Magic and Shadows: A Collection of YA Fantasy and Paranormal Romances

by T. M. Franklin

Tamara’s nerves, strung tight as a drum since Thyel first kidnapped Skye, collapsed. She would likely have fallen but for her father’s steady support. She wanted to go to Fane but Skye was already at his side, fiercely hugging him. Then Skye kissed him resoundingly on his lips.

  Tamara hid her smile. Fane had just saved Skye’s life. Fought Thyel for her. No doubt Kiron scorching Thyel to cinders was also a reflection of Fane’s anger. Fane was her savior. What young woman wouldn’t be affected by all of that? Skye had met her first hero.

  Keegan loudly cleared his throat.

  Fane, looking thoroughly flushed, quickly pushed Skye away and gave her grandfather, his king, a nervous look and a credible bow.

  Skye couldn’t seem to stop grinning as she clung to Fane’s arm as if she meant to stay there for a lifeline.

  “Father, are you truly here?” Tamara whispered, breaking the tension.

  He drew her close and kissed the top of her head. “Does that feel real enough for you?”

  “But how?”

  “It’s a long story. Mostly it’s thanks to Jarrod.”

  “It wasn’t me, sir,” Jarrod came over. “It was Falcon’s Tome. Seems my people have a history we’ve forgotten.” He shook his head as if realizing the irony. Historians losing track of their past.

  “And the missing Erovians?” Fane asked, coming up to them with Skye. “Did you discover what happened to them?”

  Jarrod held out his hand and the tome simply appeared.

  Tamara stared in wonder. Not only could Jarrod call the book at will, but the tome no longer looked like a raggedy old thing, with pages falling out, and held together with a vine. Falcon’s Tome was a thick volume, impressively leather-bound, with engravings on the cover that shone in a rainbow of colors.

  “They were in here,” Jarrod said with excitement. “When I read from the missing pages, the missing historians found me. Once the king and I were recreated,” he held up his hand to silence the ensuing questions, “when we were remade into substance, the historians reappeared beside us. We left them on Ashari while we came here to look for all of you.”

  “Until the problem in Ryca is resolved,” Keegan put in, “there’s no point in sending them home. They’d again be affected by the Melakean flower that interferes with magic. Seems Erovians are magic personified.”

  “Flower,” Black-Cheek jumped into the conversation. He stomped over to stand before Tamara, fists back on his hips, spearing her with a stubborn glare. “Queen dragon says you have it.”

  Tamara gave Halla a surly look over her shoulder. The green returned with a limpid glance, blinking her golden eyes with innocence.

  “Tamara!” Keegan’s stern fatherly tone commanded her attention. “Give the lizard back his flower.”

  She crossed her arms and sent the Melakean a challenging look. “First, explain how you plan to protect your treasure the next time someone wants to take it.”

  “We savvy now,” the little Melakean touched his forehead with a pointed finger. “Not trust peoples again.”

  “I’m peoples,” Tamara pointed out. “I mean, I’m a person.”

  “Yes. We not trust you.”

  She rolled her eyes at his faulty logic. He trusted her and the rest of her party enough to return his flower and leave Melak without causing further problems. Exactly the type of wrong thinking that landed these Melakeans in trouble in the first place. “Why do you deserve this precious flower if you can’t take proper care of it?”

  Her family and friends groaned in unison.

  All except for Jarrod, who grinned with enjoyment as he watched her. She suspected he’d delved into her mind again and understood her reasoning.

  “Tamara!” Skye came over to stand beside the little Melakean. “Give him back his flower. Can you not see his world is dying? This isn’t something to plague him about, no matter how much you enjoy doing that to your family.”

  Jarrod chuckled aloud at that and her father, too, seemed to find the comment amusing.

  “Your aunt is right, Skye.” Fane picked bits of dust and slivers of cracked bone out of his clothes as he spoke. “The Melakeans must be able to safeguard their flower. It’s too important to plant in the ground and hope no one will pluck it.”

  “Exactly,” Tamara said. “Thank you, Fane.”

  “We guard it!” Black-Cheek insisted and his people shouted in strident assertion of that sentiment.

  “What did you have in mind, Tamara?” Her father’s words cut through the unhappy chatter.

