“As if I’d run when I could saunter majestically,” Tigger scoffed.
Tutu’s eyes bugged out so far they almost hit the table. “That isn’t funny, Iolana.”
“What isn’t?” I asked cautiously. I’d heard Tigger, but the question was, had my grandfather?
“Throwing your voice to make it seem like your reptile spoke.”
Relief! Not crazy after all. “That wasn’t me. Tigger can talk.”
“Impossible,” Tutu exclaimed, his face red with annoyance.
“What seems more improbable is the fact that the chair you’re sitting in hasn’t broken.” Tigger cocked his head. “Must be quite a feat of engineering.”
The statement dropped my grandfather’s jaw for more than one reason. “Did you just call me fat?”
“I would have said heavy, which indicates this is a household that knows how to eat well. I hope to soon be even larger than you,” Tigger declared.
“You’re actually speaking.” An utterly stunned Tutu leaned back in his chair.
“So are you. It’s called having a conversation. I swear, humans are dumb. It’s a wonder you’ve survived this long.”
Figured I’d come across a dragon lacking in manners.
“You really going to insult me before I feed you?” I asked, holding the plate with his portion aloft.
“You might be the exception,” Tigger conceded. “Now gimme!”
I arched a brow.
“Please,” he spat out.
“Good boy,” I stated, setting the plate down in front of my drooling reptile.
Tutu folded his paper and set it aside, still frowning. “Lizards don’t talk.”
“No, they don’t,” Tigger agreed, grabbing hold of his fork. “But I’m not a lizard.”
“Then what are you?”
Tigger couldn’t reply because he’d crammed his mouth full of omelet, so I answered for him. “Claims he’s a dragon.”
“Awfully tiny for a dragon, and he’s got no wings.”
Tigger took a second between bites to say, “Because I only recently hatched. Keep feeding me and you’ll soon be in awe of my physique.” More of the eggs went into his mouth.
A calculating look dropped over Tutu’s face.
Uh-oh.
I shook my spatula at him. “Whatever you’re thinking, stop right now.”
“Do you know how much he could be worth? I mean, he would have fetched a pretty price simply for talking, but if he’s a dragon… We could be rich.” No surprise, Tutu saw the financial benefit.
“We are not auctioning Tigger off to a rich dude.”
“Why not?”
“Because, for one, he’s a thinking, feeling being. And two, I wouldn’t want to see him locked away in some menagerie to be gawked at. And three, I found him, he’s mine.”
