Dealing with Reality

I fell asleep that night against the hot heating nest where the tiny dragon, Clementine, was curled up. When I woke up Clementine was snuggled against my face. I could hear Mabel's loud snoring coming from the fold out cot behind me. I sat up, and without even waking up, Clementine clung firmly to my face. I was too groggy to even bother pulling her off. Rather I crouched in front of Mabel's cot and repeatedly poked her face until she woke up.

"What time is it?" Mabel groaned whilst covering her head with the blanket.

"I dunno there are no windows down here." I said.

Clementine began to lose her grip on my face, but I was already prepared to catch her. She licked my right thumb, then laid down once again this time in my palm.

Mabel sat up her red hair sticking out in all directions, and she had dried drool down her cheek. I gave an amused smirk, while she shot back a grumpy morning glare.

"You think this is funny?" she said with an evil look in her eyes, "You still have to talk to my mom and Mrs.Horn about Tiny over there." she said as she pointed to Clementine.

I looked at her completely annoyed, "Where did you get this confidence? Last I checked I was a strong dragon, and you were a young human." I told her.

"Ha! This "Confidence", comes from: you yelling at me over the phone, hanging up on me, breaking my door, waking up Daisy, giving my blanket to your hatchling, and finding amusement in my morning appearance."

I raised my one free hand in a mock surrender.

"Okay I am letting you off the hook for today." I said sarcastically. She now had an evil smile on her face, and it made me uneasy.

"Mouse...why are you smiling?" I asked already knowing I would dread whatever her reason was.

"You my dear "strong dragon" have to ask my mother for advise today. About multiple things, and I can't wait to watch." Mabel mocked.

Clementine growled and tried to defend me, but all that came out was a small mist that cast about an inch. I petted her with a finger "Thanks for protecting me Little One, but I can handle this Mouse." I told the hatchling softly.

"You weren't like this with any of your other hatchlings." I heard Jasper's voice say. I looked over to see Mabel holding out her phone. Jasper was observing me from the screen.

"Where have to been?" I asked the boy.

"Seriously? My whole family has been on vacation for like two weeks! Mabel has been keeping me up to date on her studies and observations on you and Daisy." He said matter of factly.

"Oh uhh.... right. How is....Disneyland?" I guessed awkwardly just trying not to look like some ungrateful cretin.

"Wow." Mabel said with a blank expression.

Jasper sighed on the other end of the phone, "Will picked this time; we are at the Grand Canyon." Jasper said while massaging his brow; obviously not impressed by my lack of concern.

"Did you tell her she would have to ask your mom for advise yet?" Jasper asked Mabel.

"Uhhh! Yes she did...twice." I responded sounding just as frustrated as I was. "Jasper you are supposed to be my little buddy. Why are you so grumpy?" I mocked.

"I'm not twelve anymore, and we left and you didn't even notice." He responded no longer focusing on Mabel.

"Ah come on I got you a house." I replied playfully.

"No you got my dad and brother a house. I won't live there forever." Jasper said, still sounding very grouchy.

"Okay well I am the reason you no longer have to sleep on a built-in bunkbed with your brother, you are getting to grow up with your own room, and I give you full access to my dragons. Now what is your excuse." I said with a smile knowing I had proved my awesomeness.

He scowled "Fine... Here's a tip don't ask for their personal opinions always phrase it as "your professional opinion." otherwise you will end up killing her." Jasper quickly said and quickly hung up.

"That ungrateful turd. I am gonna make him give Telee a full pedicure when he gets back. He will see how generous I have been after having to scrub four dozen toes." I mumbled to myself, just loud enough for Mabel to hear.

"Hahahaha!" Mabel burst out laughing, she seemed to think it was the funniest thing ever.

"You don't realize this since you are fast and strong; but I doubt that little bookworm could even pull apart Cortelco's toes. Please just let me be there to record this occasion via my phone." Mabel said.

"Hmm... Maybe four dozen Meadow toes would be better. Her feet are worlds smaller." I pondered

"Well at least tell him he has to do Telee's first. Let me video his attempt." Mabel begged giving me puppy dog eyes as she pouted.

"That sounds like an excellent idea." I said.

Our evil smiles matched. Our plotting however was disturbed by Clementine trying to chew my pinky finger, though even the tip didn't fit in her mouth.

"Mouse before this Hellish day starts; do you have a blender, some fish, and a syringe?" I asked her.

"Yes?" Mabel answered me, or more so asked me.

"This girlie has yet to eat, but as you can see she is too small for regular pieces we should probably filet it so she doesn't have to deal with trying to hack those up. Also then it won't ruin the blender." I explained. I put the tiny dragon back on the heater and decided it would be faster to ask a dragon to get me a fish, rather than try and thaw one.

