"Go on, Loria... don't you want to play in the water with your brothers?"  Ellora nudged at her with her snout, trying to urge her daughter into the lake, where Neth and Taran paddled and dove in the shallows.

But she stamped a paw and snorted defiantly.  "No!  Water isn't a place for fire dragons.  Right daddy?" she looked up at Hueroc hopefully, who sat next to her on the shore, keeping an eye on the other two hatchlings.

"Water won't harm you, little one," he rumbled.  "Go on now."

"But..."

Ellora smiled a little.  "Remember what we told you three yesterday?  We're headed to the clan caves so you can meet other hatchlings your age, but before we fly over there you must be nice and clean and presentable!  So you need to go in the lake, and have a bath."

The little red-and-yellow dragon huffed, turning her head to look doubtfully at the water.  "I'd rather stay home," she grumbled.

"Are you sure?  If you go, I can help you find a tutor to help you learn magic..."

Loria's eyes went big and round at the mention of learning magic... but still not quite believing, she looked up at Hueroc, who chuckled and nodded to her.  "It's where I go whenever I get a lesson, and I'm sure someone would be willing to teach you as well."

Finally she stood.  "Oh okay...  But they'd better teach me something good!"  And with that she leapt into the lake, growling at the shock of the cool water but quickly submerging and beginning to swim.

"'Water isn't for fire dragons'," Ellora chuckled softly, reaching up to take off Hueroc's collar and her own, so they wouldn't get wet while they scrubbed their hatchlings clean.  "Wherever would she have gotten into her head that having flame-based magic makes her a fire dragon?  Certainly I didn't tell her that," she nipped her mate's neck accusingly.

He sat up and blinked, the very picture of innocence.  "What, you think I told her?"

"Who else but the most fiery dragon in the clan?" she smirked.  "Now let's go, the water won't hurt you either Mr. Fire Dragon!"  Without giving him a moment to respond or move himself, she shoved him bodily into the lake.

"Ellora--!" he yelped before he hit the water and went under, thrashing, sending water everywhere as he righted himself.  Loria and Taran were farther out in the lake and managed to avoid the wave, but Neth had still been paddling the shallows and was swamped, coming up spluttering complaint as he shook his small head back and forth to clear water from his eyes.  Hueroc's snout found the surface an instant later and broke through, and he fixed his glare on the grinning dragoness responsible.  "What was that for?"

She slid gracefully into the water next to him.  "To help us get nice and clean too."

"Rrrrrrr...  If you say so," he snorted, but after a moment he dove, darting out into the deeper parts of the lake where he could really swim, snaking about and wriggling at the feeling of the cool water running over and between all his scales, chasing out anything his tongue had missed when he groomed.  Turning about to check on his family he found Taran swimming out towards him, surprisingly fast and skillful in the water--a much better swimmer than he'd been at that age!  They played together for a little while, swimming circles and splashing water at each other, until finally Ellora got their attention with a wave of her tail: Loria and Neth were both back on dry land already, clean and dry and waiting!  Hueroc huffed in mock displeasure, but finally returned to the shallows, helping to scrub little Taran, then the two adults made sure they were all clean before emerging from the lake, shaking themselves vigorously.

Ellora scooped up the pair of collars.  "I'm going to put these away in the cave... I'll be right back, then we can go!"

Taran bounced excitedly as she walked away into the woods, making his father chuckle--at least one of their young was looking forward to it.  Loria seemed a bit more interested at the mention of magic, but Neth was visibly nervous, hunched over and looking at the ground, scratching idly in the dirt with a claw.  He was about to try to comfort him when Loria said, "will they really teach me magic?"

"Of course!" he nuzzled her gently, slowly fanning his wings to dry them.  "They teach me, and I'm sure they'll be more than happy to teach you as well.  Neth, you could come with your sister and me to find a teacher if you want..."

He blinked, and straightened up a little.  "...I'd like that," he finally said, quietly.

"I don' wanna learn," Taran huffed.  "I want to play!  Learning is for grown-up dragons."

Hueroc laughed.  "Well you don't have to learn yet if you don't want to.  Most hatchlings don't learn until they're a few years older, your mother says...  And I didn't even get a chance to learn any magic until a few months ago.  It's up to you."

Taran huffed, and Neth said, "Mother says there will be lots of dragons there?  How many?"

"It's not the same number all the time... only a few dragons actually live in this cave.  It's more like a meeting-place where the dragons of the clan go to spend time together, to learn, to train, to have meetings...  But there will probably be many dragons there today, and some of them will be young ones like you."

"Other hatchlings?  Can I play with them?" Taran asked, glancing sidelong at his brother's tail as if considering pouncing at it.

"Of course!"  He flicked his own tailtip at the little blue dragon's nose, then yanked it away when he nipped at it!  "That's one of the main reasons to take you three over, so you can meet other dragons your own age, get to know them, learn to interact with the other dragons of the clan, that sort of thing.  Ah!" he roared up at Ellora as she returned, her wings spreading and flexing in preparation for flight.  "There you are, dear... now who wants to ride with their mother, and who wants to be with me?"

