Tessa's POV:

A flash of blue scales had my attention.

I crouched motionlessly under the bush, impatiently waiting for another glimpse. It didn't take long for Dirk to slink between bushes as he kept low to the ground, glancing around nervously. He knew I was out here somewhere.

It was hard to hold still, but any movement would draw his attention to my hiding place. After a few minutes, he moved under another shrub – right beside mine.

His blue snout poked out as he quickly glanced around and started scurrying in my direction.

With a fierce cry, I jumped out at him. With a squall of surprise, he reared up before falling backwards.

"I caught you!" I proudly exclaimed as I tapped his tail and danced around him.

A flash of silver high above made me bolt back under my bush. Dad aborted his dive, side-slipping low enough to also tag Dirk, before quickly flying higher up to land on a branch above.

He was waiting for me to come out.

Dirk got to his feet and ran off before Mom showed up. Which left me in hiding with nowhere to go. I wasn't going to win this match – even Mom wasn't usually fast enough to outfly Dad.

But there was no reason for me to fly when we both knew he was a better flyer than me.

Could I lure him into a small spot? There was only one way to find out. I stuck my head out to see him better, and his eyes never left me. I took two steps out while bobbing my head, waiting to see what he would do.

He shifted his wings, but didn't swoop down yet, knowing I could back up before he could get down. I ducked under the bush and peeked out from a tighter spot. He still didn't move, but I saw something he didn't.

I took another step out, half-unfurling my wings to keep his attention on me. He seemed to realize that something was amiss at the last second and glanced up. With a trill of alarm, he launched off his branch as he tried to evade Mom's divebomb.

I momentarily gaped at their speed and rapid changes in direction, but remembered that I needed a better hiding place. I started running quickly, keeping out of sight under bushes as much as possible.

I managed to get to the house without being spotted by Mom, Dad, or Dirk, although Taureen and Aeria spotted me as I weaselled my way under the shrubs that grew beside the house. I bet they would never think of looking for me here.

I curled up and waited. And waited. And waited.

With a silent yawn, I rested my head on my hands and tried to stay awake.

"Tessa, where are you?" Mom's somewhat worried voice interrupted my half-doze.

"If I tell you, that makes it too easy for you."

Her faint relief came over the mindlink along with renewed determination to find me. I wasn't sure why she was relieved – Dad told me that it was safe in the backyard.

I had almost fallen asleep again when Dad called out, "Alright, you win this match. Come out."

Staggering to my feet in my haste, I slipped out of my really good hiding spot and climbed up on Aeria's lap. That hiding place was going to be my secret. I relaxed as Aeria began petting my scales with her warm hands. I could see Mom's golden scales gliding above the bushes as she peered inside them.

"Tessa. You can come out now," Mom said, echoing Dad's earlier call.

"I came out. I'm with Aeria."

She immediately looked over and altered her course as she headed my way. Mom landed on the side of Aeria's chair and nuzzled me.

"Where were you hiding?"

I grinned at her. "It's a secret."

She snorted and looked at Taureen as she tilted her head. He shook his head in amusement.

"I'm not telling on her. You'll just have to look harder next time."

She snorted again and shook herself hard enough that her scales made a chiming sound. My eyes widened at the pretty noise.

"Can you do that again?"

She glanced at me and shook once more, causing her scales to emit the same sound.

I sat up and stared intently at her. "How did you do that?"

"Once you get bigger, your scales will make that noise too. Right now, they are too small."

That was disappointing. Just to be sure, I shook really hard, but my scales didn't make any sound, let alone that nice one.

Aeria petted me sympathetically; she may not have been able to hear my mindvoice yet, but she could hear Mom's. I lay back down, still disappointed.

Taureen passed Aeria something – a small vial of oil! – and she began massaging my back. I cooed in delight as I wiggled around a bit, happy that any hint of itching was already disappearing.

I closed my eyes and relaxed.

       I yawned and stretched, still not ready to open my eyes after my nap. The sun was still warm. It felt nice.

