Page 13

Friday, April 24, 2167

The Gray Ward

Dragon Heights, Wyoming

As I lackedproper storage boxes for Garnet’s collection, I made use of a bookshelf, stashing everything at the bottom so she could access them. I sat on the floor with her, explained how she could look at her prizes whenever she wanted, but I warned her that some were fragile and needed to be handled with care. Once everything was put into their place, the kitten stretched out beside her prizes, purred, and admired her treasures.

My apartment wasn’t large enough for three dragons and a dragon-kin, but the lot of them took over anyway. Fortunately for my sanity, Cedrick and his father set up a habitat for the hummingbird, including a feeder with nectar, a nest he could sleep in, and a few things the dragon and his son promised my bird would appreciate.

My father sat on the other side of my kitten, placed his goods beside him, and began sorting out his acquisitions. He made three different piles, and I assumed the one with loose gemstones and crystals would expand my carbunclo’s empire.

“Excessive,” my mother complained.

My father petted Garnet, and without any fanfare, began adding stones to the lower shelf. “Carbunclo need things that sparkle, and one shelf filled with things that sparkle is a very good start. There, little girl. Enjoy your new stones.”

Once he’d successfully charmed my kitten, he gathered up the pile exclusively of bracelets and necklaces, got up, set them on the table, and attempted to stare my mother into submission. “You can try these on, or I can chase you, capture you, and make you try these on.”

While she rolled her eyes, my mother joined my father. “I was unaware I needed jewelry from every shrine today.”

“You do.” My father spread out his presents for my mother, picked one made with red stones, and secured it around her throat. “There. Now you’re extra pretty for dinner tonight.” He secured the matching bracelet to her wrist before eyeing me and saying, “Girl, pick something from the other pile so you aren’t a complete embarrassment tonight.”

“That’s not necessary.”

“It is necessary. If you don’t pick one, I will pick for you. You will wear the matching earrings and the bracelet. Ideally, you will wear a dress if you have one.”

I did have a dress, and it was venue appropriate. I petted Garnet, praised her, and got up, heading into my bedroom. It took me thirty minutes to get changed, but the black dress still fit, and while I didn’t view myself as a beauty, I would not humiliate myself with my attire. I returned and glared down at the pile of jewelry, wondering which one would work best with my dress.

Rather than make me get on the floor, my father gathered the selection and placed them onto the table. After some thought, he picked up a necklace he’d acquired from the red shrine, considering the stones through narrowed eyes. “I suppose this one will suffice.”

My mother joined my father in examining the necklace. “That’s better than the diamonds. The diamonds are boring, and the rubies aren’t garnets, but they match her carbunclo sufficiently. I’ll allow it.”

“Just go with their flow,” Cedrick suggested. “Dragons are unreasonable, they have no respect for money, and they overly care about appearances.”

“Cedrick,” the titanium dragon warned.

“It’s true, Dad.”

“While it is true, perhaps you should be respectful when we are guests.”

“Cedrick is fine,” my mother said with a smile. “It’s nice to see the little dragon-kin having the courage to get mouthy. But as a punishment, you should begin initiating him, bringing him to the clan meetings. He can take notes to start learning the ropes. He may as well demonstrate he has courage. When he’s ready to petition, then the clan leaders will be better familiar with him and may wisely offer their strength to his elevation.”

Cedrick spluttered while his father appeared rather pleased with my mother’s commentary. “We thank you for the honor.”

“It is only the truth. And don’t mind the baubles. The kitten will adjust better to life here with her starting collection as robust as it is. It will give her the sense of permanency and welcome. Perhaps spread word that the clans would do well to offer a stone of their color to the little one. It is, after all, the fault of us all that she had such a difficult time finding a companion.” My mother smiled, went through her pile, and picked up a bracelet with red stones. “Garnet, darling. While it won’t fit you for long, you can wear this as a collar tonight, and it will be your first piece of jewelry.”

The kitten zoomed back and forth in her general excitement, and it took my mother a few minutes to tame the carbunclo long enough to secure the bracelet around her throat. It was loose enough to not choke her but not so loose I worried about her getting tangled in it. After petting Garnet, my mother rose to her feet and said, “There. Now she has a memento from her big day getting her collection started. Dinner will be exciting as well, and then she’ll sleep well for you tonight.”

Hell, I would sleep well after such a long day. “Thank you.”

“Such a polite girl,” my mother cooed. “Phillip, be a dear and inform those worth informing that we are tormenting this girl. I believe we shall stay for a week or so.”

“I’ll spread the word,” the titanium dragon promised. “That’s our cue to leave, Cedrick.”

