Page 63 of Scales ’N’ Spells: Volume Two

At last, a bright smile broke over her face, and Sora could relax. She reached them first, with his father close behind.

“Ravi, may I introduce you to my parents, Abe Yuki and Abe Ryu?”

Ravi bowed low to Sora’s parents. “It is truly an honor to meet you.”

His tone was unexpectedly solemn. Sora had definitely gotten more accustomed to chatty, excited Ravi, who blurted out the most interesting things. His poor dragon was clearly nervous about meeting Sora’s parents.

“Kaa-san, Tou-san, this is Ravi Burkhard. He is a retainer of King Alric and frequently serves as the king’s personal bodyguard as well as protector of the royal family.”

Ravi smirked up at him, his cheeks growing ruddy with a hint of embarrassment. “If you’re going to list all of my accolades, you might mention I make a pretty mean curry.”

Sora grinned back at him. “I was thinking of mentioning you’re also a spectacular kisser, but I didn’t think they needed to hear that.”

Laughing, Ravi gave Sora a little shove and shook his head. “Evil. You’re evil, and I never would have guessed it.”

“Ravi, it is wonderful to meet you. I look forward to having a very long chat once we are settled at your clan’s home,” Sora’s mother said.

His father nodded. “Yes, we are eager to hear what trouble our son has gotten into while away from home.”

He looked tired and a little disheveled from the trip, but otherwise happy to be out of the plane. Sora’s mother, of course, looked perfectly put together.

Barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Sora pulled Ravi away from his parents and started introducing the rest of the members of the Sodalicium, including the kings of the earth and metal clans and their respective mates.

“A wind dragon!” King Chalo boomed.

He wasn’t a small man, built like a bodybuilder on steroids, his nose a touch too large for his narrow face, and with the lungpower to go with his large size. Sora winced, praying that no one in the vicinity spoke Swahili. He nearly groaned when the large man immediately switched to English. The Germans would definitely know some English.

“I thought we were meeting with Alric and the Fire Dragon Clan.”

“Hush, Chalo. Can’t you see that Sora doesn’t want you drawing more attention to us?” Queen Diya chided, slapping her mate on the arm.

She, at least, didn’t look like the trip had exhausted her much, her dark brown hair pulled up in a high bun, makeup perfect. The lovely woman looked as if she were half the size of her nearly seven foot mate, but Sora knew from experience that she was quite good at handling the king of the Earth Dragons.

“I’m trying to get to the bottom of all this nonsense. My brain is fuzzy after spending so many hours away from the earth,” King Chalo grumbled, his bottom lip sticking out in a pout. Which was an odd expression on a man of his size.

Ravi bowed low to the couple again.

“Greetings, King Chalo and Queen Diya.” He turned and bowed to the much shorter king of the Metal Dragons and his mate. “Greetings, King Roca Mayta and Queen Anawarkhi. I am Ravi Burkhard, your honored guide to Burkhard Castle.”

“Oh my, Sora, is this the dragon your mother was telling us about?” Queen Diya asked.

She was in a traditional sari, black hair done up in a loose twist, her heart-shaped face alight with avid curiosity. She abandoned her husband and came over to stand next to the tiny Queen Anawarkhi, their shoulders touching.

“Isn’t he absolutely adorable, Ana?”

“He is, but then I think all wind dragons are adorable,” Queen Anawarkhi commented. Her smile was a bright contrast to her ebony skin, expression alight with mischief.

King Roca cleared his throat loudly. “Really, my heart?”

Queen Anawarkhi waved a hand at him. “Enough, my jealous Roca. You know you are my knight.”

Sora wasn’t sure whose face was redder, his or Ravi’s. And this was only the start of things.

The dragon royalty also had six dragons accompanying them as bodyguards. Twelve dragons and mages in all made a hefty crowd to maneuver through the airport toward baggage claim.

“Ravi, have you been on one of those flying death traps recently?” his dad grumbled as they waited on their bags.

Sora groaned, but Ravi grinned at the old mage. “A few times in the past several years. I mostly prefer to fly myself. It’s usually faster that way. Why do you ask?”