Chapter 11

by Amanda Cast

The Bludgeoning

“Gods and a half with dragon’s breath, Hetia,” Pandora said grasping at her chest. “What is wrong with you?”

“There are filthy beasts on my counter top!” she bellowed frantically.

“They’re not filthy, Hetia. We made them wash up before breakfast. Calm down.” Pandora beckoned the dragon hatchlings over to her and they all moved closer to her side of the counter.

“Don’t talk back to me you insolent girl! This is my kitchen. How dare you bring them in here?” The wide woman’s face was red. Pandora could not remember a time where the woman’s face was not red. Maybe it was the heat of the kitchen that kept her that color.

“I’m not a guest here, Hetia,” Pandora said calmly. She was casually looking away from her as she situated the dragons so that she could carry them all. Ruby and Star were positioned on her shoulders, but they were too large and uncoordinated to balance on their own side so they were using her head as support. So long as she didn’t move too drastically they should be fine. Topaz and Emerald climbed into the crooks of her arms.

“That means nothing. This is my domain!”

“And I am a mistress of this household,” Pandora said, turning and even gaze to the angry cook. “You do not run this household. I am your master’s niece. You will remember that. Do you understand me?”

“You cheeky little…”

“Is there a problem?” Serene asked darkly from behind Hetia.

Hetia went from scarlet to pale white. “Mistress Serene, I didn’t see you.”

“Obviously,” she drawled stepping around the woman. Usually Serene was cowed by the woman, but Pandora’s show of bravado as well as Hetia’s disrespect of her beloved cousin gave her a back bone she didn’t know she had. Hetia knew that she was in trouble when Serene used her more adult tone with her. “Do I need to get Daddy here to straighten up matters, Hetia?”

“No, mistress, no,” Hetia assured her. “I just… Please keep the dragons out of the kitchen. They do not belong in here. They belong…else where.”

“And where do you expect us to put them?” she asked as she physically coaxed Star off of Pandora’s shoulder. Pandora stood there patiently as the little dragon shifted from one body to the other. “They can’t eat at the table until they are big enough to chose a form. They can’t eat on the tables and they can’t eat on the floors.”

“Why not, Mistress Serene? They’re just animals.”

“They’re not animals, Hetia. They’re sentient beings just like you and I.” She coaxed Ruby off of Pandora’s shoulders. “In fact, they’re probably going to be far smarter and far wiser than the both of us. They already have one of us far out stripped.”

“That’d be you,” Ruby said contemptuously to Hetia.

Hetia’s face turned bright red again but she did not dare say anything else that would make Serene angry at her.

“Also, Pandora is right. She is a member of this household. She is not a servant. You are. If she asks for something, you will give it to her. If she gives you an order, you will follow it. Do I make myself clear?”

“Y-yes, Mistress,” the woman sputtered more than stammered.

“Good. We’ll be leaving now. Since you were so ungracious you can clean up the mess.” Serene situated the two hatchlings in her arms and then left the kitchen in such a stately fashion Pandora couldn’t believe she pulled it off in a brown short tunic and green loose fitting pants. Astounding.

Pandora followed after, but paused long enough to give the head cook a meaningful look. Pandora decided that she was a mite bit irritable. She hoped that it would get better before it got too bad.

“Serene, the hatchlings are tired. It is proper for them to mostly eat and sleep?”

“For the first month, yes,” Serene said. “They do a lot of growing and a lot of itching. We’re going to have to get some kind of oil for them while they’re growing. The book says that dragon parents rub it over their hatchlings until they can take their form. After that the growth can be done in such a way that it doesn’t stress out the hide.”

“When will they start getting scales?”

“Oh, um, I think that will be when they’re fifteen, but they won’t fully mature into their powers until they’re almost one hundred. I think they have a lot of schooling and such to do before they’re allowed to mingle out in the open and be encountered by humans.”

“Seems we’re doing things incorrectly then,” Pandora said worriedly.

“Well, we’ll do the best that we can. I’m not much of a mage. I’m more of a trick with some cantrips added in to make it look more fun. I think that today is the easiest time I’ve ever had with that heating spell.”

“Oh, I see,” Pandora said.

“Anyway, you need to get dressed. Are you and Daddy going to be fighting in the garden again today?”

“That was the plan,” Pandora said. They were supposed to spar the day before, but life happened. Literally.

“Oh.”

“Ruby wants to sleep in the garden. I told him he could while I was sparring.”

“Oh, that’s good,” Serene said with a smile. “What about the others?”

“They say they want to sleep in the heater room. I don’t want to leave them alone in case that mean mage comes back.”

“I don’t blame you,” Serene said with distaste. “He was a real piece of work.”

Pandora nodded even though Serene could not see her. Serene did not say anything so either she understood that Pandora agreed or she just did not care enough to comment.

“Mother? Are we going outside now?” Ruby asked, shaking its head around so that it could see Pandora.

“Not right this instant. We have to eat as well,” Pandora told it. “If we don’t have our nourishment then you might not be in good sorts.”

“Oh,” Ruby said and cuddled against Serene.

Serene led them to the Parlor. “I’ll wait in here while you dress.”

Pandora nodded and deposited her burdens next to Serene on the couch. “I’ll be right back.” She turned around sharply on her heel and her off white night gown twisted around her legs before settling back down. The recognition of the movement almost made her want to wear a dress.

When she got up to her room she changed her mind about the dress and pulled on grunge clothes just like her cousin was wearing. She would have to spar with her uncle, and she didn’t want to ruin anything that was pretty. The clothes were loose on her so that she had plenty of room to move, but were tight enough so that they would not snag on everything. She took off her favorite gold ring and deposited it into her jewelry box before heading out of her room.

Serene was dozing on the couch when she came back. Star was curled up in her lap and the little dragon’s nose was touching Ruby’s as it rested its head on Serene’s lap. Topaz was curled up against Serene’s tiny thigh. It was a comforting picture except for the fact that Emerald was sleeping against the arm of the couch as far away from the others as she could get.

Pandora felt a pang of sadness strike her heart and she approached the scene quietly. With as much care as she could manage the girl scooped the tiny dragon into her arms. Emerald’s eyes slowly opened and closed and its respectively tiny mouth opened wide with a yawn. Pandora cradled her against her chest and kissed her lightly over her right foreleg.

“Mother?” Emerald murmured.

“Yes, my dear,” Pandora said softly.

The hatchling’s head snaked up and nudged Pandora’s neck. “I’ve decided.”

“Decided what?”

“That I want to be a girl,” she said. Pandora could not see the change, but she could hear it. “I think… I think I want to be like you.”

“Oh, Emerald,” Pandora said softly. “You need only be yourself. Never fear. I love you.”

Comforted, Emerald fell back asleep, and Pandora held her until Lindal came down for breakfast.

“How are my two lovely ladies?” he asked and patted Pandora on the cheek before stooping down and giving her an affectionate kiss on the cheek. Pandora smiled at him but did not return the token of affection.

