Sheila muttered a curse under her breath. Of course Feta would learn to master his ability to spit fire on the very day Sheila wore her newest pair of leather sandals. Glaring at the tiny dragon, she resisted the urge to smack it on the forehead. Feta stared up pitifully at her, eyes wide and shiny, and Sheila shifted her focus back on the burnt sandals.
“Oh, you are in luck!� Sheila smiled widely, clapping her hands together in feigned excitement, “I just happen to be conductin’ a census of every man, woman and child that pass through our oh-so tiny town of Cerenis.� Rolling her eyes dramatically, Sheila leaned back down, willing the singed sandal to repair itself.
No sooner had she finished her sentence did Sheila lose her balance, tumbling straight out of her broken sandals and scraping her knees on the cobblestones. Sheila rolled over and then stretched her feet and hands out wide, as if doing a horizontal jumping jack. She squinted into the sun and sighed loudly, trying to ignore the unease that was welling up in the pits of her stomach.
Of course. Of frackin’ course. Bending at the waist, Sheila glared at the blue haired woman. “I apologize, how may I help you today?� She stated methodically, through gritted teeth.
There was a time when Sheila would have resisted those strange and sudden urges, the awkward compulsions to help someone in need. Yet, she soon noticed the high correlation between ignoring those compulsions and the sudden high incidences of her getting sick, or spraining her ankle, or losing her sack of cash (not that she ever had a sack of cash, but she was certain that it would have been one of the first things she’d lose if she did). No, Sheila had learned that whenever one of those compulsions stirred in her belly, she’d better listen to it, or else. She'd listen all right, but she wouldn't enjoy it.
Sheila crossed her arms, waiting impatiently for a reply.
Beside them, Feta was busy sniffing in the general direction of a flitten, this being the first time the tiny dragon had ever seen such a creature. His translucent wings were curled tightly around his frame, his tail low to the ground, defensive.
