Grilled Cheese and Dragons

by Nancy Krulik

  “How are we going to do that?” Dribble asked her. “He’s blocking the doorway.”

  “Maybe we could climb over him,” Lucas suggested.

  “He would feel us and wake up,” Princess Pulverizer said. “Especially you, big guy,” she added, pointing to Dribble.

  “It’s not my fault I’m big,” Dribble told her. “That’s how dragons are supposed to be.”

  “We’re trapped!” Lucas cried out.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll think of something,” Princess Pulverizer said. “I always do. I thought of a way to get myself into the castle, didn’t I?”

  “I wish you had thought of a way out,” Dribble muttered under his dragon breath. He stared longingly out the window. “We’re going to be stuck in here forever. I’m never going to feel the grass under my feet again. And I’m never going to get to open my own restaurant.”

  Sob. Lucas began to cry again.

  The princess covered her ears. It was hard to think with the sound of crying.

  BURP! Dribble let out another loud belch. The powerful wind was so strong, it shook the ogre’s giant mountain of stolen treasures.

  Princess Pulverizer was absolutely miserable. Being stuck in a tower with a gassy dragon was really the worst.

  She’d never met anyone who let out so much smelly air.

  Or who cried as much as Lucas did.

  How on earth was she going to get them all out of this mess?

  She looked over at Dribble. He was batting his wings up and down, trying to get rid of the smell from his latest belch.

  A broad smile formed on Princess Pulverizer’s face.

  “That’s it!” she shouted excitedly. “Dribble is going to save us all!”

  Chapter 9

  “Wait—what?” Dribble asked. “I’m going to save us?”

  “You sure are,” Princess Pulverizer assured him.

  Dribble grinned his approval. “I like helping people,” he said happily. “Just tell me what I have to do!”

  “UGGGHHHH!” Just then, the ogre let out a loud groan. He rolled onto his side.

  “He’s waking up,” Lucas sobbed. “He’s going to be so mad. He’ll lock us in here and throw away the key.”

  “Quick!” Princess Pulverizer ordered Lucas. “Climb onto Dribble’s back.”

  “Why should I do that?” Lucas asked her.

  “Yes, why should he do that?” Dribble asked.

  “Because you’re going to fly us right out this window,” Princess Pulverizer told the dragon. “That’s my plan.”

  “F-f-fly?” Lucas asked nervously. “Like in the air?”

  “Don’t worry, Lucas,” Dribble said.

  “Why? Because you’re such a great flyer?” Princess Pulverizer wondered excitedly.

  “No,” Dribble said. “Because I can’t fly. I still have my baby wings. My adult wings haven’t grown in yet. Baby wings aren’t big or strong enough to fly.”

  Princess Pulverizer frowned. “You’re not a full-grown dragon?” she asked. “But you’re huge.”

  “Not for a dragon,” Dribble told her. “Grown-up dragons are humongous. I’m sorry,” he apologized. He looked longingly back out the window. And let out another giant burp. “Boy, does my stomach hurt. I should never have had that third grilled cheese sandwich this morning.”

  Dribble’s burp was so powerful, it blew some of the ogre’s treasures off the top of the mountain.

  Princess Pulverizer watched from her spot near the window as a shiny soup pot, carving knife, and teakettle tumbled over the ogre’s giant body, out the door, and right down the stairs.

  “That’s it!” Princess Pulverizer shouted excitedly.

  “What’s it?” Dribble and Lucas asked at the same time.

  “I’ve got a new plan,” she told them. “A better plan.”

  “Yay!” Dribble shouted. Lucas stopped crying immediately.

  “HEAD HURT!” At just that moment, the ogre began to stir again. “OWIE!”

  “He’s waking up!” Lucas cried out.

  Burp.

  Dribble let out a belch. It wasn’t a big burp by dragon standards. But it was strong enough to blow a frying pan off the top of the garbage mountain. The pan fell and bonked the ogre on the head.

  “NIGHTY NIGHT,” the ogre groaned as he passed out again.

