The strange blue light shone through the trees…

I got out of bed and walked to my window to get a better look. But it was pitch black again. I was sure I saw a blue light shining in my backyard. I looked around one last time to make sure there wasn’t anything outside. Nothing. I gave up and started walking back to my bed. Just before I layed back down, I saw the light again. I quickly jumped out of bed and looked out my window.

The light was a beautiful aqua blue with streaks of a darker blue. It looked like there were sparkles flying around as it shone. It was almost as bright as the sun. It lit up the whole dark sky you could see the stars perfectly aligned. I’ve never seen such an amazing light.

I grabbed my slippers and my robe. I wanted to get a better look to see what was making this light. I quietly opened my bedroom door and snuck downstairs, making sure not to wake my parents or little brother. Once I was outside, I ran towards the woods behind our house.

I stopped just at the edge of the woods. The light was gone. It was pitch black outside, I wouldn’t know where I was going without the light. After a few minutes, the light finally shone and I was able to follow. I could tell whatever was making this light was in the open fields from where it was shining. Good thing, too, because then I could see it clearly.

As I got closer, I heard a low rumbling sound. It sounded like a growl. I started to get a little nervous. My hands and legs started shaking the slightest bit. I started thinking, “What was this thing?” “Will it hurt me?” “Is it dangerous?” “Is it kind?” “What will happen once it spots me?” Finally, I made it to the edge of the woods and field. I hid behind a tree and poked my head out just enough so I could look around. The light was gone, so I couldn’t see much. But as I continued to look around, I saw the shape of a big boulder. It was really big, bigger than your usual boulder. I squinted my eyes to try and work out what it really was. Then, the boulder started glowing. It started shining that beautiful aqua blue light. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

As the light shone, I was able to see what this figure actually was. It was huge. It had a long neck and tail, the head was smaller than the body but still big, the tail ended at a point, it was covered in beautiful aqua blue and light green scales with a faint dark blue here and there, its feet had large nails which curved at the end, and it had wings. This definitely wasn’t a boulder. It was a dragon.

I quickly hid behind the tree and started breathing in and out to calm myself down. There’s a dragon just in my backyard! I didn’t know what to do. Should I wake my parents? Should I just go back to bed? Should I call someone? No. I couldn’t tell anyone about this. Everyone would be terrified and create a scene. Maybe even kill it. I didn’t want that. This dragon is just sleeping in a field. It wasn’t hurting or disturbing anyone. Once I calmed down, I poked my head around the tree to look again.

This time, its head was up. It woke up. It was just looking up at the sky so peacefully. I’ve never seen a creature so beautiful. I couldn’t help myself and started to slowly walk towards the dragon. I had to get a closer look. It didn’t look dangerous, it was just looking up at the sky minding its own business. As I got closer, I stepped on a branch and it made a snapping sound. I stopped in my tracks. The dragons’ ears flickered a little. It looked away from the sky and looked straight at me.

I stood as still as possible. It was just sitting there, staring at me. I didn’t know what to do. I was too nervous to move, so I just stood there frozen, staring back at this dragon. Neither one of us looked or moved away from each other. It felt like a staring contest. I couldn’t tell if it was mad, happy, scared, annoyed. It showed no expression.

About a minutes passes and the dragon stands up. It slowly walks towards me. As it just towers over me, it brings its head down so it’s right in front of me. We both stare at each other again. I still haven’t moved from the position I was in. I was scared. At the same time, though, I wasn’t. The thing that scared me most was how big this dragon was. But the actual presence of this dragon wasn’t scary. It let out a very comforting aroma. As if I could trust it not to hurt or harm me.

“Hello” I said to it, my voice a little shaky.

It didn’t change its expression. It just kept staring at me, not moving a muscle.

“My name is Opal.”

It tilted its head the slightest bit once I said my name. It kept staring at me. Its eyes were a crystal clear grey. They were the prettiest eyes I’ve ever seen. Something about them made me know this dragon wasn’t dangerous. They were soft, comforting. They made me feel safe, as if this dragon would protect me if I was ever in danger.

“What are you doing here?” I asked. “Are you lost?”

As if it understood me, it lifted its head and turned to the right. I looked in the same direction and knew where it was looking. The ocean. I turned back to look back at the dragon. I examined its body. The color of its scales and eyes made sense to me, now. This was a water dragon.

“Why are you in this field if you live in the ocean?”

It looked back at me and let out a low puff. A small cloud of steam left its nostrils. It brought its head back down to me and looked into my eyes. I reached my hand out slowly to touch it. Once it saw my arm reach out, it quickly slashed its head upward, lifted its front legs into the air, and let out a low growl.

I quickly pull my arm back into my body, trembling in fear. It comes back to the ground and puts its head in front of my body. It blows out water from its mouth, drenching me from head to toe. I lose my balance and fall backwards onto the ground. The dragon towers over me and looks into my eyes. Its pupils were now a diamond shape, showing its in control.

I didn’t care, though. I could tell it wouldn’t hurt me by the way it looked into my eyes before i tried touching its snout. Without hesitation, I reach my hand out again. The dragon blows steam out of its nostrils. But I keep reaching my hand upward.

Once my arm is straight, I realize I’m not touching the dragon. I’m just a few inches away from its snout. It’s staring at my hand, pupils still in a diamond.  I leave my hand out, showing it I mean no harm. It glances over to me face. I give it a look that says I want to be its friend, that I don’t want to hurt it. Its eyes start to soften, its pupils turning back into a circle. It looks back at my hand and sniffs it. Slowly, it lowers its head and lays it gently on my hand. I was surprised. The dragon's snout was the softest thing I’ve ever felt before. I was expecting it to feel like a lizard's skin. But instead, it felt like a pillow.

I start stroking its snout gently. It opens its eyes and I smile at it. I knew I couldn’t tell anyone about this. They would definitely take it away for experimentations, keep it locked up, or even kill it. This was a gentle, kind creature. I wasn’t going to let anyone hurt or take it away.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let anyone hurt you,” I say as i continue to stroke its snout. It closes its eyes, indicating it trusts me.

I stop stroking its snout and stand up. We stare at each other for a few seconds.

“I have to go back home now.”

The dragon's eyes turn sad. I knew it didn’t want me to leave. I didn’t want to leave it, either.

I place my hand on its snout one last time. “I’ll come see you tomorrow night, okay?” It lightly blows out some steam, its eyes start to glisten. I knew we’d become amazing friends.

“How about a name before I leave?”

Its eyes widen and its tail starts wagging. It doesn’t take me long to think of the perfect name for this amazing creature. I place both my hands on both sides of its snout and lay my head lightly on its head, my eyes closed.

“I’ll see you tomorrow night, Crystal.”