Chapter 34
Early the following morning, Lyv woke before Jai. She was still wrapped in his arms, their legs tangled together beneath the sheets of their bed. His scent was all around her thanks to stealing his tunic to wear to bed and having him so close.
Jai fell asleep as soon as he collapsed into bed after he changed out of his leather gear and into a pair of loose-fitting pajama pants that hung low on his hips. Just one look and she wanted to jump him all over again, but his breathing had already deepened as sleep pulled him under. Not that he wouldn't have minded being woken back up by Lyv touches and kisses, but he looked so peaceful in his sleep that all she wanted to do then was curl up beside him, which she did. He slept like a rock, not moving once in the night.
Lyv, however, barely got any. She kept waking up thinking she was back in her cell in the keep, still under Corliss's control with Guinevere and the conduit Mik grinning at her from the other side of the cell bars.
But she needed to make herself realize she was safe and with her family again.
Needed to reassure herself that she was going to get Corliss's dark magic, as well as her own from the stone, out of her.
And they would have that future with Dessa and Elys she got a glimpse of in her desperation.
Now, Lyv was still lying beside Jai in their bed as the morning glow slowly began peeking in through the windows. Leaning her head back against the pillow, she freed her hands so she could reach up and run her fingers through his hair, tracing along his ears, brushing across his closed eyelids, the slope of his nose, and the curve of his lips, and finally along the scruff of his jaw. He hadn't shaved in a while, it seemed. Usually, it was shorter, but Lyv had to admit she found him even more handsome like this.
Even through her touching him, Jai still didn't wake. He must have been more than tired for that to happen, especially since Lyv leaned forward and kissed his cheek gently before pulling herself from his grasp. She quickly cleaned up and dressed in her leather gear, even grabbing a thick cloak from the depths of her bag. One look out the window and she knew she'd need it. A few more inches of snow had blanketed the town in the night, the sunlight glittering off it. A late winter storm, especially with the Spring Equinox just a few weeks away.
With one last kiss for Jai and writing a quick note to him as to where she went and not to worry, she left him to sleep a little longer.
No one else seemed to be up just yet, so Lyv made herself a quick breakfast of toast and an apple, along with a cup of tea. Just when she was finishing, a deep hum from outside the kitchen window turned her attention toward it.
"Did you sleep out here all night?" Lyv asked Roshan.
Her dragon was curled up on the patio and just began blinking awake. The snow had melted in a Roshan-shaped area around him, the heat radiating off him melting it before it even hit the ground. As soon as Roshan heard her voice, though, he perked up, turning his massive head in her direction before poking his nose to her stomach. Instant warmth wrapped around her as she leaned forward to kiss his brow, making his gray eyes close in comfort.
"You should have gone with Erly and Chesnan so you wouldn't have been out here in the snow. I'm sure you could have been cozier and somewhere warm."
Roshan hummed again, curling his entire body around her then.
"Oh, I see. You just wanted to stay close to me, huh?"
He almost seemed to nod against her, moving his head a fraction.
"So, in this case, it's safe to say you missed me?"
This time, a whimper.
"You're still such a baby, Ro, but I love you for it," she smiled when he met her eyes, leaning forward to kiss him again. "But I missed you, too."
Lyv took a few more minutes just to love on him since he obviously needed it. He almost fell asleep with his head in her lap after he practically forced her to sit on the stone beneath them. Her smile wasn't going anywhere as she rubbed her hand along his jaw, just like he liked, making him hum in comfort.
"Looks like he missed you just as much as the rest of us did," a voice called from the open doorway back into the kitchen.
Her mother was standing there, still in her nightgown and wrapped in a thick blanket. Her burgundy hair was piled in a knot on the top of her head with a few strands falling down by her ears. She would have been the picture of ease had her eyes not held just a hint of worry and hesitation still.
"How long have you been up?" Bridget asked, stepping forward into the warmth of Roshan so she could brush Lyv's hair back behind her ear.
She reached up, grasping her hand in hers as she smiled up at her. "A little less than an hour, I think. I left Jai sleeping since he couldn't seem to the night before."
Bridget raised an eyebrow, giving her a knowing smirk. "Really, now? I'm sure there was another reason you two didn't get much sleep. Gideon likes to talk a little too much and Thia might have interjected here and there, too. I remember when Alberich and I were in those first few years of being mated. Every time I looked at him, all I wanted to do was..."
