i'm not doing this alone

you gotta get bruised before you get mad
you gotta fall down before you fight back

Having a companion was not exactly what Soh had anticipated.

The youngest companion she'd come across thus far was Pip - Koa's dragon - and she was definitely no longer an infant. Although, Soh didn't know - maybe in dragon-years, she was.

Tarak, on the other hand, was one hundred percent infant, and he liked to make it known. He squalled at every hour of the night, begging for food; he shrieked if Soh left him along even for a moment; he hadn't quite gotten the hang of emptying his bowels outside. You know the drill - it was like having a new puppy, only with claws. And those claws, unfortunately, liked to perch directly on Soh's shoulder. And since, as a youngling, he had limited control of his balance, he scratched Soh's shoulder. A lot.

And so it was that a yawning Sohalia found herself in Pacifist Plaza, carrying an irate griffin in her arms in search of a leatherworker who could help her create a pauldron of sorts, so that her young griffin could sit on her shoulder in peace.

was feeling so weak but baby i'm strong
little did i know i'm a champion

Sohalia