Page 46 of Don't Fae With Dragons

I glare at him, and he holds his hands up in surrender. “As I was saying, Ethelinda is in danger. The past fortnight that I spent in the town, the crops were all but gone, a drought having overtaken the land. The people were sick in large numbers, and many of those infected had fallen into comas or passed on. My friend–” my voice stops as I start to mention Chrysthinia, and Cory rushes to my side.

I try to shoo him away, but he kneels beside me and takes my hand in his. He brushes his thumb over my knuckles, the same spot he kissed earlier, and I sigh in relief at his touch.

After a moment, he asks me quietly, “What do you need me to do?”

I take a deep, shaky breath in, and continue. “I did a lot of reading in the fortnight that Ethelinda fell sick. I have a collection, sort of anthology, you could say, of old tomes. I scoured them for a possible answer, but there was nothing that would match the scale of the devastation in Ethelinda – except maybe a great healing spell.”

“As such, I think the best course of action is to call a healing rain. It will break the drought and wash away the cursed pollutants of the land, and its cleansing properties will rid the townspeople of their disease. I came here because I can’t call it alone, and since you’re the dragon guardian–”

“–You knew I’d be able to handle it?” Cory asks quietly. I nod, and he hums quietly in answer. I sit there for a moment as he kneels before me, still rubbing my hand in his. Eventually, he murmurs, “Are you sure you’re strong enough? I mean – I mean, is your magick healed enough? I don’t want you to get hurt. Not ever again.”

Even if I wasn’t ready, I’d certainly lie to save my people. Being here, though, I know I’ll soon be stronger than I’ve ever been. “I might ... need to train more, just a few more days,” I admit.

Cory smiles at my honesty, and I smile shyly back at him. He says, “Done,” then we clean up the table together and go to meet Port and Max for training.

CHAPTER 31: MILI

It’s been three days since Cory agreed to help me with the spell, and it’s officially time for us to call the healing rain. I’ve been preparing my part of the spell for hours in the dead of night, since I plan to meet him just before sunrise, I can only hope that Cory is doing his part. It’s not that I doubt him, I just ...worry.

I’ve never had to rely on a partner for a spell before, so I keep telling myself it’s normal to be nervous. It’s normal to worry he’ll forget his part, or back out at the last minute, or won’t care enough about the spell for it to work.

Even as I think through the worries clearly, I can sense how ridiculous and irrational they are. Still, that doesn’t make the fear just go away.

I collect two small sachets – one for me, one for Cory –and the rest of the herbs and supplies I’ll need for my enchantment, then I head to the door. I ring the bell, as Cory instructed me to, and pace impatiently while I wait for Max or Port to arrive to walk me to the top of the cinder cone.

Finally, a softknock-knock-knockas someone arrives at my door – I can already tell that it’s Port, the sound is so gentle – and I swing the door open hurriedly.

“Hello, Milica,” he smiles. His eyes are sloped down at the corners, betraying a hint of concern, and I sigh.

“Don’t look so anxious, Port,” I mumble, half-glaring up at him.

At that, he smiles and shakes his head in amusement. “I’m not anxious, Mili. Perhaps thoughtful.” I hum noncommittally in response and he rolls his eyes, though he’s still smiling. “Well,” he starts quietly, “are you ready?”

That’s the question, isn’t it?Am I ready?I blow out a heavy breath and force myself to nod, pushing down all the fears that we’ll fail, thatI’llfail. We won’t fail, though. We can’t. I feel myself frowning, and Port’s brows furrow in concern.

“Mili?” he asks, stepping closer to me. “Are you alright?” His hand lands on my arm, and I shiver slightly at the touch. He pulls away, embarrassed, but I don’t want him to. I want him here, wrapped around me –touching me, holding me.

I don’t look at him as I step closer and bury my face in his chest, wrapping my hands around his back. He hesitates for a second before wrapping his hands around me, too, and I sigh quietly at the smell of his crisp apple and green leaves under the rain scent. “Can we stand here for a moment?” I whisper.

Port runs a hand through my hair and replies, “We’ll stay as long as you like.”

I focus on Port’s gentle fingers brushing through my hair, trying to quiet my spiraling thoughts. After a moment, he rests his chin on the top of my head, and a small smile blooms across my features. Port’s gentleness, I realize, is exactly what I need right now –especially before I have to work alongside Cory’s fieriness.

It’s strange; the three shifters make each other stronger, but also more at ease, more balanced. Port’s soft intuitiveness, Max’s rough-around-the-edges protectiveness, and Cory’s powerful leadership work together to create something beautiful. It’s something I want to be a part of –withallof them. The thought is as exciting as it is terrifying, and I wrap my arms tighter around Port.

A minute later, I sigh and slowly start to pull back from Port –there’s no more time to waste, as much as I’d like to stay here with him all morning. He smiles knowingly at me and holds out an arm for me to hold onto as we walk down the hall.

My hand around his elbow, Port and I make our way up to the top of the mountain. We walk in total silence, each of us enveloped in our own thoughts. Strangely, I don’t devolve into thoughts about the spell right away; instead, I feel myself still flushed from the warmth of Port’s embrace.

As we see the staircase to the volcano’s peak come into view, I tilt my head to glance privately at him, trying quietly to commit his features to memory. My gaze quickly runs over his smooth porcelain skin, warmed by the orange sconces on the walls, his lovely, hooded eyes. Without realizing it, I step closer and closer to him until our hips are nearly touching.

He looks down at me with a hint of surprise in his eyes, but it quickly turns to a smile. I blush harder and face forward again, though I wrap my hand more tightly around his arm. We continue walking, but Port slows us down as we near the stairs, as though he can’t bear to part with me yet.

After a moment of silence, he asks softly, “Do you know how brave you are, Mili?”

“Me?” The word tumbles out of me without a thought, and I become embarrassed at my disbelief in myself. “I mean –I never thought I was especially brave. Certainly notnow.”

“You are, though,” Port continues earnestly. “You came here, alone, even when you thought you might fail, and even when you thought you were being hunted. You haven’t shied away when Cory has been brash, or Max has been callous, or I’ve been ... too much.”

---