Libelle

It was the kind of day that makes you feel melancholy. The rain would not stop, the sun would not shine, and it was gray. Lights had to be on in every room of the house in order to keep enough light in- artificial light. Children were bored, just laying around on the floor waiting for something to do. If you looked outside, puddles were already starting to form within the first few minutes. 

“Just imagine what the walk to the bus is going to be like tomorrow. My shoes are going to be soaked before the bus even gets here.” Salinda, a 9th-grade student complained to her younger sister Maria.

Maria was in 6th grade. She had long black, wavy hair. She was one of the most popular students in her class of 1978. Salinda, in the class of 1975, was not popular unless you were only counting the dorks. Salinda never wanted to be this way. Even though she never showed it, she was jealous of Maria.

So perfect, everybody likes her sister and wants to be her partner for school. Salinda always had to work alone, or with the one kid who never talks and/or always copies off your work. What a way to spend a school life. 

Maria sat up and looked at Salinda in a puzzling way. “Salinda, why don’t you and I go do something together.”

“Like what?” Salinda scowled. “It has been raining for the past two days. A wasted weekend. It is so dark outside, it might as well be in the middle of the night!” 

Maria said, “If you are going to be rude about it, I might as well go to the neighbors' house. Anything would be better without you and your attitude.”

“It is raining, you will get soaking wet!” Salinda pointed out as if Maria was not smart enough to see the obvious.

“Mom or dad could take me. Or I could use an umbrella and wear rain boots. There are options you know.” Maria coldly said. She got up and walked out of the room. In a few minutes, the garage door rumbled and Salinda could hear the car backing out of the driveway, making may splashes. 

“Now what am I going to do?” Salinda stared at the wall as if something could appear from it. Maria was at her friend's house for over 3 hours and even stayed inside that neighbor's house when the rain let up. When the rain finally did let up, Salinda went outside to take a walk around the house. Her legs were cramping from sitting too long on the very comfortable couch. 

The sun was shining warmly, and Salinda soaked it in. It rains a lot where they live, so she never had any time to explore the backyard. Her backyard was huge. There was a flower garden and a vegetable garden. There were a basketball hoop and a soccer goal. There was a patio where they put the grill, and there was still room to play a bunch of other things. Salinda had many parties in this backyard. 

There was a forest in the back of the back yard. It was not a thick forest, you could see the sun through the trees easily. There have been lots of deer, foxes, squirrels, and snakes spotted. Salinda put on bug spray and decided to explore the forest.

She took a few cautious steps in. It was hard, because of all the vines. But once she got past the vines, she had an easy walk. She spotted many animals and birds. It was beautiful. The way the world should be. Salinda turned her head a little bit and spotted a big rock. The size between a pebble and a boulder. She decided to sit on it, take a small break. She laughed as she saw two chipmunks chasing and tackling each other. Maria would never dream of coming out here. She hates the smell of bug spray and hates being outside for that matter.

Salinda heard a twig snap and quickly turned around. She saw something she thought never existed. Salinda stared and quickly rubbed her eyes. She looked again. Yep, that was real and this is not a dream. Little did Salinda know, she was looking at the last Dragon on Earth.

The dragon cocked its head and took curious steps toward Salinda. Salinda held her breath, afraid if she moved suddenly, the dragon would attack. The dragon moved closer, and Salinda was able to get a better look.

The dragon was jet black with streaks of dark purple and navy blue. It was smooth, not like in the fables where dragons have scales. The dragon’s teeth were a mix of yellow and white, and only some looked sharp. The dragon’s eyes were a color that no person who has had the pleasure of seeing could describe. They were beautiful and ugly. A clash that should not go together, but somehow can. It was small, no bigger than Salinda. Its wings were sleek and strong. 

The dragon was only a few feet away from the rock. It was too late to run away in terror, or get a sharp stick or rock for attacking purposes. Her life was in a dragon’s claws. There was nothing she could do about it.

The dragon put its head on Salinda’s feet. Salinda wondered what to do. The dragon might be falling asleep, or it might be deciding whether her feet smelled good for dinner. Salinda did something that took a lot of courage.”I am going to name you Libelle.”

The dragon lifted its head in surprise and licked its lips. It nodded.

“Can you understand me?” Salinda asked, surprised.

Libelle nodded its head.

“Could I understand you?” Salinda asked.

Libelle shook her head.

“Are there any other dragons around here, or anywhere else for that matter?” Salinda asked. She was a bit worried, but a bit excited about making a new discovery.

Libelle’s eyes grew sad. Libelle shook her head. Salinda knew right away that she was the last of the dragons.

Salinda looked at the dragon. “Did the hunters kill the dragons off?”

Libelle’s eyes grew sad again. Libelle nodded. Libelle stood up and looked at Salinda in the eyes. Libelle’s eyes seemed to change color, and her brain decided that she must be somewhere else. Salinda stood up and saw herself in a desert. She knew it must not be true, logic would say otherwise. However logic decided that dragons did not exist when they clearly did exist. 

Salinda looked at the sky. It was clear. There were big birds- which Salinda assumed to be dragons. She looked back down at the mountains. Horses were coming. The horses were a mix of white, brown, and black. But their riders were all dressed so no one knew who they were. Salinda could not recognize them at all, except for their eyes. Each rider was holding a crossbow. 

Salinda turned and looked frantically for Libelle. Salinda looked up again and saw a lone dragon fly away. The group of dragons, 20 at least, were still flying around. 

The riders stopped and loaded their crossbows with arrows. The arrows caught on fire as they went up in the air. Yet another thing that defied logic. Salinda knew what would happen. She turned her head so she would not see. She never had to see anyway. When she turned her head she was back in the forest. 

“What did you do to me?” Salinda angrily asked. Then she remembered that Libelle could not answer in human words. “Were we in the past, when there were dragons?” 

Libelle nodded her head.

“Were those big birds… dragons too?” Salinda asked.

Libelle looked at Salinda as if she were an idiot and nodded her head.

“Were you the one that left the group?”

Libelle nodded again. 

“You left because you saw them. Did you warn them?” Salinda needed clarification.

Libelle shook her head regrettably. 

Salinda looked at her watch and jumped up from the rock. She had been out there for 3 hours! Maria must be home, or almost home for that matter. “Stay here. I will bring you out something to eat later.”

Libelle nodded her head in agreement.

“One more question. Could you breathe fire?”

Libelle shook her head.

Salinda looked at the dragon, smiled, and ran off home. When she entered, she was surprised that she beat Maria home. 

Salinda thought she should not tell anybody just yet. They would put Libelle in a cage and show her to everybody. Libelle would die. Anybody would step over dead bodies to get their hands on Libelle.

Salinda sat on the couch and turned on the TV. A show about animals came on. 

“And now we have proof that dragons have never existed and never will exist. Dr. Lancaster, a former NASA employee has found out that all pictures have been photocopied…” The TV news reporter said. Salinda turned off the TV in disbelief. She would have to believe it, however. Dr. Lancaster was the best of the best after all. He just was not the best at dragons.