“Good luck,” the dragon-kin mouthed my way.

If only he knew. I escorted them to the door, promised the pair I had decent chances of survival, and waited until I closed the door to heave a sigh. Using the peep hole, I observed the pair head to the street, where Phillip transformed into a large dragon with a bulky body, leathery wings, stocky chest, long neck, and serpentine tail, crouching enough his son could climb onto his back before flying away. “What are you two up to?”

My parents laughed at me, and my father came over, hugged me, and kissed my cheek. “We have a reputation of being nasty old dragons here. The other dragons will step lightly around you, especially when you start poking your nose where it doesn’t belong. We’re helping.”

“You’re making sure every dragon in this city knows I have the misfortune of knowing you.”

My mother snickered, came over, and dragged me back into my living room. “And everyone will believe we’re making sure you are a suitable caretaker for Garnet. Obviously, you are. They’re blind old dolts, and they aren’t bright enough to realize you’re a beautiful version of your father. They think you’re just a human. That little dragon-kin is a good friend, though. He’s quite concerned you might not survive exposure to us.”

“Well, most dragon-kin are just humans stuck with dragons for parents,” I reminded her. “There isn’t a whole lot that separates us. Cedrick is pretty durable for a dragon-kin, and he’ll be tough once he becomes a dragon.”

“I will be encouraging him to petition,” my mother announced. “I am concerned about the pilgrims, however. While I have some suspicions, proof is a problem.”

“Proof is always a problem,” my father stated, and he went through his suitcase, opened it, and pulled out a box wrapped in blue paper. “This is from Erik. It’s a pair of handcuffs, and he intends on using them on you at the earliest opportunity.”

I raised a brow at that. While handcuffs had been used in our bedroom activities, he didn’t tend to announce that to anyone. “Really, Dad?”

“Okay, it’s not handcuffs. It is from Erik, however. He gave it to us for your birthday in case you showed up.”

Damn it. The last thing I needed was another reason to miss Erik. A worry involving the brothel women stirred. “Is Erik a yellow dragon?”

“No, but he’s from a family of yellows,” my mother said. “He’s a dragon-kin like you, a purebred yellow for seven generations. Beyond that, he’s almost as much of a mutt as you are, although he’s missing a few of the troublesome colors. He hasn’t mentioned his heritage for the same reason you haven’t mentioned yours. To say the least, he was quite surprised when we greeted him as dragons. His mother was so alarmed she shifted and guarded her little baby. It was adorable. And hilarious. She didn’t speak to me for a few weeks. Then she realized I was out to marry him to my daughter. She found that math much to her liking. His father laughed himself hoarse, and then your father went with him for drinks.”

I would have to apologize to Erik.

It was one thing to make a break for it to save his career.

It was another to subject him to my parents at their worst.

I took the box, sat on the floor near Garnet, and checked on the kitten, who admired her collection of stones. I picked up her smoky quartz cluster, placed it in front of her, and patted her. “Just be careful with it, okay?”

Garnet purred, wrapped her paws around the crystal, and snuggled with it.

I took my time opening the box, cracking it open to discover a sea of red, orange, and blue glitter. I narrowed my eyes. Somehow, the bastard would pay. He dared to subject me to glitter? Worse, he did so in my parents’ draconic colors?

I got up, careful to keep from spilling the box, and placed it on the table. “He pays for this,” I announced. “I am keeping this abomination, and should he come into my territory, I will fling this upon his person. That might begin to pay him back for this.”

“Maybe we should have warned him the glitter was a bad idea,” my mother muttered.

“I did warn him. I explicitly told him, repeating myself several times, that glitter of any color was a horrible idea. I think he misinterpreted my warnings as encouragement, my love.”

My mother heaved a sigh, transformed her hand into a dragon’s paw, and dipped two of her claws inside, plucking out another box wrapped in shiny paper. I gave Erik credit: the paper repelled the glitter, resulting in very little escaping onto my table.

I accepted the next gift, which was the size of a jewelry box, and worried about what was held within.

I’d returned the ring he’d given me, as proper, and I’d cried for weeks over my decision to leave. I hadn’t seen a choice then.

“Before you worry, it’s not the ring,” my father informed me in a gentle voice. “He carries that around with him. He fully intends on following you around until you take it—and him—back again. You do take after your mother, though. You simply have to be as difficult as possible.”

“I’d argue, but he’s absolutely right. I enjoy being difficult. That’s his fault. He taught me if I run, he will chase me—and should he chase me, he will make me like the whole being caught part of things. He’s clever like that. You should be thankful your father took the time to explain to Erik that you were born to be difficult. Your father may be responsible for any chasing of your person that might happen once Erik does catch up with you. I recommend you run at least a little. It’s more fun that way.”

