“The poor soul!” the dragon muttered. “Trapped in that nasty pink skin.” She raised her voice. “Little hatchling, come here!”

Avain ran the rest of the way. She threw her arms around Arzosah’s neck as far as they could reach while the dragon murmured to her in a soothing flow of incomprehensible words—Dragonish words, Branna assumed. When Avain let Arzosah go and stepped back, the dragon licked her face with just the very tip of a surprisingly gentle tongue. Avain laughed and clapped her hands together.

“You agree, then?” Val said. “That she’s a dragon in her soul?”

“Of course she is,” Arzosah said. “Will her mother let her fly free, or will she insist on snatching her away like she’s snatched Rori?”

“Mam will do what be best for Avain,” Berwynna said. “And truly, that would be letting her go. But, Stepmother, there be a need on you to know that my sister does have her troubles. Never has she had keen wits.”

Arzosah snorted and rolled her eyes. “She’s very young, is all—for a dragon. Fear not, once we restore her to her true self, her mind will begin to blossom.”

“Well and good, then,” Grallezar put in. “You do know more of such things than we do.”

“Of course I do.” Arzosah snorted again. “I suppose Evandar had somewhat to do with this poor child’s misery.”

“He did not,” Dallandra snapped. “And you’re a fine one to talk! You’re the one who insisted Rhodry become a dragon in the first place, aren’t you?”

Arzosah glowered but held her enormous tongue.

Distantly, the boat’s gong began to ring. Berwynna shaded her eyes with one hand and looked across the lake.

“Here they do come,” Wynni said, “Mam and Mara, that be. Let me speak to my mother straightaway about Avain.”

“Avain wants to fly.” The subject of this discussion spoke up at last. “But Avain loves Mam and Wynni and Mara.”

“We all shall talk about this.” Wynni caught her sister’s huge hand in both of hers. “See you Mam? She be on the boat, and the boat, it does come toward the pier.”

“We’ll let you all make this decision in private,” Dallandra said. “We need to go plan things out.”

“Will you be joining us for the evening meal?” Wynni said.

“We won’t. We all have to fast, and truly, Avain should as well, if you can explain it to her.”

“That be no hard task. She does eat oddly little, and often but once a day.”

“Good. We’ll wait at the bench under the willow. If you could let us know what your mother—”

“Of course! I know not how long I’ll be.”

Dallandra glanced at the sky. “We have a long while till sunset. If your mother will agree to releasing Avain, we’ll go across the lake to speak to Rori. Otherwise—well, otherwise I don’t know what we’ll do.”

“Naught, I should think,” Grallezar said. “Lest we slay the man we do try to save.”