Patricia Wrede: Dealing with Dragons

Sidling up the slope took a long time, for Cimorene was careful to make sure that each part of the ledge would hold before she trusted her weight to it. She was also careful not to look down. Heights had never bothered her before, but there was a big difference between standing solidly on top of a tower in Linderwall Castle behind a four-foot parapet and inching along a ledge barely six inches wide with nothing between her and a long fall.

She had almost reached the top of the slope, where the path widened again, when a portion of the ledge disappeared just ahead of her.

Cimorene pulled her foot back and tried to figure out what had happened. She hadn't seen or heard the rock crumble and fall away; there was simply a two-foot gap in the ledge that hadn't been there before. She studied it for a moment, trying to think of a way of getting past. Nothing occurred to her. She felt a twinge of annoyance at the thought of all her wasted efforts, but cheered up at once when she realized that this would solve the problem of the visiting knights.

If she couldn't get around or over the gap, an armored knight wouldn't be able to get by, either. Cimorene smiled and turned her head to creep back to safety.

There was another two-foot gap in the ledge on her other side.

Cimorene frowned. Something very odd was going on, and she didn't like it.

"You look as if you are in need of assistance," said a deep voice from above her. "May I be of help?"

Cimorene turned her head and saw a man standing four feet away, on the path at the top of the ledge. He was tall and sharp-featured, and his eyes were a hard, bright black. Though he had a gray beard that reached nearly to his waist, his face did not look old. He wore loose robes made of blue and gray silk, and in one hand he held a staff as tall as himself made of dark, polished wood.

"Possibly," Cimorene answered. She was certain that the man was a wizard, though she had never met one before, and she did not want to agree to anything until she was sure of what she was agreeing to. The court philosopher had always claimed that wizards were very tricky.

"May I know to whom I am speaking?"

"I am the wizard Zemenar," the man said. "And you must be Kazul's new princess. I hope you're not trying to run away. It's-" "Not done," Cimorene said, feeling particularly annoyed because for once she was not doing anything improper. "Yes, I'm Cimorene."

"I was going to say that it isn't wise to run away from your dragon," the wizard corrected mildly. "I believe it's done all the time."

"I'm sorry," Cimorene said, but she didn't try to explain. "And I'm not running away. How did you know who I was?"

"It seemed unlikely that I would find any other charming young lady walking so casually through the Pass of Silver Ice," Zemenar answered.

He smiled. "As you see, it is easy to find oneself in difficulties if one is not properly . .. prepared."

Cimorene decided that she didn't like him. He reminded her of one of her father's courtiers, a humorless, sneaky little man who had paid her compliments only when he was after something and who couldn't resist giving advice even when nobody wanted it. "The ledge was all here when I started," she said. An idea crossed her mind, and she looked hard at Zemenar. "I don't suppose you know what happened to the two missing bits?"

A flash of startled annoyance crossed the wizard's face; then his expression smoothed back into pleasant politeness. He shrugged. "The Pass of Silver Ice is a strange place. Odd things frequently occur."

"Not like this," Cimorene muttered. She was sure, now, that the wizard had made the ledge vanish so that he could pretend to rescue her, but she had no idea why he would want her to think she owed him a favor.

Actually, it surprised her that he had destroyed the ledge. She didn't think the dragons would be too happy when they found out. Unless he hadn't really destroyed it.

"What did you say?" Zemenar said, frowning uncertainly.

Cimorene ignored him. Without looking down, she slid her right foot along the ledge. The rock felt firm and solid. Slowly she transferred her weight and brought her left foot up beside her right. She shifted again, still careful not to look down, and slid her right foot forward once again.

"What are you doing?" Zemenar demanded.

"Getting off this ledge," Cimorene replied. "I should think that was obvious." One more step would bring her to the path, but Zemenar was squarely in her way. "Would you mind moving back a little so I'll have somewhere to stand?"

Zemenar's eyes narrowed, but he backed up several paces, and Cimorene stepped onto the path. She wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but she did not. She wasn't going to let Zemenar have the satisfaction of knowing she had been worried. Instead, she gave him her best royal smile and said with polite insincerity, "Thank you for offering to help, but as you see, it wasn't needed. Do stop by and visit some time."

"I will," Zemenar said as if he meant it. "And a very good day to you, Princess Cimorene."

With that he vanished. There was no smoke or fire or whirlwind.

There wasn't even a shimmer in the air as he disappeared. He was simply and suddenly gone.

Cimorene stared at the place where the wizard had been and felt a shiver run down her spine. It took a very powerful wizard indeed to vanish so quietly. And she still didn't know what he wanted.

She shook herself and started down the path. She would worry about the wizard later; right now she had to find a place to put up her sign so she could get back to the cave. She didn't feel much like exploring any more.

She hadn't taken more than two or three steps when a dark shadow passed over her. Looking up, startled, she saw a flash of yellow-green scales.

An instant later a dragon landed on the path in front of her, blocking the way completely. His tail hung over the edge, and he had to keep his wings partly unfurled in order to stay in balance. Cimorene recognized him at once. It was the yellow-green dragon who had wanted to eat her the day she arrived so unexpectedly in the dragons' cave.

"I saw the whole thing," the dragon said with nasty, triumphant glee.

"Running away-and talking to a wizard! Just wait until Kazul hears.

She'll be sorry she didn't just let us eat you and be done with it."

"I offer you greetings and good fortune on your travels," Cimorene said, figuring that it was best to be polite to anyone as large and toothy as a dragon, even if he wasn't being at all polite to her. "I'm not running away."

"then what are you doing? Kazul doesn't have any business that would bring you down this side of the pass."

"I came out to put up a sign to keep the knights away," Cimorene said.

"That's ridiculous." the dragon sniffed. "I've been on patrol in this part of the mountains for the past week, and I haven't seen or smelled even a hint of a knight."

"You haven't been by Kazul's cave, then," Cimorene said. "At least nine of them have shown up there in the past week. though for the past couple of days it's been mostly a prince."

"Princes don't smell any different from knights, and I'd have noticed if any of them were hanging around," the dragon said flatly. "And what about that wizard you were talking to?"

"Chaaarrge!" shouted a familiar voice from the other side of the dragon.

"Therandil!" Cimorene shouted. "I told you to go away!" the yellow-green dragon twisted his long neck and glanced back over his shoulder. He seemed to bunch together like a cat crouching. Then he sprang straight up into the air, and Cimorene was blinded by the cloud of dust raised by the flapping of his enormous wings. She had the presence of mind to flatten herself back against the rocks by the side of the path, and a moment later she heard someone blundering by. She stuck out a foot.