Setting the bucket down on the ground, Dree looked away from Drat to the Wishing Well. "We need to know about this Nyte Shade's Heart and if the Wishing Well can help us find it. If Dragon's need it to keep our magic pure, then we need to know where it is. It seems to be the only way to fix all of these mis-enchantments," Dree said. "I have had several long talks with the Wishing Well but the Nyte Shades and this heart never were brought up. I don't know if I have to specifically ask about them and even then if the Well will give us a truthful answer."
He likes knock-knock jokes and jingles. Sometimes when someone makes a wish, the rhymes help him think up new jingles. Of all the secrets that Drat knew as the head of the Troll Kings secret police, this was something new. "I must let King Dulbbe know about this," he thought as he watched the Dragon approach the Wishing Well. "Wishing Well. I have come to ask a favor. Are you home?" asked Dree. "Hello Dree. Of course I am home. Where else would I be?" answered the Well. "I only asked to be 'well' mannered," answered the Dragon remembering the Wishing Well's sense of humor. "Got me on that one," answered the Well. "Water you waiting for, ask your favor." Groaning to himself, Drat now realized where Dree got some of his puns from... "I am searching for a way to help the other Dragons who have returned. Their magic is causing chaos and I was told that the Heart of the Nyte Shade could help heal this problem. Can you tell me where it is?" Dree asked the Wishing Well. Dree did not know how long the Wishing Well had been waiting for this question to be asked. The heart was what had given the Well meaning and the Old Wishing Well had longed desired for the time when the Dragons drank from its water again. Finally the Well answered, "Drai’ochtluan (using Dree's formal name), long have I waited for one such as you to ask this question. Please lower the bucket into my water and you will find what you are seeking."
"Long ago this was hidden under the waterfall that flowed here by the First Dragon. Long have I watched over it. The magical love that flows from it makes the Dragons 'more' each time they come in contact with it. I would see the Dragons become whole again!" said the Wishing Well. After thanking the Well and telling it that if it was possible they would return the Nyte Shade's heart as it had done a great job keeping it safe, Dree and Drat started back to the Baron's Mansion. It was during that walk that Dree started to formulate his plan on how to help both the Dragons and the mis-enchanted.
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As he finished writing the last few words, he muttered to himself, "Yes, I need to do a lot more research regarding this Moon Dragon. I am hearing the words whispered in the winds too often, especially in regard to this Aralt character also. I think I will need to share a tankard of Tee-Hee Brew with him and see what he has to say. As a Herald to Dragons, he might say something interesting. Maybe this time I can out scoop Snoop and he will have to publish something I write on the cover of the Bellwether."
"Sire, Dree is gone. I went to his cave and he is not there. I checked the area and finally found tracks in one of the side caves leading to the area of The Wishing Well." It only took a second before Dulbbe calculated (being a bookkeeper before becoming the Troll King) what Dree may be up to and decided to send his chief minion out to find the missing Dragon. "I will let the others know, but do what you can to bring him back. We don't want Siate' or Aralt to find him first," he told Drat. Again Drat silently slipped out of the tea room as Dulbbe started to make his announcement about Dree's absence. Soon he was out of the Mansion and traveling towards The Wishing Well. "I should get there first with this shortcut," Drat thought to himself. "What is that Dragon up to?"
As Aralt walked to the well, it was Drat who saw him first. The rat was very good at not being seen when he did not want to be and quickly hid behind one of the giant mushrooms that grew in the area. As he watched Aralt draw up a bucket of water from the well and then take off his shoes and put his feet into it, Drat turned slightly green. "I must remember not to drink from that bucket ever again," he grumbled. "Augh!" A Dragon's sense of smell is better than any other animal and Dree was a Dragon. He too could smell something that was not pleasant as he was nearing The Wishing Well and decided to approach with caution. As Aralt was facing the other direction, the Herald did not see the Dragon and was unaware that he was now hiding behind the bushes behind him.
When he could no longer be seen, Dree left his hiding place and walked up to The Wishing Well. Picking up the bucket, he then proceeded to slosh the remaining water around in it and then poured it out on the grass. As he started to lower the bucket back into the well, he heard a voice behind him. "I don't know if you want to put that bucket back into the clean water of the well," said Drat. Smiling to himself before turning around, Dree looked at his friend and asked, "What took you so long to get here?"
