His head snapped, tail twitching dangerously. “You were scared of me. Just like you were scared of them. I felt it.”
I nodded. “Yes. But then you’re huge and you have really big teeth and you pointed them in my direction.”
He grinned at me, or as much as he could. The top two fangs descended slowly, glistening in the dark. “These teefs?” he slurred between the fangs.
My throat clicked as I swallowed, fighting every instinct I had to take a step back away from him. “Yeah. Those teefs.”
The fangs ascended again, and he cocked his head at me. “You’re strange, even for a human.”
“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that.”
“And how are you speaking to me? How did you all learn to talk like me? I’ve never had anyone be able to do that.”
I scratched the back of my head. “Yeah, see? That’s one of those things that we don’t quite know. It’s not us speaking like you. It’s you speaking like us.”
He looked offended. “I’m speaking human? That’s terrible. You’re all so… chewy.”
“Thanks,” I said dryly. “Really.”
“Well, it’s true. How is this even possible? Gods, I don’t even want to open my mouth anymore.”
“It’s proximity,” I said. “Something about me. We don’t really know why. Dragons just suddenly seem to be able to speak like we do when I’m around. It’s kind of my thing.”
“Maybe you should just go away, then. I don’t want to speak human.”
“Sorry, dude. I don’t know that I can do that. It’s actually important, the reason I’m here.”
He groaned and laid his head back on the ground, blinking at me slowly. “I just want to grow my plants and be left alone. It’s why I came all the way out here, so I didn’t have to see anyone.”
“Where did you come from?”
“Far away,” he said stubbornly.
Which gave me an idea, something Mama had taught me a long time ago. She’d even used it on Ryan once to find out what she wanted to know. It had been illuminating, to say the least. “That’s interesting. I’ve come from far away too. Can I ask you some more questions? Just about your plants,” I added before he could refuse.
“Sure,” he said slowly.
“Cool. Which is your favorite?”
He nodded toward a large orange flower that blossomed to our left. “That one.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know. I saw it once in—I saw it once.”
“Why is it your favorite?”
“I like the color. It smells good.”
“What does it smell like to you?”
“The wind.”
I began to speak faster. “Do you like to fly?”
“Yes.”
“Do you stay here every year?”