Chapter Six
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There are no coincidences, only fate.
“What have you learned?”
They were taking a rest under the canopy of a gigantic, gnarled oak tree while the horses drank from a nearby stream and munched upon the grassy bank.
Ere shared the meat pies he procured at the tavern, while Wolfe distributed a day-old loaf of bread, cheese, and richly seasoned dried meat that he’d brought with him from his travels. There was a bit of wine to pass around, and they drank their fill of cool, clean water.
Now, as Wolfe and Tristan saw to all three horses, Ere, Sorin and Rui huddled together to debrief the journey thus far.
“We need papers of nobility to enter into the tournament,” Ere revealed.
Rui frowned.
“Bollocks.”
Ere grinned at her.
“Cursing! You’re starting to sound more human, truffle dragon.”
Perhaps Wolfe’s manner of speech was beginning to rub off on her, Rui thought.
They’d talked of more lighthearted topics over the last couple of hours. Like some of the strangest things Wolfe saw or did when he was a boy. Or stories about Tristan, how they met, how Wolfe had to sometimes bail the young man out of trouble. Rui described the sights of her homeland, the “Far East,” while Wolfe listened and absorbed in fascination.
“Shh,” she admonished. “Don’t call me that.”
“What?”
“Dragon,” she whispered.
“But you are one,” Ere pointed out.
“He doesn’t like dragons.”
Ere didn’t ask who “he” was.
“At least he seems to know about us,” he said. “Modern humans are completely, well, mostly anyway, ignorant of supernatural beings.”
“I don’t think his knowing dragons is a good thing in this instance,” Rui murmured.
“He hunts them.”
Ere whistled.
“Wow, you sure know how to pick them.”
“Pick what?”
“Boyfriends.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rui gritted out.
Ere winked at her.
“Uh huh. Just remember, when you need some love advice, come to Uncle Ere.”