At first, nothing happened.
We all stared at the dragon as it sat on the floor, looking around curiously.
“Well,” Tandor mused. “That was anticlimactic.”
“Don’t jinx us,” Kizzi said.
Ember slowly rose onto unsteady legs, looking more like a baby deer than a fearsome beast of legend. His wings unfurled and stretched. The veins were visible through the thin skin, dark and faintly pulsing.
We all tensed, prepared for the dragon to take flight, but he didn't. He simply curled his wings back up and then took an unsteady step. And then another, more solid. And another. With a start, I realized he was walking toward me.
I froze, holding perfectly still, not sure if I wanted to scream and jump up and down or throw up and cry.
My pulse hammered erratically in my chest.
Redd rested a reassuring hand on my shoulder, warm and solid.
The dragon approached, slowly, timidly, sniffing the air the entire time.
I held my breath.
And then the dragon stretched open its tiny maw.
CHAPTER 7
Kizzi
Fiella trembled like a leaf. It would have been hilarious if I wasn’t also terrified and on the verge of vomiting myself.
She watched the dragon warily, as if it was capable of swallowing her whole. Redd, to my surprise, didn’t pull her from the dragon’s path. He simply watched the dragon with the sharp gaze of a predator, prepared to step in and protect his mate if he needed to, but willing to let her have this moment on her own.
I admired him for that. I knew the protective instincts were hard to quell.
When Ember opened his jaws and tensed, I expected a stream of unholy flames. For all of us to die and burn to a crisp, and for the shop to crumble to ash.
I tensed to leap. At what, I wasn’t sure. I certainly wasn’t fireproof, but if Fiella was going to burn, I was going to burn with her.
It was futile.
All that escaped the mouth of the tiny dragon was a puny squeak, followed by a burst of hot air that merely fluttered Fiella’s cloak.
I let out the heaviest exhale. My head swam with relief.
The room settled into a tense silence, all of us brushing off the near-death experience. I wiped a bead of sweat off of my forehead. The dragon closed his maw and stared at Fiella questioningly.
“Well,” Tandor said awkwardly. “That was kind of adorable.”
Fiella choked. “Adorable! I almost died!”
Redd rubbed her shoulder. “You were very brave.”
She hadn’t been brave at all, actually. She screamed like a wailing baby. But I wasn’t going to say that out loud, because I had let out a squeal or two myself.
“I’m going to try something…” Tandor stepped forward slowly, extending his hand. His fingers trembled.
I should’ve known the gentle orc would be the first to attempt to pet the murderous creature. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to smile or shove him out of the way to protect him. The indecision kept me rooted to the spot.
He knelt, slowly, hesitantly. His muscles twitched with the restraint—I could tell he was itching to scoop the tiny dragon up in one smooth motion.
