Najya slept that night on the salt flats, curled around the egg that had been entrusted to her to keep it warm.  The sand and salt retained much more heat than the bitter winter air blowing in off the sea.  But the little mare hardly felt the cold, and she made sure that the egg felt none of it at all. She’d been too nervous to move the egg last night without a cloak or something to carry it in properly.  That and the fact she’d be even more nervous to carry it across the sea on the wings of flame necessary to get back to the Throat.
 
She woke as soon as the sun crept across the horizon painting the morning sky with every color she could imagine.  You could hardly see where salt and sand met sea and sky.  It was strange to think of such a peaceful scene unfolding in a land that had been birthed in blood.  Helovia had paid a hefty price for these flats, and Najya held a hefty appreciation for that sacrifice.  She hesitated to stand as the chill remained even as the sun climbed higher into the sky. 
 
The little mare let out a soft sigh.  When she had left the Throat yesterday morning, she hadn’t imagined this is where she’d end up.  She looked at the egg, softly nestled against her side, again wondering what it contained.  Her hazel eyes flicked from the egg to the horizon – watching the point not too far off where the Flats slipped into the sea.  It was then that she felt it.  Movement.
 
Her curved ears pricked as she craned her neck around to look at the egg, which had indeed moved. She watched as a small crack formed across the surface before carefully shifting away from the egg, giving the creature room to free itself.  The first thing she saw was a nose poking through the shell followed shortly by a tiny, distinctly clawed limb.  Curious.  And certainly not avian.  After only a few more moments, the crack widened and, with little grace, a tiny white ball of scales rolled out on to the sand.  Najya’s hazel eyes were met with a pair of warm, gold ones. 
 
A Dragon.  She hadn’t even considered the possibility but this little one wasn’t the first she’d seen.  The little creature let out a little squeak as it rolled around on the earth, experimenting with its limbs for the first time.  The scene caused laughter to spill from Najya’s lips.  Her heart felt lighter than it had since she had left her homeland.  

-- najya --