The city of Lost Garden was expecting Jasper Moffatt.

The second he flew into Lost Garden airspace, he was instantly surrounded by a guard squadron of no less than two dozen wizard soldiers, all zipping around on the flashiest broomsticks Jasper had ever seen. Two dragons also flanked his rear. Jasper hadn’t realized that the Lost Garden Clan had any dragon shifters. How the High Council here had managed to convince dragons to join them was beyond him, but that was the least of his concerns right now. He glanced over at the wizard soldier closest to him and arched a questioning eyebrow. The wizard soldier understood the meaning behind the gesture. Jasper wanted to know what the hell the reason for this giant escort was, and the wizard commander was only too happy to tell him. He sat up proudly, and performed a quick amplifying spell on his voice so that Jasper would be able to hear him clearly.

“The High Council of Lost Garden considers you a traitor. We have orders to bring you in for questioning to determine what your punishment will be. If you come peaceably you will not be harmed.”

You have got to be kidding me, Jasper thought. I singlehandedly defended this entire clan against an army using dark magic, and they think they’re going to force me to come in for questioning?

Jasper would like to see them try. He rolled his dragon eyes at the wizard commander and began a sudden nose dive toward the house where Dr. Pasko lived. Jasper had no idea if the doctor still lived in the same house, but it seemed like the best place to start his search. Jasper knew the place well. He’d gone there several times when Dr. Pasko was suing him. Jasper had knocked on the door and tried to reason with him. He’d tried to convince the doctor to waive or reduce his fee, considering he’d saved everyone’s lives, including the doctor’s. When it became clear that Dr. Pasko wasn’t going to change his fee, Jasper tried to at least convince him to set up a long term payment plan. But Dr. Pasko wasn’t having any of that, either. Causing trouble for Jasper seemed to have become some sort of game for him.

Jasper was much stronger than anyone in the Lost Garden Clan. He could have taken out the doctor, and the entire High Council, with sheer force. But Jasper felt that there had been enough bloodshed already in the Great Dark War, so rather than cause more, he’d left. He hadn’t been sure how the High Council would react to his return, but now he knew: they still weren’t interested in rolling out the welcome mat for him. Why was he not surprised?

The wizard commander was still yelling at him as he landed in front of the house. The man raised his magic ring, threatening to cast a spell on Jasper if he didn’t follow him to the High Council’s chambers immediately. Jasper was losing patience with this fool. Now that he’d set Julia down on the soaking wet grass, he could see that she had definitely taken a turn for the worse. Being out in the freezing cold storm had affected her poorly, as he’d feared. Jasper needed to convince Dr. Pasko to help him, and he didn’t have time to waste on some puffed up army accusing him of being a traitor.

Jasper glanced back at the two dragons, who had also landed behind him. They smelled like smoke, and Jasper knew they were fire-breathing, not acid-breathing. That meant they’d be easier for him to take down, as an acid-breathing dragon himself. But he’d still have a hard time fighting against two dragons at once, even if they didn’t breathe acid. Add in a bunch of annoying wizard soldiers flying around, and the battle wouldn’t be pretty. But Jasper would fight if he had to, for Julia’s sake. And he would win. He had no doubts about that. He glared at the wizard commander, let out a warning roar, and then breathed out a long stream of acid.

He purposely missed the wizard commander, but he made sure the acid was close enough for the fumes to make the man feel lightheaded. The commander stepped back, his eyes wide with fear. He’d probably never seen a dragon breathing acid in person. It was a fearsome sight, and Jasper was angry. He roared, and looked at the wizard commander with rage in his eyes. The commander took another step backward, as did all of the other wizards in Jasper’s range of vision. Jasper looked back at the dragons. They hadn’t moved. He noticed, though, that they didn’t look like they were in particularly aggressive moods. They stood their ground, but they weren’t moving forward to attack. Fine. Let them stand there. As long as they didn’t try anything foolish, Jasper would leave them alone for now.

Jasper turned to give the commander one more warning glare, and then he began to shift into human form. Shifting back now was risky, Jasper knew. It made him more vulnerable to any magic attacks the commander or his soldiers might throw. But Jasper didn’t have much of a choice. He needed to be in human form so he could talk to Dr. Pasko and convince him to save Julia’s life. Jasper was banking on the threat of acid to keep the wizard soldiers in line long enough for him to get through to Dr. Pasko.

