It seemed that the bird, so appropriately named Byrd, had little interest in trinkets of offerings or even one of Najya’s stories.  A’mal was still reeling in her relief that all of the lovely shiny things attached to her bonded were safe.  The dragon had no idea what was in the bottle, but it wasn’t nearly as interesting as her Najya’s collection of shiny things.  The mixture of relief and amusement flooded their bond and all Najya could do was roll her eyes at the little dragon’s antics.
 
Finally content, the small dragon resumed her relaxed position, draped across her bonded’s withers.  Being awake was exhausting, after all, but she fought the heaviness of her eyelids to watch the others.  A’mal had never seen a gathering such as this before but was entirely unfazed as the creature grumped and squawked at the onlookers.  Najya, however, watched with keen interest.  It was clear that Byrd was in some way offended, or at least had to be terribly cold, because he certainly wasn’t in high spirits.  Then again she couldn’t imagine anyone would be pleased to draw a crowd just when trying to…warm one’s rear.
 
Again, showing her still-developing understanding of Helovia and its customs, the little mare hadn’t considered that it was magic in the bottle.  She hadn’t even known that magic could be bottled.  But upon gaining this important piece of insight, it certainly explained why Byrd had drawn such a crowd…and why he was so defensive of his prize.  Najya had only recently discovered that she even possessed magic, and quite by accident as it was.  But if she had to choose magic she’d like to have, well, the battles with the foreign Gods certainly changed her perspective on things.  She was a peace-loving creature at heart, but she knew now that war was unavoidable in whatever land she fled to.  But perhaps this magic could offer some degree of protection if her friends were ever in danger again. 
 
The others seemed so confident in what they wanted, Najya felt quite silly that she hadn’t been able to give a definite answer any sooner.  “I’d like to be able to shield my friends from physical harm,” she said simply, but resolutely.  She wanted to protect those that she loved, she only hoped that should she ever possess this magic – she’d have rare occasion to use it.