Page 84 of Scalebound

“C’mon. Let’s get some food in you, and then let’s talk. Yeah?” Damian suggested, taking me by the arm.

The heat of his body transferred to mine, making the coldness and ice that I still felt from the presence of the Deathlies fade away. I wanted more of him, more of his touch, craving him and his promised protection.

Angie's hands moved deftly, passing around charred morsels of meat and serving up wooden plates crafted by Loker, each containing various leaves and meticulously sliced vegetables. “Sorry, the meat is burnt,” Angie apologized, her gray tunic beneath the black straps casing her body danced behind her as she sauntered toward us. “It was Luella’s first time. She really wanted to try cooking tonight,” she whispered.

I didn’t even care how burnt the meat was. I just needed something to fill my growling stomach. We hadn’t eaten all day except for a few berries in the morning before we left to come here.

Clemmy was found on the opposite side of the fire where more meat was rotating above it, held up by Loker’s abilities. Her wrist flicked upward, growing small sideways trees around the fire; the perfect seating arrangement. The bark crackled as it rose from the ground and slithered along the grass, small twigs poking through every few feet, leaves peeking out.

As she finished, she wiped her hands clean and sat down on the closest trunk to her. I found my way to a tree trunk near me, and traced the wood with my fingers, feeling the liveliness of it; Damian linked with my other arm, sitting beside me.

His fingers made their way toward my thigh, delicately placing them as if they were meant to always be there. The warmth of his hand felt right. His touch felt right. I looked up, smiling at him, loving the dimple that I saw in return.

He felt right.

A sharp chill cut through the stillness, causing our breaths to hang in the air like wisps of smoke. The season grew closer toNesaiman1, the atmosphere becoming crisper.

Everyone was around the fire, taking bites of the various vegetables and meats, eating them all sparingly. Loker’s eyes wandered, looking at each of us across the fire until they settled on Angie, who sat down with her made shift plate in her hands, plopping some of the red vegetables in her mouth.

He opened his mouth, saying, “You know Angie, you make a big deal about burnt meat for burning it a lot yourself,” he chuckled at his own joke, widening his eyes as he polished his portion of meat, licking his fingers clean.

Abner’s arm was wrapped around Angie’s waist as they sat side by side on the log, him also partaking of the vegetablesplaced on his plate. She shook away his hold, staring daggers at Loker, her brow knitting together. “You promised you would never bring that up, Loker,” she said, venom lacing her words.

Abner looked away, stifling a laugh, pretending it to be a cough, Clemmy joining in. Angie shot them both glares as they did so.

“That was the night that you joined us, right, Loker?” Clemmy asked, her smile widening, forcing herself to hide more of her laughs.

“Yep. When you caught me in that trap,” Loker said, throwing his wooden plate in the fire, and sitting back on the log comfortably. Angie’s expressions softened, a smile starting to peak. “Who set that one up again, anyway?” Loker joked, fiddling with his wooden whistle between his fingertips.

Clemmy cleared her throat, shooting her gaze toward Angie. Each of our eyes followed, watching Angie’s golden blood rush to her face. “Fine. Fine. It was me. Honestly, you’re such a problem that I wish it was a plump animal rather than a plump Scaleborne,” she said, the smile that she was trying to hide growing on her face. This also set Loker to giggles. Clemmy coughed as laughter fought her throat.

“Well, it was a good one. I thought all of my golden blood was going to start running through my ears for how long I was upside down for,” Loker chuckled, glancing his eyes toward Damian and I.

“How did you all find each other?” I asked, feeling the need to jump into the conversation as well. Abner pulled Angie in closer and she accepted his embrace as they both continued to swallow their food. Clemmy and Luella were across from us on the fire, devouring their food as their laughs slowed.

“We all found each other at different times, starting from our own journeys,” Abner stated, eyeing Damian and me. “I fled into the Forbidden Forest seeking solace with my mother at a youngage. She died not too long after we fled and I was in the forest by myself for a while.”

I thought of Abner being alone in the Forbidden Forest at such a young age–the mind games that it plays on you, the way it draws you in. Damian and I were lucky enough to not have experienced any of the mind games it plays on people, but I knew enough about it from my books.

He continued, “I remembered Angie from when I was young. After connecting withWaimanimet2, I went back to search for her. I felt a need, for some reason. Good thing I did, as she was also alone.” He looked at her as he said it. She wouldn’t match his gaze, her eyes staring off into the dirt.

Clemmy broke the sudden silence, “Then I found them, after running away from my Shamla community, then Loker, which was when we found him from one of the snares GG set up.” Loker saluted toward Angie. She saw his gesture and crossed her arms, leaning further back on her log, rolling her eyes.

“Then I found them!” Luella exclaimed, excitement filling her voice. “Not so long ago, either. But you all are my family.” Tears lined her eyes, ready to overfill and burst. She glanced my way, and I smiled, already feeling as Luella alongside everyone else was starting to feel like family to me too.

“Where did you come up with the name Scalebound?” Damian asked, everyone’s golden eyes glancing his way.

“I came up with it!” Loker announced, bowing with his words.

“Did you hear it from somewhere?” I asked him, thinking about the book I read on Scalebornes. The four elements that had the titleSCALEBOUND.

“Not until Clemmy told us that it was what it was called when we connected with our dragons.” Glancing at Clemmy, she also made eye contact with me, her head tilting, realizing that my head was spinning. I had never heard of the term Scaleboundbeing used in connection to the dragons, but only when talked about for the four elements. Did it have dual connotations?

We each slowly finished our meal, throwing the wooden plates into the fire, watching the flames crackle and billow higher.

“Lia, do you know who might be behind the Deathlies? Since they are happening in your kingdom?” Angie asked, stretching her back on the log. The responsibility felt heavy on my shoulders.

“I’m not sure. The only person I could think of having the possibility would be the sorcerer who tried to have me killed in the first place. My grandmother has magic, but she is older. I am unsure if it would be this strong.” I told them about my grandmother. I wanted to lie about it to keep her safe. The lie almost rolled off my tongue, placing the blame solely on Tybalt. It was true that my grandmother had magic, but it might work if she used some sort of connection to tether her magic to and be the power source for this spell. But what would be powerful enough to fuel something like the Deathlies?

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