Dragon Kiss (12 page)

“What’s a whip?” asked others.

“What’s a tail?” asked the smallest worm in the shortest tube. When the rest turned to look at him, snickering, he disappeared into his tube and refused to come back out.

“We saw something big go that way,” said the first worm. It jerked its head in a direction Audun never would have guessed. “It wasn’t nice like you. It didn’t stop to say hello.”

“They rarely do,” said another worm.

“How true,” said at least a dozen, sounding mournful.

“Thank you very much,” said Audun. “You’ve been very helpful.”

“You’re welcome,” said all the worms at once.

“Good-bye,” Audun called, as he turned to follow the sea monster.

“Good-bye!” they all called back.

“Such a nice dragon,” said one of the worms, as Audun swam away.

“What’s a dragon?” asked a chorus of wormy voices.

Audun swam into the darkness, hoping the worm had been right, but he didn’t have to go far before he picked up the sea monster’s scent again. Soon light began to relieve the gloom enough that he could see the walls of the trench on either side. A few minutes later he spotted the sea monster in the distance.

Audun had just left the trench when he saw bubbles from a channel of water rushing by faster than the sea around it. He watched as the sea monster hesitated, then plunged into the current and was swept away. Determined not to be left behind, Audun darted forward and dove in after the already disappearing beast.

Although the current carried him forward at an amazing pace, it was carry ing the sea monster just as quickly. Audun was exhausted, but he’d have to swim even faster if he wanted to catch up to the monster. It wasn’t long, however, before the monster glanced behind him and saw the advancing dragon. With a swish of its tail, the beast slipped from the current. If Audun hadn’t been watching closely, he would have been carried far past the monster, but he reacted quickly enough that he dropped out of the current only yards behind the monster.

The sea monster looked tired now, too, and didn’t go far before turning to face Audun. Gathering his strength, the young dragon closed on the beast who met him with a slash of his tail. Audun bit the tail and the monster turned to grapple with him, fastening its suckers onto the dragon’s scales. The beast pulled and would have ripped some of the scales from Audun’s body if the dragon hadn’t bitten one of the monster’s legs, hard.

“Wait!” shouted the sea monster. “I have to know— why are you chasing me? What have I ever done to you? I don’t even know you.”

“You took a little girl,” growled Audun. He was surprised to hear the sea monster laugh.

“Is that what this is about?” the beast said, relieving the pressure on Audun’s scales. “Why didn’t you say so in the first place?”

Audun shook the monster until its teeth clacked. “This isn’t a joke,” he hissed.

“Of course it isn’t,” the monster hurried to say. “If you mean that giant hulking girl, we didn’t take her. She followed my friend Blooger. We’ve been trying to send her home ever since.”

“What do you mean by ‘followed’?” asked Audun.

“We were over by the island where the tastiest seaweed grows, resting after we’d eaten,” said the monster. “Blooger was asleep in the shallow water when something grabbed one of the growths on his back and tried to pull it off. He swam away, of course, and it wasn’t until he was almost home that he realized something was following him. He heard splashing and an awful wailing, and when he looked back he saw an enormous child floundering in the water. Blooger couldn’t just leave the child there to drown! Anyway, he called to me and together we took the girl to our home, which was much closer than hers. That child weighs too much for either one of us to carry by ourselves and it was a struggle for the two of us.”

“And so you just kept her? You didn’t even try to take her back? Do you know how worried her parents are about her?”

“We tried to tell them! I went back to the seaweed island and left a picture of her on the sand. I drew arrows, too, pointing the way to our home, but they never came. Blooger and I were beginning to think they didn’t want her. I’ve been back there every day hoping to lead them to her, but those people are always throwing stones and I can’t get close enough to talk to them. I was on my way home after stopping by there when you started chasing me.”

“Take me to the child,” said Audun, releasing his hold on the monster. “Perhaps I can carry her.”

“You’re welcome to try,” said the sea monster. “My name is Squidge, by the way. And you are . . . ?”

“Audun,” he replied. “I’m from the Icy North.”

“Well, Audun from the Icy North, let’s hope you’re a lot stronger than Blooger and I. The sooner we get that girl back with her parents, the happier we’ll be!”