He knew that somehow he would be the one having to make the final decisions about his kin, the Dragons. "To save us all," he murmurs again. As he continued thinking about what the Oracle had said, he almost opened the bag IT was carried in to ask more questions. "No. I need to think this more on my own," he decided trying to wrap his Dragon brain about all that he had just learned. "We must first keep Siate' and Aralt from discovering the Wishing Well's importance," Dree knew. But there was something else in what the Oracle had said that made him uncomfortable. Something that was hanging just out of reach as he still had not quite grasped it fully yet. "It's tickling my brain so what am I missing?" he said out loud.
After only a short delay, the Oracle telepathically responded. "Master, the Guardian of the Sacred Tree was perishing. You went there to help defend the tree. You must have been successful as we are all still here and you have returned." Dree thought about the response for a while. "Thank you. I will not be asking any more questions for now. Please disregard me unless I addresses you directly," Dree told the Oracle. "Very good Master," was IT's reply. Dree now knew what had eluded him before. "To save us all," he muttered again as he started down the caves and back to the Mansion. "Since the Moon Dragon did not return, I must assume that something happened to him.
Dree knew that to the Oracle when he asked his questions he had to act as if he were Tun'Gul, it's creator and the only other Moon Dragon to have ever existed. The Oracle still was insisting that there was only one Moon Dragon and since there could only be one, Dree must really be Tun'Gul. "Greeting Oracle. I would like to ask you some questions to confirm events before we were separated and to test your recollections," said Dree. "As you have instructed, I have maintained the information. Inquire," answered the Oracle. "Why did the Dragon's leave this Realm?" was Dree's first question. The Oracle spun on the table as it answered. "The Dragons did not like the restrictions that were being placed on them by Villagers. Their egg nests were being raided for the crystals created by the dragnets' hatchings. The Wish Dragons especially did not like their wishes being regulated by the Wish Dragon Clan. Since the Dragons are each independent and they do not have a ruler, they did not like being told what they could and could not do. The most powerful Wish Dragon who was left after the Moon Dragon disappeared attempted to become Queen of all Dragons. Your disappearance, Master Moon Dragon, was the final act that made the other Dragons seek a new home."
As the Dowager was thinking on how some of the puzzle pieces were starting to fit together, it was Dree's next question and the Oracle's answer that took her completely by surprise! "When the Dragon's left, did they take the Nyte Shade's heart in the golden cage?" asked Dree. The Oracle paused for a second before answering. "As you hid the heart and cage in the cavern behind the waterfall, that is where it has stayed since your departure, Oh Wise One," replied the Oracle. Before anyone else could say a word, Dree quickly asked his next question. "Do you know where that cage could be found now?"
"Why did I leave you?" the Dragon asked. The Oracle did not delay this time in answering. "To save us all," was it's response. "As the only Moon Dragon, you went to the sacred tree to protect the Realms and did not return until now. I am glad you have found me and we are reunited again," said the Oracle.
"We have discovered that a Nyte Shade, one of Queen Ffion's ancestors, gave her magic to a dragon and that is how Dragon's became magical." Now it was Nutmegg and Allspice's turn to be surprised as this was not known to them. "That might explain why Siate' came back and why Aralt was here," Nutmegg murmured to Allspice.
"I am glad that you all are here," Griselda realized. "For it must mean something. We certainly would have never gone down this path without what Allspice and Nutmegg had told us. Apparently there is something in this realm that affects the Dragon's magic making it more stable. What that something may be is still an assumption. But if the stone in the cage was not taken by the Dragon's when they left, then that could be a good reason why some of their mis-enchantments happen elsewhere as anything else. What we have to do is figure a way to find out more about the mis-enchantment issue. It might just be the key to both why the Dragons have returned and how to stop Aralt and Siate' from whatever their plan could be."
When he was finished, Allspice turned to the rest of the group and started to relay about Lil' Boots overhearing a conversation and how he rushed over to warn everyone about what Aralt was told to do. Finding out that Aralt was planning on abducting someone and take them back to Siate' for questioning did not make the others very happy. "Thank you for the warning Lil' Boots and welcome back from the World of Whispers," King Dulbbe told him. "When this situation is over with the Dragons, we will do everything we can to help get you back to your home." Lil' Boots was so surprised that as he stood there blushing all he could say was "Ahhh, shucks. Twasn't nothing. Glad to help."
