Chương 12: Clover

[Hatch Quest Completed: Hatching…] Roy woke with the message already hanging above him. For one disoriented moment, he stared through the golden letters toward the underside of the dining table. Then the stiffness in his neck reminded him that he had fallen asleep sitting against one of its legs sometime after midnight, apparently deciding that his bedroll did not deserve the effort required to reach it. Across the main room, Orion pushed himself upright from the blankets spread near the hearth.

He had surrendered his bed to Garrick without discussion and spent the night on the floor, though the way he rose suggested the floor had not been generous in return. The message remained. [Hatch Quest Completed: Hatching.] Orion read it, then looked toward the wooden chest beside the hearth. The moss-covered egg had begun to move.

"Talia," Roy called, keeping his voice low enough not to wake Garrick.

"You may want to see this." The door to Aurelia's room opened almost immediately. Talia emerged first, hair tousled from sleep and one hand still holding the blanket she had wrapped around her shoulders. Aurelia followed several steps behind, unfolding herself from Nimbus's broad, cloud-soft back. The Cloudbelly Drake had reduced herself to a size only somewhat larger than Kindle before settling into Aurelia's room the previous night.

She had coiled beside the bed, presenting enough warm, pliant surface for Aurelia to sleep upon while Talia used the bed itself. From Aurelia's expression, the arrangement had been more comfortable than any alternative she would admit to enjoying. Nimbus floated out after her with a sleepy chirrup, Kindle lifted his head from the hearth, and all four humans gathered around the chest. The egg did not crack. Its soft brown shell wrinkled along the top, then slowly folded outward.

One section peeled down the side, followed by another, each strip bending away like damp bark until the entire egg seemed to open from the top downward. Something small shifted inside. A small brown head pushed free first, crowned by broad green frills that lay flattened against its neck. Then came thick forelegs, a rounded body, and a short tail lined with the same leaflike growths. The last strips of shell collapsed beneath him as the dragon stepped into the chest and stood blinking at the gathered faces.

His scales resembled layered bark, rough in appearance but flexible where he moved. Translucent green membranes showed between sections of his hide, faintly luminous in Kindle's warm light. Broad leaflike frills began at the crown of his head and continued down his spine, ending near the base of his tail. He was wingless and low to the ground, with a build that looked more suited to digging than flight.

"About Kindle's size," Orion said. Kindle made an offended sound. Orion glanced toward Nimbus, then toward the barn beyond the wall, where Shale had likely already grown large enough to regret fitting through doors.

"Which means nothing," he amended.

"Apparently." The newborn drake climbed over the edge of the chest. He landed with a soft thud and remained there, head moving slowly as he studied the room. Orion looked toward Roy, which he noticed.

"Why are you looking at me?"

"You usually decide what they do."

"I observe what they do and then pretend I expected it." The drake turned toward him. Roy crouched, examining the green membranes between the barklike scales. He also looked at the status window hovering over it. [Rotbloom Drake]"The quest required us to clean the house and establish proper waste disposal," he explained.

"Rot, decomposition, waste conversion, perhaps. Something related to breaking down what we cannot use." Orion frowned.

"That is a bit gross." The new drake's leaflike frills drooped, and Aurelia struck Orion across the back of the head. Orion straightened.

"What was that for?"

"You hurt his feelings!"

"I made an observation."

"You insulted him moments after he hatched."

"I did not know he understood me." Aurelia's glare stopped him. Orion looked down at the Rotbloom Drake, the creature's head remained lowered, and even the translucent sections of his hide appeared dimmer.

"I apologize," Orion said.

"Your purpose is not gross. It is useful." The drake lifted one eye toward him but did not entirely recover. Aurelia bent and scooped him into her arms. He tensed at first, but then his weight settled against her chest, thick legs folding inward as she stroked the leaflike frills along his neck.

"You are going to be extremely helpful," she told him.

"Some people simply speak before thinking." Orion rubbed the back of his head.

