The Arena novel Chapter 49

There’s something off about Little Red not shifting. I hope Tana knows I would never be inappropriate with a juvenile, dragon, or otherwise.

“How old is she?” I ask, wanting to get as much information as I can about dragons.

“She’s just over four years old.”

“How long before she’s fully grown?” I ask, tossing one of the whole deer at her and watching her gracefully catch it and swallow it in one bite.

“A dragon reaches maturity at five years of age.”

“So, you’re a teenager?” I ask, tossing a second deer at her. I know I’m fanboying again, but I’m so fascinated by these beautiful dragons. I watch as she tosses her head back, swallowing the second deer, her throat gracefully moving as the deer passes through it.

She rumbles her agreement and looks at him. “Well, hopefully, one day, I’ll get to meet you in your human form, Little Red.” She leans her head down, gently pushing against me. “You’d like that too, huh? Well, you’ll just have to convince Tana to spend more time with me,” I whisper conspiratorially.

I stand back, wondering if I even whispered in her ear. “Hey, Tana, while our deer is cooking, can you give me a quick course on dragon anatomy?”

She comes over and looks at Little Red. “Like what? Head.” She points at her head. “Wings.”

She points to her wings. “Tail.” She points to her tail.

“Not the big stuff,” I say exasperatedly. “Like, where are her ears?”

Little Red lays her head down, obviously perfectly willing to have Tana give me a tour of her body. “Here,” she says, placing her hand on the side of Little Red’s face below her horns. As I watch, I can just see the area twitch and move. If you didn’t know where her ears were, you wouldn’t be able to see them.

“And I swear I tickled her earlier. Are dragons ticklish?” I ask, wondering if that’s what it was.

Tana smiles. “Yeah, she’s ticklish.”

“Like her mother,” I say to her. Her head whips around to me. I was right.

“Cedric …”

“It’s okay, Tana. I don’t want to fight or even really get into it right now, especially not in front of Little Red. But someday soon, we should talk about it.” She nods.

“Anything else you want to know about dragon anatomy?”

I have Tana take me on a tour of her daughter’s dragon body. “Is there a way you can protect your stomachs? I noticed that hers is vulnerable.”

“It’s because we are females. Avani’s stomach is covered with scales, but because we need the ability to grow eggs, ours must expand, so no scales. It is our most vulnerable spot, but it’s difficult for someone to access our stomachs. In the sky, our back legs tuck up to cover it. And on the ground, well, anyone that gets underneath us and doesn’t get crushed is lucky.”

I turn and look at Little Red, running my hand over her snout. “I guess I’m lucky then.”

Little Red says something to Tana, and I wait for her to translate.

“She wants to show you her fire. She’s been practicing control over her fire,” Tana says, looking at her daughter. “Even though it’s our element, it’s not innate in a fire dragon to control our fire; we have to work at it. She’s been practicing for over a year.” She smiles. “She’s very proud of her ability, as she should be.”

I turn to the little dragon. She wants to show off for me? I’m definitely down for that. “Let’s see what you’ve got, Little Red.”

She shows me a small, short burst of fire, a long streaming line of fire, and then a blazing light of fire that she lifted up on her hind legs to shoot up into the night sky. Even from way down here, I can feel the heat of her fire.

I’m impressed. For a juvenile dragon, she seems to have very good control of her fire.

I don’t know if it’s the right sentiment, but I clap every time. It all seems very impressive to me.

“I think dinner is ready,” Tana says, turning toward us.

“Do you want that last deer, Little Red?” I ask her before going to join Tana. She nods, and I toss it to her before joining my mate by the fire.

“Are you happy, Tana?” I ask her as we start to eat.

“I am. We have a nice place to live; I have a good job. I’m good at it, so they like me a lot.”

“That doesn’t surprise me. I know you’re very intelligent and can do anything you want.” Okay, maybe I’m laying it on thick, but it’s true. She is intelligent and I know she can do anything she puts her mind to, even escaping from an arena.

“Do you work with supes or humans?” I ask her.

“Both. I have one werewolf client whose account I’ve really enjoyed working on.”

“Because it’s a werewolf pack or because of the job?” I ask, instantly wondering if I could find her through the pack she’s working with.

“The job. I have to use all my skills on that account, and while it can be frustrating, it’s very rewarding when you find what you’re searching for.”

“Which pack?” I ask, hoping she’ll tell me.