Dragon of the Lost Sea by Lawrence Yep

Details:

Published in 1982 by Harper & Row.

I read what I think is a 1994 reprint from Harper Trophy, in 1997.

From the Publisher:

The dragon princess Shimmer is on a dangerous quest: to recover a magic pebble containing a stolen sea--a sea that is her home, her past, her future. "Maybe I'd better go with you," suggests the orphan boy, Thorn. Shimmer scoffs. "Don't try to follow, boy. You're be next to useless."

Even though Shimmer is a dragon princess and Thorn a mere human, Thorn knows they have something in Common. They are both homeless, both alone in the world. They need each other. "I'll never let you down," Thorn says. "Wait and see." After all, if a pebble can hold an ocean, a boy can prove himself as bold as a dragon.

First Line:

I stopped when I smelled the magic.

Alternative Cover: