Dragon Dreams

Chapter 36: The Plan (2/2)

"I had heard descriptions of human houses," Tenaya said. "But they look so bizarre, and so much alike. So, this is where you lived?"

Lived. The past tense caught me off guard. I brushed it aside quickly, but I knew Tenaya probably noticed. "Yes," I replied simply. We dropped almost soundlessly in the grass behind my house, a final gust from our wings rippled out across the lawn.

It hadn't been a long flight from our camp near the mountain to my home. The other dragons slept quite soundly from a day of scouting and other activities; it was easy to settle down to sleep on the fringes of the camp and then slip quietly away without drawing attention. That had been the easy part.

Now we were in my backyard, a place I hadn't been in weeks, but felt much longer. It still sounded like a crazy plan: bringing along humans to try and make peace with the Vrost, but times were desperate enough for crazy ideas. If I wanted to convince Ares that humans could experience a change of heart, a living example would help my argument.

Except, after all that had happened, how could I assume my own family might still hold any sympathy for me? I regretted turning my back on them, but I was unsure that whatever contrition I could express might mend the relationship so quickly. It was time to find out.

"Okay," I whispered, "we can drop the illusion." I let the magic slide off me, revealing me to human eyes.

"I'm nervous all of a sudden," Tenaya confessed, her athka radiating jittery energy. "Are you?"

"A little." I couldn't deny it. The only thing I had decided was to talk to Alex first. Beyond that, I had nothing—no idea what to say or do next. "Oh, I forgot to ask, do you know English?"

"Yes," she replied, to my relief. "Nyraz taught me."

"Good, then I won't have to translate everything."

All the lights in the house were out: not surprising. I assumed it was well past midnight, although I had long since ceased thinking about the day being divided into precise minutes. Living with dragons, time had become a much looser concept.

I did the only thing I could think of, lowering my head to the ground in order to see better, scanning the nearby landscaping for a small pebble. There was a flicker of bemusement in Tenaya's athka but I paid little attention. Finally, I closed my claws around a small rock that would likely do the trick.

One of my sister's bedroom windows faced the backyard. I sat back on my hind legs and sized up the distance, drawing my forepaw back. It felt so silly, like something out of a movie, but I forced myself to focus and threw the pebble. The tick sound on the glass gave me relief. Just in case, I bent down and located another small missile.

A few seconds passed with no movement, no light; I let the next stone fly. Tick. A slightly louder one this time. Then lamplight glowed from the window, quickly followed by a messy-haired silhouette. Unable to speak, I raised a forepaw in a sort of greeting.

Alex's hand slowly moved to return the gesture. She didn't try to open the window, but suddenly darted out of sight. I could see shadows of busy movement on her ceiling. Then nothing.

I held my breath, then let it out when I heard soft footfalls on the first floor. The patio door slid open with a dull hiss and my sister stepped out in pajamas and slippers, arms wrapped around herself for warmth.

She carefully closed the door behind her and then sprinted at me; I could scarcely react as Alex nearly tackled and strangled me at the same time with her embrace. "Oh, Josh," she choked out, muffled because her face was buried in my neck. "You came back."