Chapter 14
Azar
No matter how many times Liz explains the importance of Christmas, I don’t really understand it. “You’re celebrating the birth of a child who was born two thousand years ago?”
“Right,” Liz says. “He’s dead now, but a lot of people think he’s still alive. That’s not the only thing that makes him special, but it’s one of the big ones.”
Coral laughs. “He looks so confused.”
“If he was alive,” I ask, “would he not attend his own celebrations?”
Liz frowns. “What about this Veralden Radian. If he was alive, and you were really his children, why isn’t he here? Why hasn’t he ever shown up?”
“We don’t hold a fěte in his honor,” I say.
“Look, whether you’re Christian or not,” Liz says, “and plenty of the world isn’t, Christmas is a chance to spend time together as a family and celebrate what you do believe. I heard they celebrate it in places like Korea, where a bunch of the people there aren’t even Christian.”
“But you said that you do believe in this. . .this fable about the baby.” I really am trying to understand.
“For people who believe, calling it a fable is a little patronizing.” Liz sighs.
“There are some things you just believe because you can feel that it’s right, and this is one of them, okay?
I believe there are things we can’t explain.
Mom never believed in Jesus and Dad did, but we always spent Christmas together, and we always celebrated the teachings of someone who lived a humble life and taught us to be kind and generous with others. ”
Which is why we need to leave early today. We can’t simply open the portal to bring the humans back here like we planned.
Liz sighs. Yes, because like I told you. I’m not ready for Christmas. That can happen in a normal year, but this year was not normal at all, and I’m way behind.
This part appears to be a secret from the hatchlings, though why, I’m still not quite sure. We’re going early because there’s a fat man who’s supposed to bring gifts to your siblings, but he isn’t real, so you have to pretend to be him.
The way she’s pursing her lips tells me she’s tiring of having to explain things that are apparently normal to humans.
We’re going shopping now to perpetuate the myth of the fat man who breaks into people’s homes to leave them gifts. But won’t the children know that he couldn’t possibly get past all the dragons?
It’s magic, Liz snaps. He can do whatever.
I blink. Okay, so we’ll do it now, under the pretense that we’re going there to pick up the humans and your parents.
“We will pick them up, so it’s not a pretense.” Liz sinks back into one of the chairs we’ve brought into the main room of our residence. “But yes, that’s mostly right.”
“What’s right?” Sammy asks. “No fair, secret talking.”
Liz straightens, brightening up. “I’m not secret talking. We’re entwined now, remember? Sometimes Axel just replies to my thoughts.”
Good one, I say.
Her half smile tells me she thought so too. “Look, with Gideon and Mom and Dad coming back with us later, you really need to get things cleaned up before they come.”
“I don’t want Rufus and Gordon to have to sleep outside while they’re here,” Sammy says. “Why can’t Asteria do it?”
“She is, too,” Jade says. “Remember? Gideon will be with you, and Mom and Dad will be with me.”
Hyperion, like me, flatly refused to leave the premises with Thunar prowling around. I can’t blame him for that.
“But it’s not fair that Hyperion and Azar don’t have to go,” Jade says.
“That’s why you shouldn’t have bonded a crappy old strike blessed,” Coral says.
“My dragon’s prettier, more polite, and listens better than yours,” Jade says. “And she smells better.”
“That’s enough,” Liz says.
But Coral and Jade continue to talk.
“Enough,” Liz shouts.
Shockingly, the small ones listen, all except Fluff Dog, who starts barking as if she’s responding to Liz’s command. Liz scoops her up with a smile, petting her on the head like it’s totally fine for the little ball of fur to throw a tantrum.
“It really seems like you reward her bad behavior,” I say.
Liz frowns. “Well, maybe I do sometimes, but she’s so small that she can’t get into much trouble.”
Fluff Dog scowls at me, like she understood what I said and doesn’t appreciate the criticism. When Liz isn’t looking, I glare back. She whimpers in a very satisfying way.
“We won’t be gone long,” Liz says. “So go clean up, please. Hyperion will stay nearby to make sure Thunar doesn’t get any stupid ideas.”
When Liz tosses her head, I walk to the edge of the room, hop off the shelf-like overhang and shift into my flame blessed form before reaching the ground. I’m liking my human form more every day, but it’s still undeniably weak.
