Escape to the Forbidden Isles

Chapter Fourteen: Einar and Little One

After breakfast, Thora acted casual, visiting Skye, Dustin, and the other children at their playhouse the Vikings had built so that Tove and Thora could spend their day doing more useful things. Skye had everyone cleaning, "cooking", or taking care of the younger children.

"Why do you and Dustin get to be the mother and father?" a little girl asked.

"Because we're older and more MATURE." Skye loved the word mature.

Thora quickly began walking in the direction of the village shop so Skye wouldn't hear her laughing. Tove was there, building furniture and setting up his shop. He called hello and Thora greeted him in return, but she kept walking.

The men were making bed frames, tables, and other furnishings. Yesterday they had finished building homes. The women were fishing. This was the perfect time. Thora crept to the edge of the forest and consulted Iona's list of ingredients. She found all of them in a few minutes and ground them together. She carried the resulting gunk and a few more fish to the smaller cave.

"Einar," Thora called. She had decided to call the dragon that because it meant lone warrior. Since Einar was all alone, it sounded fitting.

(^.=.^)

Einar opened his big blue eyes. He smelled fish. Where was it coming from? Oh, that sweet little human girl was back. She brought him fish. He liked her. He crawled slowly toward her and sniffed her bag delicately. The girl smiled. She opened the bag and handed him a fish. He sniffed it. His eyes brightened and he gently took it from her and swallowed it whole. Yum! His favorite. The little human dumped all of the other fish out on the cave floor. Einar stepped forward to eat them. He didn't even notice the small human girl spreading the salve on the big gashes those big dragons in the other cave had inflicted on him when he had stolen a few of their fish. He had been starving since those annoying humans had interrupted him during his meal.

Einar finished his fish just as Thora finished rubbing in the ointment. There, she thought. Soon, you'll be good as new. She walked back to Einar's head. He put his head under her hand. Thora laughed and pet the gentle dragon's head.

Einar closed his eyes. Oooh, that felt good. Why did he ever try to attack this sweet, gentle, tiny girl? He decided to call her Little One.

Thora visited Einar everyday in the weeks that followed. It was a challenge, with everyone milling about the island now, since the houses were finished and people were all over the forest gathering food and supplies. Although Tove was busy with his shop, he usually found time to talk to Thora. While she enjoyed his company, he made it hard to find time to visit Einar. When people noticed that she seemed to be going missing for hours at odd times, she said she was bird watching. Once, when Skye and the kids were playing spies, they followed Thora. If it hadn't been for one of Thora's noisy little cousins letting out a loud shriek when she tripped over a stone near the cliffs, they would have found Einar. 

Einar improving speedily. The largest of his wounds was only a scratch now. Unfortunately, the other Vikings didn't like dragons nearly as much as Thora did. Every few days, some dragons attacked their food stock. On one occasion, a dragon was killed. Thora was scared. What would they do if they found Einar?