Broken Path, Starless Tail - 8. Chapter 8

“Hey! Where are we going?” They’d left the other creatures behind quickly, but that didn’t mean the world had gone quiet around us. The spring temperatures rapidly moved toward an early summer feel and the heady mix of treen leaves and flowers filled the air along with the buzz of insects and calls of other… things. Beckett wasn’t sure what they were after what he’d seen so far, and that made him nervous.

“Your new home.” The tiny dragon’s wings flapped fast, not hummingbird speed or anything, but enough that Beckett was able to walk at a comfortable speed behind him along the trail. They headed down toward the valley he’d seen and into the thick jungle tree cover. “It’s all ready for you.”

None of this made any sense. “A home? I have a home.”

“A human home. Where exactly did you plan to stay while you are here?” He darted ahead, getting lost in the thick leaves of the low hanging branches.

“Wait! Dragon, come back or wait for me!”

Faster than he expected, the little red dragon that was no bigger than his head came darting right for his face then came to an abrupt halt to hover in front of him. Beckett slammed on the brakes, digging his heels in and waving his arms to avoid falling. “Whoa!”

“You do not wish to be called human, but you call me dragon and order me around like I’m your servant?” His little voice was a roar of tiny but epic proportions as the red dragon got right in his face to tell him off.

Beckett was smart enough to hide his amusement. “I introduced myself and asked to be called Beckett. You just told me to follow you without telling me your name or bothering to tell me where we were going before you took off. What kind of an idiot would I be if I just let you fly off without saying anything at all? I don’t even know where I am!” He’d given up trying to decide if the whole daydream were real or not. He’d go with it for now. After all… dragons.

Though this little red one was a bit sassier and a little less dragony? He wasn’t sure what he expected, but it wasn’t the claw poking the end of his nose and heated breath blasting his cheeks before he fired back.

“My name is Firscoire.”

Could he be any more imperious? Maybe it was to do with his color. Or his tiny size. “Can I call you Ire?”

“No. My name is Firscoire. Now come on. We’re running late.”

Yeah, no. Beckett was so calling him Ire in his head. Anyone as cranky as him needed that nickname. “Late for what?” Now he had to trot to keep up.

A long, sticky walk later, all Beckett wanted to do was sit down and have a drink. He wished he had a bottle of water. “Can we stop for a minute?” he gasped.

“You can stop for as many minutes as you want once we get to your house.” Ire was flying ahead again, and his voice was faint.

“You know, where I come from, guides usually take care of the people they are leading.” Beckett paused for a minute and rested his hands on his knees. So far the path hadn’t branched off and they hadn’t left it either. How lost could he get? Taking a deep breath in through his nose, he stood and grimaced, pulling his T-shirt away from his chest.

“…not your guide!”

He’d lost the first part of that, but not the end as Ire zipped back toward him. “What?”

“I’m not your guide. I’m just taking you to your house. The guide ceremony is tomorrow morning. Tonight you need to cleanse in the pools, and then tomorrow you will be given a guide. Poor beast,” he muttered.

“Hey! I’m starting to think you have something against humans.”

Ire’s color deepened. “How could I have something against humans? You’re the first one I’ve met.”

“Then maybe you’re just rude.”

“Uh-huh. So rude I brought you to your new home and I’ll tell you the pools for cleansing are through the bushes behind it.”

Beckett wanted to cross his arms over his chest, but he didn’t want to hurt himself so he settled for an angry frown. “Are all dragons like you?”

“Dragons are unique beings.”

So arrogant. Then again, whatever. Beckett was just ready to stop. “So we’re there? Here?” He didn’t see a house. “Where?”

“Just over the hill.”

He groaned. “Of course there’s a hill.”

“We have to leave the path just ahead.”

So now Ire kept him from getting lost too. “Lead on then.” He braced himself for one last push, so ready to collapse into whatever this pool was. He hoped it was cool as he wearily wiped the stinging sweat dripping into his eyes off his forehead.

The pool was blissfully cool, lined with rounded rocks and smooth sand, and Beckett wasn’t sure why it was cleansing other than it smelled like mint and something citrusy.

Certainly better than teenage body odor. He’d waded in, clothes and all, then stripped down and plopped his clothes on some of the rocks sitting on the edge of the pool. Then he floated. Just not having to move was bliss, the cool water was golden on top of that.

Other than not having something to fill the growling pit in his stomach that was making itself known, Beckett was happy.