"Hey Peculiar, can you catch a fish for me? I have a hatchling who needs food. I could hear a grumble and a "Fine." indicating that the dragon had still been sleeping.

Mabel came back with a basket filled with what I needed for Clementine. A syringe that was obviously meant for children's medicine, a blender, a knife set, and a wooden cutting board.

"Thanks Mouse." I said looking at her carrying such a big basket.For the first time since I brought her down, Mabel really looked at the frog sized hatchling.

"She really is tiny, it's a miracle that she even managed to get out of that egg. She is pretty too." Mabel said as she stroked Clementine with one of her fingers. This time rather than puffing mist at Mabel she licked the finger that was stroking her.

"She is even smaller that the Shadow Sight hatchlings." Mabel noted.

"Well the Shadow Sights are actually the size of kittens when they hatch, so their actually one of the bigger hatchlings." I pointed out, earning myself a glare.

I heard the elavator ding, and Daisy walked in with a fish in one hand and holding Meadow in one arm like a ragdoll.

"Peculiar said this was for you." Daisy said. As soon as she saw the new miniscule dragon she rushed towards me, her energy instantly doubled at the sight. Meadow climb to the top of her head as Daisy moved.

"Oh my goodness she is so tiny and pretty and colorful like a baby butterfly... but not a caterpillar. Right Meadow?" Daisy said. Meadow nodded her head excitedly seeming to be just as happy at the sudden appearance of the tiny dragon.

"What are you calling her?" Daisy asked.

I smiled and replied with a question of my own, "What makes you think I'm going to keep her.".

I put Clementine back on the heated nest and Meadow rushed over to play with her.

"Well Peculiar, said that she wouldn't have to go fishing for you if you planned on sending her away some day. Also Rose and Reticent are taking care of their other babies." She responded with valid points.

I ruffled her hair then began fileting the fish. "Her name is Clementine. She is staying because I accidentally named her when I was talking to Mouse. She might of had to stay anyways though; I can't tell if she will be healthy or not as she grows." I explained to Daisy.

I dropped the boneless scaless fish filets into the blender with a small amount of water, and began blending the fish into a paste. Everybody stopped talking for a bit because the blender was so loud. Once the noise stopped I heard the elavator beep once again. This time it was Ava and Mrs.Horn.

"Let me see the baby. Jasper emailed me, telling me you needed my help." Ava said as she walked past me and towards Meadow and Clementine. Meadow hissed and flew back to Daisy. Clementine simply chirped, unaware of how obnoxious this woman was.

I grumbled under my breath, complaining about Jasper being a snitch.

"My God this dragon is miniscule!" Ava exclaimed. "Cora get over here you have to see this."

Mrs.Horn ran over to Ava's side to look at Clementine.

"Oh dear. There is something wrong with this one, how did it even get out of it's egg?" Mrs. Horn whispered to Ava hoping to avoid me hearing, and becoming the brunt of my anger.

"Mrs.Horn Don't offend my child." I said with a low growl.

Clementine chirped alerting me she was scared. I rushed over and blocked the view between the two Dragon ladies and my hatchling. 'Crap when did she become MY child and MY hatchling. I am going to get all parental scary again.'

"Don't crowd her." I said directing my words to Mrs.Horn and Ava, but in reality it should have been for everyone, this place was too small for five people. Mabel took the hint and ushered Daisy from the den

"Come on Daisy let's make breakfast for everyone. You can be my helper." Mabel said.

Daisy looked at Meadow and the small dragon nodded at her, then flew back to the heated nest to be with Clementine.

"I will make breakfast with you, but Meadow is gonna stay and watch baby Clem." Daisy explained to Mabel, but still managed to make everyone else in the room smile. I forgot that I had to deal with Ava for a split second, but that didn't last.

I picked up Clementine in my palm and carried her to the counter where an empty syringe and some, what can only be described as fish paste, were sitting. Meadow followed. I set her down in a cupcake wrapper, that would normally be used for a bowl, but for now it was a high chair. I began trying to syringe feed the little dragon until I heard,

"Seriously are you going to pretend we aren't here?" come from Mrs.Horn.

I sighed and turned around for a moment. "This is Clementine and she hasn't had anything to eat since she hatched, so please talk to me as I work. Both women understood, even if it wasn't the most respectful response. Meadow sat between Clementine and the wall while the two women were on either side of me.

"Try tilting the syringe higher. That is how Herd Hiders drink." Ava said, offering valid advise for once. Mrs. Horn was putting the rest of the fish paste into small, possibly serving size, baggies, and putting them in the fridge. After attempting several angles, and making a bit of a mess, we finally managed to get Clementine to eat.

