Flames Past the U-Bend

I wouldn't go in there if I were you.

No, let him. I could use a laugh.

Hasn't anyone told him?

I told him- warned him yesterday before rune crafting class.

What did you tell him?

Nothing but the truth! I said you should never, under any circumstances, use the lavatory in the enchanting tower. I told him that every dim-witted student who did ended up with burns on their bums or the seats of their breeches torn to shreds.

Well, looks like he just went in anyway. Should we go in after him?

Not our problem. If he wants a scorched undercarriage, let him have it.

I closed the door behind me, and it echoed against the tile. Coldwater drip-drip-dripped somewhere beyond the cold blue light. It smelled like limescale and was colder than cool. The pipes creaked. I stood still and heard a scratching and a scuffle in the walls.

Here, take this as a welcome present. Before you ask, no, I'm not giving you jewelry to look pretty. This is to be used only in case of emergency, okay? You're on the roster for rune crafting class this term and that's at the tippy-top of that old tower. When nature calls, you might not have the time to get anywhere but that creepy old bathroom no one uses. When that moment comes, before you do your business, drop this down the drain, finish up, and get out quickly if you don't want to spend the day bottoms-up in the healer's hut.

I flashed the trinket from the pocket in my robes, a little silver leaf on a chain. The creaking and skittering shifted to the row of latrines that gawked at me like open mouths. One of them puffed with the slightest whiff of smoke.

I tossed in the trinket but held tight to the end of the chain. It clinked off of the bowl and down the bend. For one still moment, it sat.

The chain pulled tight. A force pulled back.

I yanked, and I tugged, and the scraping and scratching in the pipes echoed through the chamber. Stronger than I guessed, I threw my whole body into one sharp tug. In a red flash out from beyond the u-bend flew a tiny dragonling, trinket clasped in its tiny hands.

Its yellow eyes bulged in panic at the sight of me, leaping in the air by its wings, pelting me with little bursts of flame.

Look here, students, at this mighty dragoness. You could never hope to beat her with strength alone. Few of you, fewer of you than you'd probably reckon, could ever outwit such a creature either. If you want to walk away from a dragon's ire, you must reason with it and come to a deal.

I took a step back from the creature's blasts, letting go of the trinket and tossing it to the floor. With a silvery clatter, it looked to the treasure and away from me. It leaped over to the precious thing, snatched it, and slithered back down the drain.

The scuttering drew a trail behind the walls that I followed down to where it settled behind a tile by the basins. I pried the old thing loose to find a cavity in the wall where the bricks had fallen away.

Inside sat the puny dragon on its little hoard of treasures cast over years down the drain. It looked at me with fear but, as I offered it another little treasure from my cloak, it took it with fiery glee. I replaced the secret tile and bid the little beast farewell…at least for now.

Did you hear that first year got a dragon familiar?

What? You mean the nutter who spends all his time in the bathroom?