Prim returned from a hike through the mountains with Tamar to find the house quiet. The dragon whisperer kissed her cheeks before flying off on Gordy, leaving the handmaiden to wander through the house wondering where Dante and his family had gotten off to. Then the ground shook and Prim peeked out a window to see the great green beast that was Zulas in the back field, Marnie sliding down his leg.
Waving her hand out the window, Prim called to the girl. “Where’s Dante?”
Marnie didn’t answer the question, only ran inside and dragged her by the arm to the room Prim shared with Dante. The girl rummaged through the clothing chest until she pulled out a pretty blue dress with pink flowers embroidered on it that the ladies had bought for the handmaiden the last time she was in Pregg. “Put this on and meet me out back,” Marnie commanded, pushing it into Prim’s chest.
“Okay…” Prim said hesitantly, though the girl had already dashed out.
A few minutes later, Prim was attempting to climb Zulas’s scaly leg upon Marnie’s instruction. She was simultaneously happy Dante had done her hair in the flying fashion earlier that day and upset that he wasn’t here to help her up with his magic like every other time she’d ridden a dragon.
Marnie sat atop Zulas in a flight helmet, shouting down words of encouragement. After an embarrassingly long time, Prim reached the top and buckled herself in behind the girl who thrust a flying helmet over the woman’s head that she seemingly pulled out of nowhere, though it must have been from the bag affixed to the saddle. Prim asked where they were going, but received no answer before her stomach lurched as Zulas took off with far more thrust than Gordy ever had, and she gripped the saddle so tightly the leather bloomed around her fingers where they indented into the soft pommel.
Prim’s breath filled the helmet, keeping her face warm. She couldn’t say the same for her torso, though her legs were fairly warm thanks to the leather pants she’d decided to put on under the dress. With the skirts hitched up to accommodate her straddled position and whipping around in the wind, she praised herself for thinking ahead instead of having to suffer flying with her bare legs stinging. As they traveled south toward the mountains, the sun began to dip under the peaks to the west. The mountains were even more breathtaking when set against a pink and purple sunset sky and the orange halo of light that remained. Prim sighed blissfully as she looked across the land, and no longer wondered where Marnie was taking her. She was only grateful for the ride.
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Zulas tilted his enormous body as he maneuvered his way into the mountains proper, walls of dirt and rock surrounding them. Prim didn’t know it was possible to hold on any tighter, but when the dragon was no longer level, she found a way. Luckily, it only lasted a few minutes before she was once again fully righted, and she was able to ignore her panic to see why.
Zulas had flown them into a large, open clearing surrounded by walls of rock that curved as they ascended. The space was nearly a dome with a small opening in the center where the sky could be seen, now a darkening blue with a sprinkling of only the brightest stars, able to be visible in the twilight hour. As she tilted her head back to view the odd geographical arrangement, Prim realized the hole must not be as small as it seemed from her current position as a few dragons flew into it, circling the space before landing.
Watching the newcomers, Prim’s gaze drifted to the field below where she saw a ring of dragons of every size and color. Gordy and Bern stood at the ends of the circle where there was a gap in the curved line of dragons. There, Prim made out the much smaller shapes of three humanoid figures, one much larger than the others with wings tucked behind his back.
As Zulas neared, Dante, Delle, and Tamar--who must have come straight here after leaving Prim--stepped aside, giving the green dragon room to land in the gap, completing the circle. Marnie immediately disengaged from the saddle, pulling off her helmet and offering Prim a wide, toothy smile that plumped her rosy cheeks, but no explanation. Prim smiled to herself, excited to see what this was about. As soon as she was unbuckled, Dante’s magic picked her up and gently placed her on the ground next to him.
Loud coughing sounds echoed around the space as a few dragons breathed fire into the air above, illuminating and heating the field. In the new brightness, Prim took in Dante’s appearance. He wasn’t wearing anything like she’d ever seen him in before. He didn’t wear his flying leathers or his loose linen traveling clothes or his guard uniform. He wore well tailored pants that hugged his muscled legs and a silk shirt that looked more like something Blukke would wear. His long, wild hair was unbound as she preferred it, and the scars on his face crinkled along with his eyes as he smiled softly at her.
“What are we doing here?” she asked quietly, turning from him to take in the beautifully majestic scene around them. For the hundredth time, her chest ached at how lucky she’d been to have been in that alley that night so many months ago. She’d seen three dragons before then, and now here she was, in front of dozens, in their home. And of course, now she had Dante.
His hands gripped her shoulders, turning her back to him. “This is your claiming.”