Parker looked this way and that, charging at the air, seeing the heffalumps in his mind. It had been a long time since he ever played any games. Actually, it had been a long time since he was a young dragonling when he played games.
It was riveting playing games again. He could see the heffalumps in his field of vision, spotting Maranguan darting from one spot to the next. Parker would attack them with his silver-beamed lightsaber, doing what he could to show those creatures he would not be defeated!
He let out fierce screams, blasting the air with a bellowing orange flame, retracting the flame, extending his claws, and pouncing at the air again. By the time the game was over, he turned off his lightsaber, crashing beside the log with sweat beading down his face and chest.
Playtime was exhausting. So, why was he laughing? It felt so good to play again! Hmm. Maybe he played too hard.
"Wow." A little kangaroo approached him, as did other creatures in the forest. "That was impressive! I'm Roo. My mom's name is Kanga."
"Rabbit," Rabbit introduced himself.
"By jove, you took care of those heffalumps! They won't return," a brown owl said in delight. "I'm Owl."
"Piglet," said a timid pink piglet, hugging Parker.
"And the name's Tigger! T-I-double Guh-ER!" Tigger, an orange tiger with a bouncing tail, said in delight. "I guess you know Eeyore."
"Yup. Parker Dooley knows all about me," Eeyore said, approaching the group.
Parker smiled, chuckling joyously. "Wow. I suppose my name is famous in the book realms, too."
"When you help the worlds and realms, sometimes it's good to kick back," Eeyore said, kindly.
"And we'll have lots and lots of fun! That's for sure!" Tigger said in delight. "By the way, your princesses were looking for you. They crossed this realm. I think they need your help."
"Princesses? Oh right! Them. How could I forget about them?" Parker said, remembering the fourteen princesses who taught him a lesson on kindness, while Pooh and his friends taught him how to play. So, maybe it was wise to bring joy back into his life. These happier worlds helped with that. He'd hate to see them turn evil and corrupt.
"Parker, there you are!" an ebony-haired, pale-skinned woman wearing a blue and yellow dress approached the light red dragonoid. It was Snow White! Oh, how Parker missed her! "How are you? The other princesses and I were wondering when you'd come to our realm."
"This is part of your realm?" Parker asked in curiosity.
Snow White giggled. "Why yes! The Hundred-Acre Wood is not far from my kingdom. The other princesses and I hoped you would return someday and here you are!"
"That's great. What's the emergency?" Parker asked, willing to help out the princesses if he could.
"Well, nothing but you really need to go back to the Land of Talking Animals. A distress call came from Melisandre's kingdom. Something terrible has happened," Snow White said in disbelief. "It's a shame. I was really liking this new reign of hers."
Parker gulped. There was an emergency already? Was it important? He needed to know. However, someone was missing.
"Where is Pooh?" Parker asked, noticing Winnie the Pooh was missing.
"Oh no! We must find him! Let's get a search party!" Rabbit said as he and Pooh's friends wandered off, leaving Parker alone with Snow White.
"They'll be fine, won't they?" Snow White asked, curiously.
"You're asking me. This is your realm, remember?" Parker asked in return.
"Oh, right! I think I know where Pooh is," Snow White said, gathering Pooh's friends and telling them where the yellow bear went off to. She looked at Parker, asking him, "Won't you join us?"
Parker nodded. "Sure. I'd love to." He got up, departing from the log and following Snow White and Pooh's friends to a cliff, overlooking the forest. Parker sighed, determined to meet with Pooh, who sat on a log, gazing out at the forest.
"Oh. It's nice of you to join me at this hour," Pooh said, kindly.
Parker sat down beside him, gazing out at the horizon. Already, he'd been here for a few hours and it seemed like time was moving too fast for him.
"I have to go back. The Land of Talking Animals needs me. There's been an emergency. I have to go," Parker said, looking at Pooh.
"Oh, emergencies are important, but so is taking it easy and doing nothing. I do nothing all the time. It helps my brain think of things I hadn't thought of before," Pooh said, calmly.
"Well thank you for helping me remember what it was like to be a child," Parker said, timidly.
"You're welcome. My friends helped you with that, didn't they?" Pooh asked, curiously.
Parker chuckled. He did like this wooded area.
"Yes, they did so quite vigorously," Parker said, facing the bear.
"That's good. Everyone needs to be reminded of their childhood. Otherwise, we'd all forget about it. I don't want to forget you," Pooh said, hugging the light red dragonoid.
Parker smiled. He was happy for the bear and for himself. He felt lighter. That was good. It was a good to be reminded of his childhood and what it felt like to be a dragonling all over again.
"You're a silly old bear," Parker said, wondering if someone else would say something similar to what he was saying now, while patting the yellow bear gently on the back.
"And you're a good hugger," Pooh said in delight.
Parker laughed, releasing Pooh. It was good to be alive. It couldn't get worse, could it? That's what Parker feared. Well, at least he had fun in this realm while it lasted. Now, he just hoped things weren't too bleak in the Land of Talking Animals.