Luc found them like that. Lilly’s nurturing laughter flowed over him much the same way it did over his nephew, making them both smile. Det, at his side, wasn’t nearly so amused. He paced forward in a confrontational way. The moment Lilly saw him, the joy was replaced by wariness, and she spun to a halt, lowering Petr with gentle, reassuring touches.
Once again, she put herself between Petr and what she perceived as a threat. That told Luc much about the woman and confirmed his first impressions. She had the heart of a snow bear and the willingness to take on anyone or anything in order to protect the innocent.
Det and Lilly stood poised for a moment, facing each other. Det wore his usual scowl while Lilly’s chin came up.
“Captain,” Lady Vi intervened, much to Luc’s relief, “may I have a word with you?”
Vi pulled Det off to the side with the other two healers, leaving Luc with Lilly and Petr.
“Did you finish your tasks for the healers?” Luc asked his nephew.
“No, Uncle. Not yet. But there’s not much left to do.”
“All right then, finish up here, and then, you can come down to the scout hall with Lilly and me. Shilayla said she’d take you aloft if we got there before the watch changed.”
“All by myself?” Petr bounced on the balls of his feet in excitement.
Luc did his best to hide his amusement. “Shi thinks you’re ready.”
The boy leapt into the garden and started to pull weeds with enthusiasm while Lilly and Luc watched Det’s expression go from annoyed to alarmed to determined.
“I take it you had some success?” Luc raised one golden brow in her direction as he looked from his brother to his nephew and back to her. Lilly glanced toward Petr, and Luc knew she’d choose her words carefully, as he’d done, to avoid traumatizing the boy any further.
“You could say that. We found something. The healers seemed confident that they could do something for him, now that they know what is going on.”
“That’s good news, then. So, why does my brother look so murderous?” Speculation filled his mind. While Det could be abrasive and rude, he was a very cool warrior and it actually took a great deal to truly snarl his scales. Right now, he looked as angry as Luc had ever seen him. Only one name ever evoked this kind of reaction in Det.
Loralie, the sorceress.
Petr’s mother.
Luc hoped the poisonous woman wasn’t involved in whatever ailed Petr, but from the look on Det’s face, Luc felt bound to disappointment.
“I’m finished!” Petr called out merrily as he approached them. The boy looked happy and had a healthy glow in his cheeks that was normally missing. Whatever Lilly and the healers had done, it already showed improvement in Petr’s energy and vitality. Lady willing, they’d be able to keep it up on a permanent basis. Luc hugged his nephew with one arm, setting him on the path toward the scout’s hall.
“Your father will meet up with us later,” he told the boy as Petr looked back and waved to a now-solemn Det. Det waved back, but Luc could see the vibrating tension in the line of his brother’s shoulders. Better to let Det work off his anger before meeting up with him again. Petr didn’t need to see it, and Luc certainly didn’t want to get on the wrong side of Det’s slashing tongue. He could be vile when riled by thoughts of the sorceress. Luc had learned to just leave Det alone when something reminded him of that woman.
“Will Shilayla really let me ride, all by myself?” Petr asked excitedly.
“Yes, Petr.” Luc had to laugh at his nephew’s exuberance.
“Is that safe?” Lilly asked in a low tone.
“Perfectly. Shilayla would never drop him, but if he should jump off,” he grinned at her gasp, “a few other scouts will be flying below to catch him.” He chuckled at her wary look.
“I hope you’re joking.”
“About the scouts flying below? No. About Petr somehow falling off Shi’s back? Not likely. Petr’s been aloft before many times, but this will be his first time going up alone. It’s a special treat since we’ll be gone a long time. We tend to coddle our young since we have so few, but Petr is more special than most.”
“He’s a sweet boy. Your ‘coddling’ hasn’t spoiled him.” Lilly watched the boy skipping ahead of them with affection clear in her eyes.
“It can be a tough decision to let the dragons in a family take the young aloft. It can get the children’s hopes up, and not every child partners with a dragon later in life. The dragons do the choosing, after all, and there are just so many dragons living with us at any one time.”
Lilly still watched the boy. “After seeing inside him, if I were a dragon, I’d choose him in a heartbeat. He’s got a pure soul full of power and love, despite the trials of his young life.”
Luc caught his breath at the look in Lilly’s eyes as she gazed at his nephew. She’d gone where only the healers or certain powerful mages could. By her words, she’d seen the essence of Petr’s young heart.
Shilayla met them in the field in front of the scout hall, a few smaller-sized dragons behind her with their riders, preparing for duty. When she saw them, she puffed out a small bellow of smoke and walked over, craning her neck before her.
After they all said hello, Luc helped Petr climb onto Shilayla’s back and wrapped light ropes that had been added as a harness of sorts to Shi’s back so Petr would have something to hold on to while in the air. The boy was so excited it was all Luc could do to contain him. Best to let them fly and give Petr the thrill of his first solo flight.
Lilly laughed as Petr whooped loudly when Shi launched them into the sky. Several scouts followed behind, shadowing the pair below and just behind. They did it as a special favor to Luc and Shilayla, but of the four dragons who followed, Luc knew all those dragons and riders had a special place in their heart for the youngster. Roja and Bruuk were close friends of the family, as were two of the other pairs. The remaining scout had a sister Petr’s age.
“It’s a shame Det’s not here to see this, but Shi will take Petr low over the house so the family can all see him.”
“That’s so sweet.”
The dragons and riders winged away over the valley protected by the Veil.
“Something happened with Petr at the healing hall, didn’t it?”
Lilly nodded. “Something kind of scary. Did you know he was a twin? The connection to his sister was draining him, and when we followed it out into the twin, some other force chased us back. The healers think it was their mother.”
“Bright Lady!” Luc’s exclamation was a whisper filled with both dread and shock.
“The good thing is that, now they know it exists, steps can be taken to block the conduit that is draining Petr. I was left with the impression that the healers can protect him now that they know about his twin.”
“Why couldn’t they see it before?”
“They said it was because Petr’s mother is human. It took my human side to recognize and follow the energies. I don’t understand it, but Lady Vi seemed to think that was the main reason.”
“I thank the Mother of All that you were here to show them the way, Lilly. Petr is precious to us. Seeing him so weak has been a source of constant worry for the entire family. But Loralie’s involvement is sure to set Det off. No wonder he looked so angry.”