Free A Dragonlings' Magical Christmas by S. E. Smith

he talked in a soothing tone as he fed it one mushroom after another. Jabir tilted to one side and grinned at him before straightening.
    “Let’s go,” Roam whispered. “I’s don’t want to have to pet him. My tiger don’t likes something that big.”
    Bálint nodded and took the bark from Roam. Together, they wove their way back toward the edge of the river where the other kids were waiting. The symbiots had shifted back to their original forms, though he saw that his had created a small cover for Alice.
    “I’s going to go catch some fishes,” Roam said before he shifted and ran over to where Amber and Jade stood on a rock in their dragon forms.
    Bálint carefully carried his prize selection over to where Alice was sitting with one of the red blankets wrapped around her. All he could see was her eyes, nose, and mouth. Setting it down, he smiled at her and shifted. He reached down and speared a dark brown mushroom on each of his five claws. Holding it up, he focused. It took him three tries before he could build up enough spark to blow fire on them.
    Alice chuckled when the last one caught fire and Bálint had to frantically blow it out. The small dragon held out the smoking mushrooms to Alice. Tiny fingers carefully plucked one of the mushrooms off his claw and studied it warily before taking a small bite. She looked at him in surprise and delight and quickly gobbled it down and reached for another. She ate three of them before she reached for some of the berries he had picked as well.
    Shifting, Bálint sat down next to her and ate the rest of the mushrooms while he watched Roam, Jade, and Amber fight over who was going to catch the most fish.
    Alice looked at Bálint and giggled again. “I thinks you are going to needs to find more mushrooms,” she said, watching the three tackle each other. “They’s going to scares all the fishes away.”
    Bálint nodded and laughed. “I’s can get more,” he promised, smiling when Alice opened the blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders when she saw him shiver. “I not as hungry now.”
    “Me, either,” Alice said with a grin.
    *.*.*
    Several hours later, Zohar was yelling that they needed to get back in the raft. Things were going well until Roam tried to climb onto the raft and Spring pushed him in the water. Roam stood up and hissed, glaring back at Spring as she turned and sat down with a sour expression on her face.
    “What’s you do that for?” Roam demanded, shivering. “I’s just got dried.”
    “I don’t likes you no more,” Spring said with a sniff.
    “What’s I do?” Roam asked, crawling aboard the raft. “I’s gave you some of my fishes.”
    Spring glared at him again and turned her back on him. Roam looked at Bálint and Zohar. They just shrugged. They didn’t know what he did either. Shaking, Roam sent cold water over everyone. Amber and Jade giggled while Bálint tried to protect Alice. Zohar, Jabir, and Phoenix yelled for him to stop.
    “I’s don’t understand girls,” Roam complained, sitting down and staring in confusion at the back of Spring. “They’s too confusing.”
     
     

Chapter 9
    “The symbiots can’t communicate with the kids’ symbiots,” Trelon said with a grim look.
    “Why not?” Vox demanded, pausing along the shore of the river.
    Zoran shrugged his shoulders. “Possibly because they are young and not very powerful,” he replied, glancing along the swollen river.
    “Or,” Ha’ven asked, sliding off the glider.
    “They could be in a different shape and using their energy to maintain it. Like Zoran said, they are young,” Mandra said with a serious expression as he glanced up at the sky that had finally cleared. “It will be dark in a couple of hours.”
    “I know,” Zoran replied with a heavy sigh, turning when he heard the sound of running feet.
    “We found where they were,” Kelan said, drawing in a deep breath.
    Trisha nodded. “They landed about two miles upriver. It looks like they