Dragon Dreams (5 page)

Lady
Mary says it’s my turn. I feel like I can’t move. I pick a card from the choices the judges hold out to me. Oh, no! My task is to “create a happy ending.” I’m totally the wrong princess for this job. What am I going to do?

I look up at Rapunzel. From the tower window she gives me a thumbs-up and calls, “You can do it!” Jordan and Laura cross their
fingers for me. Moriah kisses her frog again. She mouths the word “HELP!” They’re all depending on me.

Suddenly, I have an idea. I leapfrog over Moriah’s frog. Jordan and Laura see what I’m doing and join in. Moriah’s frog gets the idea and hops over us, and hops and hops and hops… away! He didn’t turn into a prince, but at least he disappeared.

With all the hopping, no one sees me bend down to let Harold off his leash. I point to Princess Alex and give Harold a command. He makes a beeline for the spinning wheel as soon as he’s off the leash. He leaps up and starts licking Alex’s face.

Alex yawns and stretches, rubbing her eyes. Harold’s definitely not a prince, but I guess a kiss is a kiss!

Even though she’s still trapped in the tower, Rapunzel is so excited, she’s jumping up and down. How can I rescue her?
What can I do?!

Just then, my cousin Ben walks by. “Ben, can I borrow your ball?” I shout.

“Sure,” he says, and tosses it to me.

I put the ball on the ground and take a deep breath. I concentrate on the tower. I
imagine a giant bull’s-eye about two-thirds of the way up. Then I kick the ball with all my might, aiming right at that target.

CLUNK.

The tower starts to teeter. Then it totters. Teeter. Totter. Teeter.

It sways all the way to the ground, and Rapunzel steps out.

I guess all those soccer practice shots paid off! I’m so happy, I do a victory dance. When I realize what I’m doing, I’m a little
surprised. I’m
dancing,
and… I didn’t knock anything over, not by accident anyway, or bump into anybody. I think the headmistress is a little surprised too. My dance instructor beams and nods. Rapunzel runs over and gives me a huge hug.

I hear cheering and look around to see who is winning. My classmates are actually cheering for
me
! We won the contest!

Princess Laura asks if I’d share my recipe for volcano cake.

“Can we walk our dogs together one day after school?” Princess Alex asks.

The judges congratulate me. Even Prince Ben shakes my hand. “Wanna race again on the way home?” he asks. Who knows, this time I might even give him a head start. Well, maybe…

As we get in line to go back to our classes, the Academy librarian smiles at me. She says, “Maybe times have changed, and it’s time princesses change with them.”

“Hmm,” I say, thinking.

“And don’t give up on that dragon class.” She winks. “You never know…”

I grin back.

When I get home, I find out Mom and Dad have invited all of our royal relatives to dinner to celebrate my class’s victory. Hamburgers and s’mores!!!! Yum—my favorites! I show off our trophy, Rapunzel’s Leaning Tower, and my father places it in the family gallery, on its own stand.

Chapter 7

Well,
it’s been six weeks, and I still haven’t had any luck with the dragon class, but now I have a different plan. My birthday is in only four days. (I can’t wait!) And I’ve finally decided what I want for a birthday present: a pet dragon.

Here are some of the reasons I want a dragon:

1. I love reading dragon stories and adventures.
   
2. Sometimes in class at the Academy, I feel so cooped up. Imagine soaring on the back of a dragon.
   
3. Don’t tell—but I want to be a member of the Royal Dragon Guard. When we were little, my cousin Ben and I would pretend to be elite dragon fliers. He’d laugh if he knew I still wanted to.
   
4. If I have my own dragon, then I can secretly practice flying until I get good.
   

Unfortunately, I made the mistake of mentioning my wish for a pet dragon at school. I normally would have known better than to say anything, but I got so excited when I found out that we have a field trip to the Dragon Caverns coming up.

“Whoever heard of a princess with a pet dragon?!” said Moriah.

“Aren’t you afraid of dragons?” said Laura.

“Wouldn’t you like something soft and furry instead?” asked Alex.

I haven’t really said anything to my parents about wanting a dragon yet because I think it might be kind of hard to convince them, too. I love my Chihuahua Lola and my pug Harold and I help take care of them, but I’m not sure my parents will
believe I can take good care of a dragon.

But it’s more than this. Like my friends said, princesses just don’t have pet dragons. Princesses have pets that are feathery, furry, and fluffy—not pets that have hard scales, big wings, and breathe fire.

I need to find a way to prove to my parents it would be good to have a dragon for a pet and also show them I’m responsible enough to take care of a dragon.

Yikes, I’m almost late for school—too much dragon-dreaming. Ahead of me, I see Princess Laura and Princess Alex crossing the Royal Academy courtyard. “Laura, Alex! Wait for me.”

“Princess Emma!” says Headmistress Melinda. “A princess shouldn’t really…”

CRASH!