Skylar's Perspective
We rode the dragon for hours. I clung to his scaly neck. The moon started to rise high in the sky. It seemed so close as it shined on us. It was like I could almost reach it.
"We need to settle down for the night." Prince James announced with a yawn.
"Of course. I forgot you two need your beauty sleep." Mozale grumbled.
We reached a hill for Bean to land on. It offered no shelter. I could see forests below us in every direction.
"Where are we to sleep?" Prince James asked.
"Under Bean's wing of course." Mozale replied.
Awkwardly James and I walked to Bean's side. He covered us with his huge wing. Bean tucked us in underneath. His wing was like a tent. Mozale laid back against Bean's belly. I watched her. She did it so naturally like it was her routine. I guess she was a dragon traveler. I looked over at James. His eyes were closed and his breathing was slow, I could tell he was already asleep. He was a truly great prince at the end of the day. He didn't snore. He looked handsome, even when he was asleep. He was very brave to try to fight the evil creatures we faced, and like me he tried to do everything perfectly. He was a great guy for me. Soon Luna and I would be together again. He had said he had never loved Luna and he had always loved me. Was it true that he had only come out here for me? I tried to push my thoughts away. Would Luna approve and let me marry James or would she be upset? I found it hard to sleep with my mind racing. I settled against James. He was comfortable and fit with me like the missing piece to a puzzle. I stared up at the giant scales of the dragon wing. It was hard to accept this fantasy.
In the morning we rode through the air quickly and quietly.
"We've reached seven miles!" I announced cheerfully. "I think"
Mozale snickered at me. Darkness seemed to dance in her black eyes. I bit my lip as I scanned the surrounding area. There was no sign of any warriors. I doubted Mozale really knew the goblin language. I wondered if she was really taking us to Luna. Mozale flew us through the forest. We landed in a clearing. All we found was what looked like the remains of an old campsite. If any warriors had lived here they obviously didn't live here now.
"Fuck." Mozale groaned.
James picked up a piece of flint and started a fire with the sticks he had collected. I sat down on a log that was near the fire. I missed my maidservant. Lily would be having so much fun on this journey. If only I had asked James if Lily could have come with us. I sighed in regret. James looked over at me.
"What's wrong Skylar?" He asked.
"I miss home. I miss my maidservant. I wish Lily were here with me." I said with a sigh.
"I miss home too. We'll be headed back as soon as we find Luna." He said with a smile. "Think of it like this we're on a great adventure that we can tell everyone when we're back."
"Yeah you're right, I guess." I said.
"Don't worry. Have some fun." He replied.
James patted me on the back. I looked up and saw the large green dragon sat hunched up and hunkered over the campsite, which was too small for him. Mozale waved her hands in the air. Then suddenly he was as small as one of Father's hunting dogs. I gasped. Mozale smiled. It was another one of her magic tricks. Bean happily trotted over to the fire. He rubbed against my legs. I shivered at the touch. He was like a dog.
After we had warmed ourselves by the fire we came across a small town before nightfall. Mozale's dark eyes sparkled with a taunting gaze as she led us through the roads. She gestured to a rundown building. I paused in the street before we entered the building. The bricks had started to crumble and fade. Glass was broken in the window frames. The door looked rusty and uninviting. James had heard me stop and turned to face me.
"It won't be so bad, princess." He said.
I shook my head. Though I reluctantly followed behind him. My feet dragged as if I were an unruly child who didn't want to listen. He put a comforting hand on my arm and walked me in. I told myself it was only because he was a good prince and he had been my friend my whole life. Not because of anything else. I felt safer as he led me along. He pulled me inside the building. I exhaled the breath I didn't realize I had been holding. We had walked into the grungy building. I looked around. Men were laughing and clinking glass bottles together. Surely Luna couldn't be here. I scanned the room dully.
Mozale strode up to the bar counter. The burly bartender nodded to her and grabbed up a glass.
"Drinks on me." She shouted back at us. "Three glasses of whiskey."
The bartender smiled and set three glasses on the counter and got to pouring. Mozale sprouted coins from her hands. Gold hit the countertop with loud clangs. I stared at her along with everyone else. Everyone else began to cheer. I was upset. I didn't like when people spawned anything for themselves, just because they knew how to do magic. It felt like she was cheating the system. Those items must've come from somewhere, I thought to myself. James chugged down his glass. I declined mine. I watched Mozale and James go shot for shot as others toasted along. James was getting super drunk with the villagers. Everyone else was having a merry time, except for me. I didn't drink, besides for wine at special occasions like the tradition said.
"Bean and I are going for a walk." Mozale announced with slurred words.
I rolled my eyes. Mozale snickered as she walked away. I knew something was up. I decided to sneak after them. I waited a few minutes and then trailed them. Even though it was improper for a princess to eavesdrop on others. They stopped in a small clearing and Mozale turned to Bean. I jumped behind a bush so they wouldn't spot me.
"Shall we tell them of their mistake?" Bean rumbled in a voice so low that I could only catch a few words. "They're bound to find out."
"No, don't you dare ruin my fun." Mozale's irritated voice replied.
"Well...you know who did...kill a knight." Bean's worried voice grumbled.
I peeked out from behind the bush and saw Mozal kick dust around. What? Who? Poor knight? Thoughts raced through my mind. I crawled backwards through the bush and then raced through the woods until I found James sitting outside of the bar.
"You ditched me." James complained.
"I wanted to keep an eye on our guide. I thought she was leaving us." I lied.
"Thank you." James replied.
Mozale and Bean came back from their 'walk'. Mozale stared at us and sighed.
"As you can tell the warriors aren't here. I know of another one of their locations. So we will go there." Mozal said.
"Are you really taking us to Luna?" I questioned.
"Oh alright." Mozale laughed to herself. "You really don't trust me. Yes I'm taking you to Luna. I have business to do with her."
She smiled at me, as if she knew something I didn't. Maybe she saw me eavesdropping, or maybe she hoped that we ran into the knight killer. What if we did? She wouldn't help us. Even though James was a good fighter, he couldn't defend us against a murderer.
"Why are you staring at me? Princess!" Mozale snapped.
I looked away. I think she saw the fright in my eyes.
"Anyway, we'll need to get going soon." Mozale snarled.
With that she stomped off into the woods. We returned to the old campsite. Promptly Bean curled up in front of the fire and promptly fell asleep. The frightening monster dragon looked almost harmless when he was the size of a dog. I brushed his chest with my hand. I wished I had my saddle, I was sore from riding bareback. I wished I had Stella. I wished I had William to brush Stella. I wished I had all of my dresses. I really missed Lily. I thought to myself, This is all for Luna. I wouldn't be surprised if when I found her she was curled up in a ball, crying for her old life. I couldn't wait to rescue her and get back home.
Mozale came back in the middle of the night. I was up waiting for her return. I stared at her as I saw her do a magic spell. She whispered words softly. I didn't understand any of them. She closed her eyes and Bean started growing. Bean rumbled when he was the right height again. Mozal opened her eyes and he stopped growing. Some of the trees that had surrounded us, had crashed onto their sides. Mozale climbed up onto Bean.
"Wake up James and let's get going!" She announced.
I went to James' side. I shook him a few times and he started to wake up. He yawned and stretched at first. I couldn't believe he slept with the trees falling around us.
"What did I miss?" He asked.
"Nothing much, it's time to fly." I said with a soft smile.