Page 2 of Riding My Dragons

“Really,” said the frizzy-haired guy.“We weren’t trying to be any trouble.”

The husky, smelly one didn’t say anything aloud.He just backed off a little more and muttered something that no one probably wanted to hear.

I suggested with just enough of a reptile hiss in my voice, “Then why don’t you guys just move along and let Jenna get back to her class.It’s almost time for Byron here to give his speech.”

“Right,” said Byron.He glanced over in the direction of Jenna’s group.“Look, here comes the professor now.”

Sure enough, the gent with the salt-and-pepper hair who had been talking to the rest of the college group was moving in our direction, asking, “What’s going on?Jenna, what are you doing over here?There’re just a few minutes until the ceremony.”

“It’s all right,” said Byron, letting his face morph back to human.“I’m ready for my speech.We just noticed Jenna here had gotten separated from the rest of the class.”

The professor was startled for a moment, recognizing Byron the way Jenna’s “friends” recognized me.Byron, with his well-heeled and politically well-connected family, was one of the most prominent people in Pendrake City.“Oh, Mr. Ledger,” said the professor.“I didn’t realize it was you.”

“We have everything in hand here,” said Byron.Looking right at the three losers, he said with a subtle edge in his voice, “And these guys were just getting on their way.No harm done, right?”

The losers nodded nervously and answered with a chorus of, “Right.Sure.No harm; we were just going.”They didn’t say another word.The three of them just showed us their backs as they walked as fast as they could without breaking into a run across the museum courtyard.

Jenna’s whole manner relaxed, and Cade and I let our faces return to human.Exhaling with relief, Jenna showed me a soft smile that told me what a good thing I’d just done.“Thank you so much,” she said.“I’m sorry; it seemed like they knew who you are, but…um…,” she was a little embarrassed now, “I’m not placing you.”

Clapping his hand on my shoulder and giving me a friendly shake, Cade said, “Jenna, you mean you’ve never heard of Elliot Ladon?He’s one of the best dragon racers and wrestlers in Pendrake Province.You ought to see all his trophies.”

“Stop it,” I said.It was my turn to be embarrassed now.“Obviously Jenna doesn’t follow sports and that’s all right.”To Jenna, who was still gazing at me, but now with a kind of fascination that was also a very good look for a quietly pretty girl, I said, “I’m just glad we were here to help.”Tilting my head in the direction of where the three fools hurried off, I said, “It didn’t look like they were the kind of company you want.”

Jenna brushed a hand through her hair.“No, definitely not,” she said.

“It’s not social time yet anyway,” said the professor.“We should be letting Mr. Ledger get up onto the front steps.And you, Jenna, need to get back with the rest of the class.You know you’re not supposed to lag behind.”

“I’m sorry, Professor,” said Jenna.To me, she said, “He’s right; I need to get over there with the others.”

“Since we’re going that way too, we’ll walk with you,” I suggested.The natural shyness that I sensed about Jenna came over her.She looked away from me and then back at me, withanother smile that suggested to me how much she liked that idea.I liked that she liked it.

As we walked with the professor back to where the rest of the class group had gathered, I stayed next to Jenna and decided I’d make another suggestion, just to see what would happen.

“If you’ve never seen a dragon wrestling match,” I said, “I’m having one tomorrow.“If you’re interested, I could give you a pass.You could come as my guest.”

She blinked at that, startled at the idea.“A wrestling match?”

“A dragon wrestling match,” I repeated.“It’s more like the kind of wrestling they do in college than those fake things with the loud, muscled-up humans.”

“Except you do it in your…other body,” she guessed, looking up at me with continuing fascination.And there was something fascinating about her too; I couldn’t exactly make out what it was.Something told me that Jenna was not the typical college girl or the typical young woman.There was something about her that seemed different from any female, human or my own kind, that I’d ever met.I couldn’t explain it, but I could sense it was there and something in me wanted to know what it was.

“Right,” I said.“Dragon wrestling—as a dragon.”

We reached the rest of her class and Byron continued on to the wide front steps of the museum, leaving Cade and me with the college group.

“Listen, if you’re not interested in sports, I understand,” I said.“I know not everyone is.I just thought my offer was more honestly friendly than the one you were getting from those characters.”

“It is,” said Jenna.“And you know, my break is starting tomorrow, and I didn’t have any plans…”She gave me a lookthat felt like sunshine pouring out of her.“You know, it’ll be something different.Okay, yes, I’d like to see you wrestle.”

“Great,” I said.And I imagined Jenna picturing me in my other shape, with my scales and my dragon neck, my wings and horns and tail.I actually dared to wonder just for a second if she might even picture me another way.She reminded me of the first girl that I ever went to bed with.It was her first time as well as mine.Something in the way Jenna looked me up and down took me back to my times with that first girl, and the way she looked at me when we undressed together for the first time.There was a natural sense of discovery about it.But no, I swatted that thought from my head, at least for the time being, since I didn’t really know anything about Jenna or any of her past experiences.This, I decided, was about doing something nice for her.That was all–just something nice for someone that I thought deserved it.

And maybe after the match, I could find out something more about her.

There was a nudge at my arm and I looked over at Cade, who gave me a crooked smile and a little shake of his head.I could tell what was on his mind.Elliot, she’s in college.She’s no older than nineteen.We’re twenty-five.What are you doing there, sport—robbing the nest?

Cade had a point, after all.Jenna and I weren’t exactly on the same page in life.We weren’t actually in the same book, so to speak.But for some reason I needed to get to know her.It didn’t have to mean anything else but finding out who she was.

Or so I told myself at the time.

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