one who opened up most to the dragon, and it was clear he was paying him a great deal of attention, whilst also telling him a lot not only about the school itself and the lecturers, but also about the subjects and various points of interest. His complete opposite was Cedric, who behaved as if Draco weren’t there. In the rather good atmosphere prevailing within the group, one could easily forget about the latter.
‘Riding’s about to start,’ Warren changed the subject, casting a wistful glance out of the window. ‘What do you reckon we’ll be starting with?’
‘On horseback or on wargs.’ Zane nipped the goblin’s dream in the bud before he’d even had a chance to voice it. ‘Don’t count on anything more.’
‘You could at least let him daydream a bit,’ Noah interjected. Parthir had approached them unnoticed and immediately turned his gaze to the dragon. ‘How’s your hand?’
‘All in one piece.’ Draco held out his left hand, suspecting he’d have to do it anyway. ‘Thanks to your help, there’s not a mark on it.’ He waved it slightly.
‘Be careful today, because I’ve no intention of making a habit of patching you up every time we have practical lessons,’ Noah wagged a finger at the dragon and went on his way.
‘What’s he on about?’ The elf rolled his eyes. ‘It all turned out fine, so why pick on you?’
‘He's got a point.’ Eric looked at Zane sidelong. He hadn’t particularly taken to the elf’s comments, and certainly not his dismissive tone. ‘Falling off a cliff, exhaustion, the last thing we need is for him to fall off his saddle and break something.’ The lad might have been exaggerating a bit, but Draco didn’t want to correct him.
‘Break something? Please.’ The elf waved his hand dismissively. ‘If he takes a tumble or two…’
‘Then I’ll be very displeased,’ Noah finished for him as he returned to his seat. The parthir’s gaze had a better effect on Zane than anything else.
‘We’ll all try to stay in the saddle,’ Eric promised on their behalf,
