Things were diferent than I had imagined, each new day here in my new form revealing something new that I had never thought of, never even considered.
My first few weeks were hard, learning how a dragon thinks and feels, waking up to a world of new feelings, seeing the world with a dragon's eyes. I was tutored by the other princesses, my aunts, who, since they had all had the same transformation decades ago, knew a lot about what to expect. They had peeled me out of the armor that had been my skin and shown me by example.
They had taught me how to fly, how to shift, how to bite and spit fire. They had taught me how to form a wind tunnel that didn't use my own body to do it, how to manipulate particles in the air so that my breath came out in fire. Most of all, they had taught me self-discipline and patience.
Today we had spent the day at the beach, and it was the first time I had really felt the sun's warmth on my scales. It gave me a comfortable feeling, and at the same time, the new sensations caused a growing fire in my belly.
I have decided to give you a name today.
I looked up from the orange flames I was creating with my breath. But I don't know what it is.
I can't sense my own dragon name.
Grandma Dronning smiled patiently at me. She was the oldest of the seven aunts, and held the rank of Grand Elder. She was slender and fit for a dragon, with glossy green scales and a tail almost too long for her body.
She wore riding clothes, ready for any and all occasions. A long sword, my earliest birthday present, was strapped to her back. There is always a way to find it, if you're patient and attentive.
I smiled and nodded. Of course, I thought to myself. It was obvious if you thought about it. I can always break my mirror. That's how I found my host name.
Of course. Grandma Dronning nodded, then adopted a noble pose, her body elegantly arched on the sand. But I have another method in mind for you. You must pay close attention to your name when you find it. It will appear without any warning. And it will be the name of your dragon, not your human identity. So you must listen closely.
I frowned a little at her words. It was easy to forget that I was only human on the days that we spent entirely as humans. We had been spending many days as humans these early days.
Grandma Dronning noticed my frowned, and gently explained. "Our youngest aunt was in your position just a few days ago. She has betrayed a bit of the impatience we thought you had gained, but it's one of the first things a dragon has to learn, to curb its impatience. You must never be hasty."
I blinked, trying to come to terms with that. I knew that my dragon-mind was, by nature, more hasty than my human mind was. Because in my host body, hasty decisions were often dangerous decisions.
Grandma Dronning, seeing that I was pondering this, continued. Patience may not come naturally to you, Elsa, but we need you to learn it.
You are our last hope. If you cannot learn patience, then we are at the very edge of a terrifying fall. She gave me a long, penetrating stare, and I knew from my years of reporting that that look said she was issuing an oath, that she would not hesitate to kill me if I failed.
"What are we at the edge of?"
"We are at the edge of an already not-so-long-term drought. It will last for many years. Even after the rebirth of the monstrous ice dragon, it has taken many years for it to get going. We're not in any particular danger right now. But it may be too late ten years from now, right in the heart of your pregnancy. Your unborn child needs this water, needs the summer rain that is fast disappearing."
Of course, I nodded. I had learned in my five months as a dragon that water was very important. It was a source of nutrients and it was essential to our lives. I realized that I was going to have to make new conditioning to survive here, because I had never learned how to live without water during my human life. Extensive swimming, I had to decide, was out of the question for a time being.
Grandma Dronning looked at me and smiled, then said: Your mother was born this way. And her mother and her mother and her mother before her. And we're all proud of her. In particular, I'm proud of you, Elsa. I'm proud that you will continue this line, that you are our last chance for survival.
I smiled. It had been a long time coming, this moment. I had prepared for it for a very long time. I had been born for this. If other people had become dragons, it would have been one thing. But the princesses had had this power since before records could be found, going back to the time of the Vikings. My parents were but the latest in line.
"Thank you." I felt a flood of joy wash over me.
"Could you start walking again?" Grandma Dronning asked me, gently.
"I can't."
"Elsa, look at me."
I looked at her, and she showed me her good eye. It was like a bright star that I couldn't look away from. I wasn't superstitious, but instinct told me that she was still very much a woman, despite the enormous size of her head.
She smiled. Your mother was born this way, and her mother before her. It's not difficult to understand. You're the Danish queen, and you're the youngest. You're our last hope. It's your duty to ensure the survival of the queen's line. Keep your dragon nature at bay, be polite, be curious. That is all you need to do. And I'm going to make sure that you succeed."
I nodded. That was one thing they had drilled into our heads since youth. "I'm going to allow you a day to mourn him, but remember that a life of sorrow is no way to live. You must not wear black even, let alone mourn your entire pregnancy. If all you can do is wear black for a day, then you have not honored his sacrifice.
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