Bound to the Dragon King (5 page)

I hurriedly finish up my shower and dry off with a warm fluffy towel. Ruby’s clothes fit me a little more snugly than I normally wear. I take a quick peak at myself in the mirror and I’m surprised at what I find. My typically frizzy red hair is soft and wavy and my skin glows with warmth instead of the pale sickly look I normally see when I look in the mirror. The clothes are snug but they accentuate parts of me that I usually try to cover up. I wonder what Ash would say if he could see me now? He probably wouldn’t say anything and I’m guessing we’d be rolling around in a pile of gold or sand somewhere.

A spicy aroma pulls me through the halls towards the kitchen. Dried herbs hang from the ceiling, casting shadows onto the beautiful wood floors. The house is a true reflection of its owner. It’s cozy and lovingly lived in. A wall of jars filled with all kinds of oddities for potions and spells draws my attention. Georgia has everything from rose petals to crushed hens beak. A cauldron sits in the hearth waiting to be filled. They always told us that a witch’s heart is in her kitchen, but I never believed it until now.

“Would you like some tea Melinda?” Georgia asks, coming out of a small door with a handful of jars and packets. I steal a glance into a well-stocked pantry before she closes it behind her. The kettle whistles loudly and she bustles over to turn off the heat.

“Sure,” I reply. “Can I help you?”

“Of course dear,” she says and hands me a couple of jars filled with dried leaves. “It’s better that way. Do you know how to mix a potion?”

“I thought we were just making tea,” I mumble tentatively.

“Ah, well a finely brewed tea can itself be a potion if you mix it properly.” She smirks at me before continuing. “I have no doubt that you have some gaps in your education. Ruby was pretty far behind when she came to live with me. Not your fault of course. Once you realized that you couldn’t perform the basics of witchcraft, everything else likely fell behind as well. ” She hands me a pinch of a black powder. “Throw it in the kettle now, make sure you get it all in.”

I watch her add bits and pinches of all the jars she brought out of the pantry. She hands me the last jar. “Now the hard part is adding this last one at just the right moment.” I open the jar and look inside at the white flowers within. “Crystallized yarrow,” she says. “Pull off one of those petals and throw it in. Carefully now, don’t crush it.” I pinch a tiny petal in between my fingers and throw it into the pot. “Hmm, almost” she says. “Now, hold your hand over the steam and cast Cleanse.”

I feel for the tiny spark but my hands are shaking too much. It’s just like being in school all over again. Georgia looks at my quivering hand and then up at me. “No need to be so afraid dear. There’s no one here to judge you, this isn’t for a grade,” she says guessing at my insecurities. She’s right. No one here will laugh at me for not being able to use magic. I’m not going to fail this test. Plus, I have been able to do so much more magic lately. I can tell that I’m not fully charged, but I’m the only thing holding me back.

“Cleanse,” I cast and watch as the dark liquid boils ferociously before fading to a pale blue color.

“Good.” She grabs three mugs from the cabinet and plunks them down on the counter. “Don’t just stand there, pour the stuff while it’s still hot, it will taste terrible otherwise.”

“Oh is that your Cleanse Tea?” Ruby asks, emerging from the hallway holding Edgar. He mews up at her and I recognize those begging eyes. I find a small saucer from one of the cabinets and pour some tea in it for him. He jumps from her arms onto the countertop and nuzzles against me.

“It’s hot little guy,” I warn him lovingly. I can’t help but wonder why Edgar hasn’t started talking to me now that I know he can.

“When he’s ready,” Georgia says, once again guessing at what I’m thinking. “Cats don’t shift very often, if ever. He’s likely experiencing some magical aftershock at being forced to by your Dragon friend. The tea should help a little.”

Ruby and I grab our mugs and join her at the table. The blue tea tastes like springtime and fresh rain. I take a hearty gulp and find the flavor of fresh cut grass and warm cookies.

“This is delicious!” I say, wishing the hot tea was cooler so I could drink it faster.

