Introducing Jane Austen’s Dragons: Beyond the Pale

Dragons: Beyond the Pale

The newest addition to Jane Austen’s Dragons is nearly ready to launch! Enjoy a first sneak peek at what’s in store for Darcy, Elizabeth, Wentworth and Anne.

January 10, 1815, London

“Elizabeth, Elizabeth!”

No, please, just a little more sleep.

A heavy, warm hand weighed on her shoulder, shaking her firmly enough to dislodge the dream from her head. Botheration! That one seemed worth remembering.

Where was she?

She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. Vaguely warm rosy streaks of morning sunlight slipped past the drawn burgundy velvet curtains to play across the plush dark leather squabs as the coach rocked and bounced over the road in time with the horses’ clip-clop.

Oh, yes, the carriage. They had left the inn at dawn—it must be at least nine o’clock.  So, they should be in London, now.

At last.

Darcy had insisted they not push through last night, but rather turn in early and get a solid night’s rest before arriving in town. As least as solid a night’s rest as one got whilst traveling with an infant who still was not apt to sleep through the night. And a very young tatzelwurm who had only recently conquered her extended hatching hunger.

Thank heavens for Nanny, whose need for uninterrupted sleep was far less than her own. Even so, after the last several months in Bath, the dear drake might yet decide to hibernate for six months to catch up on her rest.

Elizabeth pushed herself upright. Everything smelt of Darcy’s sandalwood soap and shaving oil. Of course it did. She had been lying—quite comfortably—with her head in his lap. “How long?”

“Almost since the moment we left.” He helped her sit straight.

Stiff neck, shoulders, back, everything; despite the excellent springs and generous squabs. Precisely why Papa detested travel even when his health had permitted it.

Darcy slid the curtains open several inches. She blinked against the morning brightness and shivered. Even with the sun through the side glass, the coach was a touch cold, especially after having been huddled up close to him.

The white ironwork fairy dragon ‘cage,’ mostly covered by its blue quilted cozy, swung gently on the hook opposite the door. April balanced on the swing, twittering. “Perhaps you will now believe us when we insist you have been working too hard.” She fluttered out and perched on Elizabeth’s knees, scratchy toes piercing the grey-blue wool of her pelisse.

A sunbeam caught the tiny fairy dragon’s blue feather-scales just so. She sparkled like a little gem as she presented her chin for a scratch. Her soft hide was still vaguely warm from her hot-brick-heated ‘cage.’

“I seem to remember you singing a great deal. Perhaps that might have had something to do with my excessive slumber.” Elizabeth yawned into her hands.

“You slept, he did not.” April pointed her wing at Darcy. “What does that tell you?”

“She is right,” Darcy murmured, stroking April’s back with his fingertip.

“There was a very great deal to be done, what with Twelfth Night and trying to take leave of Bath.”

“Every dragon there must have called upon you, twice.” Darcy’s lips pressed into that hard, straight line that was not a frown but might as well be.

“Cornwall did not.” All told, that was probably a very good thing.

“Cornwall is quite the exception to the rule. He will always resent the part you played in denying him the gold that Kellynch purloined from the Merchant Royal.”

“Thankfully the rest of the Blue Order Council and even the Brenin himself are satisfied with the outcome of the court proceedings. Cornwall was in violation of so many laws, it could have gone very badly against him.” She stretched to dissipate a shudder that would have disturbed April.

Just how narrowly had they averted disaster at that special court? Best not dwell on that just now.

“Not to minimize your outstanding success, my dear, but I hope that our stay in London is not nearly so interesting.” Darcy pinched his temple, his dark hair falling just a bit into his face. Now that they were back in town, he would need to see his favorite barber soon. The man he saw in Bath had hardly deserved the title of barber.

“On that, we shall agree. I hope to apply myself to sleeping late, eating biscuits, and attending teas and parties with the other ladies of my rank.”

“There are no other ladies of your rank.” April murmured under her breath as she cleaned between her long toes.

While that was only true in part, the isolation it suggested was not something pleasant to consider.

“Has there been any word from Nanny’s coach?” Elizabeth pulled the curtains fully open and peered through the side glass, catching a glimpse of the black carriage, curtains tightly drawn, following close behind them.

“Not a one.”

