He’d never been in a proper Rosanian town. Two Rivers, his hometown, didn’t count—Strenel was proud of its independence. Once, as a child, he’d seen this town from a great distance. Then, it had been a crown of lights against the snow, bright and colorful. Now… well, it was bright, mostly. Magic-powered lamps glowed here and there to light up the town’s roads. Houses formed rows, with windows that shone brighter than anything in the Deepshadow. And there were stars overhead. To the east, over the town’s earthen walls, he could see the night sky painted in grey and red from the wildfire, and while the fires were out, they passed at least one house whose roof had a great hole in it from the lightning. Something his grandma’d taught him: missed spells still hit something. The Voltcage didn’t watch its fire at all.

Timothy was dressed in a hospital gown, in the smallest size they had for medium-type kindre. It was still too big on him, a fact that had both amused and horrified V in equal measure. So the gown that was supposed to open in the back fit more or less like a normal robe, and it hung to his shins. He was leaning on a cane Mat had offered him, and good thing too— he was a good long-walker, but today’s march had left even his legs like lead. It felt good to have a stick on him, even if it wouldn’t be much good for hitting. And at least he still had his knife on his leg (though Mandy was too starved to help,) and his burnt up bag on his back. It felt good to be fully regrown, minus the tail. He thought he might have actually lost a few scars, and the fur Mat had grown for him was thicker and warmer than the stuff he’d grown himself.

They were lucky, tonight— they’d caught glimpses of other watchmen and other people on patrol, but they hadn’t been stopped. It made sense, considering Valencia and Mat walking by him. Who could mistake them for anyone else, right? Valencia carried Meri in her arms with surprising tenderness. Other than the four of them, and the occasional patrol, nobody else seemed to be out.

“It’s too dangerous right now to do a lotta repairs. That all starts tomorrow.” V explained. “We’re almost there.”

And sure enough, they stopped, after another street, before a pair of large buildings. Before they stopped, Timothy was distracted by his poor stomach throwing a fit. The air smelled delicious, like fresh bread, and sugar, and baking in general. Then they actually stepped in front, and Timothy just gaped. “Holy crap, they’re huge.”

“Well, we are dragons.” V winked.

There were, basically, two buildings right next to one another. On their left was the bakery Meri had mentioned. It was dark inside, and the displays were empty, but it was decorated beautifully with painted dragons inside. A sign that said The Dragons’ Lair hung out front. On the right, Timothy suspected, was where the dragons actually lived. It was huge! Or rather, it was scaled up— it wasn’t a house that screamed “rich noble” so much as it was like a large kindre’s house and then some. The doors were double doors, the individual floors were bigger, and so on. It had to have been built special for the dragons, or maybe for very large kindre.

“Welcome to our house, Timothy.” Mat said.

“The dragons’ lair?” Timothy said blankly.

“Yeah. Mama thought it was funny.” The healer chuckled. “Nobody actually calls it that, though.” The healer quickly unlocked the door, but didn’t enter. “I’m still on duty for a few more minutes, so I’m gonna go see if mom needs anything on the wall.”

“Fly low, Mat. We dunno if that thing’s still out there.” Valencia warned.

Mat shuddered. “Right you are." Then he slapped his own wrist. “Right, I almost forgot—“ he rummaged around in his medical satchel, and produced a bright blue potion in a glass phial. “Timothy, you’re going to want to drink a dose of this before your meals for the next week or so.”

Timothy took the phial from Mat, and examined its label. “Famenin? What is it?”

“Your body needs calories, but you’re suffering from severe malnourishment. Famenin will help smooth things out and help your body adjust to eating full meals.”

“Um. What happens if I don’t take it?”

“You’ll probably die of shock.” Mat said firmly. “Take the potion as directed. Two capfuls before every meal.”

"Er, right, then. Stay safe." Timothy smiled at the dragon. "And thank you for everything."

The healer returned his smile. "Same to you. Welcome to Fresa, Timothy.”

And he set off walking towards the walls. Before he got out of sight, Timothy saw him make a strange hand signal, with three fingers in and the outer two out, and out it to his ear. It glowed with magic a moment later, and he spoke quietly as he hurried. A communication spell? Timothy worried about what he was saying, though, until Valencia interrupted him with “Oi, you mind getting the door? Kinda got my hands full.”

“You don’t hafta keep carrying me, sis…”

“Pretty sure I do, actually.”

