Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary

"Don’t worry," the dragon said. "I won’t eat you." He had a male voice, somewhat like a confident teenager, but the words came out richer and fuller than any human could have managed.

"I don’t feel scared," Kendra said.

"I’ve never inspired much terror," the dragon replied, almost sadly. "I’m glad you’re not afraid."

"I mean, I don’t feel paralyzed like with some dragons," Kendra explained, not wanting to belittle him. "I’m plenty startled. I’m sure you could rip me to shreds if you wanted."

"I mean you no harm. You shine like a fairy. More than a fairy, to be accurate. And more than a fairy friend. I’ve actually been looking for a chance to meet you."

"What?"

"You’ve been surrounded by other people." The dragon swung his head away. Was he shy? "You caught my eye right when you entered Wyrmroost. I’ve followed you from Blackwell Keep."

Kendra scrunched her brow. "You’re a little too shiny to blend in much. How did we miss you?"

Suddenly the dragon was gone, as if he had been wiped from existence. Then he was back. "I can go nearly invisible."

"Wow. That would explain it."

"Luckily, I have a few talents besides being a runt."

"You’ll grow."

"Will I? Hasn’t been going very well the past several centuries."

"Centuries?" Kendra said. "You’re not young?"

"I’m a full-grown adult," the dragon said with an edge of bitterness. "Dragons never completely stop growing, but the process slows down as you get old, and I’m well past the age when it slows down. But enough about me. You were crying."

"I’m having a bad day," Kendra said.

"I saw. The griffins carried off your friends."

"One of them was my brother."

"Seth, right? I’ve been eavesdropping a little. I’m Raxtus, by the way."

"Nice to meet you." Kendra glanced up at the walls of the gorge. "I’m trying to get out of here, but it looks like I’m boxed in."

"You really are," Raxtus agreed. "Only winged creatures can access this box canyon. If you head the other way, you’ll hit a huge drop-off, the top of a cliff. There is no way to climb down. A stream used to cut through here. Sometimes it comes back and makes pretty waterfalls, but mostly the water runs a different way now."

"So I’m trapped."

"You would be trapped, yes, but I have wings. I could carry you, no problem."

"Really?" Kendra said.

"Where are you going? You guys always speak low when you discuss your plans. Not a bad idea, by the way. But bad for eavesdropping."

The dragon seemed nice, and he was clearly her only hope. Would he object to taking her to the fairy shrine? Only one way to find out. "The Fairy Queen has a shrine here," Kendra said.

"I knew it!" the dragon exclaimed. "You’re fairykind, aren’t you? I could tell. Well, I thought I could tell. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure, but I would have bet on it. Too bad I didn’t."

Kendra was not normally open about her status as fairykind, but there seemed to be no point in trying to hide it from Raxtus. "Yes, I’m fairykind. Do you know where the shrine is?"

The dragon laughed softly. "You can’t begin to guess how familiar I am with the Fairy Queen’s shrine, I’m probably the only dragon in the world who can go there. I don’t mean near the shrine, in the vicinity, I mean actually right up to the shrine itself."

"Other dragons can’t?"

"No. Almost nobody can. The Queen would strike them down. I’m guessing you can, though."

"Yes. I mean, I have before, but only at the shrine at Fablehaven. A different preserve."

"I’m familiar with Fablehaven," Raxtus said.

"But I’m not sure if I can visit the shrine here. If the Fairy Queen doesn’t want me there, she might turn me into dandelion seeds."

"Right. You have to be careful. You don’t just hang out at the shrine without a purpose."

Kendra chuckled. "You don’t talk like a dragon."

"I’m unusual. I’m not a dragon of Wyrmroost."

"You’re not?"

"I’m at Wyrmroost, but not of Wyrmroost. I was never admitted formally. I’m under no obligation to remain here. I come and go. I’m at Wyrmroost a lot, though, partly because my dad lives here. But I travel all over, mostly incognito, you know, invisible. I really like drive-in movies."

"I’ve seen a dragon outside of Wyrmroost," Kendra said. "I’ve heard of many others. I’ve never heard of one like you."

"There are no other dragons like me," Raxtus admitted. "See, when I was still in my egg, a cockatrice got into the nest. My dad wasn’t around, and my mom had just gotten herself killed, so there was nobody to protect us. Three eggs were eaten. Had they hatched, they would have been my siblings. But before the cockatrice got to the last egg, some fairies intervened and rescued me. By the way, I don’t remember any of this; it was told to me later. Even for a dragon in an egg, I was young when this happened. The fairies who saved me brought me to one of the Fairy Queen’s shrines for protection. I was incubated and hatched by fairy magic, and I came out… unique."

"You’re beautiful," Kendra admired. "And nice."

The dragon gave a snuffling, annoyed laugh. "I get that a lot. I’m the pretty dragon. The funny dragon. Problem is, dragons are supposed to be fearsome and awe-inspiring. Not witty. Being the funny dragon is like being the bald mammoth. Being the pretty dragon is like being the ugly fairy. Get it?"

"You get teased?"

"I wish I only got teased! Mocked would be mote accurate. Scorned. Berated. Shunned. Who my dad is only makes it ten times worse, although it also explains why I’m still alive."

"Who is your dad?"

The dragon didn’t answer. He looked up at the sky. "I’ve known you for like five minutes and I’m already confessing my problems. Laying out my whole life story. Why do I always do this? It’s like, I want to get it out there at the start so I don’t get hurt later on. But I just come off as needy and pathetic. Here you are with real problems and I keep turning the conversation back to me."

"No, it’s okay, I’m interested, I want to know."

Raxtus pawed at the ground. "I guess I have to continue now that I’ve led you on. My dad is Celebrant the Just. He’s basically the king of dragons. The biggest, the strongest, the best. And I’m his greatest disappointment. Raxtus the fairy dragon."

Kendra wanted to give him a hug, but realized that might prove his point. "I’m sure your dad is proud of you," Kendra said. "I bet most of this is just in your head."