The Dragon and the Princess

“Go forth in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face. But with great purpose in heart.”

One day, when he was flying through the mountains near the village where he had his lair, he came upon a wizard who, he saw, was also alone. He flew down and watched the wizard from afar. The dragon observed as he was chopping up some herbs and putting them in his pipe to smoke, whereupon he started mixing some powders and potions and drinking and sniffing them. The dragon thought that the wizard looked lonely and unhappy and quite strange so he flew down and said “Hello!” The wizard didn’t seem to notice the dragon and instead seemed to be in his own world talking nonsense and staring into space as if in a trance. This went on for some time, and the dragon watched bemused. Eventually, however, the wizard acknowledged him. “Hello, would you like some of my pipe?” asked the wizard and held out his hand with the pipe emitting a sweet and noxious smell. The smell seemed familiar to the dragon, he had tried these herbs before, he thought, and he remembered that he liked them and what they did, and so he reached out his hand and took it and inhaled deeply. The dragon didn’t feel so lonely anymore and he lay on his back next to the wizard. They conversed and shared stories for many hours and the two of them quickly knew that they had made a new friend.

The dragon felt like the wizard needed help and wisdom and the wizard could see the dragon needed a companion. After a while the wizard continued to make new potions and to mix powders and imbibe them and eventually the dragon asked about those too. “They make you feel good,” said the wizard, “and take the pain away.” “What pain do you have?” asked the dragon. The wizard replied, “The pain my father, the sorcerer, has caused me.” The dragon thought of his own pain of loneliness and so asked if he might try the potions and powders too, “Gladly!” replied the wizard and instructed the dragon on what to do. He told him the names and properties of the different substances, he told him to never have too many or too much, to pace himself and to learn his limits. He told him to not to drink too many potions and have powders all at the same time, and other things that meant he could enjoy these things safely. “Here, try this one,” he said offering up a spoon heaped in blue crystals.

Upon ingesting these things, suddenly, it was as if all the world was of no import anymore and nothing mattered. The dragon entered a dream world and a trance and thought many weird, unusual and interesting things and was very happy. The two of them danced and giggled and laughed away, occasionally finding themselves doing nothing, and occasionally a great deal indeed; although the dragon could not remember exactly what they were doing. When the potions and powders wore off, they would take more and this continued for some time. “Let us fly around and see the world,” said the wizard, and clambered onto the dragon’s back. They flew far and wide and had many adventures lasting many years, always fuelled by the powders and potions that the wizard had a constant supply of. They would chase maidens and females (maidens were the more beautiful kind of female, less creature, more feminine, but both are better understood as feminines) and they would frequent inns, go to caves where the trolls and goblins would throw parties and visit village fayres and festivals and more. They were best friends. The dragon helped the wizard greatly, and would carry him until he could go no more, whereupon, the wizard would help the dragon. There was an equality of sorts; the wizard would say nice things to the dragon (although he also would often say bad things), he would be very generous with his things and he would listen to the dragon’s tales and woes.

Everywhere they went they were the most unusual and interesting attractions and they gathered many friends and had many fun and interesting times. Ultimately, however, the dragon grew weary. “What are we doing?” the dragon asked one day. “What do you mean, we are having fun?!” replied the wizard. “But I cannot remember much, I know I am having fun, but if I can’t remember much of it then what is it good for? And also, I do not feel that I am doing anything of any value. I feel more separated than before.” The wizard did not understand. “But is it not fun to do as we do and to be kings among men and mock those who are lower than us, the ordinaries? To chase females, or preferably maidens, and to feel good about yourself?” (The wizard was often doing this, mocking others secretly, taking things that weren’t his, and doing things that made him feel good but at the expense of others, and he would even, and often, chase maidens the dragon was chasing, just to make himself feel better.) The dragon did not think that any of this was fun (or good for that matter), actually, not now that he thought about it and remembered. “I think I have to go now.” he said mournfully, “I feel something else is calling me.” “You are being silly,” said the wizard, “but go if you must my friend, you know where you can find me.”

So the dragon flew off, up high, as high as he could and looked upon the world. He flew until he could not feel the potions and powders or herbs any more, and thought long and hard about things. He liked the wizard, he was not a bad person, but realised he was not really equal, that the wizard had been taking more from the dragon than he had given; he felt the wizard had taken some of the dragon’s fire from him, with words and spells that he had not noticed until now that the wizard had wrought. He felt weakened and that he had forgotten his task. He thought about what is the purpose of life, about the whole of his past (of which he could remember little, but of that, that he could remember, he felt great guilt and sorrow though he did not know why this was) and he thought of what he was supposed to do.