholy rolling off him in waves.
The bird whistled, drawing my attention to the back of the cave. I gasped in surprise to see the large trunk overflowing with treasure.
It was about the size of a clothes trunk, the top bowed to allow for more space. Opened, the gold and jewels spilled onto the floor, glittering in the early morning light. I knelt next to the trunk and heard the dragon hiss, a should I hadn’t heard before.
A glance in his direction proved that he hadn’t moved a muscle, although one of his yellow eyes was on me. I gave him my most motherly smile and set about scooping up the jewels and putting them back in the trunk.
A memory struck a cord within me as a surveyed the spilled jewels. It looked as if someone had been digging through the trunk, pushing out the coins as they failed to find what they were searching for.
Bat. He had found the diamond he’d first come here for. I had hoped he had forgotten about that, leaving the curse to lay dormant within him for as long as he never touched another jewel again. But he hadn’t.
He had seduced the innocent dragon into showing him his treasure and then took the diamond and left. Tears overflowing, I rushed to the dragon’s side.
“I’m so sorry, little one,” I sobbed, “I should have known he was like that.” I held the dragon and cried as he tried to pull away from me.
VII
I had moved our camp into the dragon’s cave, for he wouldn’t leave it. He also refused to turn back into his human form. He would eat, but only if I placed a bowl of food on his pillow so that he didn’t have to move very far. The air was thick and one could feel the sadness laying heavily on us all.
The bird twittered only a little, then, on the third day, disappeared altogether. I raged at the bird’s disappearance, for he had seemed to be the dragon’s only companion, a parent, if you will. Why would he abandon his charge?
I had to trek out to procure food, meats and fish from the stream. I was just on my way back from one such hunt when I felt the ground under me shake, knocking me to my knees. Rubbing at my sore knees, I returned to the cave to find that the entrance had been carved out. I dropped my basket, rushing forward when a much larger dragon appeared.
I slid to a stop, scraping my thighs as I fell to a stop behind some rocks. I covered my mouth with my hands, staring wide eyed as the creature demolished the cave before taking to the air with powerful strokes of its massive wings.
In its deadly talons, it held my little dragon’s treasure chest.
Panicked, I rushed to the cave, pulling at what rocks I could move, screaming. Perhaps he was alive still. I begged what gods I still had faith in to protect him. He was a child, an innocent, Nolyn, in all his mercy, should protect him. He was a dragon, graceful creature of magic; Sammy, last dragon born, in all your wisdom, protect him. Kendar, god of the dead, opener of the way, do not seek out his soul just yet. But these gods were not yet gods, I remembered.
I’d never prayed to Dar, that god being long dead before any of the others were born. Now I grasped onto his name as a grasped the sharp rocks, throwing them away from me.
Dar, god of fire, visions, and of the dead, before Kendar was born with your soul, protect my boy!
I felt hot tears tracking down my face as I pushed away the thought that he was dead, that the other dragon had killed him. He was my boy. I laughed as I realized that mage’s words were true. That damned thief had lead me to what I wanted. A child of my own.
Finally, with a crash, I fell through into the cave. I hissed in pain as rocks fell on my body, marking me in blood. Instantly, I was on my feet, calling out into the darkness. I could see nothing beyond the small beam of light from my entrance. I could hear the hint of hysteria in my voice.
Then there was something under my outstretched hand. I grasped tightly, pulling his face to mine, unmindful of the rough scales rubbing my cheek. “I’m so happy you’re all right.” I broke down crying then, falling to my knees with my arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
Once I stopped crying, I noticed that he was shaking as hard as I was. Pulling away, I set my hands to exploring his body for hurts. He had none, but there was blood on his flanks and he wouldn’t let me near that region. He licked me, trying to distract me from my explorations. One I sat back and wiped the tears from my eyes, he brought me my pack, the straps held in his muzzle.
“What?” He dropped it in my lap and began to paw at the blankets of his bed. He gathered them awkwardly into a pile before nudging them in my direction. He then rolled my water bottles toward me. My eyes widened. “You want to leave here. You want me to pack?” He huffed a cloud of dust on the ground, having laid down when I began to understand his wishes. I nodded. “All right, I get it. It’s dangerous to stay here. Who knows if that dragon will return, or even that thief.”
I packed what I though we would need, as quickly as I could, stumbling in the darkness. Before the sun had begun its descent in the sky, we were walking away from the foot hills, away from the king’s city. We followed the road for a while, moving off before we were spotted by anybody coming up the road. After two days of travel, the dragon turned away from the road and set out on his own path.
At night, instead of sleeping with me as he had before, the dragon found a tree strong enough to hold his weight and perched on the thick branches to sleep, leaving me alone on the forest floor. I missed his human form as well, for he still refused to assume it.
I felt sorry for him. First, Bat had betrayed him, leaving him after he had apparently given in and placed his love and trust upon the thief. Then the bird had disappeared. Then the other dragon had come and stolen what Bat hadn’t. I cried myself to sleep, for I knew that my dragon wouldn’t shed tears for himself.
We were a week on the road when the bird caught up with us. The blue creature first landed on my shoulder, whistling a sweet tune. I gasped in surprise, pausing in the process of spooning out a soup into a bowl.
“Where have you been? Do you have any idea what’s happened!?” The bird tilted his head, turning one green eye toward me to look at me fully. It whistled, then fluttered off to land on the dragon’s shoulder.
The dragon was once again perched on a tree, his belly pressed to the branch, his yellow eyes heavy lidded as he stared at nothing. The bird whistled, seemingly talking to him. When the dragon made no movement, the bird took to the air, coming in my direction. In mid-flight, it suddenly transformed into a human.
