Dragons of the Watch by Donita K. Paul Page A

Ellicinderpart uttered no complaints as they traveled. And she quickly hid without a fuss when noises from the gangs reached them.
    She definitely was not an ordinary individual. She had many superb qualities, but he feared some of them would be inconvenient. She clearly suspected him of outrageous lies. She would remain skeptical of anything he said, wanting full explanations. He couldn’t blame her. When he’d first met Tipper and her father, he had been full of doubt.
    He wondered for a moment if his preoccupation with Ellie stemmed naturally from two months of his own company. He couldn’t remember any time in which he had been so isolated. His life had been full of cultural events with the upper crust of Chirilian society. Then he had accompanied Paladin and others on adventuresome quests. He’d met many unusual people in his journeys around Chiril, but he’d never met a traveler who had a goat for a companion.
    After a long walk, they reached the fountain they sought. The deserted square held a patch of grass with the artful monument in the center. Once tidy flower beds now held a riot of colored blooms in a helter-skelter array.
    “This is where the provider leaves my meals.”
    “It’s beautiful.” Ellicinderpart walked slowly around the metal art. Flowers, small animals, and birds clung to a central cone, three feet wide at the base and culminating in bubbling water at the top. The fountain cascaded over, through, and around the metal wildlife. Thepool at the bottom was smaller than the huge, elaborate fountain in the middle of the city.
    The girl’s goat ignored the water and trotted over to the doorway of a butcher’s shop. On the stoop, in a dark corner, stood a box carved and painted with chickens, pigs, and cows. Tak butted the box.
    “Tak!” Ellie ran to grab his collar. “What are you doing now?”
    Bealomondore laughed as he joined her. “I wish I’d had Tak with me two months ago. This is where our noonmeal is hidden. I almost starved before I found it.”
    He reached to open the lid and laughed again when Ellicinderpart peered over his shoulder while the goat tried to push between him and the box. He used his knee to shove Tak out of his way.
    “How did you find it?” asked the girl.
    He didn’t hesitate in answering. She would soon learn that he spoke the truth. “The dragons of the watch took pity on me.” He pulled out two bottles and a package wrapped in brown paper. “Aha! Whoever leaves the meals knows that there are two of us now.”
    “Dragons of the watch?”
    “Yes, they patrol the entire city. It’s a large city, and you can go days without seeing one.”
    He gestured for her to have a seat on the bench between the butcher’s and shoemaker’s shops. She climbed the wrought-iron side and sat on the wooden slats. He handed up the package and then the bottles. She waited until he climbed up and settled beside her before handing back the parcel of food.
    Bealomondore stifled a sigh. He knew from her arched eyebrows that this would not be a comfortable noonmeal with inconsequential chatter. He untied the string on the package.
    “Tak and I,” she said, “walked from the very outskirts of this cityto the center, and we never saw a dragon. How can huge flying beasts not be visible? And even before we got to the city, surely we would have seen them above the buildings as we approached.”
    “Look, sandwiches.” He picked up one to examine, knowing he would not divert her attention. “This one has pickles and mustard.” He offered it to her. “Do you like pickles and mustard?”
    She took the sandwich without comment, but Bealomondore saw the suspicion in her eyes. He tried to win her with a little cordial conversation.
    “What? If you don’t like pickles and mustard, there’s another sandwich.” He picked it up to check the contents. “Oh dear, more pickles and mustard.”
    Her attention shifted to the sandwich in her hand. She lifted the top piece of bread a bit.