“Your hatchling seems very happy to travel with the little wyrmling. It is as though her purr is as soporific as my song.”

“Junior keeper, if you please.” Darcy cleared his throat and covered his ears lest April’s ear nip catch him unawares. He had acquired that habit very soon after coming into April’s acquaintance. “I confess, I find it odd that our daughter, not even walking yet, travels with not one, but two companion dragons. You must grant that it is very unconventional.”

“I am convinced children would come into their hearing sooner if exposed to dragons at an earlier age.” Elizabeth harumphed, her hackles rising. Had they not settled this matter months ago?

“The Order might have a point though. Children do pose a great risk of exposing the Order, especially if one is not certain whether they can hear or not.”

“The Gardiner children have been well-versed in the dangers of exposing the secrets of dragonkind.”

“But they are considerably older than Anne, and were identified as hearing before they were regularly exposed to dragons.”

Stubborn, vexing man! “Are you suggesting that Anne cannot—”

“I do not question your decisions regarding our daughter. There is no doubt she is as exceptional as her mother. But I fear the ladies of the Order might not be as open to such ideas.” He ran his fist along the edge of his jaw.

“They will just have to harden themselves to the idea that they do not know everything—”

“Lady Matlock questions your methods.”

Why did he have to bring her up? She was nearly as exasperating as her sister, the honorable Lady Catherine de Bourgh! That name, that family still left her clenching her teeth and biting her tongue. “And what do I care for her opinions? She is not an officer of the Order.”

“Some courtesy is required as her husband is Chancellor of the Order, to whom even you have to answer. Not to mention Cownt Matlock is, at least technically, her Dragon Mate. And he has done us a great favor by walking Pemberley back to London for us.”

“Probably as a means to get out of traveling with the good lady.”

“Elizabeth?” His tone stopped just short of rebuke.

Botheration! He was right. Mama had taught her better manners than to even permit such untoward thoughts.

“Forgive me.  I am a bit out of temper this morning. Perhaps I am in need of a bit of rest.” She closed her eyes and leaned back into the soft squabs. A touch of a headache pulsed just behind her eyes.

So many hours spent reading and writing late into the night. So many dragons to meet. So many questions from Keeper and dragon and Friend alike, all needing answers. Even at the inns they stayed in, all run by members of the Order, minor dragons and their Friends had all but lined up to greet them and seek her advice.

Most of the questions had been simple, even banal: advice for talon rot, bad teeth and scale mites; the management of pucks’ hoards; territorial disputes between fairy dragon harems, hunting rights, rights of way. But there were just so many of them.

All the more reason to get those monographs written and distributed into the hands of Dragon Friends as soon as possible.

“You are working again.” Darcy tapped her knee with his fingertips, his voice low and thoughtful.

“Not working, but thinking about all that needs to be done.”

“Have you considered my suggestion? Apply to the Order for a secretary to assist you. I know there are several apprentice scribes, human and drake, that Lady Astrid has deemed ready to become journeymen.”

“I just prefer to do things myself.” She leaned back and sighed. “I suppose I now know why Father fought so long against such help.”

April twittered something disagreeable and Darcy muttered a slightly disagreeable sound. He knew better than to actually form words—those she could always hear.

“But I shall learn from Papa’s stubbornness. After we have recovered from this journey, I will speak to our esteemed Scribe myself.”

He offered a warm nod of approval that ended well short of gloating at his success. At least he was not insufferable when he was right.

The coach stopped in the mews behind the Darcy House, near the little walled garden just beyond the terrace house’s back door. Shadows still covered nearly all of the space—the sun only reached there after noon. Still, the private stillness of the familiar carriage house and small courtyard welcomed her.

The driver let down the steps with an echoing metallic clank and opened the door. Crisp air flooded in, carrying with it all the unique London scents: coal smoke, the Thames, a particular mix of dragon musk different to that in the country. In a few days it would all fade into the background, but for now, each breeze would remind her they were no longer in the country.

 Darcy exited first. He preferred to hand her down himself. Such a dear man.

A dark blur launched from the driver’s box toward the roof. Walker.

