Dragon Seeker (23 page)

When they arrived back in the hill, they found that Archie and Arthur had arrived in their absence. The air was almost too warm as Hamish and Jaikie had lit braziers round the cavern, knowing that Archie would be cold after his flight. And he was! Hugging a fur round him, he was warming his hands while Arthur blew bursts of flame everywhere.

They sat round the fire for a long time that evening,
clutching
hot drinks and revelling in the warmth. Nobody said very much. Arthur was tired after his long flight, but happy to be home; Hamish and Jaikie, who had just finished the
monumental
task of stacking armaments away in the store cupboards, relaxed gratefully and the magicians sat back in their chairs, pleased at the way things had gone and glad that Lord Jezail would never cause them any trouble, ever again. It was all very satisfying!

“We start school next week,” Clara said suddenly into the
comfortable
silence. “It seems a bit tame after being kidnapped by an evil magician, doesn't it?”

Neil almost added that it seemed a bit tame after being thrown off a magic carpet by the same evil magician, but as he didn't want his mother to freak out, he said nothing.

“You'll have to call a meeting of the witches sometime soon, Clara,” Lord Rothlan reminded her. “You have the talisman and you'll have to lay down some pretty firm rules to keep that little lot in order!”

“Where do they usually meet?” Mrs MacLean asked
enquiringly
.

The MacArthur paused and eyed Prince Kalman and Lord Rothlan with a twinkle in his eye. “In your house, I believe,” he
answered.

“Oh, that's alright then,” Mrs MacLean said, “but …” she added, turning to her husband, “I'll have to buy a lot more cups and saucers, John.”

As everyone knew her opinion of witches — never high at the best of times — there was a somewhat stunned silence at this, only broken when Lady Ellan let out a sudden snort of laughter, which set them all off.

The party broke up after that, principally because Arthur had succeeded in filling the cavern with sparkling smoke that danced in swirling wreaths over the braziers. Goodnights were said as they made their way to their rooms but the MacArthur remained in his chair with Arthur and Archie at his feet.

“Well,” he said, looking round the misty heights of the
cavern
, “that's a job well done, Archie! Who would have thought the old man had so much evil in him!”

“We didn't suspect him at all …” Archie nodded, “that was what was so scary.”

“Let's hope that life will be a lot quieter now that he's gone,” the MacArthur said, rising to his feet. “Goodnight, Archie! Goodnight, Arthur!”

Archie climbed on Arthur's back. They were both tired after their long flight and Archie clung on grimly as the great dragon set off eagerly for his beautiful, treasure-filled den.

Arthur had already visited it, of course; it was the first thing he'd done when he got back. And it had all been there, his treasure; just as he'd left it. He sighed happily as he reached it and clambered contentedly to the top of the sparkling pile. The Valley of the Dragons had been wonderful and he'd made lots of good friends but there was nothing, absolutely nothing, to compare with a shiny, gleaming, glittering bed of precious treasure.
How
he had missed it.

Clara was just getting into bed when there was a quiet tap on her door. “Come in,” she called. “Oh, it's you, Neil. I thought you'd be asleep by now …”

Neil plonked himself on Clara's bed. “D'you know,” he said, bouncing on it slightly, “I think your bed's bigger than mine and more comfortable, too.”

Clara wrapped her arms round her knees and looked at him. “You didn't come here to tell me that, did you?”

“No,” he confessed. “No, I didn't. I … I was just wondering how you felt about me having Lord Jezail's medallion. I mean … you don't mind, do you?”

“Mind?” Clara looked at him in surprise. “Why should I mind? I'm glad it went to you! I've always felt guilty that Auntie Muriel left me the talisman.”

“I did feel a bit left out,” he confessed.

“I know you did,” she answered, honestly. “I'd have felt the same way, if it had been the other way round.”

Neil grinned. “Now I've got the wizards to deal with and you've got the witches!”

Clara's eyes narrowed. “Don't worry,” she said, “I'm going to be tough!” She looked suddenly thoughtful. “Do you
remember
when we first met the MacArthurs,” she said quietly, “when we used to play on Arthur's Seat and didn't know they were magic?”

Neil shook his head. “Oh, I think we did, in a funny kind of way …”

“Life's strange, isn't it?” she continued.” It takes you along all sorts of paths. I mean, what would our lives be like now if Dad hadn't been a Park Ranger on Arthur's Seat? All this would never have happened to us! Scary, isn't it? You never know where you'll end up, really, do you?”

“Well, I'm glad it all happened the way it did — maybe it
was meant to be this way for us, who knows?” Neil said with a huge yawn. “It'll be weird being a magician, though,” he added as he slung his legs over the bed and stood up. “I'm glad you don't mind.”

Clara grinned as he headed for the door. “Don't be daft!” she said sleepily.” Night, Neil, and don't worry about being a
magician
. You'll be fine!”

Prince Kalman and Lord Rothlan were saying much the same thing as they sat on the slopes of Arthur's Seat enjoying the night air. Amgarad soared in the sky overhead, well content with his part in the proceedings. He'd done his bit, he'd rescued Clara and, as Count Vassili had invited them all to stay at the citadel whenever they cared to visit, he looked forward to many happy days soaring above the forests of Ashgar.

In the depths of Arthur's Seat, Arthur shifted on his pile of treasure. Thoughts of Gladrin and Nestor flickered through his dreams and he knew that one day he, too, would return to the Valley of the Dragons.

So if, by any chance, you're wandering the streets of Edinburgh in the early hours of the morning, and see a host of dragons flying over Arthur's Seat, it won't surprise you, will it? Nestor, Gladrin and many of Arthur's friends visit him quite often these days. And if you can see them, the chances are that you've probably picked up on some of their magic … for, as you know, the power to see dragons isn't given to everyone …