something else was odd about him.
"What are you?" Tori asked, tilting his head slightly to get a better angle to stare.
Kam giggled awkwardly. "I think I'm an animal-speaker, which means I can understand animals. You're nothing like the white dragon, though."
"An animal-speaker?" Jerney asked, surprise clear in his tone. "I thought those were just a bedtime story."
"You've met the white dragon?" Tori asked, curious and almost vibrating in place in excitement. "Can I meet him?"
"Lor thought it was just a bedtime story too, before he met me," Kam answered Jerney. "The white dragon is frozen in ice in the mountain range, so I didn't meet him really," he added to Tori.
Tori spun around and bounced back over to Jerney. "Hey, Jerney. Can we go see the white dragon before we go home?"
"That's probably not a good idea," Lor said as he pushed through the tent flap and walked over to join them. "It's a difficult journey over a lot of ice."
Mae pushed through a moment after Lor, holding the tea. There was a pause in conversation as everyone took a cup and settled onto the cushions.
Lor spoke up first. "Mae, Kam. Jerney and Tori are the two I met before the snowstorm. Jerney had come to rescue his sister and Tori came to rescue Jerney. We had a bit of a disagreement, but the matter was resolved. Why," he asked as he turned to where Jerney and Tori were curled up on the same cushion, "have you come here, then?"
"King Felix and Prince Bast have given Tori and me a task to complete," Jerney explained. "They don't appreciate the fact that all the witches in the city have haphazard training and that there is no force to regulate their actions. They want me to set up a school where witches can train and can learn rules on proper use of their powers. We don't want another witch like Harold to be able to take advantage of the crown without repercussions or a proper policing force to stop him before he became violent."
"So I went to talk to Toel," Tori cut in. "He's my hatch-father and he said he'd organize some dragons to fly around and look for a good place to start building. They're going to make me a big hoard room!"
"They found a perfect place just north of the royal forest," Jerney continued. "It has a very large hill they can hollow out for Tori's hoard room, a large flat area nearby to build the actual school on, and a good access route to the city. The only issue is that An'dadean and Baine found a small house and barn already on the site with an older man in residence. He directed us to speak with you. I was already hoping to ask if you would come teach at the school, but now I also want to know if we can take your hill? We'll make sure there is an area kept there for you and for the man watching your horses, but we don't want to start building without your permission."
"Every fall, before winter confines us to our camp, we go south to trade our furs for the goods necessary for our survival," Mae explained. "That hut is our stopover point between the human city and the ice wastes. We cannot survive without it."
"But on the same token," Lor cut in, "we could benefit from a closer human settlement to trade with. I cannot leave my clan, because without a witch they would be defenseless on the wastes. Mae and I will have to discuss this ourselves before we can give you any decision."
"I understand. We don't need a decision today, but we would like to have the foundations built before winter," Jerney explained. "I can mention to the king that perhaps a more permanent trade route could be set up and I would be very willing to send students to you here for training. We can work out all the details as we go along."
They finished the tea and Kam was left in charge of entertaining the two guests while Lor and Mae called a meeting of the elders in the clan. Kam decided to show them around the camp. He led them back to the main fire.
"Do you need a coat?" Kam asked Jerney as they reached the flames and Jerney quickly held out his
"What are you?" Tori asked, tilting his head slightly to get a better angle to stare.
Kam giggled awkwardly. "I think I'm an animal-speaker, which means I can understand animals. You're nothing like the white dragon, though."
"An animal-speaker?" Jerney asked, surprise clear in his tone. "I thought those were just a bedtime story."
"You've met the white dragon?" Tori asked, curious and almost vibrating in place in excitement. "Can I meet him?"
"Lor thought it was just a bedtime story too, before he met me," Kam answered Jerney. "The white dragon is frozen in ice in the mountain range, so I didn't meet him really," he added to Tori.
Tori spun around and bounced back over to Jerney. "Hey, Jerney. Can we go see the white dragon before we go home?"
"That's probably not a good idea," Lor said as he pushed through the tent flap and walked over to join them. "It's a difficult journey over a lot of ice."
Mae pushed through a moment after Lor, holding the tea. There was a pause in conversation as everyone took a cup and settled onto the cushions.
Lor spoke up first. "Mae, Kam. Jerney and Tori are the two I met before the snowstorm. Jerney had come to rescue his sister and Tori came to rescue Jerney. We had a bit of a disagreement, but the matter was resolved. Why," he asked as he turned to where Jerney and Tori were curled up on the same cushion, "have you come here, then?"
"King Felix and Prince Bast have given Tori and me a task to complete," Jerney explained. "They don't appreciate the fact that all the witches in the city have haphazard training and that there is no force to regulate their actions. They want me to set up a school where witches can train and can learn rules on proper use of their powers. We don't want another witch like Harold to be able to take advantage of the crown without repercussions or a proper policing force to stop him before he became violent."
"So I went to talk to Toel," Tori cut in. "He's my hatch-father and he said he'd organize some dragons to fly around and look for a good place to start building. They're going to make me a big hoard room!"
"They found a perfect place just north of the royal forest," Jerney continued. "It has a very large hill they can hollow out for Tori's hoard room, a large flat area nearby to build the actual school on, and a good access route to the city. The only issue is that An'dadean and Baine found a small house and barn already on the site with an older man in residence. He directed us to speak with you. I was already hoping to ask if you would come teach at the school, but now I also want to know if we can take your hill? We'll make sure there is an area kept there for you and for the man watching your horses, but we don't want to start building without your permission."
"Every fall, before winter confines us to our camp, we go south to trade our furs for the goods necessary for our survival," Mae explained. "That hut is our stopover point between the human city and the ice wastes. We cannot survive without it."
"But on the same token," Lor cut in, "we could benefit from a closer human settlement to trade with. I cannot leave my clan, because without a witch they would be defenseless on the wastes. Mae and I will have to discuss this ourselves before we can give you any decision."
"I understand. We don't need a decision today, but we would like to have the foundations built before winter," Jerney explained. "I can mention to the king that perhaps a more permanent trade route could be set up and I would be very willing to send students to you here for training. We can work out all the details as we go along."
They finished the tea and Kam was left in charge of entertaining the two guests while Lor and Mae called a meeting of the elders in the clan. Kam decided to show them around the camp. He led them back to the main fire.
"Do you need a coat?" Kam asked Jerney as they reached the flames and Jerney quickly held out his
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