Aww... It’s a cute baby dragon. It likes to perch on the high branches of the taller trees and look longingly up at the sky.

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.

Sprout just refused to grow up; point blank wouldn't stop acting like a hatchling. Now everyone laughs at the memory of him throwing a temper tantrum when he already had his wings for months. He still throws temper tantrums and the other dragons take turns working endlessly as replacement parents. They sometimes complain but they can't be mad very long at his carefree, innocent, manner.