“No,” Tyber said with a shake of his head. “That’s not what I mean. I’m not hurt at all. I’m… I’m relieved. And it feels terrible. I thank the gods above for watching over them, for not turning away, but then I think, what have I been doing? What have I been doing all this time if they’re going to be all right whether I’m there or not?”
Tyber reached up and scratched the scales behind Rius’ left eye. A low rumble of contentment rolled through the dragon, and her head grew so heavy that his arm trembled trying to support it.
“And sitting here, talking to you, talking to a dragon of all things, it just hits me. Out of the blue. The problem has been that I’ve been trying to serve my family. I’ve been putting their needs ahead of my own. And that was stupid of me. I shouldn’t be in servitude to anyone or anything, should I?”
Another low rumble went through Rius.
Tyber nodded. He reached up again and wiped at the flesh beneath his eyes. “It should be a partnership. I shouldn’t be in servitude to my family. My family and I should be in a partnership. That’s the way it is with you, isn’t it? You and Merilyss? You don’t serve the alpha. She’s your family, your partner. She sees to your needs, and you see to the horde’s. That is the wisdom, isn’t it? The thing Ander wants me to learn. My horde, my family, will be fine if I do what I need to do. I should let them lift me up, right?”
Rius stared deeply into Tyber’s eyes, and an unspoken acceptance that went far beyond words or experience passed through him, moved like a wind and a breeze that swept over body parts he didn’t know he had until he felt the tickle of the air.
Tyber sat up straight and gasped. His teeth clenched into a grimace, and he fell forward, his brow landing upon the dragon’s muzzle soft as a leaf returning to the soil it had grown from. He reached out and wrapped his arms around the dragon’s neck and shuddered.
After a tear fell from the tip of his nose, Tyber sat up and looked into Rius’ eyes.
“What did you…” And he let it go. It wasn’t what she had done to him, but what they had done, together.
Tyber patted Rius on her cheek, beneath her eye. “Come on. Let’s go say goodbye.”
Chapter 26
Unther was the first to notice Tyber as he rounded the corner of the academy. The boy’s face lit up, and when his eyes dashed from Tyber’s face to that of Rius coming around the corner behind him, his face looked like it would burst with joy. He let out a squeak that caught everyone’s attention, and then the children raced down the garden path for Tyber as he led Rius along on her lead.
“It’s a dragon!” Lin called from Theola’s arms and pointed.
Tyber dropped to his knees and gathered his brothers and sisters into his arms and tried to hold them close. But they were so full of stories to tell that it was impossible.
“Tyber!” Jack shouted. “Our cottage burnt down. There was a big fire! It was bigger than the wall, and we heard it coming. All these people were yelling for us to get out and so we had to leave, but Theola got a cart, and I helped Fafa into it—”
“I helped, too!” Daramel interjected.
“And we had to pull him away as the fire came, but I wasn’t scared at all! I told everyone my big brother rides dragons. We don’t get scared in our family.” Jack stepped back and pitched his fists onto his tiny, thin hips as he puffed his chest out and beamed.
“That’s amazing,” Tyber said. “You all are a bunch of heroes, aren’t you?”
Tyber looked up at Theola, who still clutched Lin and couldn’t take her eyes from Rius.
“Is that your dragon?” Unther asked. “Can I ride him?”
“Where is Fafa?” Tyber asked Father as he stepped up behind Theola.
“You know his back. He couldn’t walk out here. He’s staying with your Uncle Ken.”
“And you? How are you?” Tyber asked as he stood. His brothers clung to him, not wanting to let go until Tyber’s height put him out of their reach.
Father took a deep breath. “Myer is allowing us to sleep in the livery stable for now. Until we can find somewhere else. I’m sorry, son, but we lost everything.”
He shook his head, and for a moment, looked like he was about to lose his resolve as well. It was a look that Tyber hadn’t seen since the death of his mother. There was a point where his father appeared to be unable to shed a tear more, and then beyond that, he went back to work as if his wife’s death had never happened.
Tyber reached under his tunic and pulled the purse from his belt. He held it out to his father.
Father looked from the purse to Tyber, then took it gingerly, as if it held something far more priceless and fragile than the strips of metal that lay inside.
“It’s my bonus. I passed the first trial,” Tyber said. “I want you to have it.”
Father’s lips parted, but he said nothing. His hand trembled.
“You should be able to find a place to rent. And with one less mouth to feed, hopefully, it’ll last you until my next bonus.”
At that, Theola’s attention snapped from Rius to Tyber. “Next?”
Tyber nodded. “Next. I’m staying for the second trial. The second bonus is larger than that. I’m sorry, I forgot to ask how much larger.”
Father’s fist clenched over the purse. His lips grew tight as well, and he shook his head. “It doesn’t matter, son. It doesn’t matter if it is just a slip of copper. As long as this is what you want.”
Tyber looked back and up to Rius. She stared down at him. He lifted an eyebrow, and she gave a slight nod.
He turned back around and held his arms out for Lin. Once Theola handed her over, he gave the tiny girl a hug. Lin gave him a quick peck on the cheek before he handed her over to Daramel. Tyber then extended a hand to Theola.
She looked from his hand to Rius and then back to Tyber. Her face grew wide with surprise and then worry. “No,” she said and shook her head.
“Don’t worry,” Tyber said. “I couldn’t make her fly if I wanted to. Not without the Dragoneer.” Though he doubted the truth of that statement.
Theola took his hand, clutching it tight until the tips of his fingers blanched. He led her through the gaggle of their siblings, and then guided her as she placed a foot in the stirrup, then hoisted herself up into the saddle with a gasp and a grin that nearly broke his heart.
Theola clutched the lip of the saddle, then straightened her back and looked about, her head turning slowly to survey the world from the shoulders of a dragon before she stopped to stare out over the heads of those milling about Dragon Lane.
She stared long and hard, and despite the solid, immutable fact of the city wall, Tyber knew she was staring out to the west, to the edge of the kingdom where women could touch the sky from the back of a dragon.
To a world just beginning to open with promise.
About the Author
Yes, they’re married. Together, they write fantasy fiction featuring strong characters and hopeful, adventurous stories appropriate for most ages. And of course, dragons.
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Also by Vickie Knestaut & Danny Knestaut
The Dragoneer Series
All her life, Trysten has wished to follow in her father's footsteps and lead the dragons of Aerona into battle. The title of Dragoneer, however, has always gone to a male heir since the dawn of the kingdom. When her father is crippled, and his dragon mortally wounded ahead of the fighting season, Trysten must test traditions and norms to save her village from an ancient force that wishes to reassert itself. With her special bond to the dragons of Aerona, Trysten m
ust prove to her father, the villagers, and the other dragon riders that she is an able leader and a fierce warrior of legendary capabilities.
Book 1 - The Bonding
Book 2 - The Prince
Book 3 - Aerona Stands
Book 4 - Outposts
And coming August 24, 2019
Book 5 - Between Kingdoms
Dragon's-Eye View Page 15