Page 76 of The Heart of the Dragon

"Daggers then." Magnus said. "Anything else?"

I shook my head. "I've always enjoyed my own company more than anyone else's, which meant I didn't have to worry about competing with anyone physically or fighting for my li?—

"What is it?" Magnus looked around the open field and the manor for whatever threat had made me suddenly jackknife into a sitting position and then up on my feet.

"Hand-to-hand."

"Hand-to-hand?" Magnus repeated as a question. "What are you talking about?"

"In college every woman on campus was required to sign up for self-defense. Just in case we had to fight off an attacker. I learned a lot and enjoyed it enough to follow up with some more advanced courses."

Magnus smirked. "Did you often have people attacking you at school?"

"You'd be surprised how many women got cornered around darkened campus buildings at night when they traveled back and forth from their dorms to the library or the cafeteria or wherever else. So we took hand-to-hand combat classes to teach us how to fight back and get away."

Magnus growled. "I'd like to go to these college campuses. It sounds like these attackers would make a nice fiery meal."

"Magnus!" Both Kitra and I shouted at him, but he lifted his shoulders.

"You can't tell me they wouldn't have it coming. Any cowards who attack innocent women like that deserve whatever they get."

"Then if that's the case, you deserve a taste of your own medicine." Isaac approached Magnus with a scowl. "How many times have you attacked the innocent?"

"Exactly why I suggested it. If a dragon has to take out his anger, then we should train him on the type of people to go after."

"That sounds like a horrible idea. Why are you attacking anyone?"

"How many times must I tell you that I am a beast before you listen?"

I sighed.

“Anyways,” I interrupted, trying to change the subject. “My point is that I turned out pretty good at it. So, for the rest of my academia days if I needed any physical health credits I opted for karate, or hand-to-hand combat, etc.”

“That might have been nice to know sooner rather than later,” he quipped.

“It’s not as if it is going to come in handy in the face of a dragon.”

“Dragons are the least of your worries. Depending on where you are in the realm, there’s a good chance you won’t see another one. Besides, it’s the littlest creatures you really have to worry about.”

“Like the fucking sprites,” Isaac grumbled.

The annoyedI’d rather chew glass than deal with a little woodland creaturelook on his face made me burst out laughing.

“Laugh it up now. But I guarantee, once you’ve met one of those demons, you won’t be laughing anymore.”

“Except Ensley.”

Isaac growled. “She’s the worst. Make sure you stay away from that one.”

By some miracle Magnus was nodding in agreement with his brother and I found myself mesmerized. So alike, and yet so different.

"Don't listen to them. At least not about Ensley. Although the other sprites are pretty bad. They probably wouldn't think twice about killing you."

I swallowed thickly at this new piece of information. I was definitely walking in blind to a whole new world.

"Well, all right then. Enough talk. Let’s see this hand-to-hand combat you've been bragging about."

Oh boy. The devilish grin on Magnus's face did not bode well for me.

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