Sweetlings are a small, flightless breed of dragon. They are omnivores who favor sweet fruits and honey, and have been known to go to great lengths to obtain their favorite treats. Their long, prehensile tails allow them to grab onto branches and give them superior balance. Sweetlings are expressive dragons and have a large array of calls to communicate with others. They become very vocal during breeding season and sing long, beautiful melodies to attract a mate. Inquisitive in nature, Sweetlings are known to investigate anything that piques their interest, and are quick to flee if the object of their curiosity strikes back.

Dragons are highly-intelligent reptilian creatures that—from a human perspective, at least—appear to live forever. Many different varieties of dragon exist, each with their own unique qualities, habitats, and behavior. Adolescence in dragons is usually marked by the growth of a hatchling’s wings, although not all breeds of dragons grow wings and some breeds have other traits that indicate the beginning of maturation. In Galsreim, dragons and humans coexist peacefully.

Esteem has a terrible problem with his speech, but few other dragons actually realize it. He constantly uses the wrong forms of "they're", "their", and "there", and occasionally muddles up "which" and "witch". Since these words all sound alike, his sentences sound totally normal to listeners. However, he knows that he's messing up the homophones and no matter how hard he tries, he just can't use the correct forms. Being easily embarrassed, Esteem keeps this a secret and has only consulted doctors on extremely private terms. However, no one can seem to do anything for the poor fellow. In fact, a few healers have suggested that maybe he doesn't have a speech impediment after all, and that it's "all in his head". But Esteem is certain that he has a problem, and has decided that maybe it's better to just accept it as a part of his individuality.