Instantly, Lyv's face turned bright red, especially since those memories instantly appeared in her mind. "Momma."
She laughed, leaning down to kiss the top of her head. "I've missed having you around to bug you about your mate. At least Gideon and Thia can do it for me when I'm not there. I'm just waiting for the wedding now. All of us are."
"Don't really think that's going to happen with everything that's going on," Lyv told her, her face still flaming as she shook her head.
"You never know, Lyv. It might be something we all need. Maybe an official proposal is something I mention to Jai. And Alexea."
Lyv rolled her eyes at her mother's insistence, but couldn't help the butterflies that erupted in her stomach. Out of habit, even though it had been months since she was actually able to do it, Lyv touched her ring with her thumb. Brushing over the metal had her heart stumbling, especially when she remembered Jai's teasing about actually proposing again.
Roshan shifted enough for Bridget to sit down beside Lyv, curling back around the two females and dozing off again. Her mother wrapped an arm around Lyv's shoulders once they were all settled, pulling her closer before kissing the side of her head. Closing her eyes, Lyv leaned into her side and snuggled close.
"I've missed you," Lyv whispered to her then.
"Oh, darling, I've missed you, too," her mother told her, kissing her head once again. "I can't imagine what you've been going through over these past few months. And I know...I know you don't want to talk about it just yet, but I'll be here whenever you're ready."
She nodded, not saying a word. She couldn't just yet. Not when she hadn't really come to terms with it all herself.
"You know, I went out to search for you right after you were taken," Bridget began then. "Jai and the others weren't the only ones. All of Dalcaine and Escarral had been looking in every single possible place we could. We worked together. Alberich and I even went over to Escarral when Camilla and Soren did to meet with Bence to coordinate the search."
"Jai told me. A lot has been going on, huh?"
"You could say that." Bridget tightened her hold on her. "I really hate to admit that we did, but all of us were thinking the worst after we watched the darkness take over. And seeing it happen to you, all I could think about was that I'd lost you just like I lost Corliss. Even though we fought, I still loved her. I shouldn't have given up on her and I certainly wasn't going to give up on you and let history repeat itself. And maybe, just maybe, I would be redeemed for abandoning my sister when she needed me the most. Just with knowing that stone is still in you, I can't help but be scared. Scared that, even though you say you have a handle on it, something might happen."
Lyv shifted to sit up to look at her mother, whose eyes were misting over before she quickly swiped her fingers under them. Then she realized one thing they hadn't told her parents and grandparents the night before when they were talking.
"Jai's helping me keep control of it," she told her then. "I was already able to keep it under control, but with his help it's even easier than it was before."
Bridget looked like she was about to start crying again. "He is? You have to stop giving me things I need to thank him over and over for. I think he's going to get annoyed with me, especially when I don't plan on stopping even when all of this...even when all of this is over," she said before shaking her head. "When your father and I first knew we were mates and everyone around us began finding out, they all regarded us and made us known for being one of the most powerful mated pairs. Honesty, though? I think you and Jai have us beat."
Lyv couldn't help but smile, her thoughts drifting back to a night on Blackloch before Jai revealed the truth about Amory. A night when she finally gave into the pull toward him, an invisible force that drew them together no matter what she thought she'd be able to do once she met him in Dalcaine.
"Even before I knew the truth, I asked him if he wanted to conquer the world with me. I've always been ambitious, but I think it's more than relevant now."
"And I have no doubt in my mind you will, because you won't just have Jai with you, but all of us as well," Bridget told her, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.
***
Lyv and her mother stayed outside for another hour, just talking and catching up as they sat against the warmth and comfort of Roshan. By that time, Alberich had come downstairs into the kitchen to peek out at his mate and daughter with a steaming cup in hand. When Bridget called for him to join, he just shook his head, vowing to steal Lyv away for himself later that day. He didn't move when they started talking again, though, until Gideon appeared.
"Do you want to join us since Alberich just seems content with staring instead of talking?" Bridget called out to him with a bright smile.
"I've actually come to steal Lyv away if I can," Gideon answered as he walked toward them. Roshan lifted his head only slightly to get some loving from him before putting his head back down. "I want to before Jai wakes up since we all know they'll more than likely be locked up in their room the whole time we're here. He's never been too keen on sharing, especially when it comes to something he loves."
"Gideon, shut up, would you?" Lyv mumbled, pushing against Roshan's side to stand. "You talk way too much. And about things you shouldn't, especially when it's my parents you're talking to."
