Solivagant

Chapter Thirty-Four

Wake up.

I don't want to, Wade groaned as Aurum's mind brushed against his. Unfortunately, cold adrenaline was already buzzing through his veins as the dragon's impatience filtered through their bond. He opened his eyes, squinting at the branches of the pine he'd been sleeping under. The sky, visible through scattered gaps in the needles, was still dark. A soft layer of bluish-gray clouds slid across it, whisked along by the bitter wind.

It was time.

Aurum's head loomed before him, golden eyes narrowed. The dragon leaned down and nudged Wade's side with his snout, rolling him onto his stomach. Wake up.

"Hey!" Wade yelped, batting Aurum away as he scrambled upright. "I'm awake, I'm awake."

Aurum snorted and leaned back. When Serafina finishes working on my sister, we're leaving.

Okay. Wade scrubbed at his eyes, clambering to his knees and grabbing his bag. He quickly checked it's contents. He and Serafina would only carry what they couldn't easily replace: bandages, money, some dried out meat in case they didn't have time to hunt and cook their food. For the sake of the dragons—especially Caeli, who hadn't fully recovered—they'd need to travel light.

Not like they had much anyways.

Wade sighed and tied the bag shut before slipping it over one shoulder. For the last five days, he'd been aware of every minute, every second they were wasting. They'd kept their time in the dragons' hollow as short as possible: despite Serafina healing them each morning, Wade still had difficulty walking for more than a few minutes, and Caeli couldn't hide the shooting pains that slipped through the bond she shared with Wade whenever she moved. But they couldn't wait any longer.

Wade stretched and stood, searching for Serafina. She was next to the stream, her fingers hovering over Caeli's injured shoulder. The dragon looked much better, at least: her wing was whole again, and most of her scales had grown back.

Where's Kira? Wade asked Aurum, scanning the rest of the little clearing they'd been calling home.

With my brother.

Wade blinked and followed Aurum's gaze to Aeris. Kira was tucked under the bronze dragon's wing, her face half-obscured by her hair as she slept. Aeris met Wade's gaze, as if challenging him to say something.

With a soft laugh, Wade just lifted his hand in greeting. Aeris hadn't created a bond with any of them; he couldn't speak to the dragon even if he wanted to.

Aeris rolled his eyes and briefly touched Wade's mind. The little one crawled next to me in the middle of the night. She won't move. Get her off.

You don't seem to mind. Smothering a grin, Wade scanned the dragon's thoughts. And here I thought you didn't like us.

I don't like you, Aeris snapped back, though there was no real venom in the thought. He quickly cut off the contact, looking away with a quick, annoyed shake of his head.

Kira has quite the effect, Aurum observed dryly, opening his jaw in a ferocious yawn. If one of your Valkir spent a day with that child, I believe he'd have a change of heart.

Wade snickered and walked to the stream, exchanging a brief wave with Serafina before kneeling beside the water. Of course! We just need to set Kira on the Valkir. Problem solved. He cupped his hands, still smiling, and took a few sips of the icy liquid.

You are a silly human.

I try, Wade replied, wetting his hands and scrubbing them across his face.