He would be conducting a sweep of the area, checking for anything that did not meet with his approval. How protective he had become towards Elizabeth, Anne, April and even little Pemberley, and even more so since May had hatched. He and the wyrmling were inexplicably close—an odd pair to be certain, but May adored her curmudgeonly cockatrice uncle. And he tolerated familiarities from her that none other would dare. Who else would dare lick his feather-scales, attempting to groom him?

Such an unusual, and very dear, draconic family they had formed.

She stretched, careful not to dislodge April from her shoulder, adjusting to intrusive, even overwhelming sounds of the city. Even so early, how noisy it was. Carriages with horses on the street beyond the mews; peddlers calling out about their wares; a tatzelwurm chasing a rat—and catching it; a puck arguing with it over the catch. Not entirely unlike Bath.

It was home, though, and that made all the difference.

Knee-high minor drakes, Slate and Amber, the Darcy family livery badge emblazed on green baize vests buttoned across their chests, bounded out to meet them, with toothy draconic smiles. No doubt the housekeeper had fashioned those to help keep them warm in the chill weather. There was a reason Elizabeth liked the woman.

April warbled a greeting which the drakes returned in kind.

“Lady Sage, Vicontes Pemberley arrived a few hours ago. She is sleeping in her nest in the cellar. I expect she might sleep for a day or more.” Amber’s deep yellow-orange eyes glittered in the sun; her well-oiled dark green hide spoke of the excellent care the staff dragons enjoyed. It was good to see that continued without their presence in the house.

“I am not surprised. It is such a long walk for a little dragon.”

“Cownt Matlock suggested he might sleep for a week,” Slate added with an almost mischievous grin.

Nanny approached from the second carriage. More blue than green in the morning light, Nanny walked on hind feet with Anne cradled in her front legs. She moved like a tall, slender school mistress, posture perfect, each step purposeful and sure. May, the little black tatzelwurmling with tufted ears too big for her face, spring-hopped to keep up with Nanny’s long strides.

“Mrrrow?” May skidded to a stop, staring at Slate and Amber with startled, wide golden eyes. They were not the first drakes she had ever seen. Perhaps she had forgotten Elizabeth’s reminder that they would be present.

Elizabeth stepped close to May, crouching to stroke the back of her neck. “Slate, Amber, may I present our new friend, May.”

The lithe wyrmling stretched out her front paws and touched her chin to the ground. Slate and Amber licked the top of her head with their very long tongues. May looked up at them and licked their cheeks. Not the greeting she had been taught, but it worked. The drakes made a happy little warble in the back of their throats

Elizabeth stood, knees still stiff and sore. “Show May around the house, then make up a warm basket for her in the nursery.”

“The nursery, Lady Sage?” Amber cocked her long head so far it was almost upside down.

“Yes, she is to stay with Junior keeper as much as possible. Slate, attend Nanny and help her with whatever she needs.”

“Yes, Sage.” They dipped in a small bow—or was it more of a curtsey?—and hurried off after Nanny.

Darcy followed Nanny into the house with his gaze. “Cats are generally not allowed in nurseries. Do you think…”

“Absolutely. Surely you have noticed that Anne sleeps so much better when May is with her. That alone should convince you! Besides, true cats do not harm babies, much less tatzelwurms–who have far more sense than the typical cat. If that is not sufficient, Nanny will be there watching over them all. I know you trust her.”

Yes, there had been an impatient note in her voice, and no, he probably did not deserve it. She massaged the back of her neck. Would it be wrong to go directly to bed now?

Walker swooped down from the roof and back-winged as his feet touched the ground. “The Matlocks approach.”

“So soon? We have been here less than an hour.” Darcy all but stammered.

“You cannot imagine your arrival has gone unnoticed. I expect the call is not purely social.” Walker raked his talons against the cobblestones. What was he worried about?

Darcy pinched his temples. “Lovely, just lovely.”

“And it seems Lady Matlock is with him.”

April squawked a discordant note. Elizabeth winced before she could stop herself.

“Do you wish to be home to her?” Darcy muttered through clenched teeth. His Aunt Matlock was too much like his Aunt Catherine for anyone’s liking.

“Much as I would defer the honor of her presence, it seems that pleasure would come at a high price. Perhaps we can manage a cup of tea before they arrive?” Elizabeth trudged toward the door, April twittering a soft, soothing trill in her ear.

Coming Soon!

What do you think awaits our heroes in their newest dragon adventure?