“You do growl like a bear sometimes, Byron.”
“I want to be a dragon, too,” Josef called. “I’ve never done anything like that before. That would be too cool.”
Byron threw his hands up in the air in defeat. “Hold the image that you find in my mind, Josef. Make certain you are able to maintain it before you step off that roof. You cannot be distracted. This is a large beast, quite unlike a bird. It is not as easy because it is unfamiliar. Study the details in my mind, and hold that image at all times. I want you to stay close to me in case you get into trouble.”
“You really are a sweet man, Byron.” Antonietta smiled at him.
“You cannot do that,
cara
, I have trouble thinking when you smile at me. If one hair on Josef’s head is damaged, my sister will rip my head off. And if anything should happen to you, I do not know what I would do.”
Her laughter at his suffering tone drifted up to the clouds. “I’m excited. Be my dragon, and let’s go flying.”
He didn’t wait. He was afraid he would change his mind if he thought too much on what could happen. He shifted his shape, holding the detailed image of the iridescent blue dragon in his mind for his nephew. Carefully, so as not to knock into Antonietta accidentally, the huge dragon lowered itself so she could climb onto its back.
Antonietta let out her breath slowly and reached out to the great bulk so close to her. The huge back was cool, scaled, and felt much like a large python she had once touched. “Oh, Byron, this is unbelievable.” She felt tears burning in her eyes at the unexpected gift. In her wildest dreams, she never imagined such an opportunity. She took her time, feeling her way over the great hulk, the neck, even the wedged head, seeing with her fingertips. “It’s beautiful. Perfect. I’ll never forget this moment.”
She stepped up on the offered leg. It took several tries to make it onto the back. There was a small saddle for her to fit into, stirrups for her feet. Her heart turned over at his thoughtfulness. Byron seemed to think of the smallest detail to make everything easier for her. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the dragon’s neck, the reins tight in her hands. “I’m ready, Byron. Go.”
The dragon rose with great caution, fearful of jarring his rider.
Josef? Are you ready?
The smaller dragon, crouched upon the roof of the turret, unfolded its wings, and shook them experimentally.
Antonietta laughed as she felt the rush of air on her body. She felt Byron extend his wings. Again he used the same careful movements, but the dragon was large and the wings enormous. When he launched himself from the battlement, into the air, she was unprepared for the way the pit of her stomach dropped away. She clutched at the dragon’s neck convulsively, the air slamming out of her lungs.
I can hold you,
cara
.
She forced her body to sit up, to find the motion of the beast between her legs. Antonietta lifted her face to the sky.
No, you can’t. I’m going to fly by myself. I love this.
And she did. It was exhilarating to be moving through the sky, great wings flapping, roiling the air so that she was aware every moment of the mythical dragon with its iridescent blue scales beneath her. It was a fairy tale come to life.
Can you breathe fire? We could sweep over the Demonesini palazzo and singe Christopher’s hair.
Byron felt her laughter right through the dragon’s body. Through his body. Deep within the dragon, Byron felt elation sweeping through him.
Joy burst through Antonietta. The wind blew her hair in every direction, rushed at her face, robbed her of speech, made her eyes water. She couldn’t see the night sky, but she could imagine stars sparkling over her head like gems. She leaned over the dragon’s neck, urging him to fly faster.
Watch this, Uncle Byron.
Josef attempted to spin around, the body of the smaller dragon coming dangerously close to the larger one so that Byron had to perform a quick maneuver to avoid a collision in midair. Antonietta clutched the reins as her hips rose away from the dragon’s back. Byron rose with her, reseating her before she could slide off. She clamped her legs as tightly as possible, her heart pounding.
I’m fine. This is great. I feel so alive. She said it hastily as she felt his rising ire at his nephew.
Josef didn’t seem to notice what he’d done. He continued with his antics, dropping fast toward earth and pulling up sharply, nearly somersaulting. He was instantly disoriented. Vertigo hit hard. Panic replaced the image in his head. He plummeted toward earth.
Byron, great wings laboring, put on a burst of speed, dropping below the youth. Watch yourself, Antonietta.
He is falling, coming from above you. I will try to catch him and hold him in my claws. The idiot should be eaten.
Byron reached for the falling boy. Josef saw the huge, wedge-shaped head, the mouth filled with sharp teeth, and he panicked. He punched the dragon on the snout, kicked viciously at the reaching claws, driving his body away from the dragon.
Byron swore and dropped hard and fast, coming up under his nephew.
I will direct him toward the tail section. Try to help him, but do not fall yourself.
Josef hit the dragon’s back, careened downward toward the dragon’s tail. Antonietta had already dropped the reins and reached instinctively behind her. She brushed Josef’s shirt, caught, and hung on. His weight nearly pulled her from the dragon’s back, but Byron, inside the large bulk, adjusted his body to help her stabilize and keep from rolling off. Josef clung to the dragon, digging his heels in hard.
He pulled himself up behind Antonietta, wrapping his arms firmly around her waist. She was shocked at his size and strength. It didn’t feel as if a boy were behind her. He felt like a grown man.
How old is your nephew? In human years, he is twenty-two. In our years he is considered a fledgling. A child still learning our ways. Shape-shifting is difficult. Most parents hold the image for the child over and over until the child learns to pay attention to detail. You have to operate on several levels at the same time. When you learn to do this, I will be the one to hold the image for you. I don’t have the ability to shape-shift, Byron. I really don’t. I feel the jaguar close at times, it is in me, but I can’t make the change, not even when I try.
Antonietta was grateful for Byron’s jacket and the perpetual warmth it generated as they soared through the sky. She felt the dragon circling, spiraling in long, sweeping circles, until it hovered in one spot, wings flapping ferociously. Josef slipped off onto the balcony of the villa where he was staying. The dragon immediately streaked skyward.
Antonietta leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the dragon’s neck. “I don’t want this ever to stop. I think we should fly all night.”
Byron was grateful Eleanor had thought to secure a second smaller and much more secluded villa for her brother and his lifemate. He didn’t want to take Antonietta to a cave deep below the earth and explain his life to her. Explain what her life was to become. He wanted a beautiful setting where she might feel comfortable and completely at ease. He sent his sister his silent thanks for her thoughtfulness. He didn’t know how she had accomplished it in so short a time, but Eleanor was always efficient.
The dragon settled on the wide verandah overlooking the sea. Antonietta waited while the wings folded against the great body before she felt around for the extended leg. Her feet found firm ground as Byron shifted into his human form. She laughed and threw her arms around him. “
Grazie