Page 6 of Myths and Manuscripts
“If I was stalking you, you’d never even see me. I can literally blend in with the shadows and you’re the most unobservant human I’ve ever met. You didn’t even hear me coming up the path.”
“I was distracted.” I let out a breath as I gathered everything that had fallen out of my bag. Pencils, pens, journal, all sorts of stuff that an apothecary didn’t need. “So whatareyou doing here then?”
“Preventing a rampage.” He frowned at the dragons. “These lizards are chaos incarnate.”
One of those chaotic dragons chose that moment to land on the Demon Lord’s horns like an adorable purple sidekick. The Demon Lord swatted at him, snarling obscenities, which only made the whole thing more ridiculous. I snorted, turning it intoa cough when he glared at me.
“What? It was cute,” I said, not even bothering to apologize. “You should thank the dragon for making you look good.”
Not that he had any trouble doing that on his own, but he was kind of fun to tease.
He grinned. “If you think they’re so cute, then you should love that one stealing your stuff.”
I glanced behind me just in time to see a sapphire dragon flying off with the note the story gods had left me.
“Hey! Give that back!” I tried to snatch the note away, but the dragon darted out of reach every time I got close, like we were playing a game. If I wasn’t careful, he’d burn the note to a crisp. I took a deep breath and looked at the Demon Lord. “Mind helping me out?”
His smile turned devious. “Maybe. If you say please.”
It was like he was daring me to say it, to fall on my knees and beg for his help. I’d have refused immediately, but the way his dark eyes roved over me had my throat in a vice grip. Did he realize how attractive that look was?
Probably. But there was no way I actuallylikedhim. This was just a game and two could play at that.
“Oh dark and terrifying Demon Lord, please save my notes from these dragons before all is lost.”
He stared at me for a while before shaking his head. “You really aren’t afraid of me, are you?”
“Only in your dreams. Now can you help me or not?” I nodded at the dragon chewing on my note.
Shadows swirled around him, reaching out to the dragon in question. The dragon tilted his head, dropping the note in favor of chasing the shadows instead. More dragons joined in, zooming around the Demon Lord as his shadows zipped around the clearing. They’d obviously played this game before and loved it. Even the Demon Lord had a little smile on his face as hewatched them.
When he caught me looking, his brow furrowed. “What’s so important about a scrap of paper anyway?”
I caught the note as it fluttered through the air, stuffing it safely in the pocket of my work overalls.
“Nothing.” I snatched up an empty basket I’d brought with me. “I’m going to go pick herbs. Thanks for your help.”
He nodded, following me as I moved to a patch of knee-high feverfern that was a beautiful silvery-green right now. When steeped in tea or ground up into a tonic, the fern boosted a person’s immune system and helped lower fevers. It was the most potent at the end of autumn, so we always tried to have a large stock gathered in preparation for winter.
My back twitched as the Demon Lord continued to study me, ever watchful and intense. After a few minutes, he knelt beside me and started picking the ferns too. I sighed, letting my shoulders relax. Of course he’d just been watching how to properly deal with the ferns.
I had to get my thoughts under control if we were going to keep running into each other like this.
“It didn’t seem like nothing,” he said softly, adding the plants to my basket with care. “The paper, I mean.”
He really wasn’t going to let that go, huh? I focused on digging up the delicate roots without damaging them, before answering. “It was the reply from the story gods at the festival.”
“And?”
I yanked a root a little too hard, snapping it in half. “And it’s none of your business, that’s what.”
He added herbs to the basket as if nothing happened. My guilt said it all though. He was only trying to help, and I’d snapped at him like a jerk. He was even keeping the dragons occupied while we worked so they didn’t nip at the plants or knock over my basket.
I dug another plant up carefully. “Sorry. The story gods just didn’t like my book, that’s all. They said it had no heart, but it’s fine. I never wanted to be a writer anyway.”
Silence stretched between us as we continued filling the basket, but I could feel his gaze on me like an itch I couldn’t scratch. He obviously had something to say but was keeping quiet for some reason. Once we’d dug up half the patch of feverfern, I brushed off my hands and turned to him.
“Just say it.”
