Once Upon a Curse

  "For honor," said one.

  "For glory," said another.

  "For goodness' sake," I whispered to Millie. "Do they all have to be so dramatic?"

  "Perhaps they are braver than I thought," murmured Millie. "Imagine, killing a dragon!"

  "They haven't fought it yet. I think we should reserve judgment until we see what they actually do."

  "But those brave young men are going to risk their lives!"

  "Maybe," I said, reaching for a piece of bread. I was torn in a way. I had friends back home who were dragons, so I knew they weren't all bad, but having a dragon live so close to the castle was bound to cause trouble. While I didn't want to see the dragon get hurt, I didn't want to see any of the princes get hurt, either, especially Eadric. But then they wouldn't have to fight at all if I could help it.

  After dinner Eadric and the other princes left the Great Hall to collect their horses and weapons. I slipped away from Millie while she was talking to her parents and made my way to the garden. I'd thought about discussing my plans with Eadric, but he'd insist on going without me and handling it on his own, and that was the last thing I wanted.

  Although Eadric was the bravest man I knew, he was more likely to wave his sword, Ferdy, in the dragon's face than he was to talk to him. Even after we'd become friends with a nice family of dragons, Eadric believed that they were the exception, and that most dragons were horrible monsters that deserved to be slain. We'd argued about it many times, but neither of us was willing to give in.

  Once again I remembered Dyspepsia's warning, but since I'd already interfered when I chased away the harpies, I didn't think that getting rid of a dragon would be so bad. It wasn't like I'd be killing anyone. If all went well, I'd be saving lives, although I'd have to hurry to do it. If no one, human or dragon, was to get hurt, I'd have to be the one to confront the beast first. I was a witch and could use my magic if necessary. I also had a special salve with me that would protect me from the dragon's flames. Even more important, I was a Dragon Friend. In a tent at the Dragon Olympics, I'd been given the title after passing a test that could have taken away my magical powers. I hadn't had any need to verify it before, but I hoped the dragons had told me the truth when they said that the title would earn me the respect of dragon-kind everywhere.

  Wanting to be as inconspicuous as possible, I hid in a secluded spot in the maze and took out my farseeing ball, focusing it on all the places around the kingdom where I thought a dragon might lurk. A farseeing ball is a handy thing to have, although it does have its limitations. You can use it to keep an eye on someone who has recently touched it or to see places that you have visited. Getting it to do anything else isn't easy.

  I decided to look where I had seen dragons in my own time. When I focused on the enchanted forest, I saw griffins skimming the treetops and unicorns butting heads, but no dragons. There were water sprites splashing in a stream, fairies dozing under flower petals and werewolf pups wrestling, but no dragons.

  "Hmm," I said, and turned my attention to the Purple Mountains. Deep in a cave where the Dragon King would one day keep his treasures, I saw nothing except bats hanging by their toes in the dark. I looked at a huge, high-sided arena, where the dragons would hold their Olympics in the future. There were no dragons yet.

  When Eadric and I had been looking for a green dragon, I hadn't had enough experience or power to use a spell to find one. Now it was almost as easy as breathing. Cupping the farseeing ball in my hands, I said:

  Sharp of tooth and fierce of claw,

  With a gaping, hungry maw,

  Find the dragon close to here,

  Make the image very clear.

  Show the path that I must take

  To reach the beast; there's much at stake.

  An image of a dragon took shape in the farseeing ball. Asleep in a cave, the dragon moved restlessly as it dreamed. There wasn't enough light to see its color or anything to compare it to that would indicate its size. While I watched, the image changed, pulling away from the dragon and leaving the cave. I saw a steep-sided ravine, a wooded slope and a path trampled flat by feet with claws long enough to gouge the ground. The path led through the forest until it dwindled away among the trees. The image continued however, showing me a break in the trees here, a deer trail there, until it met a road rutted by cart wheels. The image in the farseeing ball moved faster now, following the road where it passed between the trees and through farmers' fields, becoming wider and hard packed when it met another road. I recognized the area now; the slope of the hill and the outcropping of rocks hadn't changed much in a few hundred years.