“There are three lovely ladies now, Uncle Lindal,” she said proudly and presented Emerald to him. The movement was small so as not to disturb Emerald, but he got the point.

“Well, that’s good, considering her name.”

“Oh, well, if they don’t like the names they can change them. It just seemed easier to name them this way. Star changed its name from sapphire star, after all.”

“Oh yes, how could I forget?” he said with a grin. “Emerald is a lovely name. I hope she’s pleased with it.” He gave Pandora a sly look. “I bet Star will be a girl, but the others will go with being boys.”

“Why do you say that?”

“It’s a wager.”

“Well, I wager they’ll all want to be girls like their mothers.”

He snorted. “They’re getting noticeably bigger already,” he said. “Oh, I could have forgotten…” He chuckled to himself. “Leeland found some aloe oil for you to use to help with their skin during their growth spurt.”

“Oh, wonderful,” Pandora said. “Do you like the sound of that, Emmy?”

Emerald crooned. “I am feeling a little itchy.”

“Well, after Serene and I eat breakfast we’ll oil the four of you up.”

“Wonderful,” Emerald said sleepily and fell back asleep.

~*~

“I feel so gross,” Serene whined. Her fingers were covered in the oil and it was smeared all over her arms and face. Some of it was even in her hair.

“Should be good for our skin, too,” Pandora said bemusedly and scrubbed her arms with some rather caustic soap. “However, I don’t have time for it to sink in.”

“Their skin just sucked it up.”

“Well, they’ve young hides,” Pandora said with a half smile. “Ruby is looking forward to its nap in the sun shine.”

Serene nodded and shuffled from side to side impatiently. She was eager to use the washbasin. “I think Emerald wants to go out with you too. I think that maybe we should take all four of them out. I need some sunshine myself.”

Pandora nodded agreeably and shook the loose droplets of water off of her hands and arms. She plucked the towel up that was laid out beside the basin and started drying off her hands and arms. She moved aside for Serene who practically threw herself at the basin.

“I’ll take Ruby and Emerald with me then,” she said. “I’ll see you down stairs in a few moments.”

Serene nodded distractedly.

Pandora hefted up the hatchlings. They seemed to have grown considerably in under the twenty four hours they had been out in the world. They went from the size of small cats to that of a larger sized small dog. The two wrapped their tails and necks around Pandora’s arms as she carried them down to the garden.

When Pandora deposited them on a bench Ruby curled up into a small ball on top of it. Its freshly oiled skin soaked up the sunshine and it glowed a happy red in only seconds.

Emerald looked less than pleased to be out in the open. She slid down off of the bench and landed on the ground with a soft thud. Pandora sighed, but Emerald just twitched her tail and slipped into the shade under a bush and slept there.

Pandora shrugged and gave Ruby an affection pat on the head. The hatchling was uncomfortably warm and she shook her hand with a mild grimace.

“Are you ready then, Pandora?” her uncle asked. Pandora had not heard him coming, but she was surprised at it anymore.

“Yes, Uncle Lindal,” she said and reached back to twist up her hair. “Serene will be watching us today, I think,” she said.

“Oh, excellent,” he said with a grin. “Did I see you bring Emerald out?”

“Oh, yes,” Pandora said with a nod. “She doesn’t care for sunshine. She is sleeping under a bush.”

“Well, she must like the cool,” Lindal said approvingly. He reached into a side pouch and pulled out a small vial. It was made out of silver lined gold. It was the optimum way to keep magical potions at their best. “We’ll be needing this today,” he said and set the vial under the bench where it would be safe from excess heat and kicking feet.”

“Tired of going easy on me, Uncle?”

“Oh, I think we’re done with drills. Today we’re going to enjoy ourselves.”

Pandora gave a pleased smile and they stepped into a large clear circle in the middle of the garden. It was where they said they kept party like items during a social gathering. It was also an excellent place for Lindal to teach his niece.

Before they started Lindal muttered a few words and for a brief moment a wall of light shot up. It was a resistance barrier. Someone could walk through it if they were patient, but if it was struck the barrier would stop it dead. The barrier was to protect their surroundings, not them. He then walked over to Pandora and said a few more mystical phrases and she felt her skin tingle.

“There… that should stop you from taking too much hurt,” he explained and then did the same thing to himself.

They faced off and bowed to one another. It was a comforting ritual for Pandora. They then stood and stared at one another for a moment. “Do you insist on depending on your hands?” he asked.

She nodded. “You won’t always be able to carry a weapon Uncle, even when your foe can.”

He nodded and pulled a wooden sword out of his dimensional bag. It was made out of heavy, hard ebony and lined with a thin wire of metal to make it hurt more, but it wouldn’t maim. “Well, I’ll be attacking you with this,” he told her.

She nodded, feeling the familiar rush of anxiety. She allowed herself a moment to close her eyes and enjoy its thrill. Her eyes opened again when she heard the dirt under her uncle’s feet crunch. She managed to just dodge his first cleaving blow, but she could feel it rub against the cloth of her shirt. The weapon was heavy and slow compared to what she was used to, but her uncle was strong and agile.

His second blow connected with her thigh and her eyes watered with the pain that throbbed from her leg. He didn’t relent as he usually did. She stumbled instead of stepping back and allowing her to regroup before attacking again he struck her again. This time he hit her on her collar just to the left of her neck. She let out a howl of pain. He stepped back and let her catch her breath.

“Is anything broken?” he asked.

She could not breathe to answer him. She tried to clutch her collar but it hurt and this time she could not cry out.

“Pandora?” her uncle asked with his own anxiousness.

She waved him away and finally managed to get some air into her lungs. “Fine,” she said and gingerly rolled her left shoulder. She then experimented with raising it over her head. She only managed it half way before the pain stopped her.

“Perhaps we should go back to drills?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No,” she murmured and reclaimed her spot on the circle. He moved to his. This time there was no anxiety. There was only the physical pain. He did not bow this time. He simply threw himself at her, his sword prepared for a thrust. She side stepped it and he kept going forward.

Instead of taking the opportunity to strike him she took the time to put some distance between them.

“Mistake,” he said, swinging his wooden weapon at her. She rolled onto the ground to dodge it. When she was coming back to feet she was behind him. He was turning as she was turning and punching. She struck him in the gut and he doubled over. She then thrust up the ball of her hand into his chin. She felt the pain of contact and his head snapped back. He stumbled away and she pushed herself off the ground. It was slower than expected and her leg cried out in protest.

He recovered and aimed a controlled blow to her head. She managed to get out of the worst of it, but as she collapsed much like a puppet her ear was clipped. It throbbed. Her leg gave out and she collapsed the rest of the way onto the stone. As she tried to roll to her feet she just missed the point of the practice sword as it struck the stone with enough force that it bucked back into her uncle’s hands and made him emit a startled sound.

