The invisible dragon was staring off into the distance. "Good father, she is resting under a tree."
The old man squinted in the same direction, and regretted a little that his eyesight was no longer superior to his son's. He clicked his fingers to cast a small spell. "Telescope!" An old fashioned sea captain's telescope manifested in his hands, and after a few moments focussing the lens he saw his son's words were true. "Come, my boy. Let's join her."
The dragon made a short flight to the picturesque clearing where she sat by a tree, with his father on his shoulders. "Shall I wait for you here?"
The Magician whispered his response. "Stay close, but silent." He dismounted and walked toward her.
Her daydreams were interrupted by the stranger coming toward her. He seemed to be enjoying the sunshine as he gazed around the countryside, ahead of greeting her. "Good afternoon. Lovely day to rest under a tree."
City life was not so friendly, and she appreciated his rustic good humour. "Yes, it is." The emotions of her journey beyond oblivion were still with her, but the presence of another person somehow caused them to rescind.
He motioned politely to the general scenery. "May I join you?"
She looked at the view, and felt so many strange emotions. Her response was not deliberate, just accepting. "Please."
He sat down, then cast another small spell. He withdrew two glasses from his robe, and a half-bottle of champagne. "We should celebrate, don't you agree?"
She looked at him sideways. "Celebrate? What's the occasion?"
He returned her sideways gaze. "You crossed over the edge of oblivion. A rare event, worth celebrating..."
A wave of emotions jolted her. "You saw that?"
The invisible dragon was having trouble hearing their conversation, so he shifted one of his talons, to lean a little closer... As he accidentally stepped on a branch lying on the ground, everyone heard the loudest sound of wood snapping. The Magician took his cue. "We saw it. That sound you just heard was my invisible dragon son, doing a lousy job of keeping quiet. He saw it too."
With waves of emotions pouring through her, she gazed in the direction of the snapped branch. Slowly, the form of the dragon appeared to her eyes in the ether. "I've seen you before dragon... I've seen you, in my heart and my dreams..."
She looked taken aback for a moment. Shifting her gaze from the dragon to the Magician and back again, she tried to understand. "What red crystal goblet? I've never..."
She fell silent as the Magician produced the goblet from under his robes, and placed in on the grass between them. "You drank from this goblet a few days ago, in a hospital bed, with your body failing you."
Her visage become a mask of confusion. "No I didn't. What are you talking about?"
The young dragon was also confused. "Father, we were there! Why doesn't she remember?"
The Magician raised his champagne glass. "Young lady, that step through oblivion you just made... you have erased a painful journey from you life. I congratulate you."
She absent-mindedly picked up her glass, still grasping the transformation. "I can feel everything you are telling me is the truth. And yet, I have no memory of hospitals... only a hazy half-dream, that maybe I did drink from this beautiful red goblet..."
Wisdom is often thought of as something serious. Deep issues and heavy thoughts. But the wisdom of the Universe in not heavy at all. It is a light, fantastic phenomenon, and is best expressed through joy, love, shared adventures and good humour. The Magician was very wise, and knew that explanations would be tiresome, while celebrations would enlighten. "My boy, would you like to taste your first champagne?"
The invisible dragon found his father's sudden change of topic unexpected, but his intuition told him to play along. "Thank you good father. May I drink from the red crystal goblet?"
Fathers and sons sometimes transform into a kind of double act in the presence of charming company. "What a good idea. Young lady, would you do me the honour of offering my son his first drink? He has talons, so you will have to hold the goblet for him."
She pinched herself on her forearm. "OK, it's not a dream..." The Magician had poured a splash of champagne into the red crystal goblet and she took it from him. "Come a little closer please, dragon."
He craned his invisible scaly neck forward, and she cupped his chin in her hand. His nostrils flared as the bubbly liquid reached his mouth. "It tickles!"
His father laughed like a sentimental old man. "That's just the champagne fairies. Be off, playful fairies!"
The dragon found himself suddenly a little disappointed. "But it felt nice..."
She was falling into some kind of new world. The magical mood of this father-son double act had enveloped her. "Champagne fairies, please come back! Celebrate with us!"
A thousand fairies heard the call, and gathered around the tree. Many of them tickled the dragon's nose. "Stop it! Atchooo!"
The celebrated for many hours with champagne, then continued with shared adventures, humour, joy and love.
No comments:
Post a Comment