‘Drip… Drip… Drip… Every four seconds…’

Hearing a faint cracking sound off in the distance, Abby listened intently as it went off again a little while later. It was strange to hear so many things you were previously deaf to when you actually put in the time to listen to them. But, the only reason she was even doing that, was because she was simply too terrified to make any sounds herself.

Gulping as she felt the scaled hand beneath her lightly warming her at her base, the teenager soon cast her eyes over her shoulder, as she looked up at Ebon’s face timidly. How… How did she even get into this mess? And what was going to happen now that the Dragon girl got what she wanted?

Looking away sullenly as she was carried off somewhere, the brunette breathed deeply before closing her eyes. It was her fault in the end though. She had made her bed, now she had to lie in it.

The most she could hope for was that it didn’t end up being a coffin.

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~ Earlier~

“NYA DON’T!”

Calling out to her kitten as the little Neko ran at Ebon, the child silently narrowed her eyes before catching the Beastial in mid-air. Giving her a tentative squeeze as she shifted her eyes back over to Kari and Abby, the Dragon pup quietly growled once more.

“You’re making this difficult! Just come with me! We need to speak.” She snarled. Trembling on top of the younger witch’s hands, Abby felt powerless as she watched the raven-haired child holding the younger cat girl by her throat.

She… she had to do something! “E-E-Evel… Evelin- “. Screaming as a harsh bloom of fire shot into the air, Kari began to cry even harder as she saw the hateful eyes being sent her way. “Don’t you dare call her! This… This can be resolved, by just giving me Abby. And in return, I’ll give her my word.” Ebon whispered darkly.

Never breaking eye contact with Nya, Abby soon felt her fear rising further as she watched the toddler clawing at the Dragon girls’ hand around her throat. She couldn’t breathe… ‘N-Nya… why…’ She knew she couldn’t do anything to stop her… but she charged at the homicidal child again. It was just like last time!

Looking back at Ebon now as she saw the Dragon girl’s eyes upon her, Abby quietly gulped before clearing her throat. But, before she could get a word out edgewise, a small screech rang out causing her voice to abandon her.

Lifting Nya up into the air as she tightened her hold on her, the Dragon pup showed no emotion as she moved her free hand up to mouth, before raising a scally finger to her lips. “Don’t, call her…” Nodding quickly as she saw the pained expression on the cat girl’s face, the teenager stood up slowly before staring Ebon down.

“I-I-I won’t... But you have to let her go! SHE CAN'T BREATHE!” Glaring hatefully back at the smaller human, Ebon’s hand rose once again before she released her hold on Nya. Falling to the floor in a slump, the little kitten mewed weakly as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“There. Now, come with me, and I vow not to hurt you three. But if you call your pet! I swear I’ll make you suffer…” Ebon snarled. Trembling in fear as her eyes shifted between Kari and Nya, both of whom were in tears by the Dragon girl’s mere presence, Abby quietly nodded.

“I-I’ll go with you…” Breaking her tearful gaze away from her fallen friend and back down at Abby Kari soon burst into hysterics. “ABBY! SHE WANTS TO KILL YOU! C-CALL EVELINE! CALL CASEY! HEL-“. Squealing as a hand wrapped around her throat almost instantaneously, both Abby and Kari froze in fear, as they watched the black Dragon pup slowly tighten her grip around the younger witch’s neck.

“I warned you…” “E-Ebon! Stop! You promised not to hurt them! I’ll go with you! J-Just… just let her go, please…” Shifting her vertical pupils away from the hyperventilating Hominal she was clutching onto, and down to her shrunken passenger, Ebon lowered her free hand down wordlessly before extending her clawed digits.

Staring at the outstretched palm before her, Abby felt a critical decision play out. She could probably call Eve… She didn’t even need to say her name. If she really thought hard about her, she would just appear like she always did. But, would she make it in time to save Kari?

