Dragon's Breath (13 page)

"Hop!" shouted Eadric.

We leaped straight ahead, directly under the spider's belly, while its hairy legs skittered around us. A dark blue, foul-smelling fluid dripped from a wound in the spider's underside, and we took an extra second or two to hop around the splashing puddle. The spider staggered as it turned to follow, shrieking high-pitched notes that hurt my eardrums.

"You come back here!" screamed the spider. "You can't get away with this! No one does this to me and lives!"

With all its legs, the spider could easily have overtaken us, but its lopsided gait sent it careening off tree trunks and stumbling over the uneven ground. We hopped around fallen branches, and when our path lay straight before us, we leapted in ground-eating bounds. Eadric was a better hopper and could have left me behind if he'd wanted to, but he stayed by my side, encouraging me when I began to tire.

"I wish I had Ferdy," said Eadric, who wasn't the least bit out of breath. "I was getting used to him. He's a good sword."

"We'll come back ... for him ... when we change ...

again."

The spider was persistent, staying on our trail no matter how we dodged and circled. Every few minutes I looked back over my shoulder, hoping I wouldn't see it, but the spider was always there.
If I could make up a spell,
I thought, but all I could come up with were some silly rhymes using
spider
and
beside her,
which I didn't like at all.

When the ground began to shake again and I stumbled and fell, I thought it was just my usual clumsiness, but the ground was still shaking as I got back on my feet. Suddenly, I had an idea. "Head for the giants' trench!" I shouted to Eadric.

"Are you crazy? That's the last place we should go. We don't have any way to defend ourselves."

"That's exactly why we're going there," I said. The shaking ground had tripped the spider as well. When I glanced back, it was staggering to its feet, keening so loudly it made me cringe. I hurried on, bounding across the forest floor, ignoring the pain in my side and the burning in my lungs. When we finally reached the trench, another group of giants was already in sight, striding along their path. I looked back to make sure that the spider was still following us, but I needn't have bothered. Even the sight of the approaching giants wasn't enough to scare it away.

"Emma, come back," shouted Eadric as I put on a burst of speed and jumped past him, sailing down into the trench.

When Eadric jumped in after me, I didn't know if he wanted to drag me out or if he understood what I was planning to do and wanted to help, but either way it was enough to entice the spider to follow us into the trench. I headed straight toward the approaching giants whose slow, steady pace covered more ground in just a few minutes than it would have taken me hours to hop.

"Emma," shouted Eadric, but I didn't have time to talk. The spider had learned to compensate for its lost limbs and had started to pick up speed.

I was hopping as fast as I could when I realized that with his next step, the first giant would be upon us. "Now!" I shouted to Eadric. Spinning around, I tensed my muscles, then put all my strength into jumping out the other side of the trench. When I soared through the air with my legs extended, it felt almost like flying. I'd misjudged the distance and landed on the edge, my breath whooshing out of me. Using the last of my strength, I pulled myself onto level ground while Eadric sailed past me in a graceful arc.

Looking back at the trench, I saw that the spider was trying to follow us, its remaining legs scrabbling at the soil. With the ground shuddering wildly beneath our feet, Eadric and I fell. The spider, who had climbed halfway up the side of the trench, fared even worse, tumbling down the crumbling dirt to land on its back. In an instant, the giant's foot came down with a loud splat.

Trying to be inconspicuous, Eadric and I stayed where we were until the giants had passed. Once they were gone, we crept to the edge and looked down. The spider was a blotch on the floor of the trench, its legs dark lines embedded in the dirt.

"Whatever made you think of coming here?" Eadric asked.

"I couldn't think of a spell, so I tried to think of how I would kill a spider at home. Stepping on it seemed like the best idea."

"Good thinking, except for one thing—you could have been killed!"

"I guess," I said, shivering at the thought.

"Good going!" said a strange voice. "That spider got just what it deserved."

I looked around, but there wasn't anyone in sight. "Who was that?" I asked.

"I'm Ralf," said the voice, and the little dragon popped his head out from behind a tree trunk, a crumpled violet dangling from his mouth. "I wanted to thank you for helping me. If you hadn't come along, I'd probably be spider food by now."

Eadric smiled. "Glad we could help."

Ralf swallowed the flower, flapped his wings and rose into the air, creating a small gale that whipped the leaves on the trees nearby. Eadric and I had to grab each other's arms and lean into the wind to keep from being blown to the ground.

"I saw you turn into frogs," said Ralf, landing beside us. "That was really something! What else can you change into?"

I coughed and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. "Nothing. That was it."

"Oh," said Ralf, looking disappointed. Then his eyes brightened as if he'd thought of something else. "You're not werefrogs, are you? I've heard of werewolves, but I've never heard of werefrogs."

"No, we're just having a problem with a spell. I'm Emma, and I'm a witch in training. This is my friend Eadric."

