The Magic of Highland Dragons Read Online Free

lecture. “A good example to show one how verra random it all can be. Just when ye think things are all in an order of sorts, it turns out they never were at all.” He shook himself, turning his attention back to the task at hand. “Well now, put that clothing on, and I’ll be waiting outside for ye.”
    Faith had just turned around when the door opened again. Dirc handed her a thin leather cord. “For the ring. Tie it around yer neck for safekeeping. Make the knot tight, mind! Keep it with ye at all times and dinna lose it.”
    In her current state of shock and disbelief, Faith had nearly forgotten all about the ring. Her hand slipped into her pocket, and her fingers slowly wrapped around it.
    “It isn’t an ordinary ring”, she said carefully. “Who does it belong to? Can it take me back home?”
    “It will protect ye, lass”, he said, not answering any of her questions.
    “Is this Scotland?” she blurted.
    “Aye, of course.” He backed out of the room with a smile.
    The door closed, and she was alone again. She took the ring out of her pocket and studied it for a moment. The blood-red stone almost seemed to glow even in the dim light of the room, and the dragons’ eyes seemed to flicker. She shivered a little. What was this ring? What did it mean? And if… Dirc… had been expecting her, did that mean the ring had been planted in that box? Was she meant to find it? With a resigned sigh she strung it onto the cord and tied it carefully around her neck, making a double, then a triple knot. She didn’t want to lose it either, especially if it turned out to be her only way back home. The cool metal fell between her breasts, quickly warming against her skin. Glancing behind at the closed door, half afraid Dirc would come back in again, she quickly stripped off her skirt and blouse, considered for a moment, and decided to take off her bra and panties too. Women didn’t where them here, and she wasn’t sure what would happen should her purple satin underwear be inadvertently seen by someone. She couldn’t imagine that it would turn out well.
    She pulled the dress over her head, then considered for a moment how the rest went. When she was fairly sure she had figured it out she pulled the row of laces tight around her waist, tying them closed just above her breasts. She pulled on a pair of stockings, and slipped on shoes that were sewn from buttery-soft leather. The fabric of the clothing felt strange against her skin, but it was soft, softer than she would have imagined clothes of this time to be. The cloth was very finely woven, she realized, and dyed a light blue. She guessed it was probably of better quality than most people would have. Who was this man Dirc? And how in the world did he know to expect her? The only thing she was sure of at the moment was that she was very, very far from home, and something was going on that was way, way over her head.
    By now her mind had shifted into what she liked to think of as ‘survival mode’, where fear and panic were blocked out, saved for later while she just made it through the day, her thoughts perforce not going much beyond the moment. It was very familiar to her; she had been in ‘survival mode’ for quite some time after her mother had died. When she had suddenly been completely and utterly alone in the world.
    There was a brief knock on the door, and Dirc entered before she could even answer. He stepped into the room, looking her over with a considering eye. He said nothing, but with a thoughtful twist of his lips he fetched a comb from the table and began to use it on her long blond hair. Faith was startled that he would be so familiar with her when they had only just met, but held still for his ministrations anyway. After all, she knew very little of the customs here. Her hair was more than likely a complete mess, but that was not really her biggest problem right now.
    “Ye have lovely hair lass. And it’s the color he prefers, I happen to ken ”, he