The scaly child had proven she was fast enough to do them harm if she really wanted to. So, that left her few options to take otherwise. Darting her eyes over to Nya, and then back to Kari, before shifting them to the waiting hand once more, the teenager somberly closed her eyes, before walking forward.

Screaming into Ebon’s hand as she clutched onto Abby frantically, Kari was soon left weeping as she watched her smaller friend prying her feet out of her fingers and stumbling into the Dragon girl’s palm in turn. Watching the human comply with her demands, Ebon said nothing as she waited for the smaller girl to get situated before she released the struggling witch from her grip.

Slumping to her knee’s as she began to cough, Kari looked up despairingly as she watched both Ebon and Abby looking back at one another. “P-P-Please…” Staring back at Kari sadly, the brunette quietly nodded before she was turned away from her as the younger Dragon pup began to walk away.

It would be okay…

Now that her friends were safe.

Ebon only wanted her life after all…

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~Present~

Ten minutes had gone by, and she wasn’t dead yet. This was progress!  Twiddling her thumbs as she sat deathly still, Abby tried to gauge her location out of where she had been before, but, even when she studied the paths the little Dragon had taken, she still didn’t have a clue where they were headed.

‘I’ve never been this far down before…’ She could recall Eve’s chambers somewhere deep as well, but with that said, the scaly child had kept going down once she reached the commons. It was hard to tell where was where once it started to get as dark as it was. No more phosphorescent fungi… and not a candle in sight. Yet, even so… it seemed Ebon knew exactly how to navigate the sightless corridors she found herself in.

Looking up at the younger girl’s eyes as she saw the faint red glow they immitted, Abby quietly nodded. It had to be a Dragon thing. She usually just chalked it up to something weird these Hominal could do in the end anyway. What was night vision compared to teleporting, telepathy or being able to remove your head from your neck…

Growing pale instantly as the Dragon's eyes flickered to her, however, Abby quickly looked away before fidgeting. ‘How did she know I was staring?!’ She didn’t want to give the child any more reasons to hate her, so keeping to herself was the best course of action.

But, she might have some leeway… Ebon had said something that was nagging her. ‘A vow, not to hurt me…’ It was weird how she said it. Perhaps it was just because of the different way she talked compared to the rest of the girls… or maybe, it held some meaning behind it to her.

Then again, she could be completely over thinking it and the child could simply kill her once she got whatever it was she wanted. ‘I’m doing a great job of staying positive…’ Sighing weakly as she tried not to dwell on her morbid thoughts any longer, Abby quietly shifted her knees around until she held onto them in a comforting way.

‘What do you want from me anyway's Ebon?’ She was going out of her way to abduct her this time. And she had a gut feeling it was due in part to Eve somehow. But, that still made her wonder. Just what did the Dragon girl want to talk to her about?

Looking back up at Ebon quietly as she watched her flickering reptilian eyes, Abby tiredly closed her own. She would just have to find out when the time came. One way or another, she was going to find something out, and whether good or bad, it was going to happen either way.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Stepping into a dark and sightless room, Ebon’s feet lightly clicked on the stones beneath her as she peered around. Opening her mouth briefly as she spat out a small plum of flames in what seemed like a random direction, a tuff of something caught the flames before they were shortly engulfed into a small fire. But, it seemed that was enough to light the room as it cast it into a dancing glow.

Wincing as the light hurt her eyes, Abby blinked repeatedly as she tried to adjust to the sudden lighting. ‘Where, am I?’ Paying no mind to the younger girl as she walked down a small set of stones leading into the roomy chamber, the teenager was more focused on its contents.

As far as she could tell, there was nothing man-made present. Well… as long as you didn’t count bones that is. Shuddering fearfully as she saw numerous skeletons of different animals, (and possibly humans) scattered about, the smaller girl nodded as it clicked into her mind just where Ebon had taken her.

“T-This is your domain… isn’t it?” Shifting her gaze down to the shrunken human, the little Dragon simply grunted as she moved towards the end of the open space… and thankfully away from all the remains of whatever was down there with them.

