Free Dragonfae & The Soul Catcher by H. C. Brown Page B

delicious waves. She noticed the change in his eyes. His pupils had dilated and their green rims flared with intensity. She cleared her throat, unable to break his gaze. “No, you didn’t frighten me, but the sight of you—oh, never mind, it’s foolish.”
    “Not foolish. Did your heart race? Did warmth pool in your secret parts?” Lumos rested his head against Thalia’s forehead. “I feel this every time I look at you, little one.” He placed a kiss on her forehead. “Don’t fight your attraction to me, for it is given by the goddess.”
    “Do you want me to be attracted to you? You are not repelled by me? By my past?” Thalia pulled away. “This feeling is lust, isn’t it?” She shook her head slowly. “This I think is a bad thing, Lumos.”
    “Let me see.” Lumos held up his fingers. “One, yes, I like you being attracted to me. Two, I have never been repelled by you. And three, in a relationship a little lust is a good thing. Although what you feel for me at the moment is attraction, lust comes much later.” He grinned. “The village is in the next valley. We must keep moving.”
     
    * * * *
     
    After buying supplies and a fine bay gelding in the quiet village, Thalia changed into boy’s clothes in the back of the wagon. The buckskin breeches fitted well, as did the soft, leather boots. The shirts were a little big, but Lumos explained she had to conceal her breasts. She wore the dagger in a sheath on her belt. With her hair tied back in a ribbon and a hat pulled down over her eyes, she would pass as a boy. She climbed onto the seat and handed Lumos a handful of fruit and nuts. “I know we are travelling to Drakka, but how do we travel to another realm? And how do you plan to remove the silver bands?”
    “So many questions, little one.” Lumos chuckled. “Without magyck, we will travel by the Gates, a device hidden from the Nomags. As soon as I’m able, I will teach you how to form a circle of light and then we will be able to move through realms a little easier. A circle of light uses a great deal of power and you can’t travel into the unknown with this magyck.”
    “Tell me about this circle of light. How does it work?”
    “First, you form a circle of light, big enough to move through.” Lumos drew an imaginary circle in the air. “Same as always—see it and it appears—and then comes the difficult part. You must project the image of where you want to go. If you are successful, the scene will form on a shimmering mirror, the same as a Gate. I’ll explain Gates later.” He smiled. “You must keep the image in your mind and step through.”
    Thalia pushed a stray lock of hair behind one ear. “So you must know your destination? I understand. And Gates, how do they work?”
    “They look much the same, a shimmery mirror-like surface, but in a Gate the images change frequently in a sequence. So you must wait for your destination to appear and then walk through—no magyck required.” Lumos drew a sequence of circles in the air then joined them with a horizontal line. “Circles of light and Gates form a bridge between the realms. This magyck is the normal way to travel. The Gates were created by the ancients many thousands of years ago.”
    “So, do you have a plan? Is there someone in this realm to help you?”
    “Our first stop is to find the Lutwych Hag. She lives in a cave at the top of that mountain.” Lumos pointed to the black granite range rising to, snow-capped peaks in the distance. “She may be able to point us to a Magus who practises white magyck, or a dragon capable of undoing this spell.” He chewed a handful of dried fruit. “I’ll need your help…your protection. The Hag will require payment in blood.”
    Thalia’s stomach squeezed. “I’m to give her my blood?”
    “No, Fae blood gives her youth. She is a vampire.” Lumos cast a serious look at Thalia. “She will have control over me while I’m without magyck. I’ll need you to prevent her from