Learning of the ways
“Follow me!” was all he bothered to say to Renna when she came into living room. The Dragon was wearing as old and worn looking clothes as she was. He marched away through the big doors and Renna followed trying to figure out what she was expected to do.

After entering the great hall they went to the left under the first balcony until they came to a small door. First thing Renna noticed was a strong smell. The chamber was warmer than rest of the cave. In the center of it was a pool, witch as Rennas nose told her, was the source of this nasty stagnant stench.

“This water comes from the hot water source deep underground and it’s very clean. I left the pool uncleaned for too long and now it has escalated into a full-scale disaster. We must scratch it clean. Spirits can’t help us with cleaning the pool, because water hurts them, but they will take out the dirt for us. Jump in.” He handed her a big bucket and a small shovel, took up a similar pair of tools and jumped in.

Renna followed reluctantly into the smelly pit. Its bottom was carved into three steps deepening towards the center, at least that’s what the Dragon said, because the center of the pool staring at the second step was filled with slippery smelly dirt. There was no way around it so they started digging it up and heaving it out of the pool. First Renna scraped the dirt with a bucket and then he heaved it to the edge of the pool. Soon all loose sludge was gone and they had to resort to shovels to get the rest loose. One Renna had to admit: It was damn difficult to disgust someone who was up to his waist in same shit she was. They started to talk. First words were only warnings of what move they were going to do next but soon they were simply chatting. Renna started the conversation.

“Boy this goo smells. What is it?”

“Just mud gone rotten in a stagnant pool… It’s well worth cleaning it out though.”

“Why, what is this pool good for?”

“You’ll see. But why did you keep sitting on that tree year after year?”

“Watch out!” Splash of mud passed him by an inch. “I don’t know. It was fun I guess, mysterious. So you did see me? I never noticed you looking.” It would take a lot more to get her to admit that she was secretly attracted to magical charm of The Dragon.

“I did. Dragons sight is not limited to its eyes you know.”

“I don’t. I have never talked to a dragon before…”

“We see with our hearts also. We see the shape of ones soul an there are no two alike.”

“You speak of -we-, are there others like you?”

“Not in this world. I was banished here alone.” His voice was so sad that Renna almost regretted asking. “But where I come from there are as many of us as there are humans here. You can’t imagine how I miss my home, my family and my mother most of all.”

“I can understand how must you feel. I’m far from home too, remember? Have you got any way to contact them?”

“No, but my mom sometimes finds me and talks to me through the fire. That’s why the seat in front of the fire is so important to me. Sometimes she sends gifts too but that’s not nearly enough.”

“What kind of gifts?”

“Books mostly.”

“You can read?”

“Of course. Can’t you?”

“Only priests and noble men know how to read. They say that women folk can’t learn to read because they are not meant to read. They say women are made for their men, to bear their children and cook their meals.”

“Stupid nonsense. Do you want to learn to read?”

“I don’t know if I can. What is written in books?”

“Well, there are different books. Some tell of things that really have happened, some tell of made up stories, some tell of someone’s thoughts and some of things known of this world.”

“Is it really possible that I could read some day?”

“Of course! We can start as soon as we have cleaned this pool.”

For some time they shoveled in silence. The bottom of the pool was getting slowly cleaner so shovels became useless and they had to use their hands. Tiredness was getting into their bones but moods had gone up. They stared joking and threatening to smear each others face with the mud. In a moment they were both covered in mud from head to toe and laughing like mad at one another muddy face. Soon there was no liftable mud left so Renna sat down on the second step and asked,

“What now?”

“I’ll have to find the holes and unplug them. We are to dirty to go anywhere.”

“What holes?”

“This pool sits on a hot water fountain and there are holes in the bottom that let the hot water in if they are not full of dirt. We will get a nice warm bath when I find them and pull the dirt out. Ah here’s one!”

A small fountain came up from the bottom and washed clean its surroundings. Two more stuck holes were revealed and soon both of them were cleaning out the plugs in the bottom of the pool. The water was filling the pool. Both workers sat on the edge of the pool and watched the water rise.

Suddenly Renna took a deep breath and sighed.

“I still haven’t got a name for you!”

“Don’t worry, sooner or later you’ll find one.”

“Let me think now. I can’t let you teach me reading if I don?t even know how to call you.”

Water kept rising and Rennas brow showed signs of serious thinking. At last when water was up to her waist already she opened her mouth.

“I guess this shows lack of fantasy but I’ll call you Drake.”

“Name as any other. Short, suiting and good to say… I’m glad.”

Renna smiled. Water rushing up from the bottom pushed the dirt up and cleaned their dirty clothes. Soon the pool was overflowing and the last dirt ran away down a drain into a pit in the farthest corner. Drake said it led down to an underground river. They soaked and chatted in warm bubbling water for an hour until it was lunchtime. They climbed out of the pool and after rubbing themselves dry with towels one of the most vague fireladies had brought they headed towards their rooms. They stopped for a moment in the living room before parting.

“You will come out to have lunch with me? I’ll be so lonely behind the big table alone if you don’t…” asked Drake with a pleading voice.

Renna decided to come. You can’t say no to a man to whose face you just a little while ago have rubbed with mud and who has done the same to you. It was like playmates honor… She went to change.

Picking a dress worried Renna the most. She was in no mood for a blue dress. Green, one multicolored perhaps but not blue. With a sigh she opened the wardrobe door and looked in. The blueness was gone not only from her heart but from the wardrobe too. Only dress that had not changed was the night sky blue one. There were now dresses of all colors. Renna picked out a green dress with wide rainbow colored waist scarf and put it on. Maria helped her again with her hair. She looked at Maria again from the mirror as she was setting her hair and found the strength to come to terms with what she was. She did not seem sad to Renna and that made her think.

