Theo’s mind was racing as she and Jacinth crouched just within the tree line at the edge of a town. They’d taken the short route into Wystil, through the Archway.
The houses in front of them were well spaced out. They had their eyes locked onto one house about a hundred yards away, to where Xander had stealthily approached, slinking closely to the ground almost like a dragon.
What if he tricked us? she thought. Maybe his parents aren’t as bad as he said and we just led him home, never to see him come back out again. Then she recalled how nervous he had been right before he’d left them for his sister. She could tell he was hesitant, but he had made himself go anyway. His trust seemed placed in them, not where he was preparing to go. He’ll come back, she told herself.
The sky was patted down with dreary grey clouds. By every second, the light grew dimmer with the dusk. Time was dragging on and Theo was starting to believe that the boy had just proved the two of them to be fools.
“Can barely see through this drizzle,” Jacinth muttered, eyes narrowing.
“Maybe he’s not coming back,” Theo spoke her worries, but just then Jacinth hushed her, spotting something through the rain.
Theo looked and saw Xander’s figure leading a smaller person by the hand. As they got closer, Theo could see that the girl was significantly shorter than him, clothed in a simple commoner’s dress. Xander had to walk slowly for her, as she was very timid with her footing. At first, Theo was relieved. Then she began questioning herself. Is this a terrible idea? Isn’t she better off with a roof over her head?
“Where are we going, Greyson? I can barely see.” The girl’s voice was small, fitting for her size.
“Hey, I asked you to call me Xander, remember?” Xander responded kindly. “Can you say that, Damara? Xander?”
“Xander.”
“Good!” he praised her and Theo got confused.
His name is Greyson? Why does he call himself Xander?
The two children finally reached the woods, a little ways to the left of Theo. The dark allowed Theo and Jacinth to blend in with the trees.
“Xander?”
“Yeah, Little Sapling?”
“What are we doing?”
“I’m showing you my friends,” he answered, hugging her against his side.
“Who?” Damara sounded like an inquisitive owl.
“You’ll see,” Xander squinted into the forest, trying to scan the trees. “Jacinth? River? Hello?”
Theo’s mind was racing, trying to think of how they were going to reveal themselves without scaring the little girl. But before she could think of something, Jacinth stepped delicately out into view.
Damara squeaked, gripping tightly onto Xander’s tunic as she tried to hide behind him.
“Don’t worry, Damara,” Xander laughed lightly. “This is my friend, Jacinth.”
Damara peeked out, whether scared or shy, Theo couldn’t tell. Still, Theo did not come out from hiding until Xander asked her to. When he did, she reluctantly edged to where she could be seen, expecting the little girl to hide behind her brother again. She didn’t.
Just as cautiously as the two dragons had revealed themselves, Damara again took her place beside Xander.
“The blue-grey one is River.” Xander smiled, taking her hand again. “Would you like to say hello?”
Theo saw her blue eyes gazing up at her and Jacinth. Light brown hair clung to her face, dampened by the soft shower of rain. Her little mouth was opened slightly in wonder.
“Here, come on,” Xander pressed, softly pulling her closer. She stayed in place at first, then skipped a step forward to stay right next to him. “There you go. See, Damara?”
He bent to pick up a torch Damon had given him. It was still damp from passing under the Archway, but lit fine when Theo flicked a small flame onto it for him. Damara goggled in amazement.
“You breathe fire!” Damara whispered, enraptured by the torch that now cast a steady globe of light around them.
“Almost all of the dragons do,” Xander fascinated her. “Would you like to meet them?”
Damara took a moment, then nodded.
“Good,” Jacinth said, catching the little girl’s attention as she spoke. “We should be leaving now.”
As quickly as they could, with the little girl trying to keep up, they retreated into the trees where they would be concealed from the town’s view.
Theo observed how Xander seemed to have suddenly transformed, helping little Damara along and lighting the way with his torch held high. He didn’t seem so small and helpless now, like he was the day they caught him.
They moved through the forest until they reached Iron Creek, where the Archway was. There, they stopped to wait for the morning.
“Why do you call yourself Xander if your name is Greyson?” Theo asked the boy.
He scuffed the ground with his feet and shrugged his shoulders before answering, “I want to be known as something other than Grey’s son.”
