Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen — Third Wheeling
Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen — Third Wheeling I had never been a third wheel before, so as I followed behind the two ahead of me while they talked and laughed, I got to experience something entirely new.At least I wasn’t alone. “Why do I feel slighted?” Amaryllis asked. “I shouldn’t. It doesn’t make sense. I don’t even like dragons, or men who are that pushy.”I rubbed her back. “It’s okay?” I said. “I don’t think you would have made a nice couple anyway.”“Of course not,” Amaryllis said. “As if I’d actually go out with an overgrown lizard.”Said overgrown lizard rocked his head back and roared with laughter while, next to him, Booksie placed a hand before her mouth and giggled. Amaryllis glared ahead, her wings tightening across her chest. “It doesn’t make sense. What does she see in him?”I shrugged a shoulder. “They both like books and, ah, one sec.” I twitched my big bun ears forwards to better hear what Booksie was saying to Rhawrexdee.“Oh, that reminds me of my own mother. I love her, I really do, but she can be just so...” She waved her hands in the air in a gesture that could mean anything. “She’s one of the reasons I moved to an entirely different country. She kept asking me, ‘Booksie, you’re twenty-five, when will you find a nice boy? When will you bring home a basket full of grandkids for me to play with?’ It’s frustrating. I want more in life than just being a mother, I have goals!”Rhawrexdee was nodding along. “I understand. Ever since my father flew off after some Eastern dragon my mother has been so doting over my sister and me. She keeps telling me how to act, and to go find a nice dragon to spend some time with. She even confiscated my audio books! I worked hard kidnapping all those scholars! She said that I needed a proper harem, not a collection of old men with bad eyesight. Bah!” “Urgh,” Booksie said. “I know what you mean. And I’m sorry to hear that about your dad. Mine passed away when I was young and, well, it’s not the same, but... still.” She reached out, almost carefully, and patted Rhawrexdee on the side.I rubbed at my chin. “Yeah, they’re talking about their moms. This is getting weird.”Amaryllis huffed. “As long as she takes care of our dragon problem for us I don’t care.”“I guess,” I said. I felt a big smile coming on, and allowed it to bloom. “But really, this is great! I’ve never seen two people actually fall in love before.”“I don’t know if I’d call that love,” Amaryllis said.I pointed ahead to where the couple stopped before a large puddle in the middle of the road. Booksie seemed ready to walk around when Rhawrexdee paused her with a raised claw, reached up, and tore an awning off the side of a house and placed the cloth across the puddle. He waved her forward.“That doesn’t mean anything, Broccoli.”At the next intersection, Rhawrexdee uprooted an entire rosebush, sniffed it, then carefully pressed it up against Booksie who laughed with delight.“It could be... I really hope it’s not love,” Amaryllis said.“Oh, come on, don’t you have a bit of romance in you?” I asked. “No,” she said.“Not even a little? I always dreamed of meeting this cute boy who’d sweep me off my feet, and give me flowers, and get along with all of my friends.” She rolled her eyes. “I think we’ve established that your dreams are incredibly pedestrian already. What was it you wanted... a little home and two kids?” “I think I might call my firstborn daughter Amaryllis,” I said.Amaryllis blushed to the stems of her hair-feathers. “I-idiot!” “What?” I said.“Nevermind that,” she shot right back before picking up the pace. I jogged to catch up. “Did I say something stupid without knowing it again?” “You do that every time you open your mouth,” she grumbled. “Rude!” I called out with a laugh.“What?!” Rhawrexdee roared.The dragon spun around, tail swiping into a building with a heavy crunch. He stomped closer, completely ignoring the sparking electricity that appeared around amaryllis, and lowered his head until he was even with me. “Did you know?” he asked.“Um, did I know what?” I asked.Rhawrexdee pointed back to a wide-eyed Booksie. “That this... poor young woman’s hoard was taken by, by filthy scavengers?”“Ah, yeah,” I said. “We did know. We’re gonna help her take it back though.”“You are?” he asked. “And how do you intend to do that?”