The Unknown Thief

Part 11

Chapter 11

His arms were wrapped around her.  His grip was so tight that she knew that if he fell, she had no choice but to fall with him.  Aubrey never would have guessed that the man did not like being in the sky.  To Aubrey, this was an escape.  It was a time where she did not have to think about the worries that afflicted her. She did not have to wonder how her curse would affect someone.  This was her time to let all worries disappear.

“How much further?” Nathaniel yelled causing her to wince.  She could hear the man perfectly fine, but for some reason, he thought that screaming was the only way for her to understand him.

Aubrey bumped Daisy with her left leg sending the dragon right.  As soon as they straightened out, Aubrey glanced behind her.  “Only a short time.”

“Then we will be on the ground?”

“Yes,” she replied while rolling her eyes.  “You can get a horse to ride if you would like.”

“How were you planning on traveling?”

Aubrey glanced down at her clothing.  Gone was her own and in its place was the unmistakable gypsy clothing.   “I am Abe.  I will travel with the gypsies until we must go separate ways.”

“Do you think they will allow me to travel with them?”

“If you have your own horse,” Aubrey mumbled while turning away from him.  She had told him the truth, but not the entire truth.  If he had his own horse, they would let him travel alongside him, but they would never accept him as one of their own.  Not only was he not part of their culture, but he was also bound to her.  It was something that Aubrey did not wish, and because of that, the people would want to rid her of that.

She just needed to make sure that they knew that Nathaniel could not die.  After that, the man would be fine traveling with them. The large, red caravans came into view and Aubrey shifted her legs.  Knowing what she wanted, Daisy dived towards the people.  The dragon could have eased her way down, but that would not be amusing.  Nathaniel let out a yell as they barreled towards the ground.  Aubrey let out a loud laugh, not being able to hold in her amusement.

Just as they were about to hit the ground, Daisy spread her wings.  The impact was still hard, but it did not do any damage.  Nathaniel did not loosen his hold on her, nor did he move a muscle as they sat on top Daisy.  The dragon shifted restlessly, not liking the fact that she had to stay immobile.

“Nate, we need to get off,” Aubrey mumbled in a soothing voice.

His hold loosened in surprise.  “You called me Nate.  No one has ever called me that.”

“That is quite,” she stopped, searching for a word, “odd.”

“It’s nice,” he whispered.  “I like it.”

This time, it was Aubrey who shifted restlessly.  She did not like how the man spoke to her, as if he were basking in her words.  It made her feel oddly affectionate, and she wouldn’t let affection get in her way.  Grabbing his arm, she pulled it off her and jumped off Daisy.  Her black hair flowed around her as she hit the ground.  All around her, the people smiled at her.  This one place made her feel as if she belonged at least a little.  She knew she could not live here; she was not like them.  No matter how hard she tried to blend, she would never fully be a part of them.

“Abe!” a voice called out.

“Alin?” she called out, waiting for her friend to emerge from the crowd.  “You have returned?”

Alin came out of the group of people with a large smile on his face.  He had the form of a warrior, but he did not fight as much as others thought.  His name meant soother, and that was what he did.  He soothed his enemies.  He talked his way out of a situation.  Not only that, Aubrey had never seen a person calm an animal as fast as Alin could.

His arms wrapped around her in a tight hug.  “I am back for the time being.  I thought that you were on your own trip.”

“Nay,” she mumbled as he pulled back, “I ran into some slight obstacles.”

“Could one of those obstacles be the man who is staring at me with a glare?”

Alin’s eyes crinkled in the corners as amusement shone in his eyes.  Aubrey did not even turn to see who he was speaking of.  There was no doubt in her mind that it was Nathaniel glaring at them.

“He is one.”

His amused face turned serious.  “Who bounded the two of you?”

“Cora,” Aubrey answered, before jumping to her friend’s defense.  “It was not her fault.  She was attempting to help.”

“She should not have attempted to use magic that strong.  She knows better.”

“What would you have her do?  Wait for your return?”

He took a step back from her and smiled.  “We are alike, you and I.  Never where we should be, everywhere we should not.”

She shook her head at him before grabbing his hand.  “Come, I think it is time you met Nathaniel.  I have a feeling that someone else missed you.”

Daisy made a happy sound and scrambled towards them.  Aubrey immediately let go of Alin’s hand as Daisy jumped on him.  The two tumbled to the ground, laughter emitted from Alin.  All Aubrey could do was smile at the two of them.  An arm wrapped around her shoulders.

“Who is he?”

Aubrey glanced over at Nathaniel and noticed the stiffness in his jaw.  “He is a friend.  He is the only person here that knows who I truly am, and he is one of the only people who does not treat me differently.”

“You like that?  You like the fact that he does not treat you different than he does others?” Nathaniel asked her with a confused expression.

She nodded.  “It is refreshing not to have someone afraid of the power I have.  My family wields the same so they too treat me as if I am just a person.”

“I do not treat you differently.”

“No, you do not.”

“That is a good thing?”

Aubrey let out a laugh at the seriousness of his question.  He honestly wanted to know.  Happiness shot through her.  Surely, this meant he did care for her.  The bond did not cause feelings that were not there.  All of the sudden, someone pushed themselves between the two of them.  Alin smiled between them.  “I can kill him, Abe.  It will be a solution to your problems.”

“It is not a solution if I do not want him to die.”

Alin’s smile widened.  “Do you want him dead?”

“No,” she mumbled and Alin let out a laugh.

“I never thought I would see the day.  I cannot wait to tell everyone.”

He pushed away from them, leaving her blushing and Nathaniel confused. 

“What did he mean?” Nathaniel asked.

Aubrey shifted on her feet.  “He means that I like you,” she said with a smile as she took off after Alin.   Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the shocked expression on Nathaniel’s face.  It was nice to see; it was nice knowing that she had finally been the one to shock him.