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“Of course. It’s always wise to know the important players in Dragon Heights when a dragon. It also helps the older dragons keep an eye on the little dragon-kin if they decide to go wandering to the shrines. We’ll make sure you don’t get too close. We’re old hands at sensing when the shrines awaken.” My mother patted Cedrick’s shoulder again. “Let’s go towards the cyan shrine. With luck, those two will argue until they run out of oxygen and pass out, leaving us to explore in peace.”
“I wouldn’t get your hopes up,” my father stated, eyeing the arguing pair. “It’s no fun to argue without an audience. You know that. It just happens they’ve picked us to be the audience.”
“How delightful,” my mother muttered in a wry tone. “Well, do come along, children. Let’s not waste the entire day.”
TWELVE
I amused her.
Friday, April 24, 2167
Pilgrimage Ward
Dragon Heights, Wyoming
Unlike my first visit to Shrine Hill, the shrines themselves bustled. Twenty or so people loitered around the cyan shrine, and a dragon kept close watch over a small cart loaded with blue stones and other objects painted the color of their clan. The sight of so many rocks in one place excited Garnet, and at the rate she squeaked, she would have a sore throat long before we finished our venture. I obeyed her wishes and took her to the cart to look at the goods. From crystal spears and uncut stones to finished jewelry, there was something for everyone. A cut stone the size of my pinky nail drew my attention, as it was labeled as a teal garnet. I pointed at the stone and said, “Garnets come in blue?”
The dragon regarded me with a bright eye, the same color of the stone, and rumbled a laugh. “While a recent discovery found in only one place in the world, yes. This is a rare stone.”
I identified the dragon’s pitch as feminine, and according to her tone, I amused her.
I bet all beings that appeared to be human amused dragons like her.
Rare meant expensive, which meant I would be stepping far outside of my comfort zone for my kitten’s sake. Aware of that, I asked, “May I pick it up?”
“Of course.”
I eased the gemstone and its tiny box from the collection on the cart and showed it to Garnet. I took a moment to peek at the bottom, which informed me that the gem would cost me three thousand dollars. The carbunclo’s ears turned back before pricking forward again, something I believed meant she put some considerable thought into what had captured her interest. She sniffed the box before regarding me with wide eyes. Her inquisitive squeak tugged at my heart, as the kitten hesitated despite her curiosity.
Carbunclo loved shiny stones, and her namesake sparkled in the sunlight.
The price tag hurt, but a rare jewel would be a good start to her collection. If all went well on the bounty and work fronts, the investment wouldn’t hurt either one of us—and it would reinforce that I valued the kitten. Rather than inform the kitten about the painful cost of the stone, I said, “This is a special stone for your collection, Garnet, okay? It’s very rare because it is an unusual color.” Then, hoping I wouldn’t regret my decision, I held the box out to the dragon. “I’ll purchase this for her. I would like her to get an inexpensive stone as well so she can have a bauble to play with.”
The dragon’s chuckles continued to rumble, took the box, and removed the lid from the bottom and closed it. With a delicate swipe of a claw, she peeled away the price tag, swift enough I doubted anyone could read the number. “You will want a hard stone, then, one that can withstand her paws. Where was she bred?”
“Argentina,” I replied, wondering what that had to do with my request for a bauble.
“Argentinian carbunclo have paws with a hardness of 6.1 roughly.” The dragon placed the closed box on the cart, reached underneath it, and pulled out a small, rectangular device. “This can measure the hardness of her paws, which will allow me to select a good stone she can bat around and play with without hurting herself or the stone.”
I adjusted my hold on the kitten, secured a grip on her paw, and said, “Garnet, she is going to measure your paw, okay? Then we’ll find you a good bauble.”
Garnet squeaked, her gaze fixed on the box.
The dragon pressed a metal tip to one of Garnet’s paw pads, and the device beeped. “All done. You have a hardness of 6.3. A little high for an Argentinian carbunclo, but this is not a bad thing. A harder paw means less chance of injury.”
I’d look into why Garnet’s pads were harder than normal in case I needed to get her any supplements or medications after I escaped the shrine. “Thank you for checking.” I placed the carbunclo on my shoulder so I could dig out my wallet, which had several folded checks inside in case I needed to make an acquisition along with my bank card. “What type of stone do you think is suitable for her?”
After showing off her long, pointy teeth, the dragon peeked under the cart, holding out a bright blue sphere the size of a golf ball a moment later. “This is a faceted synthetic blue zircon, meant to be a display piece to sparkle in the sun. The light will refract off this nicely, and as it is synthetic, it has little value beyond being fun to own. I offer it as a present to your little one, so that she feels welcome in Dragon Heights despite her recent troubles.” The dragon regarded the carbunclo, holding out the sphere. “Is this to your liking, precious baby?”
Garnet stretched out to snuggle her head against the dragon’s claws and the stone.
“What a delightful little baby,” the dragon cooed.
“Tell her thank you, Garnet,” I prompted.
The explosion of squeaks and mews made me giggle, and I petted her. So the hummingbird wouldn’t feel left out, I pointed at a teardrop bead attached to a string. “My bird should have a bauble, too. What sort of stone like that would you recommend?”
The dragon placed the sphere on the cart beside the garnet and plucked the teardrop up, careful to avoid slicing the string. “This is an excellent choice for a decorative bauble for a bird’s home. This is topaz, cut by an inexperienced hand. It is only thirty dollars, as such, but it will shine and sparkle nicely, providing amusement to your feathered companion.”