The Awakening (11 page)

Instead, as the footman and driver worked at unloading her belongings, she glanced around some more at the landscape. The hilltop they stood on was rather spacious and conveniently flat. The house took up most of the space but left enough room around its edges for a small garden that appeared to wrap around half the structure. Along the edges of the flat space the land dropped off into a steep descent down the thickly forested hillside.

Jahrra breathed in a great breath of the fresh air, glad of its cold crispness. She walked around the carriage and made her way toward the shallow pool, sitting on the edge and trailing her fingers through the icy water. The fish noticed right away and came swarming over, nibbling at her fingers and splashing about, their brilliant colors flashing in the morning sun.

Jahrra laughed and was so distracted that she hadn’t noticed the sound of the great door behind her opening and closing. Jaax was practically upon her before she lifted her head to discern who was approaching. When she finally did notice she blinked up in surprise, forgetting the fish for a while.

Jaax smiled down at her and took a small breath. “They do that if you put your hand in the water. It’s how Neira lets them know it’s feeding time.”

“Neira?” Jahrra queried, pulling her hand from the water.

Jaax nodded. “My housekeeper.”

Jahrra blinked again, her mind foggy from her recent overdose of excitement. “Your housekeeper?”

She glanced around Jaax’s legs, catching sight of the carriage that was now leaving and focused on the grand house. She then looked back up at Jaax.

“
Yours
?”

The Tanaan dragon grinned smugly.

“Did you think we would be living in an inn while in Lidien? Or an old dilapidated structure in the woods perhaps?”

Jahrra bristled with anger and annoyance for a moment, until she noted the kind teasing in Jaax’s voice.
He isn’t trying to be difficult or unkind
, she reminded herself. Then she wondered what other shocking surprises this dragon had in store for her. It was as if he had lived an entirely different life outside of Oescienne.

Of course he has
, she chided herself.
You yourself often think about how much you don’t know him.
Well, this is your proof
. Jahrra cast her wayward thoughts aside and looked up at her guardian.

“I did expect an inn,” she admitted begrudgingly.

She turned and watched the carriage disappearing down the drive, Phrym reluctantly being pulled behind.

“Wait!” Jahrra gasped, snapping out of her daze and standing. “Where are they taking Phrym?”

“Relax, Jahrra,” Jaax said. “He’ll be staying at one of the cities finest stables, the one conveniently located at the base of this hill in fact. You’ll get to visit him later.”

Jahrra heaved a sigh of relief and plopped back down on the edge of the pond, her hand returning to the water where the fish continued their search for food. If she hadn’t been so tired she might have argued further on Phrym’s behalf. Surely he would be difficult for the strangers that would soon be settling him into his new, temporary home. Jahrra turned back to her idle ministrations. The coolness of the water was rather soothing, something her nerves were grateful for at present.

With a grunt to catch her attention, Jaax jerked his head towards the house. Jahrra rose from her stone seat once again, dusted off her pants, and started walking towards the small castle.

Jaax followed just behind her. “Neira is very eager to meet you.”

“Oh?” Jahrra responded, not knowing what else to say.

Jaax chuckled. “Yes. This is where I stay when in Lidien. In case you were wondering.”

Jahrra turned to face her guardian. She had been wondering.

“You stay here often?” She tried to keep the accusation out of her voice but she wasn’t sure if she was successful.

Jaax nodded again. “Most of my business outside of Oescienne directly concerned the Coalition and this house has been in my possession for years.”

Jahrra nodded. She didn’t know all of Jaax’s history. No, she didn’t know
most
of Jaax’s history but she knew enough from what Hroombra had told her to know that he had connections outside of Oescienne.

“Shall we proceed?” her guardian continued, dipping his head and giving Jahrra a grin.

Smiling in return, Jahrra climbed up the wide stairs, her attention lost once again on the great windows. About midway up a stained glass design of a green dragon sitting regally with spread wings, a blood rose suspended above its head, brought a shock of color to the otherwise clear, colorless glass. Jahrra glanced over her shoulder and lifted one eyebrow in the direction of her guardian.