"You were not this authoritarian before." Roy pushed himself upright.

"Improved confidence and self-worth come with obvious trade-offs." Aurelia turned her glare on him. Roy raised both hands.

"I consider them worthwhile." She carried the drake toward the door. The drake pressed more firmly into her arms as she walked, his broad head tucked beneath her chin. Nimbus followed, visibly interested in the new arrival, while Kindle climbed from the hearth and trotted behind them. Talia remained beside the table, looking from the open door to Roy.

"What am I supposed to do? I'm not particularly familiar with dragon hatching…" The earnestness of the question made him laugh.

"Remain here in case Garrick wakes," Roy instructed.

"That is the most useful thing you can do." She nodded with immediate seriousness and sat at the table as if accepting a watch assignment. Roy collected his coat and Orion followed him outside. The eastern sky had begun to lighten, though the sun had not yet cleared the trees. Frost silvered the ground where Nimbus had not removed the snow, and the air carried the clean bite of deep winter. Aurelia crossed the yard toward the waste pile they had assembled within the pit.

Over the past month, the collection had grown from a practical necessity into something Roy preferred not to inspect too closely. Ash, food remnants, damaged cloth, straw, wood shavings, spoiled plant matter, and the less pleasant products of five people and several dragons occupied loosely separated sections. Aurelia lowered the Rotbloom Drake near the edge. The moment his feet touched damp soil, rootlike pads spread beneath them. Thin brown tendrils pressed into the ground, giving him a stable, planted stance.

He glanced back at Aurelia, who remained crouched beside him with one hand resting along his back. His frills rose slightly. Orion stopped several paces away.

"Does he intend to eat it?" The drake looked at him. Roy had seen similar expressions from Aurelia when Orion suggested something particularly foolish. He had not expected a newborn dragon to master it so quickly.

"No," Roy said.

"I do not believe he does." The sun crested the trees and light touched the Rotbloom Drake's back. The change began almost immediately. The translucent membranes between his scales brightened to a vivid green. His leaflike frills broadened, lifting from his spine as if unfurling after rain. Moss spread across the bark-brown ridges along his shoulders, and tiny clover-shaped blossoms emerged between the patches. Aurelia leaned closer.

"He is growing flowers."

"Only small ones," Orion said. Aurelia looked at him.

"They are impressive flowers." Roy circled to the dragon's other side. The rootlike pads beneath his feet had pressed deeper into the soil, and the green along his body strengthened wherever the sunlight struck.

"He may not require ordinary food," Roy said. Orion folded his arms.

"Every other dragon does."

"Nimbus absorbs water. Kindle eats wood. Shale consumes plant matter and half the farm if unsupervised. This one appears more plant than the others." Roy pointed toward the brightening membranes.

"Sunlight may provide most of what he needs. Water and soil could supply the rest." The drake looked toward Roy, then gave a slow blink.

"I am taking that as confirmation."

"You take most things as confirmation," Orion retorted. The Rotbloom Drake turned away from them and approached the waste pile. He did not begin with the nearest material. Instead, he moved along the edge, sniffing and prodding different sections with one blunt claw. He inspected spoiled vegetables, ash, broken leather, straw, and a mass of wet leaves before returning to the beginning. Then he started sorting. He nudged the spoiled vegetables into one pile. Straw and wood shavings went into another.

He dragged damaged scraps of cloth away from both and left a wider gap around several metal fragments and a cracked clay vessel. The work was slow but deliberate. When he reached a section containing more hazardous waste, he paused. Rather than touch it directly, he pulled dry leaves, sawdust, and shredded bark toward it, mixing the carbon-rich material throughout until the original waste was mostly hidden.

"What is he doing?" Aurelia asked.

"Balancing it, perhaps."

"With leaves?"

"Whatever process he uses may require different materials in combination." The drake settled beside the first pile. His body compressed slightly, and the translucent membranes beneath his ribs glowed. A thick green gel emerged from small openings between the barklike scales of his forelegs. He gathered it with his claws and began folding it into the spoiled plant matter. The gel clung to everything it touched, stretching in thin strands before disappearing into the mixture.

