The Mystic Forest

Chapter 2

     He held his breath & was shocked at the sight, there laid an injured creature that he assumed was an animal. Peter hurried over, forgetting about Marjorie for a split second, and bent down. "Can you understand me?" He asked softly, and began to examine the wounds on the animal's body. Mar slowly crept up behind him, shocked at the thing she saw before her eyes. "I-Is that a dragon?" She exclaimed in disbelief, her brother shrugged, "it sure looks like one...I think it understands us, but it's in too much pain to really interact. Marjorie, go fetch me the soap & washrag." Peter ordered, and eyed the gouges warily. 

Marjorie sped off as fast as her legs could carry her. The animal looked like a large reptile, only with blue leather-textured flesh, ears, & a dark blue mane of sort. 

She came back with a bucket full of water, a bar of soap, & a clean cloth for washing. Mar set them down near him, and blinked, "is it still here with us?" "Yes, but the animal's breathe is shallow, I think if it was left without disinfectant, it might have gotten an infection & died," he replied shortly, and grabbed the soap, and dunked it into the water a few times, after that, Peter began to scrub the wounds gently, surprisingly, the animal didn't wail in pain, almost as if it understood these people were trying to help it feel better. Peter gasped as soon as he realized this creature was not loosing a single drop of blood. In fact, he almost dropped the soap on the gritty dirt. Marjorie noticed, and scolded him for not being careful. "Shh, be quiet, you might scare him," he sighed, and she shut her mouth almost instantly. He wrapped cloth around the deepest cut.

Peter carefully slid his hands underneath of the dragon's body, and stood up with the creature secure in his arms. "Mar, please pick up the bucket & soap." She obliged, and began to follow her brother to their small, unsafe home. "Mar...where should we set him down?" He asked, deciding to call the creature a male for now. She thought for a moment, "What about in the extra room?" He nodded, suddenly embarrassed that he didn't think of that himself. The he-dragon yawned, and fell asleep soon after.

Once they were inside of the run-down place they call "home", after he walked through the kitchen, Peter took a sharp left, and came face-to-face with a white door. He managed to open it without awaking the animal in his arms, and walked inside. Peter placed him on the dusty bed and sighed. "Mar, watch over him & the house, I'll be out hunting," he said, and pulled the bow out form his bag that was located on his back. "Okay, Pete, go on, he'll be fine with me," she assured, and watched as her brother left the house. 

Peter inhaled deeply once he was outside, it smelled of rainwater & grass. 'Hmm, what do dragons eat?' He wondered, after thinking about it for a few moments, he settled on a simple water vole. Peter walked towards the river & waited. Soon enough, a plump rodent waddled out of a bush, oblivious of his presence. Peter placed an arrow on the string of his bow and held in his breath, focusing. The vole was roughly about  15 feet away. Peter let go, and it hit the poor thing in the side, the arrow impaled through its side and out the other. He walked over, and bent down, mumbling his thanks, Peter picked the limp creature, and stood up. 

Peter was now walking home with the catches of the day, in hand. He had tried to get a deer, and missed, looks like he's better at hunting small game. The house was in view, and he hurried over. "Mar, I'm home," he greeted tiredly, standing in the doorway. No response. Peter frowned instantly, and entered the guest bedroom in a hurried-like manner. There laid both the dragon & his sister, both fast asleep, he couldn't help but smile at the scene in front of him. Deciding to let them sleep, Peter shut the door as quietly as he could, and walked outside. He gathered some twigs & dry grass together a bit away from the "cozy" home of theirs, and used his flint rock to ignite the fire. He picked up the bodies, cleaned & dressed them, then began to roast a few pieces of flesh at a time.