The two blue dragons were flying from Delora Natine to Sivantra. They had flown through the night and well into the next morning. They were responding to an urgent request for help from Candasar's bond Lothinar. They still had a long way to go before they reached him.

"I learned this trick years ago" said Vanquish. "Watch!"

The blue dragon Vanquish dove rapidly toward the sea. Candasar thought the big dragon had lost her mind. Suddenly her talons outstretched and dipped beneath the choppy waves of the ocean that they were flying over. She yanked back and pulled out a huge fish. It was as big as a deer. The added weight dropped her further toward the waves. Vanquish rapidly began beating her wings resulting in a steady climb. It didn't take long for the two blue dragons to be flying side by side again.

"I think this is called a tuna but I don't know if tastes good." she said. "But we are a long way from land and need our strength. Do you want to try it?"

"That fish is probably salty!" said Candasar. "I made the mistake of trying to drink some ocean water the last time I was on the way back."

"You can't drink sea water" said Vanquish. "But you usually can eat the fish. The fishermen of Sivantra catch them all the time. Surprisingly they don’t taste bad. Take it!"

Candasar flew closer and glided beneath Vanquish's outstretched wings until their claws intersected. She successfully grabbed the tuna and swung back out from under Vanquish. She flung the fish up into her open mouth and bit into it. It tasted great. Candasar couldn't believe she was enjoying a fish again. She realized that she must be quite hungry. What Lothinar was going through must be really affecting her normal appetite.

She was worried. She had continually been retrying to establish bond communication. She could feel him but In spite of her asking, he had not sent her any more specifics regarding the incident with Ardwynn. He actually seemed to be calm at the moment. That first message, however, had terrified her. His failure to respond now did not help in the slightest.

Vanquish seemed to instinctively understand how frustrated she must be and asked her a question not related to Lothinar.

"What do you think?" asked Vanquish. “About the tuna?”

"Remarkable!" she said, returning to less frantic thoughts. "And I thought I had eaten enough fish to last a lifetime! These are certainly much bigger than those in the lake."

”Yes,” Vanquish replied. “When you are as big as I am you are always on the lookout for something substantial.” She gave Candasar a dramatic wink. "I'm going to get a couple more. There is a big herd of them down there. I'm going to try for two this time. After I come back up, you should try."

"We call them schools."

"Call what schools?"

"Herds of fish. We call them schools."

"Who does?"

"The lake dragons. You do remember that I once was a lake dragon don't you? I should know."

"That can't be right. They don't go to school." said Vanquish. "I've never been myself, but I know what a school is. You got that school name from Lothinar?"

"No, I think I actually.called them schools before I met Lothinar All the lake dragons did."

"Well, don't take this the wrong way but I don't think a lake dragon's vocabulary is particularly trustworthy." said Vanquish.

"Well its true. The name for a bunch of fish swimming together is a school." said Candasar. "I can't believe that I actually know something that you don't. You've got hundreds of years on me."

"Yes, I am many years older than you." said Vanquish. And I am going to continue calling them herds until I get some corroborating facts." she said laughing.

She dove for the waves again, but still came up with only one fish. It was a bigger one. She gobbled it down.

"Any energy we can consume will help." said Vanquish. "This long flight will really take a lot out of us. You also just recently did it. You must be exhausted!"

"I guess that I'm running on worry." said Candasar."

They flew on for a few more minutes.

"Hey Vanquish. They call dragons flying together a wing don't they." Candasar asked. "That sounds right to me, from Lothinar's memories."

"There is some debate." said Vanquish. It could also be called a flight. I guess we could keep it simple and just be called a pair."

"Lothinar likes Pears." said Candasar.

"You are getting tired and silly. Do you want me to top up your magic?" asked Vanquish.

"Lothinar did that a lot for me on my last flight out here but I was carrying two elves and their luggage."

Vanquish laughed. "I assume Lothinar didn't bring much along except Ardwynn."

