Page 98 of His Greatest Treasure

Those few were being taken care of, though. All of the clan were in their dragon forms, retreating into that protection, and there were only two of the enemy alive, and they were outnumbered and outmatched. I ignored them.

My attention went to Alfie.

He was backed up against the border and I could see that he didn’t want to move. It was restricting his movement and making him vulnerable.

Even from this distance, I could see that the hag was wrapping spells around him. There were thintendrils of slimy green spells wrapped around Alfie’s shoulders and there were two looped around his neck. My wick burned with worry. I didn’t know what those spells did, but I was sure they were awful.

I rushed towards them, determined to get to my mate.

The hag slashed with a knife and Alfie snapped at her, making her retreat back a step. He was keeping her at bay but he wasn’t doing anything about those spells. Perhaps meeting his dragon so recently meant he couldn’t see them yet.

She’d laid another one over him and this one wound round his left leg like a shackle.

I followed my instinct and went straight to my mate, darting past the first sprite to appear. It was Mrs. Wilson and she popped into existence by the boundary and looked around in shock before raising her hands and directing a flow of magic to the place where there were the biggest cracks in the protections. The cracks were big enough now, under the assault of the whole army, that I’d be able to slip through them again, if I were in my flame form.

That’s exactly what I did.

Alfie was plugging the hole in the border with his large body, and so I slipped through and darted up to him. I needed to get to those spells and burn them away.

As soon as I drew near, though, Alfie gave a screech and turned his head towards me, moving from his position.

“Stay there,” I cried. I didn’t want anyone else getting through. The dragons had looked worn out and weak, so I didn’t want them fighting any more.

Alfie ignored me and stepped towards me, but I rushed up to him and climbed straight up his side so that I was sitting on his back. He reared backwards, plugging the hole again and keeping his body between me and the hag.

She struck forward suddenly and Alfie gave a yowl of pain and twisted his body. He was leaving his belly exposed by trying to keep me out of sight.

“Alfie, my darling, you need to fight. I’m safe up here, you don’t need to protect me.”

Another slimy green spell wormed its way across Alfie’s back, around his wings, and I spread myself out, growing larger, burning in my fire form all across his back. The spell dried out and withered until it crumbled away to nothing.

He was still rearing up, keeping me out of sight.

“Alfie, please,” I begged. “You have to trust me. Please trust me, my darling.”

Slowly, Alfie lowered his front legs to the ground. He was keeping his head up, though.

“I’m still out of sight, I promise. She can’t see my wick. She can’t get me.”

I spread my body out like a blanket across Alfie’s back and down his sides. I burned everything I touched, burning the putrid spells away. Below me, Alfie’s golden scales shone and glittered like the sun.

I crept up his body. I moved slowly, unwilling to let any of the enemy see me. I was afraid of them. It was only that I loved Alfie more than anything, and I couldn’t let him be harmed just because I was afraid. I crept along his back and reached his neck, burning away the slimy green noose there, and reached down to burn the shackle around his leg.

Every new spell the hag put on him, I burned away.

And she grew more desperate. She began to dart forward and attack, but my darling Alfie had finally trusted me, and he was protecting both of us now,instead of only protecting me. He didn’t let her slash at him with the knife again.

Alfie’s movements became more sure. He grew more confident.

Slowly, I realised that he was warmer. That below me, his scales weren’t glowing with the heat of my flames but the heat of his own flames within.

The hag threw three spells in quick succession and I hissed as they struck me. They were thick and slimy, damp like a swamp, and it took me a few moments to burn them dry.

Alfie didn’t like the sound I made. He screeched and the sound ended with a roaring of flame.

Fire burst out of his mouth, and I felt the white-hot heat of it radiate out.

It encompassed four of the enemy, including the hag. She scrambled backwards, pouring her own magic over herself to quell the flames. She was startled by the intensity of that flame, stronger than any other dragon.

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