It was morning when Audun came fully awake, although he seemed to remember more than one sunset since he first lay down. The baby bird was nestled against his side, muttering about being hungry. It was back to its normal size. Audun raised his head and saw that he was only a few yards from a pool of water that hadn’t been there before. A deep channel had been etched into the beach where the excess water had drained into the sea. Apparently the baby bird had rid itself of the water right where it landed.
Audun was stiff and sore when he stood, but he had one more trip to make before he could return to King’s Isle to present the flute to the council. Picking up the baby bird, he carried it past the island’s tree line to the underbrush, where insects would be easy to find. While the hatchling ate, Audun returned to the ocean for a quick breakfast of fish, then retrieved the bird and rose into the sky. The oasis where he’d found the egg was at least two days’ flight away, but he had to return the little creature to its mother.
Audun had been gone for over a week by the time he returned to King’s Isle with desert sand still grating between his scales. Finding the mother bird hadn’t been easy, but it had been well worth the effort to see her joy when she finally saw her hatchling for the first time. Fortunately for Audun and the baby bird, the mother had accepted it back, although the baby still seemed to think that the dragon was its mother, too.
The first dragon Audun ran into when he set foot in the king’s stronghold was Frostybreath. The big ice dragon seemed happy to see him, patting him on the back so hard that Audun nearly lost his footing. “Welcome back, young dragon. You were gone so long that we thought we’d never see you again. The king and his councillors are going to be happy to see you. And so is Loolee. Make sure you ride the chute with her. It’s all she’s been able to talk about since you left the last time.”
“I will,” said Audun. He didn’t want to disappoint the little dragoness again.
“I’ll go on ahead and let the king know that you’re here, but you might as well go down to the antechamber. I’m sure he’ll want to see you right away.”
Audun was on his way down the ramp when he passed a gaggle of dragonesses going the other way. They all seemed happy to see him, but it was Hildie who stopped to talk while her friends continued on. “What have you been doing?” she asked. “You look different.”
“I’ve been in the desert,” he replied, thinking that she must be referring to the sand he was still shedding as he walked.
“Hmmm,” Hildie said, looking him up and down. “I didn’t know a desert could do that to you.”
Audun excused himself and continued down the ramp, but somehow he knew that she was still watching him.
Audun had never thought much about his appearance. He’d always been the average length for whatever his age happened to be and he’d always kept his scales fairly presentable, but he’d never preened the way some dragons did, or paid someone to burnish his scales to a semi-sheen. It came as a surprise, therefore, when he paused long enough to see his reflection in the ice and it wasn’t at all what he’d expected. True, his scales were the same blue and white they’d always been, but now they gleamed in the torchlight like well-polished metal. He also looked older; he’d lost the rounded cheeks of a teenage dragon and acquired a more angular, adult look. Although he hadn’t grown any longer, he seemed bigger, with well-defined muscles and broader shoulders. When he turned this way and that to see himself better, it was obvious that he had been working hard and eating little. Perhaps that was what Hildie had meant.
Frostybreath was waiting for him on the ramp. They nodded once at each other, then the older dragon ushered him into the audience chamber and left, shutting the door behind him.
Audun felt uncomfortable as he stood before the king and his councillors, waiting for his turn to speak. He wasn’t happy with them for sending him on a mission that had endangered an innocent life. It was hard to think of a diplomatic way to tell them this, though, while they talked among themselves. Their voices were too quiet for him to hear except for a few phrases like “. . . not at all what I expected,” “. . . couldn’t have been nicer . . . ,” “. . . someone will have to go . . . ,” and “. . . know that you have fish eggs on your chin?”
Finally King Stormclaw turned to the young dragon and said, “I’ve been reminded that I haven’t properly introduced my councillors to you. You’ve met Frostweaver and Wave Skimmer, and of course you know Song. This,” he said, indicating the gray-and-white-scaled dragon seated beside Audun’s grandmother, “is Vision Seeker, a truly gifted dragoness who is sometimes able to see into the future.”
Audun dipped his head in respect, but the old dragoness just snorted and said, “Did you get the flute?”
“I have it here,” he said, holding it up so everyone could see it.
“Did you have any problem with the sea witch?” asked Wave Skimmer.
“Nothing I couldn’t handle,” said Audun. “She wanted the egg so she could make it hatch and use the baby bird to suck the water out of a cave. Did you know why she wanted it before I went? Did you know that she wouldn’t care if the hatchling lived or died?”