My stomach growled, ruining my relaxation as it demanded food. I stretched some more as I finally opened up my eyes. I wasn't sure how long I had slept, but it must have been a while if I was this hungry.

The food bowls were gone from where they had been, and I continued looking around. There was always food nearby. Always.

My eyes widened when I saw the cantaloupe on the grass in front of the chairs. There was more than enough there for a snack.

Eagerly, I jumped off the table and flew over – too impatient to go on foot. My nose snuffled the textured skin as I tested my claws against the rind. They had pierced it even when I had been rolling it, but I had never tried to cut anything on purpose.

Tilting my head, I braced myself as I tried to dig one claw in. Flickers of proper ways to do this skittered along the edges of my mind, and it took me only moments to shift my claw so the sharper base could slice while the tip pierced deeper.

Grabbing the edge in my teeth, I pulled it further away before cutting it wider. Twisting my claw to the side to cut it off, I dropped the piece of peel by my feet, and my mouth watered at the sight of the orange-gold inside. I quickly cut a slice off and chewed it happily even as I continued slicing another piece out.

The fruit was very good, although the seeds were yucky. It was a lot of work to scoop all of them out, and I had to roll the cantaloupe away from the mess a few times, but it made it much easier to cut out more slices.

Eventually, I simply couldn't eat any more. I was so full that I wasn't even sure if I could fly.

There was lots left, though. A yawn made me look over as Dirk jumped down from Aeria's lap and walked closer. He wasted no time stuffing himself with the juicy fruit, either.

A strange noise caught my attention, and it took me a few moments to locate the source. Taureen was kneeling beside a big puddle of water, somehow making water come out of the rocks he was stacking. It was the sound of water running.

I walked over as Mom swooped down to land along the edge. She moved deeper into the water until just her neck and head showed, although I could see ripples from her tail. She easily swam a few laps around the pond.

It seemed wrong to walk in something that I might have to drink. I hoped that the water in our water dishes didn't come from here.

"The water is warm," Mom told me.

I wasn't too sure why she was telling me this. I preferred to drink cold water, but not if someone had their feet in it.

She noticed my silent confusion and clarified, "Come in."

Ah.

I sniffed the water suspiciously, unsure why anyone would want to get wet. Flickers of dragonets swimming crossed my mind, showing that it was a common pastime.

Reluctantly, I took another step forward, letting the water touch my scales. I kept walking and jumped when the water touched my warm stomach.

Mom came closer to watch my progress. She stretched her wings and dipped the tip in the water before flicking a shower of droplets at me. I squealed as water hit my sun-warmed scales and flared my wings in objection. With a mischievous grin, she flicked more water at me.

If she could do it, so could I.

It was harder than I thought. The water didn't want to go in the right direction, and it took me several tries before any of the drops actually hit her. Any that did land on her scales slid right off to land back in the pond.

She began splashing me back as she romped through the deeper areas, making herself harder to hit. Scooping my wing under the water, I tried to throw a lot at her – and she disappeared under the surface!

I looked around wildly. Where did she go? A shimmer of gold moving beneath the surface made me back up quickly. Her head lifted out of the water when it was no longer deep enough to cover her shoulders.

Lifting my head, I quickly skimmed through the Blood Memories as I gathered tips on diving and swimming. I couldn't wait to try it. I bounded forward into deeper water, took a deep breath, and closed my nostrils before plunging beneath the surface.

When I opened my eyes, I was surprised to see Mom's face also beneath the water as she watched me. The small waves above made the sunlight ripple along the bottom in fascinating patterns.

It was an entirely different world down here.

It was hard to move, though, and I had to dig my claws into the sand to get any traction. Once I was a bit deeper, I lifted my head to get another big breath of air before returning to the underwater world. Strangely enough, the water no longer seemed cold.

Mom swam closer, using her legs to paddle while her tail also helped her move. Copying her method made my attempts to swim much easier. I paddled deeper, moving my head from side to side as I examined the sand and ripples of light.

Swimming was fun.

I still had no plans on drinking this water, though.

Mom and I continued playing in the water until I grew tired and went to rest in the sun.