What did I just witness? Thunar’s voice is the least-welcome thing I could imagine.
He circles and lands just as Liz exits our home.
You can take a human form? Instead of being angry, he sounds. . .curious. I was told the earth blessed could no longer do that since their power upgrade.
“I’ve been able to give two dragons that ability,” Liz says, “with the help of the heart, but it was tiring, and I’m not at all sure I can replicate it.”
Thunar stares at Liz for a moment. Then he exhales loudly. Try it with me. I want to see whether I can forgo the human bond.
I refuse, I say. It’s dangerous and draining for Liz, and we have plenty of humans now for you to bond. That makes the risk unnecessary.
Thunar’s glare isn’t full of fury. He looks irritated, more than anything. I don’t care whether it tires her. She’ll attempt this modification for me before we attack the vanir.
“We aren’t attacking them,” Liz says. “We’re going to defend the humans when they next attack.”
Thunar’s expression of irritation deepens. Words, words, words, but they mean the same thing I just said. You will give me this power, or I won’t aid you.
You can’t change the deal. Liz already—
But Liz cuts me off. “Sure, I’ll try.” She glances my direction. He needs more understanding and empathy. His dad tried to kill him. I mean, it was his fault, because he challenged his dad on his wedding day, but still.
Thunar looks as irritated about her comment as I do about being cut off.
Fine, I say. But not now. Later.
I don’t want to leave the kids until Thunar’s gone. Liz eyes him strangely. “Did you need something else?”
I’m coming with you. I hear you’re going to Sydney. I’d like to see a large human city.
“You should’ve come with us yesterday,” Liz says. “Now we have other small tasks to attend to, and it’s not a good time to introduce you to the city.”
Earth child meetings bore me, Thunar says. But you’re going for a short time today. I don’t require any introductions. I’m quite capable of making them myself.
Pretty sure that’s what Liz is worried about.
“We’re going to purchase supplies first, and then we’re picking up the earth children. It will take us some time and be quite boring.” Liz doesn’t even try to disguise her disgust.
I will be. . .what’s the earth child word? He smiles, but it’s not pretty like it is when Liz smiles. It’s the kind of smile I was used to seeing on the blessed. Mean. Irritable. Unattractive. I’ll be patient.
Somehow I doubt that, Liz mutters, and then she forces a grin. “What a lovely surprise for us that your big brother wants to come, Azar. I couldn’t be more delighted.”
Thunar frowns. You say you’re pleased, but you sound the opposite.
“It’s a human thing called sarcasm.” She vaults up to my back, her wings dropping her into place on my back easily. “You’ll probably recognize the sentiment quite often now that you know what it is.”
I open the portal and wait for Thunar to follow us through.
How’s your portal so large? I can tell from his tone that Thunar expected me to struggle to open one large enough for him.
I’m entwined, I say. It comes with some perks. There are things you might consider when you demand a way to forgo the earth child bond.
I would never entwine with one of them, Thunar says, and I can’t argue with him on that. I’m sure he wouldn’t.
Liz had me portal above the Sydney harbor—it’s the spot the government designated for routine portaling. I can tell as I watch Thunar’s face that he’s impressed with Sydney and all its buildings in the distance. The humans before must not have had cities quite so impressive.
Humans have improved their dwellings in the thousands of years we’ve been gone.
“It’s amazing what you can do when dragons aren’t constantly attacking and demanding things of you,” Liz mutters.
These towers aren’t something we need or care about, so your advances are meaningless to us.
When I shift into my human form to help Liz find her supplies, I can tell Thunar’s irritated.
He’s stuck flying around in circles overhead—he’s too large to land almost anywhere, and he certainly can’t walk through the streets with us.
Liz loads me up with bags of food, Christmas decorations, and gifts that seem strange to me, but will apparently appeal to the hatchlings.
Thunar’s clearly growing impatient as the day proceeds. His circles around Sydney have become both faster and smaller.
“I guess your brother’s determined to ruin our day.” Liz sighs. “But—” Her eyes widen and she grabs my arm. “Axel, look.”
She points, but all I see is the back of an old woman who’s ducking into a store. Liz doesn’t wait for me to follow. She darts off like a feral animal trying to escape detection.