Elvenbane

smart...

'Are you trying to call me a snoop and a dumb-butt?' Rovy demanded belligerently, his ears flat, his spinal crest rising, his tail stirring up a tremendous dust behind him.

'I'm trying to tell you to stay out of this. I was talking to my sister, I wasn't talking to you!' Keman pulled himself up as tall as he could, but still fell short of Rovylern's height by a full head.

'What if I don't want to stay out of it?' Rovy challenged, taking a few steps forward. 'What if I think Myre's right, huh? If she wants that stupid animal of yours, I think you'd better give it to her.' He drew himself up to his full height, and puffed out his chest. 'You'd better do it, butt-head, or I'll make you do it.'

Shana chose that moment to try to make a run for it, trying to cut between Rovy and Myre, but she underestimated the length of Rovy's arms. He made a grab for her as she shot by him, and managed to hook his claws into her tunic. The tough dragon-hide of her tunic was thick enough to prevent her being scratched, but he caught her anyway.

In the next moment she found herself dangling from Rovy's claw, high in the air, while the bully laughed and taunted Keman, swinging her in front of him by her tunic. She shrieked and struggled ineffectually, her heart pounding with anger and fear, while her stomach lurched and her tunic tightened around her neck. She felt one claw right behind the nape of her neck; that was the one that had caught in the neckline and was pulling the fabric of the tunic tighter with every moment. She tried to get her hands down to free her throat, but with her tunic all twisted up her hands were pinned above her head.

'Put her down!' she heard Keman scream, enraged. Her tunic tightened a little more, and she choked and fought for breath. Suddenly this had gone beyond the usual bullying. She got a glimpse of Rovy's face. He knew she was fighting for breath and that he was hurting her badly...and he was enjoying himself.

She was overcome with sudden terror.

She tried to scream, and couldn't. Her vision filled with little sparkles, and began to go gray at the edges. :Keman! I can't breathe!: she called desperately. :Keman, help!:

As the gray began to fill her vision, and her chest tightened to the bursting point, there was a blue-and-green blur of motion, followed by a flash of light and a scream...

And she was flung convulsively away, flying across the floor of the little wash...she ducked her head down and tried to make herself into a little ball, certain she was going to break her neck when she landed. Fortunately, she landed right on top of Myre. The smaller dragon took her impact with a surprised oof! and fell over with Shana sprawled on top of her, tangled up in her wings.

Shana shook her head quickly to clear it; felt Myre gasping for breath beneath her and saw that the dragonet's head was weaving as if she were dazed. She saw Keman standing over a prone Rovylern, who was shuddering convulsively...and looked up at sudden shadows. The sky was darkening with dragon-wings. Adult dragon-wings.

She decided that the best thing she could do would be to hide, and scrambled off into the rocks to cower between two of the biggest and watch.

None of the adults except Foster Mother would pay any attention to anything she said. In fact, she had the feeling that her presence in this would only get Keman in further trouble.

She hunched her head down between her aching shoulders in shame at deserting her foster brother as the adults surrounded the dragonets, rounding on Keman as the chief villain. There was no doubt in Shana's mind what had happened; unable to fight back against the bigger dragonet, Keman had 'cheated.' He'd arced across his own wingtips and caught Rovy with the shock. A full-fledged shock, not the little spark the dragonets sparred with.

If Rovy had been older, he'd have been able to handle the charge; but he hadn't learned his lessons half as well as Keman, and he'd been knocked senseless.

And serves him right, too, Shana thought rebelliously.

Rovy's mother was out for blood, and one of the first to descend; Alara, one of the last.

Shana stayed in hiding, and hoped for the best.

Alara remained silent as Rovylern's mother, Lori, gathered up her stunned child and made certain he was going to recover. But she interposed herself as Lori raised her claw to strike at Keman.

'Stop it, Lori,' she said quietly. 'If Keman needs punishment, it's my place to mete it out, not yours. Let's hear what the boy has to say.'

'Has to say? Your precious little brat shocked my child!' Lori shrieked. 'He could have...'

'Rovylern is a braggart and a bully, Lori,' said one of the others...Orieana's father Laranel, whose own child had been abused more than once by Rovylern. He didn't look in the least sympathetic, and Alara knew she had at least one backer in this. Possibly more; a quick look around showed her that of the six adults present, three had children and presumably knew all about Rovylern.

Laranel shoved Lori aside and crouched down to bring his head level with Keman's, allowing Alara a moment to collect her other sniveling, winded child. 'All right, son,' Laranel said to Keman, who looked frightened but still defiant. 'What exactly happened here?'

'Myre and me were'...he glanced over at his mother, and his crest flattened...'we were fighting, I guess. I, uh...we were fighting. I guess that was kind of my fault, 'cause I didn't want to play with her. Then Rovy stuck his snout in and he...and he...'

'He what, son?'

Keman's ears and crest were entirely flat. 'He...uh...took something of mine. I tried to get it back. He tried to...uh...break it.'

Alara heard the hesitation in her normally honest and straightforward son's voice, noted the absence of Shana and came to a quick conclusion.

Rovy bullied Keman over Shana, and probably hurt her. But if Keman brought Shana up, he wouldn't get any sympathy at all...

She held her breath, hoping Keman had the sense to realize this.

'That's no excuse to shock someone, Keman,' Laranel said sternly. 'Even if he is bigger than you are. You could have hurt him badly.'

'Oh, leave the boy alone.' Iridirina's high, clear voice sang across the tiny wash, in tones heavy with disgust. 'Unless I miss my guess, this was just the last straw. He'd had his gut full of being bullied, and he wasn't going to put up with it any more. Am I right, child?'

Keman nodded, his head hunched down between his shoulders.

'Well, if you ask me, Lori...' Iridirina said.

'I didn't!' snapped the infuriated mother.

In continued, blithely ignoring her. 'I think that brat of yours has had this coming for a long time. I hope it'll teach him a lesson, but I doubt it will. All the same...Keman, you did a very bad thing, you know that, don't you? You don't shock anyone but an enemy. You never shock one of the Kin.'

'Yes ma'am,' Keman muttered sullenly.

'Alara, I think you ought to punish your boy,' Laranel said. 'You really ought.'

She sighed; it wasn't fair, but if she were going to keep the peace... 'Keman, go straight home and go to bed. No more playing, and no supper. No story at sunset, and an extra lesson tomorrow. And you will have to make Myre's kill for her.' She looked from her erring child to the rest. 'Is everyone satisfied?'

'No!' snapped Lori, but the rest nodded.

'Lori, you're outvoted,' Laranel said firmly. 'And if that boy of yours were mine, he'd be going without his dinner as well.'

Myre huddled at her mother's side, whimpering and sniveling, but saying not so much as a word. 'Come on, Keman,' Alara said, pushing Myre ahead of her and gesturing that Keman should follow with a sweep of her wingtip.

:But Mother...:

:No buts,: she told him. :There's no excuse for shocking one of the