Page 134 of To Fight and To Fold

"Oh."

Thea tilted her head to the side. "What is it?"

Aaryn cleared her throat and tucked her smile into her fist. "Nevermind," she squeaked, and motioned for Thea to carry on. "Tell me what, uhm—so. The Hoard."

"Yes?" Thea prompted, trying not to smile, trying not to let curiosity eat her alive.

"Can I access the Hoard from…" She waved a hand around. "...Here, since I can't access it here?" She turned her palm, Evergale's twisted rune still branded in her skin. "Or do I have to wait until this is broken before I can do magic?"

"You can do magic regardless."

"Will you teach me something? Just something tiny. Like the light thing!" Aaryn's eyes were doing that big round shiny thing, and Thea agreed too quickly, lest the rustling dragon behind her join in.

She laughed at Aaryn's excited expression, so open and at ease with her.

You're ruining it.

Thea choked down the barbed emotion and cleared her throat.

"The Hoard is everything. Everywhere. It's as natural as the five senses. Sight, sound, scent, sensation, savor."

"Why the five senses?" Aaryn asked.

"What do you experience nature with? How do you tap into it? You see it in sunrises and sunsets. You feel it on the breeze, in the warmth from the sun. You smell it—cedar and earth. You… savor it. Like the taste of rain drops or the salt of the ocean on your lips."

Lips Thea yanked her focus from.

"Romantic," Aaryn murmured, gaze warm and sticky, trying to catch Thea. It felt like a trap of her own making, and she stepped away before the teeth could close around her.

"Unpredictable, sometimes. It might not manifest like ice or fire or light, like with most dragons. The Awakened have a deeper connection with magic, with the Hoard, and that proximity can lead to different results. You'll know it when you feel it. Vaelen used to tell me that to know nature, you must know yourself," Thea rambled.

"Sounds like Vaelen," Aaryn mused. "Very wise."

Exactly. The wisest. Which is why Thea should act normal and just kiss Aaryn like she wanted to, instead of agonizing over the stupid pin—no matter its purpose.

But Thea couldn't shake the feeling that she was making a mistake with every moment that passed.

"So how do I do it?" Aaryn asked. "How do I feel it?"

"It's like something just out of reach. You have to both look for it and not, at the same time," Thea suggested.

"Wow, that's so helpful," Aaryn drawled.

Thea waved her arm out defensively. "Listen, I'm not the best at this!"

"At what?"

"Teaching," Thea bit out with crossed arms.

"That's not what I hear," Aaryn cooed. "According to everyone, you're multi-talented, brave, kind, generous, intelligent, good with kids⁠—"

Thea sputtered. "What the scale are you talking about?"

Aaryn laughed, and the sound made humor threaten to bubble up in response amongst the confusion. "Apparently druids love gossip as much as the Tethered do. I hear whispers all day long about how admirable Thea is."

"Well, that's—" Thea was at a loss for words. She didn't deserve all that praise. Especially because they'd left out probably the most telling truth.

Liar.