The three hatchlings were up on their parents' backs a few short moments later, Taran and Neth with Ellora, Loria nestled comfortably between Hueroc's shoulders.  "Everyone holding on tight?" Hueroc asked, glancing at the hatchlings, and once they all said yes he and Ellora leapt into the air, flying straight and smooth as they crossed the clan territories to reach the central cave.  It was a bright, clear day, with a steady breeze aiding their progress, and though no dragons rose to meet them during their flight there were several friendly roars of greeting as they passed over the caves of other dragons of the clan.  But they caused a bit of a commotion as they came in to land at the entrance of the central cave; all the dragons flying in the area were able to see the little ones on their backs, and several of them had already gathered to get a look at the hatchlings!

"Back up, dragons, come on!" said the dragon on duty guarding the cave entrance.  "Give them a bit of space!  Nice to see you again, both of you," he nodded to them as they set down, "and glad you brought the hatchlings over!  There's a whole bunch of them inside already, you picked a good day to bring them to socialize."

"Thank you, Olaras," Ellora purred, helping Taran down from her back, though Neth scrambled over to sit next to Loria instead.

"Oh, how precious!" said a dragoness who'd come to see, to the general agreement of her fellows.  "They're all so beautiful."

"Thank you," she smiled back, shepherding Taran inside while he looked curiously up at all the unfamiliar faces, Loria and Neth remaining safely on Hueroc's back.  Once they were inside she motioned towards the group of playing hatchlings and Taran scampered off at once to join them; she nuzzled Hueroc, then made to follow him.  "Rhean should be here, and I'm sure he'll be willing to give them an introductory lesson, but if you can't find him then look for Aena, she's good with beginners."

"Okay!  Good luck keeping track of Taran," he chuckled, returning her nuzzle before walking off.  "Now let's find a dragon to talk to you two about magic."

He found the dragon he was looking for at the far end of the tutoring alcoves.  "Rhean!  I've brought you a couple of new students, if you have a bit of time."

The orange dragon-mage looked up at once.  "Oh, Hueroc!  Welcome back!  And yes, I most definitely have time to give them a bit of a lesson...  Just two?"  He glanced at the two hatchlings on his back, then looked around for a moment.  "What about the third... Taran?"

"He doesn't want to learn yet," Neth said.

"But I do!" Loria peeped excitedly.  "I want to learn more magic!"

"Not every hatchling can be so studious... or eager... that they want to spend their first time at the central cave getting magic lessons instead of meeting other dragons their age," Hueroc flicked his tail.  "I'm sure he'll get jealous of his siblings and demand to get lessons before too long."

"Perhaps..."  Rhean mused, glancing into a couple of alcoves before picking a good one.  "Though it will be a while before they'll be able to use the lessons properly and actually use magic..."

"Like this?" Loria sat up, and before Hueroc could stop her she'd summoned a little ball of flame over her outstretched forepaw.

The instructor blinked, but managed to take the demonstration in stride.  "I guess I shouldn't be surprised by any magical talents when it comes to your family...  Is there anything more you can do, Loria?"

"Yes!"  She hopped down from Hueroc's back, still maintaining that little flame, but after a moment it flared and spread outward, forming a ring around her, expanding and contracting and moving up and down...  Neth gave a little gasp, and even Hueroc was a bit surprised; he'd never seen her show off like this before!  Further, it felt almost like he could... sense her magic, like it was calling to his own abilities in some way, but he resisted the urge to try to join in, however that would manifest itself.

"That's enough, thank you," Rhean finally said, and she somewhat reluctantly let the flame die away as Neth jumped down from Hueroc's back as well.  "Only a few seasons old and already a little fire-mage; it's been a while since we've had a pyromancer to teach, but it should be... interesting...  And yes Hueroc, I saw you tuning yourself and extending towards her while she was demonstrating; we'll discuss that shortly--  What're you up to, little one?" he turned his attention to Neth, who was examining the magical symbols etched into the stone at the room's center.

"This is a nullifier," he looked up at Rhean after a moment.  "Not very efficient, or strong... but why have a magic nullifier in a teaching room?  Why would you want to limit the magic of someone you're teaching magic to?"

"It's useful when you don't know what a dragon's powers are, and you're trying to teach them.  It will glow when magic is used, but prevent the magic from being released--so it tells me, the teacher, that my pupil has managed to access their magic, while keeping us both safe from its potential effects.  But--  Where did you learn about symbology?  It's a very complex and difficult subject."

"Mother has a book about it in our cave."

Rhean grumbled.  "I see.  ...do you have magic to show me, as well?"

He shook his head.  "I could make this glow if you want, but I can't actually do anything yet."

He patted the hatchling's head, though Neth squirmed unhappily at the touch.  "Don't worry about that... it's a rare dragon who learns to use magic as young as your sister does.  Besides, you're already quite intelligent for your age, so you have your own talents."