"Okay so now we need to actually talk about this little guy." Ava said, surprising me with her lack of snark.

"She's a girl." I said, trying to sound less abrasive than my normal speech, so as to not offend either of the women.

"Really with those colors, and her nervous demeanor? Are you sure?" Mrs.Horn asked.

"Yes, I am sure, call it dragon's intuition. She actually has quite a bubbly personality, she was just overwhelmed earlier. She is more cuddly than any of my other dragons combined, a now seems to get along with anyone she meets." I explained.

"So she's got the looks and the personality; she is just missing some size." Ava said.

"My first daughter was premature, didn't even weigh four pounds. This little one seems to be premature as well. Am I correct?" Mrs.Horn said.

"No actually she hatched the same day as her four other siblings." I explained.

"You are raising four more dragon's and you left them alone! When on Earth did the DDP send them over?" Ava shouted loosing her cool, and causing Clementine to hide behind Meadow.

"Lower your voice." Mrs.Horn said "You're scaring her." She said pointing to Clementine.

"Sorry... it's just I didn't take you as the negligent type." Ava said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"No, it's not what you think; though I would have assumed the same. Reticent and Rose are rearing their first brood, which hatched yesterday. There were four eggs. One egg ended up being healthy twins, and two of the other eggs hatched there as well. When the eggs had hatched, I had just finished making a cave for the new family, so we moved the hatchlings into the new cave, leaving the one egg that we all assumed to be a dud. I took it back to my cave, and figured I would hand it in to the DDP for research. I was on the phone with Mabel talking about theoretical dragon names, and only then did I noticed that I had a hatchling on my chest. So I accidentally named her over the phone. When I tried to return her to her family both parents rejected her because she was so small. Rose wouldn't even accept that Clementine came from one of her eggs. I don't give off any body heat, and she obviously needs more care than I can provide in my cave." I said motioning to the blender. "So I rushed here. The smaller the baby the faster they get cold... or at least that is how birds and mammals work." I said all of this explaining myself. At some point while I was talking Meadow had carried Clementine back to the heating nest.

None of us noticed because the two women were enthralled by my story.

"So you are telling me..." Ava started.

I was preparing myself to have to answer questions about Clementine that I didn't have the answers to.

"That you have a pair of dragons raising their own hatchlings." Ava said, obviously trying not to yell again.

I wasn't expecting that response.

"Uh yeah. They are protective of them too, why is that a surprise?" I replied.

"Well duh, because..." Mrs.Horn started, but I figured out why they were shocked before they could finish.

"Oh right, dragons don't ever raise their eggs or hatchlings. Yeah I made sure all of my dragons knew how important family and hatchlings are. I even have them help raise the hatchlings that are sent over as eggs. Only the original eight though. Occasionally the Shadow Sights babysit. Isn't that right?" I asked. Wisp and Nymph came out of Mrs.Horn's shadow, both nodding.

Mrs.Horn flinched at their sudden appearance.

"How long have they been here?" Ava asked.

"They came down with you guys." I said. We all shrugged off their appearance, as they too went to snuggle with the new dragon. You could tell both women were amazed that I had managed to make parents out of dragons.

"What about Rose? You didn't raise her, and she doesn't really even like you." Ava pointed out, asking a good question.

"She says she laid eggs because Reticent wanted them to have their own family, and she wasn't too interested in the eggs. So Reticent did most of the egg work, but once those hatchlings arrived she was putty in their little talons. Reticent even had to calm her down a few times so she wouldn't try to bite me while I visited them."

Both women stood shocked, their mouths agape.

"So parenting is a learned behavior." Ava mumbled.

"I don't think so." I said disturbing her train of thought. She looked up at me seeming puzzled.

"If Rose had no interest in the eggs, and Reticent didn't know they were his, they simply would have been left to die. To Rose they were simply round rocks that she made, but since Reticent did know they were his, he cared for them. After they were dragons with their DNA, and not simply dragon made rocks, their mother came to nurture and protect them. In the wild there are many animals where the father watches the egg, while the female doesn't show up until they hatch. Ostriches, Cassowarys, Penguins to name a few. I think the pair must simply share a deep bond that both acknowledge." I explained. Both women looked as though they were in deep thought.

"Can we talk about our main focus now? How are we going to raise Clem properly?"

MRS.HORN POV BEFORE MEETING CLEM

I was dreading being in the same room as Ivy and a hatchling. Last time it didn't go so well, maybe she has forgotten her threat, about me being in the same room as her baby dragons.