"Pleased to meet you," Ralf said, nodding to us one at a time. "You were both awfully brave. I was really scared when I got caught in that web, but you two weren't frightened at all, even when the spider was chasing you."

"Maybe we didn't look scared, but I was terrified!" I said. "I was hopping as fast as I could and it still didn't feel fast enough."

"Tell me something," said the little dragon. "If you're not were-anything, why are you here? This is a very dangerous place, especially for humans."

"We're looking for a few things," said Eadric. "A green dragon and the feather from an old horse. You haven't seen any green dragons around, have you?"

Ralf frowned. "I don't know any green dragons. How about yellow?"

"It has to be green," I said, shaking my head. "We're trying to reverse a spell. It's very important."

"You should ask my grandfather. He's the king, so he knows all the dragons. I can take you to see him if you'd like."

"He won't want to eat us, will he?" I asked.

"Maybe if you were humans, but dragons don't eat frogs. Anyway, you saved my life and you're my friends now, so he'll want to meet you. Hop on."

"Hop on where?" Eadric said, looking at the dragon as if he was a horse.

Ralf squatted and let his wings droop. "My back. Grandfather lives in a cave at the base of the Purple Mountains. It's a long way from here."

I cringed, mindful of my tender frog skin. "We can't. Your scales are too rough."

"Not at the base of my neck. There's a little gap in my ridge where you'll fit if one of you sits behind the other. It's smooth there and you won't get hurt."

I had never heard of riding a dragon, and after our experience with the magic carpet, I wasn't sure either of us wanted to fly anywhere, but we had only one day left and needed the dragon's breath. "I'll climb on his back if you will," I said to Eadric, pointing at Ralf's wing.

Eadric grasped two knobs where the wing bones met and began to pull himself up. "What about Ferdy? I should go see if he's all right."

I followed, watching to see where he placed his feet. "You're a frog now. You couldn't lift him anyway."

Grunting, Eadric heaved himself onto Ralf's back. "Then we have to look for him after we've seen Ralf's grandfather. You wouldn't mind taking me, would you, Ralf? I left my sword near the spider's web."

"I'd be happy to, Eadric," said Ralf. I grabbed hold of his ridge when the little dragon stiffened his wings and began to flap. Eadric wrapped his arms around me as he whispered into my eardrum, his voice so soft that I could barely hear it over the swish of the dragon's wings. "What do you think of Ralf?"

"I like him."

"So do I," said Eadric, "and I
never
thought I'd meet a dragon that I liked. I just wish we weren't going to meet Ralf's grandfather. We're frogs, and I don't have any way to protect us."

"You heard what Ralf said. Dragons don't eat frogs. We should be fine. Tell me something. What would you have said if someone had told you a few weeks ago that you soon would be riding on a dragon's back with a princess in your arms?"

I felt Eadric shrug. "I'd have asked her name. A few weeks ago, I was looking for a princess to kiss. I never imagined I'd be lucky enough to find you."

I sighed and settled back against his chest. For a frog who could be all too thickheaded, Eadric could be awfully sweet sometimes.

Eighteen

Even young dragons like Ralf have powerful wings that can carry them at great speeds. Although the Purple Mountains were many miles from the enchanted forest, it wasn't long before Ralf was following the contours of the foothills and skimming the mountainsides.

Angling into a valley pocked with caves, he suddenly darted into a larger opening. The cave narrowed at the back, forming a long, smooth-sided tunnel. It was dark and gloomy inside, and I couldn't imagine how Ralf could see well enough to fly. However, the deeper we went, the better I understood why his grandfather lived there. Great patches of lichen grew on the walls, glowing like witches' lights. Delicate crystalline flowers bloomed on the walls and floors. We passed through larger caves where columns of multicolored rock rose from the floor to the ceilings high above. I saw soild rock that looked like flowing water and clear pools of water that seemed to be bottomless.

It was cooler than it had been aboveground, but not uncomfortable. We began to smell a pungent odor soon after we entered the first tunnel. The deeper we went, the stronger the smell became, until the air seemed thick with it. The tunnels branched occasionally, and a few of the passages belched hot air. I was happy when Ralf passed those by.

"When we get there," whispered Eadric, "I'll look around in case we have to get out fast. You can't trust dragons, and we may have to escape if the situation turns bad. Whatever you do, don't sneeze."

My fingers were growing numb from clutching Ralf's ridge when we finally entered a chamber larger than any others. "This is Grandpa's treasure room," said the little dragon as he landed on the floor. "He spends most of his time here."

Eadric immediately hopped down while I took my time and looked about from my elevated vantage point. Pink and white striped columns seemed to hold up the ceiling, while squat cones rising from the floor gilstened with dripping moisture. All kinds of objects were stacked one on the other in tottering piles. Some, like the enormous mounds of precious stones, were glittering and obviously valuable. I wasn't so sure about others, like the old shoes and stacks of yellowing parchment.

