Dragon Dreams (9 page)

Justin looks down. “The Royal Council is worried about them being near the cavern lakes, so now they’re not allowed to fly free in this area.”

“Why doesn’t the Royal Council want them near the lakes?” Alex asks.

“Because the dragons used to swim in the lakes,” Justin says. “The council was
worried that their fires would scorch the bank or make the waters too warm.”

“So that’s why we haven’t seen any dragons in a while,” I say.

“And why the gnome we saw earlier didn’t want to talk to us—he was angry with the Royal Council,” Moriah adds.

“Um, I hate to interrupt,” Alex says, “but are we going to have to cross that bridge?”

“Yes,” says Justin. “There’s no other way to get from this hillside into the village.”

Alex, Moriah, and I look at Rapunzel.

“What is it?” Justin asks.

“Rapunzel doesn’t really like heights,” I say.

“Too much time in towers,” Moriah adds.

“Don’t worry,” says Rapunzel. “I just won’t look down.”

We start across. The glittery dust swirls in the breeze, and the bridge sways a little. Justin goes first, I follow, and Rapunzel comes next. Then Alex and Moriah. Rapunzel isn’t looking down, which is good. Right up until the point when she trips. I try to catch her but wind up with an armful of cape.

“AHHHHHH!”

SPLASH!

I grab the rope out of my backpack. But it isn’t long enough to reach the water! Justin pulls a whistle out of his pocket and blows three times. A dragon appears in the distance. She is coming toward us fast! I can see that Rapunzel is okay because her dress has billowed up and she’s floating. But she’s stuck because the lake is so big.

The dragon pulls up right next to the bridge, and Justin practically leaps onto her back.

“Come on,” he says, looking at me. “I need both hands to steer close to the water. You’ll have to grab your friend.”

Me? Ride a dragon!
My heart does a happy skip, even though I’m worried about
Rapunzel. With Justin steadying me, I climb onto the dragon’s back.

We soar up, up into the air. For a moment, time seems to stop. The wind blows my hair back, and my heart does a loop de loop. I rub my hand against the dragon’s smooth scales. The sun glints off her wings as she glides. It’s the best
feeling in the world—just like I imagined! If Rapunzel weren’t in trouble, I would want to fly for hours.

When we’re close enough, the dragon dips and swoops low over the water, right above Rapunzel.

She dives even lower, and I stretch to reach Rapunzel. I’m not sure if the dragon will be able to carry our weight. I can hear Moriah and Alex yelling “Oh no!” and “Hold on!” in surprisingly un-princess-y tones. We sink, and skim the lake for a moment. Then we touch down on the ground, and Rapunzel rolls off into the grass. I want to fly back over the lake again, but instead I tumble after her.

I land in grass
and
a carpet of long, lush, thick, and sparkly pink hair.

“Rapunzel,” I say, trying to unwind myself, “your hair grew back.” (Even Rapunzel’s hair doesn’t grow this fast.)

Justin slides off the back of the dragon, who must be his pet Druscilla, just as Moriah and Alex come running toward us.

“And then some!” Moriah says.

Alex hands Rapunzel back her cape so she can dry off, and we all start helping Rapunzel coil up her hair.

Not only is Rapunzel’s hair long, pink, and sparkly, even Druscilla seems to sparkle more where she got wet. I can feel my mind trying to put the pieces together.

“I think,” I say slowly, “the Royal Council has made a mistake.”

Chapter 13

“What
do you mean?” says Alex.

I picture the different places we saw in the caverns. “The council thought the dragons would do too much damage to farms and forests in the kingdom. But look at the hatchery!”

“What about it?” says Rapunzel, wringing out her hair.

“Some areas are a bit burned, but the whole place is green and the trees and plants are growing like crazy,” I say. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”

“You mean it’s the dragon’s fire that actually makes the hatchery so green?” says Moriah.

“Yes!” I say. “I think the heat must somehow help things grow.”

“Oh,” says Justin, like he’s starting to see where I’m going with this. “The Royal Council’s rule actually
hurts
the farmlands, even though they meant to protect them.”

“And I’m pretty sure I know what’s hurting the dragons!” I say. “The council thought they were protecting the cavern lakes, but not letting the dragons swim there had some results they didn’t imagine.”

Justin is nodding now.

“Swimming in the lakes is actually good for the dragons. See how sparkly Druscilla looks now? I think the dragons are losing their sparkle and ability to breathe fire because they aren’t allowed to swim in the lake water!”

“You’re right!” says Justin.

I grin at him.

“Plus now that I think about it, the banks of the lake
were
actually greener, and there were more reeds and water lilies in the lake before, when the dragons used to swim there.” He’s so excited, he’s practically jumping up and down.

“Yay—you did it, Emma! You figured it out,” exclaims Rapunzel.

At the inn, Justin talks to the stable
master and borrows one of their largest dragons—one that makes Druscilla look dainty by comparison. He climbs into the saddle. Rapunzel, Alex, and Moriah get up, with some help. (Rapunzel plans to shut her eyes.) And I can’t believe it—Justin is going to let
me
fly Druscilla.

“Ready?” Justin asks.

I nod. I’m excited but a little nervous.

“Don’t worry. Druscilla will follow this dragon,” he says. “Here we go.”

His dragon soars up over the hills, higher and higher. Then it swoops down over the lake. I pull on the reins the way Justin
showed me, and Druscilla follows. The wind whooshes in our ears, and sun sparks off the glittery stone snow. It’s the best roller coaster ride ever.

“WHEEE
eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

It’s over way too soon! Lady Mary is so relieved to see us that she alternates between smiling and scolding. Then I explain my theory about the dragons and Justin’s part in our adventure, and everyone oohs and ahhs over Rapunzel’s long, sparkly pink hair. The gnomes nod and pat Justin on the back, and Lady Mary thanks him.

Then the gnomes shake my hand.

“Gnomes and dragons actually need each other, just like princesses and dogs!” I announce. Everyone laughs.

Behind me, I hear a voice that sounds familiar. It’s the reporter Esther Rubinoff.

It turns out she is visiting the caverns so she can talk to the gnomes. Once she hears what happened, she asks if she can take our picture and use it in her report.
Rapunzel, Alex, Moriah, Justin, and I pose next to Druscilla.