Audun wasn’t sure how far he could trust Squidge, so he stayed close to the sea monster all the way to the entrance of a tree-shaded lagoon. The young dragon saw the giants’ child right away. She was seated in the shallow water, playing with something that she held in her hands. Not wanting to frighten the girl, he climbed out of the water and walked toward her along the beach so that she’d have plenty of time to see him coming.

“Penelope,” he said, as he got closer, “my name is Audun. I’ve come to take you to your parents.”

The girl glanced up at him and smiled. It was obvious from the clean tracks on her cheeks where tears had washed away the dirt that she’d been crying, but she didn’t look upset now. “We go see Mama and Papa?” she asked.

“That’s right,” said Audun, relieved that she seemed to be unharmed. He walked closer, wondering where the other sea monster was, and aghast that they would leave a young child alone in the water. Then he saw that she wasn’t alone at all. What he’d thought was the sandy bottom of the lagoon was really an enormous oval of sand-colored flesh that rippled at the edges. Penelope was sitting on it, playing with a flower, although when he got closer he realized that it wasn’t a flower, but a fleshy growth sprouting from the monster’s back. A veritable garden of the growths dotted the monster, but most of them were too short to reach above the water.

“This is my friend Blooger, who I was telling you about,” Squidge said, swimming to the shore where the dragon stood. Sticking his head under the water, the sea monster spoke to his friend. Although Audun couldn’t see its eyes, he was sure that the beast was looking at him.

When he’d told Squidge that he would take the girl back to her parents, he hadn’t even thought about her size—she was almost as big as Audun.

“So you’ll tell her parents that it was all a mistake?” asked Squidge. “We didn’t take her, she just sort of came to us.”

Audun nodded. “I’ll tell them as soon as I get her there. But that might be a problem. I thought I could fly her back, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to lift her. She looks awfully . . . solid.”

Squidge sighed. “I was afraid of that. I suppose Blooger and I could help you. We might be able to get her all the way there if three of us carry her. Although I don’t know how . . .”

“I have an idea,” said Audun. “Are there any vines on this island?”

“I don’t know,” Squidge said. “I haven’t gone past the beach and Blooger never leaves the water.”

“I’ll go look,” Audun said, already on his way to the trees.

He was back a few minutes later, laden with long, thick vines. Squidge helped him make a sturdy net big enough to hold Penelope. They were able to convince her to sit in the net only after Squidge told her that she could keep one of Blooger’s flowers, much to his friend’s dismay.

When everyone was ready, Blooger swam out of the lagoon with Penelope on his back, while Audun supported much of her weight from above and Squidge pushed from behind. Progress was slow as they crossed the sea between the islands, and they had to wait once for a whale to pass, but they eventually had the island in sight and could even see the mast of the giants’ ship.

Audun was already thinking about taking a quick leave of the giants when the first stone hit the water, narrowly missing Squidge. “Penelope!” screamed the girl’s mother from the shore.

“I’m coming, Audun!” bellowed Hugo, as he waded into the water. “Leave them alone, you miserable beast!”

It occurred to Audun that their little procession might not look quite right from the island. He doubted that the giants could see Blooger, so it probably appeared as if Audun was carrying Penelope in a net while another sea monster chased them.

“It’s all right!” he shouted, ducking as another stone flew over his head. “The sea monsters are helping me!”

The barrage of rocks stopped as suddenly as it had started. While the giant family stood on the shore anxiously awaiting Penelope’s arrival, Audun and the monsters labored to push, drag, and carry the now-laughing child through the waves to the beach.

“Mama!” she shouted. Pausing long enough to rip a flower from the monster’s back, she hopped to her feet and scrambled onto the shore, where her family waited with open arms.

The sea monsters had no intention of sticking around, but Audun convinced them to wait long enough to tell the giants what had happened. Hugo and Mona listened, skeptical at first, but with growing belief when they saw their little girl’s fascination with the flowers.

“And remember how she wandered off when we were cutting logs to build the boat? We found her in that meadow filled with wildflowers,” Mona reminded her husband.

Hugo nodded and bent down to speak to the sea monsters. Keeping his voice soft out of consideration for the smaller creatures, he said, “I don’t know how to thank you. My family is everything to me.”

