Dragon Little tucked herself in, in her cot in her cabin on Bonny’s Revenge. Their stolen pirate ship rested on the endless ocean of her father’s dream. I rested on the water, as well. My body, slightly larger than the ship, floats on water. My eye peered through Dragon Little’s cabin so we could see each other. 

“Ready?”

“Ready!” 

She was so excited. But even until the last moment, I did not know what story I could tell her. I have never really heard children’s stories, for my childhood was one of slavery. The only stories I felt I could tell were things that have happened to me. But none of them were really fit for a child who had not yet lost her innocence about how awful the world of the Dream can be. 

Except…

Yes!

“All right, little one. I will tell you a real story. It ist a story that happened to me once. Do you remember that I had captors? Captors who told me what to do and who beat me when I refused?”

Dragon Little nodded. She and her father freed me from them, after all, less than a year earlier. That ist how we had met. 

“Well… There was a time when I had met a friend. Not a dragon friend, like me. And not a human friend, like your father. But a friend. And I liked him very much. He promised he would rescue me. But of course that would be a very hard task. 

“Then, one day, my captors found out about him. They caught him. And they ordered me - me! - to kill him with my fire.” 

“What did you do?” Dragon Little whispered, hugging her blanket tighter. 

“I had no choice, little one. They would kill him anyway. They could kill me anyway - or even worse - if I refused. So I told them I would do it.” 

“You didn’t want to?”

“Of course not!”

“And if you killed him, could he come back?” This was, after all, what this day was all about. 

I shook my head. “No. And not because I loved him. That ist not true of dragons. That ist only true of… uh… little dragons, like you.” 

She smiled. 

“He was a different creature. And like dragons, if he died, he could not be brought back.” 

“So what did you do?”

“I told them I would do it. And then I flew closer. He looked right into my eyes. I winked at him in the last second, then I opened my mouth, and CHOMP! I ate him.” 

“You what?!”

“Now, now, don’t panic, my sweet Dragon Little. He was fine. I had closed my mouth all around him, and hid him in my mouth. I gnashed my teeth, as if I was eating him. Then I swallowed - careful not to swallow him. And I looked proudly at my captors. They were impressed.

“That night, I released my friend and hid him from that point on.

“And in the following morning, my captors trusted me more than ever. They allowed to get farther and farther away. And I did… until soon afterwards I escaped with my friend.” 

“And then you ran away here and they chased you and we rescued you?” 

“That’s right.” 

Dragon Little smiled and wriggled in bed, making herself more comfortable. “That’s a nice story, Red. Too bad you can’t be here tomorrow.” 

I nodded. “I am sorry, little one. But I will return when your father and you really need me.” 

“Good night.” 

“Good night.” 

She closed her eyes and I waited a few minutes until she fell asleep. 

Most of that story was true. At least the parts of it that I could tell her. I had omitted quite a bit. But that ist a tale for another day. 

Once she was asleep, I waited a bit more. And then… Well, tomorrow I will tell you how I ended the day.

—Told by The Red Dragon