“Mother, this isn’t supposed to be fun.”

“Why not?” she asked, raising a brow at me. “You left because of good intentions. He has accepted your good intentions. He even agrees with them. He followed his career precisely long enough to clear your name in Miami. He even made it so you could go back if you would like.”

“Pass.” I shuddered at the thought of dealing with the prejudice again. “Is Miami even going to be safe for you?”

“It’s fine. One time, a prejudiced cop came over to interrogate me about you, and I transformed into a dragon, showed him the back of my throat, and asked which was more dangerous, a necromancer or an angry dragon. He wisely said the dragon, apologized for misunderstanding the situation, and scrambled back home. I even told him there was a difference between a sweet, helpful purple dragon-kin with a runaway gift versus a necromancer. He even stopped after a few houses, turned around, and managed a complete conversation before resuming his flight. Of course, I may have been gliding above him making commentary about his running form as he did so.”

“You exposed yourselves as dragons?” I blurted.

“What are you worried about, baby? The dragons here have no care about people accused of necromancy in Miami. And your status as a dragon-kin of great beauty and integrity was not spread. The headline indicated that someone with a fledgling healing art had been accused of necromancy, robbing the police force of an important ally. You do not go around here identifying yourself as a dragon-kin, and the narrative in Miami involves a dragon-kin who kept quiet about being a dragon-kin to better serve her community. You have thoroughly convinced them you are just a human.”

“And why are all these dragons wary about you two, anyway?”

“We’re nasty dragons,” my parents chorused.

I rolled my eyes. “As evidenced by the fact you had me.”

My mother giggled while my father scowled.

“Wrong type of nasty, Kinsley,” he stated in a cool tone.

“Are you seriously telling me you come here every now and then and terrorize the other dragons?”

“Yes,” my parents replied.

I lifted my hand, rubbed at my temple, and wondered what I had done to deserve them as my parents. Had I been some monster in a previous life? If Erik came calling, I would have to, in addition to groveling and apologizing, swear I had fallen far from their tree of crazy. “And you have convinced an entire city of dragons that there is no way you two could possibly reproduce due to your ongoing feud?”

My mother grinned. “Basically. And those titanium dragons are going to help spread so many rumors about how you have been tormented, thus ensuring everyone leaves you alone about Garnet. And if there is a dragon killing possibly pilgrims and petitioners, they’ll steer well clear of you.”

“They will? Why?”

My mother snickered. “Because anyone who spotted you with us at Shrine Hill would have seen a human girl being subjected to absolute hell. And they would have seen you doing your duty to your kitten, who is beyond delighted with her starter stone kit. I will assist you in setting up the insurance policy, and we will pay for it. We bullied you into it, and while we are bullies, we are honorable bullies who do not give financial hardship to the undeserving. We save the white elephants for those who deserve to endure hardship.”

“I don’t know what game you two are playing, but you need to behave.”

My father smiled, adjusted how my necklace rested around my throat, and patted my shoulder. “I’m sure someone will figure it out. You don’t look much like your mother, but you look enough like my mother that someone will realize you’re a chip off my block. Your grandmother, like most dragons, still appears to be young enough. Fortunately, she spends most of her time in Asia, so there is little risk someone will notice the resemblance. You are also our opposite in temperament.”

“You mean sanity.”

My father grinned. “That, too. You like helping people. We like doing what we want and when we want. We are not known to be helpers. We are known to offer gifts to those we have annoyed and bothered. Just complain that we made you accept gifts, and the dragons here will understand you have been harshly imposed upon. I would prefer if you lived in a nicer home. I know why you won’t, at least at this point, but I’m sure you will make a more suitable arrangement soon enough. This place is not large enough for you, Erik, and two carbunclo.”

“You are assuming Erik will be able to find a little boy carbunclo that Garnet can tolerate.”

My mother heaved a sigh. “That is truly a cruel challenge, my daughter. I understand how you acquired Garnet, and she is truly well matched with you. You’re doing this to attack our bank account. You know who will end up buying Erik a carbunclo? Us! And we will have to stage countless introductions of kittens with him and Garnet until a proper pairing is established. You are a terrible child.”

I stared at my mother and wondered when she had lost her mind. “Dad, is Mom okay? Did she take my departure from Miami okay?”

While my mother scowled, my father laughed. “Your mother is fine. She just understands what you do not know about carbunclo. You gave Erik a difficult challenge, and it will take both our families working together to meet your demands. Don’t change your mind on that, by the way. You have shown your dedication to his cause, and it is time he does the same. And your demand is what is best for you and for Garnet.”

