To Win the Prince's Hand

Chapter 6

6.

My stomach had started to devour itelf. I hadn’t eaten anything but a small roll and a few bites of dinner since my breakfast that morning. The rest of the dinner had been uneventful, and I was beginning to become agonizingly bored when we were finally dismissed.

I wanted nothing more than a snack from the kitchen, but right now there was one thing that was more important: Finding Serena.

“Serena!” I whisper-yelled from a small clearing a little ways away from the stable. “Here, girl!” The situation reminded me greatly of when I had first met her, back at my home…

I wondered around in the woods for several hours, finally stumbling out into a small clearing I’d never known existed before. Checking behind me, I snickered. Madame Goustav would kill me if she found out.

I turned back to the small clearing. It was a little ways away from the stables, and the woods were thick enough that you couldn’t tell it was here. Sitting down on a rock, I pulled a roll out of my pocket before biting into it.

I grinned to myself at my thievery. Suddenly, I heard a slight rustling in the trees. My head shot up, suddenly alarmed. I was wary of any wild animals that may pounce on my small figure.

I took a few deep breaths to calm myself in the silence. Then I heard the noise again. And suddenly, a blue creature hopped out of the bush across from me.

I jumped up, too scared to make a sound. It was about the size of a pony and covered in scales with long, iridescent webbed wings sticking out on either side. It turned towards me, its eyes calculating before it lowered itself into a defense position.

And then it opened its mouth to scorch me. I squeezed my eyes shut, praying that I would die quickly. But nothing ever came. I opened them once more to find the dragon choking, trying to cough out any heat.

It was a sight I’ll never forget. The poor thing struggled for several minutes before letting out a deep breath that sounded like a sigh and laying down. Its eyes seemed to water even as it let out a small noise.

I walked a few steps closer. It had to be only a few months old, at most a year. The spikes along its tail showed it was a girl. She looked up at me in a very human way.

“Are you hungry?” I asked quietly. She responded, much to my surprise, lifting her head in hope. Staying a few steps away, I tossed her the rest of the roll before pulling an apple out of my pocket and tossing her that too.

"It’s okay, girl,” I cooed, taking another step closer. “I won’t hurt you.”

Soon, I heard the quiet sound of wings, and my dragon came into view as she landed across from me. Her eyes looked sleepy, as though I’d just woken her up from her sleep.

“Sorry, girl,” I apologized with a laugh as I patted her nose. She just laid back down and regarded me lazily. “Do you like the weather down here?” She nodded, swishing her tail for emphasis.

I had to admit, it was beautiful. The weather had been wonderful all day today, and Abigail had told me that this was normal. “And have you found a place to stay and hunt?” I received a similar response to that. That put me at ease immediately.

I had worried that she wouldn’t find anywhere to sleep, or she wouldn’t be able to hunt. There was no way I could provide her food for her. The best I could do was the occasional snack.

And as I though about food, my stomach made an undesirable noise. She tilted her head in confusion and I blushed at the sound, even though I had only done it in the presence of a dragon.