Dragon Slayer

He had to do it, right? This wouldn't make him a bad person? He was only ten. That's too young to be all the way bad, right? He had years and years to go before he was all the way bad. He was sure of it.

He remembered the feel of the gun in his hand. Heavier than he expected. Cold. Solid. Permanent, like the weight on his chest.  It jerked in his hand, jumped like a creature trying to escape. He held on tight, even though he thought it was going to drag him backwards.

He stumbled against the wall, but was up fast, in case he had to shoot again, in case he missed. In case the monster wasn't dead.  And there and then, that thought is what made it bearable.  It was a monster he killed, not a man. Not a living human, but a monster that had terrified and terrorized him and everyone he loved for years. Too many years of fear and hiding and running and pain.

Too many years. All the years his young mind could recall were filled with this monster. With his big heavy hands. And his hard shoes. And his hard words. No. This wasn't a man at all. This was a dragon, he told himself.

He tried to ignore the blood. It was everywhere, even on him. Just a dragon, he thought again. He wiped his face, smearing blood and tears and grime across his cheeks.  Just a dragon. And he was a knight. A hero. He had done his job.

He put his arm around the girl. He didn't know who she was. The dragon had probably stolen her too.  She was small, his age maybe. But so small, and fragile, like a bird.  The dragon would have broke her. He put a hand on her shaking shoulder.

"It's ok. He can't hurt you now." He pushed her toward the door. "Let's go. We need to get out of here. What's your name?"

She opened her mouth but no sound came out. She shook worse, her eyes lingering on the motionless body. She was going to start screaming. If she did, he would too and he may never stop. He blocked her view of the dragon, took her shoulders and shook them.

"Hey," he shouted in her face. "Hey! You hungry? I bet you're hungry right? Let's get something to eat!"  The words tumbled out of him. They were all nonsense and babbling and falsely bright. What he said didn't matter.  He just needed to hear something other than her panic. Other than the gunshot that kept echoing in his head.

He pushed her as he talked about hot dogs and barbecues and frozen lemonade and running through sprinklers. Things he knew nothing about. By the time he got to roller coasters he had gotten her out of the building.  She was still shaking, but she was now focused on him. Good. He was running out of lies. Shouts behind him made them both jump.

"Can you run?"  The girl nodded and they ran into the night. Away from the dragon's lair, away from monsters. They were free.