4

"Come to me, come to me and be mine. This is who you truly are. This is your legacy," The dragon said to me. I then woke up crying. I calmed down for about a few minutes, but as I was eating my breakfast, my grandma asked me why I got so emotional when I woke up. My response: "It was just a very emotional dream." It didn't seem to convince her. She persisted that something more was going on. I could tell that I wouldn't be able to get her off of my back to try to find the dragon that grabbed me weekly. "You know the dragon that's been grabbing me every week? I had a dream that she was calling me to her, calling me into her arms."

"What do you intend to do?" She asked me.

"Find her; I don't know how much longer I can stay like this. I just feel a connection to her."

"I know I said it'd be your choice, and if this is what you want, I'll respect that," she replied. So after I finished, I went outside, trying to find her. Sure enough, she came for me, grabbed me, and brought me to that exact spot in the woods.

"Good to see you, girl. I've heard your call, and I'm here to answer. So bring me with you before you go; bring me to your world, and together we'll spread our wings and fly." She looked confused at first before I tightly held onto her arm. She tapped on the ground twice with her other arm before shaking me off and flying away. "Why did she call me to her if she flew off?" I headed back home and knocked on the door. It opened, and my grandma was surprised that I was still there.

"She didn't take you? Maybe at a later date, she will."

Over time, the color-changing dragon seemed to be more discontent as I had saved roughly 20 kids from being grabbed. My shifter friends weren't too impressed either as they began to hang out with me less. It did, however, attract a different group of kids that I met the summer before. One of them, however, appeared to be missing this summer. I sat down with them in the park near my home, and they encouraged me to keep doing what I was doing. As they did, though, I saw the same color-changing dragon lying under some trees and watching me as if she was ready to put me in my place. "I don't know if I can keep doing this. My heart is troubled, and she helps me cope better than what I've been doing right now," I told them as I was about ready to head back home.

"You mean you'd..."

He stopped there as I replied: "Yes, and I'm sorry if it disappoints, but seeing the love that they bring only makes me yearn for it more." I was soon home in my own bed with what felt like a heavy heart. However, I started to get more restless over time. Slowly I couldn't sleep till I had spent some time with her, and eventually, it became overwhelming.

One day I found an odd suit on my bed, sprawled out with a note that said: "wear me, I can help in your grief."

"Well, ok then," I nervously said. I slipped my arm into one of the sleeves to it being a perfect yet snug fit. "No leg holes for some reason. Who or where did this come from?" It suddenly moved and fitted my legs into its tail.

"Calm down, son, I mean you no harm," I heard something say as the suit put itself on me up to my neck.

"What's happening?" I said as I started to feel more relaxed out of nowhere.

"Yes, let me hold you snugly while your mind heals, son," something said to me as the mask slipped onto my face. I soon started to feel sleepy, and eventually, I blacked out as the suit took over my body.