The Unknown Thief

Part 8

Chapter 8

Nathaniel watched as she turned a corner.  Still, he had no answers.  He had wanted to find her, get answers, talk to her, and leave, but now, the woman just left him more curious than he was before.  Not only that, but she had also echoed Ainsely’s words from earlier.  Was what they said true?  Was the reason why his birth land did not recognize him, because he was not where he was supposed to be?  If that was the case, where did he belong?  Where would he be able to go to harness his power?

Something wrapped around his ankle causing him to snap out of his thoughts.  Looking down, he gulped.  She left her dragon.  Her dragon was on his ankle.  As carefully as he could, he took a step back, attempting to dislodge the creature.  It glanced up and hissed at him.

“What do you want?” he mumbled.  “Are you mad because of your name?  I would hate to have a name like that too.”

The dragon’s eyes narrowed as she bared her teeth.

Nathaniel held his hands up in surrender.  “You like the name.  It is a beautiful name, a wonderful name, a name that everyone is sure to love.”

Daisy nodded at him while curling further onto his leg.  Letting out a sigh, Nathaniel couldn’t help but wonder why he was standing here talking to this creature.  Did it actually understand him?  He did not have a clue, but he wished Aubrey would come back for the damned thing.

Shifting, he looked around for an escape.  The only way to go was down the lit corridor.  Or was that the only way?  Aubrey had gone through the wall, knocking into him.  Could Nathaniel travel through the portal she had somehow created?  Reaching his hand out, it slapped the cold stone.  Nothing.  Frustrated, he banged his head against the wall.  “I wish I was next to the damned woman.  If only she would…” His voice trailed off as his head went through the stone instead of just hitting it.

Panic hit him hard, making him attempt to pull back, but no matter what he did, he was unable to do so.  His body fell forward.  Instead of hitting the cold ground as he thought, his body landed softly.  Taking in a deep breath, he took in the smell.  It was wonderful, like violets in the garden outside.  Whomever it was that stayed here, already had his attention.  Raising his head, he glanced around until he recognized where he was.

He was in someone’s chamber; worse, he was in someone’s bed.  Whose bed it was, Nathaniel had no clue.  He went to stretch his feet to the ground, but something kept them from moving.  Glancing down, Nathaniel glared at the tiny dragon.  “Off with you.”

The things eyes opened, blinked, then closed shut once more as if it had no care in the world.  “Daisy,” he demanded, “release my legs.”

Its tail only tightened on him, letting him know that it was completely comfortable in its spot.  This only meant one thing; Nathaniel was a sitting duck, a man who had no means of escape.  As soon as the owner to the room discovered him, he would be beaten.  Or something worse could happen; some eager chit could hope to use this opportunity to trap him in the one thing he did not want, a marriage.

The word sent shivers down his spine, and he wished that an old, obese man would enter the chamber, or maybe a married woman.  The thought sent a smile to his face.  Yes, a married woman would do wonderfully.  A set of brown and green eyes flashed in his mind, making him second-guess himself.  Even if a married woman walked into the room, what would Nathaniel do?  He could not very well ignore who he saw in his mind to spend time with a person who did not live up to his expectations.

Letting out a sigh, he propped his chin up with his hand.  At this point, he did not care who opened the door, as long as the person would get the damned dragon off him.  Humming echoed through the room, causing Nathaniel to freeze.  He recognized that voice.  Mayhap it sounded odd that he recognized the hum of her voice, but he did.  It was the woman he wished to find; it was his Aubrey.

She stepped out of an adjoined door, surprising Nathaniel, for he thought she would surely use the door leading to the hall.  That was not the only thing that surprised him though.  “You are beautiful,” he blurted, unable to keep his mouth shut.

Flinging her hand out, she jumped in fright.  A force hit him so hard, it made him fling off the bed.  Landing to the ground with a thud, he stayed there until her tanned toes came into view.  “I am sorry,” she mumbled.  “I did not know it was you.”

“I would have hated to see what you would do if you knew it was me,” he grumbled, while attempting to push to his feet.  A hissing sound echoed through the chamber, reminding him, once again, who was attached to his legs.

“Daisy,” Aubrey snapped, her eyes flashing in the way that Nathaniel found amazing.

The dragon uncurled itself lazily, as if it hadn’t a care in the world.  Stepping towards her, it whipped its tail out and latched onto one of her legs.

“Do you find that unnerving?” Nathaniel asked while motioning towards her leg.

She shrugged.  “You would forget she is there after a while.”

Nathaniel looked at Aubrey’s bare leg, admitted to himself that the dragon was lucky to be wrapped around them, and shook his head.  “I would never forget a beast like that was holding onto me.”

“Beg your pardon,” Aubrey said.  “Let me grab a gown.”

Nathaniel glanced up quickly, only to see her flow across the room in a small robe.  He groaned and flopped back to the ground.  If only he would have looked up earlier, then, he wouldn’t have missed the view.  Her skin would have been covered by the flimsy rob, but that would have been the only thing covering her.  Letting out a regretful sigh, he stared at the intricate designs above, wondering who had painted them.  There were swirls of color; among them were a type of language he could not make out.  The longer he stared at it, though, the clearer it became. 

“It is a protection spell.”

Nathaniel jerked on the ground, causing his head to slam into the floor.  With a wince, he began rubbing his head. “From what?”

“Outsiders,” she answered while coming into view.  Her body was now safely covered, but it did little to deter his appraisal.  She was beautiful.  Out of all her disguises, how could he have guessed that the real thing was better than they all were?  “Do you plan to lie there all night?  If so, let me grab you proper bedding.”

Heat threatened to spread across his cheeks, but he kept the reaction at bay.  He may have been caught staring, but he would not make a bigger fool of himself.  Lifting to his feet, he dusted his clothing off.  “I do not know what brought me here.  I simply wish-”

Her hand flung out as she pressed it to his lips.  “Do not make a wish.  Did your parents never teach you ethics?  One wish from you could change time, causing those who should have lived to die, and those who should have died live.”

“I cannot wish.”

“You can,” she said while rolling her eyes.  “You have magic hovering all around you.  As soon as you say those two words together, your wish becomes true.”

“What if my wish was something that I really wanted?”

She shrugged.  “Wishes do not really give you what you want, they just give you what you ask for.   Let’s say that you wanted to live forever.  The wish would be granted, but you did not state how you wanted to live.  You could be locked up in an underground grave for all eternity, because you did not clearly state that you wanted to live above ground for eternity."

“If it was a person I wanted?”

“You can try, but the majority of people lose what you liked about them to begin with.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, utterly confused.

She sent him a tiny smile.  “If you wished they would love you, they would.  That love would be so strong, that it would turn to obsession.  Do you really want a person to obsess over you?  They would follow your every move, find jealousy in nothing.  It is not something anyone would wish upon themselves."

“True,” he mumbled.  “What good is this wish thing?”

She shrugged.  “No good at all, if you ask me.”

He smiled at her.  She was wrong; it was good, because here she was, right next to him.  She was exactly where he wanted her.