The Shamer's Daughter - A Fanfiction

Chapter 11 - Draco Draco

The Dragon Court was colder than Dina remembered. It hadn't been that many hours since she last passed through and yet the memory felt as far away as a dream. The court was big and you could only see darkness to all sides except for behind them and a single light a good while in front of them. Old pillars were holding the roof up and some of them had fallen long ago and were now nothing more than rubble in their way. It reminded Dina more of a cave than a court, but the dragons probably didn't care about that. The little light seemed an eternity away when they knew what was between them and it, but they couldn't just run - even though both wanted to. Dina had wanted to bring the torch, but Nico said it was too dangerous. When you bring a light, you only see what is in front of you. You don't see anything where the light doesn't fall. So they took a few seconds, where they were just standing in front of the gate and letting their eyes get used to the darkness. Dina felt Nico moving, but she still couldn't see what he was doing. It wasn't til she both felt and smelled the smooth cloak getting wrapped around her shoulders that she realised. He had put the cloak on and had then put his arm around her, so she was half hidden by it as well. At first she resisted because the smell was too intense, but Nico wouldn't let her go.

"Do you trust me?" He whispered in the dark and Dina stopped squirming in his grip. She didn't really have a choice, did she?

"More than the dragons." She just said and Nico started walking forwards, gently nudging her along with his hand on her back. There was still no sign of the dragons.

"Do they sleep at night?" Dina whispered as loud as she dared to, but Nico only heard her because he was right beside her.

"I don't know, but I don't want to assume anything." It wasn't til then, that Dina noticed he was also carrying a spear. It must have been on the other side of the gate, like the side her and Drakan had come from earlier in the night.

"There." Nico whispered in her ear and pointed with the tip of his weapon. And just above the spearpoint, Dina saw them for the second time. Something dark slithered across the floor and she followed the scaled body with her eyes. It was a tail, gently swaying across the ground. They were all lying in a pile of black - very still except for the moving tail. They looked like snakes all curled up, because you couldn't see their legs. Nor their eyes. They must be sleeping, Dina thought and gave out a small sigh of relief. Keeping eachother warm in the cold night. It was a very cold night indeed - frost was covering most of the bricks from the fallen pillars and they had to be careful not to slip. They walked very slowly and steadily, making sure not to cause any sudden movements. Always keeping their eyes on the pile of dragons and the light ahead of them.

"Draco Draco," Nico whispered as they snuck their way past. "Let us pass."

"What?" In spite of the danger of speaking, Dina couldn't help but ask, but very quietly.

"That's what they are." He said, still looking and the moving tail. "In Latin." Dina couldn't care less about what they were called in Latin, but even in the darkness, she could see a certain glow in Nico's eyes. Nothing like Drakan when he spoke of his pets, but a fascinated awe and respect. Dina's foot slipped on a rock as she looked at him and if it hadn't been for Nico's tight grip, she would have fallen and been a very easy dragon meal. They stood still for a few seconds to see if the sound had made an impact on the sleeping beasts, but they weren't moving. Not even the tail anymore. Dina's heart was pounding so loudly, she felt sure that would be what woke the dragons. It was hard to see where one dragon ended and the next began, but it seemed like one of them had separated itself from the group. It started moving a little to their left and Dina's breathing got more hectic.

"Nico!" Her whisper was a little too loud but it didn't matter when the dragon had already spotted them.

"I see it." He answered and gripped even tighter around his spear. "Keep walking." Dina felt as if her legs could stop working any second. Everything in her screamed to run for the door, but she knew that was the only thing she couldn't. How she longed for Beast to be by her side at that moment. To feel his soft fur on her leg and hear his protective barking. But she had Nico and though he didn't have sharp teeth and claws, he was calm and brave. The dragon slowly neared them with its head kept close to the ground like a lion sneaking through the grass. When it entered a moon beam that shone through the cracks of the ceiling, its scales looked shining like marble but moved like a dark river. Dina looked straight into its yellow eyes, but it seemed as affected by her eyes as a stone wall would have been. She was no witch to the dragon - she was just the next meal. It slowly opened its mouth, getting ready to swallow her whole with only one sudden movement. Nico felt her stop next to him, and gave her a little nudge to get her to move again.