"And the sword." said Candasar. "He also had to give Firestorm some extra energy. It is a long way."

"Not too many dragons try to make this flight." said Vanquish. "Now you will have done it twice."

A blue glow encompassed Candasar. She felt energized. Thanks! How much magic do you actually have?" she asked

"A lot. It's blue dragon magic. You have it too. I just have so much more. Being un-bonded helps. My magic isn't constantly leaking out of me and into my bond like yours is."

"I really appreciate you coming with me." said Candasar. I don't think I could actually have made this flight by myself."

"Maybe that's what Ardwynn was counting on." said Vanquish. "That this trip is too long"

"At least she won't be expecting us." said Candasar. "Especially this soon."

"Fishing during the flight Is a good trick." said Vanquish. "You need to be careful, though. There are some really huge creatures that live in this ocean. Some of them might be big enough to try and grab you back. I overheard one of Enderline's men saying their ships were attacked on the way over. Some of the men didn't make it."

"Well that's a new concern" said Candasar as she looked at the water somewhat more carefully. "Thanks for the warning. Is there anything up here flying around in the air that I should be worried about grabbing me?"

"The only thing I can think of is a Roc." Said Vanquish. "It is an enormous bird. I've been told they can carry off an elephant! I've never seen one and I don't want to."

Candasar scoffed. "I can't imagine anything big enough to carry you off for supper, Vanquish."

"Now you've said it." said the enormous blue dragon. "I'll probably get killed and eaten by a Roc." She looked forward at the skies and then again back over her shoulder.

"It would probably take a whole herd of Rocs to eat you." said Candasar laughing. "What would they call a flock of rocs?"

"I don't want to find out." said Vanquish. "Being the alpha predator is definitely preferable."

"This conversation is making me more nervous." Candasar said, looking around. "No Rocs in sight. I'm assuming that they have feathers?"

"They are birds." said Vanquish.

"Probably susceptible to fire then." said Candasar. "As long as we can burn them, I'm going to bet that we dragons are going to be the winners in that confrontation."

"They call a flock of crows a murder don't they?" asked Vanquish

"Yes, and that's what I feel like doing to do to Ardwynn when I get there." said Candasar.

She dove for a tuna. She got one on her first try. She climbed back up to Vanquish, took a quick look for Rocs and then she swallowed it down. When she had resumed her flying position next to the bigger dragon, Vanquish said something that surprised her.

"We need to be careful about that. If you kill Ardwynn you will kill the child growing inside her. That's Lothinar's child. He might resist us. He has gone to some very great lengths to keep her alive. "

"Now that she has the sword, don't you think that things have changed?" asked Candasar.

"Yes they have and we definitely need to get the sword away from her," said Vanquish. "but perhaps we should consider killing her as our last resort."

"Let me deal with Lothinar." said Candasar. "You can decide what to do with Ardwynn. But I'll tell you right now. I'm not coming back out here again. I've got three eggs about to hatch. I want to spend some time being a mother."

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It had not been easy for Heirwyn since her brother Harvey had been killed. He had died during the fight that brought the first dragons back to Delora Natine. The town had given him a nice funeral and then quickly forgot about him. Only one of the elves had come by the small home that Harvey had shared with his younger sister to personally thank the family for Harvey’s valor and sacrifice. The elf’s name had been Cantrell. He had been deeply concerned when he learned that Harvey's death had deprived her of her last living relative. Their parents had died young and being almost ten years older, Harvey had practically raised her.

Cantrell had sat with her and told her of the battle. The battle where he and Harvey had fought the giant elf Tempton from the ground while other elves fought on dragon back from the air. He told her how brave Harvey had been and and how his sacrifice had turned the battle. Harvey had personally saved the black dragon Esmarilla and her rider the elf Ardwella from death. Tempton had been a magician able to throw lightning bolts and winning had never been certain. It had ultimately come down to luck and timing. Harvey's attack had given them that time. Lothinar's dragon Candasar had found her fire for the very first time and burned the oversized elf. Their victory, however had come too late for Harvey. Cantrell himself had been badly injured during the fighting.