As soon as his transformation back to human was complete, Jasper bent down to pick up Julia. He held her in his arms like a baby, alarmed by how bright the flush in her cheeks had become. Even by the dim glow of Dr. Pasko’s porch light, Jasper could tell she was going downhill fast. Jasper was relieved that the soldiers seemed to still be giving him a wide berth, even though he was back in human form. They eyed him suspiciously, but did not raise their rings to attack. Jasper took a deep breath, and was about to yell out to Dr. Pasko, assuming Dr. Pasko still lived here, when he was interrupted by the front door flying open.

“What the hell is going on out here?”

At the sound of that voice, Jasper felt his insides clench. Moments later, he caught a glimpse of the man he’d never wanted to see again in his life. Dr. Pasko stood on his front doorstep looking somewhat like a mad scientist. He was wearing flannel pajamas, and his hair, which had gone completely white since the last time Jasper saw him, stuck out in every direction. When lightning struck and lit up the sky, it also seemed to light up the edges of Dr. Pasko’s hair, making it glow as though electrified.

Jasper swallowed hard, and told himself he needed to be humble. Knowing how Dr. Pasko behaved, Jasper was probably going to have to grovel a lot. But if groveling was the price for Julia’s life and magic, then Jasper would gladly pay it.

“Dr. Pasko, it’s me. Jasper Moffatt.”

Dr. Pasko squinted into the darkness, looking confused. Jasper noticed that he seemed to have aged considerably since he’d last seen him. Not only had his hair gone completely white, but his face also looked tired and wrinkled. “Jasper Moffatt?” he asked, his tone sounding more disbelieving than angry. Jasper took that as a good sign.

“Yes, Jasper Moffatt. Look, Dr. Pasko, I know we didn’t part on good terms before, but I don’t have much time to explain or apologize right now. So instead of a drawn out apology, let me offer you payment for your services. You see, I need help. Julia, this woman in my arms, needs a cure for a magic sterilizing curse. You’re the only one in the world who might be able to help her. If you’ll try, I’ll pay you double what you think I owe you from the treatment you gave me during the Great Dark War. And I’ll pay you triple whatever your normal fee would be for helping Julia. I swear on my honor as a dragon. I have the money to pay it, and I will. Just please, hurry. Julia doesn’t have much time.”

For a few long, terrible moments, time seemed to stand still. Dr. Pasko stared at Jasper like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. To his right, Jasper heard the wizard commander snort in derisive laughter, and Jasper felt his heart falling. Had he come all this way for nothing? Perhaps he should offer more money? He had the wealth now to offer Dr. Pasko whatever the man asked for, thanks to the fame that had quickly built around him after the Great Dark War. Jasper didn’t want to offer Dr. Pasko more money, but for Julia’s sake, he would. For Julia’s sake, he’d do anything.

Jasper felt his own cheeks burning with humility. Here he was in front of his old nemesis, naked thanks to the fact that he’d just shifted back to human form, and begging for help. Jasper chewed on his lower lip, thinking that no matter what Dr. Pasko wanted to charge him for help, the worst price he was paying for all of this was the shame of having to apologize and pay back the man who had treated him so poorly in return for the heroism Jasper had displayed.

None of that matters. Julia matters. It takes a real man to lay down his pride like this for a woman.

Jasper knew the words were true, and yet he could still feel his cheeks burning. Damn it, this was the hardest thing he’d ever faced. He wished Dr. Pasko would say something. At the very least, he wished he’d offer to take Julia out of the rain. But Dr. Pasko was still just staring at Jasper like Jasper was some sort of alien. Finally, he started shaking his head in wonder.

“Jasper Moffatt? It’s really you, isn’t it?”

Jasper shifted Julia’s weight in his arms. Dr. Pasko was acting really weird.

“Yes, it’s me. Dr. Pasko, I’ll pay you whatever you ask. I’m sorry for all the bad blood between us. But Julia needs help. Please, don’t let an innocent woman suffer because of our sour past.”

For another few long moments, Dr. Pasko stared at Jasper in confusion. Then, suddenly, the doctor seemed to snap to life. “Julia? This is Julia Nalley? The one who touched the ball infected with the magic sterilizing curse?”

Jasper nodded vigorously. Good, so Dr. Pasko already knew what was going on. The doctor back in Torch Lake must have reached him and talked to him before all the chaos broke out with Jasper’s escape.

“My god, I didn’t know they were going to send her today. I guess they finally got smart and decided to listen to me when I told them there was no time to lose. What are you waiting for, boy? Get her inside.”

Jasper didn’t bother to point out that he’d been asking to come inside since the moment he’d shifted back to human form. He just ran forward with Julia and followed Dr. Pasko into the house before the man could change his mind. When Jasper glanced over his shoulder, he saw that the wizard soldiers were looking around uncertainly. One of them moved forward as though to storm the door, but in the next instant one of the dragons swung his giant tail forward and blocked the doorway. Jasper looked back at the dragon’s face in surprise, and the dragon merely nodded at him in polite acknowledgement.