“Well, ah, once we were done with your dating practice, I was thinking we might walk over to Port Royal and then talk to the authorities, see what we can do?”“Walk? At the speed you little ones move? That would take... hours!”I shrugged. “We could fly there, I guess. But I haven’t looked to see when the next ship will be heading over or how much it would cost.”Rhawrexdee shifted, looking rather awkward all of a sudden. He leaned way forwards until his head almost butted up against me. “She doesn’t speak proper dragon, right?” he asked.“She doesn’t,” I confirmed. “Just Pyrowalkian and, uh, whatever the other language most people speak is.”“Good, good, so she can’t understand us.” He leaned in even closer. “Tell me, does she have a husband?”“No? Not that I know of,” I said.“And no male rivals pinning after her?” he asked.“No?” He nodded slowly. “Interesting. I’m merely curious, of course. It’s a scholarly interest, I assure you.”“Sure it is!” I said. “If it helps any, I think that she liked spending time with you today. I’m sure if you asked her out on another, ah, practice date, she would say yes.”He narrowed his eyes. “Maybe I will. And her hoard. All of those books that were taken from her. If I retrieve them like a gallant knight, do you think...”Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!“I think that Booksie is the kind of girl that would appreciate some help, but-and I’m saying this having only known her for a little bit-I don’t think she’s the sort to expect others to do all the work for her.”He nodded. “How very dragon-like of her. Yes, I’ve decided. I’m going to make Booksie my official dating advice counsellor in exchange for my assistance in destroying the city that robbed her.”“Ah,” I said. “Wait, back up there. I think that maybe just helping would be better.”“Wouldn’t that help?”“Uh,” I said as I tried to think faster. “Her hoard is in that city though. If you burn it all down she’ll lose it. And her customers. And what if she wants to live there again and gets hungry. She’s a bun, she can’t just pick up some passing sheep for a snack.”He hummed, deep and rumbly. “Perhaps. But then I would only be able to see her when I’m in that city.”“I mean, the rent can’t be that bad. I’m sure you could afford a nice warehouse or something near the docks.”“And then I’d be able to see her every day,” he said.I felt a grin tugging up my cheeks. “You’re really smitten.”“I am not!” he said.I nodded. “You are!” I said before clapping. “Oh, I really hope it works out between you two.”“We’re going to take things slow,” he said.“Of course,” I said. “So, ah, if we want to make it to Port Royal quickly, we’ll either need to charter a ship for there today, or find some other way to fly all the way over.”“I won’t allow a bunch of little people like you to ride on my back,” he said.I pouted. “Aww, but we hardly weigh anything at all, and, uh, think of how romantic it’ll be to ride into the sky with your special someone sitting on your head.”Rhawrexdee seemed to consider that for a moment. “That might be true, but then why would I let the likes of you come along?”“Well, you wouldn’t want it to be too romantic. So if you bring us along it turns it from a special moment shared between just the two of you, into one shared by a bigger group. Still magical, but a little less heavy-handed,” I said. I had never made up so much crud in my entire life, but there was dragon riding on the line!“Hrm,” he said. “There is only one problem then.”“What’s that?”“Port Royal is the territory of another dragon, which would mean flying through their land.”I winced. “Would you need to fight?” I asked. I could feel my plans and dreams sinking.“Worse. That dragon is my mother.”I blinked. “Is that bad?”“She’s nagging and won’t stop pestering me, I just know it.”“There, there,” I said as I patted him on the snout.Rhawrexdee blew me back with a snort. “Don’t patronize me, little bun. I will tell Booksie about my plans to assist her through her plight. If you intend to come with us then you have a few moments to gather your things.”“Right!” I said.Turning on a heel, I rushed over to Amaryllis and grabbed onto her talons. “Why are you smiling like that?” she asked. “What’s going horribly wrong now?”“Nothing!” I cheered as I tugged her along. “We’re going to Port Royal.”“What? When?” “As soon as we pick up Awen and Orange and our stuff,” I said.“And how are we getting there?” she asked.I looked over my shoulder and grinned.“No,” she said.