The sun had come up by the time the two humans and the dragon made it to the city. Walking into the city, the first things David noticed were the smells. The city lacked the scent of plants. Instead, it reeked of sweat and smoke. David wrinkled his nose. The humans lived like this? 

David had never seen this many buildings so close together. All around people bartered on goods. A horse clomped down the street pulling a small wagon. No one gave it any mind. This was chaos.

The teeth in his mouth sharpened, and David tightened his grip on the woman's hand. 

"Market day," The woman squeezed David's hand. "This is the capital of Blolanda. Have you ever been here?"

David shook his head instead of speaking. He had quickly realized that his voice didn't sound like theirs. They spoke a form of Blolandish that was closer to the dragons' than David would have thought, but they still had an accent David didn't have.

The humans spoke like they had to force letters into their places, pronouncing each one. The dragon accent sounded more like the words simply fell out, taking stress off the ends of words. 

"Shape Shifters, you're acting like he's a new pet." The man was tired from the journey home. 

Pet? The word reminded David he was surrounded by humans. The young dragon shifted to hide behind the woman's skirt.

"Honey, do we need a new rug?" The man asked. 

The woman shook her head, "No, I'll make one this month."

The man glanced at her, "You sure? We're just back in town from visiting your family, and..." He looked at David, "Brought home more than we left with." 

"Posh," the woman rubbed David's hair. He ducked away from her hand. She didn't seem to notice. "The child can help me."

"He probably doesn't know how to make a rug." The man said. 

The woman didn't respond to that statement. David wouldn't have minded making a rug to be honest. It didn't sound too bad. At the very least, it sounded like something that wouldn't be scary.

"By the Shape Shifters, that is the most beautiful rug." The woman stopped, strolling up to one of the stalls, dropping David's hand. She started inspecting the stitching in a rug laid out in the open air.

The rug's stitching formed an image of a castle David found familiar, being framed by trees in full bloom. The image looked too complex for a rug. 

After putting down her baggage, the woman felt it with her hands as if to make sure it was real. David looked away from the rug. His eyes fell on a castle in the distance. How had he not noticed the castle before? David looked at the rug, then at the castle. That's why the rug's image was familiar. It was the castle that overshadowed the city.

"The Castle of the Stones."

David jumped, hearing the man's voice. 

The man smiled, looking up at the castle. "Personally, I voted for the Rose. Stone was too perfect." He focused on David. "I've never trusted anyone who seems perfect."

David nodded enthusiastically, not really understanding what the man was talking about.

"What did you say your name was?" The man asked. 

"David," he finally spoke, cringing at the accent in his voice.

The man nodded, seeing his wife start talking to the vendor. "I like that name."

The woman's eyes lit up. "How much for the rug?"

Hearing that, the man sighed and stepped up to the booth. The rug was only about four feet by three feet, and David still wasn't sure it was a rug. He took a few steps forward to join the man and the woman at the stand.

Glancing at David, the seller smiled, showing teeth that weren't quite straight. 

David grabbed the woman's skirt. He ripped his hand away after feeling the rough cotton, instead of his mother's scales. The vendor must have noticed, but he just continued smiling.

"12 coins." The seller said, tearing his eyes away from David. 

The woman glanced at the man and pouted. The man sighed, "Sure."

"Love you." She hugged him, as he put his baggage on the ground. 

After opening his traveling bag, the man pulled out a smaller bag. From that bag, he counted out small gold discs. The vendor accepted the coins.  

David didn't take his eyes off the vendor. The longer David stared the more he felt like it could have been an older version of Tucker.

The rug was packed and the seller handed it to the couple. Eventually, the couple started walking through town again. The woman grabbed David's hand. 

The six-hundred-year-old dragon had never wanted his parents more.

***

The couple's house was far enough away that the noise from the market couldn't be heard anymore. Though he hadn't asked, the couple had assured David that the house was still in the same city. Apparently, the capital was larger than other cities.

David was a bit surprised to see the similarities of their house to the houses around it. Did the humans have no creativity? The dragons built their homes to fit their needs. Did the humans all need exactly the same living environment?

David had never heard of brick walls before, but they seemed sturdy.

Bricks? David struggled to find the meaning of the word he'd just thought. When had he even heard the word before? 

The house David was ushered into was very homely though. Once inside the house, the woman had let go of David's hand. The two humans started talking about the luggage, but David tuned them out. 

From the main room, he could see the kitchen in the back. The main room had two doors on either side. He picked one and opened it. He was surprised to see a small room with just a bed and a small window on the far wall. A folded blanket had been placed on the bed. Whose room was this? Who did this bed belong to? Curious, he went into the room. 

He pressed on the mattress to see what it was stuffed with. Whatever it was it scratched his skin. Maybe straw? the leaves from the pine trees sort of felt like this. Before he could process how uncomfortable the bed would be, a wave of exhaustion hit him. 

It felt like his life a few hours ago had belonged to someone else. Or perhaps it was now that belonged to someone else. Had he really met Life? 

Were his parents really dead? 

From behind him, the woman knocked on the doorframe. It startled David. He turned his head to look over his shoulder. 

The woman smiled. "You can use this room tonight. You look tired, but would you like something to eat?" 

David stared at her. 

Her smile disappeared. A sadness filled her eyes. "It's the middle of the day, but get some rest." She gestured to the bed, and then pulled the door closed, leaving David alone.  

David crawled into the bed.  He made an effort to unfold the blanket. He didn't have time to think about how uncomfortable he was before he fell asleep.  

***

David shifted and the unfamiliar mattress woke him up. The window told David it was still light out. What time was it? He thought about getting out of the bed, but he still felt so tired. 

"We just got back from a funeral, and now we have this kid. How long do you want to keep some stranger's kid in this house?" The man said from the other side of the door. It sounded like his voice seeped under the door.  "Not to mention you know what the rules are. Lost children are meant to go to the childrens' home." 

David tensed. Fully remembering where he was. He stared at the door, daring it to open.

The woman responded.  "We can put up signs, but I won't send him to the children's home. I know how they treat the orphans there. Especially... Especially ones like him. Not even I was able to make changes to that while I was working there." 

"So, we're keeping him until someone comes to find him. What if no one comes to find him? You know as well as I do that children like him still get abandoned." The man asked. 

David dug his fingernails into the blanket, tightening his grip. Children like him? 

"But if you take the promotion..." The woman's voice trailed off. "Then he won't be a burden. You were ready for a child when we..." If she finished the sentence David couldn't hear.

"Yes, but," The man started. "If we're going to go with the theory that his eye color is why he was dropped off in the woods, then he's a bit past the age for a decision like that. Maybe they found out he is actually a—" 

The woman cut him off. "If what you're about to say you wouldn't say to anyone's face, I don't want to hear it out of your mouth now."

The man didn't complete his statement. Instead, he finished the conversation. "I'll take the promotion, but if someone comes looking for him, we hand him back."

David didn't relax when the woman started talking about food. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to will himself to fall back asleep. 

It must have worked. Eventually, he couldn't hear the couple's voices anymore.