“Well, that’s not true,” Dragon Father said to his five-and-a-half-year-old Dragon Little, the young and beautiful Joy Shelley. “I can hold my breath much much longer than you can!”

Dragon Little shook her head. “I can hold my breath so much longer than you!”

What she apparently chose to keep to herself ist that she had been practicing over the last few days after his disappearances and before she went to sleep.

“Let’s do a competition! Come on, let’s try.”

Dragon Father sighed. “If you really want to…”

“Starting now!” She shouted quickly, drew in a huge breath, and shut her mouth.

Dragon Father did the same except that he had no time to take a deep breath.

Dragon Father nodded to himself as time went by, looking around innocently as if it wasn’t hard. But although he showed no signs of getting tired, quite quickly Dragon Little’s face grew redder and redder.

Finally she exhaled and gasped for air.

Dragon Father returned to breathe regularly. “See? No problem.”

Dragon Little made a face. “You cheated. Again.”

“I didn’t cheat. I can just hold my breath for—”

“Starting now!” she surprised him again, took a deep breath and began.

Once more he held his mouth shut, but did not seem to exert himself.

Once more, he won easily.

“You’re cheating!” She shouted. “I’m better than you!”

“Nope. Not yet. Maybe when you grow—What are you doing?”

Dragon Little leapt onto Dragon Father’s back from behind and grabbed his mouth.

“What are you doing?!”

“You’re cheating! You’re breathing through your nose!” She pinched his nose shut with one hand and covered his mouth with the other.

“Mmmm mmmm mmmff!”

“No talking! Let’s see how long you hold your breath, starting NOW!”

Dragon Father did not fight her. He nodded, her hands blocking his mouth and nose.

He nodded. He walked around the deck. He looked over one side of it. He walked leisurely to the other side, and looked down. He began to walk here and there randomly, until ten minutes later Dragon Little finally released his nose and mouth.

“I can do this all day!” he smiled at her.

She made a face. “I don’t like this game anymore.”

He laughed.

But of course, you the Dreamers who are reading my stories of Dragon Little’s life no doubt realize that Dreamers do not need to breathe in the Dream. Even while they are here in the Dream with us, creatures of the Dream and creatures of their own imagination, they breathe in their beds. Or so I’ve heard.

—Told by The Red Dragon