The three friends headed north for a few hours, then built a campfire and bedded down for the night. There was a slight chill in the air, and as the two girls nestled up against one another to keep warm, Clover peered over at Jessop, wondering how much longer he'd stay with their little troupe. Although she'd grown quite fond of Tara, she still hadn't experienced the pleasures of being with a man, and as she reflected back on her exciting experience in the erotic forest, she felt a new stirring in her loins.
In the morning, the three explorers enjoyed a hearty breakfast of rabbit and quail eggs, then they packed up their gear and hesitated, trying to figure out where to go next.
"So where do we go now?" Clover said, frowning. "We're still no closer to finding my magic portal, and I have no idea how to get back home."
"You said the portal was in a waterfall, right?" Jessop said, recalling the details of their adventure that the girls had shared with him over breakfast. "Waterfalls are generally located in the mountains, so it stands to reason that we should head up to higher terrain. Maybe you just need to find the right waterfall."
"That's as good a plan as any," Tara said. "It's not like my treehouse was a permanent residence, anyway. I was just hanging out there until I found a better reason to leave."
Clover smiled as the trio began winding their way through the forest, following a narrow river upstream toward the highlands. She was thrilled that Tara was happy to stay with her until she found her way back home, and having Jessop join them made the journey all the more exciting. She'd always enjoyed exploring the forest with her brothers, and now she had a new travel companion that made her feel some unfamiliar new sensations.
After a few hours, the group paused at the opening to a clearing when they heard an unusual sound. It was a deep and husky noise, like it came from a bear or some other large animal. But the panting and growling sounded labored, like the animal was in distress. As they inched closer to the noise, they crouched down, noticing a large animal heaving next to a fallen log.
"What is that?" Clover said, staring at the hulking form.
"Is that what I think it is?" Jessop said, peering more closely.
"Oh my God," Tara said. "I think it's a dragon!"
"A dragon!?" Clover squealed. "I can't believe we actually found one!"
"Shh!" Tara said, placing her finger on Clover's lips. "We don't want to attract its attention. Dragons and humans aren't exactly best friends."
"Or elves, for that matter," Jessop said. "We might make a tasty snack for him if he catches us. Let's double back and take a wide berth around this thing. There's no need sticking our noses in som
eone else's business where it doesn't belong."
As Tara and Jessop stood to head in the opposite direction, Clover suddenly reached out, grabbing Tara's vest.
"Wait!" she said. "It looks like it's hurt. Maybe we can help it."
"Help it?" Tara said. "There's a novel idea. Humans wanting to help a dragon instead of slaying it. Are you crazy?"
"We can at least get a little closer to see what's wrong with it," Clover said. "Maybe it's pinned under the log and we can help free it."
"And then what? Watch it fly away as it flaps its wings at us in gratitude? Or stand helplessly by while it burns us to a crisp with its dragon breath?"
"It won't hurt to look at least. As long as we're careful approaching the creature so it doesn't see or hear us."
Tara looked at Jessop with a bewildered look on her face, trying to divine his thoughts. He peered back at her and shrugged his shoulders.
"Let's approach it from upwind," he nodded. "At least that way he won't smell us coming."
The trio circled around the clearing and as they began approaching the dragon from the other direction, Clover suddenly gasped, holding up her hand to stop their progress.
"Look!" she said. "It's got a spear embedded in one of its wings! No wonder he's whining and panting. Can't we do anything for him?"
"You mean like walk up to him and yank it out?" Tara said, looking at Clover like she had two heads. "He'll probably mistake us for another dragon slayer and fry us to a crisp before we get within a hundred feet of him."
"Maybe we can wait until he's asleep or something," Clover said. "There's got to be some way we can help him."
Tara paused for a moment to contemplate their predicament. Then she reached into her pouch and pulled out a handful of dried leaves.
"There might be one thing we can do. Before we left the warlock's house, I took a handful of those potions he used to drug us. Maybe if we use enough of them, we can induce the dragon to fall asleep long enough for us to safely remove the spear."
"That's a great idea!" Clover said, jumping up and down excitedly.
"It's not without its risks though," Tara said, peering over at Jessop. "There's no telling if the creature might wake up while we're trying to pull out the arrow and gobble us alive. Are you up for this, Jessop? We might need a distraction if the dragon wakes up too soon."