"Hey, they should be excited to have a prospective grandchild on the way sooner rather than later with how you two go at it whenever you can..."
Lyv sent a flicker of magic in his direction, stopping him from saying anything else. When he tried and no sound came out, his eyes narrowed at her as she grinned.
It was echoed by another something smiling within her.
Her parents and Gideon didn't see her own smile falter when she realized that just a bit of dark magic somehow released to help keep him silent.
"Wow. Not having you talk is kind of nice."
Gideon pointed at her and then at his throat, narrowing his eyes to let her know the exact curse words he wanted to say.
"Do you promise to shut up about me and Jai? Because I could say a few things about you and Thia, too."
He nodded, jabbing his finger at his throat again.
"Fine then."
And with another flicker of magic, he was able to speak again.
"You're even more sassy now and I don't think I can take any more than you already were," Gideon mumbled then, but still held out his hand for hers as he looked at her mother. "Bridget, do you mind if I steal our Lyv away for the rest of the morning. Not only do I want some time with her, but I've got another two females who made me promise to give her to them afterward."
"Go ahead," she laughed as Gideon pulled forward out of Roshan's warmth and into his own.
He looked at the still dozing dragon then. "And you. You're going to meet us at the caves in about an hour, so get up, eat something, and head that way, all right?"
Roshan merely opened on gray eye to look at him, huff out a smoking breath through his nostrils, and close it again.
"You two have fun," Bridget called out as they started down the back stairs leading into a small garden. "Just be back in time for dinner, please!"
Gideon raised his hand in a wave as Lyv smiled up at him, looping her arm through his as they disappeared through the arched gateway.
"Does Jai know you're stealing me away for the day?" Lyv asked as they started through town on their way to the pathway that led up to caves of the Dragon Lands. "He was still sleeping when I went down to see Ro."
"Eh, I slipped him a note under the door telling him he didn't get to lock you up all day."
"You didn't."
"I did. I might have given him the idea to do just that tomorrow, though, so you'd better get some sleep tonight."
"You're impossible."
"And yet you still love me, even when I walk in on you two naked. I think I've seen more of Jai's ass in these last three years with him being with you than I had in the last three hundred."
"Then you need to stop walking in on us."
"And you two need to learn about soundproof wards and locks on doors. At least it's a good-looking ass, right?"
"True. It's good to grab onto, too."
Gideon gagged. "Ew. Way too much information, Lyv."
Lyv let out a happy laugh that had Gideon rolling his eyes, but then smiling down at her. Everyone around them was looking their way, too, their eyes following every one of Lyv's movements. Not out of fear, but out of happiness and relief.
She walked closer to Gideon as they started out of town and toward the mountains a short distance away. "I've missed it just being the two of us," she admitted then. "After it just being us for so long in Escarral, I feel like we haven't gotten to do this in a while."
"Well, with Jai stealing you away and Thia stealing me..."
"Oh, please. She would shove you off on me anytime she could."
"That's probably true."
"You know it."
This time, Gideon was the one to laugh. "We do need more time together, though. So, once we're back in Ayveri..."
"You can steal me away anytime you want and I'll just threaten Jai if he thinks he's going to be coming along."
They continued walking down the winding pathway through the pines, covered in snow. It crunched with every step they took as a chilling wind whipped around them, blowing Lyv's hair back off her shoulders. With her free hand, she pulled her cloak tighter around herself with Gideon doing the same.
"So, in my time away, how have you been?" she finally asked him. "How have you really been, I mean? I feel like no one's told me the truth about themselves, but they're more than happy to let me know about everyone else."
Gideon stayed silent for a moment. Thoughtful. She knew him well enough to know when he was upset just by the set of his jaw and how he kept his eyes forward.
"How you saw me on the ship when I got to you...that's how I've been. Except I've been holding it in for far too long until it just sort of explodes out of me," he admitted in barely a whisper as he glanced down at his boots in the snow. "I've barely been able to hang on. Just like I'm sure Jai feels, I should have been able to get to you in time. We should have been able to stop Corliss before she...before she..." He sighed, shaking his head as he tightened his hold on her. "I've been a bit meaner than I used to be. Short-tempered. I've snapped at Thia more than enough times for her to warrant her own anger toward me. At least getting to make up to her in several different ways helps us both. But I've exploded on another who's been with us, too. I'm not too proud of that fact, especially when it was directed at a certain person."
"Allel, huh?"
