Rhysel, with Talyn in tow, headed to the shren house early on Saanen morning.

The shren house was an extensive one-story building. It was surrounded by a fence; the gate out front bore an arch over it which read "Lator Shren House". A sign on the fence beside the gate added, in bold red letters, "WARNING: Grounds house contagious shrens. Dragons pass this point at their own risk. Lator Shren House is not responsible for any infections which occur as a result of properly confined shrens."

Rhysel just stared at the sign for a moment sadly, then entered the gates. She led Talyn up to the building, the boy following curiously.

The door was accompanied by a bell, which Rhysel rang.

A careworn but young-looking woman - who'd appear human were it not for her sky-blue hair - opened the door. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"I hope so. I'm looking for information," Rhysel said.

"You can come in," the woman added as an afterthought, opening the door a bit wider to reveal a spotless, lifeless corridor with a lot of identical doors along it.

"Thank you," Rhysel said as she entered. Talyn followed close behind, giving the woman a thoughtful glance.

"My friend and I are off-worlders," Rhysel said, by way of explanation. "I'd like to learn as much as I can about shrens and the disease itself."

"This isn't a freak show," the woman said sternly.

"No, I didn't think it was," Rhysel said. "I'm trying to determine if the magics from my world could possibly create a cure - but I don't know hardly anything about the condition, and I can't do the magical research without knowing as much as I can about it."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "It's not very complicated. Shrens can't fly in dragon form. No one knows why."

"Well, I don't have the benefit of having grown up on your world. How do dragons fly normally? Is it solely via wing-power, or is it magical as well?"

"I don't know."

Rhysel looked confused. "Why not?"

"Why would I?" the blue-haired woman asked, sounding annoyed.

Rhysel indicated the woman's hair. "Being a member of the species, I would have thought you'd know something about it."

"I'm a shren too," she snapped. "You couldn't get a real dragon to run this place for a million aaberik a minute."

Rhysel held up her hands placatingly. "Well, yes, I assumed so. I would still have thought you'd know something about it. Apologies if my ignorance causes offense."

"Not having had the benefit of being raised by anyone who knew it," the woman said acidly, "I am not privy to dragon lore as such."

Rhysel nodded. "Can you tell me how the disease is transmitted?"

"It's not, if you're careful."

"So I've heard - but in an instance where it would happen, would it be caused by physical contact, or proximity, or what?"

"Proximity and the shren and the dragon both being in dragon form," she ground out. "That's what the fence is for. Keeps any really stupid dragons from getting close enough by accident to the little ones." The bell rang. "Hang on," she said.

"All right."

The blue-haired woman returned to the entrance and opened the door. "Can I help you?" she asked.

A petite woman with flowing, bright gold hair stepped in. "I got your letter," she said tentatively. "About Kytheen... I've come to get her."

Rhysel watched silently. Talyn took the opportunity to probe the newcomer's mind, surreptitiously.

The blue-haired shren lit up. "Oh, she'll be so happy! Just wait here and I'll get her for you. Delightful girl." She ducked into one of the indistinguishable doors and reemerged carrying a human-looking toddler - with identical golden hair - who was chewing on her thumb. "Your mama's here, Kytheen," the blue-haired shren cooed to the child. "You can go home and meet your brothers and sisters and your daddy. Won't that be fun? Yes it will."

"Mama?" asked Kytheen.

Her mother smiled nervously and reached out to take the little girl. "Hi, Kytheen," she said, stroking the toddler's hair. "I - thank you - I know it's been a long time."

"Kytheen's a quick study," said the blue-haired shren, beaming. "I think eighteen years old must be some kind of record to learn to shift. She can turn into a little aurum-dove, yes she can. Show your mommy your aurum-dove form, Kytheen."

Kytheen turned into an aurum-dove, perched on her mother's hand, and back into her human shape. "I can fly now, Mama," she said. "I can go home now."

"Yes, you can," said her mother, dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve. "Thank you, Jensal."

"That's what I'm here for," said the blue-haired shren - Jensal, presumably. "Thank you for coming to get her."

The woman nodded, and took Kytheen out of the building. The door swung shut behind her.

"Does that happen often?" Rhysel asked curiously.

"Does what happen often?" Jensal asked, reverting to her less-than-amiable self.

"Parents coming to get their children. Eret - he's the one who told me about this place - said that didn't happen for him."

"Eret? Oh, I remember him... About two-thirds of the shrens get picked up when they learn to shift."

"And the rest live here more or less indefinitely?"