Jasper nodded back, then turned to follow Dr. Pasko. Apparently the dragon felt some sort of loyalty to Jasper that superseded his loyalty to the Lost Garden Clan. Jasper wasn’t sure why, but he’d take any help he could get right now. He just hoped that whatever had inspired Dr. Pasko to help would hold steady until Julia was in stable condition. Jasper worried that if Dr. Pasko saw his face in the clearer light of the inside of the house it would jar bad memories of his last encounters with Jasper.

But Dr. Pasko seemed to be fully focused on Julia, thankfully.

“Put her in the living room on the couch,” he ordered, his voice businesslike. “There are several blankets in there on the armchair. Get those soaking wet blankets off of her and cover her with the warm blankets. And then start a fire in the fireplace. You do know how to start a fire, right? I know you’re not a fire breathing dragon, but surely you can do it the old fashioned way?”

Jasper nodded meekly, and Dr. Pasko nodded back. “Get to it, then. I need to go get my medical supplies and call my assistant. This isn’t going to be easy.”

With that, Dr. Pasko disappeared down the hallway. Jasper quickly got Julia covered in warm blankets, and started a fire in the fireplace as he’d been asked. A few moments after he’d coaxed the fire into starting, a sleepy looking young wizard came into the room, rubbing at his eyes.

“You’re Jasper?” the wizard asked.

Jasper nodded.

“I’m Caleb, Dr. Pasko’s assistant. He told me to bring you some clothes and said he’ll be back in a few minutes. He’s preparing the magic herbal potion right now that will hopefully save Julia’s magic.”

Jasper noticed then that Caleb had a bundle of clothing in his arms. He took it gratefully and started to pull the clothes on. Caleb didn’t say much else, but he went to check on Julia, checking her vital signs and clucking unhappily at what he found.

“This isn’t going to be easy. The dark magic has already taken deep root in her bloodstream, from what I can tell. But if anyone can help her, it’s Dr. Pasko. She’s in the best hands possible.”

Caleb took a step back and crossed his arms, carefully observing Julia for a few minutes. The silence in the room felt so heavy to Jasper that he felt he had to say something.

“How long have you been Dr. Pasko’s assistant? I don’t remember him ever having assistants before.”

Caleb looked over at Jasper and smiled. “No, I don’t suppose you’d remember. You only knew him before he changed.”

“Before he…changed?”

Caleb nodded. “He’s a different man now, Jasper. And he’s been waiting for you. But there will be time to explain that all later, one way or another. First, we need to take care of Julia. Could you go to the kitchen to boil some hot water? It will be needed for applying the herbal potions. I’d like to stay here and observe Julia for a few more minutes. Her breathing patterns will give me clues as to how much potion we need to apply to which parts of her body.”

This didn’t really make sense to Jasper, but he figured he’d leave the details of treatment up to the medical professionals. He could handle boiling water, so if boiling water would help, then that’s what he would do. He rushed into the kitchen to get that task started.

A few minutes later, Caleb came into the room to fetch the water.

“Dr. Pasko is back, and he’s mixed the potions. He will apply them now, using the precise techniques he has developed. You’re welcome to observe, but please stay out of the way and don’t say anything. It works best if Dr. Pasko’s concentration remains unbroken.”

Jasper nodded, and silently walked back into the room. Dr. Pasko didn’t look up at him, but Jasper wasn’t sure whether this was out of animosity or if it was because Dr. Pasko was just too focused on what he was doing. Jasper couldn’t help but wonder what Caleb had meant when he said that Dr. Pasko was a changed man.

Whatever kind of man Dr. Pasko was, Jasper was fine with it, as long as he saved Julia. For the next several hours, Jasper watched as Dr. Pasko and Caleb applied herbal potions all over Julia’s skin. The whole experience felt surreal to Jasper. Dr. Pasko didn’t say much to him, and Jasper couldn’t help but thinking over and over that he was watching one of his greatest enemies applying potentially life-saving medicine to the love of his life. The experience felt humbling. Forgiveness was perhaps the hardest thing Jasper had ever done.

Not that he would say he had fully forgiven Dr. Pasko for the past. But he had at least let go of it for long enough to get help for Julia. Dr. Pasko’s living room was one of the last places on earth he wanted to be, but if being here saved Julia, then that’s where Jasper would stay.