Once he had worked it through the pile, he moved to the next and repeated the process. Stolen story; please report. It took time. Each secretion seemed to require a pause. The light within his membranes dimmed, then gradually strengthened again as sunlight continued to strike his body. After a bit the first treated pile trembled, and prismatic vapor rose from it. Roy went still. The colors were weaker than what had escaped the altered boar's corpse.

The vapor did not surge or twist violently, but drifted upward in soft ribbons before dissolving in the morning air. Still, the resemblance remained unmistakable. Roy watched without comment; he knew too little to decide what it meant. The boar had been warped by some unknown force. This drake was using a controlled process tied to the Weave. Similar vapor could indicate a common source, or it could be no more meaningful than two fires producing smoke. Guessing would not turn ignorance into knowledge.

Aurelia breathed through her nose.

"That smells surprisingly pleasant." Roy did the same. The waste pile no longer carried its usual sourness. A clean, green scent had replaced it, sharp and fresh like grass cut during summer. Orion leaned slightly closer.

"Better than expected." The Rotbloom Drake gave him another unimpressed look.

"I said better!" Roy watched the gel settle through the second pile.

"This will take hours, possibly longer. He can only produce so much at once."

"And we do not know what it becomes," Orion said.

"Not yet." Aurelia crouched near the dragon, careful not to interfere. He leaned against her leg while continuing to work, maintaining contact even as he sorted the next section. Roy looked toward the barn and the open ground beyond it.

"Orion, you should begin gathering timber with Shale. Once the trees are at the construction site, I can process them and create the model."

"Are you staying here?"

"I need to observe."

"Building a cabin is not always a one-man task."

"You will not be alone. Shale is stronger than all of us, and Nimbus can move more than she appears capable of moving. Aurelia and Talia together are also likely more useful than I am with ordinary labor." Nimbus spun in a pleased circle above Aurelia. Orion glanced toward the two large drakes.

"That assumes they cooperate." Aurelia's glare sharpened. Orion sighed.

"I am making a practical observation, not insulting them." Before they could continue, the golden prompt appeared before all three siblings. [Rotbloom Drake awaiting designation.] Roy and Orion looked toward Aurelia. She did not hesitate.

"Clover." The Rotbloom Drake stopped working. One of the tiny flowers along his back opened wider. [Proposed Name: Clover.] [Confirm designation?]"Confirm," Aurelia said. The message brightened. [Designation Accepted: Clover.] A second display appeared near the edge of Roy's vision. [Dragons in Community — 4/4.] The number held for several breaths before changing. [Quest Complete: New Quests Loading…] Roy stared at the final line.

"Loading?" Orion asked.

"That seems unusually unfinished."

"Can the Weave be unfinished?"

"I did not think so." Clover resumed sorting waste. The message remained for another moment, then faded. ─── 🐲 ─── By mid-afternoon, the waste pile no longer resembled a single heap. Clover had divided it into several sections, each separated by clear strips of soil. Some contained mostly plant matter. Others combined ash, scraps, straw, and shredded bark in proportions Roy could not yet understand. The green gel coated several piles, and prismatic vapor continued to rise in gentle wisps.

Roy sat on an overturned bucket beside the widened pit. Shale had enlarged the area earlier, digging out one wall and flattening additional soil to give Clover room. The Burrowback Drake had completed the task in minutes, then departed with Orion to uproot timber for the guest cabin. None of the material had finished changing. The treated piles had darkened and compressed, but they remained recognizably composed of their original parts. Whatever finished product Clover created would require more time.

Roy watched the process while another message hovered before him. He had opened the side quest notification shortly after breakfast. It contained less information than he had hoped. [Optional Side Quest] [Escort Guests to Bellhaven.] No reward, no conditions, and no explanation for why the objective mattered enough to become a quest. The words suggested that Talia and Garrick's arrival was not an isolated accident.

