Page 65 of To Fight and To Fold

"That's me," Thea answered. "We met briefly after you first got here," she reminded her.

Carissa sighed and sank onto the log Thea used as a seat. "You're the one who took Starspark?"

Thea winced, and did not answer.

"Aaryn was beside herself. I heard she had to visit the infirmary. No one knows why."

Guilt swelled. As if she needed a reminder of the consequences of her shitty actions. Thea took another drink, and Carissa hummed.

It didn't really matter that Thea had flown Starspark over Lover's Peak looking for Aaryn. She hadn't been there, and Thea had to leave before the knights could harness another dragon to follow her.

"The prince was placed in charge of the investigation, so he was the first to see her. They questioned her like everyone else."

Thea knew Aaryn hadn't been able to give them any answers. So why did her chest hurt?

Carissa continued despite Thea's silence.

"I didn't think much of it when the prince told us to keep our distance. He said she was distraught. That it was too hard to be around the other Tethered while her dragon was missing."

Thea glanced over at Carissa. "Why are you telling me this?" What did the prince want with Aaryn?

Maybe the same thing you want with her?

The mead swirled dangerously in her stomach as she remembered the way Aaryn's lips had parted on a breath, their shape so cute and kissable and frustrating every time she opened them to speak.

The thought of the prince appreciating her in such a way made Thea feel violent.

Oblivious to this, Carissa shrugged. "She liked you. Talked about you sometimes when we all gathered."

Gossips, Thea thought, dismissing the flattering nudge in her chest.

"She has a shadow now. A guard named Runa. And she meets with the prince every other day. I don't know what they're doing, but…" Carissa arched a brow. "I'm sure you could imagine."

Oh my scales. First Rolim, now Carissa. Those two really were perfect for each other.

Thea drank the last of her mead and stood, lest this bubbling… something burst from her. "I'm glad you're adjusting well. Goodnight, Carissa."

A soft hand on her shoulder drew her back.

"I'm just saying," Carissa continued. "Now that I know the truth, I don't trust the prince, or what he wants with Aaryn. I think you need to convince her of it sooner rather than later."

Thea grumbled and spun on her. "That's what I've been trying to do! She's so fucking… stubborn!"

Carissa cracked a smile. "Yes, she is. Good luck."

With that, Carissa drank from her cup and danced away, back into the arms of Rolim. He dipped her for a kiss, inspiring a few wolf whistles from the celebrators.

Thea glared after her, and jealousy rooted deep, twining through her ribs until she turned away. She resisted stomping as she walked in the direction of her home, but changed course at the last second, heading for the transportation runes.

She arrived in her usual flash of light at the Dragons’ Nest, and followed the small path she'd worn into the ground toward Starspark. They’d attempted to lure him toward the moon blooms, but he wasn’t interested in the flowers at all, even though it usually affected a dragon like catnip affects a cat.

He was laying down as she approached, head resting between his paws. As her steps paused before him, he finally lifted his head—to glare at her. Thea was the only one he allowed to get this close, and she wondered why he spared her his anger when she was the one who deserved it most.

"I know," she said in answer to his silence. She could practically feel his disappointment, still as visceral as it had been the night they'd all returned. The night she'd returned… without Aaryn.

Thea sighed and sat down across from him. He blinked his big eyes at her—a shock of green.

"I wish you could talk. Give me some insight."