I snorted a laugh. “Well, itisa very good drawing, if I do say so myself. I bet you could probably sell it for a trunk full of gold.”
“Hmm. Or perhaps I should send it to the academy, so the art students can study it in great detail. They might learn something from your scribbles.” He gently elbowed me. “Though now that I’ve heard you snort when you laugh, I might have to change my answer.”
My lips spread into a smile so wide my cheeks ached. “Really, though, what’s your favorite thing? Give me a serious answer this time.”
His eyes locked on mine. He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut. And then, with an expeditious clearing of his throat, he answered, “I suppose I’d have to say Moira.”
“Aww. You really do love that bundle of fluff. I can’t wait to tell Arvid your answer. Who will then tell Mellor, who will pass it on to Helga. And then the whole village will find out you’re as mushy as a bowl of barley.”
He grunted in response. “Don’t get carried away now. What’s yours?”
“Oh, I couldn’t possibly choose. I love my horse, and I think about her all the time. I wish I’d been able to bring her with me. And I adore my cottage back home. Oh, I can’t forget about purple lilies, and cheese, and the way the sky looks at sunset, and romance novels, and dancing in the rain, and the feel of the grass beneath my bare feet, and the redwoods on this island, and—” I stopped, catching the amusement in his eyes. “What?”
“I thought we were asking each other about our favoritething,” he said, elbowing me again. “If I hadn’t stopped you just now, I think you could have kept going all day.”
“There’s a certain kind of joy in letting yourself love,” I said.
His face darkened. “Joy and pain.”
“Love doesn’t have to be painful.” Though I was starting to think it might. I couldn’t remember a time when love had caused me anything but grief. Still, I wanted to believe there was a way for it to be better. Silva Sweetwater seemed to think so, anyway.
“And sometimes, the pain is inevitable.” Sighing, he motioned ahead. “It looks like your new friend has come out to meet us.”
Indeed, Eldi had ventured even further beyond his cave than the day before. He sat squarely on the path at the base of the foothills, his tail swishing through the grass. As we approached, he lowered his head and extended it toward me, as if he were asking for a pat.
And so of course I had to indulge him. Grinning, I scratched beneath his chin, and his body hummed against my fingers. Even without taking any of the Hugur sand yet, I swore I could feel happiness radiating from his soul and brushing against mine.
“Fucking fate, would you look at that,” Rune murmured from behind me.
I turned toward him, smiling. “Me being able to touch him? I thought it was strange, too. Don’t dragons burn anything they come into contact with?”
“No, they learned to control that.” He searched my eyes. “But it’s more than that, Frida. Eldi has bonded with you.”
I drew back. “What?”
“Can’t you feel it? The magic pulsing between you?” His smile widened, genuine happiness shining out of him. The sight of it left me dumbfounded, and for a moment, the world around us faded into the background. There was a twinkle in his eyes I’d never seen. Fate, he looked so handsome like this. Soalive.
But then my mind registered his words, and a bolt of fear went through me.
“I can’t have,” I said, looking from Rune to the dragon and back again. “Only orcs can withstand dragon magic without it destroying them. I’m an elf. It’ll turn me into a Draugr and drive me mad.”
“I don’t think so.” Rune still smiled. “As I said, magic has changed these past few decades, and Eldichoseyou. You didn’t force him into this, like other folk did in the past. Besides, you’re not the first. Lilia bonded with her dragon, and a dwarf named Astrid, who lives in the mountains, bonded with one, too. It hasn’t turned either of them into a Draugr.”
Heart pounding, I turned back toward Eldi. His crimson gaze bored into mine. Andyes. There it was. Magic—delicious, beautiful magic—spun like weaving threads between us, dancing in the late-spring sunlight. I breathed it in, letting it fill me. But just as soon as it pressed against my soul, the dread came. If the guild knew I’d bonded with a dragon, they would use him in any way they could. They’d want him to kill their every enemy.
“Erik can never find out about this,” I said roughly.
Rune’s smile vanished. “No, he certainly can’t.”
“Don’t speak of this back in the village. I doubt they’d purposely share it with anyone on the mainland, but you know how gossip spreads. We can’t risk speaking a word about this to anyone.”
“It’s your news to share,” he said, though his voice sounded strained, like he wasn’t as happy about this as he’d been a moment before. And I didn’t blame him. He didn’t want the Hugur sand to end up in the wrong hands, and that was nowhere near as powerful as a dragon.
I took his hand in mine and held it against my heart. “You don’t have to look so worried. I swear I won’t let Erik find out.”
“I know you won’t, sunshine. I know you won’t.”
After that, Rune and I spread out a picnic to share with Eldi. We feasted on berries and a fresh loaf of bread slathered with butter. Rune had brought a bottle of wine, much to my surprise. We shared the whole thing. Even Eldi joined in, eagerly tipping back his head to drink. Laughter and stories passed between us. We didn’t discuss the bond again, and I didn’t dare bring up the guild. Not when the haze of happiness had settled over our little trio. I couldn’t bear to chase it away with the dark cloud of our looming reality.
