Zora cleared her throat and said in a raspy, deep voice, "It must have been me. I apologize, it is a side effect of me turning into a wolf."
Two sparks flew out of the dragon's nose as he pushed his face closer. Up close his angry cat eyes made her shiver with fright. His nostrils widened again, puffing his steamy breath at her. "I can smell something on you. Something fowl," he said through his sharp teeth.
"You there! Check that pile," he roared, turning to Anna. The terrified girl, swiftly knelt making herself appear busy.
"And what are you standing around? Go and help her!" he ordered Zora. Still shaken, she reluctantly obliged.
After a minute of them moving the metal around and making lots of noise, the large dragon got impatient. "Well?" he roared.
The princesses glanced at each other.
"There is nothing unusual here, my dragon," Anna stuttered.
The dragon did not seem pleased. "Impossible! What stinks then?" he bellowed in their faces.
The prince listened, staying completely still. He could feel the bird squeezing out of his armor.
The shaking princess Anna slowly put her hands inside the net. Something small and squishy made her flinch. She looked at it stunned.
"What is it?" the dragon stomped over to inspect.
"I think I found the source of the smell," she said, as calm as possible. Zora observed her, biting her finger. She felt the wolf hair in her cheek, ready to change in a second.
Anna's hand held up a limp bird. The dragon squinted. He sniffed the small unresponsive creature and frowned.
"That smells about right. Toss it away," he ordered and walked out of the room. "And all your chores better be done by tonight! Or you'll share the same faith," he yelled, returning to his meal.
The humans in the room sighed with relief. Anna did as told and walked onto the balcony with the small body, returning without it. "Poor little thing. Its in a better place now," she whispered.
Standing up as quietly as possible, Aidan frowned in the direction of the hallway. "Who does that lizard think he is, talking to you like that? I'm going to-" he growled, drawing his sword.
The princess quickly silenced him by pressing her finger against his lips. "No! He's too strong. Be patient until tonight, my love. We have a plan," she whispered.
He returned the sword into its scabbard. "What plan?"
"The harp for which we came. It is here! The dragon makes Anna play it every night to put him to sleep," Zora whispered.
"That is correct. Once, he is asleep, we can leave," Anna added excited.
The prince glided his chin, intrigued. "Very cunning, indeed. Alright. That is how we are going to do it. "
With the plan in hand, the only thing left was to wait.
In the evening, the dragon called the princesses into the spacious room where he liked to sleep. The dragon's bed was in the middle of it. The mattress, although covered with fine linen, was quite hard and bumpy. This was because the dragon stuffed it with gold coins. Above the bed hung a crystal chandelier. All of which were stolen or taken from his victims. The gold framed windows were adorned with heavy velvet curtains. The prince hid behind one of them. Zora was locked in a large sturdy cage, with bars so close together she could not escape even in her human form. The key to her prison was around the creature's neck.
The dragon stretched out and tucked his clawed limbs beneath its tail. "Play me a lullaby, fair maiden," he yawned as he adjusted himself on his rattling bed.
"Yes, my dragon," she said, running her fingers over the harp's strings and sang softly,
"Sleep, dragon. Sleep.
The gold is here intact,
Your enemies fried and gone,
defeated by your might.
Sleep, dragon. Sleep.
Let the strings take you to the land of dreams,
Let your body rest and your sparks subside.
As you sail on the clouds in peace.
Sleep, dragon. Sleep.
Sleep, sleep, sleep."
The dragon closed his eyes with his limbs turning limp. His loud snoring could be heard, and flames of fire occasionally came out of his nostrils.
Anna hurried to the curtain where the prince was hiding. "You can come out now," she whispered. Aidan snored, affected by the harp's spell.
The princess pulled back the curtain and said a little louder near his ear, "I said you can come out!"
Aidan flinched, waking from his nap, "What?"
"Come on!" Anna said impatient. They woke up Zora. Now, it was the prince's turn to get the key.
He tiptoed close to the dragon's face. He could feel the creature's hot breath on his skin. Gently, he took the key and walked over to the cage. Zora, once freed, ran and hugged him.
The three sprinted down the hallway. Zora opened a window and they quickly jumped onto the large paved balcony. There they stood panting.
Aidan gripped the railing tightly. He looked down, shaking from shock. "This cannot be," he uttered, out of breath.
His wife seemed quite composed. "What is the matter?" she said.
The prince looked at the ground below, then turned to her with wide eyes. "Zora, were you aware that..." he began, but his words betrayed him.
"Aware of what?"
"That we are this high above the clouds!" he shouted dramatically.
The castle, a huge heavy construction with about sixty rooms, seemed to float through the clouds with ease. Nothing appeared to hold it above a green field, as if it was hovering on its own.
"Didn't you know that when you flew in?" Anna asked surprised.
"How could I have known? I was hiding and could not see anything. I knew it was very high, but I assumed it was on top of a mountain," he said, sweating.
Absentminded, he muttered to himself, "A castle in the sky... Just flying with no way down? Who could have? Why? I am confused."