She supported her body with her arms and her let out another spasm of pain as she donkey kicked her uncle in the face. He fell back but was on his feet before she managed to get her legs to obey her. He cracked her hard across the back and she hit the ground hard with her stomach. She was once again winded.

“Better this time, but you’re not quite on your game.”

Pandora snorted, but did not move.

“Let me get that potion for you,” he said. “I might have hurt you with that last one. I was getting into it.”

“Not… bludgeoning weapon,” she said as she pushed herself up and slowly into a sitting potion.

“I guess you’re right. I am using it more like a mace.” He was already at the bench and had the potion in hand. “I should probably use it more like a sword, huh?”

“Yes,” she agreed and waited patiently as he approached her and held the potion out to her. She took it with her right hand and fumbled with the stopper with her left. When she managed to take a sip of it she felt a warm tingle through her body and the pain was gone. She put the stopper back on and stood up to replace it herself.

She noticed serene sitting under a tree with Star and Topaz and gave a small smile. Halfway to the barrier she saw the butler step through the entrance to the garden. He was ringing his hands and his face shone as though he had been sweating in the water cooled home.

“Master Lindal!” he called out for his attention. “The arch mage is here.”

<First><Chapter 10><Chapter 12><Latest>

Chapter 9

by Amanda Cast

May I call you?

Much to Pandora’s pleasure the mage broke out into a sweat as soon as he entered the heater room. Pandora and Serene had familiarized themselves with the discomfort, but the mage could only sweat and call up a breeze that was just as hot and roiling as the air he was stuck in.

All it did was dry his sweat and make him hotter.

Pandora smirked from behind his back. He was casting about uncertainly. She looked at the fire place where the precious eggs were being kept safe. Not for an instant did his eyes rest on the fire place.

“Is something wrong, Master Hindeon?” Lindal asked. His lips twitched.

“Nothing that wasn’t expected,” the mage said sourly.

“Having a long day?” Serene asked with a cavity causing voice and twinkle in her eye.

The mage snorted and looked at her with thinly veiled disdain. If Lindal noticed he did not say anything. Pandora watched him closely as they neared the fire place.

The eggs were nestled in the coals. It took great care and some enchantments to keep the coals from flaring up. It was hot, but it was a steady heat. The eggs looked perfect.

“This is quite astounding,” the mage said, unable to keep the awe out of his voice. He made the room feel dirty and took out the joy. “I’ve never seen a dragon’s egg in person before, much less four.”

“Well, now you’ve seen them,” Serene said with an ungratified edge to her voice.

“They must be studied.”

“No!” Pandora exclaimed and then her hands flew to her mouth. Her eyes were wide open with shock from her own out burst. “They are not yours to study. They’re living, sentient beings—not test subjects.”

The mage looked at Pandora with a glacier gaze. “Dragons are dragons, little girl.”

“They’re sentient just like humans and elves. They have rights too,” Pandora told him stubbornly.

“They have their own kingdoms and everything,” Serene piped in.

Pandora did not know that, but then she did not read every book on dragons that she could get her hands on for the last two weeks.

“That’s very nice,” the mage said with a dismissive flick of his wrist. “But this is magic! They’re filled with it, and we must study how.”

“Maybe it’s just the way they are,” Serene said wedging herself dangerously between Hindeon and the eggs. Pandora slid by him to stand beside her cousin. They stood with their legs braced apart. Serene had her arms crossed against her chest, but Pandora’s fists were planted on her hips. Serene looked furious and Pandora looked dangerous—at least for a twelve year old girl.

“You’re no match against me,” he told them haughtily, “So it’d be best for you to move out of the way.”

“We’re not moving,” Serene said with a wicked glint to her eyes. “You’d better leave my home.”

“What do I have to fear from two little girls?” he sneered.

“Well, they aren’t alone,” Lindal said darkly from behind the mage. “You might be able to take on two untrained and defenseless little girls, but I’m an elf. I’m raised to fight the likes of you since I was younger than they are. If you think you can best me, be my guest, however, I would advise that you listen to my daughter and my niece and leave. They have spoken. The eggs are their responsibility.”

“But not theirs.”

“You do not own a dragon,” Serene snapped. “They own you.”

“The Faire says differently,” the mage told her.

“They could leave whenever they choose. They let the mages keep them in those cages. You mages flatter yourselves far too much,” Serene told him boldly.

The mage’s nostril’s flared. “You are a cheeky little brat,” he said, but he did not dare get closer or even move his hands with Lindal standing behind him. He had heard rumors about Lindal. He had no intention of making him more angry than necessary. “It does not matter anyway. We will see how long you manage to defy the mages.”

The mage simply vanished.

“That is rude,” Serene said bitingly. “You’re not supposed to do that in people’s homes. Any mage with manners leaves and goes down the street before teleporting himself. That’s just… unseemly.”

“This isn’t over with,” Pandora said tiredly. Her emotional outburst tired her out and she slumped a little.

“Oh dear,” Serene fretted and collapsed on a stool. “What are we going to do, Daddy? We can’t let them take the eggs. There is no telling what the mages will do to them. They’re so young and fragile.”

“You’re right, Pumpkin,” he agreed. “Listen, you two,” he said seriously, “It is very important that you don’t tell the mages anything about what these dragons can do when they hatch. Make sure that the dragons are clear on keeping their powers secret. The mages are not to know what they are capable of at all. Do you understand?” The girls nodded mutely. “Good, now, I need to get this enchantment up to snuff to stop them from ‘portin into the house.”

The girl’s nodded.

“Comfort the eggs and then leave. We don’t know if negative energy will effect them.”

The girls nodded and turned to tend to the eggs. They crooned to them in draconic and in common. Pandora imagined that she was caressing them with her words. “We will let no one harm you.”

The eggs seemed to respond with trust. They seemed to say, “We knew you’d protect us. We knew you would never let anything harm us. We knew. We’ve always known.”

Satisfied, the girls left the room with Lindal’s promise that when he was done they could come back in. Nothing went as planned after that.

One of the eggs started to rock. It was a desperate rock that knocked it out of the fire. The girls stopped and turned to stare at it. It shook and muffled sounds emanated from it. It was the topaz colored egg. Pandora was the first to approach it. She spoke to it softly and for a moment it stopped moving.

“Are you sure that you’re ready?” she asked, reaching out and stroking the egg. “If you are, I’ll help you if you want. If you’re not ready I’m going to put you back into the fire.”

Something brushed against her mind. It was more of an impression than a thought. Ready, it seemed to say.

“All right,” she said softly and stood up. Her knees burned. She was kneeling longer than she realized. It was only two steps to the fireplace tools. She picked up the shovel and then turned around. She raised the black iron tool over her head and struck it down on top of the egg. A hair line crack formed.

That was all the egg needed. It rocked again and split open. A small reptile that was roughly dragon shaped spilled onto the floor. It was the same color as the shell with the same swirls and lines. He looked at Pandora with eyes looked like solid, smooth, and perfectly round topaz.

