The rest of the moot went by in a blur. Books were presented, issues were discussed, but nothing important happened. The singing wasn't repeated, but Serali hardly noticed. Instead she kept remembering, over and over, the casual way that the red dragon had killed the bronze. She had asked Drevass about it and he had told her that the red was the Dragon King, and killing child-slayers was something he was expected to do.

Still, Serali was glad that the course of the moot didn't bring them into contact again. There was something unnerving about the red.

At last it was over and the dragons left the area around the great bowl where the moot was held. Serali returned with the plains dragons to dragon stone. There were other things to occupy her now, hunting, tending Vulcnor's hatchlings, discussion draconic culture with Drevass, but still the image of the red dragon kept running through her mind at the oddest times.

Eventually other things distracted her, and she began to forget the disturbing incident. One thing that helped her put it out of her mind was her growing friendship with Kethro. They explored odd caverns in dragon stone, they swam down the river, or flew out across the plains together. Serali even managed to teach Kethro to shapeshift.

She had offered to before, but he had refused, saying that he probably wouldn't be able to do it anyway. She stopped bothering him about it, but she still spent some time almost every day in human form practicing her lute and her singing. One day as she put away the lute, she noticed the tiny golden statue of her horse in the bottom of her pack. Impulsively she decided to go riding. A few minutes later she was standing on he plains outside of dragon stone.

She placed the statue on the ground and spoke the activating word. A swirl of golden mist flowed out of the statue. It congealed into the tall form of Orison. Serali picked up the statue, which was warm to the touch, and put it in her pocket. Then she looked at Orison. He tossed his head and whickered. Serali stroked his smooth golden flank, and then in one smooth motion she grabbed a handful of mane and swung up onto his brad back. With a touch of her heel to his sides they were off.

Serali clung to his back as they raced across the plains. Suddenly a shadow crossed over them. Serali looked up to see Kethro soaring overhead. She waved at him as he passed. With a showy roll, he dipped low over her and then landed on a slight rise not far ahead. Serali raced Orison toward him, grateful again for the training that had removed all fear of dragons from him. She brought him to an abrupt rearing stop mere inches in front of Kethro's nose.

She slid off the horse's back onto the ground.

"Hi Kethro!"

"Hello Serali. What are you doing?" He looked curiously at Orison. "And where did that creature come from?"

"I've had him with me all along." She laughed at Kethro's puzzled look. "Here, I'll show you."

She took the statue out of her pocket and placed it on the ground. Then she spoke the activating word again and Orison dissolved into mist and swirled back into the statue.

"Amazing! How did you do that?"

"Actually, I didn't. The horse was my teacher's gift to me when I left. I'm a good mage, but not good enough to do that on my own!"

"What's it like to ride it?"

"I could show you if you'd just let me teach you how to shapeshift."

Kethro paused for a long moment before speaking again. "I'm not sure how I'd like being a human, but that creature was truly wonderful. It ran like the wind. Could you teach me that shape?"

"Humans call them 'horses.' I don't know the dragon word for them. But yes, I can teach you horse shape."

Kethro took a deep breath. "Go ahead."

Serali nodded and began. "First you need to become aware of the feel of the form you're wearing now…"

She spoke for several moments before directing Kethro to go ahead. He closed his eyes tightly. For several long moments there was no visible change, but then his form began to dissolve into a red and green mist. The mist shrunk down to horse-like proportions and then solidified into a large blood bay stallion. Serali grinned at Kethro and shifted into horse form herself. She shook her long golden mane and reared up dramatically. Then, with a challenging whinny, she raced off over the plains, Kethro close behind.

They played tag as horses for hours. Finally when the sun was setting, Serali stopped and shifted back to dragon shape. Kethro halted next to her. He closed his eyes tightly again and a few moments later he was his usual scaly green self.

"That was fun!"

Serali grinned at him. "Yes it was. You see why I've been wanting you to try this?"

"I confess, I was wrong. But don't get a swelled head over this. You're not right all the time."

"No, I'm just right almost all the time."

Kethro just laughed.

Summer on the Ocean of Grass was not quite as hot as it was at Land's End, but the heat was enough to make most of the dragons at dragon stone operate on a nocturnal schedule, sleeping through the hottest parts of the day. The grass turned from green to golden and Drevass called the dragons together to remind them of the danger of fire. Cherval and a group of the younger dragons decided to make a firebreak around dragon stone.

