“Give me a minute to tie this on!” I called down loudly.
His neck curled, he lifted his head and chuffed a breath in answer.
“I suppose I don’t have to yell,” I said to myself as I fastened the rope ends into double knots around two different spikes. His spikes ran in a single line down his neck, stopping at the base and along his back then rising again down the center of his tail.
“All right. I’m ready!”
He grunted and lifted onto his legs, beating his wings softly and swirling the air. With a bending of his legs, he lurched upward. I squealed and held on to two spikes as he rose at a gentle angle until we were far above the city of Vulsinii. He leveled, his wings spread wide as we soared, but he continued to ascend until we were in the clouds.
The air was cold and damp, the wind pushing against me, but the rope held tight. The tug at my waist was a comfort. I knew if I fell, Trajan would catch me, but that didn’t keep the fear away. I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself.
After several moments, I felt the warmth of the sun. Opening my eyes, I saw that he’d taken us above the clouds, the rising sun radiating its glow upon us. The blanket of clouds below us looked like a golden shield, separating us from the world below. Somehow, that felt comforting. Me upon a dragon, soaring far above the world that had hurt me so much.
Then I remembered the stories of Julian and his woman, how he’d flown away with her on his back. I’d been so envious of this woman I’d never met or seen, wanting to be her so badly when I was still in Valerius’s home.
That felt like eons ago, a lifetime away. I didn’t even feel like the same person I was then. How could I be? I’d been caged and muzzled, but now I was flying above the earth, freer than I’d ever been my entire life. Even more than when I lived in Dacia. Because even then, we worried about the threat of Rome. Now, I was no longer anxious about Rome or its reach. I trusted Trajan when he told me we would be far enough away that we were safe from Caesar.
I settled my gaze on the clouds and the sunlight filling the sky, letting the beams warm me as we coasted high and hidden from the world.
After some time, Trajan dipped below the clouds, nothing but deep blue ocean and white-capped waves far below. I watched the waters, seeing nothing at all. No sign of Neptune riding a leviathan, no sea creatures breaking the surface. We felt alone and separate from the world, a wondrous, magnificent feeling I wanted to last longer.
Eventually, the coast emerged in the distance. As we drew closer to land, I could finally see life below. A pod of porpoises leaped and swam together. They didn’t seem to fear the giant beast flying above them, thinking they might become prey for him. Actually, they chittered and leaped higher as Trajan lowered closer.
I was suddenly afraid he might actually be about to snatch one of them up when he angled left and dipped his wing in the water. The porpoises swam faster right below us, squeaking up at us with eachleap. When he repeated the same gesture with his right wing, cutting a line through the water, the porpoises leaping in the wake he created, I realized what he was doing.
He was playing with them.
Astonished, I laughed out loud at the joy of such an innocent gesture by a giant dragon. He teased them quite a bit, speeding up and slowing down to let them catch up when he went too fast. Trajan’s dragon was much like the man himself.
Eventually, a jutting of land drew closer up ahead. He made a barking kind of sound then sped faster, skimming close to the water and leaving the sea creatures behind. We passed a village far inland, but he flew past and then finally slowed as we came upon a sandy beach and a house upon a cliff.
Slowing further, he swept up the cliff, the smell of trees and earth swirling as he circled the house and landed in a patch of grass beyond it. Not just a field, but nearby was an olive grove, the sights and smells warming me with familiarity.
When he crouched low to the ground, stretching one paw out for me, I realized he wanted me to climb down. Taking a few minutes to slip the ropes over the spikes, I scrambled down and jumped onto the soft grass, breaking the strap of one of my sandals.
The massive blue dragon chortled in his throat, seeming pleased to see me again. I couldn’t help but smile back at him. Then there was that rush of power crackling the air and he began to shrink back into the man I knew.
When Trajan stood before me as a man, his muscular form lovely in the full light of day, I realized I’d missed him. And longed for him. Blushing, I turned to face the house. Within a moment, I sensed him drawing closer, his soft footfalls on the grass.
“Was the ride difficult for you?” he asked, genuinely concerned as he stepped up to my right.
I beamed up at him. “It was the most beautiful experience of my life,” I told him honestly, almost regretting that it indeed was.
I’d had such a happy childhood, many days of joy with my family. But none had compared to today, flying high above the world, feeling empowered and strong… and free. I’d never thought to feel free again, and yet Trajan had given that to me.
Turning to face the villa on the cliff, I asked, “Now, where are we? Another of your grandfather’s homes?”
“This one is mine,” he said, leading me through the field toward the back of the house, which appeared abandoned. “We are on the outskirts of Emporiae. In Hispania.”
“How many homes do you have?” I asked, unable to keep the disdain from my voice.
“Grandfather and I have a dozen between us.”
“You are very rich.”
“We are.” He frowned at me, noting my tone.
“That must be nice,” I snapped, taking in the pristine white stone and terra-cotta roof tiles of the villa as we drew closer.
