It was way too early in the morning for my liking. Of course the sun was already up, but that didn't mean I wanted to be awake. In fact, my night was completely sleepless since all my mind could focus on was what Dan had said.

I almost dismissed what he told me while I was thinking it over that night. There should have been no way for the vet to have missed something like a couple of eggs growing inside of me while doing all of his scans. Yet I still had no full knowledge of the extent of their technology. For all I knew, the scan could have only seen my skeletal system and surrounding muscles. It might have been possible for them to not even have noticed.

Then the other thought came to mind. I hadn't been with Dan since he'd died four days ago. I never really discussed it with any of the parenting dragonets since it was pretty private information, but I didn't think it would take as long as it had for some simple eggs to form. Then yet again, my recent stress levels also might be effecting it in ways I was unaware of. Either way, my lack of sleep and the constant thinking was giving me a headache.

We were waiting just outside the loading dock for our shuttle to arrive. Marcy was staying behind as only Tuskon was given permission to come along. There was no need for more than one handler to be with a firelizard, after all. Instead she opted to run the errands last night to get things prepared for the morning. A couple of containers of fruit were brought so I could have something to eat on our trip. They weren't entirely sure if I was going to be a picky eater once we arrived on the foreign planet, so they thought it best just to bring what they already knew I'd eat.

They might have been worried about my eating habits, but I was more concerned with who we'd meet. No one outside of earth had seen one of my kind before. In fact, barely a fraction of the population of Kymari on the earth were able to see and interact with us every morning. I just hoped my popularity didn't attract too much attention.

I had on my oh so fancy harness while Tuskon sat and stroked my scales. He didn't bother with a leash and I didn't care. I wasn't about to risk my chance of seeing to just run off. Even if we weren't going to fix my eyes, I had grown too attached to my caretakers to simply leave them behind. That had been Dan's wish after all.

We just sat there and waited. Tuskon said few words as other Kymari passed by and said even fewer to me. Though, I didn't mind if he chose not to speak with me. It wasn't as if I was going to reply back to him anyway. I did send him a few odd looks when he asked me if I was excited, however. It was my goal to look as neutral about the whole situation as possible. Despite this fact, I gladly accepted any pieces of fruit he offered me. I simply loved food way too much.

It couldn't have been any more of a relief on my boredom when the shuttle finally arrived. It must have been just as much of a blessing for Tuskon as his breathing seemed to even out with the sight of the incoming ship. We were ushered on board and lead to a private room fit with a few necessary things like a bed for Tuskon and a heat lamp for myself. My Kymari caretaker set his luggage on the bed in preparation for the three day trip and we walked to a lounge type of room.

I would take a guess and say that these types of ships were more accustomed to holding more than just us as there was a surplus amount of tables and chairs around the deck. Of course there happened to be a few other passengers, but not enough to fill even half the room.

I was forced to sit and wait until the ship took off while Tuskon talked with the other Kymari. My boredom couldn't have been any worse while I sat on his lap. Not only was the flight to the planet going to take a whole day, but we were also going to be staying on the planet's surface for an entire day as well. That would account for three whole days away from the Earth and my dragonet friends. I hadn't talked to any of them about my leaving, but it was more than likely that Tasha already knew from her own caretaker and was spreading the word. If not, then I'd just have to tell them of my adventures when I got back.

The jolt of the space craft alerted me that we had either just gotten off the ground or had barely left the planet's atmosphere. I couldn't be sure. Whatever the jolt was, Tuskon had decided to finally allow me to roam the open deck. I used my echolocation to survey my surroundings before making a mad dash around the wide room above the few Kymari heads. I was almost tempted to be a trouble maker, but quickly thought better of it. I really didn't want to ruin my chances at gaining my sight back.

I heard Tuskon's voice as he called me over and offered me a piece of strawberry. I was quick to devour it and waited for any other commands that would grant me more treats. When I realized he wasn't about to just hand over more, I sat my hind legs on the table surface and pressed my hands against his chest. With a little chirp I looked up at where his face would be, hoping he'd get the message that I wanted more.

He laughed and almost seemed reluctant to hand over a thin slice of apple. The pieces he gave me were a lot smaller though, which only made me want them more. I could smell a few of the Kymari making their way closer to our table as they became intrigued with my small presence. I ignored them as I pushed away from his body and sat and stared at him. No bright lights were going to get in my way from winning this staring contest.