Jaax shrugged. “We have no fear showing where our loyalties lie in Lidien.”

“Who is the dragon?” Jahrra wondered aloud.

“Traagien,” Jaax answered simply.

Nodding, Jahrra faced the great door at the top of the stairs. She could see it was very thick, probably crafted from oak, with huge iron rings meant for opening and closing it. The smaller door was a bit different. There was a knocker on this one that looked like the head of a draffyd and the door itself had an intricate rose pattern carved into its surface. Before she could figure out whether she should knock on the door or just walk right in, the decision was made for her. A woman who looked quite bedraggled jerked open the smaller door. At first she seemed bothered, as if she had been interrupted from a very important task, but as soon as she spotted Jahrra her entire expression changed.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, her hands flying to her face, “You must be Miss Jahrra. How I’ve been longing to meet you!”

She bustled forward, careful to keep her skirts from tangling in her feet, and stopped just short of the Tanaan dragon and his ward.

The woman looked questioningly up at Jaax but the dragon merely nodded, moving past the two women as he pushed open the larger door. Jahrra watched him disappear into the depths of the house, wondering why he had abandoned her here without introductions.

“Forgive Master Jaax his abruptness,” the woman continued in a pleasant voice. “He promised to let me show you the house.”

Jahrra smiled weakly. In all honesty she was dying to see the house but she was so tired. The journey and the commotion of arriving in Lidien had drained her completely. Nevertheless, she thought that perhaps she could stay awake a little longer if it meant giving a polite first impression.

“Thank you,” she paused and gave the woman a quizzical look.

“Oh dear, look at me!” she said, slapping a hand to her forehead. “All this excitement and I’ve forgotten to introduce myself. I’m Neira and I serve as Raejaax’s housekeeper and will also act as maid to you.”

The woman gave a neat curtsy, her dark brown curls bobbing with the action, then thrust out her hand.

Jahrra smiled, a little more relaxed now, and returned the handshake. “And I’m Jahrra.”

“Well, Miss Jahrra,” the housekeeper said, clasping her hands loosely in front of her, “what would you like to see first?”

Jahrra sighed. “Everything, but I’m so exhausted. Is there any way that I can get some sleep before you show me the entire residence, because I do want to see it all and I would like to have a clear head when I do.”

Neira nodded in understanding and answered, “Then I shall take you to your bedroom first thing.”

Jahrra’s eyes widened. She had her own bedroom here? She wondered about that, this being a dragon’s home, but Neira seemed to sense her curiosity.

“There are a few rooms upstairs that are suitable for anyone of an elvin size,” she said. “Dragons also often keep Nesnan or Resai servants in order to keep a house such as this clean. They may have many talents of their own but it is nearly impossible for a dragon to reach all the nooks and crannies when it comes to cleaning.”

Jahrra stifled a giggle as the woman beckoned her through the door and into a great room, easily the size of the entire Castle Guard Ruin back in Oescienne.

Jahrra stopped her progress and stood staring in wonder. The ceiling was ridiculously tall, twenty feet at least, and a huge fireplace stood on the same wall as the great door. Just beside the fireplace on the left was one of those diamond paned windows perched right above a raised portion of the floor. Familiar pieces of furniture (tables, couches and chairs) were scattered around the room. A large, sprawling carpet covered most of the stone floor and Jahrra noticed two giant archways in the wall opposite her that led into what appeared to be a hallway.

“Master Jaax’s quarters and office are that way,” Neira nodded to the archway on the left, “and the stairs to the second storey quarters and the kitchen are this way.”

Neira proceeded towards the arch on the right but stopped before stepping through. She lifted her eyebrows and clasped her hands before her once again, waiting for Jahrra to join her.

Despite her eagerness to get to sleep, Jahrra allowed her eyes to linger on the main room a moment longer. It was so much finer than what she was used to and she wondered what it would be like living here.

