Page 196 of Upon Buried Embers
“It isn’t. You saw how the wild dragon attacked us out of The Pit. Yes it was hungry, but they’re still wary.”
“Then why did that dragon go all the way to your camp?”
“To seek safety,” he states simply. “I think he escaped whoever was trying to take him, which led him away from The Glade in the first place. He probably saw one of the dragons heading our way, and with my clan being the closest to The Glade, it makes sense.”
I nod, understanding. “We’ll never find out who tried to capture him with that net, will we?”
He shakes his head slowly, eyes on me. “No, probably not.”
My shoulders slump, and I stroke along Sparks’s spine.
“I’ll help in any way I can, I hope you know that.” I lift my eyes and watch him swallow roughly.
“I know you will.”
A little while later, those who went into The Glade come back out, unscathed, but no new Dragonbond emerged, no new bonds made.
I can tell they’re disappointed, and when they come over, they get pats and encouragement that there is always next year.
Dragons begin to roar in the distance not long after, and my head snaps that way as the tree tops rattle with movement. A blue dragon emerges, followed by another and another as night begins to set. They’re mainly blue and green, a few red that make me think of Frelia, then a single black one. No white.
It’s a magnificent sight, seeing all those dragons down the hill. Last year, I was lying on an empty potato sack, trying to get as comfortable as possible, hoping Master wouldn’t call for me, and now I’m here, witnessing this first hand, though I’m not sure what will happen.
They all gather before The Glade, circling and moving between themselves as the Dragonbond’s dragons sit off to the side, watching over them.
“What are they doing?” I ask Rohan.
He looks at Drogonah at the end of the line. “They watch over the Blessing in case anyone gets out of hand.” He looks at the large number of dragons. “And they’re scoping out options if they wish to participate.”
My brows furrow, and I wonder what he means when a red dragon starts bouncing on his feet in front of a blue one, just slightly smaller than him.
The red one circles the blue, tail now high and swishing. I sit up straighter, watching with rapt attention. I’ve never seen this before.
The blue then sits, watching the red dragon as it stops before it and spreads its wings out wide, then flaps them in small movements up and down.
“He’s showing her the size of his wings,” Rohan murmurs so only I can hear.
“What’s the reason?”
“Wingspan. The larger it is, the stronger the dragon.”
“Is that true?”
Rohan huffs, shrugging. “Who knows.”
“I think it’s nice.” The blue dragon now stands and moves closer.
“Nice?”
“Yeah.” I grin, looking at Rohan. “I didn’t know dragons danced and showed off. Why do they do that?”
Rohan looks at me, eyes dancing with amusement as cheers erupt from the hill. I jolt, looking around at the wide smiles and then Rohan is grabbing me, placing me between his spread legs.
Sparks doesn’t even rouse from sleep.
“They’re not dancing, Little Whisperer,” Rohan says, his breath tickling my ear.
“They aren’t?” I try to look back at him but he grabs my chin and holds me in place.
