chapter 16

Good-bye, but Not Farewell

Twig sat on top of the giant dragon’s back. The bumpy scales made great knobs to grip on to, and both he and Lily hung on tightly. It was exhilarating to be high atop the back of the enormous reptile. The beach was far below.

Char was back with his family, at last. Twig and Lily laughed as they watched him race with the other young dragons, flapping his tiny wings, running in circles and frolicking at the edge of the surf.

Twig figured a storm, or perhaps several storms, had raged through the area and separated Char’s egg from the rest. The tough shell was resilient, and survived undamaged. Lily supposed that Char’s mother took frequent trips to hunt, and that Char’s siblings had been tucked away on a separate island for safety.

And now Twig and Lily, atop the giant dragon, were ready to head back to the Hill.

They looked down. Char sat on the beach below, gazing up at them, his tiny wings fluttering and beating with agitation. “I think he knows we’re leaving,” Twig said.

“Yes . . . he looks so tiny!” Lily sighed. “I’m going to miss him so much!”

Twig nodded. “He’s taken us on quite an adventure. Think of all the things that have happened . . . running away . . . sailing a ship . . . surviving a storm, and all because I found an egg one day on a muddy hillside.” Twig felt his heart fill with tender affection for the little reptile. It was all worth it, just to see Char with his family, happy at last.

Twig felt proud. He had returned the baby dragon to his home.

He hadn’t done it alone. He and Lily had been on an adventure that guaranteed a lifelong friendship. They had memories they could share forever, memories that no one else would understand or appreciate.

Yes, there were big memory events, like hiding Char from the Guild, and refurbishing and sailing the Captive. But there were little memories, too: sharing a secret over a mug of sassafras tea, watching Char chasing a butterfly, or studying the stars on an astonishingly clear night.

Maybe that’s what friendship is, Twig thought. Sharing things. The big, and the little.

He glanced over his shoulder at Lily and smiled. She was waving good-bye to Char. He could see she was trying not to cry.

“Don’t worry, Lily,” Twig said. “He’ll come see us. As soon as his wings are strong enough.”

Lily laughed. “I hope so!”

Twig patted the giant scaly back of the mother dragon. It was time. “Let’s go!”

The huge wings lifted and flapped in broad, sweeping strokes. Twig and Lily pitched forward, then backward, their paws grasping the dragon’s back. They rolled to one side as the mother dragon circled once over the beach.

They saw Char and the others racing under them, far below, until the ocean surf stopped them.

The dragon flew along the edge of the beach, following the curve of the island, and then swooped for a moment above a small cove. Burdock and Basil were sitting on the sand below, and looked up.

“We’ll be back for you!” Twig called down. He saw Burdock’s face darken with anger.

Lily laughed. “Well, maybe we’ll be back!” she shouted.

The wind blew through Twig’s whiskers. He looked ahead, over the dragon’s head. The pang he felt in his chest was quickly turning into excitement. Heading home!

It wasn’t long before they saw the hazy green line of land far ahead of them, and then the broad expanse of a bay, and the silver rippling of a river. Twig tried to wave as they passed over the sturdy beaver dam. “Hello!” he called out.

The river narrowed, and the deep green of the Woods enveloped them. Twig began to smell the familiar scent of forest and soil.

They were home.