The Weave expected them to reach Bellhaven eventually, which could mean nothing more than recognizing their stated goal. Or… it could imply the journey would become important. Roy dismissed the display and turned his attention toward the cottage. Through the window, the Community board remained visible near the hearth. [Quest Complete: New Quests Loading…] It had said the same thing for hours. The phrasing troubled him more than he wanted to admit. A quest should either exist or not exist.

The idea that new objectives required time to form made the Weave seem less like a fixed system and more like something responsive and almost alive. Roy rubbed his palms together. He had awakened, gained a Class, learned skills, and accepted instructions from golden messages without understanding any of the structure beneath them. That ignorance had been tolerable when the Weave merely offered immediate tools, but it would not remain tolerable forever.

Sooner or later, the difference between guessing correctly and understanding would determine whether one of them survived.

"Roy!" Orion's voice carried from beyond the barn. Shale emerged first, dragging an entire tree by the roots. Dirt and broken stone followed behind him in a rough trail. Nimbus floated overhead with two stripped trunks suspended beneath her body using loops of water compressed around the timber. Orion walked behind them, carrying an axe he had apparently used more for directing than cutting.

"We have enough for the frame," he said.

"Possibly more." Talia and Aurelia came from the cottage carrying rope, hand tools, and a stack of cleaned cloth. Talia stopped when she saw the amount of timber Shale had gathered.

"He pulled all of that here?"

"He enjoys proving he can," Roy said. Shale lowered himself beside the logs with a heavy thump. Roy selected one of the narrower trunks and placed both hands against the bark. Basic Transmutation answered immediately, softening the outer layers beneath his palms. Bark smoothed into shaped wood, excess knots drawing inward as he refined a section no longer than his forearm. He separated that piece, then began compressing and reshaping it. Talia watched from several steps away.

"What are you making?"

"The cabin."

"That is too small."

"The first version is." Roy formed the foundation, then the walls. Tiny beams appeared beneath his fingers, followed by a sloped roof, a narrow doorway, and the single window Orion had reluctantly permitted. He added two sleeping platforms inside, storage beneath them, and a compact hearth along the rear wall. The chimney became the most difficult piece, requiring a section of clay from near the barn and several minutes of careful refinement. Talia moved closer as the model took shape.

"You can make all of that from a log?"

"I can reshape what already exists. The material must come from somewhere."

"But the detail…" Roy adjusted the roof angle.

"Detail is the useful part." When the model was complete, he set it on a flat stone in the center of the chosen site. The cabin would stand near enough to the cottage for safety but far enough that its chimney and roof would not crowd the main structure. It was temporary on purpose, though Roy refused to design something intended to collapse after one winter. He placed his palm against the model. [[Constructive Tapestry Activated]] Golden light spread through the miniature.

The model dissolved into a web of glowing strands, each one rising upward and stretching across the construction site. Lines marked the future foundation. Walls climbed into the air as transparent planes. Roof beams appeared above them, and the hearth took shape inside. Talia stared, though Roy understood the expression. The first time he had seen the cottage become a golden blueprint, he had nearly forgotten the roof was collapsing around them.

"You truly do not have to do this," she said. Aurelia set down the cloth and stood beside her.

"We need more space whether you ask for it or not."

"But a whole cabin…"

"It is safer than placing Orion beside the hearth for the rest of winter." Orion looked toward them.

"I am capable of sleeping on the floor."

"You complained when you stood this morning," Aurelia retorted. Talia lowered her voice.

"We cannot repay something like this." Aurelia touched her shoulder.

"Then do not try. Help us build it." A list of materials unfolded beside the structure. Roy turned his attention to the timber list. The blueprint specified exact lengths and quantities. He began processing the first trunk, separating it into beams and planks while preserving as much material as possible. His hands moved steadily, repeated transmutations no longer draining him as sharply as they once had.