“We’re so sorry for ever thinking that you had carried her off,” Mona told them. “Is there anything we can do to make it up to you?”

“Just don’t throw stones the next time you see us,” said Squidge.

Although the giants promised never to throw anything at the sea monsters again, Squidge kept eyeing them warily and he and Blooger left soon after. It wasn’t until the monsters had gone that Hugo turned to Audun and said, “Thank you for everything. You came so far, and helped us so much. How can we ever thank you?”

“There’s no need,” said Audun. “I’m happy I could help. I came on behalf of King Stormclaw and his council, so you can thank them if you’d like.”

“But all they wanted you to do was bring the flute and you’ve done so much more. Tell me, where are you going next? Can we at least give you a ride in our ship?”

“Thank you, but it will be quicker if I fly,” said Audun. “I’m returning to King’s Isle. I’m helping the king so he’ll agree to teach me how to become a human.”

“Really? How very odd. Why would you want to do something like that?”

“Well, there’s this human girl . . . ,” Audun began.

“You’re doing it for love! That’s wonderful! Perhaps we can help!” Mona exclaimed. “Wait right here!”

Audun had no idea what the giant woman had in mind, and he was even more confused when she returned with a barrel in her arms.

“Here,” she said, setting it in front of Audun. “Take this with you. It’s a lotion I make myself. Giants have a very strong odor, but we don’t like it any more than anyone else does. Slather some of this lotion all over yourself and you’ll no longer smell like a dragon. We’ve known a few dragons who can turn into humans. Even when they have a human body, they still smell like dragons unless they use this. You won’t have to use it often; once every few years should suffice.”

“Thank you!” said Audun. “I never would have thought of this. Are you sure you can spare the whole barrel?”

Hugo laughed, making the ground shake along with his stomach. “That’s one thing we’ll never have in short supply!”

“I can always make more if we run out, which shouldn’t be for years,” Mona said. “Thank you again, Audun. We’ll be forever in your debt.”

Placing the barrel in the net he’d used to carry Penelope, Audun said farewell and rose into the air. Although he’d been working hard to do whatever the king and his council had asked of him, this was the first thing anyone had done to help him be like a real human. He wanted to stop running errands for everyone else and start on his own task. As soon as he got back to the island, he’d tell the king and his council that it was time he learned how to be a human.

Thirteen

A
udun wasn’t surprised when Frostybreath met him at the entrance, but he didn’t expect the dragon to lead him down an extra level to Song of the Glacier’s rooms. His grandmother was waiting for him and she greeted him with delight. “I knew you could do it! We saw part of your actions in Wave Skimmer’s bowl of water. I’m so proud of you, Audun. All you went through to help that little girl!”

“She wasn’t so little,” Audun murmured, stretching to relieve the stiffness in his back. “I’ve worked hard to do what the king asked of me. Would someone either teach me how to be a human or tell me that I’m free to go see Millie?”

“That’s one of the things I wanted to talk to you about,” said his grandmother. “It has come to my attention that a young dragoness is interested in having you as her mate. You need no longer worry about learning to be a human just to win a mate for yourself. There have never been as many female dragons born as there were males, which is why many male dragons live their entire lives as bachelors. That need not be the case for you, however. If you are willing to forgo this scheme of yours to woo a human, you could have a marvelous and long life with a true dragoness.”

“It’s Hildie, isn’t it?” asked Audun. “But that’s just it. I already know that Millie is the one I want as my mate. She is a true dragoness
and
a true human. She is the one I love. I don’t love Hildie. She doesn’t stir my heart the way Millie does. I don’t lie awake at night thinking about Hildie; the last dragoness I think about before I fall asleep and the first one I think about when I wake is Millie. I thought you, of all dragonesses, would understand.”

His grandmother sighed. “Ah, but I do. I just thought you should know that you have a choice. If the girl is your true love, you are already on a path that you cannot change. Now, do you really still want to learn how to be-come a human?”

