Dragon Tamer

Shoving aside my silly envious feelings, I turned my attention to Tallinn. He was coming to, leaning back on a fence post. I knelt beside him and lifted the dark hair out of his face to check his wound. He slapped my hand away with a vicious glare.

“Get away from me, Kal. I don’t want your help.”

“You’re injured, Tallinn, just let me-”

He shoved me, hard. I fell on my rump. “I said go away! What part don’t you understand about that?” His blue eyes were orbs of a raging storm, hazardous to anything they laid their eyes on. Me.

I gaped, hurt such raw emotion was angled towards me. “Tallinn, what did I do?”

“What didn’t you do? Everything always has to be about you. First you take the Rite of Passage away from me. Now you’re stealing my dragons? I had him! I didn’t need your help!”

“It took five of us to bring him down,” I snapped, standing up. “You did not have him. I helped because you’re too stubborn to admit when you need it!”

“I hate you!” He jumped to his feet and pushed me again. “I wish you were never born. At least Mom would still be around!” He rammed his shoulder into mine as he passed me for the pen’s exit.

“Tallinn!” I was going to run after him, but Dad caught my arm--the one with the sore elbow. I tried to hide my wince from him. He saw it and eased his grip with an apology in his eyes.

“Let him go, Kal. He needs to cool off.”

“He’s hurt.”

“And so are you. Go look after yourself. We’ll handle everything from here.”

I looked over to Zellar who was seething but had stopped trying to escape his bonds. “You’re not going to put him down, are you? He only acted out because he has a bone stuck in his teeth. He wouldn’t. . .”

He put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed tenderly. “I’ll let him live and have a healer look at his mouth. Get checked out, Kali, please.”

It wasn’t until I felt the dribble down the back of my neck when I realised I’d also suffered a head wound and that he was staring at the copious amount of blood trickling down my face.

“Okay.” I went over to Zellar and pressed my palm between his nostrils. “Be good for them, big guy. They’re going to look after you. The pain will stop, I promise.”

His watery eyes met mine a moment then he nodded the best he could with his face pinned to the ground.

I kissed his scaly face. “Good boy. I’ll stop by the healing pen tomorrow with jerky if I hear you behaved yourself.”

The dragon perked up at that and stopped puffing black smoke.

Satisfied he was going to be all right while I was gone, I hobbled over to Amelia and the prince. “Hey, Amelia, I know you’re probably scared, but do you think you could-”

She leapt from the prince and wrapped her arms around me with more force than I expected from someone so small. “Thank you! You saved my life!”

I couldn’t stop the flush rising on my cheeks; no one had ever thanked me for taming a dragon for them. I untucked some hair from my ears so she--or the gobsmacked prince--couldn’t see the blush. “I was just doing my job. You don’t have to thank me for that.”

She slapped my bad arm; I winced. “Of course I do. You were amazing! I’ve never seen someone tame like that. Pressure points? Brilliant! No harm comes to the dragon. It makes my job so much easier. Oh, your arm’s wounded. . . and I just hit it. I’m so thoughtless. Come on, I’ll make you brand new, so you can continue training the prince.”

I shrugged, avoiding his eye contact. “No rush. He doesn’t want me guiding him. I’m a worthless dragon fucker.”

She glared at the sheepish prince, slipping her arm behind my back to lead me to the healing hut.

“Actually,” the prince said, stepping in front of us, “can we talk?”

Changed his mind, did he?

Too bad for him. I’d seen his true colours. I didn’t want anything to do with him, much like all our dragons. He could switch guides, but it wouldn’t change who he was.

Sticking my chin up, I passed him. “Nope.”

“What do you mean, no?” he demanded, following us through the streets. Damn it. I was hoping he wouldn’t clue in that I was too hurt to fend him off. “We’re talking,” he decided.

Sighing, I let Amelia open the door to the hut for me and trailed in behind her; the prince was hot on my tail. “I guess we are.”

I sat down on the bench while Amelia lit the candles. The sun hadn’t quite set yet, but it would be soon, definitely by the time she’s finished with me.

The prince stood in front of me, arms crossed and adamant I listened to him.

Suddenly the confidence and swagger deflated and he sighed heavily, averting his gaze to the floor. “So, I think I might have been hasty to judge you and your methods. I’m sorry.”

“And?” I pressed. If he thought I was going to make this easy for him after he ridiculed my work and insulted me he was sorely mistaken.

He chewed on his lip, a light glare in his eyes when he lifted them to me.

Amelia came to my side. “Off with the shirt. Let’s see what that dragon’s done to you.” She gave the prince a pointed look to turn his gentlemanly gaze away.

He didn’t.

Not caring if he was looking or not, I pried my shirt off, revealing the dark bruise across my chest and undoubtedly my back where Zellar’s tail had caught me and thrown me into the wall. Amelia hissed, taking in the full extent of my injuries.

“How do you do it? I’d be crying my eyes out by now.”

