Her New Child

Out of all the things to find in her forest, she never anticipated this. Rowan sat there as she stared down at the little bundle before her. Her golden eyes going wide as she took in the sight before her. A tiny toddler, a human one, was laying on the ground. Wrapped tightly in a soft brown blanket. Their little eyes were closed in a deep sleep. Something that Rowan guessed was a good thing. She carefully leaned over the dreaming child. Her eyes scanned them as she hoped to find something to tell her why this happened. Why there was a child in the woods she lived in.

Hoping that maybe the child was accidentally lost there. That the parents would possibly come back. They would realize their child was gone and come back for them.

There was no scent of blood on the child. So that was something to be grateful for, Rowan guessed. Though, it still greatly worried her. Someone so small was left alone in a forest known for dragons. And despite how much she wanted to believe it, she felt this child was left to be devoured. Like the rumors humans loved to tell each other in taverns said. Rowan remembered those stories as she hid herself as a human. Toying with her amulet as she listened to their words. Surprised by the digusting imagination that they had about her and her kind. But, she never believed that any of them actually believed it was true. Right until she saw the infant in front of her, sleeping peacefully. It made the anger boil inside of her as she felt the urge to go find the parents of this child. Find them and scream at them at how reckless and horrible they were. And that they were never getting their child back. As she decided in that moment, she was now this child's Mother.

Pulling the amulet off of the tree she kept it on, she slipped it on. Going from her lovely scaled form to a human woman. Tall, muscled, and dressed in a simple brown dress. The form had no hair. As Rowan never learned how to care for it. Though, she probably would have to now. Either by watching humans care for themselves or asking another dragon. Probably another dragon. Since the humans in the nearby town weren't always the nicest to her in her human form. Or if they were, they were too interested in her. In ways that made her deeply uncomfortable and worried they knew what she really was. Rowan didn't want them to find out about her. Especially, after taking care of this new child in front of her. Kneeling down, she scooped the child up in her arms. Gently, Rowan cooed,"Hello, little lamb."

The toddler's eyes fluttered open at the sound of her voice. They were a beautiful shade of dark brown. Almost like some of the stones a friend of her's owned. It was delightful. She smiled as the toddler gave her a giant cheesy grin. Babbling little words that she didn't understand. But, it didn't matter. Understanding them could come sometime later. What mattered was finding somewhere safe to be with her new child. So, she walked towards her cave as she made faces at the baby. Thinking over what foods would be best to feed the child in her arms. Realizing that the toddler would be too old to need milk. What did children that were sort of older than that really need? She had seen children who were a little older than her little one eat solid food. But did that mean her child could eat that? Their mouth didn't have any of the blunt teeth that children or adults would have. So soft food? How soft? Just how much? Her mind raced as she approached their cave. Within a few feet of her home, someone called,"Hey, Rowan! What you got there?!"

Looking up, she spotted the human form of her neighbor and smiled. He hurried over to look down at the child. She answered,"I found this cutie pie a few feet into the woods, Koa."

"I've decided to keep them.",she continued. Koa stared at the toddler in her arms with a raised eyebrow. Looking a little uncomfortable with the idea of his friend taking care of a human child. Then a tiny smile crossed his face as he looked at her. He stated,"You're going to have a long road ahead of you."

"I can help you if you'd like?",Koa offered. At first, she didn't want to do that. Mostly not wanting to burden her best friend or leech off of them. Then she realized it would probably be good. Having another person help out would take some of the stress off of her. And give the child a better life than just what she can give. Rowan answered,"I would really appreciate that, Koa. Thank you."

"No problem. So what are we going to name this bundle of cuteness?",Koa asked. The pair stared down at the infant in Rowan's arms. Who was staring back at them. Their chubby little fist was in their mouth as they smiled. It made her wonder what exactly they were thinking about. What they thought of her and Koa as they stared at her face than his. A name hadn't really crossed her mind before this moment. And it hadn't fully came to mind as she examined their face. When they pulled their fist out of their mouth, they babbled some nonsense with a smile. Then it finally came to mind as she pulled them close. She answered,"How about Leta?"

"Leta?",Koa repeated. Gently touching the infant's cheek as he repeated it again. Keeping his voice soft as he stared at their little cutie pie. The smile from before growing just a tiny bit more. Softly, Koa whispered,"Yeah, that's definitely our little egg's name."

The pair then walked into Rowan's cave as quickly as possible. Eager and nervous to be the parents this child needed.