Page 16 of Dragons & Dumplings
“How long ago did you say Glacius was here?”
“Estimates say between seven hundred and a thousand years ago.”
I smiled. “There’s one more place you didn’t know to look.”
Chapter seven
Tea & Touches
Mei
“Areyousureanyonelives out here?” Yuri squinted at the towering trees around us, his skepticism clear.
“Positive. There’s been a vampire colony here longer than Willowmere, as a town, has existed.” I grinned at him. “Some say they’ve even been here for the past millennium.”
Nowthatcaught his interest. “Are you saying there could be someone alive today who once met Glacius?!”
“It’s certainly not impossible. And even if there isn't, the following generations will likely have heard at least some of the stories that were passed down about him—if Glacius was even a fraction of the hero your legends make him out to be.” Not to mention the vast archives they kept in their castle.
Between those two sources, I was willing to bet we’d findsomething.
“Thatdoessound promising,” he murmured, but paused before asking his next question. “Are these the sort of vampires one would find sipping blood from wine glasses in a castle, or…scavenging blood bags from a hospital dumpster?”
“Definitely the castle variety.” Good thing we were still well out of earshot of the colony. “In fact, they host most of Willomere’s formal events in the ballroom of their castle.”
“Good, good. But why would such refined vampires live all the way out here?” Yuri batted away a low-hanging branch, which promptly rebounded and smacked him on the arm. He grumbled as he wiped away invisible dirt I couldn’t see.
Apparently, ice dragons loved snow. But dirt? Not so much.
I hid my smile.
“They like their privacy, and found that the nearby humans rarely leave their cities.”
“If they claimed this land first, why did they allow others to settle in their territory, then? Dragons would never allow that to happen.” He frowned.
“Some witches and warlocks offered to create a barrier to keep humans and other vampires out,” I answered. “That duty has been passed down in the Morelli Coven for generations now.” And it looked like my friend, Clove Morelli, would be continuing that legacy.
We continued our little hike in silence for a few more minutes, before we followed the dirt path through a particularly dense copse of trees and the sprawling castle came into view. It was a majestic example of gothic architecture, with pointed stained glass windows, walls made of dark stone, and plenty of flying buttresses. It practically bristled with pointed spires, and had hundreds of ivy vines climbing up most of the exterior.
“What a magnificent castle,” Yuri breathed, pausing to take it all in. “Though it’s a wonder Glacius didn’t try to claim it for himself.”
“He did,” announced a voice from behind us, making us both jump and whirl to see the vampire standing there. “But we repelled him.”
There were very few creatures that could sneak up on a dragon. Apparently, vampires were one of them.
The one facing us was a girl who looked to be around my age—though, since she was a vampire, that likely meant she was actually quite a bit older. She wore an elegant red dress that hugged her curves, and had a pale, heart-shaped face framed by a stylish bob of black hair. Her eyes were nearly as red as her dress.
“Yourepelled an ice dragon?!” Yuri looked shocked, but that quickly morphed into excitement. “Wait, so you really did meet Glacius?”
The vampire’s pencil-thin eyebrows shot up towards her hairline. “Do Ilooklike I’m old enough to have met him?” But after looking at our expressions, she quickly waved her hand and added, “Nevermind—don’t answer that.”
Before we could make any more blunders, I stuck out my hand. “My name is Mei, and this is Yuri. What’s yours?”
“I am called Agatha.” She took my hand and delicately shook it. Her skin was nearly as cold as Yuri’s, but for some reason, the sensation made my skin crawl. “I do not recall hearing that any…townsfolk had been invited to Nocturne Castle today…?”
“We don’t have a formal invitation. We were simply hoping to ask if anyone in the colony could tell us about Glacius, or permit us to research him in your library.” I gave what I hoped was a winning smile.
“Normally, sudden requests like this are turned down…” Agatha pursed her blood-red lips.
