*Katerina's POV*

The sun hadn't risen yet, but the dragons were already stirring and stretching their wings, so I quickly began cooking two loaves of bread. As I halfway expected, Randel soon showed up and waited for his loaf.

"What do you usually eat for breakfast?" I asked, trying to figure out how he survived if he didn't even know how to cook bread over a fire.

"Jerky usually." He fished around in a belt pouch and pulled out some dark, thin strips. "Here, have one."

I regarded it dubiously as I took it from him. He didn't notice my hesitation and began chewing on another one. I was normally a fan of jerky, but this resembled a burnt twig and looked just as appetizing. Hoping I wasn't making a huge mistake, I took a tentative bite and had to fight to rip a piece free.

It tasted more like charcoal than meat, and the rock-hard stringy texture was making a burnt twig look better and better every second. After some difficulty, I managed to swallow the piece.

Since he was looking at me expectantly, I said, "It's...different."

"I made it myself," he said proudly.

I took a big drink of water, trying to wash the lingering taste out of my mouth. If that was what he usually ate, my inferior bread would never be safe. I checked the loaves in hopes of something more edible. They seemed to be done, so I pulled them away from the coals to cool.

Like last night, Randel only waited a few minutes before grabbing one and juggling it around. I didn't feel like burning my fingers or tongue and waited semi-patiently.

"We'll be leaving soon," the green dragon called over.

"Just finishing up," Randel replied. "She makes good bread. Better than anything in the castle."

I bit my tongue and ducked into the bushes for a break. By the time I came out, the green dragon and Rakota were already coming this way.

I hesitated, then said, "Are you sure you want me to come? I don't think I'd be of any use against the mages." I silently hoped they'd decide to leave me here. A day away from dragons and mages sounded much better than being near a battle between them.

Rakota lowered his chest to the ground. "Get on. We might need to interrogate the humans working there, and they'll probably talk more freely with you than with Randel. I'll put out the fire."

The idea of refusing to get on crossed my mind, but I'd already been carried in a dragon's hands once and I had no desire to repeat that experience. My leg muscles twinged as I climbed up the harness and settled into the saddle, although I had a feeling that sore legs were going to be the least of my worries by this evening.

*Rakota's POV*

I stood up even though Katerina was still putting the harness straps on. Turning my attention to the fire that had burned all night, I put my palm over it. The heat was a mere warmth against my scales, and when I lifted my hand, the fire had been smothered and only a few wisps of smoke drifted from the logs.

Katerina's shelter was nearby; rather than the lean-tos traders usually made on long flights, this one had a curved half-dome shape. I still wasn't entirely certain how it didn't collapse without any bindings holding the branches together. It almost looked like they were weaved together, but most of the pieces were too large for her to bend.

Using one of my claws, I flipped it over. A quarter of the branches sprawled around it, although the rest stubbornly stuck together to retain their shape. As I watched, bit by bit, gravity slowly pulled a few more layers apart in a vaguely familiar way.

I wracked my brain, trying to think of what it reminded me of. I'd watched her build it, layering larger and small branches and packing them down. The boughs she'd slept on were layered in a slightly different pattern and had an indent in the middle, almost like-

A bird's nest.

That's what they reminded me of. I had never seen a human build such something in such a fashion, nor did I recall seeing any similar structures in the villages or at passenger rest stops. Even if it had rained, she probably would have remained dry. I wondered where she had picked up this unusual skill.

The crack of wings biting into the air made me refocus on the task at hand. I impatiently waited for the others to take flight, although Andar jerked his chin skyward pointedly, letting me go ahead of him. His rider yawned, already looking utterly bored.

I leapt into the sky and quickly caught up to the others who were flying more slowly than I had expected.

Victorya looked back, and letting us listen in, asked Katerina, "Where is this mine?"

She held onto the saddle handle with one hand and leaned over to look down, scanning the ground for several long seconds. Eventually, she pointed. "Along that road."

We angled our flight as Victorya asked Andar, "Did you pick up anything unusual when you were flying over this area? Or notice how many people were around?"

"I was paying more attention to my spells than the ground."

I sighed internally, although I had already expected his reply. If Andar was spellcasting, he wouldn't have even noticed someone flying above him, let alone take note of human structures or unusual traffic patterns.