“It’s not as bad as it looks.” Or maybe I’d gotten used to being bruised and beaten. Taming dragons wasn’t a walk in the park. Untamed dragons were vicious. They had killed many tamers in my village. It was a risk we all took whenever we approached a dragon.

She shook her head reproachfully at me. “You’re crazy.”

“So I’ve been told.” I straightened up so she could get better access to my injuries and looked at the prince, who was slowly taking in the bruises, cuts, and scars splattering my torso with concern, surprise, and possibly respect--a new look for him. “Go on. You were saying?”

He frowned at me, pursing his lips in distaste. Well, he could suck up a little pride if he wanted my help. “I’m sorry for the way I treated you,” he went on reluctantly. He sounded like a stroppy child that had been forced to apologize. “I shouldn’t have assumed you couldn’t do your job because you were a woman and talk to dragons, even though they can’t talk back to you. Clearly it gives you an advantage over your brothers.”

“And?” He was getting warmer to what I was fishing for.

His dark green eyes narrowed into a sharp glare. The orange tinge of the candles lit his hair up with golds and bronzes; it added more tone to his skin too. I imagine that’s how he’d look in the summer, training in the sun all day with his brothers. “And I’m sorry for letting Amber get to me? She has you all wrong.”

“And?” I pressed. I hadn’t expected him to bring up Amber, but that had been nice.

He groaned and shifted his weight with an eye roll. “Alaric was right. I am an idiot around beautiful women. You make me the stupidest man alive.”

Okay, he was wandering away from what I’d been looking for, but damn it my cheeks flamed. Even when he saw all the scars and my bruises he still thought I was beautiful--the most beautiful woman he’d met, according to him.

Amelia snickered while she lathered my back in the magical poultice. It felt cool and soothing against my sweaty back; I closed my eyes and released a long, relaxed breath. As shitty as being thrown around by a dragon was, the healing process afterwards wasn’t so bad. The poultice was refreshing on my skin, I got to rest for a day or two, and my brothers always were around to get something--anything--for me.

“What’s so funny?” Prince Camden demanded of the healer. “I’m trying to have a private conversation.”

“She wants you to ask her to be your guide again, Prince. You really don’t think clearly around beautiful women, do you?”

“Of course not,” he agreed instantly, which surprised me. “It’s insanely distracting.” He sighed and looked at me. “You really know how to grind my gears, don’t you? Making me act like a fool. I hope you’re enjoying yourself because it doesn’t happen often.” He put his hands on his hips, looking at me levelly with those fiery green eyes of his. “So, will you be my guide?”

Ignoring the pain in my back, I shrugged. “Meh. That depends entirely if you’re going to be an asshole and call me a dragon fucker again.”

The determination in his eyes faded to one of sorrow. It softened his features, conveying how truly sorry he was for saying that. But I wanted him to say it.

He swallowed. “I will never compare you to anything derogatory again, Kali. I’m sorry. I took out my frustration on not being chosen by a dragon instantly on you. You were doing your job and I refused to listen. I don’t deserve a dragon after the way I treated you.”

I stuck my chin up. “No, probably not, but I will help you find one. You’ll be the strongest partnership in your family if you listen to me.”

He cocked an eyebrow of curiosity at me. “You think so?”

“We’ll find out. Tomorrow I’ll teach you how to fly, then depending how quickly you pick it up, we’ll find the rest of the colony throughout the valley. And if you question my methods, I’ll be more than happy to leave you on a mountain dragon-less.”

A smile flitted across his face; it made butterflies attack my stomach, it was such a pleasant look for him. I was so entranced by his pretty face, I didn’t notice Amelia coming around my side and slapping some salve on my elbow.

Yowling, I scooted down the length of the bench from her. “For a healer, your bedside manner is terrible.”

She shook her head at me. “I thought you could take it.”

“I’ll take it if I have to, but a little warning would be appreciated.”

“Sorry,” she murmured, going back to her ministrations.

Prince Camden sat on the other side of the table, watching Amelia intently as she worked her magic on me--or was he studying my scars? I looked the other way, trying not to figure out what he thought of them. It didn’t matter what he or anyone else thought; I couldn’t change them. They were a part of who I was and while I sometimes doubted my life choices when Amber or a certain boorish prince mocked me for it, I was proud of who I was. Let’s see another woman do what I could do--or man for that matter. No one could hold me back and I will continue to prove people wrong. My methods would save human and dragon lives alike. Prince Camden was going to be my first student, a guinea pig. If a prince took me seriously, others would too. I could teach future tamers they didn’t have to use whips or other weapons to control a dragon.

Amelia finished up the wrappings and helped put my shirt back on. “If you’re flying tomorrow, take it easy. You’ll still be sore. Zellar hit you pretty hard.”

“Duly noted.” I never took it easy. That was for pussies.

She frowned at me, recognizing my tone; I usually reserved it for whatever Amber had to say about my body while she healed it, since she was the one who generally healed me with her stronger magic. “Are you going to be okay heading home? You can stay here for the night if you want.”