‘Huh… I would think a place like this would smell bad with all these dead animals…’ She was well accustomed to the scent of death. It wasn’t always humans her mentor had worked on. Occasionally a villager or traveler would bring him a pet to help cure or mend. And sadly. As great a man as he was, he wasn’t a specialist with animals.

Shaking her head as she began to lose her train of thought, the brunette gave the room another few sniffs before humming softly. ‘It smells… like charcoal.’ It had to be from whatever the Dragoness had been burning to light the place up. Perhaps that’s why there wasn’t a bad smell to the room.

Eeping as she was quickly rid of her thoughts as the hand beneath her gave out, Abby screeched before wincing as she landed on the ground uncomfortably. “Stay put Human… I’ll be back.” Looking up fearfully, Abby quickly nodded as she watched Ebon step over her before walking towards the back of the cavern, leaving her startled, and thoroughly confused by the Hominal's sudden departure.

'Jeez… Did she really need to drop me again?' It wasn’t nearly as bad as before but it still hurt! Rubbing her backside as she continued to look around, the shrunken girl tried to find anything else notable other than the large mound of bones formed in the side of the room. But, there was none to be seen, as far as she could tell.

‘Animal remains a makeshift bonfire and an empty cave. You really aren’t what I’d expect from a Dragon Ebon...’ From all the stories she had read or heard from various men she and her Master had worked on, Dragon’s were hoarders. They coveted all forms of treasure and made it a point to steal more by any means to satisfy their greed.

Yet… Shifting her eyes back and forth, Abby simply sighed. “I really know nothing about any of you girls', do I?” “For once, you say something truthful…” Screeching as she heard Ebon’s voice pipe up behind her, the smaller girl quickly twirled around in her spot as she saw the younger Hominal pacing towards her as she climbed down a small ledge.

‘Wait, didn’t she… but she was?!’ How did she go in one direction and come out another?! Ignoring the shock, the shrunken girl was displaying, the Dragoness simply walked forward once she landed on the ground before moving across from Abby with what looked like a small sack in hand.

Looking up at the towering child as she held her eyes shut firmly in what could only be described as severe discomfort, the smaller girl quietly gulped before going rigid as the black Dragon Pup plopped her rear onto the ground in one swift motion.

‘Doesn’t that hurt…?’ Keeping her eyes closed as she let out a growling sigh, Ebon opened her mouth partially before a wisp of smoke lightly floated away. “I don’t like you. And I don’t want you here. Your scent is infecting my chambers and the longer you’re here, the harder it will be for it to go away. Let’s finish this now, so I no longer need to bare it…” She whispered hatefully, her teeth lightly grinding once she finished her sentence.

Crawling back slowly as she looked up at the Dragoness fearfully, the brunette's jaw began to tremble as she tried to form words. It sounded like, she wanted to kill her again… “W-Why… Why did you bring me here…? Do you need, something…? How can I help-“

Wincing as a loud roar escaped the Dragon girl’s mouth as she glared at her, Ebon continued to growl as she bared her teeth at the teenager. “I NEED NOTHING FROM YOU INSECT! IF YOU WANT TO HELP US THEN JUST DIE!” Cowering in front of the toddler as she screamed at her savagely, Abby quietly gulped before looking away.

“If… you don’t need something… then… why? What do you want from me?” Clenching her fists as her claws dug into her palms, the little Dragoness moved what she had been holding over before dropping it in front of a very startled Abby, its contents jingling briefly as whatever it was landed before her.

“I can’t… I can’t kill you!” Ebon whispered bitterly, her face showing just how much animosity she held for the smaller girl. Flexing her claws briefly as she tried to resist the urges she felt, the younger girl looked away angrily before continuing.

“I want to make you pay… FOR CORRUPTING EVERYONE! But, your pet won’t let me!” She snarled. Looking up at the trembling child as she saw the state she was in, Abby quietly frowned. ‘I guess Eve really did do something to her…’ Would it be alright to ask…? Probably not… But, that rarely stopped her from asking stupid questions.

