Page 19
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THORNE HURRIED OUT of the living room, knowing he needed to find Samuel before something happened to the decorations. He might have gone a little overboard when it came to those, especially since Penley had mentioned wanting something not too over the top, but it was the first real celebration he’d seen since he’d moved into the castle to work here.
He’d always felt sad for the mages. They deserved happiness, and he’d known they wouldn’t have it until they found their dragons. As the years passed, he hadn’t been sure that would ever happen. He’d known they hadn’t lost hope, and he hadn’t wanted them to, but he hadn’t fully understood the situation. Some days, he still didn’t think he did. He might have watched all of this happen, but he was still an outsider, even though he’d lived here for a long time and the mages considered him a friend. He didn’t need to understand, though. He’d seen how sad the mages had been before and how happy they were now. That was all he needed to know. This was the first birthday party they were having and the first real celebration, and he would make sure everything was perfect.
Hence the many decorations. He wasn’t actually going to use all of them, but he hadn’t been sure what to choose when he’d been at the store, so he’d chosen everything. He was sure he could find a use for whatever he didn’t use this time. Now that everyone was reunited under the same roof, they would have a lot of birthday parties, Christmases, and other things to celebrate.
When he got to the courtyard, Samuel was standing by the SUV, his hands on his hips, staring into the rear compartment. Thorne hesitated, but he knew he wouldn’t get Samuel to change his mind. He’d waved the red flag in front of the bull, and now, the bull would see this through to the end.
“Did you buy the entire store?” Samuel asked when he heard Thorne.
“I bought a normal amount of decorations.”
“Sure. That’s a normal amount for an entire store. This isn’t a store.”
“No one is forcing you to help.”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t going to help. I just think it might be a little excessive.”
“I just want the mages to be happy, especially Penley.” He was a sweetheart.
Samuel nodded firmly. “Okay, we can do that. I’m pretty sure we have enough decorations for the entire castle, but sure. Let’s do this.” He leaned forward to grab two of the boxes. Thorne quickly took the one that was on top, earning himself a glare, but he just glared right back. He expected Samuel to ask if he thought he couldn’t carry two boxes or something like that, but he didn’t question the gesture. He just turned and carried his box into the castle, and Thorne scrambled to go after him.
In the end, it didn’t take them long to bring all the boxes inside. Thorne had been planning on doing it all on his own, even though Jillian and several of the other people living at the castle had volunteered to help. He would’ve had to accept eventually, but he’d been here the longest. To him, this was personal. It wasn’t just decorating for a party. It was decorating for Penley’s party, and Penley was a dear friend.
Matthias and Samuel could understand that. They weren’t as close to Penley as Thorne, but they had roots in the family made up of the mages and dragons. This was their home, maybe more than Thorne’s in some ways.
“Is your birth clan very different from this one?” Matthias asked.
Samuel snorted. “That’s an understatement.” He leaned back from the centerpiece he was putting together. He wasn’t doing a great job because one side was leaning so badly that Thorne was pretty sure it would collapse, but he was trying. It was endearing, really.
“What does that mean?” Matthias asked. He was doing a much better job, thankfully.
“Well, this isn’t really a clan, is it?”
“Why not? Do you have to have a certain number of people in a clan before you can call it a clan?”
“No, of course not.”
“And what makes one? I thought a clan was a bunch of dragons and mages living together. If the number isn’t the problem, then this qualifies as a clan. Or maybe it doesn’t because I’m human? Well, a bunch of us are.”
Samuel blinked. “You know, I don’t actually know the answer to that question. I’m sure my mother wouldn’t call this a clan, but I think she’d be wrong, at least in part. This does feel more like a family than a clan, though.”
“Why would your mother say this isn’t a clan?”
“Well, there are no humans in my birth clan. It’s only dragons and mages.”
“That sounds like inbreeding.”
Thorne snorted loud enough that the two turned to look at him. He didn’t want Samuel to be offended, so he shook his head, but he was having a hard time not laughing.
Matthias wasn’t wrong. Unless different clans mingled, it did sound like inbreeding, unless there were a lot more people in a clan than he’d been thinking.
“There’s no inbreeding,” Samuel said. Thankfully, he didn’t sound offended. “My clan has several hundred members, and not everyone marries or finds their mage or dragon within our clan. We lose people who move away to be with their partner every year, and we gain more people when they come to be with their partner who belonged to my clan. It’s not like anyone is a prisoner or anything like that.”
“So is your clan different just because it’s that much bigger?”
“In part. With so many people, you don’t really feel like you’re part of a family, you know? You know that you’re part of the clan, and you don’t get along with everyone. Here, it’s much more cohesive. If you have a problem with someone, you go directly to them, and there’s no gossip.”
