Book One: Onnu and Pannu

The Change

No one had the heart to tell Pannu what Onnu had said. If she had told them that she would not remain for his lifetime, there were some who would have pulled him aside and said as much. But for the moment, all anyone had was an "I don't know" from Onnu, and that would do him no good. Worse than that, he would worry that she would fly away one day. Since she was about to do just that, they felt it would be cruel to tell him until they knew, one way or the other. They did, however, pass it on to everyone who knew their dragons: Onnu would remain at Capitol Hold, for at least as long as any adult Tupin alive.
   No one knew how long a minotaur would live, so they didn't know what to tell Clack, but they did pass on her appreciation of his criticisms.
   The oldest of the babies were a little over two years old now, including Betsy. Clack, along with the other parents, had been watching her for signs of The Change. Would she become a minotaur, like her father, an elf, like her mother, or somekin entirely different?
   Tupin babies seemed to change at different times, though, so no one could say when she would show them her true form. They couldn't even say that elves always showed pointy ears early on, or gryphons showed late. And those who Changed into four-legged kin faced setbacks in their mobility, so they couldn't even say whether it would be best to Change before or after mastering walking on two feet.
   In these early days, at least, waiting to see what sort of kin their children would become was a sort of celebratory atmosphere. When parents saw the first signs of Change, they would immediately speculate what it meant. Did scales mean ajitup, gargoyle, faun? Feathers could be birdkin or gryphon. Fur often meant furgoyle, but could also be centaur, as those could be scaled or furred.
   Wing growth prompted clothing alterations, which was why so many parents learned to sew from Onnu, instead of traveling all the way to Blue Hold. Hooves meant that Stan lost a customer, but he didn't mind. He'd just send them to Liam for farrier services. No one had known that it was his job on Erdewaz until someone cracked a hoof.
   The advent of trade with Mountain Clan had made his job much easier, as some hoof treatments required special shoes. What Soot couldn't make, he would send a winged kin to the mountains with a sketch on papygrass to trade for. Often, they would bring some tasty sort of concoction for trade, as requested.
   Onnu looked around the Hold, in those last two days, trying to spot the kin-to-be in the toddlers. It was a handy diversion, and one that had occupied the thoughts of all, for the past year or so. Those parents who could sew, and would not go for further training showed off all of the innovations they'd come up with, for toddlers who might Change into anykin.
   Greta showed off the button flap for their babe's possible tail growth. She and Soot hadn't partnered when everyone else had, so their son was younger. That meant that she could watch what other parents did for their younglings, and avoid the mistakes they'd made. Their son wouldn't tear through his singlet if he grew a tail, as an example.
   For wings, there wasn't an easy breakaway garment, so they had to be vigilant, and switch to a sort of bathing suit design, if their young ones began to sprout wings.
   The odd ones, though, were the winged kin that didn't have feet. The toddlers that would become a springwing, for example, would oft Change while they were crawling, as their legs fused into tails. So it was that if one's child crawled for longer than other parents thought they should, it became common to say that perhaps they would not use their limbs in the traditional, bipedal manner.
   The centaurs were interesting to watch, as well. Their little crawling bodies would elongate, the forelegs would slowly grow toward the ground. Eventually, they would learn to "stand", with just their arms in the air. They were the second fastest kin to go from crawling to walking, with gryphons being the fastest. All they had to learn to do was straighten their back legs, which naturally happened as their arms became longer forelegs.
   The wings of every infant began vestigial, of course. None of the toddlers yet born was able to fly; not even springwings and birdkin. They speculated that birdkin would be the first to fly, as their little arms became wings, thereby reducing the number of appendages to control. Gargoyles and gryphons, and other kin with six to seven appendages (if you counted tails), would likely be slower to fly. Since none of them were much older than two, they were universally glad of it.
   Few toddlers had gotten the hang of tails, so their parents had devised clever slings to hold them out from their bodies for a while, or tucked in for a while. Supported tails were easy to move, but they did get tired. Nobody wanted a toddler with a tired tail!
   As for horns, they always grew in blunted and short. As with every creature in nature, God had wisely opted not to sharpen them until His creations could control their movements.
   Onnu sniffed a little. "I know I'll only be gone two weeks, but they grow so fast! You'll have to tell me everything when I get back!"
   Every parent was enthusiastic in their agreement. Any chance to show off what their child(ren) could do was happily taken.
   "That goes for you three, as well," she said to her children. "I want to hear all about the things you've learned while I'm gone."
   "Yes, mama," they chimed.
   She looked to Pannu. "And you'd best remember things they might not."
   "Yes, ma'am," he rumbled, a twinkle in his eye.