Talk:Ulva
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[edit] Stories from Ulva fictional dragons live their
The island of Ulva lies off the West Coast of the island of Mull, which lies off the West coast of Scotland which lies off the west coast of Europe
This tale is dedicated to ‘Sneaky Mc Cafferty’
Every night Vanessa and Kieran would lie in their bunk beds and listen to the stories read to them by mum or dad when the stories were finished and they had been tucked up safely in bed, or so mum and dad thought. The two would start their quiet conversations and make up their own stories.
“Kieran there is something creeping around in the garden” “Am I supposed to guess” Kieran answered, “No come to the window look it’s about the size of a highland cow, but kind of longer”. The two watched almost transfixed as the ‘something’ carefully moved along the rose bushes, it seemed to be sniffing or nibbling the roses.
Now this pair were fearless, after all they took a small boat to school everyday plus they walked over two miles to get to school, always past the ‘dead sheep’, sometime Kieran argued “It might rise from being dead and chase us”. “Teacher Meg would never believe us if we went in late and we told her that we were chased by a dead sheep”
They both watched through the space in the curtain as this ‘something’ moved about, Vanessa was already pulling on outside clothes over her pajamas as she watched, “Get dressed Kieran”, to late he was already clothed for outside. The two went slowly and quietly along the long hallway, listening to noises coming from the kitchen, mum and dad seemed busy. Vanessa opened the front door the pair slipped into the outside darkness. “ Vanessa where do the stars go during the day?” asked Kieran as he stared upwards at the dark night sky, Vanessa finger at her mouth whispered “Shoosh, we want to find out what the something is”
Turning the corner of the cottage to where the rose bushes are they saw it. It never saw them it was to intent in eating roses. The two moved in almost absolute silence, they were used to creeping up on rabbits and things. This was different, “I think it’s a dragon” whispered Vanessa “No it’s a giant Iguana” said Kieran. The next few seconds left them frozen in time “Don’t be siwy I am a hungry dragon, and I can hear the grass grow so it reawy doesn’t matter how quiet you are I can hear you”. Vanessa moved forward and whispered “We are being quiet so that our mum and dad don’t hear us outside when we should be inside in bed”. Vanessa was putting on a brave face and trying to be kind of matter of fact. There’s no use in panicking when you meet something that is not supposed to exist. “ This is strange” whispered Vanessa “am I dreaming or am I awake?” “Awake” stated Kieran “ It’s a dragon, no doubt, not an iguana, iguanas don’t breathe fire” Both of their faces were illumined by the orange glow that came from the mouth of the petal-eating creature. “My name is Klondyldyke I reawy love these rose peta, petas, rose bits”
This meeting late one evening on the 21st of March introduced Klondyldyke the dragon to Vanessa and Kieran, and to a multitude of questions, after all father said to them many times that “Half of knowledge is the question, and the other half is the answer”
March can still have a chill to it; it’s that time of the year when the real New Year begins. It’s the start to spring everything is growing the leaves are sprouting, flowers forcing their way through the ground, birds seeking out twigs, grass, sheep’s wool, anything that will make a place to bring forth new life. March, the time of newness, new ideas and new discoveries, like, like a dragon?
“ Klondyldyke we have to get back inside the cottage before its time to fall asleep” said the extremely wide-eyed Vanessa. Kieran drummed his fingers on a stone as he considered just exactly what was happening “Am I dreaming or am I awake does it even matter? Do I see a dragon before me or do I not?. If I go into the cottage and back to bed will what’s his name disappear? Which reality is the best awake or sleeping?” Klondyldyke blew a soft glowing breath as the words sort of fluffed out of his mouth, “ I suppose I have been discovered, why are you not scared? Why do you not run?” “ If you could see what we see you would not run” replied Vanessa “Y,Yes” stuttered, stated, Kieran “We heard a noise and discovered a dragon, fantastic amazing”
Thus Vanessa and Kieran, because of their curiosity came across the greatest secret that two children either within or without their dreams could hope to find, a real live dragon.
Klondyldyke explained where he lived or rather slumbered through the day. “Up past the New Steadings turn left up the hill road then first right into the little field, I’m the mound in the middle”
It was one of those days when the rain had just stopped and out slips the sun. Vanessa and Kieran had set out from Bracadale to walk up the wide tree lined track to the New Steadings. Vanessa being the eldest led the way, her little shoulder bag bouncing as she splashed in every puddle. “Why are my splashes not as big as yours” asked Kieran “Just because” said Vanessa “Why?” replied Kieran
The pair walked on through the sparkling light to the New Steadings at this point they turned left up the road that led up past the dam and on up to the big hills.