I regarded my kitten, who had fallen asleep while holding on to her smoky quartz cluster. “She really likes that stone.”

“Ah, yes. That mean old black dragon has a soft spot for carbunclo, and he was so very pleased to see how happy she is. That stone is when Garnet realized she was truly allowed to ask for the stone she really wanted, and she saw you did not even hesitate to get it for her. Black dragons see many things—and I would not be surprised if the shrine gifted her with the sight to see that you truly want her to be happy. She values that stone because she is growing into her certainty of her place with you. That blue garnet you got for her will always be quite special for her as well. But that stone? She saw it, she loved it, and you got it for her. She may even know that it’s not a particularly valuable stone, but by the time you finished at the shrines, she understood that you truly do value her. That one will be much loved. But the stones she will love the most are the ones you take her on adventures to find. That’s just how carbunclo are.”

I smiled at my kitten, marveling at how a creature so small could bring so much joy. “When Phillip gave her to me, he made me put a cat in a circle. What was that about?”

“While Garnet is of Argentinian breeding, carbunclo were born in Chile. They are creations of will. Enough people with some power, mostly dragon-kin, believed in the lore of the carbunclo, and this lore brought them to life. There are a few different stories of how carbunclo came to be, but the most popular involves them being a creature of treasure. They bring wealth and riches to those who own them. In reality, they cost their owners great wealth and riches keeping them pleased, but they bring greater wealth in the form of joy.” My mother made a thoughtful noise. “The black cat comes from one of the early carbunclo legends. Treasure hunters wishing to acquire the carbunclo’s wealth would chase the carbunclo, essentially performing a ritual in order to catch it and take its treasures. I won’t give you the specifics. You might try just to see what happens.”

“I am quite happy with Garnet, thank you.”

“Anyway, upon performing the ritual and locating the treasure, the treasure hunter would bring a black cat and toss the cat into the hole where the treasure might be found. Some claim a widow must be holding the cat. Some claim a virgin. Some claim that someone who has captured a carbunclo in the past must hold the cat. Some believe that the treasure hunter must somehow contain the cat while digging the hole. Time has made quite the mess of the original legend. In any case, the cat is thrown numerous times as the hole becomes deeper. I will not tell you any of those specifics. You might try to learn the truth of the carbunclo legend. To show fear or any negative emotion during the ritual digging will result in the treasure being lost. Failure to throw the cat would result in death of the treasure hunter.”

“I wasn’t willing to throw the cat, Mom. I placed him very carefully into the circle. He disappeared.”

My mother smiled at me. “That is because magic is smarter and wiser than any of us, my daughter. You have been chosen by the carbunclo, and that is all you truly need to understand. Garnet has accepted you—and the carbunclo are wiser than we often give them credit for. And if Garnet decides that Erik is appropriate for you, she will find him a carbunclo friend herself. These things have a way of working themselves out. You will see.”

“And if he isn’t?”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. I’d hate to have to teach an entire species why it is unwise to cross me.”

As opening the present from Erik seemed a great deal simpler than tolerating my mother’s vast ego, I loosened the tape, removed the paper, and eyed the jewelry box. “And you’re sure this isn’t a ring, Dad?”

“I’m positive. I have seen your engagement ring and the matching wedding bands after that was put in a trap of glitter.”

Aware Erik had a prankster’s heart when comfortable and confident of his target, I cracked open the box to peek inside. Sure enough, glitter spilled out. I held the trapped box over the other one, heaved a sigh, and poured it out. A small ziplock bag with a piece of paper and a lump within waited inside. “Clearly, he wants to anger me so I chase him, yelling at him for this evil deed.”

My father regarded my glittery hands and heaved a sigh. “When you put it that way, I realize that my discouragement was encouragement, as that is something you would do. Tomorrow, I will take you shopping for some creature comforts for you, your carbunclo, and your hummingbird as penance. Your phone is a good one, and I will pay that off in full if it hasn’t been paid off already.”

“I paid it off. In my position, I didn’t want a monthly bill I wasn’t sure I could afford. As it is, I wasn’t sure if I could afford Garnet.”

“I will expose you as our beautiful daughter if you do not make use of the accounts and money that is rightfully yours,” my mother warned.

When I bothered with dressing nicely, I could pull off beautiful, although I found it took a great deal of work. If I offered her a truce, she might abandon the thought. “You can take me clothing shopping.”

“A good request, and something we would do for imposing.” My father turned to my mother. “We could fit her for a proper gown. We could subject her to a wedding gown, a proper evening gown, and otherwise treat her like she is the daughter of proper dragons. And we can torture her while we’re at it. It’s perfect. Everyone will think we’re being our typical nasty selves. In reality, we’re paying for our daughter’s gowns, which she absolutely will need if she decides to stay in Dragon Heights.”