"Most of them move out eventually," Jensal said. "When they're grown. I didn't."

Rhysel nodded."Living as humans?"

"Generally."

Rhysel nodded. "If I were to be near a shren in dragon form, then later on be near a - well, I hate to use the word 'normal', because that doesn't sound nice, but a normal dragon, I wouldn't infect that one, would I?"

Jensal shook her head. "It's not transmitted by microbes or anything, that we know."

"Could we see some of the little ones?" Rhysel asked.

"You're not going to like it," warned Jensal.

"I don't expect so, from what I've been told, but I need to see at least a few if I'm going to be able to research the condition. If you've got a black or red opal, or a jade, I'd especially like to see them - see if I can identify any physical differences."

"Got one black opal at the moment," she said. "If we're going into the little ones' room let me get their morning doses of soothweed elixir." She ducked into another room and emerged with a tray of little dishes and led Rhysel and Talyn to a door at the very end of the corridor.

The room revealed was very loud. There were about three dozen many-colored dragonets scattered about the spacious room. Some of them seemed to be fitfully sleeping, and a few of them were making halfhearted attempts to play with one another, and a couple were adventurously climbing on the various articles of furniture, but most of them didn't seem to be actively engaged in anything other than crying piteously. Rhysel spotted one copper-colored infant, just a little larger than Eret and Theedy's babies, ferociously gnawing on one of its own wings.

Rhysel looked on with curiosity and pity mingled in her face. "What's that one doing?" she asked Jensal, pointing to the copper.

"Participating," said Jensal bitterly. "I used to do the same thing. It doesn't make it any better, but it makes it different."

Talyn grimaced, hunching over as he was overwhelmed by the pain in the room - emanating from everywhere.

Some of the larger babies appeared to view Jensal's arrival with their medicine as sufficient reason to get up and make their way over to her. She gave each one a dish of the clear liquid. They drank it up eagerly, sighing with visible relief and perking up noticeably after finishing their draughts.

"Does that take the pain away, or just lessen it?" Rhysel asked.

Jensal carried the tray around to the other babies. Each one gratefully drank it up. "It's like running cold water over a burn," she said. "It doesn't make the burn one bit better, and you know it, but it feels much better for a little while."

"Where's the black opal?" Rhysel asked.

Jensal started to answer, only to be cut off as Talyn confronted her angrily. "Why hasn't anyone turned off their ability to feel pain?" he demanded.

"What are you talking about?" asked Jensal angrily. "Black opal's over there under the sofa. Yirran's his name," she added to Rhysel.

A grass-green dragon walked up to Talyn. "Don't be mad at Jensal," it counseled chirpily. "She's nice."

Talyn's reply was clearly frustrated, and he ignores the green child. "You get a mind-mage and he reaches into their minds, and turns off their ability to feel pain. The pain's still there, but they don't feel it - why haven't you had anyone do that?" Rhysel just stared at Talyn for a moment, startled at his attitude.

"I don't have the foggiest idea what you're talking about," snapped Jensal.

"Hey! Pay attention to me!" said the green dragonet, headbutting Talyn's leg.

"Apologies, Jensal, Talyn's even less experienced with your world than I am. I don't think he realizes that magic is different here." She grabbed the boy by his shoulders, looking at his face. "Can you do that, Talyn? I can't."

He nodded emphatically. "Master Casten doesn't like me to do it, because it can cause problems, but it's not hard." He wriggled out of Rhysel's grasp and laid a hand on the green dragonet, entering her mind and shutting down the part of the brain that processed pain. It took him several seconds to locate the area, due to the dragon's alien nature.

The dragon looked briefly startled, then grinned and opens her mouth. No sound came out, and she frowned and tries again. There was still no result.

"You dolt!" yelled the shren woman. "What did you do? Artha," Jensal said, dropping to one knee, "can you talk?" The dragon shook her head.

"Talyn, undo what you did." Rhysel demanded. "Quickly."

Talyn started to flare up at Jensal, but backed down at the tone in Rhysel's voice, touching the dragonet again and reversing the magic.

"You're not nice," said Artha decidedly in Talyn's direction. She stalked off towards some of the others, swishing her tail.

Rhysel sighed. "Jensal, would you rather I have Talyn wait outside?" He glared at Rhysel's suggestion but remained silent.

"As long as he's not going to be mucking about with any of the little ones any more he can stay," Jensal said warily.

"He made Artha not talk," said a little silver dragon. "I think that's a good idea."

"But they're in pain!" Talyn said. "It's not right!"

