Alta

And her hand inched toward his.

And when they touched, their fingers curled around each other’s, interlacing until they seemed that they had never been apart.

“I believe, my Lady,” said Ari softly, “that we must needs find you a dragonet of your own. I should not like to find you trying to win my Kashet away from me. And I—I would like to show you what the world looks like from above. It is strange. There are no borders, you see—”

Kiron found himself smiling—then grinning—and had to swallow to keep from whooping aloud, as Nofret leaned her head on Ari’s shoulder. “I should like that, Ari. And please call me Nofret. There are no ladies here.”

With a start, Kiron realized that his fingers had somehow gotten entwined with Aket-ten’s. “I think we should give them some privacy, don’t you?” he whispered, hoping she could not hear how his heart pounded.

“That might be a good idea,” she whispered back with a grin. “And you know, we might want to go see if there are dragon nesting places around here. It’s going to be a while before Sanctuary can do anything about the Magi and the war. And we’re going to need more dragon riders when we do.”

“We certainly will,” he replied, warmly, basking in their shared dream. Perhaps he was no Winged One, but the vision was clear to both of them. “We certainly will.”