  As the image dissolved, I recited the spell to turn myself into a dove. It took just a moment, but even so, the first of the princes had appeared by the time that I was ready to go. Wearing a dented but serviceable suit of armor, Prince Jasper rode an older destrier, a huge warhorse bred for carrying the weight of a man clad in metal. What little I could see of the horse was golden brown. It, too, wore plain, undecorated armor and moved with a steady and purposeful gait.

  I took to the air just as Prince Fenton arrived astride a more highly spirited horse that pranced rather than walked. Solid black, the horse wore armor that matched the prince's. Both sets were decorated with twin lions and an eagle and were so highly polished that it hurt my eyes to look at them.

  I darted past Prince Jasper, following the road and leaving the armor-clad horses stirring up dust behind me. Anxious to deal with the dragon before the princes arrived, I flew as fast as I could and was exhausted before I reached the forest. The first tree I saw was an ancient oak, and I stopped to rest on one of its lower branches to let my pounding heart slow to a steadier pace. I took off again when I heard the clanking of the horses' armor and wondered how the princes ever thought they could catch a dragon unaware.

  I found the deer trail right away and was approaching the break in the trees when I heard something snuffling. Wary, I slowed my pace and veered away from the trail while trying to keep it in sight. When I saw what was making the sound, I was glad I hadn't blundered ahead. A griffin as big as a small dragon stood over the carcass of a wild boar, tearing at the animal's hide with its wickedly curving beak. The griffin's wings were splattered with drops of blood and its lionlike sides heaved from exertion, but it wasn't too tired to look up when I flew through the far side of the clearing. Reaching the trees, I tried to put as much distance as possible between the eagle-eyed creature and myself. I was convinced that I was about to be plucked from the air, so I flew farther than I'd intended and didn't slow down until I nearly flew into a thorn-covered thicket. As I slowed my pace, I realized two things: the griffin wasn't following me, and I was lost.

  It took me a while to get my bearings and locate the dragon's path. I wouldn't have found it at all if I hadn't stumbled across a charred tree trunk. There was another beyond it, and after that most of the trunks were scorched and scarred. Great furrows rent the ground as if huge creatures had scuffled there in the past, and a few pieces of partly melted armor told me that at least one of the battles had been between dragon and knight.

  The damage grew more extensive as I continued on until the trees gave way to a gully twice as deep and three times as wide as a man is tall. I could see the opening of the dragon's cave on the far side of the gully. Unfortunately King Grunwald's forester must have been able to give good directions, because Jasper and Fenton had arrived as well. They sat astride their horses at the edge of the burned trees, their armor smudged with soot, looking down at the opening of the cave. While I was relieved that Eadric wasn't there, I hoped he hadn't gotten lost.

  Jasper's horse stood his ground, but Fenton's steed was skittery, dancing aside and refusing to go on. When Fenton tried to urge him forward, the horse dug in his heels and threw up his head, rearing each time the prince yanked on the reins. "Blasted horse," muttered Fenton. Finally, with stiff movements and a lot of effort, Fenton backed his horse away from the gully and struggled to climb off.


  I landed on the blackened branch of a nearby tree. Although it was too late to talk to the dragon before the princes arrived, I could still make sure that no one got hurt.

  I'd been watching Fenton, so I hadn't noticed that Jasper had already dismounted and tied his horse's reins to a branch. "Come out, you cowardly worm!" Jasper shouted, and I turned to see him wielding his sword and shield at the edge of the ravine.

  There was a strange whuffing sound from the cave, and a puff of pink smoke curled from the entrance.

  "I'm not ready yet, Jasper!" yelled Fenton, still only halfway off his horse. "Wait for me! I just—"

  A roar from the gully nearly knocked me from my perch. Fenton's horse took off, galloping through the forest with his master draped over his side, fighting to stay on. I saw Jasper step back a pace, then raise his sword above his head. Flying higher into the tree, I looked down into the gully. Scorching flame had burned away every twig and scrap of foliage, giving me an unimpeded view of the massive head that emerged a moment later.