“Welcome, Topaz,” Pandora said kneeling down again. She reached out for the little hatchling and it scampered to her and leapt into her arms. Startled, Pandora rocked back a bit, but she cradled the hatchling in her arms.

“Are you my mother?” it asked with a strange, androgynous voice.

“Yes and no,” Pandora said. “But you may call me Mother if you wish. You must meet Serene, she has also loved and tended to you all of your existence.” She rose carefully with a dancer’s discipline. She then walked over to her gaping cousin. “Topaz has decided it is time for him to hatch. Isn’t it amazing? He can speak.”

Serene reached out for him and Pandora gently handed him over as women exchange a baby from one set of ready arms to another. “He’s so perfect,” Serene said lovingly.

“He? Are you a boy, Topaz?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t decided yet,” it said. “But I am hungry.”

“Oh,” Serene sounded. “Well, let’s have the cook make you some meat paste. We can’t… regurgitate like dragon mother’s can, but we can get you something soft and safe.”

It was a good thing Serene had read all those books, Pandora decided. She would have no idea what to feed them. She just assumed that they would eat fresh meat. It never occurred to her that they would need something fine and partially processed.

Well, the other eggs decided that they couldn’t be left out either.

<First><Chapter 8><Chapter 10><Latest>

Chapter 8

by Amanda Cast

Unwelcome Guest

On a cool autumn day Uncle Lindal burst into the heater room where Serene and Pandora were arguing over whether or not they should press the eggs to be any certain gender. When the door flew open Pandora and Serene jumped and looked at him with confusion.

"Go up to your rooms and wash up," he said hurriedly. "Wear something nice and grown up." Then he was gone.

The girls were not accustomed to panic from Lindal and Pandora wasn't accustomed to panic at all. Serene jumped up and rushed to obey her father's orders. She never had any doubt that when her father did command in such a way that it was important.

Pandora moved slower, but it was a faster pace than her usual. She loped the stairs with little concern in her mind for what Lindal would be worried about. If it was all that important he wouldn't be telling them to dress nicely.

Her Uncle had told her to freshen up, so she washed her face, privates, and arm pits thoroughly. She paused to look in the mirror to see if she missed anything and then ran the cloth over her arms and legs to get rid of the sweat that was there. She then dug through her closet for her favorite tunic.

If she was honest with herself, she'd admit that it wasn't a tunic. It was fit to her form, but it strained in her chest. When she had been fitted for it she was all but flat. Now her chest was beginning to develop and it was happening quicker than she liked. The fabric was a fine green linen that was sturdy and soft all at once. Along the hems of the garment pink and blue flowers were embroidered in an entwining pattern. She pulled it on over her head and situated herself. She turned this way and that until she was satisfied and the pulled on some tight fitting leather trousers that showed off her muscular legs quite nicely.

Pandora dug out her dress boots of black leather and pulled them on. She fiddled with them until they sat perfectly right under her knee just before it would start restricting her movement. She checked the silver and black lacing just a long the outside just to make sure everything was as she had been taught and walked over to the jewelry box on the oak vanity along the wall farthest from the window.

It was filled with castoff necklaces from Serene and bracelets that would fit around Pandora's wrist in some fashion. Pandora's hands were larger than Serene's so most everything was a tight fit. Lindal had bought her a couple of rings that Pandora thought tasteful. They were simple gold or silver with designs carved into them. Pandora couldn't stand having large rocks sitting on her knuckles like Serene could. She slipped on one of the rings onto her left index finger and then picked out a necklace. She clasped it around her neck and examined herself in the mirror for a long moment.

"Oh cripes," she mumbled and then reached for her hair brush and jerked it through her hair until met no resistance. The feathery strands along the outside half drifted up and she tried to smooth them down.

All in all it only took her ten minutes. She left her room and sauntered down the stairs. Serene burst out of her room in a flurry by the time Pandora was halfway down the first flight. Pandora paused and looked up to see what her cousin was wearing, and decided that Serene never looked quite so grown up before now, at least when she was standing still anyway.

For the brief moment that Serene wasn't running in her dress and slippers Pandora noted that the simple gown of pink muslin she wore made her look taller and accentuated what little chest Serene had through the lines in the dress. Her shoulders were bare and it show cased her color bones and the simple golden chain she wore. Pandora thought she looked prettier in that than in the curtain gowns she liked to wear out in public.

"Do you think Daddy will approve?" Serene asked when she caught up to her cousin.

"I don't see why not. What about me?"

"Well, you look fantastic, but I think he wanted you to wear a dress," she said with a mixture of approval and anxiety. "You really do look good. You could start a new style."

Pandora was silent for a while. Her mind rolled and turned for a reply. "You don't think I look plain, do you?"

"Oh, no, quite stunning. You're turning into quite the woman," Serene said. Serene was thirteen years old and her first monthly flow had ended just three days before. She was obsessed about the idea of becoming a woman.

"You look very pretty and grown up too," Pandora said awkwardly.

Serene blushed and beamed with pride, "Thank you!"

"It's only the truth," Pandora said evenly, "You shouldn't dress so gaudy all the time. It takes away from your natural beauty. Pink looks good on you."

Pandora hoped that Serene wouldn't go around wearing only pink from now on. That would be horrible.

When they reached the drawing room Pandora was a little nervous about what they were going to face. She couldn't imagine why her uncle would sound so panicked. With the exception of the dragon eggs he was always so calm and sure of himself.

She was not sure what she expected if she in fact expected anything. However, had she speculated she was fairly certain she would not have imagined an old man dressed in mage robes sitting by the window sipping tea with her caretaker. Lindal and the strange mage seemed to be having a very nonchalant conversation, and Pandora wondered where all of Lindal's panic had fled off to.

"Uncle Lindal," Pandora said respectfully to get their attention.

"Ah, Pandora," he said with an amused smile. "Is Serene with you? Ah, there she is. Why don't you two come and join us for some tea. Master Mage Hindeon has decided to call on the two of you."

"I hope I am not interrupting anything," the mage said with a tight smile. Pandora found him very insincere. His perfectly shaped goatee was even suspect.

"Nothing that can't wait," Pandora said before Serene could open her mouth to prattle on about just what exactly he had interrupted. Pandora guided Serene over to sit by her father and she took the seat angled closer to the mage.

"I have heard rumors about your home," the mage said succinctly.

"Rumors?" Lindal asked, drawing out the word with subtle surprise.

"Yes, I hear that you are keeping strange eggs in a fire place," he said with an amused tone.
Obviously fake, Pandora observed attempting to keep her face neutral. She was very good at neutral. "And if we are?"

"I would like a look at them. I'm very curious as to what they might be. The rumors also say that you two lovely young ladies are obsessed with them and hardly ever leave them unattended." He bore his gaze into Serene who was looking rather panicked. She was not sure what she should say.