Heirwyn had not been able to help herself. She had wept anew at hearing the details of her brother's death. That he had been fighting to save dragons was not lost on her. Realizing the destitute situation of the young human girl at the loss of her brother and his income as a city guard, Cantrell had seen to it that she had was provided for. He had given her a little money. Actually it had been a lot of money. For her at least. He had pressed a bag of gold coins into her hand. It had felt heavy. She had initially tried to refuse but he had insisted.

”I know that nothing I can do will make up for your loss but this should get you by for a while” he had said. "I realize that I am an elf, and can never take Harvey's place. but I would appreciate it if you would now consider me to be your family" he had said.

Later when she had counted the gold she realized that it was more than Harvey would make as a city guard for many years. She had decided that day that Cantrell was an anomaly. A kind island in a sea of greedy selfish men. She had been finding it harder to ignore the cat-calls and whistles as she walked down the street. She had feared that she might have to sell her body as a way of obtaining food and keeping a roof over her head, but now with the money Cantrell had given her, she might have a chance to do something with her life.

But then a few weeks passed and eventually even Cantrell seemed to forget about her. It wasn't like she needed more money. She had used what Cantrell had given her as thriftily as possible. But it did disappoint her that hadn't even come to visit. To be fair she knew that he, and many others had been busy trying to defend the town from imminent attack. She had carried on. It was all she could do.

Then King Enderline had arrived and the battle for Delora Natine happened. A lot of sisters lost their brothers. Heirwynn's loss seemed to fade into the background. Somehow, just at the end of the battle, the elf Ardwella, who her brother had saved, had found a hidden cache of ancient dragon eggs. Over two hundred young dragons hatched. Ardwella had brought them up and out of a long hibernation and had begun to take care of them at the dairy.

Heirwyn continued living day to day in her home, now without Harvey. She could afford simple food and even a rare visit to the second hand store for clothes. It was annoying that she kept rapidly growing out of everything. The pants she bought seemed to quickly become too short. None of her tops even fit anymore. What was a sixteen year old supposed to do about that? Luckily she found an old trunk full of her mother’s things. There was one dress that might fit her. She wanted to look halfway decent for her interview with the dragons. The news had been spreading around the town all morning. The dragons were finally interested in meeting the citizens of Delora Natine. Someone said that there was a much greater chance to bond if you happened to be female. She had heard about it standing in the line to buy milk. It seemed that every day there was less milk to go around. It only made sense. If you ate the cow you didn't get the milk. If the dragons wanted to meet some nice girls then Heirwyn intended to be one of them.

----------------------

Ardwella opened the door and stepped into her own home. It hadn’t been locked. Her sister Muina had been reclining on the sofa in the front room but had opened her eyes at the sound of the door. She quickly got to her feet and met Ardwella halfway across the floor with a warm hug.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"You're looking rotund sister!" said Muina, looking at Ardwella's abdomen.

"Bigger every day." said Ardwella, slowly turning around to give her sister a full view. "Things seem to be speeding up in fact. How were Salt and Pepper?"

"They were fine. Thanks for letting Albarad take me up there" said Muina.

"We probably could have asked Vanador fly you out there as soon as things settle down." said Ardwella. "I know. you have been without a dragon for a long time, but it's new for me." She got a pained look on her face.

"Are you ok?" her sister asked.

"Actually I've got a huge problem." said Ardwella. "There are a lot of very young un-bonded dragons around here. You know, at the dairy. One of them approached me last night."

"Really?" asked Muina. "I thought they were unwilling to bond with an elf. Not that I'm looking for a bond! Did one of them try to bond with you?"