“I didn’t say how yet,” I said.“That’s because I’m not an idiot. I am not riding on that creature. There’s no way.”“Think of what it’ll do to your reputation though. You rode a dragon! That’ll be the kind of thing you should tell your kids and grandkids about.” I waved in the air to encompass the enormity of it. “It’s every kid’s dream, at least where I’m from.”“I’m not a child,” Amaryllis said. There was a tiny hint of reluctance there, and I pounced on it.“It’s not just kids. I bet all the adults will be jealous too.”“Envious, you moron, and I still don’t like it.”I grinned. “You could take notes. I bet there aren’t that many scientists that can write about dragon flight. Rhawrexdee is way too big for his wings to actually lift him, so there has to be magic involved.”Now I had her, I could tell by the near predatory glint in her eye. “If we could harness that, we could outstrip the Sylph’s abilities in no time at all.” She started walking just a little faster. “We’ll get Awen first. And stop giving me that look. I came to this decision on my own.”“You did,” I said.“Don’t agree with me with that tone!” I snorted and skipped ahead of her. Navigating the town was tricky, especially with so few people around. It seemed as if everyone was hiding, or maybe they had evacuated while there was a dragon around. All in all, it was probably a good idea. We found Awen and Yoland both standing outside of the old tailor’s shop. “Awa, it’s you!” Awen said. “We made a vest for the dragon, and a, ah, hat.” She lifted a nice top hat before her, one big enough that she could have fit into it with a bit of contorting around. “And a tie, too.”“That’s great!” I said.“You girls do bring me interesting projects,” Yoland said.“That might be the last one, I’m afraid. We’re heading out in a bit. We came to fetch you, Awen!”“Awa? Where are we going?” Awen asked. “Should I...” she gestured to the vest and a big pile of cloth that I guessed was the aforementioned tie. “Bring it all,” I said. ‘We’re flying over to Port Royal! That is, if you want to come.”“Of course! We’re taking a ship?” “Nope!”
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Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen — Dragon Rider of Bun
Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen — Dragon Rider of Bun I was so excited I was trembling. I knew this because Orange, who I was cuddling close to my chest, was staring up at me as if I was a mouse poking at the wrong kitty. Not that she was that much of a kitty anymore. At some point Orange had grown into a juvenile tabby cat, her fur growing longer and her body getting bigger. Maybe spirit kittens grew faster than normal kittens? That was a shame; kittens were cutest when they were small.We gathered just on the outskirts of the town, the mayor, a few guards, old Yoland and a bunch of onlookers. Most of them stayed well away from us as we waited with eyes towards the skies.“Stop wiggling so much, people will think you’re bizarre, and it will taint me by association,” Amaryllis said. “But we’re going to ride a dragon!” I said.Awen giggled next to me, it sounded halfway between excited and nervous, which was exactly the right thing to be feeling about the prospect of riding a real-deal dragon.“Moron,” Amaryllis said. “Can’t you at least pretend that you have some decorum in you?”“No!” I said. “Oh, I’m going to go say bye to the mayor.”With that said, I skipped over to the gathering of people by the gate. I saw kids pointing and more than one person shied away as I approached, as if I was dangerous or something. Maybe I should have been more careful with my reputation, I didn’t want it to get between me and my ability to make friends. “Hello,” I said.“Ah, Miss Bunch,” the mayor said as he squished his hat. “You’re, ah, heading out now, yes?” “Yup, we’re just waiting for Rhawrexdee to arrive. I hope he didn’t break too many things?” “A few, but, well, we had something of an emergency meeting of the town council, and we decided that we would all pitch in to repair the damages.”I sighed with relief. “Good. I’d hate it if our visit left a bad image.”“No, no of course not,” he said in a hurry. “Nothing of the sort.”“Neat! So, um, we’ll be heading out now.”“On foot?” he asked. “I could hire a coach.”I blinked. “No? I thought you were all gathered here to see the dragon.”“That dragon is returning?!” the mayor squeaked. Some of the guards nearby tensed and I heard a murmur spreading through the crowd.