Pandora watched him in her most unsettling fashion and he turned to look at her. Pandora suspected that he thought her nothing more than a simpleton. If he had done his homework that is definitely what he would think. Pandora knew she was not the brightest brain in the city, but she also knew that she was the most unnerving child and could look as though she was peaking into a soul she could not quite understand. He shifted uneasily.

"We are children, Master Hindeon. We are prone to your obsessions and our games. I don't see why you are so concerned with childish things."

Lindal covered his face with his tea cup, but Pandora knew that he was trying to hide a smile. "She is quite correct. My niece can be very astute when she puts her mind to it."

"And what does she normally put her mind to?" Hindeon asked. Pandora could feel his eyes grating over her and combing her with magic to find out what exactly she was good at.

"I like sparring," Pandora said for herself. "Hand to hand is my favorite. Uncle Lindal is kind enough to entertain my childish obsession."

"Is it really childish."

"People say girls are not supposed to fight unless they are part of the Empress's personal guard. I will never be in her guard now that I am disowned. It went from a dream of a profession to a childish obsession."

"Quite poetic, young Pandora," he mused dryly. "Why would your mother disown you?"

"You don't have to answer that, Pandora," her uncle said turning her gaze to the mage darkly.

"No, it's quite all right, Uncle Lindal," she said with an innocent smile. She turned back to the mage. "My mother was not fond of the idea of me keeping in contact with my cousin. She's very much a purest."

"Oh, I see," he said, mildly amused.

Pandora turned her attention away from him and looked out of the window. The sky was over cast and oppressive, but Pandora thought that the cool air and open area would be preferable to that of the mage's company. He did not seem like a nice man to Pandora, though she could not place her finger on why. He had not been anything other than polite.

"Well, with your permission, I would like to see what is in that fire place. It would calm down the people of the Academy to know that there aren't dragon eggs being kept in the city unattended."

"I assure you that there are no unattended dragon eggs in this house," Serene said with a sniff.

"Oh, undoubtedly," he said with a wry smile.

"Perhaps after we finish our tea and biscuits we will go and let you see what is there, Master Mage. The girls are undoubtedly hungry after their studying." Lindal gave his daughter a nudge under the table.

"Oh, certainly, Daddy," she agreed. "I'm quite famished. Discussing philosophy with Pandora can be very trying on the brain."

Pandora eyed her cousin. "I was never aware of a discussion, Serene. I do know I do a lot of listening though."

"Oh, you're such a wonderful listener, Pandora, and you never tell my secrets. It is so appreciated." She reached over and touched her cousin's and then gave it a good squeeze. "I'm so glad that we're so compatible."

"As am I, Serene," Pandora said with a small smile. She then picked up a biscuit and started to butter it slowly. She was in no rush to take the mage down to the heater room.

No matter how slowly Pandora ate or drank the tea still ended. She gulped down the last of her now cold tea and set it down. The inevitable had come. Tea was over and everyone was looking at her expectantly. Serene was not lying when she said she was famished.

Pandora decided that she put too much sugar in her tea. The after taste made her thirsty. She wanted water and it made her… irritable. She didn't like being irritable.

<First><Chapter 7><Chapter 9><Latest>

Chapter 7

by Amanda Cast

Counting Chickens

Pandora managed to fish out three more. One of them looked like a ruby that had been smoothed out rather than faceted. There were imperfections though. She could see orange and yellow swirls and it was very warm to the touch. The third she pulled out was a perfect emerald. She could almost see through it into the center. She imagined a perfect little dragon growing inside and hugged it to her chest after she pulled it out. Her heart was bursting with love as it never had before. She loved these little dragons even before they were hatched.

The last was the most peculiar. It was milky where the other ones seemed like clear gems. It was a blue-green with brown swirls lined with yellow. She stroked it and could almost feel the smooth topaz stone under her hands. She named them there. “Sapphire Star, Ruby, Emerald, and Topaz.” They were unimaginative names, but children rarely were imaginative.

“We should get them into some coals,” her uncle said picking up one of the eggs and cradled it gently. “This is unexpected.”

“Perhaps it is a secret the dragons kept and we stumbled onto it.”

“Perhaps,” he said staring into the emerald surface of the egg. “I wonder what kind of dragons they are.”

“I think the red one is a fire dragon,” Pandora said, vaguely remembering the description of the dragons.

“They say that dragons can pick their own gender,” Lindal said softly. “What will you be little dragon?” he asked.

“Should we tell Serene just yet?” Pandora asked as she hefted up the blue egg.

“No, we’ll tell her in the morning. Maybe you shouldn’t get too attached to their names until she sees them. You know how incessant she can be.”

Pandora shrugged. “I don’t know, Uncle Lindal. I think she’ll approve of the names. They’re appeal to her… feminine side.”

“Quite a vocabulary you have there,” he said eyeing her.

“Mother thought I was stupid, but I was never to sound stupid. Sometimes it just takes me a while to figure out what I’m going to say.” She looked down at the egg sadly for a moment. “But usually conversations pass me by before I think of something to say.”

“Ah,” he sounded. “Well, don’t worry about it, Pandora. One day Serene will learn to listen instead of speak so quickly.”

“Everyone speaks quickly compared to me.” Pandora blushed and shifted. “Let’s get these eggs taken care of.”

Lindal nodded and they moved to the heating room under the house. It was where they warmed the water for the baths. He sent the servants away and moved to the fireplace that the servants usually left unlit since it was already hot enough in the room to begin with. He laid the egg down next to it and then went to get some embers from the furnace and put them into the fire place.

“We’ll have to get some spells to take care of this. The furnace is enchanted to keep hot on very little, but the fire place isn’t.” He glanced at Pandora as she bravely situated the eggs into the embers. “We have to think of a way to explain their presence here. We can’t very well say that we stole Septum scales and these were the results.”

“No, I suppose not,” Pandora said.

“You and my daughter… you’re special, aren’t you?”

Pandora watched his face for a long moment. His voice sounded uncertain and his eyes were haunted with fear. “Yes, Uncle Lindal, we’re special.”

“What are you going to say.”

Pandora pondered. “I think we’ll say that there are some problems in the Dragon Kingdoms. They would not tell us what when they left us the eggs, but they want us to watch over them and keep them safe. It is a task brought to bear on those that speak Draconic as a songbird sings and as naturally as wind blows and water flows. We are the Speakers for however long we live, and are set to task.”

“You really can be elegant,” Lindal said fondly and ruffled her hair. “We’d better go get the other two.”

Pandora nodded. She was tired, but she didn’t want to cause a scene like Serene did. Pandora didn’t like to embarrass herself on purpose. “Perhaps you meant eloquent?”

“Oh yes, that’s the word.” He patted her on the head as he often did with Serene. The action was beginning to grow on Pandora who was used to having very little contact with anyone other than her father.

“Do you think we’ll make good parents to them, Uncle Lindal? I hope that we do.” Pandora sighed wistfully.

~*~

Serene agreed to the names without any complaint or argument. She was awed and overjoyed that instead of dragon scales she had actual dragons. Not soon after she was done hovering over them she escaped into the three level library for research on how to take care of dragon hatchlings. She came out only to sleep. She wouldn’t go to school.

