SPELLBOUND

Evie was all ready and waiting at the bridge even before daybreak. Though she knew she could continue summoning the dragons and training them as she and her men travelled along, she had still wanted to get one more chance in her dragon training before they leave this place. She then called upon the seventh dragon and as soon as it landed before her, Evie was a bit surprised by its size. This dragon was definitely the largest among the weyr of the young dragons.

In fact, it was even a little bigger than the green-eyed dragon the dark fae had summoned back in the battle at Dacria.

When she saw that it was another male, Evie pressed her lips together tightly as she approached it. She quietly caressed the dragon's snout and then she stared at its spikes. The hues at the edges of the dragon's spikes were almost the same as the colour of Evie's silken hair and despite her disappointment that this dragon was another male, Evie smiled. She was determined this time to just give her best and not stress out no matter what the outcome will be with this last dragon.

"Silver," she said and then she caressed the dragon again. She did not seek to rush through this last training, and she was much calmer than the days before. "Alright, bear with me, okay? Silver?" Evie whispered while she still stroked the dragon's snout. Then taking her time, she climbed up and rode on the dragon's back.

In the sky, Evie simply sat on Silver's back and enjoyed the flight as he flew around, circling the immediate area as how the other dragons did as well. She silently watched from her high viewpoint, the castle as the daybreak arrived. Looking down, she was awed at the sight below her and at how vast and large this castle was. She realized now on how she was much too focused on her task on trying to control the dragons that she did not even take the time to look at this magnificent view below her.

At that moment, she began to envision how this castle would look like once it is back to its former glory. She could already tell what a magnificent sight it would be for all who laid eyes on it.

Leisurely, Evie just let the dragon continue flying with her on its back, for a long while. Before she even realised it, she was already enjoying the ride. She smirked at herself as this was the first time that she felt herself enjoying this part of the training after so many attempts with the other dragons in the past days.

Calmer than ever, Evie closed her eyes, and she began to communicate with the dragon with her mind. She did not try to command it this time. Instead, she spoke to the dragon in a very friendly way. And because she had been so relaxed and had treated the flight as a ride rather than a training session, her 'tone' of voice in her mind as she 'spoke' to the dragon was calm, warm and without the strain that was present in the previous times she had 'spoken' to the other dragons.

"Do you think you could breathe out fire like what I am trying to show you in my mind, Silver?" she asked as she calmly envisioned the dragon breathing out a stream of fire towards the sky.

To her surprise, she felt the dragon 'nod' in agreement, and he responded by doing exactly as Evie pictured in her mind's eye. Evie was stunned as she never would have thought the dragon would listen. Though she had asked, she was more prepared to be rejected in the request that she had made of Silver. She then asked Silver to breathe out fire again and when the dragon acceded to her request, Evie gasped in stunned surprise, her heart racing with joy. She was beyond thrilled now! She could not dare believe that the dragon actually listened to her requests! And of all times for her to succeed, it was to be on the last try with the last dragon. And to top it off, it was a male!

With a wide smile plastered on her face, Evie looked down at her comrades below and waved at them excitedly, not able to wipe that grin off her face. Evie then spent the entire morning training with Silver.

Once Evie was satisfied, she gave the cue to Silver, and he executed a perfectly smooth landing on the bridge and Zanya and her men were all smiles as well as they congratulated Evie on her job well done. Zanya had the highest praise for the princess as she understood the best on how hard it was to actually call for a dragon the first time and getting it to respond and obey you. On top of that, the princess managed to tame a male dragon on her first try with it. To Zanya, it was truly an impossible feat to achieve such results, thus, she was overjoyed for Evie as well.

This was the brightest smile their princess had shown for a long while now. They could tell she was truly happy that Silver had not only responded but gone on to obey every single one of her commands.

It was already afternoon when everyone had packed up and were finally out of the castle. Zanya was the last to come out as she went back to the throne hall for a while, stating there was something she needed to do before leaving.

After shutting the massive gates closed, Evie stood before those very gates and stared at them for a moment. Her eyes were gleaming with strong emotions as a small smile crept across her lips after she took a deep breath.

"I'm definitely coming back to this place." She promised to herself inwardly, "Wait for me."

A long and deep sigh escaped her lips and she finally turned towards her comrades who were waiting patiently for her. Another deep breath and then she finally moved forward.