Book One: Onnu and Pannu

Containment

Since sand and clay could make containers and dishes on Earth-that-was, they decided to gather some to experiment with.
   "Except you need a container to carry it," the grey astronomer said.
   The ogre with the spear showed him the strange nutshell baskets they'd found. They felt like wood and stone combined, but they'd grown somehow. They thought the vines might've been the roots that fed them.
   "Wait, but how did you cut through the roots? If they're strong enough to keep 'em from gettin' sucked up, they had to be super thick, yeah?" one of the centaurs asked.
   "They're designed to stretch and hold, not to resist piercing. Think of those finger traps. You cut enough of the cross-bracing, and they snap right off."
   "Ohhhhh! Too bad we don't have some of that stretchy--oh. You brought some with you. Well fine, maybe some of us can go get more of those vines and baskets, and some can take what we've got to the waterline? Maybe we'll find sand or clay." The grey one was excited now, as were the others who'd taken to crafting and other artistic pursuits. Bone, hide, and sinew would only go so far.
   At least they'd solved the problem of their supplies being sucked out of the Bowl. In some of the niches, they'd discovered pockets to the side of the hollow chambers. The niches would fit their sleeping bodies, and the pockets were far enough inside not to be disturbed by the breeze.
   The fact that the niches were only large enough for their prone bodies helped, because there was less room for bouncing around. None of them were tall enough to stand in, so they weren't houses in the rock. More like bunks with storage caches. When you didn't wear clothing, and had no way to make video games or trinkets, there really wasn't much need for extensive housing. The spires kept away sunburn, and the grass was springy enough to make a good bed for anyone. It was also tough enough to be used as an edible plate, so you didn't have to store or wash dishes.
   Food, on the other hand, was getting kind of boring for people. No one had yet complained, where the dragons could hear, that they were naked. But food? That was a priority for the kin. If they could grow something besides grass, maybe preserve it, find what sweeteners existed? Then, oh then, life would be mighty fine.
   The dragoness remembered the Bible story where people got sick of quail, and literal manna from heaven, so she was willing to help them, however they thought she could.
   "Oh, we should be able to manage with just a few gryphons. We don't have enough baskets to need a dragon ride." That was from one of the ogres. She wasn't sure which one, yet. It would take time to memorize their faces, so she wasn't even sure whether this was a traveler or homesteader.
   She looked to the gryphons who'd drawn closer. "Can you carry kin to the water's edge?"
   "Maybe betterrr than you," the boastful leopard/owl gryph said. "No offenssse, but we're ssmall enough that we cannn take flight within the bowlll."
   She nodded. "I know. My concern was stamina beyond that. You've been building strength until now. I ask if it is enough."
   One of the well-traveled gargoyles pointed out that they might need a guardian, if nothing else. "After all, we don't know what other predators are out there."
   A homestead elf shuddered. "And we know the river has things that'll try to eat us."
   The travelers in earshot looked at the elf. The gargoyle said "I thought your journey was easy."
   "By comparison," the dragon growled. "We nearly lost Stella to a water beast. Not sure what it was. It sort of tasted like gator, but it swam like a gar." She shrugged.
   None who understood Draconic missed the words "tasted like". The decision was nearly unanimous, in favor of bringing at least one dragon along.
   Ever the diplomat, she turned to the smaller male. "Do you feel able to guard them at the water's edge? Otherwise, you could watch over the kin in the forest, or those left here."
   A surprising few objected to being left without a dragon in the Bowl. They hadn't seen anything nearly dragon-sized, and nothing seemed to attack by daylight. As long as they were back before nightfall, the kin were more or less content with their guardians protecting those outside the dragonhold.
   "I've never... We didn't have to fight anything but the animals we hunted, and I was with the others, so..."
   She looked down at him, but not on him. "There is time enough to learn. If you don't feel ready to face water beasts, there will be other days. Be vigilant, keep watch over the gatherers. I'll go to the river, if you like."
   She began humming "Down to the River to Pray" under her breath. It reminded the homesteaders that she had been born human, but it confused the travelers. They had not yet considered that dragons weren't native to this new world.
   While they settled who would ride with whom, she transitioned to "Water", which was less widely known.
   As a matter of fact, only one other kin knew what she was humming:
   The other dragon.