A low-voiced murmur ran through the cave. "You should go over here, although maybe you're more pink than red. Where did I put that other one? I thought I had six of these."

"Grandpa likes to sort his treasures in different ways. Sometimes he does it by size, sometimes by shape or—"

"Who dares enter my cave?"
boomed a voice so loud that the piles shook and small objects clattered to the floor. What I had thought was a mound of golden treasure wasn't treasure at all. It was an enormous dragon.

"It's me, Grandpa. It's Ralf! I've come to visit you, and I've brought two of my friends."

"Ralfie, my boy! Come over here where I can see you!" said his grandfather.

Wishing I had gotten off sooner, I clung to the ridge on the back of Ralf's neck as he flapped his wings and skimmed over the treasure. My heart thudded wildly; the nearer we got to Ralf's grandfather, the bigger he seemed. The Dragon King was the largest creature I had ever seen. Each of his scales was bigger than a human head and ranged in color from yellow-gold on his throat to red-gold on his tail. The ridge along his back was tall and spiky, although some of the points had broken off and others were missing altogether. His age was evident from the scarring on his scales, the hair sprouting from his long, pointed ears and the way his claws were blunted by wear.

"There you are, my boy!" said the old dragon, crouching down to peer nearsightedly at his grandson. "But what's that on your back? It's not some kind of parasite, is it? Or have you caught some new disease? Maybe I should find my special ointment."

"No, Grandpa, that's my friend Emma. Eadric is around here, too. They're frogs, Grandpa, and they saved my life!"

I scrunched down as low as I could behind Ralf's ridge while he told his grandfather about the spider and our rescue. The little dragon made us sound wonderful, but I held my breath, hoping he wouldn't mention that we were actually humans.

The king was so close, his breath nearly blew me off Ralf, and the smell was enough to make my eyes water. Blinking, he bowed down until his snout nearly touched my head. He sniffed me, and I could feel his hot breath dry out my skin. When he sat back, he said, "You're right. They
are
frogs. Maybe you and your friends would like to help me. I'm sorting everything by color now. Come see my red treasures. Just don't eat my rose, Ralfie. I know how much you like flowers, but that rose is very special."

The pile of red treasures wasn't large, but it was interesting. A red riding cape lined with a wolf skin had been neatly folded and lay atop a mound of sparkling rubies. A half dozen pairs of dancing shoes shuffled around the pile, while a blooming rose trembled beside a restless magic carpet woven in every imaginable shade of red.

"Very nice, Grandpa," said Ralf. "But Emma and Eadric were wondering if you know of any green dragons."

"Green dragons? Why didn't you say so? Of course I have some green dragons! Would you like to see them?"

"Yes, please," I said, my voice coming out in a little whisper. The old dragon was frightening even when he wasn't trying to be, but if he actually knew a green dragon and could take me to him, our search might already be over.

Turning his enormous bulk, the king of the dragons reached into a mound of emeralds. "Now, where did I put them?" he muttered to himself, scattering the emeralds beneath his groping claws. Squinting, he lowered his head so that his nose was only inches from the pile. "Ah, here they are!" he said, holding up two small dragons carved from jade. "Is this what you wanted?"

"No," I said, my disappointment making the word come out more sharply than I'd intended. "Thank you, but we need to find a
real
green dragon."

The old dragon huffed and dropped the jade figures back onto the pile. "Why didn't you say so? There's no such thing as a real green dragon."

"But they have to be real! You must be mistaken."

"I don't make mistakes, young frog! Kings never do!" I shrank back as the old dragon's nostrils flared and smoke puffed out of his gaping mouth.

"I'm sorry, but we have to find a green dragon to break a spell. Spells don't work if they're impossible to break, and this spell has lasted for years."

"Nevertheless, green dragons don't exist. Dragons are red or blue, yellow or purple, black or silver or gold, but in all my years, I have never heard of a green dragon. Now if you'll excuse me, I was looking for something." The old dragon turned away, his tail knocking over a small mountain of sapphires. "I wonder where I put that scarlet pumpernickel," he muttered.

Ralf sat back on his haunches and watched the old dragon go. "I'm sorry we couldn't help you, Emma."

"It's not your fault. Thanks for trying. It's just that I don't know what we're going to do now. We'll never break the spell if we can't find a green dragon, and if we can't break the spell, the kingdom of Greater Greensward is going to be invaded and I might have to marry that awful Jorge!"

"Don't give up yet," he said. "Why don't you look around while I help my grandpa? We don't have to stay long, but we'll hurt his feelings if we leave too quickly." The little dragon crouched so I could climb off. "Come find me if you need anything."

