Prince and Dragon ~Feat. Papaya~

This one goes out to Sir Curtis, a brave prince against a fierce dragon

Once upon a time there was a boy...

 

…a handsome little boy that lived in a little stone cottage with lots of trees in the yard.  Near a river, where he would go to swim and fish sometimes.   He liked doing all the usual things that boys his age do and appeared to be no different than any other boy his age, but he was.  There was something very special about this boy.  

 

You see, not long ago, the village in which he lived was being terrorized by a big fierce dragon.  It was a purple dragon with red eyes and a wingspan that was wider than the length of ten city buses!  And it breathed fire!

 

It happened one afternoon when the boy and his mother went out for a walk.  They went to visit the nearby pond where his mother liked to pick flowers and the boy liked playing PIRATES with his wooden sword in hand, bravely fighting against the mean marauders that threatened the Black sea.

 

The dragon that had been terrorizing their village spotted them and he swooped down to land in the water with a big HUGE splash that left both the mother and the boy soaking wet!  

 

Not many would dare challenge a beast of this size but this young boy was brave, and breathed fire with his eyes!

 

The dragon stood there in the pond, so big was he that the water was only as deep as his ankles!

He smiled at this brave Prince and a very mean laugh oooooozed from between his sharp teeth!  

 

“Are you looking to fight, little boy?  I dare you to strike a blow!”

 

Now, the boy was frightened of course.  Because who wouldn’t be frightened in the presence of such a fierce dragon?!?!   But still, he bravely stood his ground. He would protect his mother from this dragon and rid the village of him.

 

“This is MY land Dragon, and I came here to play, do not think to challenge me for I shall gladly slay any mean dragon who stands in my way.  Sir Dragon, it is time for you to go!”

The dragon huffed... the dragon puffed... and let out a long breath of fire into the pond, which made the water boil and bubble. He hoped to scare the young brave prince.  He puffed his chest out and flapped his wings.  He let out a loud howl. He flexed his muscles and jumped up and down.  He did all sorts of silly things, hoping to scare the young boy.

“Listen here boy, you are small and wee and I am a big dragon, in case you cannot see.  Do you really believe that YOU can scare ME?  What is this in your hands, it looks like a stick.  Is there no other weapon of which you may pick?”

 

The boy looked at the wooden sword held in his hand, and it did indeed look no bigger than a twig or a stick compared to the enormous size of the dragon.  He himself looked no bigger than a mouse compared to this menacing beast.  But still, the boy bravely held his ground.  He put his blade in his pants as a holster and spoke to the dragon.

 

“Brave men have scurried and children have run to hide but it shall end here today, this bullying of my kind.

I may have but a stick, and you may set me on fire, but I know a trick that will send you back to your spire.”

The dragon had no choice but to laugh and shout, rolling on his back to let more fire breathe out.  The fire he sprayed up into the cloud had turned the sky grey, but the boy stood tall and proud.  He was frightened of course, because who wouldn’t be if they are facing a big mean dragon!?!?!  But he remained brave.

 

 “Little boy, don’t look so mad, a grand old laugh I’ve never had. And here you stand squaring up to me, where others like you would surely flee."

 

The dragon laughed hard and continued.

“You have spunk young man and that I respect, what say you if we have a little test. To see if you can play the role of me and I can play a boy like thee. I’ll put on armor and swivel a stick while you play a dragon with neat little tricks.”

 

The boy was surprised at this and stared at the dragon, but he was up to the challenge and put on a purple armored vest and leather gauntlets with purple sails that were the same color as the dragon’s scales. 

 

He threw his sword in the air for the dragon to catch. And there the prince stretched out his arms to the sky to let out a big roar! 

 

“I am a great Dragon!” he shouted as he flew about, the purple sails flapping like wings.

 

“Mr. Dragon you see, I can play a better dragon than thee, I have no real wings or a tail, but as a brave young prince I cannot fail.  For I have something special you see,  a world of imagination that lives inside me.”

 

“You think you can pretend to be like I, well look out from beyond the sky because there I will fly, down very quick and like a great dragon burn this stick that you hold in your hands.   Fear not though prince I will spare you from harm for I am a boy dragon filled with kindness and charm."

 

The boy began to jump from a tree stump pretending to fly down towards the dragon. The great beast covered and ducked just to hear the laughs from the boy, and decided to join the fun. With the wooden sword, he swung to fight off the prince.

 

"You play a great dragon boy, you do, but can you breathe fire like me too? The burning smoke which travels the air and doesn't leave out even the littlest of hair. Come attack if you will but I will strike with force, for I am the dragon who can play prince on a horse."

 

The boy then took out a bubble bottle and added a bright red color dye. He blew hard to let out a steam of red bubbles that made it look as though he were breathing fire. He had transformed himself into a fire breathing dragon!

 

The dragon was very impressed. 

 

“That’s mean as” he said to the boy. 

 

The dragon and boy were very quickly becoming friends.  They were very different, quite the opposite in many ways and yet they both had spirit, imagination and were both very kind and brave.  The boy discovered that dragon was not really terrorizing the village, he just wanted to visit the people to see what village life was like.

 

Dragons are rare creatures so the dragon often felt lonely, but the people always ran when they saw him flying overhead, fearing that he was there to burn the village and eat everyone. 

 

“But I’m a VEGETARIAN!!!”  The dragon said to the boy.

 

The boy laughed, because who on earth would have ever in a million years guessed that a dragon could be a vegetarian!

 

“Can I fly with you?” asked the boy.  “Can I climb onto your back and fly with you?”

 

The dragon thought about this for a moment. 

 

“It’s very dangerous” he said.  “You might fall and it’s a long way down.”

