The dragon laid in pretence of sleeping. A young man in his mid twenties came in, greeting the dragon in a strange manner.
Mae peeked from the crack in the rock trying to figure out who the old man was, 'isn't that Elvis?' She tried rubbing her eyes to be sure and indeed it was their royal sorcerer, Elvis.
'Why was Elvis here? as a matter of fact how did he know about this passageway or this place? She couldn't shake the thought off her mind as she continued watching closely.
But she decided it was wise to wait until Elvis had gone before she came out. After an agonizing waiting hour for the Princess, Elvis bid the dragon a farewell before leaving. Mae couldn't believe they could interact for such a long time.
Once sure he was gone, she raised her head hoping for a sign of acknowledgement from the dragon. At that moment, the dragon met her gaze and nodded in response.
Coming out of hiding, she went straight to the point. "What was our royal sorcerer doing down here? How did he know of your existence? " She asked as she gestured around.
For the first time the dragon spoke, to her surprise, the dragon's voice sounded quite friendly in contrast to his demeaning appearance. "Several years ago, I saved Elvis when he was attacked by a Cur hound..." He snorted out smoke from his nostrils before he continued.
"He was just a lad and a sorcerer apprentice and in return of the favour he tested out a spell he had been trying to perfect on me, it turns out it gave me the ability of speech and for safety reasons a secret language in which only the two of us could understand."
"Oh so that's how he knows!" Mae nodded in understanding.
"How rude of me to have not introduced myself. I am the princess Mae of Garcia." She curtseyed, "and you would be?" She smiled.
'what a lovely name' thought the dragon with a smile.
"Skun, the name's Skun." He replied to emphasize his name.
"That's a unique name you have there." She commended.
"Thankyou Princess." Skun smiled.
"Who named you? Are you the last of your kind? How did you end up here? Why can't you break free from these chains?" A barrage of questions from Mae left him speechless.
Realising her mistake, Mae bowed slightly in apology, "I'm sorry for asking such questions, don't worry you don't have to say anything for now, now I need to figure out how to get this chains off you."
Hopping over his tail, she could hear the sound of the chains as Skun tried moving.
'Why didn't Elvis remove these chains after all these years?' She realized that Skun was uncomfortable in his shackles and who wouldn't be?
"Let me guess you are wondering why this has been on me for such a long time?" Skun guessed.
With a nod, Skun finally answered. "He had tried, several times but the shackles has a protective barrier around it, the only thing Elvis has been able to do is weaken it overtime, it could only be removed by someone of royal descent–" Skun's eyes widened in realisation "you, you could help me."
"Promise me you won't run away, it's dangerous out there." Mae seemed worried as she contemplated removing them, "I don't have much friends." she mumbled on the last part.
"I don't plan on leaving, I've gotten quite used to this place anyways." Skun hoped his excuse was plausible.
"Ok, get ready!" Mae beamed with excitement, the moment she she placed her hands on the chain, a click sound was heard, the heavy chains falling to the ground, then she carried on with the rest of the chains releasing him.
Skun had never felt so free, he flapped his wings, letting out a gush of wind and dust.
Mae used her hands to act as a barrier to prevent dust and debris from getting into her eyes and nose, the force slowly pushing her resolve to stand upright.
"Hey!!!" Mae called out in protest, "I know you're happy but could you please not send my flying to the wall if you keep this up!" She yelled to get his attention.
At that moment, Skun folded his wings, looking awkwardly and bowing his head, his gaze on the floor.
"I apologize, I was overly excited for a brief moment but I can't help but say thank you so much."
Feeling a sense of pride for actually doing something of importance, Mae raised her chin with a smirk on her lips, clearly enjoying the gratitude shown to her, "You are welcome Skun, it's the least I could do."
Not feeling that was the best way to thank her, he went further to say, "you can trust me and remember when you're in need of help, I would be there to help you."
Those words left a lasting impression on Mae's mind as she stared at the dragon with a smile on her face. From that day their bond was inseparable.