DragonRider by S. Rodman
the coolest place to hang out, but I don’t care. I was a geeky, awkward child, and that never changed as I grew older. Harlen is with me, and it is a beautiful day, that’s all that matters. Though, I am going to have to remember to duck back inside in an hour or two to reapply sunscreen. Being a pale-skinned redhead is such a pain in the ass sometimes. Well, most of the time actually.
I squish my baseball cap even lower onto my head, as if that will make any difference. It’s hard not to be envious of Harlen strolling carefree and hatless beside me. He doesn’t have to worry about sunburn, the lucky bastard.
Two women are working on one of the raised beds in the far corner of the walled garden and Harlen drags me over towards them.
As we approach, Harlen greets them with a friendly wave.
“Hey there, Rowan and Natasha,” he calls out. “Mind if Kirby and I join you?”
The two women smile and beckon us over. Rowan has long blue hair that sways in the gentle breeze, while Natasha’s brown curly hair bounces with her every move. They both look friendly and welcoming, which is a huge relief.
“Of course, the more the merrier,” Rowan says as we approach. “We could use some extra hands to help us weed this patch.”
“And it will be nice to finally meet you, Kirby,” adds Natasha. “Cai and Harlen have certainly been keeping you to themselves.”
I feel an entirely unnecessary blush heat my cheeks as I plonk myself down onto the ground by the raised bed. I don’t know what to say to that, mostly because it is true. I’ve been here a week and I’ve barely met anyone. Harlen and Cai have definitely been keeping me away from the others and it is starting to worry me. At first I thought they were protecting me from disgruntled mages who had hoped Ri would pick them. But now I’m wondering if it is something else. Are they ashamed of me?
Rowan distracts me from my worrying thoughts by handing me a pair of gloves and a small shovel, and showing me how to identify the weeds and pull them out by the roots. It’s strangely satisfying. And I’m glad to have something to focus on.
As I get stuck into the work, conversation starts to flow. A drifting lazy thing of small talk and idle chatter. I’m so glad nobody is talking about last night. Or asking me any pressing questions.
Rowan and Natasha are lovely. They don’t seem to have a problem with me at all. I get the idea that they are curious about me, but they are polite enough not to pry. Maybe fitting in here won’t be so difficult after all.
It seems from the chatter that neither woman is bonded to a dragon, but they were born and raised in rider families and happy with their role in the community here.
The discussion moves to pancake recipes and Natasha makes me laugh with her tales of her terrible pancake flipping disasters. A warm glowing feeling fills my chest. I’m happy. I’m content. Sitting here in the warm summer sunshine, with easy company and a fulfilling task is wonderful. It makes me realise how lonely and aimless my old life had been.
Harlen is beside me, working steadily and joining in the conversation while not dominating it. His presence is calm, reassuring. Comfortable. I feel as if I could climb into his lap and be held, and all would be right with the world. It’s a very tempting thought. Even though I can still feel the echo of Cai’s touch all over my body.
Another flush spreads across my face. I duck my head down and pray that everyone will just think it’s the heat that is making me turn a lovely shade of tomato.
“Hey, Kirby? Shall we go inside? Looks like you’ve caught the sun a bit there,” says Harlen.
Fuck. My. Life.
I manage to mumble something incoherent and climb to my feet. Harlen says goodbye to Natasha and Rowan, while all I can do is flash them a quick, grateful smile. They were nice to me and I really appreciate it.
Harlen takes me to the cool quiet kitchen and makes me drink a glass of water. What’s with these men in my life making sure I’m hydrated? Is it a Dragonrider thing?
“Are you okay?” Harlen asks with what looks like genuine concern in his warm brown eyes.
“I’m fine.”
Our gazes lock. We are all alone in the kitchen. He licks his lips as I watch, strangely transfixed by the sight. Then he takes in a breath to say something, but he merely huffs instead. Then he tries again.
“Are you looking forward to Solstice?” he says.
I blink. It clearly wasn’t what he was going to say. I’ll never know what that was, and the curiosity is going to eat at me, I just know it is.
“Um…I guess,” I answer with a shrug.
Solstice seems to be a big deal here. Preparations were one of the things Rowan and Natasha were chatting idly about.
Harlen grins. “You are going to love it.”
“I’ve been hearing that a lot lately,” I grumble.
My mouth drops open in horror. I can’t believe I just said that. That is what Ri was telling me about the full moon. Why on earth did I just say that out loud?
Harlen’s eyes sparkle mischievously. I have a horrible feeling he knows exactly what I am talking about.
“You are a Dragonrider now, you are going to have to leave your prudishness far behind.”
“I’m not prudish!” I snap indignantly.
Harlen laughs, “Probably not for a non rider. But you are here now, and you know, full moons happen every month.”
He steps up close to me, and I swallow reflexively. As much as it confuses me when someone appears to be flirting with me, I can’t shrug this off. The inflection of his voice, the gleam in his eyes, his body language, all leave absolutely no doubt. He wants it to be the full moon. He wants Ri to fight with Zh and he wants Zh to win.
I stare up at him. Okay. I’m getting the distinct impression that he doesn’t even want to wait for the moon. He’d be happy to take me upstairs right now. A huge part of me is not entirely against the idea, but I don’t think I’m brave enough. I need a full moon and dragons to blame my behaviour on. At least for now.
Maybe one day I’ll be more confident.
“I…er…have some stuff to do,” I babble. “I’ll see you at dinner?”
“Yeah, sure,” says Harlen.
He looks a little disappointed, but not surprised. Maybe he likes the chase and the more I turn him down, the more he will like me? Urgh. No. I hate games like that. I’m not going to play them. I can’t trick anyone into liking me. They either do or they don’t. Not that I have the faintest clue if Harlen likes me or just wants me. Not that it makes much difference. If I’m destined just to be the latest notch on Harlen’s bedpost, then so be it. I’m not even sure if I care anymore.
I flash him a smile before I flee to my room and I’m almost disappointed that he doesn’t follow me.