The Dream Keeper's Dragon

3.14 Dragon Tamer

Orken and Shaelyn had been put to work. A small patch of land was given to the two of them for the vegetable garden on the farthest side of the castle, away from the botanical quarter, so that the old grouch of a botanist couldn't see them and have a fit about it. They had already taken three wagons to the town filled with tomatoes, onions, potatoes, and raspberries as treat.

The process only stopped in the late afternoon when Orken's tomatoes started to look as if they were growing faces. Despite the amount of complaining Orken had done when Aurelie asked him, he seemed to be enjoying the work, especially the part where he got to impart his knowledge onto Shaelyn.

While the two of them worked, Aurelie packed the supplies into crates, feeling more useless by the minute. A guard was assigned to the duty, but she had taken over his work. He now sat inside the wagon, occasionally taking the crates from Aurelie and stacking them at the back. His mouth was pink from Shaelyn's raspberries.

Aurelie's original plan was to assist Daerious in the cleaning and rebuilding of the cathedral and the houses that were damaged, but too many guards would have to hover around her and the time and cost of the operation did not match the results that it would yield. She and her father did agree that she should be present in the town square at least one day out of every week to bond with the town's folk. Her job would be to pack vegetables in the market and chat to the inhabitants to gain their respect.

Orken held his palm out over a newly sprouted leaf of a tomato plant and chanted, "Gomus," until a tiny, green tomato formed. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he called Shaelyn closer.

"You see here," he said, keeping the tomato between his thumb and index finger, "you take it like this, fingers loose not tight. Now, I pull away gently and slowly so that it grows with the movement rather than having to rush to catch up." The tomato grew to fit tightly in the palm of his hand, and when he took his hand away entirely, it reddened, making Aurelie's lips water. "That's how you keep the natural flavor, and not create the rubbish that is sold in those witch markets you talked about."

Shaelyn nodded. "Can I do something other than the berries now?" she asked. Her fingers were marked with little dots from the prickly raspberry bush, and thin, red lines ran up her arms from the gathering of the berries that grew deeper within the bush.

Aurelie rolled up her sleeve and flapped her hand over her sweaty face in an attempt to cool down. The sun was rather intense. When she woke up, grey clouds coated the sky only to clear up by the time they were finished with breakfast. Aurelie took the tomato and put it into the crate.

Bobbie, the young brave guard, made his way up the hill, his hand outstretched and waving at us. Aurelie waved back, smiling. She wondered if Bobbie would be sent off to one of the training camps that the castle was planning to open. The border would be a dangerous place, but she would rather have him trained than to be unprotected when the war came. Yet, there was childishness in the boy that Aurelie yearned to protect. He had one of those faces that would make you tear up yourself if you saw him crying.

"Your Highness." Bobbie bowed in greeting. Someone must have set him straight, because the last time they met he chose to ignore all the formalities, and in the process made Aurelie grow rather fond of him. "The dragon's awake and she's being—difficult."

***

Aurelie ran up to the field where Valice now lived. The guards and Vera were pressed up against the castle wall, their clothing flapping in the wind created by the flap of Valice's wings. She trotted around. A red glow set over her eyes, making even Aurelie weary of stepping too close.

Niendry was closest to Valice, her hands folded around her waist, and her black hair billowing. The shadowy smoke of her skirt weaved violently around her like a whirlwind that had been turned upside down. She took a step, fighting against the wind to get close to Valice.