A New Beginning

Chapter 71

Silence reigned for a while before she finally asked, "Dragonets? You mean fire lizards?"

"Yes. We tend to call ourselves dragonets, but fire lizards also works."

"You mean, this entire time, you could understand us perfectly?"

"Some of your discussions were too complicated for me to make sense of, but I can understand many words in your language."

"All of the fire lizards are aware," Taureen said, "but, for the most part, their instincts are quite strong and makes them behave like animals. Not much will change now that you know, other than being able to talk with each other. She will still come looking for pets and treats."

Her eyes drifted back to me.

I perked up my ear tufts. "I like pets and treats."

A smile finally appeared on her face. "I bet you do. You probably had a lot of fun with your small tricks, too."

"Yep! I like it here with Soranto and you. Maria is fun too, but I'm leaving it up to you and Soranto if you want to include her in this secret."

"May I ask why it is such a secret?"

"The wild ones in the park had been trapped in cages when they were young, before the Kymari came," I replied softly, watching anger flash in her eyes at the thought of someone caging us. "Had their captors known they were aware, they would have been killed. The thought of the Kymari finding out terrifies them."

Adeline nodded slowly. "I can understand that, and I will respect that. As for including Maria in this, it is something we'll have to think about. We can save that discussion for another day, though."

Spreading my wings, I flew across the small space to land on her knee. Lifting my head, I trilled at her. Tentatively, she began petting me. I rubbed my head against her hand and thrummed to encourage her.

"Why did Tasha and Keegan push you off the shelf?"

Humor rang through my mindvoice as I replied, "When you were discussing what the dragonets needed in the park, Soranto looked over at me as if asking a question. Then I told him that if he kissed Mom, she might tell him."

Mom snorted loudly from where she sat under the heat lamp, clearly conveying her opinion of my suggestion.

"I think I agree with Tasha," Adeline replied with a chuckle. "If I can ask, what is it in the park that you need? Do you know?"

"As far as I know, nothing. The group that left and returned did that on purpose to trick their watchers. The Morning Song is needed though. We can go about a week without it before we begin to feel... unwell. It happened to Mom when her wing was broken. A few others also had problems if they skipped the Morning Song too often."

"Was your dance on the other planet similar to the one you usually have here?" She was taking the opportunity to ask every question they had just discussed.

"Kind of. But I think it would have been closer if the planet had plants and things. It was really short and fast."

"That was probably due to the size of the planet and how fast it was rotating," Soranto commented. "We probably won't get a chance to leave this planet again, but the report I made did mention that a world more like this one would probably be better. That one just happened to be nearby."

"I have no idea. I just know what I felt, although your reasons make sense to me."

"Is our backyard set up properly for your, er, Morning Song?"

"Yes. It's great! The stump lets me see the sun as it rises. I also really like what you did with your living room. Even Mom was jealous."

That comment had Taureen glancing at Mom, and I suspected that there would be a discussion later on about potential renovations.

Soranto grinned proudly. "I'm glad you liked it. Was there anything we missed or that you might want us to change?"

"I can't think of anything. It's really nice. I'm really happy here."

"And our patrols? I'm pretty sure the main reason some of the fire lizards came out of the park was because they would get to chase down crawlers."

"The patrols can be a bit boring, but it's worth it if it keeps crawlers and sicora off the planet. Especially sicora. I really don't like them."

"If you ever want anything changed or want to do something different for a day, just let me know."

"No worries there. Dirk says I have a big mouth, but considering that he can eat faster than me, I think his must be bigger!"

"Hey!" Dirk exclaimed, only letting our family listen in. "Why did you drag me into this?"

I grinned at him. "Because I could."

Soranto looked between me and the indignant blue dragonet on the shelf before asking Taureen, "I assume hearing only half the conversation is normal?"

"Often enough, you won't even hear part of it if they are talking to each other. They have to intentionally include us. They don't seem to talk to the other handlers unless they consider it important, although it isn't uncommon for them to ask the handler's companion to relay a message."

"It's only proper," I told Soranto and Adeline. "Taureen and Aeria are Mom and Dad's. We will still speak with them because they were like parents to us, but not as much. Within a year or so, Dirk will likely pick a handler. We rarely speak with other handlers. I think I only spoke with Alec once, although I never talked directly with any of the other handlers."

"Unless you have more questions," Taureen said, "I think we shall take our leave and let you three talk." He looked over and asked Mom, "Do you have any concerns or questions before we go?"

"No. I am content now that Adeline knows. That went much better than I expected."

I relayed the first half of Mom's words to Soranto and Adeline.

"Have a good evening," Taureen said as he got to his feet. "I'm certain that you'll manage just fine, but feel free to contact me if you need to."

"Dinner is at our house tomorrow," Aeria reminded them.

Adeline picked me up off her knee and cradled me in her arms as she got to her feet. "I look forward to it."

Soranto also stood up as they walked Taureen and Aeria to the door. Neither of them even batted an eye as my family flew over to land on Taureen and Aeria's shoulder pads without being called.

Snuggling up in Adeline's arms, I watched my family go out the door. I was very happy that Soranto and Adeline both knew. There were bound to be lots of interesting conversations now that I could join in.