The small little corner of the swamp carved out by Dragon, padded by nesting material and watched over by the paternal gaze of a third-time father, erupts with children's babbling and giggling. Half-formed exclamations of 'banana!' and 'father!' ring out—

—but among it all, the last of Dragon's litter is silent. She surveys the scene before her with a quiet sort of content; she has words, she thinks. She could say the word 'banana', too, if she wanted to.

But Father's above her, and the mud rapidly becomes warm below her, bubbling with heat, and she thinks about her environment and she thinks she's pretty comfortable right now.

Hello, little one, Father tells her, and that earns him a soft little 'chirp!'; something like one would hear out of an alligator hatchling, but tending a little bit higher.

Hel-lo, she thinks in mimicry, shuffling her wings about to get herself into a more comfortable position; out of all the places to be right now, in the world that is this little part of the swamp and her siblings and her father, this seems pretty good right now.

...then again, maybe she should get a piece of that banana, before the others snatch it all up. She wants food, too! She's comfortable under her father, sure, but maybe…

...a plan begins to form in her head. A devious plan, one fit for all the possible thoughts in her tiny head so far. Maybe… maybe if she leaves the comfort of Father's form, and goes over to the banana, and drags it…

It's an enterprising train of thought that is put on hold for a moment as one of her siblings waddles forth and begins to push against her. It's a very soft sensation, the feeling of her sibling pressing against her, and her sibling's body is warm, unlike her father's…

She decides, with all the confidence of a newly-hatched toddler, that she will allow her sibling to be in the warm space underneath their father.

Now, to put the plan back into motion. First order of business: obtain the banana.

With calculated movements, she drags herself out from underneath Father's belly. The cool air of the swamp against her scales makes her shiver, and immediately she regrets her decision—but, no! She wants that banana! She wing-walks through the mud, glittering eyes set firmly on that yellow fruit, however smushed it may be. Once she's close enough, she lunges forward and chomps!—jaws clapping shut with an alligator-like bite force. The fruit squishes into her mouth, fruity and slightly gooey. Success.

Now, to drag it back… her eyes now narrow in focus as she digs her wings into the mud and begins to drag the banana backwards, attempting to bring it back to the warm shelter of Father's underbelly.