"Maybe?"
"Gideon."
Reaching up, he shoved his fingers through his hair, brushing out some of the snowflakes that had fallen from above. "Like I said, not my proudest moment. Not my proudest last five months, to be exact. I've been putting too much blame on Allel for not knowing more. I've been so focused on what was happening to you since you'd been taken that I didn't come to realize she'd gone through it for the past hundred years."
"It's good you've realized it, though. That she needs friends now more than ever, which would be us."
"Agreed. She and Jai have gotten close, too. And as for me and Thia, it took what happened in Filwey with you and Mik to realize we really cared about what happened to her. She's..."
"She's grown on you, huh?"
"She has. She's a lot less crazy than you and Thia, that's for damn sure. Maybe her chill attitude will rub off on you both."
"Or maybe it'll be the other way around."
"And if that were to happen, then Mother help us all. You two, Kalla, Laurel, and Camilla are already a lady gang I'd rather not mess with. I'm banking on Allel being the voice of reason in it."
"Please. You and Jai are just the same, loving being surrounded by powerful females."
"Exactly," he grinned. "So, maybe your lady gang wouldn't be such a bad thing."
As they continued down the pathway through the forest, heading in the direction of the mountains, Lyv and Gideon continued catching up and falling back into their old rhythm. She missed everything about him, including him saying too much or walking in on the wrong moments. But this...this was something she missed the most – having her brother and best friend be at her side no matter what.
As soon as the entrance to the caves came into view, hidden in the valley between two snow-covered mountains, she had to pause to take it all in. It wasn't just the vastness that stalled her breath in her lungs, but the dozens of dragons that were flying to or out of the cave opening. Lyv was so used to only seeing Alzriade Blacks and Tarvor Reds, but here...here was every species she only got a glimpse flying above or illustrated in a text.
The cave entrance itself was several times large than the dragon quarters Roshan and Erly stayed in at the Branvon Estate. It had to be with so many dragons coming in and out.
Lyv let out the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "This is..."
"Spectacular, isn't it?" Gideon grinned. "It's changed a little since I've been here, which had to be three decades ago, maybe? Come on, though. Thia and Allel were going to meet us inside. They were talking about introducing us both to someone..."
Inside was something else, too. Again, it was similar to the dragon quarters, but on a much bigger scale. Dozens upon dozens of dragons were dozing in their own quarters. Fires roared every few dozen feet, illuminating the cavernous room hidden beneath the mountain. Embedded in the chiseled stone ceiling were gems – rubies, sapphires, emeralds, topaz...and so many others – and veins of shimmering gold that sparkled in the light. The gems looked like they'd been strategically placed by those who build the caves since they dotted through the carved illustrations along the stone. At the very center, though, was open to the sky above them. No snow entered, deterred by an enchantment that stopped the elements from getting inside. It was another way for the dragons to get in and out, though.
While Lyv was marveling at everything around her, she herself was being marveled at, too. Every dragon she passed lifted their head to look at her. Their riders paused their work to do the same, stepping out to watch her and Gideon with wide eyes before they bowed their heads in greeting.
They found Thia and Allel speaking with a sorcerer in one alcove room. The room itself held maps of all three lands pinned to the walls, a large circular table in the center surrounded by leather-backed chairs, and two doorways on the wall opposite of the entrance. One had an intricate locking mechanism on it, one that didn't require a key but rather a certain kind of magic, while the other just had a simple knob.
When Lyv and Gideon stepped inside, all three of them looked their way. The sorcerer was wearing leather riding gear of the same maker as Lyv and Thia's, but it was his piercing, dark brown eyes that held Lyv's attention.
And made her notice just how close he stood beside Thia.
Apparently, Gideon knew exactly who this was.
Thia, though, smiled as soon as she and Gideon came into view and quickly walked over to give Lyv a hug and Gideon a kiss that lasted a little too long. It was Gideon who made it so, though. Obviously, he knew of the history between this sorcerer and his mate.
Thia poked him in the ribs as soon as he let her take a breath. "Jealousy doesn't look good on you, you know."
"And why would I be jealous?" he asked, raising a brow...before narrowing his eyes back at the sorcerer.
Lyv nodded in agreement. "She's right. It really doesn't."
"I haven't acted this way when I've met past lovers of yours," Thia continued.
Gideon let out a snorting laugh at that statement. "Oh, please. You threatened one a few weeks ago before we left Ayveri."
