"Okay, as you may or may not know, each dragon has his or her special kind of magic," Sisu explained.

Jarek sat there and listened, noting the vibrancy and energy Sisu was displaying. She certainly enjoyed the role of teacher she was partaking in. It was cute in a way, and Jarek had to admit it was endearing to see her so committed to it. And he would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in what this dragon body could do.

"For example, my brother Pengu can make it rain, Pranee can shapeshift, Jagan makes fog, and Amba glows,"

"Wait? That's the kind of magic your brothers and sisters have?" Jarek asked disbelievingly.

Sisu looked at Jarek with confusion for a moment, "Yeah...is there a problem?"

"Nah, it's fine but I'm kind of surprised their magic is so...mundane," Jarek noted.

"Mundane? What were you expecting?" Sisu asked.

"I dunno, just like maybe breathing fire, or blowing stuff up?" Jarek suggested.

"Dragons are supposed to protect life, not destroy it," There was no offense in Sisu's voice, more like a surprise that Jarek would make such a statement.

"Well, what can you do?" Jarek's voice turned into a daring tone.

Sisu immediately shrank back, her eyes darting left and right, "Well...I'm a really good swimmer."

Jarek immediately spurted out laughter.

"What?! Don't laugh!" Sisu demanded.

"I'm sorry, it's just you swim?" Jarek's disbelief matched Sisu's earlier disbelief at his statement about dragon powers.

Crossing her legs Sisu held her head high and her eyes closed, "I'll have you know while my magic may not be as fancy as my siblings, growing up I was the best swimmer in my class!"

Jarek halted his laughter and shook his head, "I'm sorry Miss Datu, please go on."

Sisu snorted a bit of air, so much that had she been the kind of dragon who would breathe fire, puffs of smoke would have emerged from her nostrils.

"I'll overlook that, but moving on each dragon has its magic, and today we are going to see what you can do. So come on Skippy, let's get to work!"

A break from flying would have been good. Jarek admitted he could use a break from constantly eating the ground. So he supposed there was no time like the present. But as they started their lesson, he smelt the distant scent of rain.

XXX

Taking off without rain could be difficult at times. Though it was true dragons could fly through the air without aid, flying while raining made it somewhat manageable. In general, dragons being able to fly through the air while it was only raining was often misinterpretation. They indeed used the rain to create platforms to reach the air, but they could do it anywhere so long as there was magic in the air. Magic was everywhere, and although dragons seemed to be the only ones capable of harnessing it, it was present. It was just that rain helped make things more seamless.

That was why Pengu called up a small shower to give him a boost. Ever since he learned his magic as a small child, he had been eager. He had cast rainstorm after rainstorm, flying high into the air without so much as a care. He recalled how panicked his parents had been, that and how irate the other dragons had been at constantly being drenched. He admitted he had been very reckless, even mischievous. But back then he had been an only child, so his parents afforded him most of their attention. Then Pranee came, then Sisu, then Jagan, and lastly Amba. Soon he was a big brother and that entailed a greater deal of responsibility.

Like any child who had been born a single one, having a new sibling in the house meant a divide of their parent's attention. Admittedly at his youngest, Pengu may have held some jealousy towards his new siblings, but in time he grew out of it. At least his siblings were not exceedingly bratty at that stage so the transition from a single child to a big brother was far easier.

Pengu kept flying until the outline of Heart came into view.

XXX

"Okay Skippy, concentrate," Sisu urged.

Jarek did so, closing his eyes and tensing up his face.

"Tell me, what do you feel?" Sisu asked.

Jarek pushed and strained, but came to a realization, "I feel like I'm going to give myself a hernia!" He stated.

Sisu frowned, "Okay, you're doing it wrong."

Letting out a breath, Jarek relaxed, "Well Ms. Datu, please enlighten me."

Ignoring the smart tone in Jarek's voice, Sisu continued, "I'm not sure how best to explain it. For dragons, it's something natural, but you're not a natural dragon," Sisu came to the realization, "So I guess just picture your magic coming to you."

