Gratefully, she tucked the chicken salad sandwiches and yuzu madeleines that Kieran had given them into her purse. It was obviously going to be a long hike, and she didn’t think she’d be able to make it there and back without a good meal.
And the madeleines were obviously from Sylvie’s bakery, made with the yuzu that Gale was somehow able to manage to grow up here in the mountains, so there was no doubt that they would be incredible. She’d never even tried yuzu before, so she was looking forward to it even more than she normally looked forward to Sylvie’s new creations.
“Got it,” Calvin said to Kieran. “My wyvern is advising me that it knows exactly how to find the take-off and landing places you described, so we should be all good.”
“Take-off?” said Diana, before she could stop herself. “Landing? What – are we taking a helicopter or something?”
Calvin and Kieran exchanged a look, and Diana’s stomach quivered in sudden realization.
We’re… Calvin is going toflyus up there?!
“Oh…” she said, unsure of what the proper response to that would be.
Calvin was by her side before she could blink. “Are you okay with this, Diana? I can always go by myself and come back here and meet you afterwards, if you’d rather not. And I completely understand why it might be frightening.” His eyes blazed with protectiveness. “But I would never let you fall.”
“I know you wouldn’t,” she replied, without even thinking about it. But she didn’t have to think. She justknew– Calvin would always protect her.
She looked up into his concerned face, smiling. “While I can’t say it’s always been my dream to fly up a mountain on a wyvern’s back, it’s my dream now. Count me in.”
The worried line between Calvin’s eyes smoothed out as he relaxed. “I’m glad to hear it. But if you change your mind, just let me know.”
As the surprise wore off – replaced by a building excitement – a thought suddenly occurred to her.
Why does Kieran know where there are handy take-off and landing spots? Iknowthat he doesn’t have a helicopter.
In fact, why does he know about any of these things? He’s so happy-go-lucky that it’s easy to write him off as being a pretty carefree guy, but clearly he has hidden depths.
A slight creaking noise caught her attention as a light breeze gusted through the trees, sending clouds scudding in front of the blazing sun and bringing some welcome relief. She looked up toward the source of the sound –
To see the enormous weathervane ponderously rotating about its axis.
The griffin-shaped weathervane.
Diana had always thought that when a lightbulb went on over a cartoon character’s head, it was purely metaphorical… but now, she would’ve sworn that there was a giant incandescent bulb floating directly above her, shining the blindingly bright light of truth in every direction.
And Calvin had told her that there were such things as pegasi and dragon shifters. So….
A griffin? He can turn into a griffin?!
She looked from the weathervane, to Kieran, to the weathervane. Back to Kieran again… who looked sheepish, and definitely guilty.
“Busted,” he said, with a little wave. “I probably should’ve mentioned it earlier, but I got so caught up talking about sprites that it never even crossed my mind.”
She turned to Calvin, who also had the good grace to look a little embarrassed.
“Sorry,” he said apologetically. “I just didn’t want to spill his secret without asking him first.”
“Not much of a secret if you advertise it to all and sundry, now, is it?” she exclaimed, gesturing up at the ginormous weathervane.
Kieran rubbed at the back of his neck. “What is it they say about hiding in plain sight?”
Diana sighed good-naturedly. “Well, I guess I never worked it out until now, so I suppose you can say it worked.”
Is this just how life is going to be, now, with new mysteries being revealed every day? How many other fantastical secrets have been in front of me all along?
“So, we’re just going to… fly up there,” she said. “Aren’t you worried about being seen?”
“A little,” Calvin admitted. “But I think we should be able to do it. Kieran has told me the best route to take to avoid detection, and the wyvern’s scales make for decent camouflage against the trees so long as the sun isn’t too bright. So if this cloud hangs around, we should be okay.”