Parting her lips as she tried to find the courage to speak, Abby was interrupted before she even began as Ebon’s hand slammed down in front of her as it caused the large sack to jingle once more. “I want nothing more… then to see you disappear! But… I can’t… I can’t kill you… I can’t eat you… I can’t toss you out and bar ourselves in! Everyone’s against me… EVERYONES A TRAITOR TO NAJIA!” Ebon roared angrily.

Looking up at the Dragon’s face as she spoke, the brunette soon felt… something, as she saw what looked like a couple tears form in the corner of her eyes. ‘Is… she going to cry?’ She had never seen this much emotion from the younger girl. It almost felt, humanizing… almost.

Letting out a painful sigh through her teeth, Ebon’s eyes snapped back open before they fell on Abby once more, the emotion that had once been present now vanquished only to be replaced by her usual brand of disdain for her.

“So… It comes down to this… If I can’t kill you so that I can keep the rest of these unloyal ingrates safe! Then I’ll make sure you won’t talk instead!” Gulping as Ebon’s hand descended towards here, Abby crawled back a bit more before relaxing as she saw the scaly child’s hand land on the sack instead of her.

Grabbing the base of the sack and pulling it up, the jingling contents it contained were soon revealed to the shrunken teen causing her mind to all but go blank. ‘I-I-Is, that… gold…?’ Standing stiffly as she watched a small pile forming of what looked like a countless amount of small gold coins and nuggets, Abby’s breath left her as she tried to comprehend it. She had never seen real gold before…

‘Is this really, gold? There’s so much!’ This had to be a fortune even for a noble! How did Ebon have so much wealth?! Watching the brunette’s reaction carefully, Ebon huffed as she tossed the now empty sack aside before picking up one of the gold pieces she had brought out.

“Of all the metals I’ve ever seen, this is the one both our species covet the most. It delights my kind and fills us with life and energy, and it brings unbridled happiness to yours. We speak the same language… so let’s speak.” She growled. Tearing her eyes painfully away from the massive (to her) pile of riches the Hominal had suddenly produced, Abby quietly looked up at Ebon, as she tried to figure out what she meant.

Noticing the smaller girl’s attention was on her again, Ebon sighed broodingly before her reptilian eyes met with the teens. “I can’t stop you from getting changed back into a real human. Once that happens, I know what you’ll do… You may have everyone else fooled, but not me!” She snarled.

Furrowing her brow, Abby quietly scowled now as well. ‘What does she care if I get changed back?’ Would she hate her more if she did for some reason? Licking her suddenly parched lips, the brunette tried to speak but felt a knot in her stomach for some reason.

Seeing the smaller girl silent to her statements, Ebon nodded darkly. “You have everyone fooled but me. And I know Najia won’t be fooled either when she awakens! But… she might listen to the rest of these traitors… That’s why, I’ll do whatever I have to, to make sure we survive.” She whispered bitterly.

‘Traitors…’ Looking down now as she felt a sense of foreign guilt, the shrunken girl remained silent as she listened to the younger Dragoness. She could hear, pain in her words. And it was bringing back those feelings from before. ‘She really does care for her fellow Hominal after all…’ And that meant, through all her horrible actions, she just wanted to protect everyone.

Keeping her fists clenched as she tried to remain civil to the human in front of her, Ebon quietly snarled as more streams of wispy black smoke escaped past her clenched teeth. It was taking every ounce of restraint she had, not to just kill this human outright, and be rid of the problem they all faced instantly! She shouldn’t have to play these games with her!

Parting her teeth as another sigh escaped her lips, the black Dragoness closed eyes cracked open as she glared down at the smaller girl. “So… can we come to an agreement? I want your truthless word, and in return, you can have all this…” Moving her hand down to the pile of gold, the younger girl gently gave it a push as she nudged it closer to the startled human in front of her.

“M-My, word?” Looking up at the pile of gold the toddler was for some reason offering her, Abby grew confused. ‘She wants to give me gold, for, my word?’ Shaking her head quietly, the brunette looked back up at the child cluelessly.