 

“I’ll hold on tight” said the boy.

 

“It’s cold up there” said the dragon.  

 

“I’ll wear my coat” said the boy.

 

“Oh, alright then” said the dragon.  “Hop on!”

 

The boy put on his warm coat and climbed up onto the back on the Dragon and up, Up, UP they went!   The boy was amazed at how big the world looked from up so high.  Down below everything looked so small.  He could see green hills, forests, he could see the vast ocean and the fishing boats out with nets cast.

 

The dragon flew over mountains, across valleys, he swooped down to a lake and swatted his tail and made big HUGE splashes.

 

The boy felt inspired.  “Let’s go back to the village!” he shouted.  They dragon flew the boy back home and touched down near the pond where they had left his mother picking flowers. 

 

“No” said the boy.  “To the village, I have a plan.” 

 

The boy would show the villagers that his new friend was not the mean dragon they thought he was.

 

When they arrived in the village square, people scurried everywhere.

 

"Look above, it is the dragon, he came, run for your lives!  Our village he intends to claim!"

 

The villagers begin to run away in fear of the great beast. Until the boy hopped down and yelled for them to return.

 

"No, no, do not fear, the dragon has only come here, to show you how caring and nice he is, don’t run away because of the look of his."

 

The villagers then paused to listen to this brave boy and did indeed notice that the boy had befriended the dragon. The shy dragon, on this beautiful night stepped forward toward the villagers and began to breathe out fire. Some of the kids were scared but then saw the beautiful images the dragon painted with his fire. 

 

They were in awe, amazed, as they witnessed the great dragon spit fire towards the sky.   Explosions scattered across the sky in colorful colors, like fireworks. 

 

"Look how beautiful the light above, this fire and color I have never seen of, a dragon so fierce and friendly appears, and we have been terrified for so many years."

 

The villagers then laughed and asked the dragons to spit more fire into the sky just to watch the colors scatter through their eyes. They were no longer scared of the friendly dragon.

 

"You've done it -whispered the boy in cheer- I'm sure that of you they will no longer fear, it’s amazing the things that you can do, and I'm so glad I could be a friend for you."

 

The dragon let out a great gasp of joy and was glad that he could be friends with the boy, and as they look to the fire colors above, they found a growing friendship to be a part of.

 

And that is how it came to be, that fireworks were invented.  To honor the dragon and the boy, that had come together to unite man and beast, proving that there is always a chance to find joy and peace.

Author's Note

Dedicated to Curtis and Ray, please enjoy my collab with Papaya

Reviews

[aLittlePain]

Hi it's me curtis my family and I just read this story it's hard out mean as my mum and dad and baba all read parts of it out loud and me too I think this is the most rad story except the stories I made with my mum. She cried a bit but not because she was sad because she was smiling I think boys and girls are brave then adults think like the prince is brave i love this dragon because some dragons are good not always bad I like the picture too he's so rad that dragon.
Thank you from my heart for writing this story and I hope lots of people read it to their kids like mum reads to me i am going to sleep soon but I hope when I wake up I can read a message from you and this is for ana as well I hope she will see it I like her stories lots as well. Pomarie that's what we say at my house it means good night lots of love from curtis xxx

[Papaya]

Good morning, I am very happy that you enjoyed this story and you are welcome. :)

I think you are right, boys and girls are much braver than adults and the Prince was very brave to stand up for himself.

He showed much courage. (I probably would have run and hide like the villagers.)

Pomarie Curtis. :)
xx

[Sir Drift & Mr. Pulse]

This Prince and Dragon are really something aren't they? Well Sir Curtis, I hope you can go on a ride on a dragons back very soon and find perhaps the lost dragon in your backyard. Tell me what other adventures you would like to go through and would love to write them for you. To Ray, thank you for allowing me to do this. With much joy in my heart. Lots of love Drift & Pulse

[aLittlePain]

Good morning it's me thank you for writing a message for me to find. I just had my breakfast my mum and I made pancakes I love pancakes with butter and maple syrup do you know maple syrup comes from a tree that's funny eh our maple syrup at our house comes from Canada I was born there and mum has taken me there heaps of times my papa and gran and grandpa live there but they are staying my house now with me and mum and baba. I have a big family I like it when they come and stay with mum and me and Apollo and rufus. I am having a birthday party today and all my friends are coming over it's going to be mean as. I would like to find a lost dragon but I don't know maybe I will find a dragon fly. I have to go now thank you both again very much have a good day I hope it's sunny laters love from curtis xx

[Papaya]

I have lots of maple trees in my yard. I love maple syrup too. :]

I hope you have a fun time at your party, Curtis!

I'd like to hear about Apollo and Rufus sometime.

[aLittlePain]

My mum said I can answer one last message before i have to get ready for bed, you're so rad that you have maple trees they have pretty leaves on them I had a cool party we had lots of food and mr whippy came too and we didn't even have to pay for the icecream and all my family were there even my Aunty Wai who came from New York. Rufus is my cat he is a grey Persian he's grumpy sometimes and always be mean to Apollo. He loves me though and sleeps on my bed waiting for me when I am in the hospital he likes pancakes to but just plain and Rufus is my best buddy he is a very big dog he is the colour of chocolate and is called a Newfoundland but we say newfy for short his favourite thing to do is play rugby with me and he even let me ride him he is very strong and kind thank you for talking to me. Love from curtis xx

[James]

I never knew that! Who would have thought a dragon could be a vegetarian and I will never watch fireworks without thinking about this again. This was a fun story, nice calab you two.

[Papaya]

so happy you enjoyed this, James. :)

[Papaya]

Thank you for writing with me.

[Sir Drift & Mr. Pulse]

I could hug you right now of such excitement