“Yeah. Why else would you all be here?”Yoland cackled. “They’re here to see you off. The daft morons decided that you’re the source of all their troubles. Can’t see the obvious when it’s right in front of them.”“But we only tried to help,” I said. I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. As soon as Rhawrexdee lands we’re taking off.”“You're going to ride the dragon?” Yoland asked. “My, if I was a few decades more spry... bah. Good luck lass. I’d say be safe, but that seems unlikely with the life you lead.”I lifted my arms for a parting hug, which Yoland returned with a cackle. Then I hugged the rotund mayor too, for good measure.My goodbyes were cut off with the fwomp of huge wings beating against the air. “Gotta go!” I said before bouncing back to my friends. “Hello Rhawrexdee!” The dragon landed with a ground-shaking crash onto his rear legs. A squeak escaped from his arms. He uncupped his huge hands to reveal a dishevelled but grinning Booksie. She laughed and stood up onto Rhawrexdee’s hand, then hopped the dozen feet to the ground, landing with bent knees and a burst of stamina. “That was brilliant, Rhawrexdee,” Booksie said.“It was merely a small flight,” the dragon said. He did sound a little bashful about it.“Did you have fun?” I asked Booksie while she fixed her clothes on straight. “Oh, yes! Flying with Rhawexdee is, well, it’s nothing at all like being aboard an airship,” she said. There was a shine in her eyes that I think my own were reflecting as she reached up and fixed her ears on straight. “I can’t wait!” I said.The dragon huffed and looked down at our little group. He was wearing Awen’s vest and ascot and his new tophat which had somehow stayed affixed to the top of his head despite the flight. “I won’t be able to carry all of you in my arms,” he said.“I can ride on your back!” I volunteered.“We’re not stopping to search for your body when you inevitably fly off his back,” Amaryllis said. “I’ll hang on tight, I promise!” I said.Rhawrexdee shrugged. “If you die It’s no scales off my back,” he said. “One less humanoid that I need to care for mid-flight.”“Alright!” I said. I took off my backpack and gave it to Awen. “Can you watch over this? I think the drag might be dangerous. Oh, and Orange too.” Awen nodded, and after a moment spent coaxing Orange into my backpack, she hugged it close. “Awa, please be careful,” she said.I gave her a thumbs-up, then skipped over to Rhawrexdee, bunched my legs under me, and hopped up and onto his back.He didn’t so much as twitch at my weight landing on him. Unlike the dragons in my books, there wasn’t a nice spot to sit on along his back. Rhawrexdee’s neck was all overlapping scales that stuck out with little points at their tips and his spine had foot-long spikes sticking out of it from his upper back all the way down to his tail. His new vest had cleverly crafted holes in the back to make room for all the pokey bits. I walked around his back a bit, careful not to hurt him, but he didn’t even seem to notice that I was there at all. Being a dragon must have been awesome! I wish I had a Cinnamon Bun Dragon class instead of just Cinnamon Bun Bun. I found a nice spot to lay down flat on my tummy just between his wings where there were fewer spikes and where I could hug one of the spines before me and wrap a leg around another. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.“Hang on,” Rhawrexdee said.His wings unfurled, huge leathery things that looked even bigger from how close I was to them. Then he beat down and the world filled with rushing wind. One beat followed the other and I tightened my grip on his back as hard as I could while also holding back the urge to whoop and giggle. We took to the air, Rhawrexdee’s entire back bending around as he spun and dove across Rosenbell, the town shooting past below a moment before giving way to the perilous drop into the yellow-brown desert. Rhawrexdee raced forwards, gaining so much speed that my friend’s screams-part joy and part panic-barely registered over the roar of the wind. I felt the dragon chuckle though my chest as I pressed myself down lower. His wings beat again and again, the world faded below, faster than any airship I had ever been on. My grin was frozen in place as Rhawrexdee began to coast along, wings catching onto unseen thermals tossing us up and down through the air.I had no idea how fast we were going, but it certainly felt