Hueroc could tell his son was uncomfortable.  "Neth, you don't have to stay if you don't want to.  Why don't you go find your mother?"

Neth fled the room at once, but didn't go to his mother: she was surrounded by so many other dragons, they were all talking so loudly... and even that was barely audible over the cacaphony of Taran and the other hatchlings playing right next to them!  He watched for a few moments as Taran pounced and played with a larger pink dragon, then slunk away from them all, wincing at the noise.  There were so many dragons...  Too many!  He whined softly, creeping past an adult dragoness who wasn't paying attention...  He just wanted somewhere quiet and peaceful and empty where he could stay, and not be surrounded by so many strangers.

Eventually he found a chamber near the back of the cave: quiet... empty... and filled from floor to ceiling with shelves upon shelves of books!  Eyes going wide, he crept into the room, looking up at all the books, reading their titles as he padded between the rows, awed by the number of books, the amount of knowledge and information in this room, and the sheer size of some of the volumes--he wasn't sure he could even pick up some of them!  After exploring for another couple of minutes he found a desk, where an open book was propped up.  He looked around for whoever might have been reading it, but the room was empty, so he hopped up onto the desk and began to examine the book himself.

Mid-chapter, it was hard to tell what it was at first, and there were several unfamiliar words, but by the end of the first open page he'd figured out that it was a history, and probably ancient history at that--there was no mention of humans at all.  It only took him a few moments to reach the end of the open pages... and after looking around, seeing the room still empty, he grew impatient, turned the page and read on... and on... and on...

"Are you interested in Vaer's Annals, little one?"

Neth leapt nearly a foot in the air at the sound of a dragoness' voice behind him.  "Eeep!  I'm sorry, I didn't know you were reading it!"  He jumped down from the desk with a whine.

"No, no, it's okay!  You can stay," the old blue dragoness said, sitting down at the desk.  "Would you like me to read it to you?"

Neth squirmed, but after a moment he nodded, jumping back up onto the desk and curling up next to the book, watching as she... flipped back all the pages he'd read?  She began to read, but he stopped her almost immediately.  "I just read that part.  It was interesting... maybe a little too biased... but I'd rather not hear it again."

"You already--"  She stopped and stared.  "You can read?"

"...yes?" he looked back up at her uncertainly.  "That's what I was doing when you came in."

"But you're so young...!"  She went silent again, tilting her head and examining him closely.  "Oh!  You're one of Ellora's hatchlings, aren't you?"

"Yes.  I'm Neth," he smiled.

She chuckled and nosed him gently--only once, to his relief.  "I knew it...  I'm Sharra, I'm a good friend of hers; I was just out talking to her, in fact.  I'm the clan historian, so I maintain the library."

"It's... a huge collection!" he looked around.  "So many books to read..."

"I was going to recommend something that might better interest a younger reader... but I think that's not what you want from me.  Let's see...  Ah, here was the page you were on," she turned a few pages, then began to read again, while he listened and read along happily.

It was some time before they heard a few cries from outside the chamber, then a familiar voice sounded from the entrance, edged with panic.  "Neth!  Neth, are you in here?"

Sharra hurriedly stood up.  "Yes, Ellora, he's here!  I've been reading to him, don't you worry; he's just fine."

Ellora sighed in relief, hurring over to the desk and nuzzling her son firmly.  "You had me so worried!  Hueroc said you'd come to find me... how did you end up in here?"

He nosed back at her, lowering his head a bit.  "It was so loud and crowded and scary in that big room...  I didn't want to be there.  It was quiet in here... so I came here instead."

She sighed, scooping him up and putting him down at the base of her neck.  "It's okay, my dear...  I just wish you'd told me before you went running off!  I was worried someone might have--" she went silent, abruptly.

"The guard never would have let someone leave with one of your little ones," Sharra patted her shoulder with a forepaw.  "No reason to fret, Ellora...  We have taken many precautions since then."

Ellora recovered after a moment.  "I...  Yes, thank you.  Well thanks for looking after him, but now it's time for us to go."

He squeaked and looked back at the desk.  "But--"

Sharra closed the book and handed it to Ellora.  "Here.  He seems very interested in Vaer's Annals; just be sure it doesn't get damaged."

"I'll be very careful!" the little orange hatchling bobbed his head, wrapping forepaws and wings around the book to try to hold it steady.

"I know you will... just be careful about the rest of your family," she winked.  "I hope you can come back soon!"

"We'll try."  Ellora walked into the main chamber and raised her voice.  "Olaras!  You can call off the alert; I found him."

The crowd of dragons slowly dispersed at that announcement, and she made her way over to where Hueroc stood by the cave entrance with the other two hatchlings.  "Where was he?"

"The library, which I probably should have guessed," she smiled.  "How was your magic lesson, Loria?"

"Great!" she wagged her tail, though to Hueroc's relief she didn't show off any of what she'd learned right away.

"Good to hear... but I think we've all had enough excitement for one day.  It's time to go."

"But can we come back soon?"

"We can come back as often as you three want."