Dragon Story Part Two
NOTE: You can read Part One at
http://pkdmemoir.blogspot.com/2023/03/dragon-story-part-one.html
Henry Draco wondered who was riding a horse into the woods so early in the morning. Surely most humans would be sound asleep, unless they were out working in the fields. In either case, they would not be riding horses. Could it possibly be a knight? Or could it be a stray horse that somehow gotten out of the barn or the paddock? Well, whoever or whatever it was, it was no concern of his. Huffing and puffing, he passed between the trees and stopped from time to time to sniff the air in search of the sweet scent of maple sap.
At last he found one, a young maple with a trunk six inches across, mature enough to contain plenty of sap, but young enough to easily pull out of the ground and not too heavy to carry home. With a great grunt of effort, he pulled the trunk one way and the other, twisted it and pushed on it, until he heard the wonderful sound of the roots letting go of the dirt. He had just slung the maple tree over his back when the clopping of horse hooves began to sound faster and louder than before.
He wondered what Mabel would say when he presented her with his gift. He never knew how she would react, whether she might be angry or pleased. Well, in any case, he had done his duty and found something to eat. Now to trace his steps back and get out of the woods. He simply could not remember the way he had come. Turning this way and that, he searched for any familiar landmark, but he had to conclude that he was lost. Not one to give up easily, Henry decided to pick a direction and walk until he got somewhere. Perhaps he ought to head toward the sound of the clopping horse. Yes, he said to himself, that horse would not be in the woods. Horses liked to run, and it was much too difficult to run among all these trees.
His plan worked out well enough, for when he emerged from the woods he saw the horse running toward him, with a knight astride. “Halt!” the knight shouted. He held a lance upright, pointed toward the sky, so Henry did not feel threatened. Well, he was a little nervous.
“Dragon,” the knight addressed him, “what happened to your jacket?”
Puzzled, Henry looked down at his jacket and inspected the sleeves. Sure enough, the sleeve that had caught on a cedar branch was torn and dirty. “Just a little scuffle with a pesky knight,” he said, hoping that this would inspire some respect from his adversary. Knights, after all, had a habit of slaying dragons. Henry Draco had no desire to die this morning, least of all to die with an empty belly, and the knight seemed serious about getting a trophy.
“I’ve been looking for such a challenge,” the knight told him, “but frankly you are not a very presentable trophy. In fact, your scales are dull, chipped and cracked. Perhaps you can lead me to a more acceptable specimen, and then I won’t have to settle for your head on my wall.”
Henry considered this offer, but the only other dragons who knew lived miles away. Then he thought again. Perhaps this would help him to escape death and become a bachelor again. “I know,” he said, “a most beautiful dragon who live just over that rise.” He pointed in the direction of his house, where Mabel was probably fussing and fuming because they had no food in their larder. “Follow me!” he shouted as he took off at a comfortable lope, the maple tree bouncing on his back and dragging on the ground. It was a tall tree, several feet longer than his back, so it slowed his pace as he traveled toward home.
Read part three here:
http://pkdmemoir.blogspot.com/2023/07/dragon-story-part-three.html
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