"New things first," Kaden's gaze lowered to Jethro's lizard. His voice was devoid of the curiosity most had shown, but it didn't mean he was going to ignore it. "Your lizard. It's different. Bigger. And the color's wrong."
He looked up at Jethro. "Did you not think that I would ask you about it?"
Jethro's defenses snapped up instantly. He shrugged, the motion carefully casual. "My assumption is growth spurt?"
"Growth spurt?" Kaden echoed skeptically. "Did it swallow an Iron Behemoth?"
Jethro winced, stabbed by Kaden's ruthless refusal of his excuse. "I don't know what you want me to say, Master Kade. Maybe the academy food's better than the gruel he's used to." He offered a weak smile.
Kaden's eyes didn't waver. They were like twin drills boring into Jethro's façade. "Red Lizards don't have growth spurts that add twenty pounds of armored scale and change their color. They eat insects, they sleep, they die. That's their cycle. Try again."