"I was caught off guard with her. Plus, it didn't help the way she was touching you. You would think she would have heard you'd been mated by then, but no."
"You know I'm yours and only yours, you beautiful female."
Allel stepped up to the three of them then, though she quickly glanced back at the male. "Oh, so that's who you were telling me about? You never gave me a name before. No wonder Gideon's been quiet and brooding..."
Gideon, having the three females ganging up on him, yanked his fingers through his hair, shaking his head. "See, Lyv? I told you, I need to separate your lady gang already."
Lyv snorted out a laugh, following behind Lyv and Allel to go meet the sorcerer himself who caused Gideon's jealousy.
Lyv had to admit he was quite handsome with dark hair and copper skin. He was tall and more on the slender side, though she could still make out the muscles beneath his leathers. He looked as if he'd been training on the backs of dragons all his life, even taking on their looks with the sharp angles of his face. His leather was scaled like them, too, and a silver dragon ring curled almost life-like around the pointer finger of his right hand.
"Lyv, I'd like to introduce you to Donovan Beck, Commander of the Eld army and lead dragon rider," Thia said to her then, before turning to the male. "And Donovan, this is Alyvia Deverell, Heir of Asturia, Princess of Escarral, and mate of Crown Prince Jai."
The sorcerer bowed at the waist, his eyes never leaving hers. "It's an absolute pleasure to meet you, Alyvia Deverell."
"And it's a pleasure to meet you, too, Donovan Beck. Just call me Lyv, please, though. So, I'm guessing you're pretty good on the back of a dragon?"
A smile pulled up the corner of his mouth as his eyes sparkled. "You could say that. I've been with my bloodrite bond Kova since I was five. Found her right here in the Dragon Lands, actually."
Thia elbowed Lyv gently in the side, a smile of her own appearing. "Your Roshan's been a little sweet on Kova, too."
"And she won't give him the time of day, either," Donovan chuckled, shaking his head. "Your dragon is spectacular, though. I haven't seen a mixed species in forever, especially an Alzriade and Tarvor."
"My Erly made a pretty cute baby, though, didn't she?" Thia grinned at him.
"That she did. Hard to believe he's less than two years old, though."
"I'm sure you've seen his daddy dragon, though, right? Chesnan is huge."
Gideon and Allel weren't the only ones watching the conversation between the two of them.
Lyv looked between them once more, then down to Donovan's ring only to suddenly remember a time when Thia told her about it, before asking, "We haven't met before, right? Because your ring...wait."
Past lover. Of course, Gideon would be jealous on an entirely different level with this male than the other lovers of Thia's. The half-sorceress had told Lyv about Donovan Beck one night when they'd stayed up way too late eating chocolate and drinking wine when they were in Asturia.
Thia and Donovan's semi-relationship was one of the longest she had, lasting almost three decades and ending just a year before Lyv and Gideon had met Thia in Ayveri. It was off and on, only being on when they were in the same part of Dalcaine for a short period of time. Apparently, Thia's father had approved a union between the two of them should they want it, but Thia hadn't been ready, though Donovan was. He asked, of course, but she would always turn him down. The last time was when she broke things off with him completely, knowing they were beginning to grow apart, though they still vowed to remain friends. The way Thia described it almost sounded like Lyv and Balian's relationship years before.
Now, Lyv's eyes shifted over to Thia, who only glanced her way. "So, this is Donovan Beck."
"All right, we've already established that," Thia mumbled, waving a hand dismissively. "Now, I'm regretting asking Gideon to meet us here with you."
"Why are we here, exactly?" Lyv asked, wanting to change the subject, though she was still smiling.
"Thia was wanting to show you around since you'd never been here before," Donovan answered, nodding back behind him. "But I saw you looking around as you came in. I thought I'd help give you a more extensive tour."
"He was the one to commission these caves two hundred years ago," Thia continued. "Beautiful, right? Now you know where I got the inspiration for Erly's in Ayveri."
That statement had Gideon grumbling.
And Thia hit him in the stomach before speaking again. "Come with me, though," she said to Lyv, reaching for her hand and pulling her from Gideon's hold. "I want to show you around some more before we head out."
Even though she got a peek at everything as she and Gideon walked through the caves, Thia was able to take her on a more extensive tour with Allel, Gideon, and Donovan trailing behind. The two males walked a few feet apart, never looking at the other, which made it quite entertaining for the females whenever they glanced back.
