Having eaten his fill of leaves, shoots, and fruits, and ready to enter the next stage of his life, Harry, the hairy caterpillar crawled up, what he thought was a handy little crevice in a large boulder not far from the edge of the forest.
He would be shielded here from wind and rain and would be able to await his transformation in peace and quiet.
He wriggled a bit to make himself comfortable, before starting the process of cocooning himself, when his whole body started to vibrate.
His head nearly exploded when a voice in his head boomed, ‘Didn’t anyone ever tell you that it is ill advised to tickle a dragon?’
The hairy caterpillar, exhausted from his long climb up the rough looking boulder, was in no mood to entertain any silly riddles, imaginary or otherwise.
‘Didn’t anyone ever tell you it was rude to mind bomb a creature when they were tired and in need of rest?’ he retorted, his voice sounding decidedly cranky.
‘Now, now, a bit of gratitude would be in your best interest, since YOU are the one who is currently trespassing into one of MY nostrils and I can easily dispel you from it, should I decide to do so. So unless you like to exit your current hiding place in the next few seconds, crispy fried, I would advise some decorum.’
The vibrations in Harry’s head were virtually incapacitating any form of reasonable thought, but even in his current state he realised that he was in some deep shit and dragon shit at that. How was he going to talk himself out of this? He clearly had mistaken the head of a sleeping dragon for a boulder and one of its nostrils for a crevice. That would teach him not to make any rash decisions on a full stomach.
‘My sincere apologies, Mr Dragon’, he said in his most placating voice. ‘In my exhaustion I clearly did not pay appropriate attention to my surroundings and must have inadvertently wandered up one of your voluminous nostrils. I truly did not mean to trespass, nor was it my intention to tickle you. However, if I promised not to move a muscle, could I possibly impose on your hospitality for the next few weeks? I promise it will be worth your while, as I will emerge from your most magnificent nostrils as the most beautiful sight you will ever behold.’
Intrigued that this creature would have the audacity to bargain with him, and a sucker for beauty, the dragon thought this over.
‘Eh, I can’t make any promises that I won’t involuntarily expel you from my nostril in my sleep, as it is in my nature to breathe, fire or otherwise, but if you can manage not to wake me or tickle me for the next few weeks, I can try to breathe through my other nostril for the time being.’
And after a pause, he continued ‘Eh, can you give me any hint as to the nature of the beautiful sight?’
‘No, that would spoil the surprise,’ Harry said, holding a number of his hairy legs crossed for good measure.
‘Well, it better be worth it,’ the next thought boomed, shaking Harry’s entire caterpillar body to the core, ’because you could still end up crispier than crispy, if it turns out that you lied to me.’
‘Just you wait and see,’ Harry said and with that he wrapped himself into a cocoon, as quietly as possible, careful not to make any movements that might upset his host.
Before long the dragon went back to sleep, dreaming of all things bright and beautiful. He had been asleep when the itchy creature had made its way up his nostril, so he didn’t really know who or what he had been talking to, but at least he appeared to be true to his word, as no more disturbances had been felt since their exchange.
After about two and a half weeks, having completed his full metamorphosis, Harry woke up, ready to leave his chrysalis.
Knowing that exiting his cocoon would involve a bit of movement, he addressed the dragon politely.
‘Sorry to disturb you, Mr Dragon,’ he said, ‘I am ready to leave your magnificent nostril now. If you would allow me to wriggle slightly, without turning me into a barbequed side dish, so that I can make my way out, I would greatly appreciate it.’
The dragon, shook his head to dispel any sleep in anticipation of the reveal, before focusing his mind on his guest, nearly dispelling Harry in the process.
‘I will do my best not to, and you can call me Draco. You have been cooked up in my nose for long enough to be on a first name basis.’
Harry wasn’t sure he liked the term cooked up, but thought it best to ignore it.
‘Thanks, eh, Draco,’ he said, ‘My name is Harry. See you on the outside in a moment.’
The dragon felt something flutter from his nostril and opened his eyes wide at the sight before him.
The most gorgeous butterfly fluttered in front of his face, showing off his colourful wings in the sunlight.
‘Hello, Draco,’ Harry said coquettishly, spreading his wings to their fullest span, ‘nice to finally make your acquaintance. Thanks for letting me crash for a few weeks.’
Now that he could see the dragon in his wakened form, he could not believe he crawled up one of those nostrils and lived to tell the tale.
‘Well, eh, I’ll better be off now. By the way, you might want to clear your nostril, after I am gone, to dispel the remnants of my cocoon.’
‘Well at least you kept your end of the bargain, Harry. You are indeed a most beautiful sight to behold.’
At these words the red in the butterfly’s wings seemed to deepen a couple of shades.
Harry’s wings fluttered at the same speed as Draco’s voluptuous eyelashes.
After staring into Draco's eyes for what seemed like an eternity, Harry thought it best to get out of there, fast, before the heat would become too much.
‘Thank you,’ Harry said, breathing heavily, before fluttering away, leaving Draco staring after him admiringly.
The End