“Are you happy, Maria?”

“Yes. I have no reason to be sad.”

“Do you remember being human like me?”

“I do and I’m glad I am not human any more. There. You are done. Now go, he is waiting.”

This time he did not come to take her to the table. He stood by the table and waited her to take a seat before sitting down himself.

“We are equals now. This cave is as much yours as it is mine.” He explained with a smile.

Renna had a question to ask.

“Is the wardrobe in my room magical?”

“Yes! All items in this place are in some way magical. Your wardrobe adjusts to your needs. You’ll find other items magic properties sooner or later…”

“Did you make them?”

“No. I’m no craftsman. I brought them with me from my own world.”

“But you can do magic?”

“A little. I never had the gift and there is only so much you can do with education if one is not talented. This world is also hostile to magic. I can do almost nothing outside this cave.”

“Can you show me something?”

“Will an illusion do?”

“Sure!” Renna smiled.

Drake closed his eyes, put his hands together, took a deep breath and spread his arms wide. Form between his palms a sphere expanded until it engulfed them. From the outside it looked like a gray ball but on the inside was a perfect sunset over a small rocky island in the silent sea. They were still sitting behind their table but it seemed to have moved to that island.

“It’s so beautiful!” Exclaimed Renna.

“Just an illusion. If you stretch out you hand it disappears outside the sphere. See.? He stretched out his hand. “I’ll leave it up for dinner if you like…”

“Please do. I so love the sea. I have seen it only twice.”

Food was delicious as always. They talked of work already done and of how they were going to organize Rennas learning and other things around the cave needing work…

After lunch they went to the great hall and Renna discovered that the entire wall of that room was covered in bookcases. That?s why there were balconies up to the ceiling. They climbed almost half the height of the room to find a book suitable for learning. Renna noticed couches with lights at regular intervals and asked about their purpose.

“They are for sitting peacefully while reading. You will learn to value them. I usually don’t take books down. I never read them longer than a few hours and it’s tiresome to walk up here again to put them back.”

He took down a slim book with a beautiful picture of the sea on the cover. As Renna learned over the next few weeks it was full of stories and poems about the sea. Mornings they spent doing things in the cave and afternoons at first teaching Renna and later reading together in the great hall Renna now knew to call The Library. In the evenings they sat in front of the fireplace and talked of their loved ones and homes they had left behind. Slowly friendship got forged between them so that one night by the fire the really personal things got asked…

“Was there a young man left to miss you when I took you?”

“No. I never met a young man who could see with his heart as well as with his eyes. What about you? Was there some pretty lady dragon missing you after you left?”

“I had a girlfriend there and I thought she loved me but when I was banished I asked her to come with me and she laughed at me… It hurt a lot, but the years have made the pain dull.”

“I can’t understand her…”

Other discussions like that popped up and then one morning Renna felt uneasy. Something bothered her and she just could not put her finger on it. Summer was soon over, then passed the fall and winter without change. All new things start in spring.

She did not feel like working that morning. It had been long winter and it seemed to be one of the first really warm spring days by the look of the bright blue sky above the glass dome of the great hall. She took a book and sat down. Reading was easy now and books had taught her so much but that morning she was not getting anywhere. Her eyes kept falling on the spring sky above. She had been out on the ledge alone many times during past months and she decided to go there now. When she came out to the warm sun the saw that Drake was already there.

“Are you going to fly out there?”

“I thought I would… But I won’t go if you want me to stay here with you.”

“Can’t you in some way take me with you? Show me some beautiful places that people can’t get to on foot perhaps.”

“Sure you won’t fear me in my dragon form?”

“Sure.”

“Then perhaps you could sit on my back and hold on. Would you like to try?”

“Of cource I would!” Renna nodded excitedly

“Hold back then. I’ll transform now.”

He made sure Renna was far enough and then in a second man was gone and The Dragon was standing in his place. For a moment Renna felt uncertain but then looking into the dragons eyes her heart saw no change and she walked over to the beast. After a few attempts Renna was sitting securely on his back and they took off. First they fell a bit and that scared Renna for a moment. When she felt the powerful strokes of her rides wings her fear disappeared and she enjoyed the flight. They went to a mighty waterfall and spent the day there. They ran around and played. Before going home they sat side by side on a rock only few meters from the fall in the middle of the rushing stream and watched the sunset. They were so happy to be together in that moment watching the sun set behind dark forest.

They spoke little on the way back and went straight to beds but they spent many more spring days out there together being happy until one day after returning Drake made a surprising offer.

“Lets have a picnic out on the island I showed you with magic so long ago. We could go there for sunset and see the stars come out.”

“It could be fun… Is it far away?”

“It takes us a whole day to get there with our baskets and all. I’ll have to do two trips. One for our picnic gear and one for you.”

“Why not! But we can’t do it tomorrow. It takes some preparing… Day after tomorrow?”

“Suits me.”

They bid goodnight and went to their beds. The next day Renna and Drake spent preparing for their night out. Renna was cooking with fireladies and Drake packed things to take along with them. Just before bedtime all was packed and with calm hearts they went to their beds.

After breakfast Drake flew away with the packs and left Renna waiting anxiously for his return. When he finally did return it was long past noon.

Drake was in a hurry. “Come! If we want to be there by sunset we must go now.”

“I’m coming! What took you so long?”

“You’ll see! Lets go!” was all Drake answered and they rushed out of the cave.Next…