Not only were there quarters for the dragons, but also an area where leather gear was made for riders and armor was created for the dragons themselves. She even got to meet Donovan's mother Gisele, who was actually the one who had made Roshan's saddle and Lyv's own riding gear. Lyv had to swipe away the sweat that rolled down the side of her face with her cloak before they left, the heat sweltering from the forges. Everyone they met, though, was more than happy to show Lyv everything they could. She found herself not being able to stop smiling, which was welcomed after everything.
Jai found them right when they were walking out what they called the maternity ward, which was the quarters for all the female dragons who had eggs, and back into the main area of the caves. This was what the doorway in the meeting room led to. A second entrance to be able to check on them faster than walking through the caves.
Lyv was smiling brightly as he walked their way, wearing his own leather and a fur lined cloak he pulled off in the heat of the fires. For some reason, he was caught off guard by her smile, barely returning her kiss whenever she bounded over to him.
"Well, good afternoon," she teased him when she pulled away, only to wrap her arms around his neck as she stood on her toes. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, but I didn't like waking up and not knowing where you were."
"You didn't get my note? Or Gideon's, for that matter? And you know, there's this thing called a mating bond between us that you could have used to ask..."
Jai peered around, shaking his head. "You're in a safe place, it seems."
"I am. Did Roshan...?"
But before she could even finish her question, Roshan was strutting into the caves, his head held high as the other dragons, decades and even centuries older than him, all turned to watch him. Lyv rolled her eyes, shaking her head at her bloodrite bond as he came up to stop in front of them. He barely gave her a passing glance, though, his gray eyes shifting to the Tarver Red female that had come up to Donovan's side, curling around him as Thia and Allel started talking to her. Though she was the same species as Erly, the female dragon was a deeper red with a bright underbelly and silver eyes that narrowed as soon as she saw Roshan.
So, this must have been Kova.
And, apparently, Roshan did have a little bit of a crush. More than a little, actually.
"Uh-oh," Lyv murmured to Jai as they both glanced between the two dragons.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" he whispered back not so quietly.
"That we might have to have a certain conversation with Ro?"
"Definitely."
"And that you're going to have to be the one to start it?"
"Why me? You're his bloodrite bond."
"But you're a male and he's a male. Plus, he might find it uncomfortable with me."
"Oh, please, Lyv. You would find it uncomfortable."
"That's because my baby dragon isn't a baby dragon anymore!"
Jai just laughed, shaking his head as he leaned down to kiss her temple. "You know there was a reason they probably wanted to bring you here, right?"
"You mean it's not just to meet Roshan's future female friend?"
Roshan finally leaned his head down, nudging between the two of them with his eyes still on Kova.
Then Lyv saw the saddle on his back, which hadn't been there earlier.
She let out a heavy sigh, longing tugging at her chest as she leaned down to kiss Roshan's brow. "You want to go out for a little while, my sweet dragon? Just you and me?"
Roshan perked up when she said it would just be the two of them. She wasn't the only one who had missed it. Nudging Jai even more out of his way, Roshan curled around Lyv, giving her easier access at getting up into the saddle on his back.
As she secured herself and tightened her cloak around her, Jai stepped up to Roshan's side, smiling up at her. "Be safe. We'll meet you back at the house in a little while, all right? I think Thia and Allel were going to go out with you, too, but after you've had some time with just the two of you. I'll steal Gideon away since it looks like he's wanting to poke a few holes in the Eld commander with his sword."
Lyv reached her hand down to grasp onto his, giving him another bright smile. "I love you."
"And I love you," he smiled back, sapphire eyes gleaming like those gems embedded in the stone above them.
As soon as Lyv let go of his hand, Roshan took to bounding steps forward before unfurling his wings and taking the air, climbing and climbing inside the cavernous room of the dragon caves until he reached the ceiling opening.
And they could still hear Lyv's laugh and Roshan's happy humming echoing off the stone after they disappeared into the cloudy sky above the mountains of the Dragon Lands.
***I'm so glad I didn't take out this chapter like I'd planned to! I actually loved it, especially with the caves and meeting Donovan and Kova. Of course, this won't be the only time we'll see them since our Roshan's got a bit of a crush!
I'm going to start on the next chapter now and hope to get it up soon. It's going to be one of the shorter transition chapters before we're back to Ayveri...and back to our little golden nuggets Elys and Eamon! Ugh, I've missed them!
What did you guys think? Comment and vote!
Happy reading!
- Ansley***