"No, not me. But it did bond with someone. The dragon is a Platinum! I can't imagine where she was hiding. I personally looked at all the eggs myself"

Muina whistled. "I've never seen a Platinum." she said. "She's a little Queen. They supposedly have illusion magic. It's like the kind of spells you you taught to Lothinar so he could change his appearance when he needs to. It's also partly how that invisibility spell works. Those are magically demanding spells."

"Yes, she must have been masquerading as another type even while still in the egg. She must have been watching us and blending into the crowd. Maybe she was intimidated by Vanquish for some reason."

"But now that Vanquish has gone off with Candasar, she's come out to play." said Muina. "Who did she decide to bond with?"

"That's why I'm here. I need to talk to Albarad." said Ardwella.

"She didn't! Oh no!" said Muina.

"Yes. She bonded my unborn daughter. They are already talking together telepathically. The girl has gotten extremely active inside me. She's doing flip flops!"

"You poor thing!" said Muina.

"Oh, I'm fine." said Ardwella. "It just caught me by surprise, that all. I kind of swooned."

"You passed out?" Muina shouted leaping to her feet.

"I'm really ok. There were some physiological changes I had to adjust to in the baby's activity and chemistry. I figured it out pretty fast. That's why I could walk over here first thing this morning. It was awkward though. I had to ask Vanador to stop the young dragon from following me. I need to tell Albarad about this without that little platinum pest around."

"I don't think he's going to be very happy to hear that actually" said Muina. "We had a little incident while we were up in the mountains with a dragon. Albarad's dragon tolerance is at real low right now."

"What are you talking about?"

"We were attacked." said Muina. "A young male grey decided to come after us. I don't actually think he was hungry for elf but at that moment it was an unimportant distinction."

"He was probably after the horses." said Ardwella. "I need to have a talk with Killingsworth. He's nominally in charge of the grey dragon population right now. It's a mess really. They are all so new to flying and hunting off the water."

"The dragon killed Albarad's horse." said Muina angrily.

"Jamison's dead? Oh no! This is just terrible news!"

"You can only imagine that Albarad didn't let that happen without a fight. He had his bow. He shot the dragon in the eye as well as in numerous other places. . He drove the dragon off." said Muina.

"He's lucky that he wasn't killed! I need to speak with him! Where is he?" asked Ardwella.

"He's in the barn, I think..." said Muina. "We both had a long night."

Ardwella gave her sister a strange look.

"Thanks for telling me about this. I need to go."

"I will come with you. You might need some moral support." said Muina.

Ardwella nodded and the two sisters quickly walked to the barn. They saw Albarad coming out. He was holding a shovel. He stopped when he saw the twins approaching. He looked back and forth between their two faces.

"Ardwella! Welcome home. Are you planning to stay?" he asked.

"Muina told me about what happened to Jamison! I'm so sorry Albarad. I know how much that horse meant to you. I mean me too. I loved him too. We had him for a long time!"

"Muina told you?" he asked. He had a strange look on his face.

"How you drove the dragon away with your arrows. How you saved me and my horse." said Muina.

Albarad nodded. He looked at the shovel.

"You are not planning on going back out there?" asked Ardwella cautiously.

"Yes, I'm going to go back up there right now and bury Jamison. I can't have those dragons chewing on him can I?

"Oh darling, you do know that it might already be too late. If not the same dragon, another or even an animal might have found him." she said with obvious sympathy. “It is just nature’s way.”

Albarad got a strange look on his face. He looked away from Ardwella and looked at Muina.

"I'm going nonetheless. This time I'll walk. I won't risk another horse up there." he said.”I do want his saddle and some things that were in the saddle bags. Your favorite teapot got broken in the attack by the way.”

"Oh Albarad!" said Ardwella. "Don’t worry about that. It was just a teapot. Again, I am so sorry a dragon did this. I suppose these kinds of things are bound to happen until we all learn better how to live together."

