to handle the worst of it and remembering it all, unlike Kalai. “I’m really tired,” he whispered, which felt absurd, given he’d spent the past twenty-two days in bed.
“I know,” Tauran said. He ran a hand through Kalai’s hair, brushing it back, the gesture already far more comfortable and familiar than the too-gentle caution from before. “We’ll eat, and then you can rest.”
* * *
Seeing Tauran interact with Iako was at once strange and fascinating. It was as if two vastly different parts of Kalai’s world collided, as if those two people he cared so much about weren’t meant to coexist so effortlessly without his intervention. Kalai had to remind himself they’d had twenty-two days to get to know each other without his help. And somehow, hardly able to communicate, they’d made it work. Iako instructed Tauran how to sweep the floors in Sharoani, and Tauran answered her in Kykarosi. Little of what they said seemingly made sense to the other, but there was a patience and gentleness between them that rendered misunderstandings entirely unimportant. And at the end of the day, Iako would wave at Tauran until he bent so she could stroke his face or kiss his forehead in thanks. Kalai supposed hardship had a way of bringing people together.
It was another five days before Kalai felt strong enough to properly move around and go outside. Aunt Iako had been right. He’d lost weight. In the light of the gas lamp in the bathroom, he ran a hand over his ribs, their shadows stark in the mirror. Vainly, he wondered if Tauran still found him attractive.
Kalai closed his eyes and exhaled. Since his recovery, Tauran had tried not to let it show how much the past twenty-two days had shaken him, but Kalai knew him well enough by now to read the pain and exhaustion in his eyes as easily as any book. Every night since, they’d held each other until dawn, and every morning, Tauran had woken looking a little less fractured.
The door clicked open behind him, and Kalai wrapped his arms around himself in embarrassment, until Tauran pressed against his back and slipped his hands under Kalai’s arms, pressing sweet kisses along his jaw.
Iako fussed over him from morning to night, and Kalai did his best to finish every meal and snack she presented him with. After lunch, Tauran took him into the garden and helped him work on his strength. To Kalai’s relief, twenty-two days in bed hadn’t been enough to completely erase the definition of his muscles. It felt good to move and stretch, even if their sessions were short and he tired quickly. Each day, he could keep going for just a little longer.
Tauran pressed one last kiss to the nape of Kalai’s neck and retreated. They dressed, Kalai bending to lace Tauran’s boots despite his protests. Then they headed into town.
“Where are the dragons?” Kalai asked, walking beside Tauran to the market, their arms linked. Tauran took the trip every other day, and Kalai was thankful he could finally join him.
“Jinhai is keeping them entertained,” Tauran said, stopping at a vegetable stall. He spoke Sharoani with a jagged accent, but confidently, as he purchased a leek and a bag of onions. “He has a dragon, too. A gray statera named Obu. The three of them get along great, and I think Jinhai’s the most popular apprentice in the temple.” One of Tauran’s foxy smirks flashed across his face, the first in a while. “I was worried Arrow’s saddle would be a problem, but Jinhai took care of that, too. The kid’s been sky sent, I swear.”
Kalai smiled, taking the bag of onions from Tauran. He could easily imagine Jinhai’s beaming face as he stood surrounded by three dragons, one a titan and one a bright white swiftwing. As far as Kalai knew, a dragon apprentice would count themselves lucky if they managed to even befriend a single wild dragon. “He’s going to do great things.”
They spent the following afternoon with Jinhai and the dragons. Watching them play filled Kalai with a whole new kind of energy. Jinhai was enamored with Leyra, throwing sticks for her to catch, ooh-ing at the sound of her jaws snapping shut, then sticking his whole head between her open jaws and laughing.
It stunned Kalai to see that Leyra had grown considerably larger since they arrived in Kel Visal. She was taller and wider than not just Arrow, but Obu as well, who was tall for a statera.