"Things might have changed if they saw you flying yesterday," Victorya said. "We'll circle it from a distance in case they've been preparing."

We flew higher and drifted to the side so we wouldn't be easily spotted. It wasn't long until we passed the bespelled valley, then a village.

"That looks like a mine to me," Serepha commented as five dozen buildings came into sight. Nearby, large wooden carts and tracks led to dark openings in a hillside. Even as we watched, men and horses were pulling carts; some were empty, but others had chunks of green rock.

"Don't cast any sensing spells," Victorya warned us. "If they notice them, we'll lose the element of surprise."

"They all look alike," Serepha muttered as she tilted her head this way and that. "How will we know which ones are mages?"

"I've never seen a dirty mage," I said, thinking back to the handful I'd transported, "and they usually don't do physical work either. If they're still here, they're probably down in the mine. Do we risk a shielded sensing spell?"

"Let's send the humans into the village first," Victorya said. "There are enough travelers along the road that two more won't stand out. They can ask around."

"I'll get as close as I can, but they'll have to walk in," I replied as I began a shallow dive with Andar following my lead.

It would look suspicious if they came out of the forest right next to the village, but there was a clearing not far from the road. Still, I kept my distance until I was gliding just above the tops of the trees, keeping as low as possible to prevent travelers from seeing me.

When grass appeared below me, I fanned my wings and used a bit more magic to stall my flight and let me drift straight down. Andar gave me enough time to fold my wings before also landing in the small clearing. I lowered my chest to the grass and Katerina obediently slid off even though she wasn't aware of our plans.

As I stood up, I told her, "You and Randel will walk to the mining village and ask if the mages are still around."

She blinked and rubbed her ears. "I'm sorry. I must have misheard. Can you please repeat that?"

"We want you to go into the village and find out where the mages are," I repeated with forced patience.

"Uh, I'd rather not go near the mages..."

"And we'd prefer it if they didn't know you were asking around. They weren't in sight when we flew past, so if you're careful, they won't know you're there."

She looked around, clearly trying to find some way out of this task.

Andar added, "Randel can help you. As my rider, I can track him anywhere and see what's going on, even from here."

She winced and shifted her weight. "The average villager will avoid a dragon rider and probably won't talk with anyone traveling with them."

Andar touched a scale on his hand, and a rune glowed brightly, then dimmed as human clothing dropped onto the ground in front of him. "He can change into other clothes and blend in."

"Do I have to?" Randel asked, groaning as if he had just been told to muck out a horse stable.

When the green dragon glared at him, Randel sighed and picked up the clothing before walking into some nearby bushes to change.

"D-Do we know how many mages might be there?" Katerina asked, still looking ready to run for the hills.

"Maybe a dozen, but we don't even know if they are there. That's why you are going to talk with the villagers."

"So we just have to ask around? We don't need to actually find them?"

"Ask around in a fashion that they don't realize anyone is looking for them. And I'd prefer it if you kept out of sight. We don't want to lose the element of surprise."

That seemed to reassure her, at least until she saw Randel come out of the trees.

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled at her dismayed stare. "He fetched these old things."

After being around Katerina for so many hours, I was better at reading her expression, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Er, those clothes are new and in perfect condition. The nearest town in this direction is two days away. They wouldn't be nearly so clean after such a trip."

I had never paid that much attention to travelers, but she was probably correct. "What's the best way to fix that?"

She scratched her head as she regarded the rider. "He could rub some dirt on his clothing. Maybe roll around in the grass too?"

Randel shook his head resolutely. "I'm not rolling around in the mud."

Unfortunately for him, Andar was already clawing the grasses free from the dirt below. "How much dirt do we need?"

She stared at the hole we could have buried Randel in and said, "That's more than enough. Randel is used to talking with kings, but villagers require a different kind of...tact. He could stay here while I go."

Andar ignored her suggestion, not bothering to inform her that we had no easy way to keep tabs on her if Randel wasn't close by. Turning his gaze to his rider, he said, "Get your clothes dirty."

It was Randel's turn to look dismayed. "How?"

Andar pointedly looked at Katerina, who was beginning to look a bit lost.

"If he doesn't want to rub the dirt on his clothing, I could throw some at him and see if that works..." she tentatively suggested.

"Go for it," Andar told her. The glint in his eyes was one of amusement, which I hadn't known the dour dragon was even capable of feeling.