Dragon's Egg Blue

Chapter 1

A/N: Slightly AU to bring together all of the characters I wanted in the same time and place. The story opens near the end of Men at Arms -- after Sam and Sybil's wedding, but before the meeting between Carrot and the Patrician. I invented a wedding trip for Sam and Sybil to send them away for a few days while the mystery unfolds. Spoilers for Men at Arms, Wyrd Sisters, and Equal Rites.

There's a saying about dragons. It goes: Here there be dragons. Because really, what more do you need to know about dragons? They're here, so you should be elsewhere. 'Nuff said.

The saying appears on ancient maps of the Disc, to warn of dangers in the mountains. And it -- briefly -- crossed the minds of travelers who disregarded the warning only to learn that cartographers take their craft seriously and don't joke around about matters like massive flying creatures who make a game of knocking climbers down the mountainside.

Long after snow dragons disappeared from the Disc, the saying remained popular as a general warning.

It crossed the mind of Captain Vimes as he expanded the Watch to include trolls and dwarfs and werewolves.

It crossed the mind of Angua, lance-constable of the Watch and recent romantic partner of Carrot, after she Changed in front of him without first warning him that she was a werewolf.

It crossed the mind of the Patrician, as he monitored the career of the aforementioned Carrot. Rumors about the corporal abounded, as rumors so excel at doing. Maintaining a balance of power was challenging enough without having apparent long-lost heirs to the throne moving up the ranks of the City Watch.

It especially crossed the minds of volunteers at the Sunshine Sanctuary for Swamp Dragons, where they learned to avoid acid drool.

It should have crossed the minds of nature buffs in the city of Ankh-Morpork, when deep blue flowers suddenly bloomed where they absolutely did not belong. Experts marveled at a specimen that was normally seen only in the mountains while forgetting what the flower meant.

Flower enthusiasts will tell you that flowers have special meanings. Some mean I love you. Some mean I'm fabulously wealthy and can maintain a greenhouse for plants that should only bloom on a tropical island. Some mean I'm sorry, I had no idea she was your sister. But this flower sends another message, one which most people long ago ceased to take seriously. It means Here there be dragons.

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In taverns throughout Ankh-Morpork, dwarfs quaffed their ale and sang their favorite song: Gold.

But the Gold Mine tavern was different. Nature enthusiasts had gathered outside -- having learned through mysterious means that only fellow flower fanatics could understand -- that a particularly rare specimen was in bloom at the entrance. They expressed their delight while sketching the elusive flower.

A crowd gathered around to watch them, because possibly the only sight rarer than the deep blue flower was urban floral enthusiasts in the wild, as it were. In an environment where the prevailing plant life was a variety of moss which thrived on garbage heaps, the enthusiasts typically relied on drawings to feed their passion for flowers.* Therefore they were pale and squinty and turning fascinating shades of red under a spectacular sunset.

Already C.M.O.T Dibbler was setting up a stall to sell meat pies and a concoction he claimed could soothe sunburn. A few of the more watchful customers noted that the sunburn cure came from the same container as one of his condiments.**

Two dwarfs pushed their way through the crowd and entered the bar.

"Odd," said one of the dwarfs as he led the way toward an empty table. "Don't see many humans in this part of town. Or flowers."