Aww... It’s a cute baby dragon. It’s extremely curious and seems to enjoy exploring the area around it.

And look! It has grown wings! It must be close to maturing.

Young dragons are relatively defenseless. They are born with relatively soft scales, which are shed and replaced with harder ones as the hatchling matures. Once a hatchling’s wings grow in, it typically marks the beginning of maturation. At this point they are often capable of hunting on their own and are usually left alone by their mother.

Crippled with a disorder that will never allow her to grow to adulthood, Layan is unable to participate in many of the activities that most hatchlings enjoy. Though her eternal childhood has been a boon to her mother, Amma, who finds solace in babying her, she longs to be able to live on her own, unhindered by her tiny body or her unstable mother.

Unlike the bitter Amma, Layan loves her sire who comes to visit now and then.  Though she has bonded agreeably with Keola, her mother's mate, she dreams of her father coming to take her away and show her the wild unknown.  The pain of her crippled state leads her to live vicariously in her imagination.  Her rich fantasy life helps to take the edge off of her misery, but there is no denying the longing that has permeated her being since she was very young.