Serali and Kethro pitched in, helping to dig trenches and clear bare areas. The immense project kept them busy for nearly a month and by the time they were done the weather was beginning to show hints of fall. The days were still sweltering, but nights were getting colder.

As the weather changed Serali was thinking more and more of her family. She was twenty-three now and it had been a full year since she had seen them last. Much had changed since then, but she still missed them. She wondered if Dentol had a baby yet, and how Papa and Mama were faring with the inn.

At last she made up her mind to return to Land's End. One by one she told Kethro, Cherval, Drevass, and Vulcnor, that she was leaving. She assured them all she would be back as soon as she could. Each of them wished her well and said goodbye, except for Kethro who took the news with an uncharacteristic silence.

She was packing her few possessions for the trip when a soft noise made her look up. Standing in the entrance to her chambers was a young man. He was as tall as she, with broad shoulders and an athletic build. He was dressed all in green, which contrasted with his brilliant red hair.

He spoke haltingly in the draconic language and his voice was surprisingly deep.

"S, Serali, I… I need to t, t, talk to you. I'm n, not sure how to say what I want to say to you."" As he spoke he gained confidence. "I've t, tried to show you every way I could, but I should have known you would not notice. That's all right, it's not your f, fault. I understand about how you were raised. I finally figured out a way to make you see me the way I want you to see me."

"Kethro?" Serali suddenly recognized her friend. But what did he mean?

"Yes. I guess you couldn't think of a dragon the way I think of you. I remember what you told me about Galen and so I though maybe… But that doesn't matter. What matters is what I've come to say to you. Serali, I love you. I've tried showing you all the ways that a dragon would show you, but I guess that didn't work. And I was afraid that if I said anything you would laugh at me. But I can't just let you leave and not tell you, so I decided to show you the only way I could. I love you Serali. I'm not sure how humans do things, but I want to have you as my mate, to live with forever. I'll do anything you ask, go anywhere you want me to, be anything you need me to. Please, Serali. Even if you can't be my mate, just please don't leave me."

"Kethro I… I didn't realize. You are my best friend, but I never really thought of you like that." She looked at him, remembering all they had done together and tried to think of what it would be like if she left him. "But I think somewhere all along I've loved you too. I can't imagine leaving you." Then she smiled. "My mother always wanted me to marry someone and raise a family like my brother has. I think that she'll like you."

"You mean that you'll… I mean we can…"

"Yes." She grinned hugely. "If you don't mind going through a human-style wedding first, I would be delighted to have you for my husband, or mate, or whatever. To be together forever."

With a whoop of joy he grabbed her and hugged her. Serali hugged him back and then kissed him. Kethro stooped for a moment, surprised. Dragons kiss, but the sensation is utterly different when you haven't really got lips. I could get used to being human, he thought. It certainly has its good points.

Serali pointed it out to Kethro. "That's where I spent most of my time growing up. My parents and at least one of my brothers and sisters will be in there."

"Brothers and sisters? How many do you have?"

"Two of each." She grinned. "I always liked being part of a large family, though it also has its down points. Especially since Ohlito and Dentol, my brothers, both loved to tease me. How many siblings do you have?"

"I was part of a clutch of three. But my brother died when he was very young, so only my sister remains."

"I'm sorry."

"It's all right. I hardly knew him, we couldn't have been more than three or four years old when he died. But we are nearly to your home now."

They had indeed arrived at the inn. Taking a deep breath, Serali stepped forward and opened the door. The room was not very crowded, only a half-dozen townsmen were seated at the various tables. Serali's sister Terla was threading her way between several tables with a tray of mugs balanced expertly. She looked up and nearly dropped the tray.

"Serali!"

"Terla! You've grown!"

She laughed. "But I'll never top you, sister." They hugged warmly.

Then Marilla and Falio came out from the kitchen at the back of the room and rushed to join their daughters. Carita, who was almost as tall as Terla now, hurried out from the back room after them. Serali was enveloped in a storm of questions and chatter as her family tried to inform her about everything that had happened while she was away. Serali laughed and chattered right back, asking about her neighbors. She looked like a golden eagle in a flock of chickens, the way she towered over her family.

Kethro stayed back at the door, almost overwhelmed by this enthusiastic display. At last as the chatter died down Marilla noticed him standing there. She looked from him to Serali and then turned to her.

"So Serali, tell us who this handsome man that you've brought with you is."