  “He’s not going to stay that way for long,” Dribble told Princess Pulverizer. “If you’ve got a plan, now’s a good time to put it into motion.”

  “Okay,” Princess Pulverizer told the dragon. “But first, you probably should have a little snack.”

  Dribble looked at the princess like she was crazy. “You want me to eat now?”

  “I don’t think this is a good time for food,” Lucas said.

  “It’s the perfect time,” Princess Pulverizer insisted. She held up the bowl of old gruel. “Come on, Dribble. Just a little spoonful.”

  “I’m not hungry,” Dribble protested. “And besides, that stuff smells disgusting.”

  Princess Pulverizer frowned. This was not going the way she had hoped.

  “Please, Dribble, open wide,” the princess urged as she held the spoonful of vile stuff up to his mouth. “Here comes the chariot, bringing food to your tummy. Take a bite. Yummy yum yummy . . .”

  Before Dribble even realized what was happening, Princess Pulverizer shoved a heaping spoonful of gooey gruel into his mouth.

  “What is that stuff?” Dribble asked, gagging.

  “It’s the stuff that’s going to save us,” Princess Pulverizer told him, shoving another heaping spoonful into Dribble’s mouth. “Over the teeth and over the gums—look out, stomach, here it comes.”

  Dribble swallowed the pasty, smelly, cold gruel and made a face. “What is wrong with you?” he asked. “Doesn’t my stomach already hurt enough? One more spoonful of that stuff and I think I might explode.”

  “That’s exactly what I’m counting on,” Princess Pulverizer said as she shoved the last nasty spoonful of gruel right down his throat.

  Chapter 10

  BUUUUUUUURPP!

  Princess Pulverizer smiled excitedly as Dribble let out a massive belch. She figured it had to be the loudest, windiest, smelliest burp in the history of the world.

  And it was exactly what they needed.

  CRASH!

  CLANK!

  CLUNK!

  KERPLUNK!

  The sheer force of Dribble’s giant burp suddenly toppled the ogre’s pile of treasures!

  Cups, bottles, silverware, teakettles, and other shiny stuff began raining down and buried the evil ogre.

  Then it began cascading down the stairs in a giant avalanche of junk.

  “WHAT HAPPENING?!” the angry ogre shouted from beneath the giant pile of his precious stolen treasure.

  “Come on, you guys!” Princess Pulverizer ordered. “We’re getting out of here.”

  “How?” Dribble asked her.

  “We’re going sledding,” Princess Pulverizer said.

  Dribble gave her a funny look. “How are we going to sled? There’s no snow in here.”

  Princess Pulverizer shook her head. “We don’t need snow,” she told him. “We’re going to slide right over the ogre, down this moving mountain of junk, and out the front door.”

  “I don’t like sledding,” Lucas said. “You can get hurt. One time I sledded right into a fence and I . . .”

  Princess Pulverizer did not have time to listen to Lucas’s story. She had to get him moving.

  So she pushed him headfirst down the avalanche of junk.

  “AAHHHH!” Lucas cried as he bumped and thumped his way over the ogre and down the stairs on his stomach.

  “Your turn, Dribble,” Princess Pulverizer said. “Hurry.”

  Dribble didn’t need a push—whi
ch was good, since he was way too heavy for Princess Pulverizer to push, anyway. The dragon just plopped down on his big green bottom and slid down the stairs along with the gushing river of garbage.

  Then it was Princess Pulverizer’s turn.

  “Hey, you guys!” she called as she slid her way to freedom. “Look out below!”

  Chapter 11

  A few seconds later, the princess, the knight, and the dragon were all safely outside the ogre’s castle. But Princess Pulverizer knew it wouldn’t be long before the ogre dug his way out of the pile of what was left of his treasures. And when he did, he was sure to come after them.

  “Okay, Dribble,” she said. “The only thing left for you to do now is carry us to safety.”

  “Why do I have to carry you guys?” Dribble asked her. “You can run all on your own.”

