I burst out laughing, tossing my head back to fully enjoy it. The hood fell back, and the world spun around me. Around us. I was exactly where I was meant to be and with whom I was meant to be with. I could feel it in my wing bones.
Chapter Eleven
“This does not look safe,” I noted as I peered at the short blade and metal plate I was supposed to attach to my boot. “You're telling me that we have to strap daggers to our feet so we can do that?” I pointed at the people gliding over the ice.
The Dragon King and I were seated on a wooden bench to the side of the circular area that had been scraped clean even more thoroughly for ice skating. Some skaters were doing amazing twirls and speeding around the other people, but most were sort of shuffling in a circle, occasionally falling. The falling, in my mind, was inevitable. It was the fact that they stayed up at all that baffled me.
I narrowed my eyes. “Is magic required?”
“Not at all. The edge on the skate cuts into the ice, creating a channel to take you forward,” Rian said. “Think of cutting a frozen piece of meat. Your knife goes forward with your momentum, but it doesn't go deep and the meat itself seems to guide you.”
“I have never cut a piece of frozen meat in my life. Why would anyone do that?” I asked dryly, getting a laugh out of him. “However, I can see the channels on the ice myself. It's fascinating. So the channels created by the blade give you bettercontrol, while a sleigh has wider platforms to keep it above the snow, giving the horses control.”
“Exactly. The function of a sleigh is different since it's dealing with snow instead of ice. Ice gets slick. You need the blade to keep you from—”
Someone cried out and fell on their butt. I looked up to see a Hulfrin man prone and laughing, his lady friend bent over him, laughing as well. Then I looked closer.
“Am I mistaken or are all the Hulfrins here white?” I asked, peering at the Hulfrin's leonine face, his mane as white as the snow.
“Yes, of course,” the King said.
I looked back at him. “Yes,of course?”
“The Hulfrin here are of the Snow Clan,” he said. “They evolved to blend in with their environment. Their fur and hair is white and their skin, what little you can see, is either fair or pink.”
“Their environment isn't always white.”
“No, but that is when they're most vulnerable.” He shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe their gods gave them this complexion because it amused them and it has nothing to do with the snow. They say it was evolution, and I respect their beliefs enough not to question them.”
“Beliefs are funny things,” I murmured. “They can be wrong and still, letting go of them can be painful.”
“Yes.” Rian's peridot stare coasted over my face. “Do you have any incorrect beliefs?”
I grinned. “If I do, I don't recognize them as such.”
He chuckled—a low, sexy sound. “No, I suppose you wouldn't. We need someone to show us they're incorrect.”
“In my case, I would need irrefutable proof.” I nodded toward the Hulfrin who had finally got to his feet and was wobbling across the ice. “And the only proof I see regarding this device is inconclusive.” I waved the ice skate. “It works poorly at best.”
The King smiled and shook his head. “It's a skill that must be learned. Put on the skates, Galin. I will teach you.”
I sighed and strapped on the ice skates. Then I attempted to stand and fell right back onto the bench.
“Whoa now!” Rian steadied me. “Let me get up first.” He stood up but kept his knees slightly bent. “See? If you go straight, you'll immediately start to glide. You want to keep your knees bent and center your weight. Holding your hands out to the sides will help as well.”
“Ah, yes.” I took his hands, set my feet firmly, and got up. “Much easier.”
“All right. Now, the fun part,” Rian said. “I will brace you while you push off. You want to slide a foot forward, then slightly out to the side, using the flat of the blade to propel you.”
I gave him a grim look that had him chuckling again. Then I slid a foot forward. Instantly, I glided toward him. With a cry, I gripped his hands tighter, but I still fell face-first into his chest.
Rian's scent hit me, that spicy forest smell of pine resin and man. I breathed in deeply and closed my eyes.
“Galin?” Rian's voice rumbled through his chest and into my ear.
Reluctantly, I lifted my head. “I don't think this is going to work.”
“Please, tell me you mean the ice skating and not us.”
