Apparently satisfied with her explanation, Calvin turned his head back forward once more, skimming down low over the treetops as he made his way out of the valley and toward the next mountain. It felt like they were the only two people – well, one person and one wyvern – in the entire forest.
She closed her eyes for a moment, simply enjoying the swift movement of air over her face, the wind playing with her hair and rushing in her ears.
This is what freedom must feel like.
She opened her eyes as she sensed movement beneath her. The wyvern turned its head toward her once more – and Diana had to assume it had some sort of innate ability to know wherethe land was, because it continued to hug the mountainside closely with no issues, banking with a leisurely ease. She was pretty sure that if she hadn’t been riding on its back, it would’ve turned upside-down.
Is it showing off? I’m pretty sure it’s showing off.
It opened its mouth slightly – and suddenly Diana found herself being showered in a tiny flurry of glimmering ice crystals, and – and –
Are those snowflakes?!
They vanished almost as quickly as they formed, their delicate structures melting into oblivion as they touched her skin, providing a lovely counterpoint to the heat of the afternoon.
She shivered deliciously as the miniature ice storm gusted and glittered about her, creating her own little wonderland.
It’sdefinitelyshowing off… but I can’t say I blame it. I’d show off too, if I could do that.
She sighed as the wyvern turned off the display – but she was pretty sure it was for the best. It would be hard to explain if she developed hypothermia in the middle of summer! Already she could feel herself drying off in the warm, blustery wind.
She laid her cool cheek against the smooth scales of the wyvern’s neck, sighing again – but in happiness, this time – and simply watched the sky and the trees move in and out of view as the wyvern banked and turned.
I could get very, very used to this. Talk about traveling in style!
All too soon, however, she felt Calvin’s speed decreasing, and she sat upright to watch as he came in to land. His feet touched the ground so softly that she wouldn’t have even known they’d landed if she hadn’t seen it happen, and his wings folded in neatly behind her.
“I guess this is my cue to get down, then,” she said, as Calvin bent his knees and lowered her down. She slid to the ground, wincing a little as she stretched out her legs. Riding the wyvern had worked out muscles she hadn’t even known existed – but she was looking forward to getting more practice at it.
She watched, entranced, as the wyvern shifted back into Calvin’s form. She was getting used to it, but she didn’t think it would ever stop being the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen.
Calvin was watching her with what seemed like a little uncertainty, which she didn’t like at all – he’d just given her the single most exhilarating experience of her life.
Flinging herself into his arms, she buried her face into his neck.
“Thank you,” she said quietly. “That was incredible.”
She couldn’t see his smile, but she could feel it against the top of her head, and hear it in his voice. “I’m glad you liked it.” He coughed. “And so is the wyvern.”
Reluctantly she pulled back, looking around at the clearing they’d landed in.
The difference between this one and the one they’d departed from was like night and day – where the other one had been desolate and prickly, this one was lush and almost had a rainforest air to it, with ferns hanging from the ancient trees and mist coiling out from the dark, hidden depths, glowing where the dappled sun touched it. Gnarled lianas snaked around the tree trunks, while ancient lichen-covered rocks sat sentinel.
In the middle of it all sat a crystalline pond, fed by a tiny waterfall that danced a zig-zag path amongst mossy stones.
It was like they’d entered a whole other world.
“This is the place,” Calvin said, in a quiet, reverent voice.
Diana shivered with excitement.
I could definitely imagine a reclusive water spirit living here.
As excited as she was, there was a tiny hint of trepidation hidden underneath. What was she going to see? As much as she was playing it cool, and as much as she’d come through a bunch of weird experiences with what she considered to be flying colors, shewasjust about to meet a mythical creature in its own domain.
“You must be Calvin.”
Diana almost jumped out of her skin at the voice that seemed to materialize out of nowhere.