Most people headed on up the steep road to the hills, but not this pair they turned right along a path now only used by sheep, and adventurers. It opened up into a small field where in the middle there is a sort of mound, a tiny hill type thing. Around the base a few rocks, and on top some scraggy silver birch trees with the usual mix of grasses and wild flowers
Vanessa and Kieran knew of this place soon after coming to the island. They knew by now that it was not a hill type thing, but the reality of what it was went beyond what it actually appeared to be.
They both sat on the soft damp grass, looked at each other in great anticipation, “Your turn this time” Vanessa said. Kieran touched what appeared to be a grayish black rock, which really was not a rock. Kieran spoke gently to the little hill “Wake up your friends are here”
There was a slight shudder; the big brown black bird [well all lady black birds are brown] that had been sitting on a small scraggy silver birch tree flew away, with not so much a squawk as a kind of choked whistle.
“Again, do it again” urged Vanessa, Kieran obliged, he loved this bit, nobody in the whole wide world would believe them, not even their mum and dad, and they had some pretty unusual ideas. Again he touched the rock, this time he kind of lifted it up from the damp grass. It was dry underneath. The rock kind of stretched, the sort of moundish type tiny hill thing gave a great shudder.
“I am a hill, I am rocks, I am. I am hiding”, then it gave itself away that snort that always came as it cleared its throat produced a flicker of flame and a belch of smoke. Always during the transition between sleep and wakefulness Klondyldyke gave himself away. This was not a mound of grass and scraggy silver birches surrounded by rocks, it was the secret hiding place of Vanessa and Kieran’s biggest best secret ever, in fact little did they know but it is probably the biggest best secret ever in the whole wide world, their very own dragon.
By now they both knew only to go to Klondyldyke on wettish days the reason was simple. Well simple to those who think carefully. If its Scottish West highland wet there will be few people about, and the smoke from Klondyldyke’s first belches would appear to be mist in the woods rather than what it really was, dragon breath smoke. But then there is appearance and then there is reality.
With a few more shudders a couple of slow gentle shakes Klondyldyke slipped out from his tiny hill type disguise. Vanessa and Kieran stood looking at each other kind of pleased rather than at Klondyledyke who in turn looked down his long smoking snout at his most recent of friends. Then altogether they looked around, it was as if the world had stopped and they were inside another reality. Klondyldyke’s body had a lovely greenish blue hue to it, a kind of petrol in a puddle bluishness. Two great wings were folded down the spine pointing towards a long tail, the back legs were slightly longer than the front, and at the end of each foot were four stony looking sharpish claws.
The big brown blackbird’s yellow eyes looked down from the high branches of a nearby oak, she was using all her senses to detect what was happening as a kind of silence invaded the natural noise of the little field to right of the hill road.
Vanessa opened the shoulder bag she had been carrying, “Do you think dad will notice that we’ve nicked all the rose petals from his garden?” Kieran laughed “He would never believe why we took them”. Klondyldyke’s long snout was twitching, little drops of water were starting to drip from his mouth, some turned to steam as the touched his large sticking out teeth that were still hot from his dragon breath smoke. There was another small puff of smoke with a trace of flame as Klondyldyke spoke, “ Pease, pease, pease [he just could not pronounce lots of Ls together it was the sticking out teeth and when he got excited] pease can I have some petas?” Vanessa held them up as the long tongue slipped out and gently licked them out of her hand.
A flower eating dragon? Now there it seems is a problem most people would imagine that dragons capture maidens breath ferocious fire and do all sorts of damage until stopped by some Knight in shining armour, that may well be what most people think. However, who do you know that has really met a dragon? Just think what would you do if on some moonlight night you saw a dragon creeping about your garden?
Thus we find our curious two sitting listening to the thoughts and stories of their very own dragon. “ Take for example the ocean”, puffed Klondyldyke, “It changes shape constantly a kind of continuos movement”. “ Ok” said Vanessa, “We know the ocean or sea we cross it every day to go to school and its all around us we know its always moving, so!” “ Shss” said Kieran. Klondyldyke continued “ What I was going to tell you about was how the ocean is wike, its kind of wike as if all the people of the world were all winked together wike one big wetness.” A pause and a slight puff of smoke followed. “ What I’m trying to say is that the people are wike all the different waves on the ocean” Kieran was staring into space. Vanessa was looking into the eyes of Klondyldyke and as she stared she saw the ocean splash from one side to the other, “I get it!” she shouted, “We are all the waves of one ocean.” The Brown blackbird hurtled of at a startling rate dipping, turning, flashing upwards through the trees.
It was always like this, two sitting beside the dragon listening, talking, and exchanging ideas. Klondyldyke sometimes referred to it as “Consultation”, he said that if people really learned how to “Consult” so many of the difficulties in the world could be removed. He even said that consultation was the remover of difficulties. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Scott Murray ex Ulva inhabitant82.152.176.41 (talk) 19:53, 6 December 2006 (UTC).
