Free Dear Rival by Robin White Page A

covered the ground, mixed with many bare spot where the feet of countless Dragon Knights had stomped on the ground over and over again in the heat of their practices.
    A few trees had managed to grow on the hills, despite the constant influence of heat and cold alike. Kero kept away from them, as if he were afraid to ignite them with his body heat. On the other hand, he just could have despised the cold washing over him the moment he stepped out of the sun—they didn't know if Kero was immune to the extreme shifts in temperature or not. Valtiel had experienced it a few times before. Whenever he moved from the sun into the shadows, it was as if summer was replaced by winter.
    Still entirely at his ease, Kero nodded at them, stretching his free arm with a relieved sigh. Etoille chuckled as Kero used one hand to push himself to his feet with ease, and then liftted his arms in a slow stretch that only served to draw attention to his toned physique.
    Valtiel ignored Etoille's indecent behavior. They were supposed to be dignified, yet Etoille was acting impossibly, giggling like a child. Despite his irritation, Valtiel couldn't help but notice Kero's smell—something spicy and slightly sweet, with a hint of fire. It simply added to his ire.
    "What a surprise to see you two here," Kero greeted. "I thought the elves were on guard duty today. Have I misheard?"
    "You must have misunderstood, Kero. The night elves are on duty today, not the frost elves."
    Valtiel was incensed that Etoille would speak to Kero so casually. They may have been allies, but they were not comrades. How dare Etoille continue to disregard their culture and lower himself so simply to interact with Kero. He was a human. Allie or not—Dragon Knight or not—he was below the elves' notice. Valtiel was sorely tempted to hit Etoille, but he didn't want to betray his aggravation. With a low hiss, Valtiel turned away from Kero, admonishing Etoille in their native tongue before turning sharply and departing.
    "Is everything alright?" Kero gave Etoille a questioning look, but he merely received a dismissive gesture as answer. As curious as Kero was, he decided it was better not  to press the matter too much. "Then I won't ask. I would still like to know why you came here in the first place."
    "I wanted to convince Valtiel that you aren't as human as he believes you are."
    "Why would he care whether or not I was human?"
    Etoille hesitated, as if not sure how to explain it. He seemed to have settled on the most tactful explanation he could, when he answered, "I wanted to convince Valtiel to speak with you. As we are allies, I am quite sure we would benefit from knowing more about each other."
    Kero was both puzzled and amused by this answer, but did not broach the subject further. Before long, he and Etoille were sitting under a tree. Etoille had been right:  Kero's origins were human, but he was no longer a mere human. Kero explained the ritual he had endured to become a dragon knight, and with that, something more than a human. The ritual itself was very difficult; it was painful and resulted in the loss of any memory about his former human life. In return, once the human soul had fused with a shard of a dragon's spirit, they began to develop powers beyond human understanding.
    "I am fascinated by our differences," Kero explained, holding his arm next to Etoille's. "We seem to be exact opposites, but we have become close allies despite it. Despite our disagreements, I feel that dragon knights and frost elves complement each other. "
    Etoille indicated his agreement. With his pale skin, cold blue eyes, ashen white hair and slim build, typical coloring for a frost elf, he did seem to be Kero's complement.
    Without his permission, as Kero looked upon their arms, still held side-by-side,  his thoughts trailed off to rather … unusual realms:  how would it look  to find himself tangled up with Valtiel, skin to skin? Though Valtiel claimed refuse to speak with the