Chapter Ninety-Eight: In which I ask for help

Our journey home was uneventful. I was in my (tiresome) spider form, but this time all I had to do was to hide in Lady’s M’s hair. She transported me from place to place, and I did not have to brave the terrors of the airports and planes by myself. From my safe place I observed the people in the airport, watched films on the plane, and read over Lady M’s shoulder. When I needed sustenance I was lifted down to her lap so that I could eat a crumb or two of food, and drink out of a small plastic container. I was beyond grateful that I did not have to make the journey on my own.

At first it felt strange to be back in Lady M’s house. I has returned to the human world and it felt too small, too…. undragonlike. Although I was happy to be there, I knew for certain that I was now ready to move out. I needed a place to live that was dragon-sized, a home that reflected my personality and interests, just as Lady M’s home reflects the personalities of the three humans who live there.

Soon after we got back to Oregon, I went to visit Lord Klamath. As I stepped into the Clan Hall it felt as if I was indeed coming home. Many of the younglings I had met before came running and threw themselves at me. I stood there covered with happy, wriggling younglings and my heart felt full. Lord Klamath came to my rescue and then he and I went to a small meeting room so that I could tell him in person about my adventures in England and Wales.

“What a busy few months you have had, Gryf. How does it feel to be back here in Oregon?”

“I am glad to be back. These mountains and valleys feel like home. However, there is one thing that needs to change,” I said.

“And what is that?” my friend asked.

“I need a cave of my own, and there is a place on the mountain behind Lady M’s farm that is perfect.”

“My dear Gryf, you are welcome to come and live in our Clan Hall if you wish. Or we can help you excavate a cave somewhere near here.”

Rocks edited“Thank you for your kind offer, Klamath. I am very grateful for your kindness, but I want to live in a place that is not too far from where Lady M lives. A place that is near her house and at the same time is not too far from this Clan Hall. There are some rocks on the mountain behind her place that I have looked at many times, and investigated. With a little help I should be able to excavate a cave there that will suit me perfectly.”

“Ah, you want to live somewhere that lies between your two worlds,” Klamath said, his eyes shining with understanding.

“Yes, I suppose that must be it. I am a dragon and therefore cannot truly live with humans, but I have grown to love some humans so I cannot live only with dragons. It is an interesting conundrum, is it not?

“That it is, my friend, but you are an interesting dragon. Your life is full of surprises. You did not die when you should have done, you got a Gift that is very rare and precious, and you got involved in a very serious situation involving a fanatical human who is hundreds of years old. I think we all have to expect that you will do things that are unusual. You can, of course, count on us to help you make your cave. We can work at night in the beginning.”

“Would your tech dragons we willing to make a hologram to hide my doorway? Something similar to what you have here?” I asked.

“But of course. They love being given new challenges. We will have to find a place to set up a power plant for you as well. I understand some dragons in southern California have managed to make very small yet very efficient power plants that run on some kind of hydrogen fuel. Don’t ask me how it works,” he said with a laugh, “but it is clean, quiet, and the humans in the valley below will have no idea that you have it.”

“That sounds wonderful, Kalamath,” I said, a feeling of excitement running through me. I was going to have my own home again, and I was going to have help to create it.