“I don’t understand what you mean… What do you want from me?” Snarling, Ebon lifted up a few pieces of the gold before dropping them one at a time, the all to familiar chime echoing in the noiseless chamber as its sound carried it into the corridors far beyond.

“You know what I want, don’t play dumb! Once you get changed back into your real human body you’ll just go running off to wherever it is you came from before telling everyone what you’ve seen! I REFUSE TO ALLOW THAT! SO, TAKE THE METAL, AND NEVER SPEAK OF US AGAIN!”

Putting it together now, Abby’s eyes grew wide in disbelief as she finally figured out what the Dragoness really wanted. ‘I-It’s a bribe…’ She was trying to pay her off, so she didn’t tell others that they were hiding here. It finally made sense.

She was still trying to protect everyone, even though she thought they betrayed her. Touching her chest gently as she felt the knot in her stomach growing worse, the brunette closed her eyes as she breathed deeply. This, it was like some kind of fantasy. A mountain of gold and all she had to do in return was say nothing about any of these children or Najia to anyone. It was an offer no human she had ever met would possibly refuse… which made her next statement rather awkward to say.

“I… I can’t take your gold Ebon… I’m sorry.” Growing wide-eyed by the smaller girl’s proclamation, the little Dragoness snarled before reaching forward and grabbing another handful of the coins and nuggets. “Take it! TAKE ALL OF IT AND NEVER SPEAK OF US!” She roared again angrily.

Shaking her head silently, Abby looked away weakly as she heard the angry noises the larger child was making above her. “I can’t, accept your offer. As tempting as it is… it’s not right. I can’t take the gold Ebon, because I was never going to tell anyone about you girls in the first place.”

Dropping the coins, she had been gripping as her claws began to twitch, the younger girl let out an eerie snarl as her throat began to glow. “LIAAAAAAAAR!” Reeling back as fire spewed forward from the screaming toddler, Abby crawled backward in fear as she saw the berserker state the black Dragon pup was now in.

She looked like she was about ready to kill her! Well, again… Gripping onto her hand with her other one as she shook with anger, Ebon’s glowing red eyes pierced the smaller human with such hate the brunette had never experienced before. This was worse than any of the other times the younger girl had glared at her.

“YOU LIE! ALL HUMANS SPEAK OF US! THEY WANT TO USE US AND KILL US! I WON’T ALLOW IT! TAKE THE METAL!” Ebon screamed, her anger now finally reaching its peak after talking to the brunette for too long. Crawling back fearfully as she saw the hysterically state the larger Hominal was sent into by her refusal, Abby gulped before shaking her head again.

“I-I-I can’t! I was never going to say what I saw here! I’m telling you the truth!” Screaming herself as the ground in front of her split apart as the Dragoness stabbed it with her claws, gold flew away as Ebon lurched over the smaller girl.

“LAIR… LIAR… LIAR!!!!! YOU HUMANS ARE ALL THE SAME! YOU WOULD NEVER KEEP SILENT!” She was lying… She wanted to betray them still! How did her metals not work?! Humans always coveted it! She was just like them!

Shifting her head around sporadically as her teeth ground and clenched painfully tight, the volatile child stared at the scattered gold that now littered her cavern floors before screaming into the air, lashes of fire seeping out as they were carried by her breath.

“ENOUGH! WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT HUMAN?! Is the metal not enough?! Do you have to have both it and our very existence extinguished! TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT!” Ebon screamed, her emotions now fully exposed to the smaller teen as she saw glimpses of the child through her rage-filled state.

She could see anguish, pain, unbridled rage… and none of it was specifically for her, but for her race. ‘To have so much anger for us… and you’re only a child.’ It made her sad. Shaking her head as she continued to watch the Dragon’s jerking movements, Abby lowered her head to the ground now.