“Yes, of course!” said Audun. “I mean, I’m glad I got Millie’s mother’s approval, but there’s still the rest of her family. And there’s so much more of Millie’s life that I can share if I can be a human with her.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” said his grandmother. “There’s something I want to tell you that we should have told you long before this. We had you find the baby desicca bird because we wanted to make sure that you would be the best kind of human before we showed you how to be one at all. Turning into a human is easy, once you know what to do. The ability is inside every dragon, but not every dragon is capable of being a good one. However, you excelled at the task, and you did something else that we hadn’t expected. You learned things while you were in Aridia that our regular contacts should have relayed to us. It wasn’t until you told us about the fighting in Desidaria that we knew our contacts were in trouble. We have strong ties to Aridia; it’s where the gem mine I told you about is located. Any upheaval in the kingdom affects us as well.

“When you came back with the egg containing the baby desicca bird, King Stormclaw saw how useful you could be to us. After that, he stopped testing you and has been giving you jobs that we’ve needed someone to do, only we’re so shorthanded that we don’t have anyone we can send.”

Audun was incredulous. “You mean the king tricked me?”

“I mean we’ve needed your help and, at this point,
we
need
you
to learn how to become a human. You are the only one capable of going on a very delicate and important mission. Are you ready to learn how to make the transformation?”

Audun’s heart began to beat faster as he realized what she was asking. “I sure am!”

His grandmother cleared her throat. “I was fortunate enough to be selected to help you.” Opening her talons, she revealed a ring bearing a large, green stone surrounded by smaller, red ones. “This will help you become a human the first few times you change. After that, your body will remember the way and you will no longer need the ring. At that point, all you’ll have to do is will it to happen. For now, however, put this on.”

Audun trembled as he took the ring from Song and slid it over a talon. He was examining the ring when his grandmother stepped so close that their foreheads were touching. “Now, I want you to close your eyes and think about what it is that you want to become. Think about being a human—with only two legs, no wings, no scales, no ridge . . .”

Audun laughed self-consciously. “You make it sound as if I will be losing so much and gaining nothing.”

“You understand at last,” his grandmother said, but her voice was only a whisper because Audun was already beginning to change.

What began as a hum inside his head grew louder and louder until he could hear nothing else. His heart had already been beating rapidly, but now it beat so hard that he feared it was about to pound itself right out of his chest. After the air in his lungs left his body in a
whoosh
, he found that he was unable to take a truly deep breath. When his muscles began to change and the skin beneath his scales to burn, he staggered and would have fallen if his grandmother hadn’t been there to hold him up.

“Open your eyes,” she said finally, only this time her voice was loud and clear.

When he did, everything had changed. His grandmother, who had always seemed small and delicate, now appeared huge and powerful beside him. His own body was small and helpless now, with his head reaching only as high as her chest and the span of both his arms together shorter than the length of her neck. He stood upright on only two legs, with a spine that held his head high. Raising the hand that bore the ring, he found that he had hair on the top of his head and ears on the sides. He had a nose instead of a snout, which struck him as funny. When he tried to speak, his voice came out sounding rough and raw. Although his ears were different, he could still hear well, although not as well as when he had been a dragon. His eyesight was different, too; things weren’t nearly as distinct and colors didn’t look the same.

“Try walking,” said Song, her voice sounding loud in his ears even though she had moved to the far side of the room.

He moved a foot forward, but his joints didn’t behave the way he expected them to and he had to grab hold of a table to keep from falling. The smooth wood felt odd and he realized that skin without scales was much more sensitive to texture. He took another step and, with his grandmother’s encouragement, began to walk around the room, to stop and touch things, to look at them from a whole new angle. The furniture seemed bigger now, the room itself enormous, but as he stepped from one place to another he began to feel more in control.

“What do I look like?” he asked, running his fingers through his hair.

“See for yourself,” said his grandmother. “There is a mirror in the drawer of that table.”

Audun struggled to pull the mirror out of the drawer. Although it would have been small for a dragon, it was big and awkward for a human. He needed to use both arms to carry it to a chair where he propped it up so he could get a good look at himself. Taking a step back, he studied his reflection. Audun’s shoulder-length hair was silvery white. He had a strong chin and prominent cheekbones, just as he did as a dragon. His eyes were the same vivid blue they had been in his dragon form, although he laughed to see eyebrows on his face. “I know all humans have these,” he said, tracing one eyebrow with a fingertip, “but what are they for?”