  “Yes, we can,” Princess Pulverizer agreed. “But Lucas and I only have two feet each. You have four. You can move faster.”

  Dribble thought about that for a moment. He was obviously unable to come up with an argument, because he finally said, “Okay, climb on.”

  Lucas scrambled onto his friend’s back. He climbed up high on Dribble’s neck. “Please don’t let me fall off,” he begged.

  “Don’t worry, pal,” Dribble assured him. “I would never let anything happen to you.”

  Princess Pulverizer climbed up the dragon’s tail and onto his back. “Okay, Dribble!” she ordered. “Take us to the Queen of Shmergermeister!”

  It seemed to Princess Pulverizer that she and Lucas had been riding on Dribble’s back for a very long time. She was tired. And hungry. And very, very cranky.

  To make matters worse, Dribble was still feeling pretty gassy. So not only was the ride bumpy, it was smelly, too.

  “I sure could go for one of those grilled cheese sandwiches now,” Princess Pulverizer grumbled. “I’m starving.”

  “Don’t complain,” Dribble called back to her between huffs and puffs. “I’m the one doing all the work here. This is the longest road I’ve ever been on. Are you sure we’re going in the right direction?”

  “The two women were definitely heading this way when I heard them talking about the queen’s jewels,” Princess Pulverizer told him. “And they were definitely from Shmergermeister.”

  “I see a palace!” Lucas shouted out suddenly from his perch high atop Dribble’s neck. “It’s just up that big hill.”

  “I can’t climb another hill,” Dribble groaned.

  “Sure you can,” Princess Pulverizer said.

  “No, I can’t,” Dribble insisted. “My stomach hurts too badly. Probably because someone fed me way too much gruel.”

  Princess Pulverizer frowned. Maybe she had gone a little too far with that last spoonful.

  “How about we take a break?” she suggested finally. “Dribble, you need the rest. And we could all use a little snack.”

  “Not me,” Dribble groaned as he let out another stinky burp. “I don’t want to see food again for a long time.”

  “Come on, just one little sandwich,” the princess pleaded. She cocked her head to one side, smiled broadly, and crossed her eyes.

  “Are you okay?” Dribble asked her. “You look kind of ill.”

  Princess Pulverizer frowned. Apparently, her special face had no effect on dragons.

  “I’m kind of hungry, too. If you wouldn’t mind making a few little sandwiches, I’d really appreciate it, Dribble,” Lucas asked politely.

  “Okay, pal, sure,” Dribble said. “Since you asked so nicely.”

  Princess Pulverizer was amazed. All Lucas had to do to get what he wanted was ask politely. Wow.

  Who would have thought that would work?

  “Mmmm . . . ,” Princess Pulverizer said a little while later as she took a big bite of her grilled cheese sandwich. “This tastes amazing.”

  “Dribble’s the best dragon chef anywhere,” Lucas said proudly.

  Princess Pulverizer laughed. “He’s probably the only dragon chef anywhere,” she said.

  Dribble gave her a look.

  Princess Pulverizer frowned. The dragon sure was sensitive.

  “But that doesn’t mean your grilled cheese isn’t delicious,” she added quickly.

  “Thank you,” Dribble replied.

  “Lucas, we’re really lucky you brought cheese and bread with you,” Princess Pulverizer continued. “That was good thinking. We all might have starved otherwise.”

  “I guess Lucas and I are kind of handy to have around,” Dribble said to the princess.

  Princess Pulverizer looked at the dragon, who had burped her to safety. Then she looked at the timid knight-in-training, who had come prepared with food.

  The princess hated to admit it, but Dribble was right. “I guess I do need a little help sometimes,” she said.

  Dribble smiled. “The three of us actually make a pretty good team,” he said.

  “Team?” Princess Pulverizer asked. “Who said anything about a team? I’m on this Quest of Kindness on my own.”

  “You’ll never get into Knight School that way,” Lucas told her.

  “Why not?” the princess demanded.

  “Because knights are all about teamwork. They taught us that when I was in Knight School. You have to learn to work well with others,” Lucas said.

