Keeper of the Flame Read Free

innocent no matter what land they were in.
    “Do you need magic, Miss? Is that why you were following me?”
    “Tink so,” she repeated. “Can I sstay?” Like the few gryphons he’d met in Draconia, she had trouble with the letter S, but less so than the gryphons with beaks. Her soft mouth formed words better, though she was only a baby and had limited vocabulary and the typical problems with pronunciation that most young creatures seemed to have.
    “Stay with me? Yes, little one.” Her uncertain tone nearly broke his heart. She sounded as if she’d truly expected him to reject her. Poor baby. “Are you cold? I will share my coat with you if you like.” He lifted his arm and untied the flap that held his oversized oilskin closed on that side.
    The coat was more like a cape that tied at various points, allowing water to sluice downward. It wasn’t the easiest thing to get in and out of, but it had the advantage of excess fabric that helped ward off the rain. This kind of coat was common enough as to be unremarkable and he could carry much beneath it should he want to smuggle anything on his person.
    He lifted the excess fabric and the kitten scrambled under it faster than he would have believed. She was shivering and miserable, her small body skinnier than he’d expected.
    “Hoo warm,” she observed as she settled next to him. She’d tucked her body around him, her wings under his arm, her front paws resting alongside his leg, her head turned to look up at him.
    Wrapping the folds of his coat over her back and legs, only her head stayed uncovered as she watched him. Hugh let out a tiny tendril of his magic to warm her rapidly, gratified when her little body ceased shivering and her eyes closed momentarily in delight. He felt the way her magic touched his and accepted the energy he fed to her in a gentle trickle so as not to overwhelm her senses.
    “Are you hungry?”
    Her eyes popped open. “Yess!” Her verbal pounce reinforced the idea and Hugh had to struggle not to laugh. She really was the cutest little thing, bedraggled as she was.
    “I have a meat pie in my pocket. You can have it.”
    He pulled the waxed paper out of his inside pocket and unwrapped the treat within, holding it for her. Surprisingly dexterous paws took the pastry-wrapped meat from him and brought it to her mouth. It was gone in three bites and she looked to him for more even as she licked her paws clean. He noticed she favored one, but she was quick to hide it and he didn’t get a good look.
    “More?” she asked, distracting him from his train of thought.
    “Not with me. But I can get more. I have a room nearby where we can both get out of the rain. Would you like that?”
    “Hoo take me wif?” She seemed so hopeful. There was no guile in this brave youngster.
    “Yes, little one. I cannot leave you out here in the cold. Will you come with me?”
    “Yess. Go wif.” She leapt to her feet under his coat and looked at him eagerly. No doubt she was hungrier than her dainty manners had led him to believe.
    “All right.” Hugh stood and kept his arm raised so that at least some of the freezing rain was blocked over her little body. “Come with me and we’ll both get dry, warm and fed.”
    She trotted at his side energetically at first, but soon began to slow her pace. Hugh finally stopped and bent down to her, meeting her eyes so he could gauge her reaction.
    “Is it all right if I pick you up and carry you? You can stay warm under my coat that way and we can get there faster.”
    Her answer was to raise her front paws to rest on his thigh. It was clear she wanted up.
    Hugh took a moment to untie the flaps on his coat completely, then make an opening in front where she could look out if she liked. She was an intelligent creature who needed to trust him. Keeping her in the dark—literally—would do nothing to further that trust.
    Once there was room under the hanging flaps of the coat, Hugh reached down and lifted her easily