"Would you ever consider moving somewhere else? Where maybe there were no dragons?" he asked, looking into her eyes.

"When Esmarilla first left me that would have been a possibility" said Ardwella. "But not now. At least for a while. Something else has changed. That's actually why I came over here to talk to you."

Albarad looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Our daughter." she said, and then looked down at her swollen stomach. "She accepted a bond from a baby dragon last night."

"How is that even possible?" he shouted. "She's not even born yet!"

"I don't know!" Ardwella said with frustration. "I tried to stop it. Really I did. The dragon is a Platinum. She has incredibly powerful magic even as a baby. I wasn't part of the conversation she had with our daughter, but I felt it happen. Inside me the baby jumped."

"Can we undo it?" asked Albarad with some desperation in his voice. "It just happened last night. No harm to the child should occur.”

"I talked with the dragon. She said that our baby wanted this." said Ardwella.

"Which we conveniently can not confirm!" said Albarad hotly.

"There is nothing we can do right now Albarad." said Muina jumping in. "It is obviously not Ardwella's fault. She did not want this to happen either."

"I never even considered my unborn child would be at risk" said Albarad. Then he narrowed his eyes.

"What if we killed her? Not our child of course, but the dragon."

Ardwella drew a sharp breath.

"You can't mean that husband!" she said. She felt the baby give a strong kick. Then her eyes rolled up and she crumpled towards the ground.

Muina caught her just before she hit the ground. She gently finished lowering her.

"Ardwella told me that she also passed out last night Albarad. The baby must be putting a huge strain on her. She's growing too fast! She wants to be born!”

Albarad grimaced. "We need to put a stop to this." he said.

Albarad helped Muina move Ardwella back into the house and they laid her on the couch.

"Keep her here." said Albarad. "There is some rope in the garage if you need it. I am headed over to the dairy. I'll be back as soon as I can"

"Are you sure about this?" asked Muina. "It might be a difficult choice to live with."

"We can talk about it when I get back." he said. "Just don't let Ardwella get anywhere near that platinum dragon again."

"What if that dragon shows up here?" Muina asked.

"She won't" said Albarad. "I am going to get my daughter back. One way or another. I heard you cast that spell twice. I remember it clearly."

"We can't start using that spell again." said Muina.

Albarad looked at her with surprise.

"I thought that we already had."

----------------------------

Heirwyn suspected when she stepped outside that she had made a mistake. People stopped and looked at her. Perhaps, she thought, they had not seen her dressed up before. They probably had correctly assumed that she wouldn't be able to afford something nice to wear. That had to be it. Her mom's old white dress was certainly pretty. It even had a few fake pearls sewn on the sleeves and upper bodice. But it was nothing that extravagant. She ignored the looks and kept going. Now people were outright staring at her. A few of the younger ones even pointed. She moved forward toward the town gates, falling into the long line of women and girls that were headed for the dairy. Strangely most of them moved out of her way. She moved quickly past them. Behind her she heard a giggle.

"Is that a wedding dress?" she heard someone whisper.

"She looks ridiculous!" said another more loudly.

"Ssshh. The poor girl. It is probably the only thing she has to wear." said someone else.

A Wedding Dress! Of course. She was wearing a wedding dress! Her mother had obviously saved it for years in that trunk. Being raised by Harvey had obviously left her without much of an exposure to wedding traditional garb. She had never even been to one. She suddenly felt ridiculous. Even her sad old clothes would have been better than embarrassing herself like this. But it was too late now. Looking the fool or not she was not going to miss her chance at meeting the dragons. At least they probably wouldn't care about her fashion mistake disaster.

Heirwyn got a lot of funny looks and endured almost non stop whispered laughter as she made her way into the dairy. There were some of Enderline's soldiers gathered at the gates. Many of them seemed to already have dragons near them. The women of the town, young or old walked past their interested stares. Their eyes seemed to linger sympathetically on the girl that didn't know how to dress properly. She realized that even after her recent growth spurt, the long hem of the white dress was dragging in the patches of mud. And being a dairy, it wasn't all mud.

