I am coming, Anders, she said as he felt her emerging from the forest outside town.
Anders strolled to the street’s edge where the cobblestone ended. He looked up to see Zahara’s iridescent body gliding in over the treetops. She touched down gently at his side and he climbed into the saddle.
Where should we go? she asked.
“Anders!” he heard someone call out.
He snapped his head to the side to see Thomas running toward him, waving frantically. When he drew closer, Anders asked, “What is it? Did something happen?”
Thomas, out of breath, shook his head, “No. I just wanted to talk with you. We haven’t seen one another for ages, and I miss you. Can we catch up or are you too busy?”
Anders started to climb out of the saddle when Zahara said, Why not take him with us?
You’re okay with that?
He’s not a little child that you have to place on my back unwillingly, she said referring to the Rollo child Anders had placed on her before flying to Southland.
“You seem busy. We can talk later,” Thomas said dismissively.
“No, Thomas, you’re family. Come on up here,” Anders said, motioning toward the space on Zahara’s back behind him.
Thomas’ eyes grew wide, “Really? It’s okay with...”
“Yes. It was her idea,” Anders said as he felt Zahara’s thoughts press against him playfully.
A smile broke across Thomas’ face and he dashed over to Zahara’s side. Anders reached down and helped his cousin climb up on top of his dragon’s back.
“Hold on tight,” Anders said when Thomas has settled into the seat.
Zahara flew, climbing quickly over the forest. Anders directed her with his mind to head toward the Grandwood Mountains. Reaching an altitude where the air became thin, Anders felt the icy chill prick his cheeks as Zahara glided over the nearest peak. Anders instructed her to land on a rocky flat-topped mountain where they could look out over the vast landscape.
“It’s like nothing I could have imagined,” Thomas said when Anders stepped down to join him on the rocks. “I thought the only way to see a view like this was to hike for it.” He chuckled, “But with her,” he motioned to Zahara and snorted, “Anders, you are one lucky guy.”
Anders smiled, then admitted, “I only wish that I could shirk all of the responsibilities that come with the bond and that we could just live our lives as we wished.”
“I can relate to you there. Having to watch over your only sibling as she decides to throw all instincts of preservation to the wind and rush headlong into battle makes me wish we’d never left Grandwood.”
“I heard some people talking about that. Did she really charge out ahead of the front lines and take on the incoming kurr?” Anders asked.
Thomas snorted, “It was the scariest moment of my life. Yes, she did that all on her own. I don’t know what came over her; she’s always been tough, you know. She’s a tomboy, but that was insane.”
Anders thought of the poudrettite crystal she had been wearing and asked, “She changed after she put on that pink sapphire, didn’t she?”
Thomas scowled, “She was weak at first, not wanting to give up.”
“So the crystal didn’t weigh her down any?” Anders said.
“She did have a thing for Bo before it, then it seemed to switch to Max,” Thomas said.
Anders raised an eyebrow, “Really? She told me she was all in for Bo.”
“That’s how it turned out, I guess.”
“How’s he holding up?”
“Bo, he’s moving a bit slowly, but he seems to be getting on just fine,” Thomas said.
“You’ve been keeping an eye on him?” Anders asked.
“Not as closely as some of the soldiers I’ve seen around town,” Thomas joked.
Anders chuckled, shaking his head, “You know what I mean.”
“He doesn’t need looking after anymore,” Thomas paused looking out over the landscape. “Just look at this place. I think I can almost see home from here.”
Reminiscing of times when their family seemed whole, Anders relaxed, letting the conversation and afternoon sun drift by effortlessly. As the sun began to set, Anders began to feel a recharged sense of self. There was something about being with family that turned his mood from bad to good. He liked spending time with Max and the others, but Thomas and Kirsten where the last of his relatives.
“Thomas,” Anders said in a more serious tone. Feeling he needed to confide in Thomas, he said, “Before we go, there’s something about me that you should know.”
“You’re a dragonrider and can wield magic; what other surprises could you possibly have?” Thomas responded sarcastically.
“It’s about my dad, about who my parents were. I’m not sure why Theodor hid this from us, but he must have felt that he had a good reason to.”
“Does this have something to do with the crystal Kirsten found in mom’s dress?”
“It could actually,” Anders said, wondering if it were a gift from Ivan or Hannah. “I haven’t told anyone this except Maija and she was there when I found out, so please don’t tell anyone.”
“Really? This must be big,” Thomas said with intrigue.
