“Come, my love.” Taking Lyla’s hand in his and wrapping an arm around her waist, he gently escorted her forward.
“Divine One,” Frostborn lumbered forward, repeatedly bowing her great white head. “Welcome, Divine One and mighty chief. The joy ye have given us this day defies any words I could utter.” Blinking her enormous eyes of the deepest purple, she ushered them closer and nodded at the trio of hatchlings perched upright on their tiny haunches in the center of the nest, stretching up to see their first visitors. “It is my deepest honor and pleasure to present Liesl, Mars, and Draystar.”
“Oh my gosh, they’re adorable.” Her fears and apprehensions apparently forgotten, Lyla went to the nest and bent to the tiny hatchling’s level, smiling. “Hello, babies. I’m so happy to meet you.”
Trilling with the curiosity and fearlessness that only the very young ever know, the trio of younglings scurried over the side of the nest and leapt into Lyla’s arms, knocking her backwardinto the soft pile of mossy nesting leaves, and branches kept for relining the nest whenever it needed to be cleaned.
“No, my little ones,” Frostborn gently scolded. “We must not treat the Divine One so. She is to be honored and respected.”
Laughing with her arms full of baby dragons that cuddled and purred their happiness, Lyla waved away their mother’s words. “Oh no, it’s all right. I love them. They’re so sweet. And I never expected them to be so soft and warm. Which is which?”
Magnus eased a few steps back, absorbing the wonder of the scene and praying it would convince Lyla of just how much she belonged here. “I am sure Liesl is the pale red, the wee rose-colored lassie. Is she not, Frostborn?”
“Aye, mighty chief.” The enormous white dragon pointed a long, blue-white claw at another of the babies. “And this dark purple laddie with the single row of longer horns is Draystar, and the dark red laddie with the double rows of horns is Mars.”
“Two sons and a daughter,” Bastion said with a shake of his massive crimson head. “Never did I ever dream of being so blessed.”
“All because of yerself, Divine One,” Frostborn said to Lyla, then bowed even lower. “We and our young ones, and their young ones after that, all our descendants will protect and serve yerself and the mighty chief—and all yer descendants when the laughter of yer children and their children blesses the Thirteenth Realm.”
Lyla tucked her chin, seeming suddenly uncomfortable as she focused on the hatchlings in her arms. “Thank you. I’m just glad my music helped.”
Magnus clenched his teeth, his heart plummeting. This miracle had not won Lyla over. He felt it in his bones. If the insistence of the mate bond and the proof of the prophecy failed to convince her of how much they all needed her, of how much she belonged here, what would it take to make her stay, to makeher open her heart and soul and give him and this world a chance?
Chapter
Eleven
Never in her life had Lyla ever imagined that any ofthis…She couldn’t even begin to describe everything she had seen. This place. Its magic. The mythical yet not-so-mythical creatures. But most of all, the overwhelming emotions that came with all the above. How could any ofthisbe possible? How could any of it be real? She still couldn’t shake the lingering suspicion that she’d suffered some sort of traumatic injury back at Seven Cairns and was trapped in a psychedelic, medically induced coma. That was the only plausible explanation.
With a heavy sigh, she cradled the cuddly trio of baby dragons even closer, trying not to think about all the troubling complications of whatever this was. At least in this dream, the baby dragons had survived. Never one to be all that wild about reptiles, she found these little cuties impossible not to love. Their velvety scales made them as soft as a stuffed toy. They were as warm as little hot water bottles and constantly purred like oversized kittens. For lack of a better way to describe them, they were adorably perfect.
“Can they already breathe fire?” she asked their mother after one of them sneezed and produced a series of impressive smoke rings.
“Soon,” Frostborn replied, the leathery corners of her mouth curling upward in what could only be described as a mother dragon’s pride. “Their coals are still forming, simmering deep in their tiny gullets. That is why they feel so warm to ye.”
“I love them.” Lyla almost laughed at herself. She sounded like a child cooing over a new puppy. “I’m so glad I got to meet them.”
“They love ye as well, Divine One.” Frostborn gave a loud, purring sigh that echoed with contentment. “As we all do. As all in the Thirteenth Realm will.”
And that was what bothered Lyla most of all. What if there were a sickness her music couldn’t heal? She looked up at Magnus. He seemed so sad. Was he worried about the same thing? “I guess we should go and see if I can help any others?” she asked him, dreading the answer.
He gave her such a solemn nod that her heart twinged, making her swallow hard again. “Aye, my love,” he said. “There are many in need of yer music.”
As she rose to place the hatchlings back in the nest, they grumbled and hissed and hooked their little claws in her clothing, clinging to her and holding on tight. She couldn’t help but laugh as she gently pried them free and placed them back in their bed. “I’ll come back and visit. I promise.”
They fussed and stubbornly tried to climb back out until Frostborn nosed them back in place. “No, my children. The Divine One has more to save. We mustn’t be selfish.”
Proudly chuckling, Bastion stepped in to help with the insistent hatchlings. “My children possess such determination and unswerving spirit and focus, eh?”
“Aye, Bastion.” Magnus tenderly pulled Lyla’s arm through his and eased her toward the doorway. “What else would ye expect from the offspring of the Realm’s greatest warriors?”
“Bless ye, Divine One,” Frostborn said. Her enormous eyes shimmered with tears, making them gleam an even icier amethyst. “May the mighty powers of humankind and dragonkind both bless ye and keep ye all of yer days.”
Lyla didn’t know what to say, so she simply smiled and nodded. She wasn’t anything special. Not like she’d once been when she could sing. “Thank you. I’ll be back soon. To visit the babies.”
“Ye are always welcome here,” Bastion said.
Magnus pressed close to her ear and whispered, “Come, my love. Let us go. We have much to discuss.”