Rhysel put a restraining hand on the younger halfblood. "Talyn, hush, and leave them be, or you can wait outside. Your choice." He nodded sullenly, but fell silent.

"We're shrens and we can't fly yet," said the silver dragon who thought it was a good idea to shut Artha up. "That's how it is."

Rhysel sighed. "I hope it can be different, little one - someday." She looked to Jensal again. "May I see Yirran now?"

"I told you where he is," Jensal said. "It's his business if he wants to be seen or not. What with hiding under the sofa I'd guess not, but you're welcome to try to convince him otherwise."

Rhysel nodded and approached the black opal baby carefully, kneeling down as she reached the sofa and looking underneath to eye the dragonet. "Hello, Yirran," she said.

"Go 'way," he said.

"Why?"

"'Cause I said so."

"I'd like to look at you, if I could. Would you let me? I'll go away after that." Her voice was kind and soft as she spoke to the little dragon.

"No. I'm invisible," he said.

"Why are you invisible?"

"'Cause I cast an invisibility spell. Go away."

"Would you turn it off for a moment?" she asked, calmly.

"I'm not really invisible, silly person," he said irritably. "Go away."

"That would be why I can see you under there, then," she said agreeably. "I just can't get a good enough look." She sighed, standing up again, and walked back towards Jensal. "How many children do you have to care for?"

"There's these thirty-three," Jensal said, "and about a hundred fifty who can shift but haven't been picked up. And I have other adults helping, they're just not here right now."

"How many help out?" Rhysel asked curiously.

"Right now, twenty besides me," Jensal said.

"Do the parents help support the place?" Rhysel asked.

"Yes, we charge the ones who can afford it. And we get some charity funding from the government, some from the dragon council, and we set the children to doing translations and the like for pocket money."

Rhysel nodded. "Is it hard to make ends meet?"

"No."

She nodded again, falling silent for a moment before asking, "If I wanted to volunteer to help out, how would I go about doing that? And what would be required?"

Jensal raised an eyebrow. "We don't take on volunteers. All of us who look after the children are shrens ourselves."

"Ah. All right."

"I'm gonna stay too and help," said a medium-sized dragonling with scales like frosted white glass. "Just like Jensal."

"Oh no you don't," said Jensal, wagging a finger. "Your mommy and daddy have already promised to get you when you can fly. You don't want to stay here."

"Do so," protested the little crystal dragon. Jensal sighed.

Talyn had moved towards the wall during this conversation, leaning there with his arms wrapped around himself. Rhysel looked to Jensal. "Well, if I can help in any way, I'd like to. If I can't - I expect I'll be back sooner or later once I've had a chance to do some research."

"I can't really think of anything," said Jensal. "You can visit, I suppose."

Rhysel nodded, speaking softly as she replied. "If anything comes to mind, let me know. I should probably get Talyn out of here - he doesn't look like he's doing so well. I expect he's having difficulty blocking out the pain the young ones are experiencing."

Jensal shrugged. "It won't get really bad until just before the next dose of medicine."

"Ah. Even still. Talyn's a bit - unique. I'm sorry if he caused trouble."

"Artha will have an interesting story to tell," said Jensal. "I doubt he did her any lasting harm."

"And based on the reactions, I expect she'll enjoy telling it. I had one more question, if you know the answer - what's happened when a light's tried healing a shren?"

"Nothing. Like it's not even a disease."

Rhysel nodded thoughtfully, speaking to herself. "Like when the baby was dying," she said quietly, not aware she's spoken aloud.

"Maybe a little," said Jensal. "Shrens generally do not die as babies - more's the pity, some say, though I don't think I agree."

"Life is always preferable, if you ask me." Rhysel agreed. "Dragons are essentially magical in nature, yes?"

"I suppose you could say that."

"Interesting." She spoke half to herself, her mind spinning away at the puzzle. "Well, I've probably taken enough of your time. I'm glad to have met you, though. And thank you for the information - and for letting me see the little ones."

"You're welcome," said Jensal.

She smiled at Jensal, then gestured for Talyn to join her, waiting for the other woman to show them out.

Jensal didn't appear to realize that Rhysel expected to be led anywhere.

"Could you show me the way back out?" Rhysel asked after a moment.

"It's the only door on that side of the corridor," said Jensal, surprised. "It's right where you left it."

"Thanks. Sorry, I'm still adjusting to the customs here. I guess that's different."

"Oh. Well, goodbye."

"Goodbye," Rhysel said, walking out with Talyn, who relaxed noticably once they'd left the room with the babies.

---

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