‘You know when I saw you before,’ Joe said, ‘at the hatch­ing ceremony?’ It burst out before he could stop it.

He waited for Winter to pull away, to show her disapproval of what Joe had done.

‘Yes?’ Winter said, holding his gaze. One of her feet was drumming on the floor as she spoke.

‘Well, I’m not like that. Usually. I just lost my temper.’ He braced himself for her next words. For her dismissal. ‘I didn’t mean for all that to happen.’

Nothing came. Again.

‘Look at us, both without a dragon.’ As soon as the words were out, he regretted them. How could he think of compar­ing them? She’d had a dragon, but he had died.

A shadow passed over her face, but she didn’t react.

‘Sorry! Sorry, I don’t mean we’re the same. It’s just … I was wondering. Most of the Dragonless left. Except you … Why did you stay?’ he asked, as gently as he could.

She only looked at him, unblinking.

It was Joe who looked away first, cheeks burning at his awkward attempts to get to know her. He shouldn’t have pushed her. She’d tell him when she was ready.

Winter laid down her parcels of food and left.

Joe wondered if she would come back. Long dark hours followed. He took out his knife and started hacking at the cave wall, taking his frustration out on it. 73

If Winter didn’t return – and why should she? – he’d have the choice of starving alone down here or crawling the long tunnels to daylight, which might be the same thing in the end.

He kept chipping away at the wall, keeping his hands busy while his thoughts chased themselves in circles.

Why had he said that? He knew she grieved for her dragon. He could see Winter was fragile. But she was also his lifeline.

He peered at the hole he’d gouged out of the cave wall. It was roughly the shape of the huge cavern, the one he’d called the dragonhall underground. That gave him an idea. He added a new line, leading to it, and carved the little curved space where he’d slept that first night.

When he heard footsteps a few hours later, he rolled on his back and basked in the rush of relief.

‘You’re back! Thank you. I thought you might not …’ Joe realised he was babbling again. With an effort, he fell silent. This time, he didn’t ask anything. He smiled but stayed quiet and waited for her to speak.

This worked better. When she took her time, the words almost flowed freely. Maybe she was just out of practice at speaking, Joe thought. He even managed to make her smile.

‘Go on, then,’ Winter said, after a while. ‘Ask me.’

‘Ask you what?’ Joe said.

‘About my dragon. You wanted to ask. So, you get one question today.’

‘What did it feel like, when he first hatched?’ It was like pressing a bruise, but he needed to know. ‘What does it feel like to bond?’ 74