Dragon Whore

Prologue 01

The twelve-year-old silently slipped out of the back door of the old house's basement. The messenger bag around the girl's already adult-sized frame made small rustling sounds as pressure differences made the objects inside shift. A few mason jars clinked together against a large sketchbook and a slightly smaller plain black notebook. Her shoulder length dirty blond hair swished slightly as her swift and soundless footsteps padded their way along the pond's bank towards its connect with the stream in the forest.

Leaves rustled, resisted, snapped quietly, and then finally rustled again as they were packed tightly into a mason jar. Three flimsy branches of a weeping willow, each about a foot and a half long were broken off the tree and stripped of their leaves. Stashing them in the messenger, the She continued into the forest.

Knee high combat boots splashed into the shallow stream. Not a drop of water made it through them. The girl's legs felt chilled from the temperature, but it was the comfortable kind of cool wetness that summoned the highest happiness from the adolescent. Careful fingers pulled back all sorts of branches and brush to reach a clearing with a single large tree in the middle. The ground got moist from leftover water running down the combat boots as the full but not fat legs crossed into a sitting position, leaving her back against the tree.

While the vine-like willow branches were still green inside, steady hands grouped two of the thicker ends with one of the thinner ones and tied them securely together with sky blue thread. Hands with the most dexterity worked speedily at braiding the three branches, and then tying them in place at the top. The remaining thread was weaved into the braid in a spiral pattern from start to finish. The wand was complete.

Simple, delicate, complete, and perfect for its purpose.  It clunked against the tree as it was abandoned. The air was cool and calm. The child felt as though the air became one with her lungs, her blood, her pulse, her entire body. Eyelids fell over irises. A thump sounded as a body hit the ground.

She woke up peacefully. No start or gasp or jump or cold sweat. An overwhelming urge filled her chest. Like to urge to exhale after taking in an enormous breath. So just like that, no questions, no thoughts, she exhaled. And a black light, glittering like snow and wispy like smoke it curled up out of her mouth and weaved its way through the air. It took twirls and loops as it sparkled and then as suddenly as it started it dissipated. The girl was mesmerized. Her bright eyes, a mixture of blue and green, glistened as she took in everything around her. Dragons as far as the eye could see. Every color you could think of playing, fighting, sleeping, and preforming seemingly some kind of acrobatics throughout the air.