"Hey!" Shouted some Kin from outside the shallows, "hey, someone's here with dragons!"

Lenocaut looked up and missed her opportunity to tug at one particularly nice fish, dragged the net back to shore with practiced ease. "Dragons?" She asked. "Those things in the sky? That the Cheetahs ride?"

The other gazelle nodded, he was young and had short horns, very few bangles on them yet. Lenocaut was decorated with quite a few gifts, her skills as a healer had made her popular among many locals. Here near the last lake before the inland sea, goods like beads and leathers were traded for psionic powers and help. If there was something she was good at, it would be helping others survive.

"It's one of them," the boy gasped, and then bolted away to the safety of his mother's side. Len stood bravely, she detected no ill feelings from this pair of rider and dragon. Even though the rider was a fast-running cat, who would normally have considered her four-footed species prey.

"Heyo," he said, dropping to the ground and laughing as the others came to see him. It was Etehmaro of the Hand, and he was more friendly than the other males in his small tribe. "I've news, there are some dragons needing homes, and I thought of you - your tribe," he looked at the others, but specifically at Len. "Would you like to come and see, maybe one of them will come back with you?"

"... Me?" Asked Lenocaut with surprise. "I... I don't know, would we be gone long? If someone is injured, it is my responsibility to--"

"We'll be back before you know it," said the cheetah kin, winking. He was very human, a shapeshifter that she knew about simply by watching him. (That and he had five human fingers on his hands - most kin only had four.)

"Well then I will do it, but don't expect me to be very brave about flying," she admitted. "I'll surely fall..."

"Oh you'll do no such thing." Etehmaro cast a quick glance at the others, "I promise she'll be back before sundown tomorrow!"

The rest of her tribe, hesitant to allow their healer to be abruptly removed, could only give weak protest - if he wanted to kill them he could have done so easily, but why steal their healer?

But he wasn't really stealing her - so much as relocating her, and from the dusty plains of Planet Twenty, they arrived to a busy dragonry. "This is it," Etehmaro said, "Ihalthi, where we found this group. I'm not sure if they will bond like my dragon has to me," he indicated the lovely sea-foam-fog colored dragon he rode, "but even so, if they don't your tribe will still have a dragon to protect it from bandits or lions, right?"

"I heard about your group and the lions," Lenocaut said quietly, "I don't know whether you were all very brave or very crazy, to have attracted the ire of that pride."

"But it's over now," Eteh said, nodding. "We knew the risk but we were prisoners, they would have stolen you and kept you very busy yourself, if they'd had the chance."

"That is true," Len said. "Now, ooh - is that a ... they're so lovely," she was practically speechless.

They went to find out about moving one back with them to Planet Twenty...

***

The dragonets were ... bright, spunky, and kind of active for Len's comfort. Some of them came right up and sniffed at her, apparently deciding that she wasn't good for them. Or good to eat, she hoped. It was when a russet colored female with light colored wingsails and a fancy clip to her step showed up, that Lenocaut felt like she was really being looked at. The red eyes of this smallish dragon looked right through her, saw her secret fears and hopes.

"I will help keep your tribe safe," she announced. With a stamp of her front paw, and a nod, she said, "I am Res'vbri Jisuins, by the way. Will you like me to come with you?"

Surprised, Len nodded, "I would - very much! You're beautiful, and I think," she cast a glance at the pair of dragons who seemed to be the parents of this nest, whether they were together permanently or just for a moment was unknown, at least to Len. "I think you'll be big enough to scare off any old lion that comes our way."

Res'vbri wasn't sure what a lion was, but if she could scare it that would be perfect. Quickly, Eteh gathered the new bonded pair up and they headed right back to Planet Twenty. He'd picked up some information and handed it off to Len, things about their eating habits, mating, and the like.

Res'vbri's mind was open to Len's, and was seemingly tinged with a bit of fire that could never be quenched. Dangerous, fire was, out on the plains. But in the right hands, it could be a very useful tool.

***

Res'vbri's growth was quick, but punctuated with strong learning experiences. More than once, a stray lion would come through, and the second time, Res'vbri stood boldly in his way. Though she was terrified, Lenocaut stood with her bond. By now, standing less than half her shoulder height, Len appreciated the full scale of this dragon she'd befriended. With her horn down, and eyes flashing, Res'vbri caused the lion to shy away and turn tail.

And then there was the fire. Because they were quite near the lake, the tribe could easily take shelter in it if need be, but there were other dangers within, and only so much room what with the native wildlife with that on their mind too. Already there were flocks of small animals heading toward the lake, in front of the low, hot flames. The plains burned every once in a while, it was certainly not unheard of for them to go up in a flash and be smouldering in days, back to normal in a few months. The rains came after, always, making mudslides common, and certain areas difficult to navigate.

But with Res'vbri here, she stood up to the fire, as though she'd stood by the lion. As if she could stare it down. And it died before her. Well, the portion nearest the tribe's land, the clearings where they grew tubers and crops, and the newly planted grains - never caught on fire. In the two years that she'd been with this new family of hers, Res'vbri knew that those plants were the only thing truly keeping her family from starvation.

They would not live without them. So, the fire lost the battle. Whipping up winds as well, she flew above it and funneled the remaining leading edge of it to a small confined gorge, where it burned itself out. Exhausted, the dragoness landed on the charred ground.

She was rushed by not just Len, but the younglings and several others who had seen the event. "You saved us, you saved our crops," Len gasped. The smoke was still thick but she could tell the fire was out. It still burned in distant parts of their view, but it would not be threatening this area again.

"You've really got talent," the healer cried.

In the morning, when things had cleared up a bit and the rains began to clense the darkened plain, the tribe gathered to give Res'vbri her dues. Decorating her horn were small bangles from each and every one who had a hand to create, strung together on leather strips by those who could not.

"We present you with this, no one will ever forget this event. You've proven yourself to us time and time again." Their leader, an older male with one broken horn and enough items bedecking the other to make his head tilt. "We will always be thankful."

Res'vbri seemed like she would always enjoy the attention this brought, too.

Name: Res'vbri Jisuins
Bonded To: Lenocaut
Gender: Female
Breed: 1/2 Bre'Ama, 1/2 Cliff Dragon
Height: 14 Feet
Abilities: Fire Manipulation, Wind Manipulation, Telekinesis, Telepathy, Verbal Speech
Personality: Res'vbri has one devotion- her family. And there is no moral or self image that could stand in Res'vbri's way when she is out to protect or help those she deems as part of her family (Len's people included). In fact, Res will go to just about any ends to not only aid her family but reek havoc on anyone that would dare attack or bother them. Needless to say, with this brave and spunky dragoness around things will be a bit more secure at Lenocaut's home. Besides looking after her family, Res will enjoy learning what skills Len has to teach her, and she will most certainly be a valuable help in most anything to her bond in the times to come.

Dam - Wrellin

Sire - Or'chao