[Lucifer is silent so Michael doesn't address him, but the angle of his wings beneath the vessel says he's still paying attention. He doesn't trust Lucifer enough to completely dismiss his presence.]
Is that so? [Michael reaches over to scratch the little dragon's chin; Ledas lets out a happy trill.] See what advantage it gives you caring for the hatchling, then. They need their bedding changed and the floor swept. There's a story book in one of the piles—page twenty-four.
[That's where they left off, before the opportunity to show off got Ledas too excited to sit still.
He drops his hand and turns to go, foisting the responsibility for the hatchling onto his brothers. He's extricating himself before one of them inevitably says something that leads to violence.]
no subject
Is that so? [Michael reaches over to scratch the little dragon's chin; Ledas lets out a happy trill.] See what advantage it gives you caring for the hatchling, then. They need their bedding changed and the floor swept. There's a story book in one of the piles—page twenty-four.
[That's where they left off, before the opportunity to show off got Ledas too excited to sit still.
He drops his hand and turns to go, foisting the responsibility for the hatchling onto his brothers. He's extricating himself before one of them inevitably says something that leads to violence.]