How to Slay a Dragon - Bill Allen [60]
The closer they got to Pendegrass Castle, the more families they passed. Everyone knew Lucky, and many were impressed at seeing Priscilla, but the obvious attraction of the day was Greg himself. After the celebration King Peter prepared for his arrival, Greg was not overly shocked by the interest, but one thing did strike him as odd. Not one person seemed overly surprised to see him back from his quest. It was almost as if they expected him to be here.
“How does it feel to be a hero?” Lucky asked Greg after one woman nearly fainted at the sight of him.
Greg didn’t dignify the question with an answer. “Why isn’t anyone shocked I’m back?”
“Because it’s all in the prophecy,” said Bart. “Let’s see, how does it go? ‘The Mighty Greghart will brave the fires of the Molten Moor, risk decapitation within Wiccan Wood, and narrowly avoid being crushed by the creatures of Fey Field, only to arrive too late to prevent the princess from being taken.’”
“You can recite the prophecy?” Greg asked.
“Of course,” boasted Bart. “Better than anyone . . . well, almost anyone.”
“What do you mean?”
Bart puffed out his chest proudly. “I delivered the word straight from Simon Sezxqrthm’s wife to King Peter’s scribe so it could be officially recorded.”
“You delivered the prophecy?” Greg said. “You’re kidding?”
“This is great, Greg,” said Lucky. “Now Bart can tell us everything we want to know. We don’t even need to go to the castle.”
We do if we want to hide Penelope!
Greg looked to Priscilla for support.
“Shouldn’t we still go see the written version?” she tried. “Bart might not remember everything. I mean, it was a long time ago, right?”
“Nonsense,” said Bart. “I remember like it was yesterday. Why, I could recite every word.”
“Not so fast,” said Nathan, and Greg’s hopes lifted. But then Nathan said, “I’m still not sure it’s a good idea for Greg to know too much about his future.”
“We were coming back to read about it anyway,” Greg argued.
Lucky held a hand to his chin. “Maybe having Bart tell us everything without having to go all the way home is how we save enough time to reach the lair before Ruuan eats Penelope.”
Nathan pondered the idea while Greg restrained himself from screaming. Greg nudged the princess, causing her to stumble forward. “Didn’t you need to get back home for something, Priscilla?”
Lucky chuckled. “For a second there, Greg, it sounded like you were more concerned about going to the castle than you were about hearing the prophecy.”
Greg forced a nervous chuckle. “Imagine.”
“Does the prophecy say what Greg will do next?” Lucky asked Bart. “Anything in there about him going back to Pendegrass Castle?”
“Well, let’s see.” Bart muttered to himself as he recited the exact words in his head. “Nope, not a thing in there specifically about the castle . . . just the celebration.”
“I knew it,” said Lucky. “And everyone knows he’ll arrive there too late to save the princess.”
“Right,” said Bart. “So, I guess we might as well get started for the lair. Oh, this is so exciting. I can’t believe I’m getting to be part of it.”
“Wait a minute,” Greg said. “Why do I have the feeling Penelope’s not at the castle? This celebration you’re talking about—is that where all those people we’ve been passing have been headed?”
“Of course,” said Bart. “Didn’t we tell you that before?”
“I don’t believe this,” Greg cried. “We’ve got to reach Penelope before the dragon comes.” He turned on his heel and rushed back in the direction they had just come.
Priscilla ran after him, and the two led the way to the celebration at a run. “Sorry, I didn’t know,” she told him.
“I can’t believe we wasted so much time,” Greg said panting. To his left the sun was just dipping below the horizon. Already darkness was closing in, held off only by the brightness of the moon above.
Greg picked up the pace and didn’t slow even when Priscilla began to lag. He could hear the others hurrying, but didn’t dare look back. The trail ahead was empty. The last of the families must have reached the celebration. Only Greg and his group