Free Sea Dragon (Dragon Knights Book 9) by Bianca D'Arc Page B

and Seth went to check on Hrardorr. He didn’t rush his tasks. In fact, he took extra time with the male dragon, trying to draw him into conversation, but Hrardorr was taciturn, as always. Still, Seth took heart. He would work on Hrardorr. It would take time, but he was resolved to do as Gowan had suggested.
    And then, he was back to Gowan’s chamber to keep up the other end of the bargain they had struck. In the couple of hours between the end of their shared evening meal and Seth’s return to the suite of rooms Gowan shared with Genlitha, the knight had been busy. He’d cleared one of the many side chambers of all obstacles and had added a few things Seth remembered from his early years, training in fighting with the younger boys in the Lair.
    Soft mats covered one section of the large room. A couple of practice swords made out of wood with blunted edges were lined up along the wall, along with wooden fighting sticks of various lengths. Lances and pikes—all with blunted tips—were also in the space, as were bits of light armor used for sparring.
    “Did you raid the armory while I was gone?” Seth asked with a laugh, looking around the room and taking it all in.
    “Something like that,” Gowan admitted. “I was discreet about it. I don’t think anyone saw me take these things. They were in a dark corner, so I don’t think they’ll be missed. It looked like the smaller stuff was all in use, but the man-sized bits were covered in dust. From that, I surmise they don’t get a lot of full-grown knight trainees here, eh?”
    “Not the ones who don’t already know how to fight,” Seth agreed. “Like you. You were already a warrior, so you don’t need this stuff to learn with. What you need is what we have in plenty—tricky wind currents for you to learn to fly with your partner as if born to it. Those are the kind of human trainees we get here, for the most part. And young dragons with excellent wings but a need to learn how to use them.”
    “Gen was sent here as a youngster for just that reason,” Gowan observed as he hefted a practice sword and tested it for balance.
    Seth wanted to do the same, but he didn’t know what to look for in a blade. Not anymore. Maybe once, when he’d been a lad, he had been learning such skills, but he’d given it all up…
    But maybe this was a second chance for him. Maybe he’d learn the things he should have known—if he hadn’t made the decision to support Bronwyn instead. He would never hurt her by leaving her side, but he figured it couldn’t hurt to learn how to fight. He went down into the Dragonscove often enough that knowing how to defend himself wouldn’t be such a bad thing. And, if he was honest, he wanted to know. He thirsted to know. It was as if it was a need, deep inside him, that had never been satisfied.
    “There’s a lot of talk about her already,” Seth said, putting aside his thoughts of fighting glory in favor of talking about Gowan’s dragon partner. “The older dragons were watching her fly and teach. They say she has a gift for teaching, and all who saw her today approved of her approach with the youngsters. If you’re not careful, they may just station you both here permanently.”
    “Would that be such a bad thing?” Gowan asked, surprising Seth.
    He’d thought Gowan was more a man of action. He’d thought Gowan would want to be in the thick of the fighting up north, not stuck down here where nothing ever happened, teaching. Worse—he wasn’t really needed for teaching, only his dragon. He’d be rusticating. Fishing. Or whatever else he liked to do in his free time.
    Then Seth saw the teasing light in Gowan’s eyes.
    “You almost had me there,” Seth said good-naturedly, laughing along with the knight.
    “Not that I mind the sojourn here,” Gowan was quick to add. “I know as well as anyone that I have a lot to learn as a knight. I need to be a better partner to Genlitha before we go taking on the enemy for real. If she can