Sisu & the Undiscovered Country

Chapter 2: Boy Meets Dragon

Jamie's eyes felt heavy. It took him some time before he could fully open them to the light of the full moon shining on his face. It then took Jamie a moment longer before he could register where he even was. Looking around, the teen could see that he was still inside the cave of the mountain that was part of a nature reserve. He was not supposed to be here but venture anyway due to a sense of nostalgia. Now, he found himself on the floor of that very cave, his body aching from the fall.

Wait, if Jamie was still here, did that mean what he experienced actually occurred? Did he really make a successful wish, was that really a vortex that appeared in front of him, and did he really get run over by a giant–blue noodle? No, that couldn't be possible! It had to have been some sort of fever dream, Jamie. Probably accidentally took a whiff of the grease from the fryers before leaving work. If anything, Jamie should worry about getting home before his family started worrying; who knows how long he was out for. He pulled himself up and suddenly felt his head spinning.

"Ow… my arching head."

Jamie froze in place. That was what he was thinking, but that wasn't him who said it. Turning around slowly, the teen saw the silhouette of what appeared to be a giant serpent-like creature rising up from the shadows. Judging by the length of its body that Jamie was finding to be curled around his position, this creature probably measured out to be roughly fifteen to twenty feet in length, if not more. The moon illuminated the area just enough to see its whole body covered in blue fur, including a puffy mane mixed with white, blue, and violet colors. What really unsettled Jamie was the sight of the creature's grizzly clawed hands soothing its head which possessed a set of two curved horns, with the one in the front half the size of the horn behind it, both of which could be used to mangle his body. The boy wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this monster also carried rows of razor-sharp teeth behind its maw.

"Where am I? Raya? Namarii? Boun? Where are you guys?"

Oh God, it can speak! It spoke with a voice so nasally that it almost hid the fact that it was female. This revelation paralyzed Jamie with shock as the beast looked around the cave calling more names he didn't recognize. At this moment, Jamie knew he must escape this place before the monster shifted her sight towards him. Slowly, he stepped back, all the while not taking his eyes off the beast. This tactic would not last when Jamie stepped on something that pushed back against his foot. Taking a look, it would turn out that he stepped on the creature's tail. Jamie hoped that it wasn't enough to alert the creature. Those hopes were soon dashed when the young man saw this monster staring right at him. Jamie stood in stun silence, imagining what horrible thing this monster would do to him.

But, after what felt like an eternity of the two staring at each other, Jamie began to believe that he could still be in the clear. Maybe the reason the beast wasn't attacking was that she couldn't actually see him. Perhaps she was like a t-rex, and her whole eyesight was based on movement. All Jamie had to do was stay perfectly still, and maybe she'd never know he was there.

"Hi, there!" Sisu waved with a joyous smile.

And that's what did it for Jamie. The mere notion that it saw him was enough to cause the young man to bolt out of there, all the while screaming for his life. But, of course, Jamie was more concerned with seeing if she was following him that he wasn't paying much attention to where he was going. Thus, he had the unfortunate mishap of running headfirst into the cave wall. Just his luck, Jamie wouldn't be surprised if he were to suffer a second concussion from this. However, as he was falling backward, Jamie felt something catching him before hitting the floor.

"Whoa there! You should be more careful when running around dark caves, can be dangerous." Sisu said with both her hands cupped along Jamie's back. Then, in one fell swoop, she swept him off his feet and into her arms, "The last thing anyone needs is three concussions in one hour, am I right? You're a little dirty, though. But, not to worry, I'll get that right off ya!"

Before Jamie could register what was going on, he found himself held upside-down by his left ankle. Before he could object to whatever was happening, one of her hands began swiping across his person. At first, our teen feared she was attempting to shred his flesh with her claws, but instead, that hand just glided across his body. Then Jamie realized she was merely brushing away the dirt he accumulated from being on the floor. After this little cleanup session was finished, Jamie was once again thrown back into her fluffy arms.

"I must be really off the map because you're a lot paler looking than most people I'm used to," Sisu said while shuffling the young man in her arms until she was sure he was comfortable, "Not that there's anything wrong with that! I mean, look at me! Me, my brothers, sisters, and the rest of my kind come in a variety of colors, so who am I to judge?" Sisu looked to Jamie, only for him to continue staring at her without responding, "You okay there, buddy? It's starting to feel like I'm having a one-sided conversation here."

"Wha… wh… you… ar… wh…" sadly, Jamie was still too shocked to muster completing even a single word, let alone a sentence.

"Oh, I see, you're star-stuck." Sisu had seen people act this way around her on occasion, "Look, I get it, I did something amazing, but don't let that discourage you. I'm no better than any other drag…."

"What are you!?"

Such a statement came as such a shock to Sisu that she accidentally dropped Jamie and said, "Okay, that's new!"

Unfortunately for Jamie, he landed right on his tailbone, "Good to know I traded additional pain in my head for a pain in my as…."

"Sorry about that!" Sisu swooped down to make eye contact, "That was my bad. That was definitely my bad."

Jamie yelped in surprise and immediately tried shuffling away, "Get away from me! Whatever you are, just stay away!"

"Wait, I'm not trying to hurt you or anything." Sisu announced as this boy was kept moving away.

Jamie, however, was only able to make it to the wall he ran into early, "Okay, I'm officially freaking out right now!"

"Hey, how do you think I feel? I was having a lovely picnic with my best friends, and then 'poof' now I'm here." Now, with the teen unable to go anywhere, Sisu can work her magic and talk him down, "Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot here. My friends and family say I can come off a bit strong, and I'm sorry for that. Anyway, I don't know you, and you obviously don't know me, so how about we rectify that by starting over? What do you say?" despite his reluctance, Jamie nodded in agreement, "Great! So, who should start first, you or me?"