“You would have a very good home among the officers here, be it as human, dragon-kin, or dragon,” my mother informed me. “Your work experience is applicable, although you’d have to go into training for magical investigations. I think a three year forensics program would be a suitable punishment for her, my darling. As we’re imposing so harshly, we’ll pay for your testing, book your appointment, and otherwise preserve your anonymity. I recommend against arguing.”

Sighing over the inevitability of it all, I opened the little baggie, pulled out the paper, and eyed the lump within. I set it on the table, unfolded the paper, and uncovered a piece of coal, a bag with a few cut gemstones, and a note informing me that he loved me. I scowled, picked up the piece of coal, and glared at it.

He’d given me coal more than a few times over the years, usually with a nice present, making me unwrap hundreds of pieces of coal to find the present—which was often hidden inside the coal. Sure enough, I spotted a seam where the coal had been broken open and glued back together. Growling over his prank, I went to the kitchen, got a knife, and went to work busting my way inside.

Another tiny baggie with a clear gemstone inside waited within.

“Explain, Dad.”

“Sapphires, pink quartz, and a diamond, hoping you’d get the hint. And the coal because you’ve earned it.”

As I couldn’t argue with my father on that score, I wrinkled my nose, heaved a sigh, and gathered both baggies, holding them up to examine the stones within. “Please tell me he didn’t spend a fortune on this.”

“He did not spend a fortune. We wrestled with him. He stole them from our hoard.”

I snickered at the thought of Erik trying to take out either of my parents. “You let him steal from your hoard?”

“Yep. Of course, we tricked him into locating one of them, and then we showed up as small but irritated dragons that some whippersnapper was pawing through our gemstones. We were testing his fortitude.”

“More like his sanity,” I muttered.

“That, too.”

My mother grinned, grabbed a paper towel from my kitchen, dampened it, and cleaned up the spilled glitter before sealing the box containing what hadn’t escaped. “It’s the start of your hoard, Kinsley. You don’t have a hoard yet, so he was giving you the start of a hoard of your own, stolen from our hoard. Upon realizing you’re a dragon-kin, he started digging through his clan’s traditions. Young male yellows steal from the hoard of another dragon. It’s a trial by fire. In this case, literal fire. I gave him a demonstration of my abilities. I like him so he was not burned. He definitely was gloriously startled. I plan on dragging him to Shrine Hill, kicking and screaming, and holding him down at the yellow shrine until he starts a proper pilgrimage. I will wait until this killer has been dealt with first, however. I’d hate to have to turn over every stone in this city because someone dared touch my little yellow dragon.”

“I had no idea he’s a dragon-kin.”

“Just like he had no idea you’re a dragon-kin. You’re equal,” she stated. “Now, go put those on the upper shelf of your bookcase along with your note. Garnet will have an easy time learning you want a hoard, too, and you can explain to her that Erik stole those for you fair and square.”

“Perhaps we should not teach her carbunclo how to steal additions to her hoard,” my father murmured.

My mother scowled. “Well, if those dragons lose pieces of their hoard to a carbunclo, they were not guarding it sufficiently.”

“I will teach Garnet she may steal from your hoard,” I replied, and I put Erik’s present up on the top shelf of the bookcase as told. “He really gave me that to start a hoard?”

“You need a hoard,” my mother growled at me.

I narrowed my eyes and put some serious thought into growling back. “Maybe I’ll teach Garnet to steal from your hoard to add to mine.”

“And if she gets away with it, I was not guarding my hoard sufficiently. That would be an excellent prize. Maybe you’ll even try to steal from our hoard yourself.”

As my parents wouldn’t kill me for stealing from them, I could see how they’d love the game while I got rewarded if I pulled it off. “I’ll think about it.”

“Good girl. Now, get your kitten, put on a comfortable pair of shoes, and we’ll head up to the restaurant for dinner. As we are terrible people, we will surely be assholes the entire night, and we’ll come back tomorrow to pay our way back into your good graces while spoiling Garnet. We may be terrible people and dragons, but your love of animals is genetic. We just understood if we let you have a pet, we would be swiftly overrun—and you would have hesitated to follow your heart. You can have your job and keep Garnet, I promise you.”

While I understood that now, I hadn’t then, and I appreciated my parents’ foresight. “What about my hummingbird?”

“Let him sleep. True creations wake into their lives exhausted, and he had a busy day at Shrine Hill. He should sleep through the night. And if he truly wishes to join us, he will. He will find a way.”