I waved it off, but it was Prince Camden who stood up and inclined his head to her. “I’ll make sure she arrives home in one piece.”

“In that case, you might need to carry her up the stairs,” she added cheekily. “Her legs might be weak.”

“My legs are fine,” I grumbled, standing--and feeling a tweak in my knee. Damn it.

Swallowing back a whimper, I stood straighter and did my best not to limp for the door.

The prince was at my side in an instant, slipping his arm around my waist to support me.

“I’m fine,” I insisted, putting a hand on his--very firm--chest to push away.

He held me tighter against him, flashing a daring grin that suited him far too well for my own good. “If you keep fighting me, I’ll have to carry you back. I’ve got to make sure my teacher is all fixed up by tomorrow.”

“I’d like to see you try,” I muttered, but stopped protesting and let the warmth of his body soak through my clothes, adding to the blush on my cheeks. “Fine. You can help me limp through the village, but I’m walking through the door by myself. I don’t want my family to worry.”

“I’ll allow it.”

Oh, he’ll allow it, will he? How generous.

Amelia opened the door for us and followed us down the street then bid her goodnight once we passed her house.

“You know,” he said once we were alone, “it’s okay to need help every now and again. If I’ve observed one thing from your family, it’s that you guys think you have to do everything by yourselves.”

“I asked for help with Zellar, didn’t I?” What did he know about my family? He’d only been around for two days.

“Yeah, only when you’re taming. You seem to think your brothers will think less of you if you appear weak.”

“Because they will. If they don’t think I can handle taming they’ll make me do something else. I don’t expect you to understand. You were born to become a Dragon Prince, you were raised to protect your people. No one wants anything different from you. I chose to be a tamer, but I can do other things if I can’t handle the tamer life--and so many people would prefer that. Half the village is waiting for me to crumble under the pressure and admit I can’t do it. They’re wrong, but I can’t give them anything to latch onto. They only need one excuse--one slip up from me--to pounce and take everything I’d worked for away.”

He looked up at the dark, cloudy sky. The moon barely shone through the clouds; the only thing that lit our path was the occasional torchlight to ward off harpies. Luckily, I knew this village well enough to navigate our way back in the dark.

“I might be destined to be a Dragon Prince,” he said, his tone surprisingly low, soft, “but I was born a prince of Wala. Since I could talk, people have tried to manipulate me to fit into their plans. Trust me, I know what it’s like to have a hoard of people waiting for me to screw up. If I’ve learned anything from the court life, it’s important to find allies wherever you can, because when you fall, it’s a lot easier to get back up when someone helps you. I’m lucky to have my brothers and Ronan, a close friend of mine. Actually, I think Ronan would like you; you’d remind him of a crazy ex he had.” If it weren’t for the endearing nature of his tone when he talked about his friend, I would have been insulted.

“You wish he was here, don’t you?”

“Gods, yes. First of all, he’d have stopped me from being a dick to you. Secondly, he’d tell me I had nothing to worry about, that I’ll be Bound.”

“You will. Prince, it’s only been a day. Prince Eli broke a family record by becoming Bound in two weeks.”

He blinked in surprise at me. “He did? But my brothers said they all found their dragons instantly?”

“Your brothers are lying shits. Of course they’re going to say that. You all have to one-up each other.” I knew from experience. If we were reversed, my brothers would do the exact same thing.

“Oh.” He relaxed in time for us to come to a stop in front of my house.

Just as he promised, he released me so I could walk through the front door alone. Everyone but Tallinn was home. Despite the awful things he’d said to me, I couldn’t help worrying about him. It wasn’t safe for him to be away from the village at night, even with a dragon.

Dad didn’t seem worried when he greeted us. Though, he did frown when he noticed my slight limp. “Do you need a hand going up the stairs?”

“I think I can manage,” I snided. My talk with the prince had been enlightening, but that didn’t mean I was ready to accept help.

Still, Casper walked up the steps behind me, ready to catch me if I faltered. I rolled my eyes to hide how touched I was that he and the prince, who had also come, wanted to make sure I made it to my room alive.

“Good night, Casper--Prince.”

Smiling weakly, Casper kissed the top of my head then went down the stairs to the card game he and my other brothers were having.

Prince Camden inclined his head to me in a gentlemanly-like fashion. “You can call me Camden or Cam, by the way. I don’t like being so formal around here. I want you to feel comfortable with me, doing and saying what you’d normally do--though, I think you’ve been yourself with me the entire time, so thank you. People aren’t themselves with me often.” He flushed, seemingly surprised by his blathering. After a moment of staring at me, waiting for me to say something snappy, he cleared his throat awkwardly. “Goodnight, Kali.”

He hurried down the stairs to join my brothers’ game.

I stared after him, wondering how long I was going to be smiling like an idiot for. The last thing I needed was for him to think I liked him. That would be ridiculous.