Seeing as he wasn't currently being attacked, Jamie believed that he might as well give her the benefit of the doubt, "My name is Jamie, Jamie Reed."

"Hi Jamie," the dragon waved with a goofy grin, "I'm Sisu, Sisudatu, but everyone just calls me Sisu. Also, to answer your first question, I'm a water dragon."

Jamie stared in disbelief for a full minute, "A dragon? Seriously?" Sisu answered with a nod, "Right, and I'm the king of England."

"Oh, well, how do you do, my liege?" Sisu took a bow, only for Jamie to be left in silence, "That was a joke. I knew you were joking, so I responded to your joke with a joke of my own. Because that's what I do. I'm a fun dragon. I like having fun with people. Being fun is my thing."

Upon this listening to her ramble on, Jamie realized that this Sisu wasn't dangerous. She was a strange one, there was no doubt about that, but she wasn't dangerous. It gave him the courage to finally get up on his feet to address her from now on.

"Sorry if I'm paddling on," Sisu said, "Last thing I want is for you to think that I'm weird or something."

"Too late. You're a weirdo." Jamie thought that was going a bit too far but, seeing how Sisu was giggling, he guessed everything was okay, "No way anyone would call something like you a dragon."

"Why is that so hard to believe?"

"It's just… well…" Jamie was trying to find the right words, "Well, look at you! You look more like a stretched-out unicorn."

"I'm not a unicorn. I'm a dragon!" Sisu whined.

"Then prove it!"

"What?"

"I don't believe you!" Jamie answered, "Do a dragon thing."

"A dragon thing?"

"Yeah, you know," Jamie tried to think of some examples, "Breath fire, brag about your horde of riches, kidnap a princess to hold hostage in a bell tower. Something along those lines!"

Instead of answering right away, Sisu just looked at Jamie as if he had grown a second head, "Okay, I don't think you get dragons. First of all: I already told you that I'm a water dragon, so fire isn't really my thing. Secondly: dragons don't require riches. We are perfectly content mellowing by the river asking for nothing, so long as our bellies are full. Also, my friends love to joke about the fact that I'm flat broke! And third: I don't know what kind of dragons you're familiar with, but most dragons would skewer themselves on their own horns than bring harm to a person. In fact, I take real umbrage with that because two of my best friends are princesses!" Sisu paced around the cave, her voice becoming horse through the continuing rant, "The idea someone would think we dragons would do such a thing is just outrageous! It's slander! After everything, me and my kind have done for humanity, and this is how we're remembered? It's just too much to handle!"

Dramatically, Sisu sauntered to lean facing the cave wall and began crying. Soon, the once quiet cave echoed with the sounds of a crying dragon. It was quite a pathetic sight to behold. Now, Jamie felt that he had crossed the line. Sure the young man was skeptical about the idea of talking to a mythical dragon, regardless of proof staring him in the face. But he still didn't mean to upset her like this. Hell, if his mother ever made a girl cry, she'd smack him right upside the head. So he should at least try to rectify the situation.

Little did he know, however, Sisu wasn't being entirely sincere with her display. Don't get her wrong. This dragon was upset with the comments made by Jamie, just not as much as she was expressing right now. Many may not know, but Sisu used to be quite the prankster when she was younger. The memories of getting one over her siblings almost caused Sisu to break the facade. This was all simply a ploy for Sisu to get her new friend to stop acting so uptight and let his guard down for just a bit. She was even sneaking a peek in between sobs just to see if her plan was working.

"Look, I didn't mean to upset you," Jamie began his apology, "I've been having an off day, and I took it out on you. I'm not saying it warrants me treating you poorly because it doesn't." Finally, the boy braved, walking closer to the dragon to the point that he placed a comforting hand on her back, "Just want to say that I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted!" Sisu whipped around with such incredible speed that it even gave Jamie whiplash. In fact, Jamie became mighty suspicious with how she got over it so quickly, "Let's make it official with a celebratory handshake!" she clasped both her hands around his and started shaking them with such velocity that Jamie's body also began to shake, "And bring it in!" then she pulled him into the biggest bear hug he's ever had in his life. Maybe Jamie's initial thoughts were correct; perhaps she did want to kill him, "Now, we are officially BFFs!"

"Excuse me!?" Jamie hollowed as he broke free from Sisu's grasp.

"BFFs. It stands for Best Friends Forever."

"I know what it means!" Jamie exclaimed, "I didn't consent to this."

"Silly Jamie," Sisu brushed off his comments, "You don't need consent to be someone's best friend."

"That's debatable." Considering that Jamie now felt that he had been emotionally blackmailed, he probably had a point.

"So, Jamie, want to do your new bestie a solid and tell where exactly I am?" asked Sisu.

"Greyrock, Idaho." Jamie was starting to give up speaking reasons with her.

"Greyrock? Greyrock?" Sisu thought out loud, "Never heard of a Greyrock in Kumandra before."

"Yeah, well, I never heard of a Kumandra either. So I guess we're even."

"Got to tell you, though," Sisu looked around the cave, "You've got an interesting choice of digs here."

It took Jamie a moment to shake off hearing this mythical dragon speaking with modern slang before registering what she just said, "I don't live here! Do I look like a cave person!?"

"I don't know, do you?" Sisu asked back, "I mean, you're wearing thick leather, and it has a picture of a wolf on the back. I thought you were showing pride in your lifestyle."

