“May I take him, or I mean her, in.” came a voice from the audience.
Madame Illusia looks over, trying to find the source of the voice. “What couple wish to take in this endeavor?”
A man with a cane stood up. He looked to be in his early thirties, but obviously had trouble getting around. He walked out to the walkway and spoke up again. “It was I, Madame. I wish to take in the child. But I will admit, it would be just me and me alone.”
“Oh, and you think you can handle this child? Teach her right and prepare her for life?” Madame Illusia Questions the man. “Who would be her motherly figure?”
“Are you questioning if I can be a loving parent because I am a man?” The cane man replies. “What couple is ready for a child? Are you a parent? Were you fully prepared, even with your magic?” The man with the cane stared down Madame Illusia, who gazed back. The audience whispered and waited, thinking that the man angered Madame Illusia. They waited to see what she would do to him in response.
“HA! HA!” Madame Illusia laughs, shocking the audience, “Touché, Sir. You may be a great parent for this child. Forgive me, you were showing kindness and I was the offender.”
“No offence taken.” The man replied.
“Good, good.” Madame Illusia continues. “No, being a couple should not be a prerequisite for this. Please, meet my son at the side of the stage. He will take you to the back to help with the transfer of custody. I wish you a long life of happiness.”
“Thank you, Madame Illusia.” The man replies.
Tyler, who was silent this whole time, couldn’t take it anymore. “Like hell I am going to…” Madame Illusia widen her eyes at the young dragon baby, putting her to sleep. Stephan walks out to the baby dragon and wraps her in a blanket before meeting the cane man on the side. He leads him back to an office area.
Once out of sight of the audience at whole, Stephan speaks to the man. “What is your name, good sir? I am Stephen.”
“Ironically, I am Steven.” The man replied. “It is good to meet you. But I do have a question to ask.”
“Please ask.” Stephan states as he opens the door to the office.
“What will happen to the former young man’s family? Will they believe that he is just missing? Or are they going to forget him?” Steven asks with genuine concern. While he was ecstatic of the idea of having his own child, he didn’t like the fact that it would be at the cost of another.
“They will have a version of him, Mr. Steven.” A famine voice says from a desk in the room. Steven turns to see Madame Illusia sitting at the desk. “And before you ask, the audience is watching a version of me right now. I decided to handle this personally, as I can see you having a gentle and pure heart. A rarity in this world.”
“I am just an old veteran trying to live my life.” Steven replies.
“A Military veteran maybe, but old, you are not. You are more a boy to me then young Tyler is to you, even now.” Madame Illusia replies.
“I will restrain myself from asking your age then or saying mine.” Steven states with a smile as Stephan offers him a seat and the baby dragon Tyler.
“Oh, don’t worry, I know that it is not in malice.” Madame Illusia reassures him. “But let’s get down to business, as they say. Are you sure that you are willing to take in that child. Not only have I put her to sleep, but I reset her mind. She will have the memories of her past life, but she will also be a blank slate for her parent to mold.”
“When I was injured, my wife left me, believing me to be damaged goods when I had no income. When Veterans Affairs finally deemed me eligible for my disability income, and I was able to get my land here, the state said I couldn’t adopt a child. I just wish for the chance to continue my line.” Steven answers with a melancholy voice.
Madame Illusia smiles at Steven. “Few know this, but I was well over a hundred when I had young Stephan here. While he is nineteen, a fraction of my age, I will admit that I was more worried about raising him then I was when first learning my craft. I think you will do well. Lets set up the backstory for you, fore if you just take a baby dragon home, some would be suspicious.”
“What do you have in mine, Ma’am?” Steven asks.
“Well, baby Tyler will be an anthro-dragon. So, she will be humanoid. But she will be the only one of her kind. We can say that you found her egg on your land and the state allowed her adoption when she hatched. While it was a national and world story, the first dragon in known history being born, your names will be protected, and it will not be seen as a big enough deal to change what would be a normal life. But this would also mean that in the past, dragons were once of this earth.” Madame Illusia leans in, “Which is not far off from the truth, between you and me.”
Steven snickers to Madame Illusia statement. “I always believed that such stories had some truth to them.”
“They do.” Madame Illusia replies. “Now, with my ways, I know that you have the basic means to raise her. So it will be up to your heart to do so. Some things you should know about baby dragons, they do breath fire, but can learn to control it quickly. It is made from two openings in the back of her throat. Make sure she is regularly fed and hydrated, and you will not have any problems in the early years, as the water will dilute her flame sacks. When she reaches five, the flammable fluid that her body makes will change and it will mix less with water. She will also have better control over opening and closing the valves in her throat.”
“Good to know. Thank you.” Steven replies, taking mental notes of everything.
“Now, you will have to get custom clothes, with her tail and wings. But don’t worry, I have a feeling that you will find help in this small town you live in. If you came from the nearby city, there would be more of a problem. Speaking of her wings, she will be able to fly, but that will be up to her to learn. It is different for every dragon. Just don’t worry to much about her getting hurt. Her body is strong and resilient. I just hope she doesn’t have a fear of heights…” Madame Illusia giggles, “That happens to dragons from time to time.”
“When will I say her birthday is?” Steven asks.
“Oh, lets say she is eight weeks now.” Madame Illusia suggests. “That is the age I place her.” Madame Illusia then waved her hands over some papers that were laid out on her desk before turning her attention to the laptop nearby. She typed some before waving her hand again before facing Steven and the young baby Tyler. “Do you wish to change her name?”
“No, thank you.” Steven replies.
“Alright, then the official adoption paperwork is on its way to you. Let typical government time dictate when they arrive. Other than that, I will provide some clothes for the child and some needed equipment for you.” Madame Illusia informs Steven.
Stephan, who had stepped out for a moment, comes back to the office with a stroller/car seat set, a military style backpack filled with dippers and formula, and a travel green tea for Steven. “The rest of the baby’s car seat is already in your vehicle, Mr. Steven. And I took the liberty of making you fresh green tea. Your favorite?”
Steven opens his mouth, before closing it in a smile. “I was going to ask how 'did you know', but I should have known better.”
“We will check in on you from time to time. It maybe even in your town of residence, as you live some time from here. But if you see that the carnival is in this town too, don’t hesitate to stop by.” Madame Illusia had an idea. “Oh, as an added ‘gift’,” Madame Illusia snapped her fingers at Steven. “Here, you too can turn into a creature of your choice. You will have full control of your faculties while changed and even your injury will be temporarily healed. I can sense you take great pride in your wound.”
“I may not have been hurt in combat, but it was in the service of my duty. Thank you. But what will I change into? A were-dragon? Werewolf?”
“As I said, you can choose, but after the first change, that is it. That will be the creature you become at the times of your choosing. Thank before your first change.” Madame Illusia warns.
“Thank you, again.” Steven replies. He stands up, taking a dipper and some clothes out of the “Combat” diaper bag. “I think I will be heading out.”
“You can change her in my changing room before heading back out to the carnival. The stage me is taking care of Tyler’s friends right now. They are almost as rude as she was.” Madame Illusia tells Steven as he places baby Tyler in the stroller.
“Kids these days,” Steven replies while shaking his head. “What happened to respect?”
“It needs to be taught and learned.” Madame Illusia answers, “But I think you will do just fine.”