"You sound like some kind of self-help guru," Jarek retorted.

"Look enough of the smart mouth okay?" Sisu chided.

"Fine," Jarek sighed, closing his eyes once more.

The transformed dragon wasn't sure what to expect from this lesson, but he did so all the same.

"I feel nothing...nothing...nothing," Jarek repeated.

He wasn't sure what to expect really. He didn't understand dragon magic, let alone how to use it. When he was human it made sense as he wasn't magically inclined, but as a dragon, he should have been, yet he wasn't. It wasn't as if he could turn it on and off, but he concentrated nonetheless.

"I feel stupid," He muttered.

He concentrated but he didn't know what for? But he did so all the same. Yet he didn't know what to expect. At the moment he just wanted to disappear, thankful no one was watching.

"Skippy?"

Especially not his family.

"Skippy? Look at yourself!"

Sisu's voice snapped him out of his concentration. He looked ahead expecting something but found nothing out of the ordinary. But he remembered Sisu said to look at himself so he did so. But when he looked at himself, he saw nothing.

"What?" He exclaimed.

He tried moving his claw and although he felt he couldn't see it, he certainly felt it move. For a moment Jarek felt panicked, and that moment only grew the minute he gazed upon his entire body. His body was gone!

"What?!" Jarek cried, panicked as he spun around in circles, hoping for a chance for his body to reappear.

"Woah Skippy calm down!" Sisu cautioned.

'Calm down!? My body's gone!" Jarek cried.

"Skippy."

"I am minus a body!"

"SKIPPY!"

Jarek immediately stopped, "How are you not freaked out by this?"

"Well for one your face is still there," Sisu noted.

Jarek reached up and felt the familiar bearded sensation on his face. But of course, it made sense he would still feel it. Just because he was invisible didn't mean he was without feeling. But to Sisu, the changed dragon's face was still present amidst the invisible void of his body.

While Jarek tried to ascertain his situation, Sisu could only look on in amazement.

"Wow, it's not camouflage, your body is completely gone," The dragoness remarked.

"Sure that's fine and dandy for you but how do I make my body come back!?" Jarek demanded to know.

"Calm down Skippy just take it easy," Sisu soothed.

"Why are you so calm about this?" Jarek asked.

Sisu shrugged, "I'm a dragon, we're magical by nature so this doesn't surprise me."

Jarek could only narrow his eyes and reply, "My, how wonderful for you."

"Just focus real hard," Sisu couldn't help but chuckle at Jarek's disgruntlement, "I don't know much about turning invisible, but if you got it working the first time you can turn it off."

There was nothing more to be done than that. So Jarek did what he did before: concentrate.

XXX

Pengu landed upon the cold stone of the Heart Tribe territory. A few of the passing humans showed some surprise at the sudden arrival of a dragon but quickly went back to their business. It wasn't as if dragons were an unusual sight. Pengu quickly made his way to the palace, the guards letting him at the moment he mentioned he had to see either the chief or his daughter. He didn't even explain who he was. He supposed being a dragon had its benefits, not that he was the kind of creature to abuse such rights.

After asking around he finally stumbled across the person he sought.

"Princess Raya?" Pengu called.

The black-haired young woman turned facing the green furred dragon, "Oh! Hello," She stated, "You, you're Sisu's brother right?"

"Yes, I'm Pengu, we...haven't talked much," The dragon greeted.

It was true Raya hadn't interacted much with Sisu's siblings, neither they with her, but Pengu had to see someone high up in the Heart Tribe hierarchy.

"Yeah I'm kind of surprised, usually we get visits from just Sisu," Raya noted.

"Yes, Raya speaks highly of you," Pengu stated.

It wasn't unusual for Sisu to do so. After all, it was humanity who had ultimately banished away from the Druun (seemingly) for good, not the dragons. Of course, Sisu had a high opinion of humanity regardless. But the subject of humanity was what was on Pengu's mind currently. It was a question he had to ask, and although he wasn't certain about prying, he had to know something, if only to confirm his suspicions.

"I hear talk that you were recently robbed?"