Princess Anna rolled her eyes and ran inside. Zora calmly followed. Her prince, still pensive, did not even notice that she had left until they returned with their makeshift rope. Zora tapped him on the arm. The turned towards them, still dazed.
His wife caressed his face, looked him in the eye and explained in a slow but determined tone, "Darling, I know how overwhelming this all is, but the dragon can wake up at any moment. Please, pull yourself together, so we can escape."
Aidan took a deep breath and nodded.
And so it began. They tied the fabric tight and descended onto the ground below. Aidan went first, followed by princess Anna. Zora was the most reluctant to go. She clung to the rope, desperately trying not to look down.
The prince was hoping to climb down quickly. Unfortunately, the descent, with two inexperienced climbers, turned out to be more tedious than he thought.
Still they trudged on, long through the night. Even as the first rays of the morning fell, the three were still clinging for dear life. The prince, with still a hundred meters away from the ground, looked up at the magnificent floating structure. Seen from this angle, it resembled a beautifully carved egg. The white facade was decorated with silver spikes, similar to those of its owner.
"Was this the egg he was hatched from?" went through his head as he pondered of its incredible existence. Still, he could not dwell on it for longer, not with the task at hand.
"A few more meters and we are on the ground. How are you two holding up?" Aidan asked his companions.
"Pretty well. As the commoners would say, I think I got the hang of it," Anna replied. And she did, moving her hands together with her legs with more confidence than she started. Zora, on the other hand, was a different story.
"How about you, dear?" he asked.
Still way up, the princess trembled, clutching to the rope with both hands. Terrified, her teeth chattered as she moved inch by inch and let out a scared groan.
"Don't be afraid, my love. If you fall, I will catch you," he encouraged her. The princess response was a long whaling sob.
Aidan sighed. Chirp came over. He flew around him to make his presence known.
"Glad to see you, my feathery friend. I thought that after all those ordeals, you would be on your way to a sunnier place," Aidan said, relived to see him.
"Chirp! Not a chance. I gave my words that I will help you and that is what I intend to do. I went scouting the area. There is no human settlement in sight."
"I see. Did you look for a shelter of some sort? A place where we can hide and rest?"
"Of course, I did. Chirp! There is a cave nearby. It does not seem occupied from the outside," she said, showing the direction with his adorable beak.
"Excellent," the prince smiled.
"Huh? Did you say something?" princess Anna said, looking down.
Chirp, immediately hid in his pocket.
"No, nothing at all," the prince blurted.
"Are you certain? Because I could swear I heard something," Anna was persistent.
"I heard it too," Zora stuttered from high up.
"It was nothing, my darling. Simply thinking out loud. Do hurry up, my loved one. We do not have much time to spare," he told her calmly.
The princess let out a muffled whimper, creeping down slightly faster.
As soon as the coast was cleared, his tiny friend emerged once more. "You people are funny to me. It will be morning soon, and you haven't even reached the ground. If you had wings like birds, you would not have such problems," the bird chirped impatient, circling around his head.
"Good Chirp, do not remind me of something I can clearly see for myself," he muttered, slightly nettled.
"Now I definitely heard something," princess Zora said.
"It was nothing, dear," the prince replied in a monotone way.
"I heard you said something," she repeated a little louder. She wanted to look down, but quickly changed her mind.
"I said, you're doing well," Aidan said a little louder.
"It didn't sound like 'You're doing well!'" she yelled as she hung helplessly.
The dragon's loud stretching was heard from the inside of the castle.
The three gasped in panic. Prince Aidan reached the ground first. Princess Anna was a few meters away.
A loud yawn ringed from above.
"Zora, hurry up!" Aidan was starting to panic.
"I'm trying," she replied in a weeping voice. Still, she felt further and further from her companions.
Princess Anna quickened her pace. Zora could not. Although she tried to get down as fast as possible, the frightened princess did not dare to separate her limbs from the rope for more than a moment.
The still drowsy dragon was heard rolling around in his bed filled with coins. "She wolf? Maiden?" he uttered confused. A loud shriek ensued.
Aidan grabbed his head, visibly worried. "Oh my God! It is too late. Listen to me. You need to jump," he said stretching his arms out.
"What?" Anna was stunned, while Zora could only cry out a terrified no.
"Jump into my arms. I will catch you," he quickly said.
Anna, despite her fear, obliged. She let go and soon found herself safe on the ground. Princess Zora, cried in horror. She was too high for a safe landing.
"Tall maiden! Golden-hair girl! Where are you? Come out, or I will devour you in one gulp!" the dragon roared, stumbling around the many rooms.
"It's your turn. Come on, jump!" the prince yelled, spreading his arms again.
"I cannot! Go on without me!" the princess wept, trembling.
"No! Not without you!" the prince shouted determined.
"Come down, you idiot. You are going to get us all killed!" her friend yelled, enraged.
Zora gulped and glanced up. The dragon's roars were getting louder. It was a matter of moments before he would come out and find them.
Anna's eyes went up and down. Thinking quickly, she grabbed the last piece of fabric and spread it. "Look. Let go and we will catch you in this. It is like that game we used to play as children. Do you remember?" she yelled. Aidan helped her hold it loosely.
Zora looked down and saw the spread sheet. Still, she was so far away, as if falling out of the tower.
"You will catch me, right?" she uttered.
"Of course!" they both yelled in unison. The terrified girl clenched her teeth and let go of the rope. A loud scream followed her descent. It alerted the dragon as well.
"Princesses! Princesses! Answer me! You are not foolish enough to try and escape, are you? That would be suicide," he growled. The dragon's black head popped out from the balcony. He gasped, seeing the rope with tiny humans on them.
With a loud thud, the screaming girl fell into the fabric and bounced up. Helping her out, the trio ran. "This way! Quick!" the prince pointed. They sprinted through the clearing together.
Their captor was furious. His menacing wings spread as his body leaped from great heights. Spotting his target, he readied himself for an attack.
"We are not going to make it," Anna said, winded.
Zora thought hard and transformed into the large beast. "Climb on," she commanded. They obliged and Zora ran with tremendous speed. To everyone's surprise, even hers, she avoided the dragon's fiery breath, jumping left and right almost instinctively.
"That way! There is a cave!" Aidan yelled showing her the way.
"Cave?" the large white wolf stuttered.
"Seriously? After everything we've been through, you are going to complain now?" Anna said frustrated.