Page 40 of Phoenix's Fire

"That," he swore, "is more than fair. Now let's make sure you know your way around Lorsa, hm?"

And he let go of my hand to turn me up the street, dropping his arm over my shoulder again. This time, I didn't tense up at all.

Twelve

Ayla

As we moved north of the market, the houses got bigger. Then bigger still. At one point, Rymar pointed to the right and told me Naomi lived over there. But a few more blocks made the houses start to get smaller again, even if they did look fancier than the ones around where we lived.

When we finally made it to Jeera's place, the structure was almost the same size as ours, but built completely different. The outside was made of stone and some kind of plaster? I wasn't sure, but it reminded me of the walls inside our house. Rymar jogged up the pair of stairs and rapped his knuckles on the door.

It didn't take long before Brielle answered - in English. "Rymar. Hey, and Ayla! Come in, you two."

She was wearing a tight-fitting orange shirt and loose pants that almost looked like a skirt. Those were black, making her feet and tail appear even more blue against it. The orange ring around her tail and her bright hair were only one shade darker than her shirt, complementing her outfit nicely.

When I made it inside, I saw Jeera sitting on a chair next to Meri, a little table placed between them. Jeera had on a cream-and-pink dress. Meri, however, was wearing a long yellow one with blue flowers. It was not the same one she'd put on last night.

"You look much more comfortable," I said, kneeling before her to clasp her knee. "You okay?"

"I'm well, thank you," she replied formally.

I just gave her a look. It was the same type we'd shared so many times in our room, where no one could see us. The expression both called her out for evading and let her know I wasn't offended. Mostly, it made it clear I wasn't just asking to be polite.

"This is a lot," she finally said, "but your friends are good hosts."

Better. Not perfect, and not as relaxed as I'd hoped, but I'd take it. I also understood, because I'd been very confused and overwhelmed when I'd first come to the surface. The concept of so much freedom had been something I couldn't have imagined, which meant Meri was probably waiting for the worst right now.

"Well, I brought you a book," I told her, passing over the copy. "This one was given to me when I first got here, so now I'm loaning it to you. It's a make-believe story, Meri. Something to pass the time."

"Thank you," she said, accepting the novel. "And it's okay for me to read this?"

"Perfectly okay," Jeera assured her. "I actually really like that story."

"Okay," Meri said, the word little more than a breath. "I just don't want to offend my hosts."

That meant I needed to change the subject a bit. Maybe lighten the mood. "New clothes?" I asked, smiling at Jeera to include her as well. Clothes were always safe, weren't they?

Meri smoothed down her skirt. "The ladies made me tell them what colors I like, then Ms. Lotus - "

"Who?" I broke in.

"Me," Brielle said. "My sign is the Lotus, and Merienne keeps trying to give me a title."

"Trust me, Ms. Basilisk is not quite how I want to be known," Jeera teased.

"I'm sorry!" Meri whimpered.

Jeera just waved her down. "I'm teasing you, Meri. It's okay. We simply prefer to use our first names. Everyone in Lorsa does."

"Calling people mister and missus is no longer done up here," I explained. "They don't even call Naomi Dr. Griffin. They just use her first name. It's more personal, and Dragons are more concerned with being friendly than being polite."

"Oh," Meri said.

Jeera tossed up her hands then gestured at me. "That's what I've been trying to figure out how to say!"

I giggled and turned for a chair. "I had to figure it all out while I could barely understand your words," I explained.

But Jeera hopped up. "Take the chair, Ayla. I'm sure Meri has been dying to see you. Rymar looks like he's lost - because his English isn't as good as he wants," she added to Meri. "And I need to talk to him about a few things anyway. Rymar?"