Nearing the Dragon, Sam became truly aware of the beast’s size. Its head was longer than he was tall, and several of the teeth, jutting past the scaly lips, were longer than one of his hands. It was the first Western Dragon he had ever been near, but something about it was familiar. He put it down to general dragonishness because its odor was similar to Tessien’s. He took another few steps closer, stopping when he felt the breath sighing through the Dragon’s nostrils ruffling the light cloth of his trouser leg. The beast’s presence was oppressive, and Sam longed to flee, to escape from the great predator. He held his ground, though his knees felt weak and his legs rubbery.