She knew this whole fight between the two of them was never really about her… but to the extent to which Ebon would go, it seemed almost insane. Just what did humans do to her? Noticing the violent thrashes of the younger girl slowly ceasing as she began to pant, Abby’s eyes traveled upwards as they met again with the black dragon pups slitted red ones.

Keeping her mouth open as smoke steadily floated out of it, Ebon soon gave a gravely sigh as she stared down at the smaller human with disdain. “More… I’ll… I’ll give you more…” She whispered. Looking back at the younger girl in shock, Abby tried to speak up but the child was soon in the air as she flew up towards the tunnel she had come out of before.

Sitting on the ground wordlessly, the brunette was left speechless now. Even after her initial outburst, she still wanted to bribe her so she didn’t say anything. ‘All for the sake of everyone else…’ Clutching her chest as she felt her guilty thoughts returning, Abby soon closed her eyes before taking a deep breath. She had to remember Kari’s words.

This was no fault of her doing. And she’d have to make Ebon realize that whether she wanted to or not.

*Klink… Klink… Klink…*

Blinking as a sporadic jingling noise echoed out where Ebon had gone off to, the shrunken girl furrowed her brow for a moment before her eyes widened as she saw the shadow of Ebon returning. She recognized that noise after hearing it repeatedly for the past few minutes.

“Take… it… all… Take it all… TAKE WHATEVER YOU WANT, JUST LEAVE US ALONE!” Gawking in the ground as she looked up at the little Dragoness on her perch, all blood drained from Abby’s face as she saw what looked like a painful amount of gold clutched between her arms as she struggled to even stand. HOW WAS THERE SO MUCH OF IT?! THESE GIRLS WERE STRUGGLING TO SURVIVE!

Panting through her teeth as her every footfall trembled from the load she was carrying, Ebon made it to the ledge she had stood over prior before opening her arms wide, the gold coins, nuggets, and trinkets she had been struggling to carry all falling down as they clattered to the floor below before rolling and bouncing in front of the smaller girl.

“Heee…. Heee… heee… T-There… that’s, everything…” Ebon whispered weakly, as she kneeled on the ground trying to catch her breath. She had nothing left for the human. It all came down to this. Shivering on the ground as she looked at the new pile of loot that made the one brought out before seem like a measly insult, Abby was breathless once more.

This was a king’s ransom. Collecting all of this would have taken decades for any noble to do let alone centuries for anyone else. And yet, Ebon somehow wound up with all of it. This… it was her treasure. A Dragon’s treasure. She was offering it to her… The stories... they were true after all.

Licking her lips as she tried to break her eyes away from something she would no doubt never witness again, Abby closed her eyes as she tried to find her voice. ‘If Ebon’s offering me this… then that really means she cares about the others.’ There was no way to ignore it anymore. If this was real, then so were the other things she heard about Dragons. They wouldn't hand over their riches unless it was for something important. Something REALLY important.

“E-Ebon…” Raising her head weakly as she continued to catch her breath, the Dragoness grunted weakly as she saw the shrunken girl trying to speak. Would she accept it now? This was all she had left. All that she was able to give that is.

Feeling her lower jaw trembling as she kept her eyes clenched shut, the brunette breathed deeply as she tried to organize her thoughts. This was going to go one of two ways. And she didn’t particularly like the odds of it going the way she wanted in the end.

Touching her chest as she blew out her breath, the smaller girl opened her eyes as she tried to look up at the black Dragon pup with determination… and not absolute and complete fear for her wellbeing.

“Ebon… I, I Abby, give you my solemn vow, and my word… that I will never, ever! Betray you girls. I won’t speak a word of any of your kind to anyone. Each of your girls, I’ll keep your secrets and I’ll honor my promises. Your lives will remain unknown, and, and I promise, that I will never lie to you. Not to you Ebon, or to Eve, or to Casey, or Kari, or Ella and Emma or Brook or Nya or Poppy or Amy and Yu… Do you accept my word…?”