"I live in a proper house!" Jamie irritably exclaimed.

"Hey, I'm not trying to judge whether you live in a house or a cave. It's all good." Sisu assured him, "My brothers, sisters, and I built a house for ourselves. Even though we never really needed one before."

"There's more of you? Follow-up question, you have a house!?" Jamie groaned. He had only known this dragon for a few minutes, and she was giving him the biggest headache with all the nonsense she was speaking.

But before Sisu could answer any of his questions, her stomach began to growl loud enough for it to echo in caves. Guess traveling through a swirling vortex can really build up an appetite, "Don't mean to get off-topic, but you wouldn't happen to have anything to eat on ya?"

Sighing in frustration, Jamie combed through the pockets of his jacket. It would probably help in keeping her quiet for a bit. From his pocket, he pulled out its contents and unwrapped the item before handing it to Sisu. Sisu, on her part, inspected what the teen had given her. She never thought that a flat brown rectangle would be anything appetizing. Although it didn't smell half bad, so might as well take a chance.

In one bite, Sisu couldn't believe her taste buds. Never before has she ever tasted something both so sweet and creaming in all her long life. Sisu couldn't help herself from purring in delight as the treat melted in her mouth. It was as if she had found a piece of Nirvana had touched the tip of her tongue.

"What is this heavenly delight?" Sisu asked in pure bliss.

"It's a bar of chocolate."

"Mmm… chocolate." Sisu moaned as she ate the chocolate bar slowly to savor its taste, "Been meaning to ask you something serious, my boy. Why'd you summon me?"

"Say what?" Jamie asked in confusion.

"Yeah, I've been through this routine once before." Sisu answered while taking the last bite of chocolate and sucked the tips of her fingers to boot, "Sure, you didn't know who I am, but you still summoned me for something. So, let me guess, you need my help in banishing an ancient evil from destroying the world?" Jamie shook his head which was the first red flag for the dragon, "Okay, you're on a quest to destroy an evil talisman to prevent an ancient evil from coming back?"

"No."

"Fulfill a prophecy?"

"Nope."

"Stop a war?"

"Nada."

"Grant wishes?"

Jamie again shook his head.

"There's a political discourse, and you need me to act as a mediator to help bring about world peace?"

"No, it's none of those things!" Jamie was getting tired of this little roundabout, "Look, all I did was hold a stupid rock and ask for something. I didn't even think anything was going to happen. I just did it out of catharsis. There you have it. I wasn't trying to summon anyone. This was all just accidental. You may feel free to rib into me now."

But no such thing occurred. Instead, Sisu simply lamented, "Honestly, I'm just glad it's not the wish thing because you would've really been very disappointed. If you really don't need me, then how bout pop out that stone and send me home?"

Jamie groaned, but this time it was to himself, "I dropped it somewhere in the water." he gestured to the puddles that littered the cave floor. It was fruitless to even try looking for it this time of night. Speaking of which, Jamie checked his phone only to find his pockets were missing such an item, "Crud, I lost my phone too. And with all that's happened, I've been completely turned around. I'll never find my way out until daybreak."

"I can help with that!"

Though Jamie was initially confused by what she meant, he would soon be rendered speechless. In an instant, the cave was bathed in vibrant blue light. Turning around, he saw the light was emanating from none other than Sisu herself. The dragon was glowing like an overgrown nightlight. As much as Jamie wanted to comment on this, he was more concerned with using it to his advantage. With Sisu's glow, Jamie was able to once again make out the cave interior. The second he saw the cave paintings, Jamie knew precisely where the exit was.

"Okay, look, I know this is a bit sudden, but I can't stay." He said, "I got to get home before my family gets worried."

"I'll come with you."

"No! No!" Jamie's shouted in a panic, and why wouldn't he? The last thing he needed was to roll on in with a dragon following behind him; doing so would more than likely have his mom screaming for Ritchie to grab the shotgun and blow Sisu away, "You know what? Why don't you stay here to find clues that can help us in getting you back? How's that sound?"

Sisu stared at the boy suspiciously before enthusiastically deciding, "Yeah, okay!" Jamie was getting tonal whiplash for how quickly her mood would change, "These glyphs are interesting. Maybe there is a key to our conundrum hidden within them. It'll be like doing homework... wait..." Sisu had that suspicious look in her eyes, "You're not just using this as an excuse to ditch me, are you?"

"What? No!" Jamie said rather unconvincingly. But, honestly, Jamie wouldn't blame her for thinking that as he hasn't been the most welcoming person when meeting her, "Okay, how about I come back and meet you here by morning?"

"Promise?" Jamie nodded, but Sisu still held out one hand with only her pinky extended, "Pinky swear?" the teen groaned as he attempted to wrap his small human pinky around her large dragon one, "Okay, I trust you. Have a goodnight, Jamie. See you in the morning."

Jamie took that as his leave and exited through the caves. When making it outside, he needs a minute to replay the absolute insanity that played out there. A dragon! He was face-to-face with an actual dragon! A talking dragon, no doubt. Even now, it still felt unreal. She was so beautiful, so majestic, and the most obnoxious creature he had ever met. That's saying a lot considering his older – twin sister was still around. But Jamie could lament on that later. Now, he had to get home.

Jamie made a run for it back down the mountain trail as fast as his legs could carry. Jamie managed to make it home within the hour despite a few hurdles, like going through the fence. Ritchie's car was in the driveway, but lucky for him, the light in the house was all off. The door was locked, so that possibly meant everyone thought he was already in his room. Jamie snuck his way into the house and up to his room using the spare key on hand. Now safely in his own personal sanctuary, Jamie slipped under the covers of the bed and finally slept this crazy night away.

