CatchaDragon

__ How to Catch a Dragon __ By Christopher Bower I’m Tim, your average boy, going to school, and dealing with parents. But the story I’m about to tell you is way different than average. I was about to go to school when I saw my mom asking a bunch of questions. I walked out the door like a zombie. So I walked to school and figured out two of mom’s questions. They were “Why are you late for school?” and “Did you know that you were late?” So I got detention. I hate detention. You get to stay at school doing work and sitting with drooling, pencil eating, mindless bozos.
 * The //Rommelt Reporter// newspaper club challenged the fifth and sixth graders to a story contest. We thank all students for their entries, but after reading them all, the majority of club members decided Christopher Bower’s was the best. Congratulations to Chris. Enjoy this talented writer’s fantasy narrative! **

After detention, I went home to an upset mom and grumbling dad. “So I heard you got detention,” my mom said. I said yes and walked upstairs. This is where the twist comes in. I went to sleep right away and dreamed of dragons fighting with fiery mouths. Then, I woke up with a scream. I heard a buzzing sound like a helicopter. It got louder and louder until I couldn’t hear myself think. I looked outside to see a forty ton beast spitting out fire and flapping its wings like a jet engine.

Then I said under my breath, “Dragon.” I saw him fly away and I went to get my parents. They said I was hallucinating. So I went back to bed, knowing that tomorrow is Saturday. I slept well.

The next morning, I was in my bed, but something looked different; I was in the middle of a Viking raid. Next thing I knew, an eight-foot tall fat guy handed me an axe. I dropped it at the sight of the dragon I had seen yesterday. I knew that maybe he was the one who could take me home. So, I grabbed a harpoon and shot. It was a direct hit to the tail. I tried to climb up, but every time I did, I was bumped off. So I tried to get his wing so he would come down. I hit the tips of his wings. He struggled but he couldn’t break free. I climbed up, thinking of home. Next thing I knew, I’m on top of him. I unclipped the harpoons and hoped he’d take me home. We flew for a few seconds before he tried to shake me off. I hung onto his neck like you hang onto something during a twister. I barely made it as he shook and flipped. I felt like I was on a mechanical bull. Then, he stopped. I got off. He tried to fly away, but his wings were clipped by the harpoons and he could only fly so far.

That’s when I realized that I was starving, so I went to fish. I took a stick and a few needles stuck together. I got a whole mother load. I brought it back and gutted the fish, which I learned in camp. I ate, and the dragon looked at me funny. I looked away, but the guilt killed me, and I gave him most of my pile. We realized that until his wing healed, we would be stuck there for a while. It became days. I fished and got water and we both ate. Soon, I realized he was getting closer to me. He opened a portal and I saw my home. I said, “Thank you, but no thank you.” I promised him I wouldn’t leave him until his wing was fixed.

We went on for many days. I used different cactus skins. I soon found one that was just right. I used a needle to get the needles out and used those to cut it. I inserted the cactus skin into the dragon holes and told him to give it a few days to let his skin grow on top of it. Later, you couldn’t even tell there was cactus skin there at all. He tried it, and it worked. I went into the portal, but I didn’t want to leave him. I said, “Bye. I wish you could come with me.”

So I left, and I got home. I went to bed. The next morning, outside my window, there he was. My mother asked, “Do you need me to drive you to school?”

I said, “I already have a ride.” My mom came up, and I was already in the air.