"I was going to ask if your grandfather had a feather from an old horse, but I don't think we need it anymore. How about some water instead?" I said, rubbing the skin on my back. "Your grandfather's breath dried me out."

"I have something even better," Ralf said. Leaping into the air, he disappeared behind the stacks, returning a minute later. "Try this. It's the salve my mother put on me when I was a baby. Little dragons don't have tough skin until they're a year old. This gunk keeps them from getting fried when they're around other dragons."

Ralf's salve was thick and white and smelled kind of minty, like spearmint leaves. Tilting the vial into my hands, Ralf poured out enough to cover me in a thin, sticky layer. It felt cool to the touch, and when I'd smeared it on my skin, I felt cool all over. "Thanks," I said, wishing that all my problems could be solved so easily.

Once I was alone, I started thinking about Grandmother's spell. If there were no green dragons, they couldn't really be part of the cure. My grandmother must have tricked us back on the island, and I'd been foolish enough to believe her. But she'd been so convincing!

I was wandering around, not really looking at anything in particular, when I saw something move. A group of mirrors, both ordinary and magic, had been stacked against one another. The mirror closest to me showed an overweight peasant kneeling by a fireplace in a cottage with a sagging roof. I was already turning away when I realized that it was Olefat with his hair cut short and his beard just starting to grow back.

"I wonder how close Grandmother is to finding him," I murmured to myself. The image blurred, and when it became clearer I saw Olefat again. He was standing now and appeared to be talking to someone. Although I couldn't hear what he was saying, I could tell from his expression that he was in the midst of an argument.

I was watching Olefat gesture with his arms when I noticed that shadows were filling the room behind him. I gasped when they took shape, recognizing my grandmother and the other witches from the retirement community. The old man turned suddenly, but the witches were too fast for him. My grandmother's hand flashed, and Olefat disappeared. In his place cowered a small, brown dog with sad eyes, floppy ears and a white-rimmed muzzle.

I jumped when Metoo streaked into view, his hooked beak and claws reaching for my grandmother. She gestured again and the bird was gone. A moment later, the little dog began to scratch behind his ear with a frenzied kicking of his hind leg. It seemed she'd turned Metoo into a flea.

Something clattered on the other side of the mirrors, and the image disappeared. Following the sound of clinking metal, I found Ralf stacking gem-studded cups in the gold pile while Eadric ogled a golden helmet. From the way his skin was shining, I could tell Ralf had given him the salve, too.

"Are you ready to go yet?" I asked.

"Sure," said the little dragon. "We can go now if you want. I just have to say goodbye to my grandpa." Setting down the last of the cups, the little dragon left to find the Dragon King.

"Come here," said Eadric. "I want to show you something. Just look at the hinged visor on this helmet. I've never seen anything like it before. I could really use this when we hunt for the green dragon."

"There aren't any green dragons, Eadric. Didn't you hear the Dragon King? And if there aren't any green dragons, then Olivene must not have told the other witches the real cure. Maybe she was holding back her secrets from Olefat. It's all been a waste of time." I kicked a spindle of gold wool lying on the floor and watched it spin in a circle. "We might as well go home and tell Grassina. You don't suppose there's any chance that she'll give up and help my parents now, do you?"

"I don't think so," said Eadric. "From the way she acted before, I think she'd fall to pieces if she thought she couldn't get Haywood back. But I don't think you should give up just yet. The old witches' memories seemed to think it was possible. Wouldn't they know if green dragons were real or not? And just because the king says that there aren't any green dragons doesn't mean that it's true. He's half blind and spends most of his time in a cave. I think we should keep looking. There has to be at least one green dragon somewhere."

Ralf was still talking to his grandfather when we found him. "Thanks, Grandpa. We'll be going now."

"You're welcome, Ralfie. Come back any time." The Dragon King smiled a toothy grin that showed off his fangs. I flinched, and Eadric put his arm around my shoulder in a protective sort of way. The old dragon lowered his head to look at us. Pointing with one gnarled claw, he said, "Those two belong in my green pile. What are they doing over there?"

"They're my friends, Grandpa. They're with me!"

"Then you'd better take them out of here. I'm working on my green pile next."

"You heard the king. Climb aboard, you two." Ralf squatted down and extended his wing. "There's someone I want you to meet."

"Is it another dragon?" Eadric asked, helping me onto the little dragon's back.

"Nope, but he's a friend of my grandpa's. His name is Shirley, and I think he can help you with something. Hold on tight!" said Ralf, spreading his wings. "Here we go!"

A current of hot air buffeted us as we headed up the tunnel. I held onto Ralf's ridge so tightly that my hands hurt. "Where does Shirley live?" I asked the little dragon.

"On the highest peak of the Purple Mountains. He's a nice old guy, just a little deaf."

I closed my eyes and sighed. If only we could go home now and didn't have to worry about war or magic spells. If only I
knew
that I'd never have to marry Jorge.