Pandora withdrew from her classes at Ysfal so that she could better tend to the eggs. She continued her combat training with Lindal and when he felt he could no longer teach her anything he paid for people to tutor her. She would practice in the heat of the boiler room and sometimes read cute little stories out loud to the eggs.

More than once Lindal caught her crooning to them in a lyrical song without words. He didn’t doubt that it was Draconic she was speaking to them in such a loving manner. He wondered if they could even understand her in their current state.

It seemed that they could because after several weeks of reading herself into exhaustion Serene came out more hungry that usual and ready to talk to the eggs. She inhaled more food than her father could remember her ever eating and then she sat by the eggs and babbled away at them the differences between boys and girls and what the benefits were. Of course, she didn’t get through any of it without some barbs about how freakish her cousin was for a girl.

Pandora took everything in stride and would give Serene a stern look if she felt the excitable half-elf was getting too detailed. They were babies and didn’t need to hear about sex in such detail even if it was clinical. Pandora decided that Serene read too much, and wondered how on earth such a rambunctious girl could sit still for so long.

There were so many mysteries in the world.

“They say that eggs can take years to hatch. Do you think it’ll take years, Pandora?”

“I don’t know. These aren’t normal dragon eggs. If they take years we’ll be much older by the time they arrive, and maybe more prepared for them.”

“Well, the books say that dragon eggs start off very soft. These seemed very hard, but I don’t think they’re brittle enough yet. When they’re brittle we’ll know.”

“I don’t know about you, Serene, but I haven’t gone and touched them. It’ll burn us if we do.”

“Oh, you’re right,” Serene said. “The parents have to keep them very warm. I hope they’re not too cold. I’d be very sad if they were harmed because we didn’t tend to them right.”

“I’m sure it will be fine. They’re dragons and tough—much tougher than our lot.”

“Oh, I hope you’re right. I wonder what they’re going to choose to look like. Dragons always have eyes the color of their hides when they shift into humanoid form, but after that they get to choose what they look like. Isn’t that amazing? I wonder who they’ll want to mimic.”

“Maybe they’ll want to be unique,” Pandora said.

“Maybe, but I bet they’ll want to look like me. I’m pretty, after all.”

Pandora frowned at her cousin. “You’re pretty to humans and elves, maybe, but you might not be pretty to dragons. You never know. We’ve never knowingly seen a dragon in humanoid form. Who knows anyway? They may want to take the form of animals.”

“Oh, they can do that too! The more powerful they are the more forms they can choose. Isn’t that fascinating?”

“Oh, yes, I’m sure. I can just see all of the trouble they’re going to get into now.”

<First><Chapter 6><Chapter 8><Latest>

Chapter 6

by Amanda Cast

Septum Surprise

A hand was covering her mouth. It smelled of sandalwood and something sharp that she could quite place. It made her nose itch and she huffed and then sneezed into his hand. He pulled back and then wiped his hand on his shirt. It was black with black iridescent buttons. “Why did you do that?”

“You’re wearing too much perfume,” she said at the same volume he’d been speaking, but her voice was even and calm where his was shocked.

“It’s cologne.”

“I don’t like it, Uncle Lindal.”

“Shhh,” he said holding his fingers to his lips.

“Why do we need to be quiet in your own home?” she asked. She was a bit testy about being woken up in the middle of the night. She had only fallen asleep an hour before and was a bit groggy.

“Well, I can’t let the servants know what we’re about to do?”

Pandora frowned at him. “And what are we about to do?”

His voice got low and his posture changed to match. He leaned close to her and said so hushed that she could barely make out what he said, “We’re going to get some dragon scales.”

Pandora frowned. “You can’t just take them from a dragon, Uncle Lindal. Serene said so. The book said they had to give them willingly or die. I’m not killing any dragons.”

“No, no, no,” he said motioning with his hands for her to be quiet. “We’re going to take them from a very bad man who does bad things with them. It’s for the good of the city.”

“So we’re stealing?” she asked. She wasn’t the smartest person in the world, but she wasn’t entirely stupid either.

“No, no, no,” he said putting a hand on her shoulder. “We’re commandeering dangerous property from a dangerous man. It’s a public service for the good of the empire.”

“I’m not stupid, Uncle Lindal,” she said flatly.

“And I don’t think you are,” he told her and reached behind him and pulled out some black trousers and a black tunic. It didn’t have iridescent black buttons like his shirt did. Part of her was pleased with that. It was a simple linen that wouldn’t reflect light. His black silk shirt would do that. “But I need you to put these on. I need you to go with us to keep Serene calm. She insisted on going, and you’re the only one that can make her feel good about being quiet and patient.”

“That makes no sense. All she does is talk.”

“Yes, but she admires how calm you are. Really, Pandora, you should pay more attention to the world around you. I don’t know how you lived so long lumbering around like a blind giant.” He patted her head. “You’re a good kid though. I only need you for one small thing. You won’t have to hurt anyone or pick anything up. I promise.”

“But you’ll make me break into someone homes,” she said. “I didn’t ask for you to take me in. I shouldn’t have to do this as payment.”

“This isn’t payment, dear. This is a family outing.”

She stared at him and her wheels were turning in her head. “If he’s so dangerous, why are you taking two children with you?”

“I can’t get everything we need fast enough. Serene is faster than me and has more experience with the scales. I’m going to disarm everything and you and I are going to serve as a distraction. Do you trust me?”

“You shouldn’t ask questions you won’t like both answers to,” she told him. “Get out and let me dress. I’ll be outside in a moment.”

He let out a strangled noise of success and fairly vanished before her eyes he moved out of the room so quickly. She dressed slowly and deliberately, taking a small bit of pleasure in making him wait on her. When she moseyed out he handed her an amulet to wear around her neck and a stone encrusted ring.

“What are they for?” she asked.

He grinned at her and held his fingers to his lips. Serene was standing next to him. She was wearing a form fitting black outfit. She looked like a tube with spindly arms and legs. Compared to Serene Pandora was a brick. Both of them were only slightly developed. Pandora found out she was a late bloomer from a teacher and several of her female classmates. Pandora suspected that Serene’s mixed heritage contributed to her flat chest and stick shaped body.

“Good thing he isn’t far away,” Lindal said as he led the girls out of the house and down the street. There was a curfew in the city. It wasn’t strictly enforced, but the Centers were always shut down at a certain time. If someone didn’t get there in time they would have to find a hotel to sleep in or find a mage that would make them a temporary portal home.

The home they approached was dark and Pandora found herself disoriented from lack of sleep and adrenaline. She followed blindly after Serene and her uncle almost bumping into valuable items along the way. She imagined that the man they were robbing was as tacky and as much a collector of junk as her uncle and cousin were. She couldn’t remember where they had come from and couldn’t determine where they were going.

All she knew was that her uncle stopped a lot to wave his hands around and fiddle with magical devices.

