Emerald Daydream

Four

Lucifer is woken by the sounds of angry shouting and more ear-splitting trumpets blowing and blowing repeatedly into the cold air. He claws at his ears for a few seconds before he feels a clammy hand grip his tail and give it a yank. Immediately, the dragon leaps up and lets loose an earth-quaking roar that makes the very sun in the sky seem to shake with the impact. Everyone around him in the crowd backs up at least ten steps as he turns his angry eyes on them.

"Who has woken me?" the dragon rasps. "And who has pulled at me, and yanked at me, and forced me from my well-deserved slumber? It was against my better judgement to come here in the first place, I should have listened to my inner instinct and stayed on my own territory-"

"Exactly!" boomed the King, who was standing at Lucifer's foot and bravely holding the dragon's sleek, spiked tail in both hands. "Exactly, exactly, exactly! I want him out!"

"...hwat?" said the dragon in a small, tired voice. "...what did I do? I only came here because you asked me to." He had lost all composure at this point, being too exhausted and achy to do anything but frown sadly at the crowd of people surrounding him and be a touch humiliated.

"YOU ARE CRUSHING MY FLOWERS!" bellowed the Great King Grindlewald. "GIVE ME SOME RESPECT! YOU DON'T JUST RUIN A MAN'S GARDEN AFTER HE INVITES YOU INTO HIS HUMBLE ABODE!"

Now, see here. The Great King never actually invited Lucifer in - in fact, he threw the muddy, dripping wet dragon out and slammed the door on his snout. And he told the majestic creature to go sleep out in a stable with the horses!

If the horses were actually unicorns, Lucifer would be pleased. And honoured. But he was fairly certain that Grindlewald was too cheap for unicorns.

Any way.

Lucifer jumps up, and - can you imagine this? - he's actually looking a little ashamed! I think you'll support me when I say that he doesn't deserve this. He deserves way more than this, and -

Oh my goodness he's actually, legitimately apologizing. Folks, let's just take a minute and admire his character. I think I woulda been long gone if that were me out there, being publicly humiliated in front to the kingdom and told that you were being rude, and, well, you've witnessed everything happening to poor old Lucifer. I mean, he's starving right now too, and the King isn't even offering an explanation as to why he dragged Lucifer out here to his great big castle, away from his home, and is now-----

OK, OK, I will acknowledge that I am, indeed, ranting. Let's just get on with the story.

The poor dragon stands up and pulls his tail gently from the King's grasp. He hunches his back and asks meekly,

"Is there any chance I could have any breakfast? I am starving you know..."

"Yes, yes," murmured the King, and a light gleams suddenly in his eyes. "I remember the armadillo. Actually...we can negotiate over breakfast. Yes?"

"Would you happen to HAVE any armadillo, King Grindlewald?" inquired the anguished dragon, very politely for his state of discomfort and intense hunger. I think he regained his composure and dragon dignity very well.

"Er, no," stuttered the bewildered King Grindlewald. "But we do have quail eggs, scrambled, with goat cheese and milk, and - er, well, we don't have any vegetables," he cast a meaningful glance at the squashed mess of cucumbers and such, laying on the ground behind Lucifer in a sleeping dragon's shape, "but we do have lots of fruits and-"

"Excuse me, Highness, but I just want meat, to put it bluntly," says an irritated, exhausted, but very polite Lucifer. "I am a dragon, after all. Keep your goat cheese and fruit to yourself. I look for more fulfilling things to fill my stomach with."