CH. 31.3 — Fritter grabbed the boy’s arms, and Janine grabbed his legs. Together they hefted him up the steep path.
“Oof! He’s heavier than he looks,” said Fritter.
When they got the boy into the cave, Jay poked his head out of his treasure room. “Is it dinner time yet?” He spoke in a mournful voice.
“Sorry, Jay,” said Janine, panting. “We’ve been a little busy. Trouble with a couple of bandersnatches down at the road.”
“Oh? Shall I go and threaten them?” Jay looked almost interested.
“No thanks. It’s all taken care of.”
“Oh. Well. Right then.” The dragon sighed, but then brightened again as he studied the body. “I say, are we having company? They usually walk in on their own, don’t they? Are we eating this one?”
Janine swallowed hard. Sometimes it was hard to tell if the dragon really meant it, or if it was just his macabre sense of humor.
“He’s our guest,” she said firmly. “He’s had a tangle with the bandersnatches, and he needs to recuperate. Now, Jay, you’re going to enjoy your dinner tonight. I’ve got a roast lamb on the spit and new potatoes, plus a new tea we can try for your allergies.”
Jay blew his nose. “Oh, fine. I’ll be in here resting.” He sighed wearily and shut his door.
Fritter and Janine looked at each other and sighed in relief.
“That was close,” said Fritter. “Come on, we’ll put him in the third guest room.” This particular room had the advantage of a door that locked, plus the passageway leading to it was much too small for a dragon to get into.
They laid the boy on the bed. “I’ll get him undressed and clean him up,” said Fritter. “You go and finish the meal preparations. After dinner, we’ll see what we can do for this poor boy.”
During dinner, Jay kept asking questions about their guest, but all Janine and Fritter could do was to explain that he was sleeping.
“How strange,” muttered the dragon. “And how rude. At least the other princes and knights who came to the door stayed for dinner.”
Ever since the news came out that Janine and the dragon were dead, the river of princes and knights coming to the cave had dried up. She preferred it that way.
“All they wanted when they got here was to kill you and take me home as a prize.” She couldn’t help but remember how insulting that Prince Matthew had been. Janine scowled down at her half empty plate.
Jay shook his head. “Really, I can’t understand it. You’re a perfectly lovely girl. But perhaps it all turned out for the best. I really don’t want to lose my favorite storyteller. Don’t you agree, Fritter?”
Fritter thought back on how depressed and lonely the dragon had been before Janine came to stay, and he nodded his head vigorously. “Oh, yes, Great One. Life is much better now. Perhaps I could brew a potion to make her truly ugly.”
Janine choked on a bite of potato. She gulped some water. “That’s not necessary. I’m not planning on marrying anyone. I’ll be staying here for as long as you need me.”
Jay raised an eyebrow. “I’ll need you as long as you live.”
Janine sighed. “That won’t be a problem.”
Carol Nicolas 