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Valek sizes me up. “Your home is not ready.”

Lauren cuts her eyes at him, and he quits talking.

“I know,” I say. “But I don’t want to raise my hatchling-pup⁠—”

“Hatchling-pup?” Valek scoffs. “What do you mean by that?”

My wolf can’t handle his size and the fire in his eyes. She whines at the smoke pouring off him and pushes me to roll over and show my belly. I lock my knees and stand my ground. “Our baby will be both dragon and wolf. Whether boy or girl, they will know both cultures.”

“No, it will not.” He puts alpha authority into the words until the back of my neck burns with the urge to bow. “You join Ash Clan, you leave everything else behind.”

I curl my toes and fight it. Well, this is a hell of a welcome. I’m still working out what to say when Ezra steps past me and gets in Valek’s face. “You watch how you address my mate and future luna.”

When his uncle smirks, Ezra balls his fists at his sides. Acrid smoke pushes from his nostrils and stings my nose. I swear they’re about to shift and tear into each other where they stand.

“That is enough,” Lauren warns as she steps between them. “Both of you.”

She takes my hand and turns me away. “Let me show you the land, Aya.”

I strain my nosy ears for the rest of their argument while she tows me up the path. All I catch is a low rumble and a whiff of Ezra’s smoke. This isn’t her first time breaking up their fights.

With Lauren walking me through it, I’m not prepared for how big the village is. House of Zorah is a handful of cabins where everyone knows each other’s business. Ash Clan is an actual settlement with designated paths and communal spaces. They have a training yard with weapons racks, and even the vegetables in the garden grow in straight lines. Then there are the hatchlings.

A shrieking tangle of them bursts from behind a cabin and tumbles out in front of us. A little boy, not much more than a toddler, partially shifts as he runs. Small wings sprout from his back and shimmer in the sun. He launches himself into the air with a clumsy flap that carries him higher than it should before he wobbles. The medical trainee in me wants to yell for someone to spot him, but no one around us even flinches. The others take off after him in flashes of green and gold like it’s nothing. They squeal with laughter and chase each other through the chimney smoke.

I put my hand over my heart. I’ve watched Ezra fly more times than I can count, but these are little dragons with wings they haven’t grown into yet. Someday our hatchling-pup is going to be up there too. I don’t have anywhere to put a thought that big.

Lauren studies my face. “It’s very overwhelming at first, but you’ll get used to it.” She keeps pace beside me. “Ash Clan is very militant. We have systems in place for just about everything. Dragon shifters crave structure and community.”

Behind us, a young woman steps out of a cabin in a pretty dress and sandals with dark curls loose around her shoulders. She’s lean and athletic with Lauren’s chocolate skin and Sam’s fiery red eyes. I smell dragon on her and do a double take before I realize it’s Kenna, their daughter.

“Mom, have you seen my slippers?” She peeks down at her mother’s feet and grins.

Lauren giggles. “Whoops. Aya dropped by as a surprise, and I needed to borrow them.”

I have to bite back a laugh. The luna of Ash Clan swiped her daughter’s house shoes to come meet me. Kenna wraps me up in her arms. I know her from around the Academy, but we’ve never been close. Ezra keeps to himself. Her hug is real, though. I like the warmth in her scent. When she pulls back, she sees my mark.

She turns to her mother. “Dropped by? Surprise visit?” She points at my neck. “It’s time for her to get settled in.”

Lauren gestures at the bare frame of a cabin across the way. “Soon. Levi’s already contacted Valek. They resume construction tomorrow.”

That’s going to be our home. I only left the pack today, and my father is still watching out for me. My wolf whimpers for him. I press my lips together and blink the burn out of my eyes.

Kenna wraps me up again. “Congratulations. I can’t wait until I find my mate.” She laughs. “I hope he’s a bear shifter.”

Lauren snorts at that. Kenna’s deep crimson wings extend from her back and kick up dust around my feet. She shoots up toward the hatchlings above the rooftops.

“Race you!” she calls. The little ones shriek and flap harder. She hangs back until they’re ahead of her and banks wide around a tall pine to come after them.

My wolf strains to follow and forgets all about pacing. She’d chase them all over Ash Clan if she could. I drag my eyes off the sky. “Is Tobin around?”

Lauren chuckles. “You know he loves the Academy. He’s there whenever he can be.”

I glance across the village at Hazel and Dominic’s cabin, a short walk from hers. I think about everything Hazel survived to build a life here among dragons. If she did it, maybe I can too. I pick at my nails.

Lauren takes my arm. “Calm down, Aya. You will fit into Ash Clan just fine.”

“Of course she will.” Ezra comes up the path behind us, still scowling from the fight with his uncle.