It’s a whisper, and I wonder briefly if I heard him as much as I saw the word forming on his lips.
“Vi—”
A warm huff of steam blows against the back of my neck. My heart thunders, the beat increasing erratically as I take what might be my last breath and turn toward the line of dragons.
The golden eyes of not one but two greens meet mine, consuming my field of vision.
Oh. Fuck.
To approach a green dragon, lower your eyes in supplication and wait for their approval. That’s what I read, right?
I drop my gaze as one chuffs another breath at me. It’s hot and appallingly wet, but I’m not dead yet, so that’s a plus.
The one on the right chortles deep in its throat. Wait, is that the sound of approval I’m looking for? Shit, I wish I’d asked Mira.
Mira. She’s going to be devastated when she reads the rolls.
I lift my head and suck in a sharp breath. They’re even closer. The one on the left nudges my hands with its giant nose, but I somehow stand my ground, rocking back on my heels to keep from falling over.
Greens are the most reasonable.
“I cut my hands climbing the obstacle course.” I lift my palms, like they can see through the black fabric binding my wounds.
The one on the right sets its nose right at my breasts and chuffs again.
What. The. Hell.
It inhales, making that noise in its throat, and the other shoves its nose into my ribs, making me raise my arms just in case they feel like taking a little nibble.
“Violet!” Rhiannon whisper-shouts.
“I’m all right!” I call back, then wince, hoping I didn’t just seal my fate by screaming in their ears.
Another chuff. Another chortle, like they’re talking to each other as they sniff me.
The one under my arm moves its nostrils to my back and sniffs again.
Realization hits and I choke out a tight, surreal laugh. “You smell Teine, don’t you?” I ask quietly.
They both draw back, just far enough for me to look them in their golden eyes, but they keep their jaws shut, giving me the courage to keep talking.
“I’m Mira’s sister, Violet.” Slowly lowering my arms, I run my hands over my snot-covered vest and the armor carefully sewn into it. “She collected Teine’s scales after he shed them last year and had them shrunk down so she could sew them into the vest to help keep me safe.”
The one on the right blinks.
The one on the left sticks its nose in again, sniffing loudly.
“The scales have saved me a few times,” I whisper. “But no one else knows they’re in there. Just Mira and Teine.”
They both blink at me, and I lower my gaze, bowing my head because it feels like the thing to do. Professor Kaori taught us every way to approach a dragon and exactly zero ways to disengage one.
Step by step, they retreat until I see them take up their places in line in my peripherals, and I finally raise my head.
Taking several deep breaths, I try to lock my muscles to keep from trembling.
“Violet.” Rhiannon is only a few feet away, a look of terror in her eyes. She must have been right behind their heads.
“I’m fine.” I force a smile and nod. “I have dragon-scale armor under the vest,” I whisper. “They smell my sister’s dragon.” If she wants trust, there it is. “Please don’t tell anyone.”
“I won’t,” she whispers. “You’re all right?”
“Other than having a few years of my life shaved off.” I laugh. The sound is shaky, bordering on hysteria.
“Let’s get out of here.” She swallows, her gaze darting toward the line of dragons.
“Good idea.”
She turns and walks back to her place, and once there’s fifteen feet between us, I follow.
“I think I just shat myself,” Ridoc says, and my laughter only pitches higher as we move through the field.
“Honestly, I thought they were going to eat you,” Luca remarks.
“Me too,” I admit.
“I wouldn’t have blamed them,” she continues.
“You’re insufferable,” Ridoc calls back.