“Oh,” Theo responded. “So, your father…Did he give you any trouble?”
“He was passed out on the floor when I snuck in.” Xander shook his head. “I don’t know where my mother was, but she wasn’t inside. Damara was asleep so I got her up and told her to be quiet. Then I grabbed these things on our way out.” He took blankets out from a bag he’d been wearing over his shoulder.
“You’ve been very brave today,” Theo told him. “I’m proud of you.”
Perhaps it was an odd thing to say to him, considering how short of a time she’d known him. But he seemed to appreciate it anyway, and she wondered if anyone had ever told him that before.
Like a puppy, Damara cuddled her brother for warmth while Theo and Jacinth traded off, sheltering the two children with open wings.
. . .
In the morning, they pondered as to how they were going to get Damara across the water. It had stopped raining just as the sun rose, brightening the overcast. The creek moved sluggishly, but there was no way the little girl could wade in it.
Eventually they decided the best way to do it was to have Damara cling around Jacinth’s neck, while standing on her shoulders. Theo would carry Xander’s bag in her jaws by the strap so the boy could go without the extra weight.
Damara squealed in delight, trying to lift her legs out of the water as she held tightly to Jacinth. When they got to where everyone had to pass under, Jacinth asked her if she was ready.
“Yes!” Damara giggled, making her grip on Jacinth even tighter.
“Hold your breath!” Xander reminded her as Jacinth and Damara disappeared underwater. He waited anxiously for a second and then dove under, yelling, “I’ll go next!”
When Theo joined them all, Damara wasn’t laughing anymore. She hung onto Jacinth like a miserable kitten, eyes blank.
“We have to get her warmed up. Now,” Theo said urgently and they hurried along, reaching the bank. Xander helped his sister get dry in front of Jacinth’s fire.
Damara began cheering up again, tittering when Theo flicked her tongue to make sparks rain down on Jacinth, who growled jokingly. Xander struggled to lift the bag weighed down with sopping wet blankets, emptying it out and hanging them to dry.
“Little girl!” Aspen piped joyfully, joining them. She met Damara, then rushed to bring Damon over. The Wizard escaped almost immediately after a mere “hello.”
During Damon’s extremely short welcoming, however, Theo couldn’t help but notice two new beetles on him, both different from each other and the last. This left Theo confused, but she supposed there were other matters worth pondering.
Damara caught on to everyone’s names right away. She got up and ran around squealing, “Jacinth! River! Aspen!” Xander sat back watching her lovingly.
Perhaps we made the right choice, after all! Theo thought, smiling at Jacinth.
Then Wycker showed up. “Who is this?” he snapped and Damara stumbled back in fright.
Xander caught her from behind, sitting her down in his lap. H
e eyed Wycker suspiciously, his arms wrapped protectively around his sister.
Jacinth stood up, facing off Wycker. “This is Damara,” she responded. “She’s Xander’s little sister and she has just as much right to be here as anyone else.”
Wycker bore his eyes at her. “Welcoming more humans into our land is a dangerous risk,” he said.
“Oh, so it’s our land now?” Jacinth questioned. “Are you suggesting that we’ve claimed territory for ourselves? Feeling a little possessive, Wycker?” She glared at him challengingly.
Wycker did not budge. “I will not withhold something from any rogue or Colonist. But for anything below dragons, a line must be drawn.”
“Dragons are not superior to humans!” Jacinth blared at him. In her anger, she was seemingly unable to stop flames, white-hot with fury, from flashing out in front of his face.
Damara squirmed in Xander’s embrace and he hugged her closer. Then, as though something changed his mind, he got up, leaving his sister with Theo and Aspen. They watched, stunned as he went to stand beside Jacinth.
“Jacinth, don’t bother,” he said, tugging on her wing for attention. “I know humans like him and there’s no changing their minds.”
Wycker stiffened, but kept his jaws locked tightly shut.
“Xander!” Damara called, getting up before Theo could stop her. The little girl ran to her brother, who met her with open arms and kissed her on the forehead.
“Go complain to Adder if you must,” Jacinth hissed at Wycker. “Hear what he has to advise. But this little girl is better off here and I’m not about to deny her that safety.”
Wycker shot them all one last glare and turned to stalk away.
Chapter 19