Thankfully, he gave in before I had become too bored. I was sure I wouldn't of won if he had been more resistant. His bizarre actions lead me to believe that he was just showing me off to relieve his own boredom.

Slowly the watching Kymari found their voices and spoke up to ask questions, most -if not all- about me. That is when I finally gave into my boredom. I stepped onto Tuskon's lap, which was radiating with body heat, and tried to ignore the talking as I shut my eyes to sleep.

* * *

We arrived and ported on the planet the next day. I felt a little empty as there was no rising sun to sing to, even if I couldn't see it myself. I shook away the feeling as Tuskon finished my oil scrub and gave me a bit of fruit. The entire deck seemed to be almost completely quiet as we waited for the doors to open so we could file out to our next destination.

I didn't bother paying attention to my surroundings while I rested on Tuskon's shoulder since I had already scouted the entire open deck the previous day as I searched for something to do. This ship was definitely not one that I'd call fun.

It seemed like forever until the air seal around the door gave in as the passage opened. New air rushed in like a bowl sinking in water. There was no wind to make it extremely powerful, but the mere difference in atmosphere had stunned me enough to almost fall off my shoulder perch. I coughed a few times as my lungs adjusted to the new environment. One certainty revealed the new air to definitely not be oxygen. Guess Dan was right after all.

Tuskon didn't react the same way I did. In fact, he didn't react at all. He simply just stood in the door of the open ship until I had grabbed my bearings on the new air around me. It took roughly one or two minutes of wheezing until my lungs finally expanded and contracted like they would in my normal environment.

I was completely out of breath as Tuskon started walking out. My heart suddenly sped up as I came to the realization that I was on a different planet with a different atmosphere and different everything! Despite everything, I couldn't hold back my excitement and I started clicking.

The first thing I found out was my clicking sounded slightly different than it had before. I could only think that the different air had something to do with it. The next thing that I noticed was that the sound waves traveled a lot easier here as well. The details of the buildings and different species walking around were breathtaking. I only wished that I had been able to see it with all the color I was sure it would have.

Tuskon couldn't hold back his chuckle as he watched me observe the new scenery with my echolocation. Unlike my last frantic clicking, which had been at Iso's baby shower, Tuskon now knew that I was excited rather than panicked. The joke was on him, though, as I was very anxious about everything going on around me. I would have fallen off his shoulder if it wasn't for my death grip on the shoulder pad.

Everyone looked at us as we passed by. Or rather, they looked at me. I was an anomaly. No one here had likely seen one of my kind before. I suddenly felt very small with the urge to hide. However, I kept up my brave act and kept my back erect with my wings folded up neatly and my tail draped nicely behind me. Oh how I wanted to vomit.

Panicked thoughts suddenly raced through my head. They're looking at me. They think I'm a freak. Why are they looking at me? They must think I'm hideous!

I had started to shake in my distress until Tuskon reached out to pet my head. I hadn't even noticed his movement until he stroked me; I was so distracted. But I was very grateful. I knew, out of every single alien on this planet, I could trust Tuskon. It comforted me so much, I hadn't realized I had jumped into the protection of his arms.

I couldn't keep my brave act up any longer. I continued to shiver in Tuskon's grasp for the entire walk, positive that we were still greeted with many looks from everyone around.

I was so relieved when we finally entered a building away from the onlookers. My shaking slightly calmed as I took a few seconds to look around. There were different aliens here as well, but not as many as on the street. Some had a less than pleasant scent drifting off of them. I scrunched my nose and watched their forms with a soft growl.

We silently passed them and continued through the building. After a few minutes of walking, we entered a room. Thankfully the smell around the new room wasn't terrible.

I noticed a lone bed and a few other things in the room that indicated this was where we would be staying for the night until we headed back out in the morning. He set his luggage on the foot of the bed and laid me down on a pillow. I didn't mind as I simply watched him pull an item out of the container. I nearly laughed as I realized it was a portable heat lamp.

He set it up on the bed's side table, but I didn't move. The pillow was soft and fit to my form very comfortably. Tuskon didn't say anything and just turned it off for now.

He proceeded to call Marcy and give her the updates of last night and this morning. It would seem there were a few hours to spare until my appointment so I let myself fall into a blissful sleep.