  I had seen many dragons before, and some of them bore scales as beautiful as precious gems, yet this dragon's scales were a particularly ugly color. A muddy, washed-out yellow, he looked even worse when he scuttled from his cave into the sunlight and raised his head to glare at Jasper. The dragon was smallish, with a patchy look, missing or damaged scales, and ragged wings. His legs were stiff when he ran, as if his joints hurt. He opened his mouth, and I saw that his teeth were crooked; he was missing more than a few.

  When the dragon sucked in air through his gaping mouth and pulled his wings back to his sides, I knew that he was about to flame. Without shield or armor to protect myself, I leapt into the air, rising high above the gully.

  Holding his shield in front of his face, Jasper jumped to the side as the flame licked the ground at his feet. Although deadly, the flame wasn't very long and it dwindled at the end to a meager trickle of fire. My dragon friend, Grumble Belly, would have been embarrassed to call it his.

  "Hold on!" shouted Fenton from the forest. "I'm coming! Dratted horse wouldn't stop!"

  Seeing the prince still on his feet, the dragon started up the side of the gully, huffing pink steam as he ran with a shambling sort of gait. Jasper darted behind the closest tree as quickly as his armor would let him. I thought he was running away until he stopped and raised his sword. The trunk was singed nearly to the heartwood, the tree obviously dead, but since it was broad at the base and still standing, it made a fairly good shield.

  The clank of metal came through the trees. "I'm almost there!" shouted Fenton, sounding out of breath even from a distance.

  The dragon snorted, and flame curled from his nostrils.

  "Come on, worm," taunted Jasper. "Is that all you can do?"

  Even as he ran, I could hear the dragon sucking air into his lungs, and he began flaming while he was still too far to reach the tree. Shield up, Jasper crouched behind the trunk. The moment the dragon's flame shrank and died, the prince sprang to his feet and ran around the trunk, his sword aimed at the muddy-yellow head.

  "Here I am!" shouted Fenton as he emerged panting from the trees, his sword and shield dangling uselessly from his hands.

  Jerking his head up, the dragon spun around to face Fenton, his long tail whipping behind him. As Jasper ran at the dragon, the tail hit him with a clang, sending him sailing through the air. The prince hit the ground, his body rolling a few feet before lying motionless.

  "Uh-oh," said Fenton, when the dragon lunged in his direction, his ribs expanding as he inhaled again.

  The first hint of flame was just leaving the dragon's mouth when Fenton turned and ran. For a moment he looked like a shiny blur disappearing into the dark of the forest—and then he was gone.

  Without an enemy to incinerate, the dragon's fire died down to a fizzling puff. He turned with a grumble and started back toward Jasper, whose body still lay where it had fallen. Alarmed, I flew lower to see what I could do. Jasper was defenseless; if he was alive, he wouldn't be for long. This isn't right, I thought. It was time for me to intervene.

  As the dragon lowered its massive head to snuffle the injured knight, I darted down and pecked the creature on the back of his skull. The beast didn't notice me. Opening his jaws, he grasped an armor-clad leg and began to drag Jasper toward the edge of the gully. I tried to think of some magic spell I could use that wouldn't hurt either combatant, but then the dragon's ear flopped over. In the blink of a unicorn's eye, I darted toward the ear and pecked just inside its leathery opening. The dragon jerked his head up in alarm, dropping Jasper. I clung to his scales with my claws as he threw his head from side to side. When he calmed down again, I pecked once more to make sure I had his attention, then let go of his scales and took off. Since I didn't want him to lose sight of me, I stayed low to the ground, zigzagging so he wouldn't hit me if he flamed. The dragon roared and came after me, which was just what I wanted. I planned to lead him into the woods, then come back for Jasper, but someone else had different plans.

