On a sunny afternoon the invisible dragon swooped along the southern coastline of France toward Spain. He zoomed over the old empire town of Montpelier then turned back toward the coastline, alighting on the rocks near a small fishing port. He closed his eyes, listened to the waves, and enjoyed the sunshine.
Before he could realize what was happening water splashed on his invisible scales. It seemed like a large fish had broken the surface of the water then dived under again. Did that fish just splash me deliberately?
Before he could realize what was happening water splashed on his invisible scales. It seemed like a large fish had broken the surface of the water then dived under again. Did that fish just splash me deliberately?
He peered curiously at the water hoping the fish would surface again. However a surprise was in store.
The dragon had once heard of mermaids but had never actually met one. "Did you just splash me on purpose?"
She absent-mindedly brushed a little kelp from her wrist while gazing cheekily at his invisible presence, answering his question without an explanation. "Oui, Monsieur Dragon."
Her tousled blonde hair and soft accent were charming and cast a little spell over him. "Would you like to fly with me somewhere, pretty mermaid?"
Her voice was a mixture of hope and desperation. "Perhaps you can help me..." She looked around as if the waters of her rock pool held some great secret. "You see, an Oracle told me that in Thailand a great love waits for me."
The dragon was now curious. "You can fly on my shoulders, all the way to Thailand, little friend. I fly fast, we will be there soon."
The dragon was now curious. "You can fly on my shoulders, all the way to Thailand, little friend. I fly fast, we will be there soon."
A warm and grateful smile graced her lips. "Monsieur Dragon, when I saw you land near my little rock pool I was sure you could help me."
The dragon had an afterthought. "Is that why you splashed me?"
Her answer confirmed the explanation. "Oui, Monsieur Dragon."
There is always a first time for everything. You have perhaps never read a fairytale about a mermaid flying with a dragon. Especially with an invisible dragon. There is a reason for that: It is not easy for a mermaid to fly on a dragon's back. A dragon has slippery reptilian scales. A mermaid has even slipperier fishy scales.
They both thought about this conundrum while staring at each other. The dragon broke the silence. "I'll get in the water. You swim to me, and clasp your arms tight around my neck."
She did as he had asked. "I am holding on to you now, Monsieur Dragon."
With the little mermaid cloaked by his invisibility he spread his enormous wings above the water and they rose into the sky.
:::
True to his word, in a few hours they had crossed oceans and continents and were descending toward the calm waters of the Gulf of Thailand. "This is so beautiful, Monsieur Dragon."
He swooped low over the island of Ko Samui and lit on some rocks similar to those where they had first encountered each other in Carnon. "Did your Oracle tell you where to find this great love, my little friend?"
She let go of her embrace and slipped from his shoulders, landing in the shallow waters with a splash. "Non, mon ami. She said this great love will come to me..."
Hovering just above the water he considered the situation. "Perhaps it is better if you wait here alone for love to find you."
She was a little disappointed, and the mixture of hope and desperation was in her voice again. "Please come back soon, Monsieur Dragon. You are my only friend in Thailand right now."
He called back as he headed north. "Of course, little French mermaid."
After an hour or two's joy-flight the young dragon returned to the scene, hearing distressed tones in her voice as he approached. "Why are you trying to scratch my face, you little..."
His invisible voice interrupted her. "Who are you arguing with, pretty mermaid of Carnon?"
She looked up with a plea for help in her eyes. "This little crab says I am on her rock, and she is attacking me!"
Peering closely at the rock he saw a small but tough-looking crab waving her claws at the mermaid. He reached around with his very long invisible tail and flicked the crab unceremoniously off the rock. They both listened to the little "plop" as the crab hit the water. "It's your rock now, little mermaid."
She seemed to be on the edge of tears. "Merci, Monsieur Dragon."
He guessed what the real problem was. "Did a great love not come to you?"
So the two new friends sat on her rock next to the waters around Ko Samui and talked about life and love. He flew her to Bangkok where they listened to music while perched on a rooftop over Rambutri road and shared a little more of their lives and love. She was always hopeful but at the same time a little despondent. "My Oracle told me I would find a great love in Thailand. Everyone here is so friendly and you are so wonderful to fly everywhere with me, mon ami. But where is my great love?"
There is always a first time for everything. For the first time the dragon intuited exactly what her Oracle meant. In a flash within a moment he knew exactly where her great love would come to her. His intuition was so deft and so fleeting it almost slipped from his mind, as easily as a mermaid could slip from the scaly shoulders of a dragon. "Let me fly you home, pretty French mermaid of Carnon."
With a wistful half-smile she accepted his suggestion. "It will be nice to fly with my arms around you one last time, Monsieur Dragon."
As they made their return flight her heart was now in a different place to where it had been when they were outward bound. This time she was so much more in love with flying over India, seeing the Himalayas just to the north. This time the rocks and sand of the Middle Eastern deserts filled her with mermaid-ish awe. As they cruised over the Mediterranean Sea she felt a bond to her home waters which grew and grew until they arrived at her little rock pool on the southern French coastline.
The invisible dragon had flown as carefully as possible to make sure she did not slip from his shoulders. He asked a question as carefully as possible to make sure it's meaning did not slip from her sight. "Did you find the great love that waits for you, little mermaid of Carnon?"
She looked around at her sun-kissed home and flicked her blonde hair to one side. "Oui, Monsieur Dragon."
Her answer needed no more explanation and they soon said au revoir to one another. The young dragon spread his enormous invisible wings and rose in the sky to continue his adventures.
There is a first time for everything. The next morning the little mermaid awoke to the sound of the waves in Carnon and felt a feeling of love unlike anything she had felt before. She knew this love would be waiting for her everyday when she awoke, embedded in sound of the waves.
The little mermaid is alive and well and living in Carnon.
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