“Master Lan approached the dragon timidly. He held the lamp in one hand and a bamboo stick in the other, ready to defend himself. His work silk slipper squelched in the dragon droppings. The beast roared again, a sound that made the girl want to curl up in a ball and weep.”
“The slave girl didn’t have a name; she didn’t know how old she was. She had lived at Huangling Palace since her parents had sold her to Lan when she was a small child.”
“The girl took hold of one of its taloned feet. It was the first time she had touched a dragon’s scaly hide. It was rough and dry, like leather that had been left out in the weather for too long. ”