Feeling her voice leave her once she finished her pledge, Abby gulped repeatedly as she looked up at Ebon hopefully. Would she believe her words? She tried to make them sound as truthful as she could. After all, that’s what they were… but it all came down to what the little Hominal thought they were…

Kneeling on the ground with her face neutral and almost absent of emotion, Ebon’s reptilian eyes never wavered of moved away from the smaller human’s face as she studied her. It didn’t make much sense to her… but as far as she could tell, and from the time the teenager had started to speak till when she finished, she couldn’t detect any lies.

It was perplexing. She had lived long enough to know when one of her kind was lying when they spoke. And yet, she always managed to do just that. But, lie aside, she had an incentive now not to speak. She made sure of that.

Breaking her gaze away from Abby finally as she stared down at the forlorn pile of metals she had collected all throughout her life, Ebon quietly closed her eyes. It was done. “I accept. Now, take whatever you think you can hold and leave. I’ll give the rest to you once you return to normal human.” She whispered bitterly.

Sighing with the utmost relief, Abby continued to hold her chest as she saw the less hostility from the younger girl. She believed her! ‘Now, time to break to good… err, bad? News to her…’ Taking another deep breath, as she tried to pool the same courage from before, the teenager closed her eyes before speaking once more.

“That won’t be necessary Ebon… I promise not to tell anyone about any of you… but I’m still not going to accept any of your gold.” Opening her eyes wide in an instant, the Dragoness looked down at the smaller human in shock, but, she was still speaking.

“I know how much everyone means to you. You might be brash… or scary… or any other number of things. But you’re kind. I can see it! And you’re just like everyone else here, even if you hide it behind your temper. I… I made up my mind about a day ago. It was hard, really hard. But… I knew it was what I  wanted, and what I want to believe you all really needed to. I’m not going to tell anyone about you girls… because once I’m returned to my former height… I… I plan on staying here with you. All, of you!”

Gawking as she heard the brunette’s words, Ebon’s jaw trembled open as she listened to her in disbelief. This… what… was… this…? Shaking her head as a small smile formed, Abby quietly sighed as she felt her heartbeat rising beneath her dress.

“Najia is a kind woman. I’ve heard so many stories about her from each of you girls. So, once she recovers and wakes up, I plan on asking her if I can stay here. I can be a big help, I just know it! Its… it’s kind of scary, and I still don’t know if it’s the right thing to do… but, I’ve known all my life after what happened to me when I was younger, that I want to help others. And it doesn’t matter if you’re Hominal, Beastial, or Human. I want to help everyone. I'm pretty sure that's why I'm here after all. So… That’s why I can’t accept such a gracious offer Ebon. It wouldn’t be right to take your gold from you. It’s yours, not mine. But my promise is.”

Smiling softly as she said what she wanted, Abby silently opened her eyes to what she already expected. Twitching up on the ledge as her eyes beaded down at the smaller girl, Ebon was at a loss for words at what she had just heard.

'Stay... here...' She wanted, to stay with them! Flinching as the Hominal's claws slammed into the ground, the brunette quietly gulped as she watched the younger girl taking her statements... somewhat better then she thought she would. She didn't outright kill her after saying it. Then again...

Digging her nails deep into the rocks as she felt her anger bubbling over, the Dragoness soon parted her lips, as her jagged teeth began to chatter together.

"No."

Looking back at Ebon's only retort, Abby tried to give her one of her own before she had to suddenly cup her ears in pain, as a terrifying scream resonated out of the younger girl.

Roaring at the top of her lungs as she felt the sheer, and utter slight she had been given back to her offer, Ebon continued to scream as her tail thrashed wildly behind her. This... this was the final straw!

Continuing her scream till her lungs gave out, a feat that most Dragons could do for prolonged periods, Ebon soon began to pant as she stared back at the shivering human murderously.

"You... will never... BE WELCOMED HERE! YOU AREN'T ONE OF US!"

"Gaoooooooow!"

Blinking, both girls soon froze as a loud cry echoed out behind the black Dragon pup, though their expressions were vastly different upon hearing it. the brunette wore confusion, both for after what she had just heard, and what she had now heard. And as for Ebon...

