Page 8 of Monster's Baby

I could feel his chuckles through the shaking of his body.

Taking reassurance from his confidence, I convinced my body to relax enough to open my eyes.

The view was breathtaking, the rising sun sending light shooting across an uninhabited landscape below us.I wasn’t brave enough to look straight down, instead keeping my gaze on the horizon.The trees looked like tiny toys, the fields like patchwork.It was beautiful, but I still didn’t like it.

Aiden patted my hands again.“You’re doing great.”

I appreciated his encouragement, but I hoped we wouldn’t have to be up here for long.

About half an hour later, a jet black stone building broke the calm view of the landscape.I knew without Aiden telling me that it was the magical jail.

We swooped in low, Tsunami landing smoothly in front of a building just outside the high wall.

“You have to get down first,” Aiden said.

“I don’t think I can,” I whimpered.

“You didn’t want to get up here, and now you don’t want to leave?”he teased.

“I think my legs have lost function.”

He chuckled lightly.“All right, hold onto the saddle.”He twisted around, somehow not getting his legs tangled in the reins, and landed on Tsunami’s lifted leg.“Come here, I’ve got you,” he said, holding both arms up to me.

Shakily, I pivoted so that both my legs were on the same side of the saddle, right between Aiden’s arms.He nodded at me, and I slid down until I was caught between his body and Tsunami’s warm side.

“Good?”he asked, petting my hair, which I had tied up in a crown of braids in preparation for the flight.

I nodded.

He clicked softly at the dragon, who lowered his leg for us to step off onto solid ground.

I nearly collapsed, but Aiden’s firm grip helped me keep my feet underneath me.

After a beat, I nodded at him and he let me go.

“Thanks, buddy,” Aiden said, scratching the dragon’s neck.“You go with the handlers now, all right?We’ll be back as soon as this is over.”

A guard greeted us at the door after Tsunami had been led away.

“We’re here to attend the hearing,” Aiden said.

The guard nodded, recorded our magical signatures, and unlocked the door for us.“Straight ahead, turn left, turn right, take the left fork, and it’s the fifth door on the right.You can’t miss it.”

He closed the door behind us before I could ask him to repeat the directions.

“Did you catch all that?”I asked anxiously.

Aiden chuckled.“Not even close.I’m sure there’ll be signs.”

Fortunately, we found our way to the hearing room, only backtracking once.There were many inmates lined up along the wall waiting for their turn, and I scanned them anxiously for the giant’s familiar face.

“We got here just in time!”I hissed to Aiden as we took seats in the back of the visitor’s area.“Gràineileachd is next!”

He nodded his understanding and we watched the judge proclaim that the current defendant had not yet completed his service.

“Next up, the giant Gràineileachd,” said a bored guard.

The giant, now the size of a human, stepped forward.I noticed that he wasn’t cuffed, like some of the others against the wall.

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