A Dragon's Life

By Chiara Shih

Chapter1: Breakfast Winkles

“Ugh.” I rolled out of my nest. The padding was nice and soft as I got out. I scrambled towards the bathroom in need of a wee.

Then I heard my master Penelope trample down the hall groggily, so I flew towards the kitchen, excitedly hoping for fresh haddock or winkles.

In the kitchen, she was stirring mackerel in the pot.

“Where’s my winkles?” I demanded crossly.

“Here,” she said, annoyed. “I was hoping you would eat the mackerel.”

Winkles, in case you didn’t know, are small clams, the shells of which you suck to get to their juicy insides. I sucked all my winkles up happily and Master Penelope chowed down the hot mackerel soup that was supposed to be mine.

Chapter 2: The Dragon’s Cliff

Thirty minutes later, we raced down the hall and Master’s best friend Algora Waters came knocking on the door.

Penelope opened the spruce door and we ran out onto the rope bridge that connected our house to the rest of the village.

We ran to the southernmost tip of the island, the Dragons' Cliff. Algora’s dragon slithered out to meet us. He was my bestie.

“Let’s make some mischief!” Daggerfang whispered into my ear, grinning, his green stripes glowing. “Oh, goodie!” I said and we flew, aiming for the village.

Chapter 3: Into The Kitchens

The first thing we aimed for was the Great Hall’s kitchen. We snuck in through the door’s dragon flap and hid behind one of the large kitchen counters so no one could spot us.

Making sure there was no one around, we scrambled towards the chili powder. I held the bag in my hand while Daggerfang directed me towards the lobster stew. I dropped the bag and sprinkled a handful of powder into the pot.

For some reason, I shot lightning bolts towards the ceiling.

We burst out laughing at our silly prank—one that would set the villagers’ mouths on fire—as we dashed back towards the cliff.

Chapter 4: The Afternoon

“Where have you been?” Our masters inquired at the same time. “Potty,” answered Daggerfang slyly.

That afternoon, we spent a good time chasing our tails and catching haddock by the bay. Meanwhile, Algora and Penelope practiced sword fighting and did some dragon-watching.

When the sun began to set, we marched onwards toward the village and entered our separate houses. As we stepped into the front door, Master said, “I'm too tired to go to the Great Hall for dinner. Let’s eat at home.

Nooooo…..but what about our prank? I thought.

I rolled around my nest grumpily for the rest of the evening, until Master called me to dinner.

Chapter 5: Trouble

Instead of going straight to the kitchen, I walked towards the living room and relaxed on the soft and fuzzy polar bear sofa. As I looked up, my eyes caught something in the ceiling. It was an object, dangling from above.

I could not resist. I swooped up so quickly, hitting my head on the ceiling, and with my fangs, clawed at the object until I heard a loud RIIIP!

It was a book that had split in two. Master came into the room and when she saw me with book, she screamed, “Zapps!!! Why did you rip the Dragon’s Book?!”

I looked at her apologetically. She was really upset. “It contains everything our kind know about dragons, all our discoveries! It’s an ancient book! Father will be so angry.”

Then she sighed. “Well let’s try and fix it before he comes home.” Then right as she uttered the words, her father came into the room.

“What is going on he—wait a minute who ripped the Dragon’s Book?!” boomed master’s father. Master Penelope turned to her father and pointed at me. “It was Zapps, Father.” He didn’t mean to.

Master’s father’s face turned as red as a pimiento, and he screamed, “I told you to kick him out a while ago, didn’t I?! Unless you magically fix the book, I WILL KICK OUT THAT DRAGON OF YOURS!” With that, he stormed out of the room. I could actual smoke puffing out of his ears.

Chapter 6: The Magical Fix

That night, I felt so horrid that I couldn’t sleep. At around midnight, I found Master awake and I waddled towards her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a ball of golden thread lying in the corner of the room. I scrambled towards the thread roll and picked it up.

“What do you have there, Zapps?” Master said.

“It’s a ball of magic silk.” I whispered excitedly . “Maybe we can use it to mend the ripped book!”

We crept down the hall as silently as possible, and finally reached the living room. Master pulled out a needle and started sewing. The magical thread worked so well that the rips disappeared one by one. By the time we reached the last rip, it was nearly dawn. The sky was beginning to show a little pink. The book was back together, good as new!

“Let’s go to bed now,” said Master Penelope, yawning. “I want to rest.” We crept back to bed and slept.

Chapter 7: Rewards

When we woke up a few hours later, we heard a surprised, “How in the name of the arctic polar bear did the Dragon’s Book mend itself?!” It was Master Penelope’s father.

“I’m pretty sure Penelope and her dragon helped,” was Master Penelope’s mum’s reply. (She had so much more common sense).

For the rest of the day, Master Penelope and I were treated to our favorite lunch, and lots of playtime!

Chapter 8: Back to School

The next day, Master Penelope took me to school. It was the first day of training for me and Daggerfang. Master was really bossy, and she woke me up really early so we could get to school in time.

At school there were nine other dragons in my class. We had to do flying practice, and I was the best! We also had to do Fire Breathing and Electric Bolt Aiming lessons. The worst class for me was the Most Menacing Face. It was kind of boring, and I look too cute for it.

Chapter 9: Awards

A week later, there was an awards ceremony for dragons at their owners at school.

The winners were...

Sword fighting: Penelope Arrows

Archery: Algora Waters

Spear work: Calibur Washer

Blades: Norel Laurels

The winners got to join a young warrior program, which Master Penelope was super excited about!

Us dragons also received awards:

Quickest flyer: Zapps-- that’s me!

Fastest Claws: Daggerfang

Fiery Breath: Sparks

Most menacing: Firefang

We got luxury pillows, all the fish we can eat, and free massages for prizes! I love my life.

The End. (For Now).