Serali was returning to her room after that discussion When she ran into the blue-green dragon who had first led her to dragon stone. Literally ran into him in fact, since she was lost in thought as she wandered back to her room. Not noticing the dragon rapidly approaching down a cross hall, she bumped into him with some force.

"I'm so sorry!" Serali exclaimed, recognizing the dragon who had attacked her.

"No, it is I who should be sorry. I meant to apologize for attacking you earlier, but I have not been at the Dragon Stone often since then." He ducked his head slightly, a gesture of apology.

"There was no harm done, and if I had not met you, I might never have found this place. So I owe you that."

"Shall we call it even then?"

"A marvelous idea." She turned to go, the stopped. She'd been curious about the reason for the dragon's unprovoked attack since she'd come here, and now was her chance to find out. "Sir� I'm afraid I don't know your name�"

"I'm called Trillor," the blue-green replied.

"I'm Serali. But Trillor, I want to ask you. Why did you attack me when we first met?"

"I mistook you for someone else. The full story is a long one."

"I have nothing better to do than hear stories, if you have the time to tell it."

He stopped and considered for a moment. "I have nothing better to do than tell them, truth be told. I was hurrying to get where I was going, but there isn't really any need for haste."

"Let's find a more comfortable place then and I'll hear the tale."

The two found one of the small side chambers that dotted the Dragon Stone. It was furnished with a pair of the padded lounges that most dragons favored. Settling herself into a comfortable position, Serali gestured for Trillor to begin.

He spoke in a flat unemotional voice, reciting the bare facts. He spoke his story as if it were something that had happened to someone else.

"I've been mated for almost twenty years now, and my mate Rialna and I had a single hatchling. We'd been lucky to have a clutch after only a few years, but it was a small clutch and only one egg hatched. Our hatchling was a girl, turquoise blue with Rialna's amber eyes. We named her Laurill and loved her more than life.

"She was twelve years old and she'd been learning how to fly. She was already good at it, and we'd wandered far afield, enjoying our flight together. I can remember it all so well. I don't think I'll be able to forget a single detail until the day I die. We had landed by the bank of a stream. Laurill was in the water, swimming like a fish, and I was sunning myself on the bank when a group of strange dragons landed near by. They were royal dragons, a couple of bronzes, some coppers, and a brass that seemed to be the leader. Mountain dragons look down on us plains dragons and royal dragons even more, so they were looking forward to pushing around a little burrow-digger, that's what they call us.

"The brass, who wasn't really very big, was bigger than me, and he'd shoved me across to one of the larger bronzes. They kept pushing me around, from one to the next. They never let me fall over, but they never let me get my feet under me either. They were all yelling insults and making noise. I was shoved back round the circle to the brass and he hit me hard. I fell over and I couldn't get up. The whole world darkened for a bit, and when it lightened, it seemed to be spinning..

"Then Laurill came out of the stream. She was angry, angrier than I'd ever seen her. She had her wings spread was acting like she was bout to flame the brass. I suppose she might have, since she was old enough to flame. The other dragons went quiet when she showed up. They were just out for some fun, they weren't really after trouble. But the brass, he didn't calm down a bit, he got even madder. He pushed Laurill over, and she couldn't do much, he was more then twice her size. But she did what she could. I think she wanted to protect me, and if that brass dragon had been sane it might have worked.

"The other dragons didn't like him pushing a hatchling around, they started muttering. He spun around on them and cursed them all for cowards. One of the bronzes said something about there being no courage in hitting hatchlings, and he flew off. The rest of them followed after.

"That just made the brass madder. He yelled and cursed them, calling them cowards and fools. He was raging. I've never seen a dragon so angry. It was more than just anger, it was madness. He turned back to Laurill and started kicking her. She, brave child, fought back the only way she could, she bit his leg. He howled, a sound like I've never heard, and grabbed up Laurill. Then he threw her to the ground. I could hear the sound she made when she hit. He seemed to have forgotten me, but I was still too dazed to move. He kicked Laurill a few more times and then left.

"I finally managed to pick myself up and go over to my daughter, but it was already too late, she was dead." Tears were trickling down Trillor's face as he spoke these words, but his voice was still flat.

"Brass dragons have very short horns, and they have cresting that looks just a bit like yours. You are about his size, and brass looks much like gold in dim light. I was so grief-mad that when I saw you, I thought you were him." After he finished there was a long silence.

"Trillor," Serali spoke at last, "I do not know your sorrow, I've never felt anything like it, but this I do know. If ever I meet the dragon who did this to you, he will not live past that meeting."

Trillor looked up in surprise. "You who hardly know me would do this?"

"I have not been raised in the ways of dragons, but my soul is the soul of a dragon, and this crime cries out for punishment. I could do no less than this for any dragon."

"You say you do not know our ways, but I say that you know them better than many who have lived them all their lives. It has been many long months since my Laurill died, and few indeed are the dragons who have offered such help to me." He clapped his wings sharply in respect.

Serali shook her head. "I only wish I could do more. Revenge is not much to offer in place of such a loss."

"None but the Creator himself could offer more, and I know that Laurill rests safe with him. She will be happy there until the day I can join her."

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