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The woods weren't like anyplace they'd been before. They kept walking quietly, looking for dragon-type clues, giant footprints, trampled trees, swath of burning forest.
"We're gonna look for a dragon? For a ride to the quest?" Thèrèse guessed. Her tone is almost soft in curiousity. But she figured out his intention of going into the forest.
Leo wasn't sure if he was surprised or touched by the way her tone had softened a bit. The soft-spoken, sharp girl had disappeared and now he was facing someone new. He had almost forgotten why they were there in the first place. Her guess was right. They were going to look for the dragon that had visited his dreams, and that he hoped could help him with his quest.
"That's right," he confirmed, not knowing whether to smile at her kindness or to be intimidated by her sudden change of attitude.
Once they spotted a glimpse of large, furry shape like a wolf or a bear, but it stayed away from his fire, which was fine by both Leo and Thèrèse (after they gasped dramatically.)
Leo glanced at the silhouette of the large thing. The first thing that came to his mind was a werewolf. But the thing stayed far from the light of his fire. It was odd, but he decided to disregard it for the moment. He just hoped it wouldn't come near them.
Thèrèse' loud gasp surprised the boy at first. She seemed so bold and sure of herself inside the wood, but when it came to a potential beast of the woods, the girl couldn't help but express her shock.
Then they stared at eachother silently before continued their way like nothing had happened.
Then, at the bottom of a clearing, they saw the first trap - a hundred-foot-wide crater ringed with boulders.
What looked like a crater ringed in boulders had caught their attention. It was a huge circle that looked too perfect to be accidental. Leo had studied some things about dragons, and this looked like a clear sign that one was waiting for them there.
The boy let his gaze wander all over the crater. He didn't notice any large figure that would indicate a presence of a dragon. But he wouldn't drop his guard till they got there and confirmed it.
"Do you want to do the honors and walk into the trap?" he asked her.
Thèrèse didn't answer him. She looked closely, and in the dim light of the stars and Leo's handheld fire, she could see the glint of metal beneath the dirt and leaves-a bronze net lining the entire crater.
"Shh, I'm thinking." She shushed him.
Leo didn't reply to her shushing him. He knew she was thinking of a way out of this. He was intrigued by the way she looked at the crater, trying to understand it and looking for clues and other factors. She was a bright girl, and she couldn't fail to impress him once again.