a lot faster than any ship I’d ridden on. The Shady Lady had been a quick little ship, but compared to a dragon she was a real slowpoke. It was no wonder that the skies belonged to them.I saw Rhawrexdee turn his head to look off to the side, and with a bit of a stretch I was able to see what he was looking at. A whole flock of flying whales was wiggling through the sky as quick as they could, like fish that had spotted a predator. I hoped that he wasn’t feeling peckish while we were with him or else things would get interesting. After a bit, I felt comfortable enough to climb onto my knees-with one hand still firmly gripped onto a spike-to look around a little. The Harpy mountains to the East were approaching fast, and the desert behind us was fading away into little more than a brown line over the horizon. Dragons could really move when they wanted to! I laid back down, just in case, and hugged Rhawrexdee’s back close. Time passed in a bit of a blur, the air grew a little cool for a bit, but Rhawrexdee soon dipped down beneath the clouds and into warmer air. The distant mountains became not-so-distant, and then they were outright close. And then, quite suddenly, I heard something that was rather unnerving. “Oh no,” Rhawrexdee said.My heart skipped a beat. Had one of my friends fallen? That would be... But no, Rhawrexdee didn’t seem that irresponsible. The dragon tilted his wings down, and with the next beat, I could see Port Royal approaching fast ahead. For a moment I thought that he was disappointed that we had arrived already, then I caught a glimpse of something green in the skies high above.I had barely craned my neck back to see the tiny fleck in the sky that it came rocketting down and blew past with a hurricane-like gust of air.I screamed as I scrambled to hang onto Rhawrexdee’s back and just barely managed to hang onto a scale as Rhawrexdee began to swoop down himself. I caught one of the spines with the back of my foot and grabbed onto another for dear life as the dragons began to spin around each other.“Rhawrexdee!” the green dragon roared. I caught a glimpse of it as we spun again. It was massive, easily twice as long as Rhawrexdee was and it had a lot more going on in the gut area than the lean blue dragon I was hanging onto.“Hi mom,” Rhawrexdee said with a draconic sigh. “Can we talk on land? I don’t want to drop these.”“And what are those?” The green dragon asked. An eye the size of my arm span tilted around and then the dragon made a pleased sound. “Oh, sweetie, you found a princess! Come now, let’s land so you can show your mommy.”The green dragon wiggled her tail and a huge flap expanded out of her back, beginning at the nape of her neck and ending at the very end of her tail like a strange leathery sail.Rhawrexdee grumbled something that I was pretty sure was rude, then flapped forwards a few times, his flight a lot smoother. The green dragon, the green mommy dragon, led us towards Port Royal, then past the port part of the city and up towards the seven massive towers at the back. She tucked her wings in close and aimed for a plateau a little ways up the mountain where a waterfall covered a hole into the side of the mount.I ‘eeped’ and hung on tighter as we splashed through the curtain of water.Everything shook as Rhawrexdee landed on his hindlegs. “There, none of you died,” the dragon said. Then he paused and twisted his head around to look over his shoulder. I waved. “Forgot about you back there,” he said.“Rhawrexdee!” the green dragon said. “I’ll not have you killing a two leg by accident, not when we haven’t decided if they’re guests yet.”Grinning, I hopped off of Rhawrexdee’s back and landed on the stony ground. The cave we were in was huge, with pillars holding up a smoothed rocky ceiling with magical rune lights embedded into it. A large carpet, marred by a few scratches, lined the edges of the entrance. Deeper in, I could make out a few tunnels that presumably dug into the core of the mountain, or maybe went to other rooms. “Introduce your little friends, sweetie.”Turning, I gazed up at the biggest dragon I had ever seen. She had a face like some sort of prehistoric nightmare, all jagged teeth and sharpened scales. Her claws were longer than I was tall and she had to stoop a little, even in the huge cavern. She was, in a word, beautiful.“Hi! I’m Broccoli Bunch,” I roared. “Let’s be friends!”
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