“Oh, yeah, sure.” Timothy said, and opened the door for her. It was light inside. Valencia led the way in, and Timothy followed.

———

The first thing that struck Timothy was how pleasant the house smelled. The scent of ginger tea filled the air, mixed with notes of cinnamon. Timothy breathed in deep of it. The house looked comfortably lived in— more organized than his own hut, but then there was a lot more room. Valencia kicked off her shoes sorta into alignment with a row of others. Underneath the sweet tea smell, Timothy’s stomach rumbled at delicious smells of food. Both dragons smirked at him.

“Mama, we’re back.”

Timothy heard a feminine gasp from the next room, followed by fast, heavy footfalls. And in yet another surprise for the evening, instead of another salmon-scaled dragon, a rhino kindre charged to meet them. “Oh, thank goodness, you’re both safe!” She snatched both girls into a crushing hug, and Timothy was shocked to see she was strong enough to pull Valencia! Then again, he could see the resemblance. Not in clothing— the rhino lady wore overalls over a pink shirt, and a fluffy pastel apron. It wasn’t really her figure, either, as she was utterly dwarfed by her eldest daughter. There was a tenderness and daintiness to how she moved and held her daughters, but she was sturdy and strong even though she seemed soft and plump. No, the similarity was in her eyes; they were an earthy brown unlike Valencia’s blue, but they were filled with the same warmth he’d seen when the dragoness looked at Meri. Being a large kindre, she also towered over him, but Timothy didn’t feel intimidated in the least. She just seemed too… soft and squishy to be scared of, and her aggressive cuddling of her daughters didn’t exactly make her any scarier.

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“Mama!” Meri sniffled, and buried her face in the lady’s chest. Her older sister, meanwhile, made an overdramatic croaking noise. Their mother just laughed with pure relief before slipping off of them, taking Meri with her. Her face just glowed with happiness, like warmth from a roaring hearth.

“Oh, I was so worried! I know you called earlier, but after everything…” Timothy noticed a dented steel rolling pin hanging from her belt. There was a story there…

“Aw, mama, you know I can handle myself.” Valencia smiled sheepishly. “An’ I did tell ya we were safe.”

“Yeah, but when even we slimes can’t get any good info, it’s hard not to freak some.” The other voice was low and a little husky. Timothy saw the slime sister enter then, from the kitchen. She was a sort of chalky cream color, nearly opaque with swirling mass. Real different from the inky, tarlike slimes he was used to. She looked like some kind of baked treat, with colorful swirls and even something that almost looked like sprinkles in her membrane. It was weird to see a slime with a face, a pair of bubbles forming half-lidded eyes over her slime maw.

“Sis!” The little dragoness basically lost what composure she had left, bawling into her mama’s arms as her other sister stretched to pat her back.

“Oh, darling…” She addressed the little dragoness she was snuggling with that one, “Where were you? The whole town was out looking! Oh, I feared the worst when that monster showed up…”

The poor dear’s answer came between sobs. “Maaa! I-I went looking for the Lady in the Deepshadow, and I got lost, and there were monsters, and, and—“ The poor little dragoness just cried into her mama’s chest. “I’m sorry! I won’t do it again!”

“Shh, shh… It’s alright now, sweetie…” Timothy’s heart twinged, and he suddenly felt a little cold. Out of place. “You’re home. It’s over.” That’s about when the Rhino’s gaze fell on him. Timothy belatedly realized he wasn’t hidden behind V anymore. It was harder to be a confident, powerful witch when you were exhausted and too weak to do magic. Without really meaning to, he shied away, head low. “Oh! Who are you, dear?”

“U-um, I’m Timothy, ma’am.” He said softly. “I found Meri in th’woods.” And he forced himself to look up and meet her eyes. He trembled slightly as her eyes widened. Anyone could tell how weak and frail he was, now. No better’n a beaten animal. The robe and staff made him look like a witch; a too-big hospital gown and walking stick made him look like easy, fresh prey.

Only to then squawk as she pulled him into the same hug Meri was in! Timothy’s family had never been big into hugs, and neither were most monsters. So the witch was super unprepared for what it felt to just be held by someone. Her grip was gentle, warm… soft. It was kinda weird, and embarrassing, and awkward… but soothing in a way that seeped into him like a warm bath. Like just for a second, everything was fine. “Thank you so much for saving my little girl.” She let him down a moment later, looking him over. He shivered as her eyes passed his brand scar. “Oh, dear, you’re so skinny… I bet you could use a hot meal, right?”