Ava walked beside me with a cocky grin on her face she was excited to be able to pour her wisdom on this pompous little False Human.

Ava started talking, "I can't wait to see how red she turns when I tell her what to do. I just love pressing her buttons she gives such funny expressions. She is..." I stopped her before she could finish. I actually grabbed her shoulders pulling us to a stop.

"Listen Ava; I know I have warned you about her behavior before, and you never have listened, and always manage to get away, but this is different. You must remain calm, and don't even look at those buttons you want to press. When it comes to HER hatchlings she is so protective that I wouldn't put her killing someone to protect them, even over something small."

Ava looked shocked "Cora what are you talking about? It's just a hatchling, a sickly one, but still just a hatchling." She said, trying to brush off my serious tone.

" Ava you don't listen to others frequently, but do it at least this once. When Ivy was raising the first eight dragons she received, I made the mistake of trying to scare Coruscant." I started explaining. Though Ava already looked confused. "The Prism Scale." I verified assuming she just didn't know it's name. "She scolded me yelling at me and threatening me so badly... Just with her words I felt like I might have fainted, and even then she was only threatening eviction. I didn't know why I was so traumatized, until we realized she wasn't human. Now that she is: so much stronger, has a new child, and already doesn't like either of us we could be in trouble."

Ava looked at me as though I was crazy, "A new child?" she said almost mocking me.

"She calls herself a dragon mother, even when she thought she was human. She referred to them as her babies or children. Bill later told me the only reason she didn't hurt me was because she didn't want her 'children' to think violence was the answer to problems. Now she has a small army of dragons to back her, and potentially help raise this new dragon; She doesn't need to hold in her anger." I explained further.

Ava groaned "Fine I'll act respectful."

I gave a sigh of relief, I had my fingers crossed that we would survive this.

BACK TO IVY POV

"Mrs.Horn you said your daughter was tiny. Clem here isn't premature like your daughter, but she is still very small. What did you have to do with her?" I asked. Mrs.Horn looked taken aback. I am sure she didn't expect me to ask her directly for advice, especially after her last encounter with one of my hatchlings.

"Well keeping her constantly warm was just about the most important. I swear the only time I saw her body was during diaper changes and baths." the woman smiled while recollecting her time as a new mom. "She didn't ever eat much, so the food she did have had to be fattening and filled with all sorts of vitamins, my beast milk wasn't enough, so we had a doctor recommended formula. I guess we will have to doctor up this fish paste a bit to make it more fattening." She said as she looked to the dirty blender and syringe. "She got sick so often, so she was on medication almost constantly, but that is a premie thing, so I don't think that will be a problem with this little lady." she said now looking at the hot nest where: Meadow, Wisp, Nymph, and Clementine were all asleep.

"Oh, and my husband and I had to keep track of everything: feed time, how much or little she ate, her poop, the consistency and frequency, her weight, her height, and such. Most people would go see a doctor regularly instead of doing that by yourself, but us dragon ladies tend to live a long ways from civilization, and we didn't want her getting sick because of an eight our car ride."

I nodded my head listening to each word. I had done this with my first dragons, so I knew what to compare her progress to, and what her needs would be. Then I heard something concerning; not from Mrs.Horn, but from Ava.

"Oh Gull Wings need a companion." she pointed out.

My eyes grew big. A lack of a Gull Wing, who would have thought that would be my biggest problem.

"Rose and Reticent won't let her near their hatchlings. What do I do?" I said obvious worry in my voice.

Both women came and wrapped their arms around me as tears started forming in my eyes.

"Honey I will have Paul call the DDP and see if anyone else has a lone Gull Wing hatchling. Everything will be fine. Just keep these small dragons nearby to keep her company." Ava said as she rubbed my back.

I broke from the hug and walked over to the heated nest where four sleeping dragons were sleeping. I crouched down and just looked at Clementine. I was so worried, I have never had this problem, and it wasn't something I could fix by myself. I couldn't be the big strong dragon protector that I thought myself to be. I was shaking now, though I couldn't tell if it was from worry, or the shattering of my pride. The two women sat on the floor next to me. Ava once again started to rub my back.

"Don't worry darling we will fix this for you... for Clementine."

AVA'S POV

Any doubt I had of her actually considering herself a dragon mother had vanished when I saw the helplessness in her eyes; the moment she learned she couldn't help this dragon alone. I had never seen this woman so week and venerable until now. Her change in attitude had absolutely everything to do with this hatchling. Cora was right to tell me not to mess with her. I know a mother's fury, and she is powerful, and most definitely a mother. I might be here to help teach Mabel about dragon care, but I think the broken mother in front of me would do a much better job then I ever could.