Immediately the family's attention centered on Kethro. He hunted around for something to say, but was saved by Serali answering.

"Mama, Papa, this is Kethro. He and I are engaged."

"Why that's wonderful!" Serali's mother fairly beamed. She had almost given up hope that her odd daughter would marry. After all twenty-three is much, much too old to still be single!

"Where do you mean to have the wedding?"

"Here, of course! As if I would ever be married anywhere else." Serali had a brief moment of regret for Galen. If she had somehow been able to marry him her family would have had to come to Barona for the wedding. But that could never have happened.

Her father broke in. "Where has been settled, but I would like to know when!"

"As soon as possible," was Serali's quick reply. She smiled at Kethro. "I don't want to put it off a moment more than I have to."

Kethro grinned back at her. He was beginning to understand why she insisted on marrying the human way. It was more for her family's sake than her own. If she wanted a swift wedding, the dragon's ritual of mating could have been done the very day he first told her his love. But this amazing family of hers! It was worth the wait if it would make them happy.

The wait proved to be a shorter one than Kethro had feared. There was no village priest, and the nearest priest was a full two week's travel away. When Serali told Kethro that, he envisioned a whole month while a messenger went and brought the priest. But the priest was of the pantheistic faith that followed Aldon as the king of the gods. The people of Serali's village worshipped the Creator, those of them who worshipped any god, and the nearest human priest of the Creator was thousands of miles away.

Instead Serali's parents officiated, reading a set of traditional questions which the couple had to answer. Serali and Kethro stood side by side before them, both dressed in white, and answered. It was the white clothing that had taken the longest.

There was not a dress in the entire village long enough to fit Serali, but her mother had taken the hem out of the longest one that could be found. It was still a bit short of the ankle length that tradition called for, but Serali looked dazzling in it regardless.

Kethro's white outfit had been almost impossible. Every pair of white pants in the town had been examined, but not a one was anywhere near long enough and none could be let out more than an inch or two. A white shirt had been found, donated by Breck, but his pants where still too short and hopelessly wide for Kethro's more slender build. When Serali had been informed that the wedding would have to wait on someone sewing Kethro a suitable pair of pants, she had decided to take extreme measures. She spent a night with her spell books and in the morning Kethro's formerly green pants were white.

Then there was the problem of the troth gifts. The couple were supposed to exchange gifts made with their own hands at the ceremony. Again, Serali managed to find a suitable gift, but Kethro hadn't ever made anything in his life. As he exclaimed to Serali in a moment of exasperation, "I'm a hunter, not a dragonsmith!" But after much pondering he at last managed to think of something. Much to Serali's annoyance he absolutely refused to give even a hint what it was.

At last all of the problems had been dealt with and the couple stood in front of Serali's parents as the whole village looked on. They answered all of the questions, they swore their vows, and then they exchanged their gifts. Serali presented Kethro with a bracelet made of natural crystals and twisted wire. She hadn't really spent much time making it, but quite a few hours had been invested in several useful spells she had placed on it.

He in turn gave her a green dragon's scale almost as wide as her hand with a delicate semi-abstract design featuring two dragons scratched into the surface.

Afterward everyone wondered how on earth he had found a dragon's scale that large and how he had scratched the designs on it, since dragon scale is so hard, but he kept his mouth shut and smiled mysteriously. Serali grinned at their bafflement. The only thing anybody could ever use to carve dragon's scale is a dragon's talon.

Finally Falio pronounced them married and they kissed. When at last they parted, Kethro's opinion of kissing had improved a notch.

The ceremony was traditionally performed at noon, with a celebration and feast after. The crowd retired to the inn to eat, drink, and socialize. They congratulated the newly wedded couple and brought useful gifts. Though Serali wondered exactly what she was expected to do with some of them. After an hour or so of this Serali and Kethro exchanged a glance. As soon as the parents of the bride weren't looking, they sneaked out of the festivities.

"I'm glad that's over and we're married! If we had to do just one more thing, I would have screamed!" Serali shook her head.

"Well, go ahead and scream then. There is just one more tiny thing."

"What's that?" "The dragon's mating ceremony." Kethro grinned. "But don't worry, I don't think you'll mind it too much."

"Why not?"

"It's easier to show you then tell you." He grinned again, and Serali found to her surprise that she was blushing.

Moments later two winged shapes soared away from the town, their wingtips almost touching.

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