Timothy gaped. “U-um, well, I, um…”

And the rhino laughed, this time much more cheerfully. “Oh, don’t be shy, dear, you’re safe with us. Dinner’s still warm. I bet V and Meri here are starved too.”

Meri nodded fervently. “Oh yeah.” V agreed. “‘Sides, Meri promised ya, right?”

She didn’t even care about the brand… Even the slime hadn’t remarked on it! “Right. Um, thank you, ma’am.” Timothy shook himself out of it, and a shy smile bloomed across his face. “I appreciate it.”

“Please, dear, you can just call me Larue. Miss Larue or Mrs. Ashborne if you’re feeling formal.” She turned that warm smile on him without warning.

“I’m Maisie. Knowing my kid sister, you prolly already knew that.” The slime gave a squishy kinda nod. “Here, follow me to the kitchen.”

The next few minutes were a whirl of activity. Timothy found himself plunked into a tall chair at the kitchen table along with Meri (V hauled herself upstairs, groaning about needing to scrape her armor off.) Miss Larue all but danced through the meal prep, using magic and swift, darting movements to bring the meal out. The scent of poli stew hit Timothy like a charging beast as it came back up to a simmer, and his stomach groaned. It wasn’t long before he found himself staring at more food than had ever been in front of him at once; a heaping, dragon-sized bowlful of stew, whose scent was even more intoxicating up close, and a huge hunk of steaming, freshly warmed bread. At first he thought he was to share it with Meri, but then a similar portion was dished up for the little dragoness, leaving him speechless. "Oh, my.” Timothy breathed. Miss Larue just smiled and finished by pouring three cups of tea.

“Eat up, dears. Especially you, Timothy.”

He briefly studied the potion Mat had given him. There were way easier ways to kill him than poison, and the stew was calling. He threw back two capfuls of the acidic tasting potion and dug in. The stew was rich and flavorful, full of vegetables and lots of delicious meat. He'd never had this much meat at once, and it made his wolf body tingle. The bread had a crispy crust that crackled beneath his jaws, but a soft, delicious crumb that all but melted. Timothy lost himself in the food, forgetting everything else as he all but dove into the bowl. He didn't even come up to breathe until the stew was gone. That's when he finally sat back, briefly, and his eyes met a giggling Meri and a very impressed looking Valencia.

"Damn, dude, you eat like me." V grinned.

“Or like us.” The slime almost sounded impressed. “Respect.”

Timothy blushed. "I, um, sorry about my manners. Lack of manners. Sorry."

The mother just smiled gently. "Don't worry, that's just proof I made a good meal. Seconds, dear?"

"Oh, ye--" The wolf caught himself halfway through. "I mean, uh, I shouldn't be selfish."

“Oh, none of that. There’s more than enough. Here, love.” And she cheerfully dished up another huge bowlful and more bread. Timothy could only stare for a moment. Bein’ honest, Timothy had never been able to eat till he was truly full. Even before he’d been revealed as a halfbreed, he’d had a monstrous appetite. His mom hadn’t known any more than he did that he was a halfbreed and needed more food, so she had done her best to help him control his appetite instead, teaching him to chew certain herbs and roots to stave off hunger. Oh, she did her best to keep him fed, even though they were poor, but he had never really been able to eat as much as he wanted, even with her… with her giving him more of their dinner than she ever got. The thought made his heart ache.

And of course, once he’d been outed and run out of town, it was all hungry days and empty nights. He’d always been a skinny boy, but those hungry, frozen nights that long winter had left his bones sticking out. He’d never truly recovered, either. Every winter, he got sick early and was fighting off illness almost constantly. His highest-end magics would knock him right out if he wasn’t careful. Heck, his magic knife had been asleep for weeks for lack of energy to share. And of course, living in the Deepshadow with its slim pickings and lack of real prey left him weak and puny, even now. He would never grow into a big, strong warrior.

So the fact that this sweet woman was including him, feeding him like he was one of hers— her own family ate ravenously as he always wanted to, which made him suspect it always was a dragon thing— broke something within him that he didn’t think he’d ever be able to explain. All he could do was mumble out a soft “Thank you, ma’am.”

And while she may not have known completely, he could tell she understood. “Of course, dear. Now, eat up before it gets cold.”