"As a Borrower, I would never had been invited into such a grand place like this," she knew. "As a Finder, the others actually want me around." It was a good feeling but with that feeling came a responsibility. Now others relied on her and asked her opinions and thoughts. "That is better and I like this feeling of being needed," she finally decided as her attention returned to what the others were talking about. "... and then Nutmegg told us that he would try to bring his leader, named Allspice, here to meet with you," Dree finished telling the Dowager and Baron. "That would be very good," Griselda answered. "Hopefully King Dulbbe and Queen Ffion will arrive before they do." Nodding his head, the Baron agreed with his mother. "Maybe this will give us another advantage over the Dragons," he said. "With Dree's Oracle and the help from SPICE, we might just be able to outmaneuver Siate' and her herald."
The others were looking over the Oracle and discussing what questions to ask it and what more could they learn from the Moon Dragon who created it. "I feel that we don't have much time before Siate' and Aralt do whatever they are planning," Dree told the others, "So I think we need to decide what questions to ask the Oracle otherwise we might end wasting a lot of time. As much as I would like to know my kin's past, we need to focus on what is happening now." The others agreed and as they continued their discussion, Fiddlefaddle entered the tea room with King Dulbbe and Queen Ffion. Shortly they were brought up to date on what was found in the Gooblin King's treasures and the meeting with Nutmegg. As Fiddlefaddle was refreshing the tea, the other guests arrived and were shown into the tea room.
"I am not sure I understand what might cause mis-enchantments as we did not have that problem when the Wish Dragon's were here before. We just had to watch how literal they could be was our problem with the Wish Dragons," the Dowager said. "If someone asked for a gold mine, they might find themselves in the middle of a mountain somewhere surrounded by gold but not able to return with it. What is a mis-enchantment?" she asked. "That is a good question, madam. Let me see if I can explain," answered Allspice. "With a mis-enchantment, a wish granted by the Wish Dragon may be successful but sometimes others in the area of where the wish was granted just up and disappear. We just recently recovered one of these victims who described the place he was transported to as the World of Whispers. Apparently it is a white glistening world that time does not hold. As Lil' Boots was there for a long time and never had to sleep or eat. Those trapped there could be heard but only as a whisper on the wind. We don't know why there are mis-enchantments, but we have found a way to bring them back. Sometimes when they return they are changed in some way but after visiting one of our Fae healers, they usually return to how they were before."
After the silence that followed the explanation, it was Drat and Dree who started laughing first. Soon the laughter was infectious and everyone was snickering. "Imagine, a burping Dragon," laughed Drat. "Now I know what to get you to drink the next time you start those bad knock, knock jokes," the rat said to Dree. When the laughter was contained, Dree spoke. "I think it is time to ask the Oracle our questions and now I think I know what to ask it," he said as he started to open the bag that held the magical trinket.
"With that, I will now be able to serve him again." Time was not something Oracle felt as the Oracle did not age nor had It become less powerful. Time was only a tool for It to learn more to aid his Moon Dragon master. "There is so much my Master does not know that I shall be able to tell him from during our time apart," realized Oracle. "That must be why he was testing me." Deciding that It's assumptions must be correct since Tun'Gul was the only Moon Dragon. "For he did create me to be aware of challenges and tests in my purpose of gaining knowledge," as the Oracle thought about his Master. The problem with Oracle's assumption was that no matter how much information It collected, It could not reason out that there might exist another Moon Dragon and how that Dragon could come to be... While Oracle waited for It's Master to ask another question, It decided to review the time before they had become separated just in case It was tested again. "It was shortly after when the Dragons decided to leave the Realm and travel to other safer lands," It remembered.
The thought of why they had separated never once entered Oracle's mind for It did not have any emotions to feel the Dragon's lost connect. Emotions were not something that the Moon Dragon had bestowed upon It. Oracle was given pure logic and the ability to remember in detail events that It had observed from It's beginning to now. Oracle could surmise the purpose of everything and could compute what events might lead to what outcomes, but could not read minds of any other than his Master (and only then when allowed). The only conundrum with Oracle was that It was aware of a problem that It could not understand. Maybe that was because It had been out of communication with It's Master for so long or maybe It was malfunctioning. Oracle could not determine which...