Pandora wanted to go home and sleep—that was, if she could fall asleep after all this madness.

Almost there, she thought to herself. They had to be. She couldn’t stand much longer in the house. It reeked of magic and the spells seemed to cling to her skin and stick to her hair like smoke.

Everything happened so fast after that it almost made her head spin. When they broke into a wonderfully decorated vault filled with glass show cases she was directed to a raised platform. She was to stand there and wait until something happened. She didn’t know what that something was or what she was supposed to do about it. The room was dark, but she could just hear her extended family scurrying around in the dark picking up this and that.

Then something dark and foreboding entered the vault and looked straight at her. “What is this?” he shouted.

Pandora stared at him and then a voice behind her started talking in a very strange voice. It was loud and she couldn’t understand the words, but it made her dizzy. She felt a small hand grab her ankle and then the three of them were gone.

~*~

“Some of the scales are missing,” Serene said with a panic stricken voice. “I know I counted them right. Did you count them right, Daddy? I know there were supposed to be 67. I know there were, but 28 are missing. No more scales are coming out. All four of a certain type are gone. They’re the wish scales. That is an extinct dragon, Father. Some mage killed the last of them centuries before I was even born. We may never find another.”

Pandora watched her quietly for a moment. She was surrounded by scales of all types and colors. Many of the scales had patterns on them. Serene, who had read the book front to back, knew exactly what each kind was. She was devastated over losing the wish scales.

“They’re gone, Daddy, gone!”

“I’m sorry, Pumpkin. I’m sure we’ll find out where some more are. I’ll look around for them, all right? I swear.”

“But Daddy,” she whined, “It has to be in here. I know I put all four in here.”

Pandora took a seat on a stool and nudged one of the scales with her foot. She had no idea what kind of scale it was, but it was a red scale with a black pattern on it that reminded her of a child’s heart. She reached down and traced it with her fingers.

“They’re scales from one of the septums. I so wanted to have a set of all of the dragon septum scales. It would have been so amazing. He had all the other ones. Some of those are missing too! I don’t understand.”

“Perhaps you’re not thinking the right thoughts,” Pandora suggested as her eyes traced over the pattern on the scale over and over.

“No, I know it should work because I got all the other ones. I don’t know what is wrong with it. This stupid bag must be broken!”

Pandora sighed. “Can I go to sleep now?”

Lindal gave her an almost pleading look.

Pandora sighed again, only this time it was deeper and heavier. “Look, Serene, I think you’re just tired. I think you should to go sleep, and then we’ll give the bag a closer look. I’ll help Uncle Lindal put the scales away. You just calm down and get some rest for school in the morning.”

Serene looked as though she was going to cry. “Fine!” she said and threw the bag down onto the ground and ran out of the room.

Pandora picked up the bag and looked into it. She pondered for a moment and then reached one hand in. “Give me the Septum,” she said authoritatively and something hard and rather large was in her hand. She got down on her knees carefully and set the bag down on the floor so that she could use her second hand to pull out the object. In her hand she held on very large chicken egg shaped item that was sapphire blue streaked with silver. “What is this?” she asked.

“A dragon egg,” her uncle said in utter amazement.

<First><Chapter 5><Chapter 7><Latest>

Chapter 5

by Amanda Cast

New Beginnings

Her arms and legs were wrapped in silk. It was so smooth, but not really soft, not like her linen. The sun light warmed her cheeks and hair. Birds sang outside, but it seemed so much farther away than what she was accustomed too. The sounds were muted.

She opened her eyes slowly and then blinked. The room was blue. No, it was just tinted in blue. She turned her head. The curtains were blue. The light that filtered through them was blue. The walls were painted a pale blue. She must be in “The Blue Room.” She heard that nobles and rich men would name their rooms after colors and stations.

Her uncle was a rich man.

She couldn’t fit into any of Serene’s clothes. She was a giant compared to her cousin. She had to wear her uncle’s shirt. It fit her for a night gown, but would not do for several more years for an everyday shirt.

When she finished dressing into her clothes from the day before there was a knock at the door. “Yes?”

The door opened and a servant entered the room. He was a balding and thin human man. She thought that he was cliché for a servant, but didn’t say as much. “Oh, you’re awake and dressed, miss. I was coming to wake you for breakfast. Then, my master—your uncle—would like to take you out to get you a new wardrobe. It wouldn’t do for his new ward to be dressed like a peasant girl.”

“I’m a free citizen. I’m no peasant,” Pandora said with a frown.

The servant shrugged and gave her a sideways look, but did not dare be rude to the new mistress of the household until her welcome began to wear. “I suppose I’ll take you there now since you won’t know the way.”

She nodded and followed after him. She was fully dressed, but something made her feel naked and vulnerable. She couldn’t figure out what that could possibly be, but she didn’t feel right. The linen was too light and soft. She was too aware of it.

The halls were tacky. The walls were papered with gold, blue, and purple. The bottom and top were lined with green painted wood. Tables carved out of jade and decorated with gold handles and lines were placed in wide increments against the wall. Clearly expensive vases from cultures that Pandora couldn’t imagine sat on top of them. She shuddered and longed for her plane home that was filled with essentials.

This was far too frivolous for her. Even soft carpet was hard on her eyes.

“Pandora,” Serene exclaimed enthusiastically and launched herself from out of nowhere. “You’re awake already! Leave us Ulrich. I’ll take her the rest of the way.”

“Good morning, Serene,” Pandora said politely. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did. How ‘bout you?” she asked, fairly dancing. “How do you like my home? You were so tired when you arrived you went to sleep. But how do you like it? It’s wonderful isn’t it? My father collected all this stuff from his travels. He’s very adventurous.”

“It’s colorful,” Pandora said when Serene paused for breath.

“Daddy put you in the blue room because he thought you’d be more comfortable there, but I wanted to put you in the Empress’s room. It’s gorgeeeeeous.” She twirled around and walked backwards for a moment before turning back around and following Pandora’s languid pace. “It has paintings and little statues and… well, it’s wonderful. Almost as nice as my room, but you’ll collect your own stuff. I guess that’s why Daddy wanted you to be in our less adorned room.”

“It’s perfectly all right,” Pandora said. She was already weary of Serene’s constant babbling. “I’m not used to having much. It’s almost too much already.”

“Oh, don’t be silly! You’re one of us now.”

“I’m afraid I’m just me,” Pandora mumbled and let loose a heavy sigh. Why was it so hard for her to understand?

“I can’t wait to take you out to get dresses.”

“I don’t wear dresses.”

“Why not? They’re great. They swish and move with you and all sorts of things. Plus, they’re pretty.” She took a deep breath. “You’d look pretty in a dress. All that natural linen does is make you look plain.”

“But I am plain,” Pandora said with acceptance. She was content to be ordinary.

“You’re only plain because you dress so drab. We really have to fix that.”

