"Okay," Derek said, distracted and a little mystified. The dragon started to break its way out of its egg more completely, finally freeing itself. It stood on shaky little legs and let out the tiniest and most adorable roar. Derek felt his heart melt and he reached out a hand to it, hesitating before touching the leathery skin of its flank. It leaned into the petting, almost like a cat, and curled its tail around him.
Derek was in love.
Another of the eggs started to twitch. "Rose, another one is hatching! Quick, come see, I'll deal with the blood." He picked the dragon up and it crawled up the sleeve of his robe as he hurried over to the cauldron to switch places with her.