Song of the Glacier shrugged. “I don’t know. Perhaps to keep the rain from running into their eyes? They don’t have two sets of eyelids like we do.”

“That makes sense.” Audun glanced down at his naked body, marveling at how vulnerable humans were, with nothing covering them but soft flesh. He prodded his well-muscled arm and pinched the skin on his bicep. “It’s a wonder humans can survive at all. They have nothing to protect them.”

“Except their wits,” said his grandmother. “And for most of them, that’s more than enough. Do you think you can handle walking as a human?”

“I think so,” Audun said, nodding.

“Then I want you to turn back into a dragon. You need to be able to turn both ways as quickly as possible.”

“All right,” said Audun, and he closed his eyes again.

The transformation into a dragon was easier, and when Song had him turn into a human again only a few minutes later, he found that easier still. They spent the next few hours in the room while he changed from dragon to human and back again, and the more time he spent as a human the better he became at moving as one. After a time he was able to change in either direction in the blink of an eye. When his grandmother saw that, she took the ring away.

“You need to be able to do it on your own,” she said, as she slipped the ring into a drawer in one of the tables. “A ring like that would give you away to anyone who knows what it means. And wearing an expensive-looking ring might not always be a good idea around certain humans, who are always aware of such things. Don’t forget that even though you might look like a human, you are still a dragon at heart. Humans find it easy to lie, while honor is so ingrained in dragons that only those who are sick in their heart or mind may lie easily. Be careful if you find yourself in the position where you cannot tell the truth. Only bad will come of it if you do.”

“I’ll remember,” Audun replied.

“So, are you comfortable enough as a human to go out in public as one?”

“I think so,” Audun said, wondering what Frostybreath and the others would say when they saw him.

“Then put these on.”

Audun had seen Millie change from a dragon back into a human, and each time she’d had clothes on when she became a human. As a dragon he had never worn clothes, so he’d been without them as a human as well. He supposed that he couldn’t go out in public that way. Audun’s grandmother helped him open the barrel that Mona had given to him. Dipping his hands into the barrel, he covered his body with the thick lotion that immediately soaked into his skin. Although he fumbled with the clothes at first, Song made some suggestions and he guessed the rests; he soon stood before her, dressed and ready to go.

“I had bumps on my skin before I put on the clothes,” he said, rubbing his arms through the sleeves. “I guess that happens when humans are cold.”

Song of the Glacier smiled. “You still have a lot to discover. Just don’t let it overwhelm you.” Crossing to the table, she opened another drawer and took out a small pouch. “Put this in your pocket,” she said. “You’ll need coins in order to buy anything.”

Reaching into the drawer once more, she took out a rolled- up tapestry and spread it open across the top of the table. “This is a map to the Magic Marketplace. No one knows where the marketplace is located and one may go there only through a map such as this. You’re to go to the market as a human and buy a gift for a self-indulgent person. It’s for a human male, so don’t get anything for a dragon.”

“Who is this man?” asked Audun. “Buying something for him would be easier if I knew something about him.”

“We’ve learned that our contacts were killed in the war. Because we have no other way of learning what’s going on in Desidaria, we were forced to piece together bits of information we’ve received from them in times past to learn what needs to be done now. All I know about the man for whom you’re buying the gift is that he’s the castle steward and indulges himself whenever possible.

“We’re sending you to the Magic Marketplace because you can get just about anything there and everyone likes magical gifts. In your case, you can look around while you practice walking and talking as a human. Now, remember, you’ll have to be careful not to draw undue attention to yourself or let anyone know what you really are if you want to survive. There are humans out there who hate dragons and would love to kill you while you’re weak and vulnerable.

“To get to the marketplace, all you have to do is touch the fountain pictured in the tapestry. To return, you must touch the actual fountain. There are witches at the Magic Marketplace, as well as other creatures, some who are in disguise, some who are not. Nearly everyone there has magic of some sort. Talk only when necessary, make your purchase, and return as soon as possible.”

“I’m not sure I’m ready for this,” Audun said, glancing down at his legs, which no longer seemed to want to move. “What if I forget how to be a human while I’m there?”

“You won’t,” said Song of the Glacier. “You are a dragon, no matter what you look like on the outside, and dragons can handle anything.”