Page 142 of Dragon Her Heels

My heart hurt for the sleeping dragon. “He is a father who loves children and loved his wife.”

“He is.”

“What happened to his wife?”

“She did not share her dragon’s depth of love, and she returned to the mortal coil many times. Her soul eventually found her eternal companion, and they cycle through what it is to live and die. The Universe repays her debts. Wyness will find his eternal companion in your daughter, even should they return here to slumber for a while. But neither will fear the falls from this point forward. It will be a great torrent of light for them should they find their way back here. The future is shrouded beyond a certain point.”

“His daughter,” I guessed.

“Indeed.”

“But how will Wyness be reborn?”

“The Universe is willing, and she will provide him with a new form. You will need to create his node, for he does not have one, and much like your Yuless, he is a being of pure magic and will require one. The eldest dragon souls do.”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

Azrael pointed in the direction of the thundering falls. “That is the birthplace of magic, an eternally renewing resource. It will only strengthen in time as new souls are brought into life and find rest here. Spin a thread, add it to the great weave as warp and weft, and draw it to the mortal coil. It will come with you when you go.”

“Will my daughter require a node?”

Azrael smiled, and he shook his head. “All future dragons will thrive, do not worry. Only Wyness needs what only you can provide. And should a future youngling require a node, you will have no trouble creating one. Your node is where the falls reenter the world, after all. Did you not see it in the infinite strands in the great circle?”

I sucked in a breath. “That’s where the boundary between life and death is?”

“It is now, because that is what it means to be Fate. Life, death, and everything before it, during it, and after it, are part of your weave. The Universe no longer needs to handle quite so much, for your very presence allows for her to rest and enjoy some peace, too. You are a gift to us—and you are a gift for her as well.”

If I spent too long thinking about it, I would surely give myself the kind of headache I wished on nobody. I gestured to the wall where he touched it. “How do I get him out of there?”

“Place your hand on mine, and I will show you how souls are shepherded in as much comfort as I can offer.”