Book 5: Chapter 47 (1/2)

Vur and Tafel were sitting next to each other with a stone tablet placed on the ground in front of them. There was a rock propping it up at an angle, so they didn’t have to strain their necks to study it. It was the same tablet that Ramon and Gloria had received, one with the alphabet of a long-lost language transcribed on it. Vur’s eyes were wide open, but a not-so-subtle snot bubble was expanding and shrinking from his nostril.

Heavy footsteps approached the couple, and the snot bubble popped. Vur blinked and raised his head. There was a small holy dragon shuffling towards them with his head slinking down. Ramon glanced at the tablet before collapsing beside Vur, letting his scaled belly scrape against the ground. The holy dragon let out a sigh, and Tafel nudged Vur with her elbow.

Vur blinked at Tafel, and the demon gestured towards Ramon with her eyes. Vur blinked again before clearing his throat. He nodded at the holy dragon. “Hi, Ramon.”

“Hi, Vur,” Ramon said and sighed again. His head remained pressed against the ground, but his eyes shifted to look at Vur. “When you were younger, were you hit a lot?”

Vur rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes in thought. After thinking for a bit, he nodded. “Yep. It’s a normal part of growing up.”

It’s not normal, Tafel thought but didn’t say anything out loud. Maybe it was normal for dragons?

Ramon fell silent. Then, he sighed. “I don’t want to grow up.”

“Why not?” Vur asked and tilted his head.

Because you told him getting hit was a part of growing up, Tafel thought but still didn’t say anything.

Ramon pouted. “I don’t want to get hurt.”

Vur scratched his head. “When you become an adult, no one will hurt you anymore. You get to do the hitting instead.”

Ramon’s eyebrows perked up. “Really?”

Vur snorted. “Have you ever seen me get hurt?”

“No…,” Ramon said, his forehead scrunching up as he dragged out the word. No one hit his parents. No one hit his grandparents. Was it true that only children got hurt? Vur never lied, so it must be true! Ramon hopped to his feet and stared at Vur with glowing eyes. “Can you teach me how to grow up?”

“Sure,” Vur said and straightened his back. His chest puffed out. “Growing up is very easy for dragons. Eat lots of meat and sleep as much as you can. Eventually, you’ll be able to catch a meteor.”

Ramon blinked and tilted his head. “Is that it?”

Vur nodded. “That’s it.”

“But what about learning?” Ramon asked and gestured towards the stone tablet.

“What about learning?”

“Don’t we have to learn?” Ramon asked. “Grandma says I have to learn to be a proper cursed dragon.”

Aren’t you a holy dragon though? Tafel wanted to ask but knew better than to open her mouth. What if Ramon rebelled against Grimmy’s parents because of her comment? Then, she’d be the one responsible for Ramon’s delinquency, and she wasn’t strong enough to shoulder that burden.