A New Beginning

Chapter 22

Tessa's POV:

My heart was beating fast as we approached the treeline. Even from here, I could see glimmers of color amongst the leaves. Gold, silver, red, purple, and blue. It took me a few moments to spot a green that was far too shiny to be a leaf.

Mom saw them too, and muttered, "That idiot. I told Drake only to bring a couple of friends, not the entire freaking flock."

That did not reassure me. Perhaps I would just remain near the Kymari since most of the dragonets were too scared to come near them.

Soranto commented, "They sang not far from here this morning, and they must not have scattered too much. I can see one or two in the trees."

"Does everyone have their energy shields set to activate with fire or a head strike?" Taureen murmured.

Everyone with us replied with a quiet 'yes.'

"Let's see if we can get to the large clearing inside the forest before too many of them notice the fledglings." His words were clearly for his unaware companions since he knew of our ability to mindspeak.

Taureen was a step ahead of the group as we followed the path into the forest. Distant flickers of color shadowed us on both sides. There were lots of them.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before we reached a big meadow. The Kymari sat down on benches not too far away from the trees.

"Go on."

For once, I wasn't sure I wanted to leave Aeria's hand. Nothing said I had to go near the trees, though, so I glided down to land in neatly trimmed grass near Sadria's feet. I could probably stuff a few handfuls of grass in her boots to keep her occupied later on. If I was lucky, I might be able to locate a grasshopper or two to stick in Soranto's pockets.

Mom and Dad immediately darted towards the trees to meet the friends that they hadn't seen in over a month. About thirty dragonets flew out to greet them, and I stared as they danced around one another in graceful loops. More waited in the trees.

At this point, I had zero desire to go into the forest.

Dirk must have felt the same way since he joined me on the ground. His wide eyes gazed at the numerous strangers that he clearly did not want to meet. To distract himself, he wandered over to Tran's boots and tried to undo the fasteners on them.

Tormenting the guards sounded far more fun than meeting strangers.

I grabbed a handful of grass before trying to find a hole or gap in Sadria's boot. The guards usually walked or paused only briefly, so this was my first chance to inspect their unusual footwear up close. Her shoulder guards rested on top of her other pieces of armor, which gave me plenty of holes to work with, but her legs were a different story.

I could see the joints, but the material overlapped and interlocked almost perfectly, leaving no gap. There were no openings to be found at the top of her armored boot either. It was like they were firmly attached to the armor protecting her legs, which I found thoroughly annoying.

My attempts to undo the fasteners on her boots were having about as much success as Dirk's efforts. In other words, none.

Mom's mindvoice broke through my thoughts, echoed by her trilling call. "Come meet some of my friends."

I sat up and looked at her. Thankfully, she wasn't in the trees, but rather, standing in the grass along the treeline. She wasn't close, but she wasn't overly far away, either. Dad was beside her, along with four other dragonets.

Four was more bearable than thirty. With a deep breath, I pushed myself into the air before slowly gliding towards her. I landed in the grass behind her and scooted closer to her, seeking comfort and reassurance. The sound of Dirk's wings behind me was a relief.