Although, sleep did not come easy this night with the seventeen-year-old. Constantly tossing in turning throughout the night with his mind still racing around the previous day's events. A part of Jamie's mind wondered, did he do this? Did he actually wish for a dragon? No! It had to be a crazy coincidence. No way those old myths were true! There was no way that magic was any way involved in this mess. Jamie was like this until eventually, he woke to find it was suddenly 6:00 am. Jamie groaned because he only got less than probably five hours of sleep with the sun barely even rising. Jamie tried going back to sleep, but memories of the promise made with Sisu began playing in his head. He didn't have to keep his promise. What was the worst Sisu could do, talk him to death? Unless she could track him down by smell, there was no way that that annoying dragon would be able to find him. Instead, she'll probably remain in that cave lost, alone, and spending the whole day wondering where he was.

With his own mind guilt-tripping him, Jamie pulled himself out of bed to meet up with Sisu. After getting fully dressed, the teen snuck out into the garage. Taking the truck would cause too much noise, so he opted to take an old mountain bike that he hadn't seen use in some time. The peddles of said bike spin with fury as he rode up there; the razes of the rising sun had already eaten away at the night sky. Walking through the mouth of the cave, Jamie found his way back into the cavern; the daylight shined a whole new glow onto the place, with the water reflecting off the walls. It was almost like stepping into a brand new world. Speaking of something new, where was that talkative blue noodle who called herself a dragon?

"Morning, Jamie!"

Jamie practically jumped out of his skin and fell into the water. To be honest, you would do the same if a make-believe creature popped up shouting beside you. Though Sisu was giggling at this outcome, to her credit, she was doing it out of nervousness from possibly getting her friend hurt. The water dragon zipped over to the fallen teenager and picked him up with her hands under his armpits like he were a toddler.

"We really should stop meeting like this, or else you'll give yourself a panic attack." Sisu placed Jamie on the dry ground before wiping him down, "I recommend doing some relaxation exercises. You ever pick up Yoga? It'd really do you some good to loosen you up a bit."

Jamie slapped her hands away as he composed himself, "Can we just get this over with?"

"Sure thing, Mr. Grumpy Gills," Sisu allowed the boy to pick himself up when she presented him with a gift, "Found your magic rock."

Jamie looked in her hand, and low and behold, there was the very same rock he had last night, "You actually found it. In less than a night?"

"I know! I thought it would take longer too, even with my glow." Sisu showed off her enthusiasm by flipping the stone in the air a few times, "Funny thing, though, I sorta sense something strange coming off this rock. It gives me a tingly sensation whenever I touch it."

"Tingly sensation?" Jamie puzzled to himself. Perhaps that confirmed the stone might, in fact, be a piece of meteorite.

"Anywho. According to those cave drawings, we need to draw a special symbol, bath it in light, and bada-bing-bada-boom it'll grant us whatever we want!" Sisu placed the stone in Jamie's hand, "What do you say, Boy!? Let's fire this puppy up, so then it, boom baby, good morning to Kumandra!"

With the stone in hand, Jamie felt a sense of relief sweep over. At last, this crazy – short-lived adventure was to soon be at an end. All that was needed was a piece of chalk. Chalk that Jamie pulled from his jacket and wrote upon the symbol from memory. The young man then held the stone into the light and ready himself for what was to come.

"Magic stone, or whatever, I want you to send the dragon back home!" Jamie commanded.

But to the human and dragon's astonishment, nothing happened. Instead, the cave was filled with nothing more than empty silence.

"Maybe you need to be more specific," Sisu suggested, "Try using my name."

"Your name...right..." Jamie swallowed a lump in his throat from that advice, "Okay. Magic stone, I want you to send home… Beesu?"

"SISU!" she corrected in aggravation, "You forgot my name!?"

"Hey, to be fair, I was suffering from two concussions last night!" Jamie exclaimed, "You're lucky that I even remember you were real and came back at all!"

"Well, don't you know how to make a girl feel special." Sisu responded sarcastically.

"Anyway, I want Sisu to go home!" and once again, nothing happened.

"Maybe this whole command thing isn't working," Sisu interjected, "Was there any specific way you said things when you used it last?"

"I did phrase it as a wish."

"Why didn't you say that earlier?" Sisu frantically asked, "Do that! Do that!"

Jamie sighed in frustration and retook his position, "I wish that the dragon, Sisu, would go home!"

But still, nothing happened. At this point, both parties were baffled as to what the problem could be. Thus, Sisu went back to the cave drawings to see if she missed something during her initial research. Unfortunately, time had not been kind to these old runes. From the meteor crash to the decades of erosion have done their fair share of damage to the carving, so blame could not be entirely pleased to placed onto Sisu. On a second glance, the magical dragon made sure to have more of a watchful eye to find what she missed.

For a moment, Sisu believed there was nothing a missed. The picture of a man holding a stone with the light from the sun shining down with whatever he desires there before him. Everything had been done as it was drawn. In that second did Sisu notice more of the portrait than she first thought. Off slightly a few degrees to the left was the partial shape of a circle, partially due to most of that side being damaged. The other end wasn't fairing any better, but ninety degrees to the right of the sun carving caught Sisu's attention. Studying the crescent-shaped carving, a revelation suddenly clicked in Sisu's head.

"Oh, I get it, this is supposed to be a moon. Hey Jamie, I think it's saying this only works under the light of a full moon." Sisu said as she laughed nervously, "Yeah, I thought that was the sun this whole time."

