Celia simply pointed north, and his eyes widened.
“But we aren't supposed to go near the mountains.”
“Yes, I know,” Celia said, turning to him with a smirk, as if she were an animal and he were her prey.“Why do you think I chose to be there?”
Darian simply grinned back at her, then led the way, hefting the knapsack on his shoulders.As much as she was annoyed that he had insisted on coming with her, Celia was glad to only carry the small basket with the baby dragon.She had piled far too much in there in her annoyance with him, and if she'd been forced to carry it all, she would have had to make several stops.But Darian was strong—probably because he was young, far too young.His constant babbling showed his age, since he hadn't yet learned to shut up and take in the nature around him.
If he'd been paying attention, he would have noticed the wildlife following them.They could sense the dragon she carried, she knew it.Whether because they could hear his tiny chirps or because they could smell him, she wasn’t sure, but there had been more than a few curious animals watching them as they made their way through the forest and the meadows
She always chose a different way through the beginning of the meadow, before intersecting with the path that she had made over the past two years of trekking back and forth to town.She didn't want her path to be obvious to anyone on the edge of the woods, as it led straight home.She had no need for strangers sniffing around, minding her business.
And yet, here she was, bringing a man who simply couldn't shut up straight toward it.
Indecision churned in her gut.Perhaps she shouldn't be bringing him.Perhaps she should insist he give her the knapsack and turn around and leave.
And yet, there was part of her that wanted him to stay, to see the dragons.Whether that was only because he was carrying a very heavy load on her behalf or there was something deeper to it, she wasn't sure.
As they began trudging through the meadow, he kept talking.Did he ever stop?
“Can I hold him?”he asked abruptly, looking toward the basket in her hand.
She'd taken the shawl off so the dragon could poke his head out and look around.While his wings seemed fine, he had shown no inclination toward flying yet, which didn’t surprise her.Earth dragons often preferred to remain rooted to the earth unless absolutely necessary—unlike the air dragons, who chose to never stay on the ground if they could help it.
It was far easier to tend a wounded earth dragon than a wounded air dragon.
“If you wish to,” she said, looking at him curiously as she paused.
Darian shrugged.“Something about him makes me want to hold him.”
He held his arms out, and Celia offered the basket.Darian scooped up the earth dragon, cradling him in his arms like it was something he did every day.
“He's so warm,” he said, a look of awe on his face.
“You should feel a fire dragon,” Celia said, looking down at the basket she held.“They are far warmer.”
“There are fire dragons?”Darian whispered, and she looked back up to see him looking down at the baby in his arms in awe.
Celia almost forgot she was cranky with him as she took in the sight.He was handsome, she had to admit, and there was something adorable about the way he was holding the baby dragon—something that almost unlocked a yearning in her chest.But she held the lock tighter and threw away the key.She had no time for yearning such as this.
“He likes you,” she said as the earth dragon began that rumble in his chest that earth dragons did when they were happy.“You want to name him?”she offered, the words spilling out despite herself.Why had she offered that?
He looked surprised, glancing at her in disbelief.“You don't mind?”he asked.
She shook her head.“He seems to like you,” she said.
“You said he's an earth dragon?”Darian asked, looking at the leg that remained tucked up into his body.“Is he hurt?”
Celia nodded.“He's the reason I had to go into town for supplies,” she said.“I need to splint his leg in the open position for a little while and see if that will help him to regain mobility in it.”
“What happened to him?”Darian asked.
Celia shrugged and started walking, and Darian followed.“I don't know,” she admitted.“He seems well enough, aside from the leg, but there's something about it that isn't working quite as it should, though it doesn't seem to be causing him any pain.So I will splint it and see if that helps.”
“What are you?”Darian asked.“A healer of dragons?”
Celia shrugged.“You could say that,” she said.Healing humans was no longer something she planned to do, not when it had gone so wrong the last time.Healing dragons was easier.
“I think they are very blessed to have you,” Darian said as he ran his fingers along the side of the baby's stout neck.“How about Sod?”he asked after a moment.“Since he's an earth dragon and he's brown.”
