Page 105 of Mikoto and the Reaver Village
Mikoto sighed. “I need to go home. Lupe is there, and shemight know the name I need.”
“Your Lupe?” Zisa’s smile faltered.
“She is not mine,” he mumbled, avoiding the tree’s gaze.“Sinder thinks she is the one who has been bringing the wind.”
“Her … twin?”
“Maybe a little like that.” Mikoto gently extricated himselffrom Zisa’s embrace. “I will not know until I ask. Or until the wind haswords.”
Zisa made a little shooing motion, although he said, “Comeback soon.”
Mikoto nodded and set his face toward home, though his stepslagged. Feeling overly conspicuous, he left the path, sneaking through thetrees until he reached the back gate. He hesitated there, suddenly feeling likean outsider.
How long had he been at Zisa’s? Ten days, more or less.Yulin would know for sure. Was that all the time it took for him to become astranger to everything?
Even grief?
Even heartbreak?
Maybe he had allowed himself to become wrapped up with thenewcomers in order to distract himself. Had he been putting off coming homebecause pain would ambush him here?
Mikoto let Noble down, putting off the inevitable longenough for the pup to piddle on a fencepost. Trudging to the door, he slippedinside and stood listening.
After so many days of male companionship, he worried aboutreturning to a house filled with females, but time had been passing here, aswell. He peeked through enough doorways to confirm that his older half-sisters hadgone back to their own houses. Were they done with mourning and getting on withWardenclave business? Picking up Mikoto’s slack. Seeing to the needs of theirannual guests.
He supposed he was feeling less blighted by his father’sabsence. Although he really would have liked his opinion on wind lore.
The achingly familiar rustle of paper came from the nextroom, and Mikoto turned toward it. Yulin was here. He would hear Mikoto out. Hemight even know something helpful. Mikoto hurried forward, totally unpreparedto find Lupe lounging on a sofa, nibbling on toast while paging through acommunique.
Stumbling to a stop, his mind stalled.
Lupe. He’d barely given her a thought in all the days he’dbeen at Zisa’s. And for the first time in his life, the sight of her broughtmixed feelings.
The air in the room seemed to swell and settle, and Lupelooked up. “Hello, Mikoto. I was beginning to think you were avoiding me.”
He shook his head. “Not really.”
“Glint emerged from your room days ago.” Her lips tippedteasingly. “Where have you been?”
“My uncle’s.”
She searched his face. “Are you doing okay?”
Mikoto was tempted to make an excuse and shy away from thethings that made him want to run. But he felt as if he’d made promises—to Zisa,to Sinder, to Kyrie. And that in a way, they were at his back, lending theirsupport.
“I am better. I will be fine. The founders are watching overme.”
Noble scampered into the room. Lupe exclaimed over him, andMikoto explained about Glint’s gift. She listened and laughed and put him atease. And still, he had a hard time broaching the topic they needed to discuss.
Thinking to work his way up to it, he blurted, “May I askyou something?”
Lupe settled back, her hands folded over her belly. “What’son your mind?”
“Is it possible that you brought a stowaway when you camehere?” Backpedaling, he clarified, “Not youpersonally. I meant yourtraveling party.”
“I’ll need you to be more specific,” she said carefully.
“A little creature.” He measured Rifflet’s length with bothhands. “Looks like some variety of Ephemera, probably because of its size. Wethink it belongs to some branch of dragonkind. My friend believes it to be awind dragon.”
