Thisbe’s scales caught the firelight. She folded her arms over her chest and pressed her mouth firmly in a determined line. The others would come to their senses after a good night’s sleep back in Artimé, and then they’d all be back to planning the next move against the Revinir. At least Thisbe hoped so.

Feeling hurt and outnumbered, Thisbe and Sky didn’t voice their disagreement. Not now. But there was no doubt in Thisbe’s mind that she would be returning to Rohan and to Maiven Taveer. To rescue Dev, if he was still alive, and the other black-eyed slaves. To end the spell that, according to Aaron’s account, seemed to have affected many hundreds of dragons from worlds away. It was the same spell that affected Thisbe and would continue to plague her until she found a way to stop it. It would be her life’s goal. It had to be. She couldn’t live like this, never knowing when the next roar would strike. Her scales quivered at the thought.

Not to mention her people needed her. And she needed them, too.

Certainly the Revinir knew Thisbe was hiding out somewhere. Once the dragon-woman had control of all of the land of the dragons, what would stop her from venturing here to look for her?

Had everyone forgotten about these things? Had they lost their minds? A costume ball?

Thisbe noticed Ibrahim and Clementi weren’t exactly cheering the idea either. Instead they were throwing concerned glances her way. Thisbe smiled grimly at them. She didn’t know them very well—they’d been newly declared Unwanted and were still finding their way around Artimé when Thisbe, Fifer, and Seth had originally snuck away on their first quest to save the young dragon captives. But they’d listened in horror to Thisbe’s passionate tale, and they seemed to understand the reason behind her strained silence. Maybe it was because they’d so recently been through that scary time in Quill and sent away from everything that had been familiar. Or perhaps they were a little bit disappointed to turn back from the mission they’d been excited to join. Whatever their reasons, they tapped their chests lightly to indicate they were with Thisbe. Their dedication made Thisbe sit up a little taller. It was nice to have people on her side.

And Sky was with Thisbe too, of course. She squeezed Thisbe’s hand, and her face was as troubled as the girl’s. Even Samheed shot a curious look at Thisbe to see what her reaction was to the conversation. Her favorite instructor seemed to understand something wasn’t quite right about this.

Their support was affirming. They’d figure out how to deal with this problem once they got home. Even Thisbe needed a little bit of comfort before steeling herself for the next journey.