Georgia chuckles at my enthusiasm. “Those who have the most to cleanse tend to find intoxicating. Take it slowly dear.”

The effects of the tea wash over me. I can’t fight back the tears that are forming. “What’s wrong?” Ruby asks.

“I’m just really worried about Asher. We… well I sort of left him abruptly...” I admit. “We have been through so much lately. It’s not like it used to be…”

“Used to be?” Georgia asks. Ooops! I guess I’m gonna have to explain more than I anticipated.

“Ash and I met a long time ago, but not in the real world. I started having these… dreams I guess you would call them, except to us they were very real. Anyways what started out as a friendship ending up being so much more. But now that we’re here we just keep fighting about the most ridiculous things. I guess I just thought it would be different…” I twist the bracelet on my wrist. It’s still not charged up and if it were I would portal to him right now.

“Do you love him?” Ruby asks wistfully.

“I do,” I admit. “But he’s just so impulsive. You saw him at the Council. He gets mad and can’t help shifting into his dragon form. And now he’s off with this werewolf trying to recruit more shifters to help him defeat the Fae, but it’s too dangerous! And I don’t think he even considers using me and my magic as a way to help him, but I know that I can! I have to, I can’t lose him again.”

“I think you’re right Melinda. You can help him. You were a crucial part of the prophecy and I don’t think you’re done just yet.” Georgia says looking over at Ruby. “The Council was rash in setting up that coven so hastily, but they wanted to show Asher that we were powerful and skilled. I warned them that setting up a coven takes more than just gathering a bunch of witches. Do you know why the circle failed?”

“Because we weren’t ready?” I guess.

“It’s more than that. Think about it. Not only did you just meet these women, you had no chance to get acquainted with their magic and you were put on the spot. No one should ever work a circle with that much pressure, no matter how badly they want it. There is another reason, but one we could do nothing about because it was too risky...”

I think back to the meeting. What else was wrong? What would be too risky for the Council? “Of course, it wasn’t in the Underground!”

“But if our magic isn’t tied to the Fae magic why would that matter?” Ruby asks.

“Because you’re magic
is
tied to the Underground. The Fae aren’t just perverting dragon magic, they are using it. You might not be tied in with the original curse, but all magic comes from the same source.”

“So we need to be Underground for the coven’s magic to be able to work.” I close my eyes and use my witchsight to envision the spell. “I can see it!” I say excitedly. “It has to be Underground.” 

“You can see it? What are you talking about?” Ruby asks, confused.

“I can see how the spell would work… I can see spells now,” I admit.  “Not all the time, but when I try to see how the magic works… I can.”

“That’s so cool!” Ruby says excitedly.

“That’s a very rare talent for a witch to have. Be careful dear, it can be tricky to understand magic that you didn’t cast yourself.”

“Wait,” I interrupt. An idea is forming in my head and my excitement is building. “If I can get Ash back Underground with a coven that I am comfortable with, do you think I can get the spell to work?”

Chapter Six

“I think it’s our best hope Melinda,” Georgia replies. “But I can’t think of a way to do it Underground without SIGMA finding us just as soon as we cast the spell…” She pauses and frowns deeply. “With Renewal Day so close, it may be our only option.”

“What if there was a way? Do you think the Council would help?” I’m almost bursting with excitement. I had a feeling I would go back to that forest and it looks like I might be bringing a bunch of other people with me. I hope it’s not too dangerous.

“I think the Council would jump at the opportunity to show Asher that we aren’t a bunch of blundering idiots. What do you have in mind?” she asks, obviously intrigued.

“I know a place in the Underground that even SIMGA won’t go. When Ash and I were running from the Seekers we found a section of forest that was behind a Barrier spell. SIGMA stopped chasing us when we went through it. They couldn’t get past the spell or maybe they were too afraid of whatever’s in there. Either way, the werewolf showed us a secret entrance. We just need a little bit of time to work the spell. I think it could work!”

