“Is it so hard to believe that a girl would want to kiss you?” Jade inquired. “You are an expert swordsman, have had many successes in battle, and are nice to look at.”
Burchard shrugged, his face heating up even more. She thinks I’m nice to look at? What does that even mean? he wondered. Instead of meeting Jade’s gaze, he picked a spot on the tree behind her. “Why are you really here?”
“I told you that already. I was in the area, and I wanted to see you. No other reason.” She raised her hand. “I swear.”
Burchard let the silence fall around them, not sure how to respond to Jade. He couldn’t decide if he wanted to kiss her again or even how he had felt after her kiss. A light breeze ruffled the few leaves left in the trees. High above them, squirrels tittered, and even higher they could hear birds calling. Everyone has begun winter preparations, he thought.
An idea came to him. Maybe Jade had information she could share with his father about other matters. “Have you found any more rebel camps after the one run by Walter Pell?”
Jade shook her head. “No, but Damos took us farther into the mountains. He doesn’t think we should go home yet, but he felt like being so close to the brewing conflict between Etria and the Stinyian rebels was not within our best interests.”
“What do you do when you’re not fighting rebels?” he asked, genuinely curious. This is a safer topic, he mused.
Jade shrugged. “The usual. Train in weapons and magic, and then we hunt for our food.”
“Have you traveled to many places?” Burchard asked. He dreamed of traveling. He knew the odds of it ever coming to fruition were slim. As a knight, he would be sent wherever the conflict was.
A smile formed on Jade’s lips. “A little bit. We live in the country of Mootia. In the far west. I have been everywhere it is possible to go in Mootia and in most of Etria. I also was in Sneg once, but that was a long time ago and I don’t remember much.”
Burchard closed his eyes, trying to recall what he knew about those places. Slowly the information came back to him. “Mootia is a land of green grass and cows. In some places, the grazing areas seem to stretch forever. Sneg has mountains with tall peaks and snow deeper than a full-size man in winter. Moose are also said to only be found in Sneg.” He opened his eyes, feeling certain he had forgotten some other tidbits from his reading.
Jade was staring at him. “You actually know about Mootia?”
Burchard shrugged. “I make it a habit to learn about places and people that I could one day interact with.”
Jade blinked a few times. “Very unusual. But I appreciate your effort. It is far more than most people would ever attempt.”
“You’re not the first to tell me that,” Burchard murmured, blushing again. He hesitated, debating if he should ask the question that had been nagging at him since they’d met at Leosor Hollows. “Can you tell me more about the druids?”
“Of course,” Jade said, smiling again. The owl fluttered down to the blanket again. Burchard wasn’t sure why. “Liala wants to make sure I don’t forget the important parts.”
Eyebrow raised, Burchard looked uncertainly at Jade. “Who is Liala?”
“The owl. I told you that the last time we met,” Jade replied. “She is a druid. Some of us can shapeshift. But…let’s not get sidetracked.” She paused, moistening her lips with her tongue. “Druids. In general, we are a peaceful people and spend much of our time as caretakers of the land. Our magic is nature based. Many are drawn to plants and trees, with fewer to animals. Just like in Etria, weather magic is rare, but not unheard of, since weather is a natural force. Some druids are human, and others, like Damos, are different. Centaurs as you know are half horse, half human; however, it is not necessary to be part human to be a druid. In fact, many are wholly in animal forms.”
“You mean there are horses that are druids?” Burchard asked.
Jade shook her head. “No, if you see a horse that is a druid, it is a shapeshifted one. I meant animal forms such as a unicorn, griffin, dragon, and more. Individuals who are often far more intelligent than any human.”
“You say that as though you know some personally.” Burchard struggled to believe what Jade was saying. Dragons are real? He ran his hand along Fang’s back. I suppose if I believe that the wolf goddess exists and gave me Fang, then accepting that a dragon is real would not be as big of a stretch as I would have thought a few weeks ago.
Jade gave him a toothy smile. “Yes, back home in Mootia, there is a herd of unicorns and a mated pair of griffins that we share our land with. I haven’t seen a dragon, but I know there is one somewhere in Sneg.”
“How do you know they’re all druids? Do they have a sign hanging around their necks that says ‘I’m a druid!’?” Burchard asked, his face serious.
Jade giggled, then it turned into a full-throated belly laugh.
Burchard once again turned beet red in embarrassment. “You…you…”
Jade could barely stop laughing to speak. “You think they wear…signs?” She grabbed her stomach, holding it as she rolled over on the blanket laughing. Burchard couldn’t help himself; he started laughing too, and soon they were both rolling around on the blanket, grabbing their sides.
Jade sat up, still grinning, but finally done laughing. “To answer your question, our magic allows us to identify each other. Usually, a druid who does not have a mouth capable of forming words in one of the human languages is able to speak mind to mind. Or if that’s not the case, they will seek out a druid, like me, who can interpret for them.” Jade picked up a piece of jerky and chewed on it slowly, as though she had tired of talking.
Burchard waited a few minutes, but she did not continue speaking. “Is that why Liala is with you…because you can help her communicate when she is in her owl form?”
Jade nodded. “Partly, yes. She also got stuck as an owl and is unable to shift.”
To Burchard’s surprise, Liala suddenly clamped her beak on Jade’s index finger, drawing blood. Jade glared at the owl. “She didn’t want me to tell you she is stuck in her shape.”
“I can’t help her, so I don’t know why it matters if I know or don’t know,” Burchard said softly.
Jade bit her lip. “To us druids, if you are stuck in a shape, then it is a major vulnerability. It is not something that is shared lightly. I trust you, but Liala thinks that because you are not willing to believe the prophecy, you should not be trusted.”
Burchard studied the owl and directed his next question to her. “Do you find that when someone tells you something that goes against everything you’ve ever believed, you immediately take their word for it?”
Liala flared her wings briefly, then became too busy preening to look at him directly. Jade to her credit didn’t say anything, letting Liala’s behavior speak for her.
Burchard snagged a branch that was digging at him under the blanket and then pulled out his pocketknife. He whittled the stick, only half paying attention to what he was doing—just enough to be sure he wouldn’t accidentally slice open his fingers. “If druids are primarily concerned with being caretakers of the land, then why are you, Liala, and the centaurs here in Etria? I know we don’t have any sort of alliance with the druids. I am not even sure King Roland is aware you exist.”
Jade twirled a strand of her hair in her fingers. “It has to do the with the prophecy, the one I tried to tell you about earlier that you said was nonsense. Bits and pieces of other prophecies link to that one and talk about where certain things will take place and that we need to be there, otherwise Mors will certainly rise again.”
“You just blindly believe the prophecy is true?” Burchard asked.
“We’re not following it blindly. This is what we as a people believe in, that prophecies do exist, and they can come true. As long as your actions don’t directly conflict with my…the druids’ ability to follow the prophecy, then whether or not you believe is irrelevant,” Jade said quietly.
Burchard peered up at the sky and realized that the sun was beginning to set. He hadn’t thought they’d been there that long, but he knew time passed quicker when you were busy than when you were bored with nothing to do. “I need to get back before they shut the gate for the night.” He was tempted to ask if she would be around the next day but couldn’t decide if he wanted to see her again. She had definitely given him a lot to think about.
“I should head back too,” Jade said, standing up. Liala flew back into the tree. Burchard swiftly folded the blanket and handed it to Jade before snagging Chip’s reins. The mare had been dozing off and on during their conversation. She nibbled at his shirt, presumably eager to get back for her dinner too.
