“I’m choosing to trust you,” I said unnecessarily.
Seranni only smiled, clutching the book to her bosom. “You won’t regret it.”
“Come on,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll escort you home.”
This walk went very differently than the last, our footsteps crunching on the soft, powdery snow as we walked together. We didn’t speak, but the silence wasn’t oppressive.
The moonlight painted the trees in shades of silver and shadow, and the air was crisp and cold.
By the time we reached the edge of her town, I found myself reluctant to part ways.
All too soon, Seranni was standing on the outskirts of her town.
“Good night,” I murmured.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said.
As she walked to her home, I melted into the shadows surrounding the woods. With a quick slash of my hand through the air, I had my claws out. I used them to climb up into the treetops, where I had a perfect view of Seranni walking deeper into the town. The gently falling snow would soon cover up her footprints, and no one in town would be the wiser about her midnight escapade.
I watched until she walked through the empty side streets up to a small, cozy house, entering through the back door. The faint glow of her house’s lantern was a beacon in the darkness. Only once she had shut her door did I turn away.
The next day, I spent the time looking for firewood and hunting for game. My stores were running low and I wasn’t sure I wantedto steal from the townspeople again. Taking from them when Seranni was coming to the tower every night felt too risky.
If someone saw me…I would be back in chains.
Back to being a prisoner of war. And an experiment for the mage.
I’ddiebefore I went back to him.
So, all these months I had stayed to the woods, where the townspeople would never see me, and I read my books by whatever weak sunlight made its way to the tower. It helped that my new form gave me better night vision than I had when I had been purely human. I could read in low, dim light, and had no great need for candles. My dragon blood also kept me warm and saved me the trouble of lighting a fire every night, which had helped me stay hidden all this while.
But Seranni was different.
She’d been shivering last night, and logic dictated that she would need another fire when she came to visit tonight. So, I foraged for firewood and hunted for my supper at the same time. All the game was hibernating, but there were a few birds and beasts that I sniffed out and grabbed from their hiding places.
Satisfied with my hauls—both of them—I returned to the tower. Seranni would be back, looking for new books to read, and it would be best if I kept everything ready for her in the kitchen. Only this morning, I’d found a book that seemed to talk about the mage’s experiments, and the magic arrays drawn in the pages of the notebook seemed familiar to me from my long imprisonment.
I rubbed my wrists. I’d been a prisoner of war for eighteen months, but I still felt the shadow of the shackles that had bound me. When I had rebelled against the mage, he’d lockedme up in the dungeon, and I’d spent six months in there before I broke out. I’d emerged to find the tower empty, all of my fellow prisoners dead or missing, and the mage gone. All that was left were his notebooks.
Somewhere in them was the clue to turning me back into the man I’d once been. I wouldn’t rest until I’d undone what had been done to me.
I wouldn’t let the godsdamned magewin.
Clenching my teeth against the anger that threatened to overwhelm me, I took to my heels, hoping the bracing run would burn away my rage. I leapt over stones and vaulted tree branches, enjoying the burn of my muscles and the chilly wind in my hair.
When I arrived at the tower again, I was flushed and grinning. Humming under my breath, I entered the tower, lighting a small fire in the kitchen. The dragon in me wanted to tear into the rabbits and birds I had found, but I forced myself to go slowly, gathering dishes and condiments, preparing and cutting the meat for a quick stew. I was no beast. I was aman. And I would eat like a man.
Several hours later, my mood had soured again. After a semi-delicious meal of rabbit stew, I had brought out the book I had found earlier in the day. For good measure, I brought along all the books in the same stack, and even the ones next to it. I’d spent the better part of the afternoon and the evening reading the words, but none of it made sense to me. Frustrated, I’d given up and moved on to another book, hoping it would yield some clues, but it was all gobbledygook to me.
Oh, I could read the warnings, and some of the instructions—“only to be performed during the full moon”, or “do not attempt before bringing your mind to tranquility throughmeditation”, but the rest of it was beyond me. I could read the words, but I could not comprehend their meaning. It could have been written in another language, as far as I was concerned. It was as if a child had been given a book on advanced military strategy. They would read the words, but none of it would hold any meaning for the child.
With a snarl, I pushed the book away and looked up. It was night. Nearly midnight. Where was Seranni?
Perhaps I could escort hertothe tower today. If nothing else, it would give me a chance to burn off some of my frustration.
Resolved, I pushed my chair back and stood, making my way out of the door and into the night. The wind rushed through my hair again as I ran for the town at full bore, keeping to the tree line. Dodging trees and vaulting fallen branches as I ran, I enjoyed the exertion, feeling my spirits lift.
I was nearing the edge of the town, time to slow down…