"Full moon? But that was last night." Jamie stammered to himself. When he composed himself, the teen splashed Sisu in the face when she came near, "How did you miss that? I thought you said this would be like doing your homework!"

"I never said I was good at my homework," Sisu wiped the water from her before addressing the boy again, "What are you so worked up about anyway? Compared to where we were last night, I see this as huge progress."

"Sisu, don't you get it?" Jamie was growing ever more frustrated with the dragon's bubbly attitude, "The last full moon was last night, so the next one won't be for another month from now. So you are stuck here until then. Doesn't that bother you?"

Sisu scratched the back of her head to ascertain how to respond, "It's not like it doesn't bother me. But, in all honesty, it could be worse. I could've been stranded in this damp cave all alone with no one to talk to, but luckily I've got someone like you willing to help me. You can say I'm a glass half full kind of dragon."

Hearing this dragon explaining her position did help put things in perspective for Jamie. Here was no mischievous beast bent on giving him grief. Instead, what stood before him was a poor – innocent creature who was too naïve to know when things were going south.

"I got a perfect example too. Come with me!" Sisu dragged Jamie from his train of thought, both figuratively and literally. Her tail wrapped around the young lad once she zipped out of the cave with him in tow. Sisu would remove her grip from him the moment they made it outside, "Feast your eye on this scenery and tell me I should feel sorry for myself."

And so Jamie did. He looked off to the distance of this nature preserve. From where the trees grew tall, sweeping below the mountain peaks. The sprawling rivers and lakes glistened in the morning sun. From the beautiful vista of land left untouched for generations to its glorious mountain top. It indeed was a sight to behold for those witnessing it for the first time. Jamie, though was not one of those people.

"Sisu, I live here," he exclaimed, "I already know what this place looks like."

"Of course, you'd know what it looks like, but that doesn't mean you've seen it!" Sisu's comment made Jamie groan from being given a philosophy lecture by a fluffy lizard, "Besides, last time I woke up someplace different, it was a desert. Instead of sweet-heavenly delectable chocolate, my friend fed me the worst homemade jerky that has ever been dried in all of Kumandra. So, in a sense, I think this is a bit of an upgrade. Great view, new friend, and even some locally grown food." Sisu pulled out a tiny sack hidden in her mane. How she was able to do that, Jamie will never know, but inside were little red fruits which she proceeded to chow on, "These berries are a lot sourer than I'm used to. But you know what they say, 'beggars can't be choosers. "

Hearing what she was eating, Jamie's heart raced. Sisu couldn't be eating what he thought she was eating, could she? However, Jamie's suspicions were vindicated when he saw a bush near the cave that had obviously been disturbed. Throughout his multiple camping experience with his father, the young man could recognize the type of bush and the fruits it bears. Sisu was eating holly berries!

"Sisu, how many of those did you eat!?" Jamie asked frantically.

"I don't know, maybe over a dozen before you got here," Sisu would then pop three more into her mouth, "Why'd you ask?"

Sisu would come to regret not acting sooner when given an answer to her question. Oh, of course, Jamie would try to warn the dragon and tell her how holly berries were poisonous, as well as they'd give her horrendous indigestion. But Sisu brushed off the concern with a decoration that she was fine and how Jamie was being overdramatic. Such bravado was soon dashed away when she wound up vomiting in the bushes for five minutes. One would say that Sisu was eating her words, but if that were the case, they would be on the ground with the rest of her stomach contents. For that whole time, though, Jamie stayed by her side. Honestly, Jamie couldn't tell if he was more put off by the sound or the smell; it was definitely the smell. Still, Jamie stayed with the vomiting dragon and even attempted to comfort her with a pat on the shoulder.

After five minutes of this, Sisu pulled herself around and laid flat on her back. Once comfortable, she just laid there with her hands upon her stomach. Sisu's moans and groans of agony were all that could be heard now. On the one hand, Jamie felt terrible for the dragon, but on the other, he was still a snarky teenage boy at heart. So, he was somewhat vindicated to see her happy-go-lucky attitude stricken from that obnoxiously happy face for once.

"So, how's that glass half full mentality treating you?" Jamie asked, with a lot of snark behind it.

Sisu groaned when answering, "This proves nothing!" she continued to soothe her belly in fear that another hurl session would come along, "What deity did your people anger to give you poison berries?"

Jamie winced with each and every painful moan that came from the dragon. At first, it was funny, but it was quickly becoming hard to watch. He felt the need to rid Sisu of her suffering.

"Sisu, I have medicine that could help, but it at home," Jamie started moving back down the trail, "Just stay here, and I'll be back as quick as possible."

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm not going anywhere anytime..." Sisu clasped a hand around her mouth and ducked backed into the bushes for another round of barfing.

Jamie, for his part, was keen on keeping his word. Rushing out of the preserve on his bike to his home as fast as his legs can peddle. Fortunately, reaching the house was not the tricky part. No, that will have to be sneaking past his family. With the sun fully raised in the sky, there was little doubt that some of them were awake at this moment. Jamie would need to avoid them while going in and out of the building. The least of which would be his mother, who Jamie believed might have some words for him after ditching the festival.

The young man had already figured his plan of action when he reached his home. Leaving the bike out of sight just inside the forest, Jamie rushed to the side of the house and climbed onto a vine-covered trellis. The architectural structure was high for the teen to scale all the way up to a second-story window. Unfortunately, said window didn't lead to his bedroom. Jamie would have to shimmy along the gutters to get there, which were out of his reach. Instead, Jamie had to settle for the window that leads into his twin sister's room that was absent of her. But, like Sisu said, beggars can't be choosers. Sneaking through the unlocked window, he tiptoed across the teenage girl's room, a feat not as easy as it sounds with piles of clothes and other junk littered on the floor. At least that was something he had against his sister, cleanliness.