  “Once the flower is back on Melak, magic will again be dead here,” Tamara patiently explained. “You will need a non-magical form of protection or intrinsically magical beings to assist you.”

  In response to Tamara’s suggestion, the Melakeans thoughtfully studied the only, intrinsically magical beings on their world – the two dragons.

  Halla and Kiron’s sheer size attested to their defensive capabilities.

  Halla nudged Tamara, giving her tacit agreement to her unvoiced, unplanned and unanticipated proposal to move permanently to Melak. Halla, it seemed, had no wish to return to Isa and its volatile politics.

  AGREED, Kiron said, IF FANE IS WILLING, WE WILL STAY AND GUARD MELAK.

  Fane glanced at Tamara with a raised eyebrow. “Never to return home?”

  “We can return any time we want, with dragons at our disposal,” Tamara said. “That is, if we’re invited to stay,” this she added with a challenging look at the little Melakeans. “We could make this world our home. Unless Fane’s too attached to the Quinlin Towers and, um, other attractions on Ryca to leave?”

  Skye, who had been listening with great interest, took the young man’s hand. “Your master would probably love to visit here, Fane. You said this was the one world he’d never dared explore. It would be a great way to end a dragon rider’s career. I’d like to visit with you. We’ll have to check with my parents and grandmother.” She sent a quick smile to Keegan. “And my grandfather.”

  “What would we do here?” Fane said. “Our presence might be enough protection for the Melakeans, but it isn’t enough for me. I need a purpose, a reason to be here, something meaningful to do. Living with my master, alone, taking care of him was fine once, but not anymore. During this journey, I outgrew the joys of an isolated life.”

  “Dragon riders need apprentices,” Skye said. “Now you’re a full-fledged dragon rider, why not acquire an apprentice of your own?”

  Fane frowned and then his eyes widened as if an extraordinary idea had occurred. He looked at Tamara with hope rising. “Could we start a dragon riding school on Melak? Matching rider to dragon could happen on Isa, then the apprentices brought here for training. It would ensure that rebellious dragons couldn’t obstruct the lessons of fledgling dragons and their riders. Remove the threat of giants interfering in the training.”

  “A fine idea,” Tamara agreed. With Bevan found, she, too, suddenly craved a new purpose, other than annoying her mother. She sent Jarod a tentative invitation. To claim her. To build a home with her on Melak.

  She held her breath, wondering if she had earned the right to ask for his love. He’d once said his traveling city was bound to Ryca. How would he feel about leaving Erov?

  The sensual images he sent in response, swept a heat wave up her cheeks.

  What about Erov? she asked him silently, still unsure.

  I am Erov, he said with quiet confidence. We are not a place, but caretakers of all places, and I am yours.

  “Then it’s agreed,” Tamara took Jarrod’s hand.

  “Agreed to what?” Keegan asked.

  “I intend to marry Tamara,” Jarrod raised her hand for a kiss.

  Skye whooped and ran over to hug them both.

  “I don’t recall anyone asking my permission.” Keegan’s gaze swung from Tamara to Jarrod. “It is customary to ask the father before stealing his daughter.”

  “Sir…” Jarrod began.

  “The answer’s no,” Keegan replied.

>   “But…”

  “No.”

  “Father!”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Why not?” Tamara asked in exasperation.

  “Because I have just returned to your life and I’m not ready to let go yet. He’ll have to wait.” The king held his hand in the air, palm down, tilting it back and forth. “Maybe for a year or two.”

  Tamara found that despite his blatantly unreasonable stance, she couldn’t stop smiling. Even Skye burst out laughing, though Jarrod looked as if he were about to argue with his king. Then his face relaxed and Tamara guessed he’d read her certainty about father’s true intentions to relent soon.

  It was wonderful to believe her father had missed her too. He gave her a hug then.

  With a happy cry, Skye joined them.

  “We not agreed to plan.” Black-Cheek stomped his foot, calling Tamara’s attention back to the Melakeans.

  Tamara relented and broadcast to Black-Cheek and the rest of the Melakeans the whereabouts of the flower. She’d given them her best advice. What they chose to do was up to them.

