The inhabitants of the Indestructible City, according to Undauntable, thought they lived in the most superior, most advanced, most impressive location in the entire world.

Wren really wished she could show them this dragon city and see the looks on their faces.

She resettled on her branch and shaded her eyes from the sun. She had been relieved to find at least a few trees here, this close to the river and the coast, although she wished there were more of them. These would do all right for hiding in, but if she and Sky needed to escape in a hurry, there was a whole lot of wide-open desert they’d have to cross in pretty much every direction.

Except west, because directly west of her tree was the gigantic dragon city. Dragons were already bustling through the streets, although the sun was barely up. There were lots of buildings, more than one market square, bridges over the river, dragons washing things in the water, fruit trees in pots in the courtyards. Some of the walls were painted with scale patterns, crimson red and pale butter yellow overlapping. Others bore images of dragons in regal, commanding poses and an interesting variety of colors.

In their travels, Wren and Sky had seen palaces surrounded by dragon communities — the swamp palace, from a distance, and the mountain palace, from an even farther distance. They’d seen clusters of oddly shaped mud structures that they thought were swamp dragon villages, too. But they’d never seen anything quite the size of this place.

The strangest part was that the inhabitants were not all sand dragons, as Wren had expected. She had sort of been counting on using that an excuse — “Oh, sorry, Sky dear; only sand dragons can safely go in there.” But red and orange scales clearly flashed between the pale yellow ones, and there was a fair number of brown dragons as well. Whatever had brought the three types of dragons together in one city, they seemed to be coexisting peacefully.

That still doesn’t mean it’s safe for Sky, though. Something about this place reminded Wren very much of the Indestructible City, and that made her nervous.

“What do you think?” Sky called from the ground. She shushed him and clambered down. He was sitting among the roots, beaming at a snail who was noodling peacefully along his tail.

“It’s … very busy,” Wren said. How could her sweet, easily distracted dragon not get trampled in a fast-paced place like that?

“Isn’t it exciting?” he said, his eyes shining. “Maybe they have dragon books! I don’t know how to read Dragon. But maybe we could figure it out together!”

See, here was someone who really did know her. That idea was the first suggestion that actually made Wren curious about the dragon city.

“I’m just worried, Sky,” Wren said, resting her hands on his talons. “We don’t know what those dragons are like. You’re a mountain dragon, but you still look really different from all of them.” His beautiful, perfect pale orange scales were unlike any other dragon’s in the world, as far as she knew. “And you don’t have fire to protect yourself.” You don’t have anything to protect yourself, she thought. Except me, and I can’t go with you.

“Aren’t you different from all the other humans?” Sky asked.

“Yes,” Wren said, “maybe not so obviously — but that’s why I don’t go all the way into the Indestructible City. I don’t trust them. I’m really, really careful.”

“I can be really, really careful!” Sky said brightly. “I promise!”

“You won’t forget and speak Human?” Wren said. “Promise you’ll fly out of there right away if anyone looks at you weird?”

He touched his snout to her forehead gently. “I’ll just walk around and look at things,” he said. “I won’t talk to anybody. Maybe they have wonderful desert animals for sale!”

Wren laughed. “Please don’t come back with a pet camel,” she said. “And don’t make friends with any scorpions! Also snakes; snakes are bad, try to remember that.”

“Camels bad, Wren wants a pet cobra,” Sky recited, then jumped back with a laugh as she swatted him.

“Don’t talk to anyone if you don’t have to,” she said. “But if they talk to you, act normal. I don’t know what that means for a dragon, but probably avoid the topic of snails. Definitely don’t let anyone know you don’t eat meat. I’m pretty sure that’s weird.”

“Really?” Sky said. “But hasn’t everyone SEEN bunnies?”

“Exactly, don’t say things like that,” Wren suggested. “Don’t volunteer any information, but if they ask, you can say you come from that mountain dragon outpost we saw way up north. Maybe your mom is a soldier there or something. Don’t say you’re from the mountain palace, in case they’re from there, too, or they might ask too many questions.”

“Wren, I’m sure no one will even talk to me,” Sky said. He squared his shoulders and made a fierce expression. “Because my face strikes terror in the hearts of dragons everywhere!”

Wren giggled. “Not exactly,” she said. “You have the most lovely face.”

“No, you have the most lovely face,” he said. “You’re the cutest, best pet any dragon could ever have.”

“QUIT THAT,” Wren said, whacking him again. This was a recent recurring joke that Sky found completely hilarious. “You know perfectly well you’re my pet.”

He lowered one of his front feet gently to touch her head. “Hmmm,” he said. “Not by the power of cuteness. You’re the cutest one here, ergo, you are my pet.”

“Well, then I will probably run off and leave you for another owner if you’re not back by midday,” Wren said. “So keep that in mind.”

“I will!” he said, nudging her head with his snout again. He gently slid one claw under the snail and moved it to the safety of a nearby bush. “Thank you! Be good, Wren! Hide well! I’ll be back soon!”

Wren’s heart pounded as he skipped away down the hill toward the city. Did other dragons skip, or was Sky the only one? What if he had all sorts of other obviously human habits that would make the normal dragons suspicious of him?

She scrambled back up the tree and found the highest spot with a view of the city. From there, she could see Sky sauntering happily past a dragon farmstead — was that tangerine dragon glaring at him over a field of vegetables? — and then over the river to one of the smaller market squares.

Sky wandered along between the stalls, gazing at the piles of carpets, the pottery, the different weirdly shaped cactus plants. She should have warned him to act less impressed. He must be staring at everything with his wide-eyed “who knew something like this could exist!” face. He looked very small next to all the full-grown dragons around him.

Wren watched him until he turned a corner and disappeared from view, and then she stared at the spot where he’d been until the sun was well over the mountains.

He’ll be fine.

He’s a dragon in a dragon city.

It’s not like anyone’s going to eat him.

He’s probably having a lovely time.

She wondered whether Sky felt this way each time she went to the Indestructible City. She hoped not; this was terrible.

She made herself climb down to eat something, but before long she was back in her perch. If only she had a new book to read, at least. Stupid Undauntable, ruining everything. This absolutely horrible panicked feeling she was having, like spiders running under her skin; this was his fault. If she only had a book she’d be perfectly relaxed right now.

It made her feel a little better to have someone to blame.

Sky will be back soon, and he’ll tell me all his adventures, and then I’ll feel silly.

The sun rose higher and higher. And then it began to slide quietly away to the west.

Midday had come and gone. Sky wasn’t back.

He got distracted by something. Some amazing animal or cool dragon invention we’ve never seen before.

Or he forgot to look at the sun. He’ll come running out soon and apologize for worrying me.

The sun slipped farther and farther away. The sky turned orange and pink and gold, then slowly purple, and then the sun was gone. In the city, dragons lit torches and went on their merry way, packing up their wares or chatting on balconies, strolling along the river or getting their little dragons off to bed. An ordinary dragon day, coming to an end.

It was dark now. Sky could be fluffy-headed, but he would notice the difference between midday and full night.

He would be back by now, unless he couldn’t be.

Something has happened to him.

Wren wiped the tears from her eyes and rubbed her face as hard as she could.

He doesn’t have fire. He only has me.

All right, fine, dragon city. I’m coming for my friend.