Once out of his sister's room, Jamie quickly and quietly made his way to the bathroom. First, he tested the doorknob to see if it was unlocked before heading on in. Next, Jamie scoured through the medicine cabinet for anything to soothe the stomach and enough for a dragon. Eventually, he decides on a bottle of Pepto Bismol and finally to get out of there. When Jamie was about to head out, he heard the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. Jamie quickly hid back into the bathroom and waited to see who it might be. Turned out it was his twin, Katie, who was too preoccupied with her phone to notice anything was off while she went to her room, and thus Jamie's way out was blocked.

With that escape route cut off from him, Jamie needed a new plan. When one door closes, another one opens as the boy chooses to go to his own room. Jamie's room actually had the added benefit of his window facing the front of the house, so once out, he'll just need to make a dash to his bike, and the rest will be history. The only issue was dropping from two stories without hurting himself, but Jamie figured he'd manage. So, Jamie opened the window before sitting upon the edge. The boy needed some time to mentally prepare himself for the next stage of his plan. Then, taking a deep breath, Jamie dropped down to the bushes below. With shrubbery breaking his fall, Jamie made a beeline to his bike and rode off to Sisu.

When Jamie returned to the mountain, he found that the dragon was looking even worse for wear. Sisu looked to be a wreck with how she laid on the ground with her body back all splayed out, head cushioned against a rock, all the while, her tongue hung lazily out of her mouth. Also, if Jamie didn't know any better, Sisu's blue fur looked to be turning into a sickly shade of green. She readily gave off the impression of being dead, but Jamie knew that couldn't be the case.

"Sisu!" Jamie called, stepping closer to the dragon, "Sisu, are you okay?"

"Jamie, is that you?" Sisu whimpered, "Help me, Jamie, I'm dying!"

"You're not dying, you freaky lizard."

"I'm not a lizard!" Sisu whined, "I keep telling you I'm a dragon!"

"Well, if you have enough energy to whine, you have enough to take some medicine. Now get up!" Jamie helped pull Sisu, who was surprisingly light for her size, into a sitting position before handing her the Pepto Bismol, "Here. It won't replace what you tossed, but it will at least soothe your stomach."

With Jamie already unscrewing the bottle, Sisu took hold and started guzzling the whole thing down, "Thanks, Jamie. You're a lifesaver!" after she was done emptying the bottle down her gullet, Sisu had some choice words to say, "I'd just like to point out that the only reason I'm not riling in agony anymore is all because you and I became best friends. So, to answer your earlier question, glass is very much half full!"

Jamie just rolled his eyes. Leave it to Sisu to turn a negative into a positive. Wait, what was this feeling? Was he growing accustomed to this dragon's rationality? Now that was a scary thought! Better to try and think of a solution to a current problem to distract from that.

"This isn't going to work," he mumbled. In truth, Jamie was hoping to have Sisu camp out in the woods while he would occasionally check up on her, but that had just been dashed out the window, "I can't leave you out here by yourself. You've been here for less than twenty-four hours, and you have already gotten your stomach poisoned. I hate to say it, but you have no survival instinct whatsoever."

"What can I say? I've always depended on the kindness of strangers."

"That is a horrible mantra to live by!" Jamie's eye began to twitch, "Okay, focus Jamie, Sisu can't stay out in the wild by herself, and you can't stay in the woods for an entire month without risking your job and making your family worried. Which means… which means…."

"Which means what?" Sisu broke Jamie from continuously talking to himself.

Jamie took a deep breath before he could present her with a new proposal, "Sisu, would you like to stay at my place?"

"Well, of course!" Sisu beamed, "You're making it sound like that was never going to be an option."

Jamie needed to take another deep breath to calm him from how oblivious this dragon was, "Let's just go."

Sisu did as she was told and followed after Jamie. Sisu followed Jamie down the mountain trail to the fence that separated the preserve from the rest of the community. Though Jamie had a rough time always fitting through the gap in the chain-link fence, he also had a tinge of envy when seeing how Sisu hopped it and landed perfectly in front of him in one quick succession. All in all, everything was going smoothly until that reached Jamie's bike.

"Okay, I'll admit, probably didn't think this part through," Jamie said, looking to his bike and back at the dragon forgetting how she was larger than a horse, "There's no way You're gonna fit on this."

"That's okay, I can keep up," Sisu assured him, "I'll just fly alongside you."

"You can fly?" Jamie had to curb his amusement of the obvious flaw with that statement, "No offense, but I don't see any wings on you. What, do you have webbing under your pits to help you glide or something?"

"Nope, I'll just use magic to make me fly," for reasons unknown to Sisu, Jamie started laughing, "What's so funny?"

"There's no such thing as magic."

Sisu needed a minute to take that in, "Boy who magically summoned a dragon say what?"

"We don't know what phenomena actually brought you here, but it was definitely not magic!" Jamie held firm.

"Then pray tell, how do you explain…" Sisu began glowing again, "…this?"

"Bioluminescence"

"Biolumi-what's-it?"

"Bioluminescence," Jaimie clarified, "The ability of a living organism to produce light from their body. A few other animals can do it too. There's nothing magical about it." His comments earned him a pout courtesy from Sisu, "Now quit playing around and help me figure out a real solution to our…" suddenly, something hit the top of Jamie's head. Then it happened again, and again until he looked up to see clouds miraculously form out of nowhere with rain coming down upon him, "That's odd. The skies were clear a moment ago."

