Balloon Dragons are so named because they are filled with a gas that makes them almost lighter than air, similar to balloons. However, they are not prone to bursting, as they are covered in tough skin and can deflate themselves if necessary. In addition, they generally are slow moving. They use their gas bladders to float to the tops of trees, where food is more abundant. They can shift their weight from their backs to their fronts, allowing them to reach leaves and fruit.

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.

Part of NorFatty Gadaffa's name comes from the fact that she rarely inflates her chambers to fly because birds and other animals stop making their sounds when they see her floating around, and she would like to hear them constantly. She is usually seen sitting under a tree, just listening to animals' sounds and occasionally responding to them.

One day, she observed an Anagallis hatchling looking at her, so she started to imitate geese in order to amuse it, hoping that she would have somebody to teach the art of mimicking, but, sadly, the hatchling wasn't actually paying attention to her, so he just went away. Apparently, neither NorFatty Gadaffa, nor the Anagallis remember this event.