  In a wink, several of the Melakeans disappeared and then returned. Black-Cheek held the iridescent ribbon she’d left in Thyel’s old room in the castle.

  Tamara looked at the ribbon, finally allowing herself to think clearly about it. Ever since she guessed what that ribbon represented, she had hidden it from memory, afraid Black-Cheek would steal it from her mind.

  Now she gave herself permission to remember Thyel presenting the ribbon to her on the night he tried to bed her. She shivered at how thrilled she’d been with the colorful offering. The insensitive fiend. As if she would ever want something that could destroy not only Ryca but also Melak.

  “That’s the flower?” Skye asked in a stunned whisper.

  Tamara nodded.

  A Melakean dug a hole and Black-Cheek inserted the ribbon into the ground. Immediately the slender flat piece of shimmering ribbon expanded and grew upward, its roots burrowing into the ground. The ribbon turned a greenish brown and sprouted branches and leaves. They all shuffled backwards as the giant vine expanded. Iridescent multi-petaled flowers spilled out on all the limbs, all the way to the very top.

  To think she’d tied that ribbon around her hair. No wonder it had given her such a headache. It had probably been profoundly offended at being used as a hair ribbon.

  Giving a collective sigh, the Melakeans edged closer until each one in turn could hug their sacred plant. Then each Melakean walked over to pat a dragon, as if in approval of Tamara’s plan, before disappearing into the surrounding woods.

  With his people obviously satisfied with the impromptu strategy for the dragons to serve as Melak’s future protectors, Black-Cheek gave a grunt that could have been either approval or disgust, and stomped away.

  “What, no ‘thank you’?” Tamara called after him.

  “No thanks to you,” he shouted back.

  Fane smiled at her. “He’ll make a good neighbor.”

  “Not,” Tamara said and grinned back.

  “With that flower gone from Ryca,” Keegan said, “my spell should be working well again, protecting the Light. It’ll be safe to return to home. Shall we go pick up your sisters and Bevan? After all you’ve told me of the boy’s magical abilities, I’m curious to meet that young lad.”

  “He’ll be thrilled to meet you, grandfather.” Skye turned to Tamara and took her hand. “Thank you.”

  Tamara raised an eyebrow in surprise. “For what? Father and Jarrod and Fane were the ones that saved you.”

  Skye hugged her tight. “Thank you for coming after me.”

  The words brought tears to Tamara’s eyes. She hugged Skye back. “What are friends for if not to watch each other’s backs? Besides if I couldn’t save Bevan, I decided I’d at least better bring you home safely to mother or she would marry me off to Gideon out of spite.”

  At the reminder of her problems back home, she glanced to Jarrod.

  He had a determined set to his jaw.

  The bunched muscles of her shoulders instantly relaxed. She and Jarrod were a couple now. The agreeable idea fit her like a well-made coat and bestowed a sense of confidence and pride.

  No matter what form of justice her mother or anyone else dreamed up for her in the future, she would never face it alone.

  It was close to sunset by the time they all arrived on the two dragons at the seashore. Bevan was seated on the beach speaking with his parents and his Aunt Saira and Tom. The ship that brought his parents was moored in the distance.

  Skye was the first to climb down and race to claim a hug from her brother.

  Tamara descended from Halla last, allowing her family and friends to greet each other, to exclaim over King Keegan’s unexpected appearance and all talk at once trying to hear about each other’s adventures.

  Anna looked over suddenly and noticing Tamara lingering beside Halla. She took Saira’s hand and dragged her over to Tamara.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to Bevan when he came to me for help, Anna” Tamara said softly.

  “You kept my Skye safe,” Anna said and hugged her. “Thank you!”

  Tamara relished her youngest sister’s hug. Anna gave the best ones. Even better than their mother’s.

  Finally pulling away, she turned to Saira with a contrite expression. “Would you please tell Tom that I lost his sword but I promise to clean his cloths and chainmaille before returning them to him? And I’m sorry I’ve been so inhospitable to both of you since you rescued me.”

  Saira smiled her warm acceptance and the three sisters joined in a happy family embrace under the light of the three moons.

  The return of the King of Ryca to his castle occurred in the dead of night, without any fanfare or reception.