"What!? You don't say?" Sisu sarcastically stated, "Why, that is so interesting. It's almost like it's… magic."

Realizing what she was saying, Jamie turned to the dragon in shock and awe, "You did this?"

"That's right, boy, I bring the rain!" Sisu was all too happy to astound the young man, "And that's not even the best part."

Sisu extended her hand in front of Jamie to demonstrate what she meant. Sprinkles of raindrops stop inches from her palm before forming into one sphere of water, though now containing a violet aura within it. Sisu turned her hand over the sphere, and when pushed down, it splattered in midair with vibrant violet and blue colors into a solid mass underneath her hand. Then she placed her other hand down, and it too splattered in the creation of splattered watercolors as well. Using those first two splatters as platforms, Sisu lifted herself up so that her hind paws caught watery platforms of their own. Soon, what started out as a slow ascension off the ground turned into a full gallop into the sky.

Jamie watched on in wonder at the unbelievable sight he was faced with witnessing. Never before had Jamie ever thought he would see someone, dragon or otherwise, run across the sky with nothing but rainwater as support. But here, Sisu was doing the impossible with flips, tricks, and that signature goofy grin on her face. Honestly, it was a sight to behold.

"What you waiting for, Jamie?" Sisu asked gleefully while standing in the air just above the teen, "Come on, lead the way, slowpoke!"

Before Jamie could even respond, Sisu was already flying down the mountain trail. Seeing how she gave no signs of waiting up for him, Jamie scrambled onto his bike and raced after the dragon. Funny enough, though, catching up with Sisu didn't prove to be much of an issue despite the rain. It was almost like she let him fill the gap, a fact made clear when Sisu looked back at him giggling with glee. Sisu was treating this like it were a game which Jamie didn't know if he should be annoyed by or just come to accept it.

In only a matter of time, Jamie caught up to the point he was riding his bike directly underneath the flying dragon. The two rode onward like this, Sisu keeping an even pace with her new best friend and following which directions he was going. To liven things up, Sisu occasionally did an aileron roll which only served to drench Jamie in more water and make biking down the now muddy trail much harder.

"Hey, Jamie, got a question I've been meaning to ask." Sisu said with a passing glance at the boy beneath her.

"And that would be?" Jamie was more preoccupied focusing on the slippery slope he rode on to pay Sisu much mind.

"You said you summoned me here by phrasing it as a wish, right?"

"Yeah."

"So, you wished for a dragon?"

Jamie almost fell off his bike when faced with such a question. He really didn't want to answer that because, for starters, he didn't believe it was coming true and because he didn't want to deal with Sisu's reaction to it.

So, Jamie opted for the response of, "Not exactly. Now I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"Your flight, glow, and rain making are all a part of your magic, right?" Jamie's question was answered via Sisu nodding her head, "How many different magical abilities do you have?"

"All dragons can fly like me, but each dragon gets their own unique magic." Sisu explained, "All except for me. So, long story short, let's just say something special happened that granted me more magic."

"Well, you definitely are special." Jamie responded sarcastically

"Thank you!"

The ride after that became largely uneventful. Jamie had to pick a different route home so that the two of them could avoid the roads; not that Sisu minded with all the joy she had flying. It wasn't until they reached the final stretch did Jamie decide to leave his bike and signaled to Sisu that they'd continue on foot. Peeking out from behind a tree, Jamie saw his house was visible only a few yards away.

"Now that's a much fancier place to live than a dingy old cave."

Looking up, Jamie found Sisu peaking from the same tree as him. He was quick to push her back in fear that she would be seen. Unfortunately, Sisu's vibrant blue fur did little to camouflage her and instead clashed against the luscious green forest around them. Jamie was really beginning to regret this decision.

"What's the holdup, buddy?" Sisu asked as Jamie continued to push her out of view of the house, "I thought we were going inside."

"Sisu, just think for a moment," Jamie said when he believed they were at a safe distance away, "Remember how I reacted when we first met? How I freaked out at the sight of you? Now imagine that, but instead, it's my whole family."

"But if we just explain everything to them, everything might turn out alright." Sisu said, always remaining the optimist.

"Not likely. More like they'll run you out and probably call animal control. No, we have to remain on the down-low." Jamie took his attention away from Sisu and back at the house, "Just need to think where's the best place to hide you…" but in the corner of his eye, a blinding light flashed that made Jamie turn back to Sisu.

"Will this work?"

Before him, Jamie no longer saw a dragon but instead a human woman. An Asian woman standing at 5.7 wearing a navy blue long sleeve robe adorned with water patterns and white furry collar, grey trousers that stopped just below her knees, finished with soft blue shoes that exposed her ankles. Her hair was disheveled in the same white-bluish-violet that became all too familiar with Jamie. The woman's face was unusually round, and her teeth were slightly crooked. There was no way that this was the same dragon that's been causing him so much grief. But that hair color, that goofy smile, and those purple eyes. Could it really be?

"Sisu?"

"Yep, it's me alright!" the now human Sisu said, "Go on, Jamie, take it all in!"

Jamie should be impressed, he really should, but instead, he felt annoyance, "Let me get this straight, you've could've turned yourself into a person at any time?" Sisu nodded, "And you didn't mention this earlier because…?"

"You didn't ask."

"Yes, I did!"

"No, you didn't," Sisu corrected, "You asked how much magic I have. Not what kind of magic I have."