  Hmmm . . . Princess Pulverizer thought about that for a moment. The Royal Knights of Empiria did seem to go off on their quests in groups.

  Maybe that was because they each had their own talents—and their own failings. Each knight picked up the others’ slack.

  “Well, come on, then,” Princess Pulverizer said as she suddenly hopped to her feet.

  “Come on where?” Dribble asked her.

  “To the Shmergermeister castle,” the princess replied. “I . . . er . . . I mean, we have some jewels to return!”

  Chapter 12

  “My jewels!” the Queen of Shmergermeister exclaimed as Princess Pulverizer handed her the velvet box. “Wherever did you find them?”

  “In an ogre’s castle,” Princess Pulverizer replied. “I got myself captured so I could retrieve them for you.”

  “You got yourself captured on purpose?” The queen sounded very surprised.

  Princess Pulverizer nodded. “It was the only way. Dribble and Lucas got themselves captured, too. Good thing, because it took all three of us to get out of there.”

  “That was very brave,” the queen said.

  Princess Pulverizer looked over at her friends. She wasn’t completely sure, but she thought Lucas was standing a little taller all of a sudden.

  The Queen of Shmergermeister opened the velvet box and pulled out a large ruby ring. “This is a reward for your bravery,” she said, handing the ring to Princess Pulverizer.

  “Thank you,” Princess Pulverizer replied. “But I’m trying to be a knight. And knights don’t wear rings.”

  “They would if they knew about the ring’s special powers,” the queen said.

  Special powers? Suddenly, the princess was very interested in the ruby ring. “What special powers?” she asked.

  “The person who wears this ring is able to walk with complete silence,” the queen said. “Not even a dry leaf will crackle under her feet.”

  “How would that be helpful?” Dribble asked.

  “Are you kidding?” Princess Pulverizer replied. “This ring will let us sneak up on our enemies. It gives us the element of surprise.”

  “W-w-we have en-en-enemies?” Lucas stammered.

  “Sure,” Princess Pulverizer told him. “All knights have enemies.”

  Lucas frowned nervously.

  “I suspect you will be able to defeat them,” the queen assured him. “You three are very powerful together.”

  “The power of three.” Princess Pulverizer smiled. “I l
ike that.”

  “Now, please take this ring as a token of my gratitude,” the Queen of Shmergermeister told Princess Pulverizer. “I insist.”

  Princess Pulverizer took the ruby ring and slipped it onto her finger. It was a perfect fit.

  The ring was a really lovely gift. And better still, it was proof that she had completed her first task in her Quest of Kindness.

  But there were seven more such tasks to go. So . . .

  “We must be taking our leave,” Princess Pulverizer said with a curtsy.

  “Hey, you do that really well,” Dribble complimented her.

  “I’ve had a lot of practice,” Princess Pulverizer told him. “Lady Frump made us do one hundred curtsies every day. I guess it came in handy after all.”

  “Can’t we stay awhile longer?” Lucas pleaded. “There are so many scary things out there in the world. I feel safer inside this castle.”

  “You may stay as long as you like,” the queen told him.

  But Princess Pulverizer wasn’t staying put. There was too much to do.

  “Come on, you two,” she said to Lucas and Dribble. “We have to go. There are a lot of people out there who need help. And we are just the ones to help them!”

  The quest continues . . .

  And now, here’s a sneak peek at the next

  Worse, worser, wurst

  “AAAAAHHH! There’s a MONSTER in that tree!” Lucas cried out. “A hairy, creepy-crawly MONSTER!”

  The scared knight-in-training dropped the grilled cheese sandwich he’d been snacking on and ran off as fast as he could.

  “A monster?” Princess Pulverizer repeated. But she did not sound scared at all.

  Nothing scared Princess Pulverizer.

  Well, very little scared her, anyway.

  “Y-y-yes,” Lucas answered from his favorite hiding spot—crouched behind his best friend, Dribble the dragon. “I hate things that creep and crawl!”