First Step on Gravel

Stiff jaws. Locked claws. Then... a pulse. The open air hit my scales. I paused, scanning the perimeter. Quiet fences. Open ground. Beneath my right talon lay a dry pale leaf resting on jagged grey gravel. I shifted my weight forward. My heavy claw flexed down, crushing the brittle leaf into dust. The sharp crack echoed underfoot. I can move. I locked my stance and held the path, watching.