Talking to dragons by Patricia C. Wrede

Author:Patricia C. Wrede [Wrede, Patricia C.]
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Science fiction, Fantasy, General, Fiction, Magic, Juvenile Fiction, Fantasy & Magic, American, Fantasy fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Magic, Wizards, Animals, Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic, Mythical, Humorous Stories, Dragons, Fantasy fiction, American, Swords, Children: Grades 4-6, rulers, Children's 12-Up - Fiction - Fantasy, Kings, queens, rulers, etc., Kings and rulers, Juvenile Science Fiction, Royalty, Animals - Mythical, Kings, queens, rulers, etc, Princesses, Queens, & Magic, Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9), etc, Fairy tales, Kings, etc.
ISBN: 9780152046910
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Published: 2010-01-21T15:45:09+00:00

13

THE DRAGON WAS still sneezing in medium-sized puffs of flame. The man with the staff looked at it closely and shook his head. “That certainly is a dragon.” He made another pass with his staff.

The staff vanished, and the dragon stopped sneezing abruptly. The dragon looked extremely surprised; it sniffed a couple of times in an experimental way, as if it were expecting to start sneezing again any minute. I was surprised, too. I mean, wizards never let go of their staffs, not willingly, anyway.

The man bowed politely to the dragon. “I must apologize for inconveniencing you,” he said. “I offer you greetings and welcome to my home, and I wish you good fortune when you leave.”

“What?” said the dragon.

The man looked a little startled and peered at the dragon more closely. “Oh, I see,” he said after a moment. “Well, you’re welcome; come and make yourself comfortable.”

Shiara scowled at him and bent to pick up Nightwitch, who had come running toward her as soon as the flames had died. The dragon looked suspiciously at the man.

“I don’t like wizards,” it said. “And I don’t like people who put invisible things in the middle of my shortcut.”

“I am not a wizard,” the man said with a sigh. “And my tower has been here for years, and it isn’t invisible. Now, come in and talk. There hasn’t been a dragon by for a long time, and I’m a bit behind on the news.”

“If you’re not a wizard, who are you?” Shiara said, petting Nightwitch and glaring at the man.

“I’m a magician,” the man said. “And my name is Telemain.”

“Pleased to meet you,” I said.

“Mrrow,” said Nightwitch, and started purring loudly.

Telemain looked at the kitten, and suddenly he began to laugh. He had a nice laugh, sort of deep and friendly. I started thinking that I might be able to like him after all, even if his firewall had nearly burned me to a cinder.

“I don’t believe I have ever seen a group quite like this one,” Telemain said when he finished laughing. “Please, tell me who you all are.”

I introduced everyone, and Telemain nodded courteously to each of us. “Welcome to my home,” he said.

“Some welcome!” Shiara said. “You nearly got Daystar killed, and you started the dragon sneezing again. And how come the dragon was allergic to you if you aren’t a wizard?”

“Dragons aren’t allergic to wizards,” Telemain said, sounding surprised. “What gave you that idea?”

“I did!” the dragon said. It came forward and sat down emphatically, right next to me. “All dragons are allergic to wizards. I should know: I sneeze every time I get near one.” It eyed Telemain belligerently.

“Oh, I don’t doubt that at all,” Telemain said. “But I am afraid it isn’t wizards you’re allergic to; it’s their staffs. You stopped sneezing as soon as I got rid of mine, didn’t you?”

The dragon looked startled. “I did, didn’t I?” it said after a minute.

“If you aren’t a wizard, what are you doing with a wizard’s staff?” Shiara asked.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.