“Come on, let’s go find Bonny’s Revenge.”
Dragon Father turned away from the long hug he had given Dragon Little and he was ready to hobble to find the pirate ship that served as their home. The last they had seen Bonny’s Revenge it had crashed a ways off on the goblin planet.
It seemed that for Dragon Father the adventure, and the lesson he had taught Dragon Little, were both over.
“I want to see his family,” Dragon Little said.
Dragon Father stopped and looked at her, confused. “Whose family?”
“The goblin monster’s,” she said. “He has a father, right? Someone brought him up. I killed his son. I want to see him.”
Dragon Father stood in front of Dragon Little, his jaw slack. For a long minute, he seemed unable to speak.
Then, in a voice that cracked, he whispered, “I heard his father died a long time ago.”
Dragon Little thought about that. Dragon Father put his hand on her shoulder, turning her back to the slaughter in the village. “Let’s go find our ship.”
Dragon Little’s legs did not move. “I want to see his kid.”
Dragon Father froze. “What?” It seemed he did hear, but was at a loss for anything else to say.
“His kid. Does he have a daughter? I killed her father.” There were tears in her eyes and she almost cried.
Dragon Father, with a leg that didn’t seem to be wounded anymore, lowered himself to stand on his knees and look his daughter in the eyes. “Joy. He was a monster. He killed all those goblins,” he motioned to the dead goblins in the village. “He would have killed all those kids. You had to kill him!”
Dragon Little nodded. “And now I have to see his daughter!”
Dragon Father said nothing for a few seconds, then put his hand on his face. He hid his face from his daughter, but from my different vantage point, high above them, my sharp dragon eyes could see him wipe tears from his eyes.
He lowered his hand and whispered again, “The goblin monster didn’t have any kids.”
Dragon Little made a face, then took a step back. “How do you know?”
Dragon Father stood up. “I know a lot of things about goblins. I know!”
Dragon Little shook her head. “I’m right and you’re wrong! I want to see his daughter! And his father!”
“You can’t. They don’t exist! Joy…”
But Dragon Little turned her back to him and ran into the village. “I’ll find them! I don’t need your help!”
Left unnoticed by her, Dragon Father did not immediately chase her. He cupped his face again and allowed more tears to come. “Jeez,” he said to himself.
Dragon Little’s big heart makes me well up too. I must pause in the story and compose myself. I will continue to tell you what happened, tomorrow.
—Told by The Red Dragon