Aww... It’s a cute baby dragon. It has a large, shield-like object at the end of its tail that it uses for protection.

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.

Be careful what you wish for. Mia'Riziu once declared that she didn't ever want to grow up, not never ever! She would stay little and chase butterflies forever, so there, nyah! When her wings grew in, she became scared, because she knew this was a sign that she was almost grown. And every night before she bedded down with her adopted clutchmates, she would sit outside their cave and wish towards the stars: please don't make me grow up! And one night, it seemed to her in her dreams that the stars whispered back, and she has stayed little even as her clutchmates grew. This actually makes her good company for the new hatchlings, as she is mature enough to watch out for them and keep them from getting into too much trouble, but can still be their friend.