"I cannot hear your random thoughts Master unless you focus them towards me like you have just done. But why do you ask these odd questions as you are the one who made me as I am?" the voice answered in the Dragon's head. With this answer, Dree almost stumbled over a tree root. He realized that it was extremely difficult to have this conversation, walk on an uneven trail, and also keep an eye on his two friends ahead of him so they did not think he was "loony-tune" (as the 'Outies' would say) talking to himself. Then the whisper of the smell of bakery ovens invaded his sensitive nose as he quickly formed a plan.
"Sure Dree. Take a seat," said Drat as he pointed to a large boulder, "and we will be back shortly with something to munch on." Soon Arnie and Drat were down the trail and out of the Dragon's sight. Quickly Dree opened the bag and looked inside. "It looks like a large coin," thought Dree as he pulled it from the bag. "Are you there?" asked Dree out loud to the trinket. "I am," the voice replied in Dree's mind. "I think we need to talk," started the Dragon. "I did not make you and I do not know your name."
For several minutes Dree just sat and stared at the trinket before swallowing and asking what he thought was the most important question of the thousand bouncing around in his mind. "Can you tell me more about your master, the Moon Dragon?" "Ah, a test," responded the trinket. "As it has been so long since you have used me, you want to see if I still remember. Very good. You are Tun'Gul, the only Dragon to become a Moon Dragon. You conquered the Ogers (relatives to what the 'Outies' call Ogres who are just as large and smelly as their cousins) when others could not. You are the discoverer of the portals between realms and have created objects that can see through time." After a short pause, the voice said one more thing and then stopped. "You are the Dragon Supreme." Working hard not to direct his thoughts towards the trinket, Dree made a decision as he heard his friends returning. "Thank you," he told the trinket. "As we have not talked in a long time and I feel like I am meeting an old friend after so many changes, I think it is best to reacquaint ourselves. I am now known as Dree. How would you like to be addressed?" "Welcome back Master Dree," the voice answered. "I would like you to continue to call me Oracle." 
"After all, a secret is no longer a secret if everyone knows about it," Dree reminded his friends. "And each of us should be allowed our personal secrets when they hurt no others." Arnie did not have a problem with this as she kept many secrets herself, especially as a 'Borrower' of somebody else's stuff. Drat, on the other hand, being the chief minion for the Troll King, had a few misgivings about keeping secrets from his boss. "Think of this way," Dree had told him, "Once we help the Gooblin King obtain his secret desire, then it won't be a secret anymore and you can tell King Dulbbe all about it." Finally Drat agreed. The real surprise about the secret to Dree was that even though Hir'aeth thought Dree knew all along what it was because of his one word answer, Dree was just as in the dark about what was the secret as his friends. "If whatever is in the bag hadn't told me what to say, we would all probably be sitting in a deep dark dungeon by now," thought Dree. He knew that it would have been a short stay since the Gooblin King didn't keep prisoners for very long. But still sitting in any dank, dark, musty, spider covered cell would not have been fun no matter how long one was in it. "I wonder what is in this bag?" Dree pondered while Arnie and Drat were heavily discussing any ideas they could come up with on how to fulfill Hir'aeth's desire. "I am in the bag Master," came a voice that only Dree could hear. "I have waited long for you to find me. How may I serve you?"
"I understand," the voice replied in the Dragon's head. "I will only hear the thoughts you send when you first speak my name or hold me close as you are doing so now." "But I don't know your name," realized Dree. "I don't even know what you are!" "But Master, you are the one who made me... How could you not know my name?" the voice asked sounding very confused. It was then that the others interrupted Dree's silent conversation with the trinket in the bag. "I was just telling Arnie that I explained to the Gooblin King about the current Dragon issue and their return to the Realm of Wymsy. I am glad he agreed that his desire can wait until we have taken care of that situation. Are you ready to go?" Drat asked Dree. Dree glanced once more at the bag in his claw and decided this was not the best place to continue his 'private' conversation with the trinket. "Yes, we need to tell the others what we have discovered." When Hir'aeth returned to the throne room, Dree approached the king as Gooblin King sat on his throne and requested permission for them to depart.
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