Dragon

Chapter 7

Maay stared down at her skirts, kicking them as she walked. A part of her acknowledged they were heading somewhere new. She couldn't bring herself to lift her gaze from that swath of black silk and velvet lest it did what it had done back in the chamber. Summoning the awe she'd experienced upon first seeing this place now felt beyond her compared to what she'd sensed.

She wasn't quite sure what had happened back there. It had seemed oddly natural, in a thrilling and terrifying way. Her dress had felt alive, writhing against her skin like an excited hunting dog. The toe of her boot thumped the fabric again. Still solid and feeling no less cloth-like than they ever had.

Had it been some sort of trick? She couldn't be a dr – a dra ... one of them.

"I'm sorry."

Blinking, she stared up at the dragon.

Jaimin walked beside her in human form, hands clasped behind him, head tilted forward and icy blue-grey eyes peering at her through his mop of steely hair. "I did not take into account that it may be frightening for you."

Her gaze fell back to the skirts. Try as she might, she couldn't ever recall seeing any of the chambermaids touch her clothes. Nor could she bring to mind ever having outgrown a gown, even as a young girl, or suffering the fitting for a new one. As for her shoes ... they'd just always been there for her to wear. Maybe they're right.

The hum of people reached them as they neared the other side of the large cavern, along with the smell of freshly-baked bread and ... what were they roasting? Maay sniffed the air, breathing deep of the warm, rich scent it bore and frowning when she still couldn't place it. It sure didn't smell like any meat she'd been served before.

Her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten a thing since arriving. Not since breakfast. That had been yesterday at the castle. How could it have been so short a time?

Beside her, Jaimin chuckled. "I'd a feeling no one would've had the time to show you the way to the kitchen." His stride lengthened as they neared a doorway, parting the curtain for her to enter. "After you've had your fill, I shall take you to our study."

They have a study? She walked passed him and stopped in the doorway. He really had led her straight to the kitchen. After the unfamiliarity of the other rooms, it looked rather ordinary with its ovens and open fires. Enough to be capable of blending into any castle. All that was missing were the workers. Did that mean she'd be required to learn how to cook?

A basket sat on the table dominating a large portion of the room. Maay stepped closer, spying the corner of a loaf poking out from under the cloth. That enticing smell of cooked meat still lingered in the air and she swore she could hear bubbling from the large pot hanging over the fire. Perhaps she could procure a serving on this instance and leave the cooking to another time. Surely no one would miss or bemoan her a small bowlful.

Behind her came a heavy snuffle. "Hmm, Arbur must've downed a deer yesterday." Jaimin strode up to the fire. "Please, go through to the dining area." He waved a hand towards the room's other curtained doorway while stirring the mixture within the pot.

Snatching half the loaf from the basket, Maay followed his orders. Parting the roughly-woven fabric, she found herself faced with rows of tables and benches, much like the ones they dragged out to use during festive celebrations back home. Down one end, the high-ceiling cavern opened out into a tunnel. A large fire blazed happily in the spacious fireplace at the other end.

People sat at the tables nearer the warmth. Actual humans from the look of them, not dragons wearing the guise of another different species. Their chatter, mixed with the clink of spoons or the rattle of a plate, filled the room in a jumble that could only be called noise. Just like it sounded during mealtimes back home.