“So, how is your brother doing,” Leoric asked the small crustacean.

She sidestepped across the counter, picking up a knife as she did so, moving towards a pile of some sort of root.

“Oh, he’s doing…. He’s doing,” She said as her mandibles moved in an unsettling asycnchronous pattern. Her eyestalks bent in all directions, never seeming to focus on any one thing at a time. Despite her obvious physical handicap…of being a literal crab… she seemed quite adept at her chores.

“HAPPY GRASS,” Blast said as she stamped and scrambled atop Baldir’s helmet. He winced as she moved around. Claire, the crab’s, eyestalks twitched in the direction of Blast with curious introspection. Blast narrowed her eyes at it, wondering if she might be some sort of exotic food.

“We’ll get to that, Blast. Pleasantries are in order, first, though, Leoric said, introducing his party to the crustacean just as Scritch came toddling over, gulping the remnants of the last exotic fish down. Blast looked to her with a squint. Scritch looked away from her gaze guiltily.

Scritch blinked up at the crustacean who seemed genuinely interested in the reptilian duo.

“A baby dragon and a kobold child?” She asked as she climbed down a rope that hung down off the counter. Little touches like that seemed to litter the shop, for Claire’s benefit no doubt.

“Yes, and that’s why I’ve brought you this, to see if we can trade,” Leoric said as he fished in his pack and brought out a rolled up cloth with the remnants of Blast’s first shed in it.

“Ooh, dragon skin. Young, tender,” Claire said as she climbed back up the rope and walked over to investigate. One of her smaller pincers grabbed and tore off a piece of the skin, feeding it into her mouth with a slow and deliberate chew. Baldir seemed a bit put off, but everyone else seemed fine with it. He made a note to say something of it later.

“Oh yes, quite potent,” she added, as she stepped away from the skin to a ledger. Her pincers flipped a page and she seemed to be slow and methodical in picking up a pen as her other claw reached out to a nearby abacus.

“What are we looking at?” Leoric asked, curiously staring at her flipping numbers over.

“More gold than I have on hand, but I can make an offer, could do better for supplies if you need them,” She said slowly, penciling things in.

“HAPPY GRASS,” Blast growled as she turned circles on the helmet.

“We can take coin, dragonweed, and anything that might aid our adventure,” Leoric said proudly.

“Okay, so I can do 30 gold right now for the skin, a half bale of dragonweed. It’s out of season so you understand I have to be stingy with it, some healing potions and…. I do have some hair growth potions,” She said slowly as her eye stalks tilted to Leoric who shrugged.

Baldir looked remotely interested.

“No on that one,” Leoric said, letting Baldir wilt a little.

“Okay, so-“ She started, but was interrupted by Baldir.

“Any booze?” He asked.

She sucked one of her eyestalks in as one might blink. It was unsettling as she repeated it in thought.

“I have a cask of some whiskey that someone traded me. My father doesn’t touch the stuff until he’s out of it and too dizzy to get the cork out, so I’d happily add that to the stack, but I’m still twenty gold short of making you whole on this, even with the whiskey,” She said with a soft humm.

As Leoric and the crab negotiated the fee for the skin, Blast crawled down Baldir’s back and looked up at Scritch angrily

“Fish?” Blast said angrily.

Scritch looked nervous and sank her head down a bit in shame as she nodded.

“Were you that hungry?” Blast asked, narrowing her little eyes. Scritch nodded again, her wide face scrunching at the neck as her skin folded a little.

Blast thought about it and stamped one of her feet before beckoning Scritch lean lower. Blast sniffed at Scritch for a moment before slapping her with her tail right across the nose.

“Bad kobold. Next time I will not be as forgiving,” Blast said before huffing a little puff of smoke. Scritch’s eyes dilated, going from scared slits to wide things and she stayed silent until Blast climbed back up Baldir’s back to peek over his shoulder.

In the world of dragons, for such a transgression, eating without offering first bite to their dragon was a feat worthy of death or grievous injury. Blast’s affection was kin to a loving display of concern and Scritch was touched.

Her attention was soon diverted as Claire scuttled across the counter to make good on Leoric’s deal.

“What kind of human is that?” Scritch asked, pointing to the crab.

“A crunchy one,” Blast said with a little smack of her lips.

“Oh, I’m not a human. I’m a crab, just a normal crab, well mostly,” She said with a soft chuckle.

“A crap?” Scritch asked, blinking one eye, then the other.

“Crab,” She said politely, her eyestalks doing much the same back at Scritch.

A clatter was heard in the background as someone stumbled in from the bottom of the basement stairs. They turned their head to see a bedraggled looking middle-aged man ascend the steps.

He had fine lines and tired eyes with deep set dark circles and puffy bags under his eyes. He wore a pair of heavily patched woolen socks and a white coat unbuttoned at the front with absolutely nothing beneath it save for a few smears of blue paint. Leoric and Baldir looked away politely. Leoric seemed unphased by it. Madness swam in his eyes as he surveyed the scenes around him.

“Hello father,” Claire said as she scrambled across the counter with a leather pouch to set before Leoric.

Scritch squinted up at the man. She’d never seen a naked man before, and the sight was unsettling to say the least.

“You’re naked,” Scritch said as she looked up at him.

“Yes, yes I am,” he said as he talked down to Scritch. Her eyes lit up with delight. She didn’t know humans could speak draconic! Their mouths were the wrong shape.

Blast turned her head with pinprick slits to stare at the doctor as he staggared drunkenly to a shelf and clawed at a few different vials.

“Claire, are we out of death sand?” He asked, pushing around vials as he steps carried him to the other side of the rack.

“Third shelf down, father,” She said before going back to her work. He grabbed a vial with a celebratory cheer, staggared to the counter and dumped the contents onto the counter with a haphazard dash. He used his hands to bunch it up into a small pile and ran his nose across it with a deep and satisfying snort. He choked a few wracking coughs before making it to the top of the basement stairs.

“What’s on the agenda today?” Claire asked him.

“Not now, dear, pappa’s going to go punch a death god in the face!” He said before his eyes rolled back in his head and he tumbled his way down the stairs in a tumble of limbs.

“Is he going to be alright?” Baldir asked as his lips bunched up in puckered shock to match his wide eyes.

“Also, how is he your real father…or are you cursed or something?”

Claire looked up to him.

“It’s Tuesday, so most likely,” Claire said before considering his second question.

“He’s my real father, and no I’m nor cursed,” Claire said simply before moving a hefty parcel of paper-wrapped material the size of a bread loaf before Leoric.

“Claire was created by the doctor,” Leoric said, waving his hand dismissively.

“That was a doctor?” Baldir blanched.

“Still is,” Leoric shrugged.

“HOW DID HE SPEAK PROPERLY!?” Blast growled.

“Best you not question it,” Leoric said before reaching over the counter to grab one of the many gold coins. He handed it down to her. Blast scampered up to Leoric, sniffed at the coin and then bit down on it with a sharp tug. She chirred with pride, then.