Wave Skimmer shook her head. “We didn’t know what she wanted the egg for, although we had a good idea, considering the nature of the bird. What happened to the hatchling?”
King Stormclaw leaned over the edge of his slab to glare at Audun. “Did you leave it with the sea witch?”
“I couldn’t,” Audun said, straightening his back and returning the king’s glare. “I took it back to its mother in the desert.”
King Stormclaw looked satisfied. He glanced at Song and nodded. “You were right about him.”
Audun glanced from the king to his grandmother, confused.
“I told King Stormclaw that you would not only get the flute from the witch, but also keep the baby bird safe,” said Song of the Glacier.
“We needed the flute,” said the king, “but we had no intention of hurting the baby.”
“You could have told me,” Audun muttered.
“Yes, and we should have,” said his grandmother. “You must excuse us. We’ve had other things to worry about of late.”
“Tell him!” said Wave Skimmer. “If you don’t, I will!”
King Stormclaw nodded. “There’s something else you should know. We’ve had a most unexpected visitor in your absence. Princess Emeralda, the Green Witch, came to see us. It seems that her daughter is pining away. She refuses to eat and doesn’t sleep, so her mother came looking for you. I didn’t know how powerful the witch’s magic was until she said that she used it to trace you here.”
“She says that her daughter swears she loves you so much that she will never love another,” interrupted Wave Skimmer. “I must admit, the girl sounds like a true dragoness. When I was young, I had a number of friends who swore they would rather die than give up the one they loved. I think it’s so romantic!”
King Stormclaw cleared his throat. “The Green Witch is a much better human than I expected. And a much better dragon,” he added, at a small sound from Song. “Word of the war between East Aridia and Aridia has spread. The Green Witch has heard of our ties to Aridia and understands our concern. She explained that she doesn’t care about jewels, and that Greater Greensward has had difficulties of its own with the East Aridians. She came to the stronghold to offer us a pact of alliance should we need it.”
“I thought it was so nice that she asked,” said Wave Skimmer.
“We told her that we would discuss it and send her word of our decision when it had been made,” said the king.
“What about Millie?” Audun asked anxiously. “Is she all right?”
“I’m sure she is now,” said his grandmother. “Her mother said that she’s going to withdraw her objections to her marrying you.”
“Imagine a human objecting to her daughter marrying an ice dragon!” snapped Vision Seeker. “She should be grateful an ice dragon wants to marry her!”
“Can I go see Millie?” Audun asked, suddenly so excited that he found it hard to stand still.
“Actually, we have another task for you,” said the king. “The girl’s mother understands that we’re in the midst of a difficult time and will tell her daughter as much.”
Audun held the flute out to the king. “What should I do with this?”
“Take it with you,” said King Stormclaw. “We need you to deliver it to a family of giants traveling on the Eastern Sea. They have been friends to ice dragons for many years and we are happy to help them when they find themselves in need. Frostybreath will give you the directions.”
Frostybreath was waiting for Audun outside the chamber, but he wasn’t alone. Loolee was there, wriggling with anticipation and talking nonstop about sliding down the chute. Hildie was there as well, along with another dragon that Audun had never met before. Unlike Ice Rider, the dragon Hildie had introduced him to during his last visit, this one was much older and not nearly as athletic. He looked closer to Audun’s father’s age than to Audun’s, and his ponderous belly was encrusted with jewels, a typical dragon way of showing off wealth and protecting his more tender regions.
“Audun,” said Hildie, pushing herself in front of the others, “this is—”
Loolee grabbed hold of Audun’s leg and clung to it. “I’m ready to go down the chute,” she cried, her eyes wide with excitement as she gazed up at him. “Can we go now?”
“Loolee!” Audun had never had a younger sibling and neither had any of his friends, so a playful little dragoness was new to him.
“Audun, I wanted you to meet—,” Hildie tried again.
Loolee began bouncing up and down, crying, “You promised, Audun, remember?”
Audun sighed. “I can go with you one time today.”
Shrieking with delight, the little dragoness took off up the ramp. Audun was about to follow her when he remembered something. “You have some directions for me, Frostybreath?” he asked, turning to the big dragon.
“You go ride the chute,” the big dragon replied. “I’ll meet you at the door and tell you how to get to the islands.”
“But, Audun,” wailed Hildie. “I need to talk to you!”
“Sorry, but I’m already short on time. It will have to wait until I come back.” Audun may not have had a lot of experience with young dragonesses, but he did know that he didn’t want his name added to Hildie’s list of suitors.