Growing pale as her head turned behind her, the little Hominal uttered only a single word as she turned towards the foreign noise. "Ivy?"

Standing up abruptly, the larger girl ran off in a hurry much to the teenager's surprise. What just happened? She thought for sure the volatile child was going to come down to her and do something.

'Ivy?' She recognized the name, Eve had said it once to her. But, did that mean whoever that person was is here? Feeling as her silent question was answered for her as more loud cries echoed out past the chamber Ebon had gone down, the smaller human simply watched in both confusion and shock as she saw flames lighting up left and right... along with what sounded like a scream. though... it wasn't like the one before.

'Was that... Ebon?'

As the lights died down past the corridor beyond her, s strange pattering like noise grew louder. It almost sounded, like something was running her way! Stepping back as the noise grew louder and louder, another cry soon sounded out, causing the smaller girl to stiffen immediately.

"GAOOOOOOW!"

Looking up at the ledge Ebon had been perched on in surprise, the shrunken girl gasped as something suddenly leaped into the air, it's radiance both blinding her and captivating her by its shimmering white glow.

"GAOOOOOOW!"

Screaming as the creature crashed into the large pile of gold in front of her, Abby squatted down defensively as gold flew in every direction by the foreign Hominal. It was a Hominal, it had to be... right?

Leaning up from the pile it had landed in, a cooing like cry echoed out as the strange creature... no, strange girl rolled around in the gold, as she wore a smile of pure and utter delight on her features.

It was a child. She looked young. Much younger than any of the other girls in these caves. Younger then Nya even! She was just as naked as Ebon had been, however, and had it not been for her pure white, and radiant scales that covered her arms, legs, and the entirety of her back, she would have appeared completely bare to her. Though, she practically was. Where Ebon's scales had made some semblance of modesty for her, the new girl before her didn't seem to have that luxury as she was completely exposed to everyone. But it was probably harder to cover her, considering what else rested on her body. She had a long, pair of white wings that spanned larger than her back, along with two protruding ivory horns atop her head, and a long spiny white lizard tail at the base of her bottom. All and all, she was practically a counterpart, to Ebon herself.

But that answered the petrified teen's unanswered question, as to what this creature was. "Dragon... Y-You're a Dragon..." There was two of them. Two Dragon's, here... here in region... The odds alone for one were unheard of.

Continuing to roll around and make quiet noises as she seemingly played in the now spread out mound of gold, the little white, Dragon Pup was carelessly oblivious to her shrunken voyeur, as the teen was left watching her in a daze.

"B-Beautiful..." That was the only word she could think of to describe her. Her scales were glowing. Almost like moonlight. She had never seen anything like it before. Not in books, not from stories. And certainly not in person.

'What on earth... what type of a Dragon are you?' Paling as the toddler’s incessant noises died off, Abby immediately stiffened up before a shiver rolled down her spine. She hadn't said that allowed, had she?!

Eeping as the Hominal's head fell to the side, and both their eyes suddenly met, each was silent as they stared back at once another. 'W-Wow...' Her eyes were just as beautiful as her scales were... They were like droplets of cascading water... they even rippled like a pond.

Feeling her body move unintentionally, Abby soon got a hold of herself as she stopped walking forward. WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?! Even if she was mesmerized by the new child’s appearance, that didn't mean she wasn't still three inches tall!

Gulping as reality set back in for her, the brunette began to shiver before taking a step back again, though this time, that seemed to set off the much larger Hominal as her mouth opened back up, and a long row of pearly white sharp, and jagged teeth met her.

"Gaow... Gaowww... GAAAAOOOOOW!"

Screaming as the infantile Hominal was on her in less than a few seconds, Abby soon was on her back as she looked up helplessly at the face of the younger girl, her curious eyes probing her, along with her dripping tongue slowly beginning to creep out of her mouth...

Even if she was a Hominal... it didn't matter...

In the end, she was still food for her kind...

To be continued...