The King and Queen were there standing next to their dragons. The King's was a black and the Queen's was a green. When the hundreds of women and girls had gathered, he cleared his throat and began to speak. Heirwynn noticed his eyes pass over her and then swing back to stare at her. She winced and looked down. When she looked back his eyes had thankfully moved on.

"Women of Delora Natine." he began. His voice carried clearly. It held power, authority and surprisingly, humility.

”I am King Enderline. Thank you for coming. I must begin by admitting that a grave oversight has been committed. Not intentionally but out of our abundant ignorance regarding dragons."

There were murmurs and nervous laughter. Heirwyn remained silent.

”Finding these young dragons and desiring to keep them safe we closed them off from access to you. Nonetheless they rapidly surprised us by forming a bond with your Queen, myself and many of my men. A human and dragon bond. This of course was unprecedented. Those of us lucky enough to become bonded have since learned a great deal more.” He paused, and looked around.

”I was hoping to have the elf Ardwella, who is now the dragon high priestess in the temple explain more about the reasons for this but she has had her own surprises with this process. This in spite of being one of the most experienced with being bonded herself. For over five hundred years she was bonded with the great black dragon Esmarilla. The very dragon that you know so well from her many years resting in the temple here. What we thought we understood about dragons has changed and we now know that humans can be a much more integral part of their lives.”

He paused and smiled.

”Their very long lives.” That earned a few laughs and some nervous glances at the group of baby dragons standing quietly off to one side. "Yes, there is a lot at stake here for the fortunate few that are chosen."

”Exactly what makes them choose someone is still a great mystery. I am told by my own dragon Night-Sky that the young dragons themselves may not yet fully understand the forces at work. We seem to be fulfilling an ancient prophecy of sorts. Not everyone gathered here will receive this gift. That is nothing to be ashamed of. Bonding will always remain rare.“

”Why did all your men get to go first?” Came an angry call from the back of the crowd. "My husband didn’t get a chance!”

”You certainly may leave and go fetch him now. He is welcome to try” said the King. “Each bonding is a meeting with destiny. There may be only one key for every lock or there may be several. It is not up to me but to the dragons themselves. Henceforth we will not exclude anyone. The dragons alone will choose.“

”Send that woman away!” came a melodic voice that followed the king's statement. A dark metallic grey dragon came out of the crowd and spoke again. Her voice was obviously female and rang like a bell. “I will not have any dragon bond with someone that shows so little respect for their King!"

Enderline appeared to be extremely surprised. He nodded to his men who stepped up to the woman. Heirwyn saw her give him a defiant glare but allowed them to escort her to the gate.

But then the dragon continued in her song like voice.

”Those men already chosen by my people have paid a high price in blood and bravery. Many of their brothers and friends were brutally bruised and broken on the battlefield. We acknowledge this sacrifice and this debt to be paid. Their loyalty to us is without question!” said Platinum. “That part of your heart that knows your personal sacrifices made on our behalf calls out to us! It is like a beacon in the darkest night!”

There was silence. Someone coughed. Heirwyn tried to lift her while dress a little further out of the muck.

Enderline spoke again.

“I can obviously not know your suffering or what you have lost or given up, but somehow the dragons gathered here can. They have weighed our sacrifices. They will make their own decisions. Let us not delay any further. I suggest that you all spread out and leave some room for the young dragons to pass amongst you.” Said the King.

The Platinum dragon moved to the front of the crowd of small dragons. They flanked her and then began moving toward women. In spite of the fact that they were relatively small and supposedly friendly it was somewhat intimidating.

The crowd began to shift and move apart. Some began to back up. A few turned and outright ran for the dairy gate. Heirwynn found herself standing alone in the mud.

