The aviary was unguarded and we slipped into the darkened cave to meet the manacled dragon which instructed me to throw myself off the highest turret of the tower. Half dragged and half wilful I reluctantly descended the stone steps to meet the imprisoned beast behind the great iron bars. She waited patiently in the darkness the dull light gleaming over her long pointed sharp teeth. The dragon read my expression and calmly remarked,

“Ebony you are the only person here in this castle who does not have fangs and I am the only person in this castle behind bars.”

I was the little bird surrounded by vampires and all manner of strange creatures. My wings fluttered nervously spooking Henry, he jumped back only to whacked by my great wingspan.

“Sorry, they have a mind of their own.” I replied.

Henry shrugged it off with a smile.

“Did you find your little free fall illuminating?” The dragon asked.

“Dante nearly died!” I snapped back at her.

“Vampires are very sturdy and I was quite confident that Dante would survive such a fall.”

“Why did you do it?” I demanded angrily.

“To prove two simple truths. One was madness which is your brother and the second was the love of your husband. Dante stupidly, madly, and blindly leapt after you with little reguard to his own safety. I wanted you to know this because I think your former self would have wanted you to know this. Doubt everything but do not ever doubt Dante’s love. Others have tried to use you in the past but Dante only wants to protect. Remember this.” The dragon said.

My heart hammered in my chest, all this talk of love and love was making me coming over all mawkish and twee. I hated that. I didn’t want to become a silly simpering girl head over heels in love. Glazing over the dragon’s explanation I snapped,

“Well I jumped off the building and that’s that. So how do I stop my brother, rescue my best friend, and do all that shebang to restore world peace and order and blah blah blah.”

Immature I know, but it was a knee jerk reaction to all that lovey dovey stuff. I hated the way my heart physically ached when I thought about Dante or when I was near Dante and everytime I thought of Dante lying broken in the snow…

“Correct, you have proven your worth so I shall share this little story with you. When the war broke out we all had to choose a side. Even though I am a dragon I have no allegiance to the dragon King. I am one of the oldest dragons in this world, I am even older then you Ebony. Folk say that the ravens of this land are even then the forests they live in. In my younger days I often visited the mortal world and had witnessed the invasions and the wars and the bloodshed that accompanied it. Never did I dream that war would ever come to our world. Your brother Edvard orchestrated the whole affair. He wanted war. He wanted to kill all the lords and kings and make himself emperor- and he could. Through sheer dumb luck the most powerful weapon in this world had fallen complete by accident into his hands. I knew I had to stop his madness so I stole the weapon and took it to the mortal world and hid it. If you wish to defeat your brother and restore this peace you must wield this weapon.”

“Okay, so where do I find this weapon?”

“I left it in the care of an old friend. She’s a bit of recluse nowadays but she’s easier enough to find.” The dragon said thoughtfully.

“Where would I find her?”

“She lives in the most northern part of your island in valley near a lake.”

“That’s not exactly very specific.”

“In the land called Scotland in a lake called Loch Ness.”

I blinked, “Was that a joke?”

“No, but when you see dear Ness send her my fondest wishes.” The dragon yawned.

Henry who had been silent now interjected, “Are you having a laugh?”

The dragon wearily retreated towards the back of her cage, “No. You have three nights to retrieve the weapon and bring it back to me. You’ll need Dante to come with you so tell him that you know where the Sword of Raven is.”

“What if my brother tries to tag along?” I asked.

“I think your friend Morgan has made sure that Edvard will not be able to touch you without sustaining third degree burns.”

Morgan seemed to have some power over fire. Miserable I wished she was here to help me, she would certainly be more useful than me flapping about like an old hen.

“You better go, Dante is looking for you.” The dragon said.

Henry handed me my dress which was completely mended. I returned his Armani blazer and slipped on the dress and the bodice. Henry stayed with the dragon while I snuck out- Henry was not welcomed in the castle. Quietly I moved in to the corridor and walked briskly away from the aviary.

Now all I had to do was find Dante and convince him to take me on a trip to Scotland to find the loch ness monster…wonderful.