He mimed wiping sweat from his brow. “Anders, Lisabet, this is Theo, kidnapping victim and dragon, all in one piece as you can see.”
Theo pulled one hand from his pocket, wiggling his fingers in a slightly awkward wave of greeting.
“Were you scared?” Anders asked, wincing even as he said it. Of course Theo had been scared. But he probably didn’t want to offend the dragons by saying so.
“Terrified,” Theo replied cheerfully. “But I think my ma knew what was happening. I can’t be sure, but she kind of looked at me when they grabbed me, and I just—I could see it in her eyes. I think she knew why the dragons were there, like maybe she knew something about our family, or suspected. And then she was kind of distracted by the fire in the stables.”
“That was your house?” Now Anders’s eyebrows were up high. “Last equinox? Everyone heard about that when it burned down.”
“That was an accident,” Mikkel said straight away.
“It was,” Theo agreed. “And everyone was safe, the dragons checked.”
“It’s a pretty serious accident,” Lisabet pointed out.
Rayna, in that forceful way she spoke when she wanted to change the subject, changed the subject. “Mikkel studies history, he knows all about this garden.”
Mikkel was diverted, immediately transferring his attention to the history of the place in a way that reminded Anders of Lisabet when she got her hands on a book about something interesting.
“It was created by a dragon called Flic,” he said, turning to look out at the gardens. “At least five hundred years ago, maybe more. It’s part invention, part artifact, part... genius. They say she had a special gift with plants, knowing exactly where they should go, or coaxing them to grow in the most unlikely places.”
“There’s a waterfall named for her over on the west coast,” Ellukka said. “I went there with Leif and my father once, and I’ve studied her in class. There are all kinds of things growing there, and they say she had her workshop out that way, long ago.”
“What kinds of classes do you all take?” Lisabet asked. “They were talking about the Finskól just now, and it sounded like some kind of school.”
“You’re joining the Finskól?” Mikkel looked impressed, and Theo, pleased.
Ellukka nodded confirmation. “They were about to vote to throw them out or lock them up. Leif claimed them for the Finskól at the last second, it was all he could do.”
“Sparks and scales,” Theo murmured. “Pretty sure that didn’t go down well.”
“Not really,” Ellukka agreed, turning to the two wolves. “There’s twelve of us now, including you two. Rayna and I, Theo and Mikkel are all Finskólars. Leif’s the teacher.”
“The dragons don’t have big schools like Ulfar Academy,” Rayna explained. “Mostly their parents just teach them, and some dragons run small schools for groups of students they choose. They start schools because they’re particularly good at something, usually. And of course the Drekleid always runs the Finskól. Saphira and Mylestom—you saw them on the Dragonmeet—they graduated from the Finskól last year, and the younger dragons worked together to elect them to the Dragonmeet. The Drekleid is the only person who can decide who’s a Finskólar, and nobody can overrule him. Going to the Finskól is a sign you’re going to really be somebody.”
Anders’s mouth felt dry. The last thing he wanted—the last thing he could imagine—was to be somebody. All he wanted was a safe place to live, and there was nothing safer than anonymity.
“Everyone in the Finskól chooses their own area to study,” Rayna continued. “Or has their own reason for being there. Leif chose me because he said I was quick-thinking, and I’ll have to choose what area to study in a little while, but right now I’m just working on my reading and writing.”
“I’m learning storytelling,” Ellukka said. “Stories are powerful. They can teach people, change their minds, make them laugh, or cry, or remember, or forget. So I’m learning about how to tell them, as well as learning as many stories as I can.”
“I’m history,” Mikkel said, with one of his smirks. “And there’s plenty of that.”
“I’m research,” Theo added. “I’m only a few months in, but I’ve already learned so much. The records here are kind of a mess—for example, Mikkel and Ellukka aren’t even sure how long ago Flic lived, and they can’t easily look it up. Ellukka’s father, Valerius, is an archivist, but he spends most of his time dealing with the Dragonmeet these days. So my focus is going to be on how to keep better records, which is basically how to keep track of what we actually know and what we don’t. When the dragons moved here after the last great battle, everything got jumbled. There are whole storerooms full of artifacts in the archives that could hold anything.”
Lisabet looked very approving of all these areas of study, but Anders felt a bit faint. He was terrible at reading and writing, and in his weeks at Ulfar he’d found every lesson a struggle. What was he going to do in a class for gifted students? He’d be found out as a fraud in no time. Then again, perhaps Leif already knew he wasn’t suitable—he’d only brought him in to keep him safe. It made sense for Rayna to be there—as Leif had already noticed, she was quick-thinking, always ready with a plan or an idea. Frankly, it was better to have Rayna on your side, where you could see her, than off somewhere causing trouble. But Anders?
Still, he was in the safest place he could be, and he was grateful for that. If he wanted his icefire to show up again, if he wanted to protect himself and those he cared about, perhaps he could start by studyinghimselfat the Finskól.
The young dragons—or at least Ellukka, Mikkel, and Theo—seemed willing enough to welcome him and Lisabet into Drekhelm, albeit a bit cautiously. Leif’s approval evidently went a long way.
Lisabet’s excitement at all there was to learn here was pushing her past her fear and worry, at least for now. But now that things were settled, Anders couldn’t help thinking of the looks on the faces of their packmates as they ran, and the frowns of the Dragonmeet as they’d stared down the two wolves in their midst. Was it possible they could be safe here? What would happen when Sigrid started to use the Snowstone?
He’d been on a mission for weeks—first to get into Ulfar, then to figure out how to find Rayna, to get to her. He’d never really thought past making it to Drekhelm, and now he had a new challenge in making a home here. For now, he’d keep quiet and try to learn more about this place, and hope against hope a way forward presented itself.
They’d always found a way to survive. They would now too.
Anders and Lisabet didn’t attend the dragons’ equinox celebrations that night. It was one of the most important nights of the year for dragons, and for wolves. At the equinox, day and night were of equal length, and the magical essence found in nature—the essence that gave the wolves their ice spears and the scorch dragons their flame, that allowed both groups to make their transformations—was at its strongest. Lisabet had told Anders that the wolves celebrated the equinox quietly, with a night of reflection. The dragons, on the other hand, were famous for their parties.