Sighing with delight, she shuffled her feet and joined the housekeeper, glancing at a wooden door on her right as she made her way over.

“That door leads into the kitchen as well,” Neira said, guessing Jahrra’s curiosity. “Master Jaax often takes his meals in this room and that door makes it easier to get everything to him.”

Jahrra nodded. “Do you work here by yourself, Neira? It seems like so much work for one person to do.”

The maid shrugged as she passed through the arch and into the hallway, dark because the many lanterns hanging on the walls were not lit. An ornate stone staircase, pressed up against the opposite wall and donning a stone hand rail, loomed before them. Jahrra blinked up and noticed a small balcony stretching across to the other wall. Her stomach fluttered at the sight. She truly was excited about being in this new and wondrous place.

“It isn’t so bad, working alone,” Neira finally said as she climbed the steps. “Master Raejaax is often not here so there isn’t much to clean and no one to cook for most of the time, so I manage quite well. I’m only responsible for the kitchen, mind, and will now be in charge of you as well. Raejaax hires someone to come every now and again to clean the windows, carpets and floors of the rest of the house.”

Jahrra inclined her head, climbing up after Neira, not pausing long enough to admire the ornate and colorful tapestries hanging from ceiling to floor all the way down the hallway and up the stairs. Finally, they reached the balcony and Jahrra had to blink back the light that flooded in. The second storey hallway was rather wide and on their right stood a series of windows all in a row. The ceiling wasn’t so high up here, maybe ten feet or a bit more, and the windows, though tapered like those downstairs, began a few feet above the ground before coming to a point just below the ceiling.

“This way!” Neira said cheerily, picking up her skirts and heading down the hall.

As they passed the first window Jahrra glanced out. She let out a slight gasp as she caught sight of the scene before her. A rooftop patio spread out beyond the slightly distorting panes. It was completely composed of stone and continued from where they stood all the way to the edge of the building several feet away. A stone balustrade, one made up of miniature columns, fenced in the terrace and a couple of planter boxes. One of the boxes contained young trees showing blossoms and leaves. Jahrra pressed closer to the glass but Neira’s voice startled her.

“Isn’t it lovely?” she whispered, very close to Jahrra. “Most dragon homes don’t have such terraces atop their kitchen roofs, but this one does. See, that is where the oven chimney comes out.”

Neira pointed to a square stone column that rose up against the southern wall that surely connected to the roof of the grand room below. Jahrra nodded, then noticed an open fireplace just beside it, stone chairs and a circular bench fanning out in front of it.

Jahrra took a deep breath and pushed back from the window. She wanted nothing more than to step out onto that patio and explore but she could barely keep her eyes open. When she turned to face Neira the maid was smiling at her.

“I know what I shall show you first after your long nap.”

Jahrra grinned in appreciation, nodding sleepily as the woman led her on down the hallway. They passed two more windows then Neira turned to her left, took a key from a pouch in her apron, and used it to open an ornately carved wooden door. The door swung open and the maid gestured her in. Jahrra was too stunned to react much and she blamed most of that on her weariness. That and her currently overwhelmed senses. The room was spacious and not quite square, not quite circular in shape. A grand four poster bed stood centered in the room with a ceiling to floor, double window just behind it. A writing desk hugged the curved wall to the right of the door and a small storage room stood between them. Jahrra let her tired eyes rake the room, taking in the wardrobe in one corner and the curtain hiding a tiny closet just on the other side of it.

In a numb daze, Jahrra followed a smiling Neira deeper into the room. A thick, plush rug, a soft moss green in color, was spread out beside the bed. The golden light of early morning flooded in from the crystalline glass, casting shards of brightness upon the stone floor. The empty spaces of the tall walls were covered in tapestries and Jahrra took a moment to study them. She nearly cried out in delight when she noticed two were maps, one of Felldreim and one of Ethoes, the latter looking exactly like the old map Hroombra had kept in the old Castle Guard Ruin.