The potions took hours to painstakingly apply. At one point, Caleb took a break and paused to come sit by Jasper. He explained that the potions had to be applied to different parts of the body, in differing strengths and for different amounts of time, in order to effect a cure. The whole thing seemed quite precarious to Jasper, but it was his only option. He had to trust that Dr. Pasko and Caleb knew what they were doing.

As the first gray light of dawn began creeping through the living room windows, Dr. Pasko finally declared that he had done everything he could.

“Now what?” Jasper asked. His voice cracked from exhaustion as he spoke.

“Now we wait,” Dr. Pasko said. “It can take anywhere from four to forty-eight hours to see results, so it might be two days before we know if it worked. For the moment, I’m going to get some sleep and I suggest you do the same. Caleb, please show Jasper where the guest room is.”

With that, Dr. Pasko turned and left the room, not saying another word to Jasper. Jasper still didn’t know how much Dr. Pasko was going to charge him, or why the doctor was even helping him. Jasper figured it must be a matter of pride. If Dr. Pasko did manage to cure Julia of a supposedly incurable disease, it would be a nice claim to fame for him, after all. But whatever the doctor’s motivations, Jasper didn’t care, as long as the cure worked.

He waved Caleb off when Caleb tried to lead him toward the hallway. “I’ll just use some of these blankets and sleep on the floor next to Julia. I don’t want to leave her side.”

Caleb looked for a moment like he might protest, but then he shrugged. “Suit yourself. If you change your mind and want a bed, the guest room is the second door on the right down that hallway.”

Jasper nodded sleepily, feeling like he didn’t even have energy left to speak a reply. But when he finally lay down in the blankets, sleep eluded him despite his exhaustion. He couldn’t stop thinking about the not-so-warm welcome he’d gotten from the wizard soldiers in Lost Garden. How had they known he was coming, and why had they been so insistent on taking him to the High Council in the middle of the night? He supposed someone from Torch Lake must have alerted them that he was on his way. It wouldn’t have been hard to figure out that he was bringing Julia here. The receptionist in Torch Lake knew he’d overhead the doctor there talking about how Dr. Pasko might have a cure.

Jasper winced. He knew he would be punished for kidnapping Julia. There’s no way the High Council in Torch Lake was going to let that one go without consequences. But how severe would his punishment be? Would they kick him out of town? Was he now unwelcome in Torch Lake, just as he was unwelcome in the Lost Garden Clan? He seemed to burn through clan memberships pretty quickly.

A slight sigh from Julia startled Jasper, and he sat up straight to look at her, hopeful that she was waking up even though according to Dr. Pasko’s estimates it hadn’t been nearly long enough for the potions to work. Her eyes were still closed, though. She had just shifted in her sleep.

Jasper reached over and laced her fingers in his. “Hang in there, Julia. If you make it through this, and your magic is intact, this will all have been worth it. Even if I lose my new clan.”

No longer able to close his eyes, Jasper stood and walked toward the front window. When he looked out, he was startled at what he saw. There, on the front lawn of Dr. Pasko’s house, the two dragons that had been part of the wizard’s soldier group sat. They had been joined by a third dragon as well, and the dragons seemed to be guarding the house. Beyond the border of the lawn, several wizard and shifter soldiers stood, all wearing the Lost Garden Clan uniform. But it was clear that they weren’t coming any closer because of the dragons. Every now and then, one of them would walk forward and try, and the dragons would let out a low warning growl. The soldiers would step back in frustration, not wanting to fight with the large, determined beasts.

“My god. They’re protecting the house.” Jasper watched in awe, not sure what to make of all this. If it hadn’t been for those three dragons, Dr. Pasko wouldn’t have been able to work in peace. And Jasper probably would have had to have been out there fighting the whole time. But why had a trio of Lost Garden dragons been so eager to hold back their fellow soldiers, who were only trying to follow High Council orders to arrest Jasper, a man accused of being a traitor to their clan?

As Jasper watched, one of the dragons turned its giant head back to look toward the window, as if it knew it was being watched. Jasper held his breath, wondering how the dragon would respond. It merely nodded at him politely, then turned to resume its guard duties.

Jasper shook his head in wonder. This had been a strange night. He still had so many questions, and he still felt uneasy sleeping in the house of his enemy. He was also worried about Julia, and about his own standing in the Torch Lake Clan. But he had a strange feeling that somehow everything was going to work out okay. With that dragon’s nod, he had been reminded of one solid truth: no matter what the world threw at you, if you had dragons on your side, then everything would be okay.

Jasper went back to lie down beside the couch, reaching his fingers up to take Julia’s hand again.

“It’s going to be alright, Julia. I promise,” he whispered. “You’ve got a dragon on your side.”

And then, mercifully, he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.