A human I recognized. I gasped, anger staining my cheeks red. I stood, my arms akimbo as I glared at him. “What is going on?”
He stared at me, green eyes swirling with several emotions I didn’t want to put a name to. “His treasure has been taken, hasn’t it?”
“What do you think? You’re the one that set that thief up to it.”
The mage waved a hand through the air. “The thief only took the diamond. I made sure that was all he took.”
“Why?”
Green eyes blinked at me, debating wether on telling me or not, no doubt. “It would have killed the boy had Bat taken any more. A dragon’s treasure is its pride.”
“Oh, but it was alright for Bat to take his heart instead?”
At least the mage had the decency to wince at that. “I hadn’t planned on that.”
“And just what had you planned on?”
“That king had heard of his treasure, the diamond. I knew he would never part with it willing, so I put it to the king that if he hired a thief, one capable of surpassing my magic, he could have the diamond. I never expected the thief to play with the boy like that.” He shook his head. “But, it had to be done. The king had been sending out knights to kill the dragon. I couldn’t let that happen.”
Stupidly, I felt my anger dissipating at his logic. He couldn’t have known that the dragon would give his heart to the thief. I dropped to the ground, removing the soup from the flames. The mage knelt before me.
“Who took his treasure?”
“Another dragon.”
He hissed, eyes turning to the dragon in the tree.
“What?”
“That was probably none other than his brother.”
“His brother!?”
The mage nodded, his long hair sliding over his shoulders. I was suddenly reminded that, as a bird, he had flirted outrageously with me. I felt a blush coming to my cheeks. I had bathed in the stream with that bird floating alongside me like a rubber duck. My hand went to the feathers that he had braided in my hair. I ground my teeth together so I didn’t do something stupid, like flinging the scalding hot soup in his face.
“Indeed. Our little friend there is the runt of his litter. As such, his larger brother often humiliates him by stealing what treasure he gathers.” The mage’s lips thinned. “I should have been here.”
“Yes, you should have.”
His shoulders flinched at that, but I felt no pity for him. He walked back to the tree, reaching up to touch the dragon’s claws. I couldn’t tell from this distance, but it looked like the scaled hand curled around the mage’s.
VIII
We continued walking for days on in. The mage, who’s name, I learned, was Scheal, spent most of that time in his human form, walking beside me, talking with me. He would still assume his bird form and perch on the dragon’s shoulder and whistle songs, or fly high above our heads and scout ahead. Sometimes, he would disappear from sight only to return with some trinket that glittered brightly in the sun.
The dragon would sit, pawing at the glistening piece for a bit before mouthing it and pulling at my pack until I opened it for the dragon to hide his new treasure. My bag quickly became very heavy.
Once in a while, we would find ourselves stumbling upon a village. The two men would find a place to hide and send me in to sell the herbs I had collected on the road and buy supplies. What money I had left over I bought trinkets to give to my boy, to help rebuild his lost treasure.
I think it made him happy. He didn’t walk with his head lowered as often. He sat with us while we ate, although he did still sleep perched in a tree, his bird sleeping in the crook of an elbow.
During our walk, Scheal made his suit known, drawing the dragon out of his stupor to glare at him whenever the mage would hold my hand, or touch my hair. Whenever the two of us would sit close, our heads together, the dragon would suddenly appear between us, nudging me for attention that I was hard pressed to deny.
At night when Scheal held me in his arms, our dragon would come from his perch and settle next to us, sharing our warmth. He was healing, slowly, but I had faith that I would see his human form again.
I felt it was close the night that Bat reappeared.
We were camped, sharing a rabbit that the dragon had caught, eating in near silence when he stepped out of the shadows into the circle cast by our fire’s light.
Instantly, the dragon was on his feet, teeth showing in a silent snarl. Scheal stiffened beside me, probably because he hadn’t shown himself to Bat before. I stood, glaring at the thief.
Blood was dripping from cuts on his hands, and from his nose. His chest heaved as he breathed heavily and fast, as if he’d run a great distance. He looked worse than when I first found him outside the king’s city. He had bags under his eyes, his ribs showing through his skin that peeked through holes in his shirt. Again was his face covered in bruises, blood dripping from his scalp.
“What do you want here?”
His eyes were on me, but on the dragon, who had taken several steps away, hiding in the shadows. Then he turned his gaze to Scheal. “You-”
“I.”
Bat shook his head, returning his glowing brown eyes to the dragon. “The cave . . .”
“Was destroyed,” I answered. “You’ve gotten the diamond-”
“And your freedom from the curse.” Scheal put in.
“Why are you here?”
Bat held up a drawstring bag. “How could I live with a dragon with that curse on me?”
I stared at him, eyes wide, stupefied. “But you . . .”
He walked forward boldly, toward the dragon who backed up, but was blocked by thick brush and trees. Bat knelt and drew open his bag. Out poured two objects that glittered by firelight.
The dragon’s gaze immediately turned to the large jewels presented him. One was his own diamond, pale pink and attacked to a thin gold chain. The other was the king’s clear topaz attached to a silver torc. Bat grinned. “Without his mage, that king’s defenses were nothing for me.” Then his eyes rolled up and he passed out, face first to the ground.
His form faded until a tiny fruit bat lay in his place, tiny chest heaving still. My hands flew to my mouth as I realized that he had flown here in that form and was probably exhausted. The dragon must have agreed, for he put out a foot and gathered the tiny mammal close and settled down to sleep, curled around his two new treasures. The bat gave a chirp, probably very uncomfortable laying rather than hanging.
Smiling behind my hands, I silently apologized for every bad thought I had had about the bat, Bat. Maybe he wasn’t as callous as I had put him out to be. Scheal placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled at me when I looked at him.
I went into his arms, happy that our family was again whole.
