The Inn was as silent as a grave as Louis stared blankly at the strange man. He was standing now and stood slightly shorter than the boy and was slighter in build.

“You’re having me on,” Louis scoffed.

He then noticed the mortified looks on Winston and Carla’s faces and his jaw dropped. “You’re not serious.”

“You can try to bump into him if you like,” Nathan said with a broad grin.

“If you’re quite finished,” the man said in his strange melodic voice. “I believe our business here is finished.”

“Wait, that’s the wrong way!” Louis cried as the duo got to their feet and made their way to the kitchen.

“We’re leaving out the back door, lad,” Nathan laughed. “Half the town must be watching the front to see if these two are leaving tonight.”

As though to underscore his point, the kitchen lights were extinguished. Winston too began extinguishing the lights in the main room. As Nathan walked towards the kitchen, Winston took Nathan by the arm.

“I hope this is the last surprise you drop on my lap for your entertainment.”

“Oh it is, don’t you worry, my fine fellow,” Nathan beamed. “Are you going to see us off?”

“You might never see me again, you know,” Nathan warned when Winston shook his head. He then shifted his sights back to Louis. “You should let the boy see it.”

“Are you that short on candidates for your line of work?” Winston asked tiredly.

Nathan shook his head slowly. “No, I think it will be a good experience for the lad. It will let you show him that it’s not all dull sticking around the likes of you.”

“I don’t think that at all,” Louis protested.

“But you do want to come see,” Nathan observed.

Louis glanced at Winston before nodding.

“See?” the old man beamed. “Come see us off, it’s the polite thing to do.”

“Fine,” Winston sighed. “I never thought you’d be one for sentiment, Nathan.”

“That just shows how little you know me,” Nathan remarked.

“I expect that is by your design,” Winston pointed out.

The older man grinned and nodded. “Come on then, it’s getting late, and I want to get into Estos before dawn.”

Silently, the trio walked through the darkened main room and joined the other two in the kitchen. Winston glanced out of the window before opening the main door and they silently filed out with Louis bringing up the rear. He followed as they walked along the eaves of the nearby buildings so that they wouldn’t leave footsteps in the snow.

Winston led them out of town until they arrived at a clearing on the edge of the woods. He turned around and levelled his gaze on the strange man. “This should suffice, shouldn’t it?”

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The man nodded coolly, and Winston turned to Nathan. “Were we seen?”

“I don’t think so,” Nathan shrugged.

Louis turned around and saw that the town was hidden by a small rise and a row of tall trees. His pulse began to quicken. He hadn’t been out of sight of town since he arrived and wondered if he’d be able to make his way back in the inky darkness without Winston.

“Are you sure it is wise for the boy to see?” the melodic voice asked.

Winston shrugged and cocked his head at Nathan. “He seems to think so.”

The man sighed. “Take a step back, boy.”

Louis blinked and took a big step back. Winston pulled him back another five paces. Louis could scarcely believe his eyes as the man began to grow at a rapid clip. His body deformed, and his skin turned into bronze coloured scale. In what felt like a blink of an eye dragon that looked at least as large as the Happily Ever After Inn stood where the strange man had. Louis eye widened when he saw the scales on the creature’s chest. They looked just like the shield in Winston’s room.

“Do you want to come with us, boy?”

Louis blinked and tore his gaze off the dragon. “Eh?” he asked dumbly.

“How about it, lad?” Nathan grinned. “A life of adventure where things like this chap here are commonplace.”

Louis looked at Winston before looking back at Nathan. The dragon’s talons were as long as is arm, and its mouth was lined with daggerlike teeth. He weighed that against the warmth of the inn and the company he kept. At length, he shook his head. “No, my place is here.”

“That’s what I thought,” Nathan laughed.

“I don’t see why you’re teasing the lad,” Winston said thinly. “You never had any intention of bringing him with you.”

“Aye, I’m just letting him know there’s a wider world out there when he’s ready to spread his wings,” Nathan said as he and Carla approached the beast. “He might not want to be stuck in this town for the rest of his life.”

“I know what I have here, Mister Huntsman,” Louis offered.

“I’m sure you do, lad,” Nathan laughed.

“Say, Nathan,” Winston began.

“Yes?”

“Do you think it will be wise for me to go down to Estos in spring?” Winston asked, and Louis began to panic. That would mean closing the inn for at least ten days. What would he do then? Go with his boss or be left to fend for himself in the inn.

“You’re going to see them, aren’t you?” Nathan ventured.

“I’m thinking about it.”

“Well it’s about time,” Nathan said, shaking his head. “It should be fine. You’re not being looked for, and even if you were, I doubt anyone will recognize you.”

Winston nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I’ll be seeing you around, ‘Winston’,” Nathan winked.

“You’re always welcome,” Winston said, looking pointedly at Carla and Nathan. “Both of you.”

The dragon then took each of them carefully in a taloned claw and Winston pulled Louis back another ten paces. The creature stretched its wings and with a mighty flap that almost knocked Louis off his feet, it was airborne. It flapped its wings again and skimmed over the trees as it flew off to the south. Soon, it was out of sight, and the entire affair felt like it had been a dream.

“That was real, wasn’t it, Mister Weaver?” Louis asked.

“It was,” Winston said with a touch of melancholy in his voice.

“You didn’t seem to care very much for that dragon,” Louis remarked.

“No, it appears there are things that I still can’t let go of,” Winston replied as he looked at the sky.

“Dragons are real then,” Louis observed, hoping to glean some information from his boss. He’d heard stories about the Children of Barylon as they were known but had thought they were just that. Stories.

“I’m afraid I don’t know very much about them,” Winston said absently. “They are a secretive bunch.”

Louis knew that was a lie but decided not to press the issue. At length, Winston shook his head and looked down at Louis. “What say I make us a nice hot pot of tea before we go to sleep?”

Louis looked up at his boss and found that what he had learned that night still hadn’t really struck home yet. He just couldn’t picture the man standing next to him as the much reviled Great Enemy. Then again, just minutes ago, he thought dragons were the stuff of myths. Well, it seemed that he had his reasons for whatever he did in the past.

“I don’t suppose we could talk about what came out tonight, Mister Weaver?” Louis ventured.

Winston shook his head. “Sometimes the past should stay in the past.”

He paused before adding, “I hope I can trust you to keep what you saw tonight to yourself?”

Louis bit his lip and decided to let sleeping dogs lie for now. First, he’d have to find out more about the two wars. Didn’t Mayor Ogden have a book or two on the topic? He then noticed that Winston was looking at him expectantly.

“Of course I’ll keep your secret,” he grinned. “And you know what, Mister Weaver? A cup of tea does sound fabulous.”