  Both the dragon and I heard her voice at the same time. A girl was down in the gully, whimpering and calling out and making herself an irresistible target for an angry dragon. I tried to distract the beast, but the possibility of an easy meal was too tempting to ignore. When he scrambled down the steep slope, I flew past him and gasped. It was Millie, looking small and vulnerable in the burnt-out gully. At first sight of the dragon, she threw up her hand and pointed, a familiar gesture, but not one I would have expected her to use. Her voice rang out loud and clear as she recited a spell she must have made up herself.

  Dragon, dragon in my sight,

  You don't always have to fight.

  Turn around and go back home.

  Never more to want to roam.

  I wasn't surprised when the dragon started spinning in circles since the spell had told him to turn around, although Millie's mouth dropped open and her eyes grew wide. I wondered how long it would take her to realize that she was standing between the dragon and the cave he currently considered his home, the very place she had just sent him. I was more surprised that Millie was a witch, although I really shouldn't have been. After all, she was a distant relative, and just because her sister had the talent didn't mean that it wouldn't show up in her as well.

  I watched the dragon spin, moving one step closer to his cave each time he turned around. At that rate, it would take him ten minutes to reach the opening, giving me plenty of time.

  I'd been circling in the sky over the gully, but now that I'd made up my mind, I changed the angle of my wings and fluttered down to land beside Jasper. He was trying to get up, a difficult task for anyone wearing a suit of armor. From the way he was moving, I could tell that he was going to be all right. I would have stayed and tried to think of a way to help him without giving myself away, but I heard a shriek from down by the cave and knew that I had to hurry.

  After making sure that Jasper couldn't see me and that the other princes were nowhere around, I said the spell that would turn me back into my human self and hurried to the edge of the gully. The dragon must have gone faster once he realized what was happening, because he had almost reached the cave. As the dragon spun nearer, Millie covered her mouth with her hand, stifling a scream. She had the look of a cat I'd once owned that had been too frightened to move when a dog came after her. I'd had to step in then, just as I'd have to step in now. The dragon was close enough that even his meager flame would engulf her.

  I no longer cared if Millie saw me use magic because we shared a common secret. Pointing my finger at the dragon, I said a quick and easy binding spell. The dragon stopped in midspin, his mouth gaping as if he was about to flame. Hurrying down the slope of the gully, I shouted to Millie, "Go home! I'll handle this now."

  "Emma, you're a witch!" Millie declared as if telling me something I didn't know.

  "And so are you, but I have more experience with dragons, so let me handle this. There is something you can do, though. Jasper needs your help
getting back to the castle." I pointed up the slope. "You'll need to help him to his feet, then onto his horse."

  "Jasper needs me?" Millie said, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. "I'd better go. Are you sure you'll be all right?"

  "I'll be fine. Go help the prince," I said. "That's where you'll do the most good. By the way, do you have any idea what happened to Eadric?"

  "I remembered what you'd said about using magic to protect the kingdom. I think it's a wonderful idea, but I didn't want anyone else around when I tried it on a dragon. When I saw Eadric and some of my father's knights starting out, I used a little magic to send them in the wrong direction. I would have sent Jasper and Fenton the wrong way, too, if they hadn't already left the castle."

  "Good thinking, Millie," I said. "Any more men clanking around in suits of armor, and we might have had a real problem keeping this a secret. And we will keep the fact that we're both witches a secret, won't we?"

  Millie nodded, and I thought she looked relieved. While I waited for her to climb out of the gully, I opened my pouch and found the vial Ralf had given me. Ralf was a young dragon who had become one of my best friends. Shortly after we met, he had taken Eadric and me to the Dragon Olympics and given us some salve to protect us from dragon flames. It was the same salve used on baby dragons until their sensitive skin became tougher. The salve had worked perfectly, so I was happy to accept when he offered to give me some to keep on hand just in case.

  It didn't take much salve to cover my face and hands, but I went further than that, wiping it on my clothes and in my hair, on my neck and even on my eyelids. It made me feel greasy and disgusting, but at least it smelled nice, kind of like peppermint. Since I'd used most of the vial, I'd have to ask Ralf for more as soon as I got home.

  When I thought I was ready, I tapped the dragon on his back and hurried out of the way. Even wearing the salve, I didn't want to stand too close.