"While children of men relied extremely on their parents for years at the very least, children of wild animals tended to be more independent from birth. This is doubly so for newborn monsters, a few of which even capable of posing a credible threat to an adult man right after they were born or hatched." - Dimitry Carr'uurg, veteran beast tamer, circa 426 FP.

It happened on the third night of their stay in Kesheri, where Cal mostly brought the girls around to relax and enjoy themselves, shopping for clothes and souvenirs and sampling the local delicacies. That night, Leila woke up in the middle of the night.as she felt the drake egg in her clutch move, as if it was being struck… from the inside.

Shortly after she woke up, Elaina and Sidonie - who had shared a room with her - woke up as well, their sharp ears noticing the noise even though Leila tried to be quiet to avoid disturbing them. Since everyone was up anyway, Elaina went to fetch Dan from the room next door in case his aid was needed, and returned with him, Cal, and Kino in tow.

Everyone crowded into the room the three girls shared though they kept a distance and allowed Leila to be the only one in close proximity with the egg since she's the one who wanted to bond with it. By now they caught the faint noises as well, that of something small striking a hard surface, from within the egg itself.

Before long the noise intensified, and the first cracks formed on the thick eggshell. Considering the size of the egg and how sturdy the eggshell was - Cal estimated that a regular man would have needed a hammer to break it - the fact that the beast inside could crack it in its infancy speaks for a lot.

Soon the crack spread further, and they saw a small leg tipped with claws punch through the shell, before it was retracted back inside and started striking against the sides of the hole, enlarging until the hatchling within could pass through the hole.

When the hole was widened enough, the hatchling popped out of its egg headfirst, its large eyes looking at Leila who sat right next to it as it gave a sound not unlike a bird's chirp while its gaze took her in. Leila carefully and slowly raised a hand and gently scratched the hatchling's chin, which it seemed to enjoy.

The hatchling drake itself looked similar, yet different to its parent that the girls had t aken care of. It still had the same general shape, but it was more slender, with a somewhat longer neck and a less snubby snout. Similarly its limbs were longer and of more sinuous proportions, with what looked like a wider wingspan. The legs still retained some bulkiness to them however, and the tail was even longer and thinner, similar to a whip. The most obvious difference however was the hatchling's scale coloration, which was whitish blue instead of its parent's grayish green.

The hatchling drake soon began to chomp on the broken pieces of its own egg shell, which was apparently common amongst such creatures. Leila was looking after it with some care, before she looked at Cal and gestured that she needed a second opinion.

"Take a look at its mana, aunt Celeysria," Leila said when Cal approached. The hatchling drake ignored them, too engrossed in consuming its eggshell at the moment. Leila had probed its mana gently while it did so, and it had not resisted. "I don't think this one is wind affinity like its parent."

Cal nodded, and gently touched the little creature - though the hatchling drake was already the size of an adult chicken even as a fresh hatchling, and significantly longer with its tail counted - which got the drake to look at her with some curiosity. A reassuring rub on its head from Leila apparently appeased the little critter and it went back to munching on its eggshell, allowing Cal to gently probe it as well. What she felt inside the hatchling confirmed Leila's finding.

"You're right. It's of Ice affinity, and looks to be a mix. Might have a water drake from nearer the shore or an ice drake from Jötunberg as its other parent," Cal said after a moment of contemplation. The carefree hatchling not finding any offense at her proximity to it since its "mother" - like most creatures that hatched from eggs it likely imprinted on the first thing it saw as its parent - was rubbing its head reassuringly. "Considering the wingspan and how large it will grow to, I think your desire for a flying partner you can ride shouldn't be an issue though. Also, it's a she."

"Oh, good to know," considering how tough an opponent an adult drake was to most people, having a tame one would indeed be an asset, and Leila was certain she could make it work with the help of her mother. "I am naming you Lumi, you hear?" she said as she gently scratched the head of the little drake, which was still happily munching on eggshells without a care in the world.

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The next morning, when they gathered at the inn's ground floor for breakfast, the little drake hatchling was comfortably perched on Leila's shoulder. Throughout their breakfast, Leila fed Lumi all sorts of things from their table, which the drake seemed to devour happily without issue.

Apparently even though drakes like those favor meat, it was more for practicality, as an animal kill would bring them notably more sustenance than grazing on vegetation would. Drakes themselves were omnivores, which was probably why Lumi eagerly munched on dates and figs as Leila fed those to her.

Having a tamed animal that happily eats most things certainly made caring for it easier, Cal thought. Elaina and Sidonie were quite curious and liked to tease the little drake hatchling as well, while feeding it bits from their own plates as well. Be it pieces of flatbread, meats, fruits, or cheeses, Lumi just eagerly devoured them all with equal fervor.