Familiar shapes required less concentration, and the Weave cost seemed to decrease whenever he repeated a process he understood. As everyone watched, the front door opened behind them. Everyone turned except Roy, who kept one hand against the timber to prevent the half-formed plank from warping. Garrick stepped outside. His injured arm rested in a sling made from folded cloth and reinforced straps. He moved carefully, keeping one shoulder stiff, but his color had improved since the previous evening.

Talia crossed the yard first.

"You are supposed to be in bed!"

"I woke up alone."

"I was less than a minute away." Aurelia arrived beside him and immediately touched two fingers to his wrist. Her gaze unfocused as she checked the status only she could see.

"How do you feel?" she asked.

"Fine, thanks to the Angel's care." Orion's expression changed, as did Roy's. Aurelia removed her hand.

"My name is Aurelia." Garrick smiled faintly.

"Aurelia." Talia gestured toward the construction site.

"That is Roy. He was the first one who found us." Garrick straightened as much as his injury allowed. Roy lifted one hand without ending the transmutation.

"Hello."

"And that is Orion." Orion stepped forward. Garrick opened his mouth, but Orion spoke first.

"There will be no shenanigans with my younger sister." Roy laughed, and the plank cracked down the center. He stopped immediately and pressed both hands to the damaged section, repairing the split before it spread. Talia looked between Orion and Garrick.

"What kind of shenanigans?" Aurelia's face heated.

"Orion!"

"What?"

"You cannot speak so vulgarly to a child." Garrick's posture deflated.

"I am sixteen. I have been supporting a household."

"So have I," Aurelia said.

"You are still injured and still a child." Roy bit the inside of his cheek to keep from damaging another board. Garrick looked briefly wounded by the classification, then gathered himself. He stepped toward Orion with deliberate care, shoulders straight despite the sling. Then he bowed his head.

"Thank you," he said.

"As the head of this household, you have my gratitude for saving my sister and me. I do not know what repayment we can offer, but I will work once I am able." Orion looked less prepared for formal gratitude than he had been for the altered boar.

"It was no great thing," he said.

"Given everything that has transpired." Garrick lifted his head.

"What exactly has transpired?" Silence followed. Talia glanced toward Aurelia, who glanced toward Orion. Orion looked toward the dragons, apparently deciding none of them could help. Aurelia exhaled.

"I will take both of you around the property. Talia has seen some of it, but not everything. We can introduce you properly to the drakes and explain what happened after you collapsed." Garrick looked toward Nimbus, who hovered behind her with visible interest.

"How many are there?"

"Four." He stared. Aurelia touched his uninjured shoulder.

"Before we begin, you will tell me immediately if you become dizzy, weak, or tired. You are stable, but that does not mean you have recovered."

"I understand."

"You will not try to prove anything. And you will not attempt to help Shale move a tree." Garrick looked toward the enormous Burrowback Drake.

"I had not planned to."

"Good!" Aurelia led them toward the barn, with Nimbus drifting beside her and Kindle emerging from the cottage to join the procession. Talia began explaining something in a low voice, already speaking faster now that Garrick was awake enough to hear her. Roy watched them walk off with a small smile, glad to see that Talia had livened up now that her brother was up and about. As he watched, however, something caught the corner of his eye.

Through the cottage window, he could see that the Community Quest status above the hearth had updated. He narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what it said from a distance. He could not, but the Weave seemed to respond by opening a status window right in front of his face. Roy read it slowly, then read it a second time with wider eyes. By the third time he read it, both his heart and stomach had sunken into his heels.

"Things continue to get more hectic," Orion noted, still staring after the other three.

"Do you think things will get less chaotic anytime soon?" He turned toward Roy as he waited for an answer. As soon as he saw Roy's darkened glare, his entire posture changed. He knelt down next to Roy and read the status screen that was floating in front of Roy's face. Roy could feel his posture stiffen even without physical contact.

"Maybe someday," Roy admitted.

"But not today."