”WAIT!” The Platinum dragon yelled. Heirwyn resisted the urge to put her hands over her ears. The shout had been loud and filled with command. Most of the women stopped.

"Do not be afraid." said Platinum. She walked up to Heirwynn, who could only stand there wearing a muddy wedding dress, her face a mask of terror and excitement.

"What is your name?" asked Platinum.

"It's Heirwynn" said Heirwynn finding her voice. "I am very pleased to meet you." She tried to curtsey and found herself stepping once again on her long dress. She stumbled. Amazingly she heard an unkind laugh behind her, although it was quickly stifled.

The platinum dragon looked over Heirwynn's shoulder. She scowled at whoever had laughed. She returned her gaze to Heirwynn.

"Did you come ready to wed?” Asked the dragon.

"No, it was a mistake. I’m sure that I look ridiculous. I found this dress in an old trunk of my mothers." said Heirwynn. "I was a fool to wear it today. It is a dress for a wedding not bonding with a dragon. I know that now."

Enderline cleared his throat. "This is one of our human customs, Platinum. This type of dress is worn at human bondings. It represents purity."

The dragon nodded at that.

"Once she has bonded you will take her as a second wife Enderline." said Platinum. "This one will be able to bear you children unlike your half elf Queen."

Enderline began choking and coughing. He turned red. "Give me a minute. I'll be right back!" he said.

Heirwynn blushed scarlet but the dragon continued, unaware at the shock she had just inflicted on the two humans.

"I just want to serve. I don't want to marry anyone." Heirwynn managed to choke out. "My brother died fighting for Esmarilla and Ardwella before the King even arrived here."

Enderline came back. He was holding the hand of Queen Pricilla who looked angry. She glared at Heirwynn.

The platinum dragon turned to Enderline. "This lack of telepathy in your people can be frustrating at times. I can sense her sincere emotions but not read her thoughts as words. It surprises me that she does not want an opportunity to marry a King. What do you know about her?" she asked him.

Enderline looked at Heirwynn. "This girl is unknown to me, as are most of the townspeople. She will have to tell you what you may want to know herself."

"That dress will appeal to a white dragon" said Platinum. ‘I have one in my flight that is not bonded."

Heirwynn looked around. Behind the King was a black dragon. He looked somewhat smaller than the other dragons that were watching this whole exchange expectantly. The dragon walked forward and spoke to her. His voice was distinct and clear.

"I am Night-Sky." he said. "I am bonded to King Enderline. I would like to introduce you to my sister Snow."

Behind the black dragon Heirwynn could see an even smaller white dragon peeking out. She was looking at Heirwynn with great interest.

"Black and Whites are always siblings born together from the same clutch. It is quite rare actually. They have complimenting magic and spend most of their lives living and working closely with one another. These two dragons come from an exceptional family." said Platinum. "That's another reason why you should also marry this girl Enderline. Snow already wants to bond with her."

"This is very sudden!" said Pricilla. "I think you are frightening the girl Platinum." she turned to Heirwynn. "You don't have to do this. There are other dragons here!"

"Snow has chosen her already." said Platinum. And Heirwynn suddenly realized that she had. Something clicked inside her mind. The dragon was there. Their thoughts began to combine. She was kind and very very smart. Images began flooding into her. They would do so many things together. Heirwynn and Snow. Night-Sky and Enderline. Heirwynn turned to the Queen. She was frowning.

"I'm sorry." she said.

Queen Pricilla's eyebrows raised to her hairline. She whirled and strode quickly away. Enderline ran after her.

"I'll get this sorted out with the King and Queen" said Platinum. Then she followed them.

The other dragons began moving quickly through the gathered women. There were cries of joy and excitement. The bonded among Enderline's men moved in with their dragons to help instruct and advise the newly bonded. Heirwynn just stood there. She was looking with amazement at Snow and Night-Sky.

Someone took Heirwynn's hand. It was the half-elf Ronniflass.

"Welcome to the family" she said.

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