Life with Kilgharrah.

I flew off with the older dragon. We landed in a cave high in the mountains. I soon learnt that the older dragon's name was Kilgharrah. I thought he was nice if not a little strict. He taught me loads of things such as the boy's name - Merlin. I was also taught that Merlin lived in the white castle that I could see from the cave, the castle was called Camelot. The person called Arthur ruled that kingdom. Merlin and Arthur had a destiny to unite the land of Albion, which was a future world filled with peace and prosperity, as Kilgharrah had told me.

I was taught about friends and enemies, what our food to eat was. I was taught about sorcerers and witches, druids and seers. Unicorns, dragons (me and Kilgharrah were the last of our kind.) I learnt about The Great Purge too. That was one of my least favorite subjects. I learnt that Merlin was a dragonlord and that dragonlords were people who could to the dragons and tame them. Kilgharrah told me that if Merlin ever told me to do something then I had to obey it. I couldn't yet speak human as Kilgharrah could, but he said that he would try to teach me how to speak human. But even if I didn't learn it, Kilgharrah said that Merlin would be able to understand almost anything I said in 'our' language. Kilgharrah taught me certain words every day.

I was starting to get fed up with lessons and lectures. I wanted to explore, I wanted to find new friends and new adventures. I could already fly, so whenever I felt like it I could fly off and explore and get away from this ancient boring old dragon, who was more bothered with my studies than adventures. I hardly understood the 'human' language and each day I put less and less effort into the lessons Kilgharrah gave me.

'Enough is enough.' I thought, scraping my talons along the floor. 'I want to explore I don't want to be stuck in this boring cave all my life, hidden away from the world. I like living here with Kilgharrah. He's like me, but I haven't seen any of the world, unless you count the bit that I can see from the entrance to the cave.' I hadn't seen Merlin for weeks, and each day I grew up, the more impatient I got. Kilgharrah was allowed to fly out and see Merlin when Merlin called. I asked to come with him, every time Merlin called for his help. But Kilgharrah always said no. He hardly let me leave the cave except on those occasions when he taught me how to hunt without being seen by humans, and when he took me on flying lessons. Although I was a brilliant flyer, well........ I thought so.

I had decided. The next time Kilgharrah got called to see Merlin again. I would fly off on my own and explore. I didn't have to wait long. As the night before, Kilgharrah had been called by Merlin, I was asleep at the time, but I heard the call and heard Kilgharrah flying off. But I was in luck; he got called again the next day, just a couple of hours before midday. That's when I took my chance out in the big wide world on my own. I flew off. There was a strong north- eastern breeze, which almost blew me off curse a couple of times. I didn't have a decided destination; I just flew where my wings and the wind took me. I did loads of loop-de-loops but then had to stop as I had made myself dizzy. I felt as though nothing could stop this ecstatic feeling that filled me from the tip of my tail to the top of my head. I wasn't old enough to breathe fire yet, but it felt like I could, I was that happy. Instead I just chirped as I still couldn't roar either.

I flew over field after field, forest after forest, lake after lake. I even dared to fly over Camelot. But I hid myself in the clouds, the thought of what had happened to Kilgharrah there, still scared me. I ever flew over the clearing where Merlin and Kilgharrah were talking. I could hear Merlin asking Kilgharrah how to make Arthur believe in himself once more and how to find the people of Camelot who escaped from Morgana when she stormed the castle. I hadn't a clue who Morgana was. Kilgharrah had never told me much about her, he had only said that she was Arthur's half sister and she wanted the throne of Camelot and would do anything to get it. I hadn't met half the people Kilgharrah had told me about. I had only met Merlin, and even that had only been once.

I was going to have to land soon. I was still only little and I was starting to get tired but it would have to be somewhere hidden and out of sight, otherwise Kilgharrah would find me and make me go back to the cave. I flew on for a bit longer but didn't spot any other caves. I had to land in a tree which was entirely covered in leaves. I didn't like landing on the tree. It was dangerous, the branches got in my way and when I tried to land on the thickest branch I almost slipped off twice, but the third time is always the luckiest. I landed right on the branch and didn't slip off. I crawled right up towards the trunk of the tree and clung on with my talons.

The birds that had made the tree their home, didn't like me being there, but I was too tired to find anywhere else. I fell asleep after a while. It was the first time I had slept on my own, I didn't like it much, but I wasn't about to lose this freedom and go back to Kilgharrah.