As soon as Lord Bennit was away from the counter, I whispered a question toward the cat. “Shadow magic?” I asked.

“Indigo uses it to hide from regular customers. She is very good at it for someone of her age. Her size also helps.”

Indigo chirped twice at the cat, whose tail flickered in the air. She stayed hidden under my hair, but she nudged my chin.

“She wants the hot chocolate but doesn’t want to move,” added the cat.

I rolled my eyes as I picked up her tiny teacup and held it awkwardly up near my shoulder with my hand. Nothing got on my shirt as she stuck her head in the cup. I set it back down when half of it was gone. It was an extra small tea cup for a reason. Last time I’d used one of my mugs, she’d swum in the hot chocolate as she drank it. That had been just wrong, reminding me of a kids’ movie or something.

Shadows appeared in the doorway as three more people walked in. None of them paid any attention to us. Instead, they headed directly toward the seats, like students who wanted to get the front row on the first day of class. They didn’t give off the same feeling as Lord Bennit, and each of them felt young. Then again, I could be completely wrong. And even if they were young, I had no idea what that meant, really. They chatted to each other in that soft language that Indigo knew, that I couldn’t translate.

Several minutes after that, a steady stream entered the archway. Eyes and clothes in all the colors of the rainbow were represented, plus some blacks, whites and even metallic colors. Some stopped for coffee or nodded at the cat. Others headed to the snack tables, or toward the brownies. A few skipped all of that and just went straight toward the seats.

One person I recognized as she smiled at me. Lady Borsal, with her bright reddish pink eyes, headed directly to my counter. “Sable, Indigo, Cat.” She nodded at each of us in turn. “How are you doing today?” She leaned back on the counter, facing the front of the room, but I didn’t mind. The number of dragons wanting drinks had subsided, and most who hadn’t rushed to get seats at first were now slowly settling in and heading for chairs or couches.

“Things are going smoothly,” I said. “Would you like a coffee?”

“Not today, I want to be clear headed for this conclave.” She glanced over her shoulder at me. “Not that your coffee isn’t amazing. It is, I just don’t need a caffeine buzz.”

I chuckled. “I don’t think I get one anymore. I just drink too much of it.”

Indigo chirped, and her head poked out of my hair.

“Ah, little one, you’re getting good at that,” said Lady Borsal with a sharp grin. “You like the chocolate drinks? Those are too sweet for me.”

“She would love a good chocolate drink,” rumbled an old voice.

My head snapped toward the archway, where the oldest person who had entered so far stood. Her bright purple eyes glowed with laughter and white hair covered her head. She was my height, and clearly older than even Lord Bennit.

Indigo rapidly started chirping.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Yes, yes, you are the same type of dragon I am.” A soft smile covered the woman’s face as she approached.

Lady Borsal bowed her head. “Honored Elder, it is good that you honor us at this conclave.” Her head stayed lowered until some signal passed between them that I couldn’t see.

“Ah, I wouldn’t miss it,” she said after Lady Borsal raised her head. Her eyes snapped to me, and it felt like my soul was being looked at. “You’re the one to thank for these little things.” She held up one of the MP3 recorders. “I’ve been telling stories for days, our oldest histories, both the good and the bad.”

Indigo moved out from under my hair and jumped down to the counter. Her MP3 player was in one claw. She held it up, then glanced at me and the recorder.

The elder chuckled. “Yes, I will make sure you get a copy. All the young ones will, though I expect more Elders and young ones to show up anytime now.” Her eyes traveled to the cat, who gave her a nod. “Ah, I wondered when I would see you, Lord.” She nodded her head several times at the cat, and spoke that language I couldn’t understand. It tickled at the back of my mind, like the magic of the shop was trying to translate it, but it couldn’t.

The cat’s eyes went wide, then he slowly blinked. “Thank her for me, Sable.”

“I caught that, don’t you worry,” said the Elder. “The fates will not restrict me. They tried once, now they respect me instead.”

The cat twitched, but he stayed seated where he was.

Indigo chirped again, drawing the attention of the Elder.

“Of course. We have a few young ones coming. While Bennit asked for the entire clan to come, many of the youngest and oldest are in hiding. Being protected, they are. This would be too good of a moment for our enemies to attack.” She let out a deep sigh. “But plenty will show up, and this will change the clan for the good.” Her eyes sparkled. “It will be progress! Finally!”

A few of the dragons who had already claimed seating areas were chatting and glancing back at us.

“Time for me to take my seat, and see what the young folks want.” She smiled at Indigo once more, who held up her MP3 player with a soft chirp. “Oh, alright, you can get them first.” The old woman did something on her player and the light glowed around it. The light then bridged to the MP3 player in Indigo’s claw.

My eyes widened. “Woah, you’re doing that with magic.”

“Of course I am. I wasn’t going to figure out how this new tech worked without it. I have many spells that use it now.” As soon as the purple light vanished connecting the two items, Indigo hurried back toward my shoulder.

“Thank you for sharing the stories. She listens to all the dragon stories she can,” I said. “They are her favorite.”

The elder nodded, then turned toward the stairs.

Lady Borsal’s shoulders relaxed as the Elder finally found a seat.

Lord Bennit jumped up on the stage and chatter reduced in the seating area. “Welcome, everyone, to this conclave of the Lore Clan. Please, help yourself to refreshments and renew connections with others. I am expecting a few more Elders to show up, along with some additional members. My official agenda will start in several clicks.”

As soon as he stopped talking, several dragons got up to join others, and the chatter increased.

“So, everyone is getting reacquainted?” I asked.

“Yes, he’s waiting for the rest of the Elders to show up. They tend to come at their own pace.”

I nodded at Lady Borsal, who turned in my direction.

“You impressed the Elder, she likes you. Good job.”

I shrugged. “That’s good. I’m just glad she seems to like Indigo.”

Lady Borsal leaned in. “I bet she will offer to be one of her teachers, since they will share similar magic.”

Indigo wasn’t paying attention at all. She had on her modified headset and was already listening to one of her new stories. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was open in awe.

“That’s great news, right?” I glanced at the cat to find him gone.

“It’s fantastic news for Indigo. For the rest, well, as you heard, she isn’t limited by much, if anything. But she is fair, and she likes you, so everything should be fine.”