Pandora bit back a sigh. She had nothing new to say to Serene so she just shut up and shut her out. Serene was terribly tiresome.

Breakfast was a more fair affair than she was used to. It almost made her lose her appetite. Almost.

~*~

Pandora managed to keep herself out of dresses for the most part. Her uncle had demanded that she have a couple in case a special occasion should arise, but she was more than welcome to wear what were more comfortable outfits on every day. It pleased her well enough. He was easy enough to rein in when it came to styles and colors so long as Serene didn’t get too excited.

Then he would just buy it to shut up his daughter. He told her that she didn’t have to wear the clothes if she didn’t want to.

Pandora wondered over and over how he got so much money, but then the conversation with Serene always came back to her. Her father was a thief. In her half-asleep daze Pandora could not bring herself to believe that her uncle actually stole from people. Stealing was wrong. Her mother always said so.

But then of course beating her father up on a regular basis was also wrong. Hating people because of things beyond their control was wrong. Telling a little girl she was an abomination was wrong. The memory of that made Pandora feel sick. Serene could be annoying, but she wasn’t an abomination. As far as appearance went Serene was the closest thing to perfect Pandora had ever seen.

Pandora was wise enough to never say that to Serene though. Serene would never shut up.

“Pandora!”

Pandora groaned quietly.

“You should come read this book. It’s about dragon scales. You’ll love it, I swear!”

Pandora pondered there being a magical voice system through the house. She knew that Serene was calling from the library. Serene was obsessed with dragon scales and Pandora since she received the gifts from the dragons. She was also sad that Pandora had given hers away to her parents. She offered to get them back but Pandora had refused. Pandora wasn’t a thief.

She also wondered where Serene got the patience to even hunt for information on the scales. Pandora had tired of it only a few minutes in and went out into the garden to spar her uncle. It seemed like a better use of her time.

“I know you don’t like looking things up,” Serene babbled matter-of-factly, “But I bet you’d still like to read it. It didn’t take me long to find the book, really. It’s in a language I don’t remember seeing before, but it is interesting. Do you read Pandora? Oh, I’m sure you do. You’re not that stupid.”

“Ignorant,” Pandora said. “People who can’t read are not necessarily stupid.”

Serene blushed, but Pandora only caught it from the corner of her eye. She was looking at the book. It was written in a strange language. At first the symbols and scratches didn’t make any sense, but after a minute of staring at it she was finally able to form words out of it. They felt odd when spoken, but they rolled off her tongue as easily as her own language.

“Wow, you sound really pretty when you say that,” Serene said dreamily. “I wonder if I do too. It’s so hard to say.” She gave a wistful sigh.

“Why don’t you read it aloud and we’ll see,” Pandora said. She had no desire to read out loud. It always made her nervous, and she didn’t want to sound like a fool in front of her cousin. She talked too much.

Serene made a fuss about clearing her throat and shifting her body so that she stood up straighter and looked more important. “There is nothing more useful than a dragon scale. All dragon scales have different properties. Their properties are generally denoted by their color. The most common types of dragon scales are elemental. Fire is the most common among those and earth is the rarest due to the fact that earth dragons tend to burrow themselves deep into the earth and only come out to mate. A conversation I had with an earth dragon long ago revealed that earth dragons prefer to help keep the world alive and fertile. They’re almost cultish in their devotion and rarely if ever breed with other types of dragons.”

Serene gave her cousin a smug look and then continued reading, “Fire dragons are hot headed for their race, but the most sociable. For any errand they will shed a scale for a mortal who will bother to listen to them. Their scales are often used to create enchanted swords for cutting through flesh with fire. Sometimes healers use flaming knives to cauterize wounds. Their power can also be used to create fire stones which are used for many things. The persons control over the stone is all that really limits the possibilities.”

“What about the blue one?”

“I’m getting to that.” She cleared her throat again. “Water dragons come in array of colors between blues and greens and can often be mistaken for other types of dragons. With blue scales and green scales it is incredibly important to know what type of dragon you got the scales from. Where fire dragon scales will heat up when they touch flesh water scales give no indication. Once I saw a very experienced enchanter try and make a water skin of endless water for trips over the desert. Instead he made a water skin that was so cold he froze off his hands. It was very tragic.”

“So dragon scales are used for enchanting,” Pandora said, proud of herself for picking out something important.

“And that’s not all!” Serene smiled smugly again before skipping over some paragraphs. “Some dragon scales are good for making armor—or should I say all dragon scales are good for making armor? If all or not some are definitely better. Elemental armor will make you resistant if not immune to magic of that element so long as you’re wearing the armor. Earth type dragons and war dragons make the best armor. There is an earth dragon that is commonly called a stone dragon that if formed properly will never crack or damage. You’ll fly before you feel a blow that lands on the armor. It’s stiff if crafted by non-dragons, but if you can ever get a boon from a stone dragon to enchant the armor you’ll never know anything better.”

Serene looked at her cousin with excitement. “We should get you some of that, Pandora. You like to fight!”

“I like to spar. I never intend to be in a situation where armor like that is necessary.”

Serene gave her a skeptical look. “Anyway, that’s the best part so far. If I read anything else that’s that interesting, I’ll let you know.”

“Thanks,” Pandora said and stared at the book. “What language is that written in?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Let me look at the introduction.”

“It sounds like a old man mage wrote it,” Pandora said and crinkled her nose. “He babbled a lot.”

“I didn’t notice. I thought it was interesting. Dragons do the darnedest things.” She hummed to herself as she thumbed through the pages. Something must have caught her eye because she stopped and flopped the book entirely open again. “Oh, this is interesting too, Pandie.”

“Please, Pandora.”

“Fine,” she huffed, “Pandora. Anyhow, it says that once now and again a person will be born that can speak Draconic, the language of the dragons. They are highly sought after by enchanters because they can get the most scales from dragons since dragons often favor those who possess the gift. Mages, however, do learn the language.”

“How much of that are you actually reading?”

“I’m skimming.”

“Fine,” Pandora said reading the book a little more thoroughly. She decided that whoever wrote the book wrote as much as Serene talked. “Do you think we’re like that?”

“Well, I don’t see why not. It says that only one who isn’t bonded exists at a time. That would make us special. Do you think this is written in Draconic?”

“Maybe. What is the title?”

“Oh, something silly like ‘How to Know What to Do When You Speak Draconic’,” Serene said off handedly. “Mages learn it all the time so that they can run errands for Dragons. The book says so.”

“Do books know everything?”

“Well, some books are wrong, but this guy probably lived with dragons. I bet he knows lots more about them than any mage ever will and a lot more than he wrote. I’m going to read it some more. Do you want to read it with me?”

Pandora shrugged. “Just let me know what you find out. I have to study.”

Serene looked crestfallen. “Oh.”

Pandora stood there awkwardly for a moment trying to figure out what she should say. “I’m just not as smart as you,” she decided on. “I have to work harder in school.”

This cheered Serene up, and Pandora went to her blue room at the reprieve.

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