“I believe you’re right dear,” Georgia smiles approvingly at me and starts pacing across the kitchen. “We have quite a bit of work ahead of us! I need to go talk with the Council immediately. You two will have to gather your coven. You must be careful Melinda. I’m not sure if SIGMA knows who you are yet, but they certainly got a good look at you. You’ll have to be on your toes.”

“This is going to be so much fun!” Ruby jumps up enthusiastically. “Let’s go get ready! Do you think we should change? Oh, should we wear disguises?” As she runs off to her room I can’t help but chuckle at her. I couldn’t be more grateful to have her coming with me. Navigating the Underground was always difficult being alone without magic. I’m not sure about disguises, but perhaps a sweater or something to hide the cleavage would be alright with me. 

I promise Georgia that we will be careful and she gives me a list of the candidates. Ash is probably not going to like this plan, but what other option do we have? I can’t let him go attack Arralt with a bunch of shifters! I’m just going to have to convince him to try this. It’s invigorating to have someone believe in me for a change.

______________________________

The Central Underground Market is bustling with energy. I feel like a little kid, my senses so overwhelmed that I don’t know where to look next. The most delightful smell pulls me towards the food stalls. I am surrounded by stall after stall of strange and exotic foods. A huge pig is browning delectably over a bright purple fire. Something that looks a lot like an Octopus except with twice as many tentacles wiggles it’s appendages over the top of its barrel before being zapped back in by the shop worker. Barrel after barrel is filled with everything from seaweed to eyeballs. Yuck!

Moving on I find food more to my taste like blocks of dark chocolate and cakes piled high with candied glittering fruit. I watch as a thin balding man casts a spell on a pile of multicolored powders. They float into the air, spinning around faster and faster. The spell finally slows and they’ve formed a cloud of swirling colorful puff balls. The man notices me watching and calls out. “Something sweet for the pretty lady?”

I quickly pay him and walk away with the concoction sticking to my fingers. It’s delicious! The different colors are different flavors of sweet and savory. The blue tastes like fresh blueberries and the yellow tastes like a spicy curry. I offer Ruby a piece and she munches it delightedly. It’s going to be hard not to get distracted from our goal.

Gathering our coven is just the first step in our plan. Convincing Asher to actually let me do this, well that’s going to be considerably more difficult. All I need is a moment to look at the spell. I can see how it fits, but I can’t see all the parts. With my coven all focusing at once, I should be able to get a better idea of how to break it.

First things first though. Ruby and I need to find a fabric shop worker named Cera from the list of candidates Georgia gave us. We have a general idea of where we’re going so we head in that direction. The winding narrow pathway takes us deeper into the market which also happens to be closer to Arralt’s castle in the center of the city. I’m not paying close attention when Ruby pulls me into a stall selling amulets and charmed jewelry. Two men wearing black hooded robes push roughly through the crowd.

“That was a close one. Thanks,” I say with relief.

She sighs as they slide past without a second glance. “I’d hate to lose you to those guys, but I’d hate it even more if I had to explain to an angry dragon that I let his girlfriend get captured,” Ruby says playfully.

“Good point,” I joke back. “But he’d probably just eat you.” Her look of fear tells me that I’ve gone too far. “I’m joking Ruby! Anyways, he’s not my boyfriend.”

“What is he then?” she probes curiously.

“I honestly don’t know,” I say sadly. We’ve never really defined our relationship. “He’s my perfect match. I’ve never felt this way about anyone and we’ve definitely gone beyond friendship…” My face blushes in embarrassment. I’ve never told anyone about what Ash and I have been doing, especially all the sex.

“Wait a second. Have you guys…” She lowers her voice and whispers dramatically. “You know?” I giggle at her shyness. My first instinct is to lie to her and tell her it’s none of her business, but for some reason I want to give her all the details. This must be what it’s like to have a girlfriend to gossip with. “Oh I’m such an idiot! You don’t have to answer that. It’s just that I’ve never…” she says, looking flustered.