"What… but… it was implied…." Jamie let out a frustrated groan as he just couldn't deal with her light now, "It's like talking to a child."

"So… are we going to do this thing, or what?" Sisu was nonchalant to Jamie's meltdown.

"You know what?" Jamie just gave up on all rationale, "Sure, why not? You're human now! No big deal! What can go wrong? Let's get this over with before you become the death of me!"

With nothing left to say, Jamie practically dragged the human Sisu to his house. Quietly they snuck through the door seamlessly without alerting anybody. It appeared that no one was stationed anywhere in the downstairs living area. A good thing so that Jamie could think of a story to tell the family to explain Sisu's sudden appearance. But until then, he needed to settle the matter of the low grumbles coming from the stomach of the former dragon.

"I'm gonna go to the kitchen and grab you something to eat, so just wait here." Jamie was going for the kitchen but stopped to look back to Sisu, "Also, don't touch anything."

With Jamie gone, Sisu was left alone to marvel at the interior of his home. The cool tile floors, the smooth concrete walls, and finely crafted wood furniture are topped with clear glass. Back home, one would need to be wealthy or royal for their homes to be adorned with such craftsmanship on display. Sisu was encouraged to explore further in the house to see what else this humble abode had to offer, and she was not disappointed. Sisu's little exploration led her into the living area dawned with fluffy carpet and an oversized soft – comfy couch for her to lay back and relax. From where Sisu sat, she had access to the large glass windows looking out at the lovely scenery before her. Yes, this was much better than a cave. But, from the corner of her eye, something caught Sisu's attention, something she believed to be the stuff of myth.

A black mirror.

With curiosity getting the best of her for being face-to-face with such an artifact, Sisu lifted herself from the couch and approached it. It's said that black mirrors could be used to spy on anyone in the entire world. Jamie must descend from a family of powerful sorcerers to process such a magical artifact. Now, up close with it, Sisu gazed within the screen wonder how it works with her hands and even face, touching it. On accident, one of Sisu's hands brushed against a button on the side, causing the screen to come to life.

"… Wilson passes to Baldwin, and its… Touchdown for the Seahawks!"

Sisu, startled by the sudden activation of the TV, practically leaped out of her skin in a holler. Her quick jump backward away from the TV resulted in Sisu falling over the couch and into a table directly behind it. The former dragon's fall resulted in knocking the table along with its contents on the floor. With all the ruckus she was causing, it came to no surprise if Jamie were to hear her and come running.

"Mom, Dad!" instead, the sound of a little girl screaming was heard from the second-floor balcony, "There's a stranger in our house!"

Before Sisu knew it, armed with a baseball bat, a man stepped out from a room from the right end of the downstairs area. Seeing how this man was coming right at her, Sisu scrambled to her feet as quick as she could manage before she would be at risk of getting bludgeoned by this guy. A shame, for Sisu had no idea where to run to as she was quickly cornered.

"Carol, call the police!" Ritchie made some half-hearted swings to keep this unknown woman at bay, "Who are you!? What are you doing in my house!?"

"This is a big misunderstanding," Sisu had her hands up defensively, "I wasn't breaking into your house. I mean, I did end up breaking a table, but…."

Ritchie took another faux swing which silenced Sisu. But, before things could get any worse, Jamie walked out of the kitchen, only now realizing what was happening. But, the teen was quick to place himself between Sisu and his step-father just in the nick of time.

"Whoa, Ritchie, put down the bat! It's fine, she's with me!" the whole room went silent over how Jamie, their residential recluse, actually brought someone home, "Mom," Jamie had just noticed his mother with her cellphone in hand, ready to call 911 before he showed up, "Please, put the phone away. She's not a thief, just… clumsy."

Regardless of how much they believed his word, Jamie could breathe a sigh of relief seeing his family calmed down for the time being. Still, he could see the quizzical look in their eyes as the rest of his family slowly reconvened downstairs. That left Jamie with time to have a small chat with Sisu.

"I told you not to touch anything," Jamie whispered, "Instead, you decided to crash into stuff?"

Sisu gave him a sincere apologetic look, "I'm sorry, your black mirror startled me."

"The what?"

"Jamie?" Jamie's mother, Carol, pulled the two out from their conversation when she now reached downstairs along with his sisters as well, "You know this girl?"

"Yes, I do." Jamie was hoping to put this off under better circumstances, but that had been thrown out the window, "Mom, Ritchie," the teen threw his arm over Sisu's shoulder and pulled her in closer with the best smile he could muster, "This is my new friend, Sisu. Say hi to my family, Sisu."

"Hi!" Sisu responded with a nervous smile, "It's great to meet you all, especially you, sir." she directed to Ritchie, "You've got a wicked swing."

Both Jamie and Sisu smiled nervously at the curious looks given by the boy's family. He couldn't blame them, however. Jamie hasn't brought anyone home for over half a decade now, so he'd understand if they see this as being a bit out of character for him. Who was he fooling? Jamie wouldn't even believe this if he were on the other end of things. How could he convince his family of his claim without drawing too much unnecessary attention to Sisu's way? One thing was for sure, though. That the rest of the day was going to be filled with one awkward question after another. What a weird way to start the day.

End of Chapter 2

A/N: Yes, I know, the second chapter is out so soon. Yes, in the last chapter, I wasn't going to be able to update this fic so frequently, and I meant it. I merely wished to have the first two chapters come out alongside each other to at least lay out the basic premise right away and see how they measure up. But when will the next chapter will come out? I have no idea. Like I said, I have two other fics to work on, so we'll see what happens. Till next time.