Read Dragon Master for Free Online

silence.
    “She’s lived in our town since we were little. She’s always had kind of a crush on Boe, ever since she found out that he was a Stone Soul,” she shook her head, “she’s so sure that he’s going to kill a dragon and then take her as his only bride. Sometimes I think she’s planned her whole life around it.”
    “Wow.” I said, and I meant it. That was a conviction I hadn’t had about anything in my whole life, as far as I could remember.
    “Tell me about it,” Daija said, rolling her eyes. She seemed like she was about to say something else but cut herself off and just shrugged instead, then ran her fingers through her auburn bangs. I decided that Kamelia should grow out her bangs, that it would make her look younger. Then I thought of Kamelia being still up in the Stoneflame Watch tower, possibly with child. Or possibly with the next dragon growing inside of her. Then I didn’t want to think about Kamelia anymore.
    Things were starting to reach that awkward silence stage.
    “So what is it like being Boe’s twin sister?”
    She raised her eyebrows at me, and I saw the green sparkle in her eyes. It reminded me of the green shooting star from the Stoneflame. “It’s just,” she stammered, “I don’t know.” She shrugged again. “Boe’s just… Boe.”
    “Tell me about it,” I said, and I broke out laughing.
    She laughed too.
    “Have you decided what to spend your prize stamps on?” Daija asked me. “I just need one more grand prize stamp and I’ll have enough for my very own Stoneflame tapestry.”
    “Then you can remember this festival forever,” I joked with her.
    “Oh yeah,” she said, “the six weeks of my life when I didn’t have to pretend to be swamped with homework to get out of shopping with my mom.” She actually snorted. Then she blushed.
    “Don’t like shopping much?” I asked her.
    “That’s the truth,” she responded. “So, you haven’t answered my question. What have you decided to get?”
    I didn’t want to tell her. There was a carved wooden dragon figure that I was eyeing. It was common enough for Stone Souls to collect similar figures, and then carve out little swords out of metal scraps and stick the dragon full of the swords. I didn’t know if they did it out of superstition or just out of pure hatred of dragons. I just thought the wooden dragon prize they had at the festival looked cool, and I could probably use him to give Boe a nightmare or two. I’d earned grand prize stamps for all the games, so I could go claim the prize at any time. I felt like it would be silly to try to explain any of this though, so I just shrugged my shoulders. Neither of us knew how to respond to that.
    Our awkward silence was interrupted by Laciann sprinting over to Daija, waving her prize card in the air.
    “I got the grand prize!” she exclaimed. I was impressed, it was only the second grand prize stamp she’d managed to earn at the games. I saw Boe trailing along slowly behind her. He was hanging his head in shame.
    “Consolation prize,” he moaned. “I don’t know what it is they do to those arrows.”
    The rest of us laughed.
    ***
    The sun set and the line started moving, but only slowly, and only in staggered waves as batches of people were ushered onto the magic log ride. It was clear we’d have at least another hour of waiting before our turn would come. Laciann had sent Daija and I to go fetch flaming cola for everyone and we were all huddled together now holding our mugs close and taking sips of the brew.
    I looked up at the starry sky. The twin moons of Stone and Flame were both obscured by the surrounding mountain ridges. While Flame’s red glow dimly illuminated the western horizon, the light wasn’t enough to drown out some of the brighter stars which still shone above Mount Ramses.
    Boe followed my gaze and became excited. Stars were his latest passion, and he’d been spending study hall time reading everything he could find about them in