  The startled guards at the queen’s door were silenced with one gesture of the king’s finger against his lips. The plan was for the men to stay outside while the women went in to prepare the queen. Bevan came in with them because Skye refused to let him out of her sight. The king followed them in because he said he didn’t trust Tamara not to overset his wife.

  On Tamara’s insistence, he finally agreed to stay hidden behind her, so he wouldn’t frighten the slumbering queen.

  They quietly stepped into the dark bedchamber and Saira limped up to the large, curtain-enclosed bed first. She sat on the mattress and gently shook her mother’s arm.

  “Saira!” Mamosia sat up. “Oh, thank the Light you’re safe. Bevan?”

  “I’m here.” Bevan came around to wave at his grandmother.

  The queen pulled him closer and enveloped him in a ferocious hug, rocking back and forth. “Oh Bevan. You won’t understand this, but losing you felt like losing him all over. You mustn’t ever run away like that again. Promise me?”

  “He didn’t run away, mother.” Tamara came up to the side of the bed and pushed the curtains aside.

  Her mother looked surprised, then teary. Quickly enough, her gaze cooled and she wiped away a stray tear. “So, Saira found you, too. I’m glad you’re back safe. We will talk more in the morning.”

  “But it’s the night of the full moons, mother,” Tamara said. “Don’t you want to know who I’ve picked for my mate? This is the night the ultimatum runs out, isn’t it?”

  “Tamara, can’t this wait?” Skye reached for her aunt’s hand.

  Tamara pulled away, her focused gaze trained on her mother. All the threats of Gideon and the terror he represented, which the queen had wielded like a spiked whip, returned with a vengeance. At this moment, retribution tasted sweeter than honey.

  “I don’t care if you did help Saira recover Bevan,” her mother said in a hard voice, not releasing the squirming boy from her grasp, “you will not marry Thyel. I forbid it.”

  Tamara wanted to laugh out loud at Bevan’s longsuffering look but she wasn’t ready to release her mother from the deception.

  She shifted out of Skye’s painful pinching hold and swished opened the curta
ins at the bottom of the bed. “Mother, I’ve changed my mind about Thyel. I’ve someone else entirely in mind.”

  “Who is it?” the queen asked. “Tell me and get it over with. I see the challenge in your eyes and know I’m not going to like the answer.”

  “Are you bracing yourself?” Tamara raised an eyebrow, before moving to the far side of the bed, ready to open the final curtain, behind which her father would no longer be able to hide. Coward.

  She gave him a wicked grin and he rolled his eyes at her theatrics.

  “Speak.” Her mother looked with suspicion at all her children and grandchildren who couldn’t seem to stop smiling or laughing around her.

  Tamara held the edge of the final curtain, “Well, actually, I don’t need your permission to marry the man I’ve chosen. I’ve received someone else’s blessing.”

  “My dear child,” her mother said, in a frosty tone. “I don’t care whose blessing you’ve received. Without my approval, there will be NO marriage.”

  Keegan reached past Tamara and whipped the curtain aside. “I’ve told you since she was a child, Mamosia, never let this one goad you into a fight. Her sense of compassion has apparently worsened in my absence.”

  The queen stared at him with wide-eyes and open mouth.

  Saira took her mother’s hand and whispered, “Mam, he’s really back. This is not a dream or a sham.”

  Before she finished speaking, Mamosia, Queen of Ryca, a woman who had staunchly and single-handedly defended her family against a murderous brother-in-law and courageously outwitted a mad sorcerer, sank onto her pillow in a dead faint.

  Released from her grip, Bevan scrambled off the bed.

  His sister took his place. Skye tenderly stroked her grandmother’s forehead. “We should have been gentler.”

  “Everybody out.” Keegan’s tone brooked no argument. “I need no witnesses for this homecoming.”

  Before Tamara could leave, he snagged her by her elbow and said in a harsh tone, “If you ever torment your mother like that again, you’ll answer to me.”

  Tamara couldn’t contain her smile at that old familiar rebuke and leaned in to kiss his cheek. “Yes, papa,” she said in her meekest voice. She tugged free of his grip and raced away before the swipe of his hand could connect with her backside.