Agatha

 

“Flight 5926, London, now boarding.” The intercom was heard throughout the empty airport. No families with little kids whining, no people on cell phones who you think are talking to you, no nothing. Apparently not many people get red-eye flights, especially not to London, at least not in Vinton, Iowa. I was almost the only person on the plane, not counting the attendants or pilots. There was one guy three rows ahead who looked to be visiting family in London. It looked like he was going to be saying good-bye to someone. There was also an unusually sized woman in the way back that just picked her nose, how delightful.

Of course you have no idea why I’m going to London. If I told you you’d think I’m nuts. Yet I have to tell you anyway. I’m a dragonologist, there I said it. Now let it sink in for awhile….I’m going to London to spot an English dragon (hence why London).

“Would you like refreshments?” the attendant asked. She had way too much make-up on. “Yes I suppose a coke would be nice.”

“Sorry, we don’t sell coke on red-eye flights, how about a glass of wine?” Are you fricken’ serious? Why not sell coke? Do only kids drink it? How rude!? “No, I don’t drink; at least I don’t drink whatever is in your cart.”

“Try me lady.” The attendant seemed to mean business, but how could I tell, with the make-up her face was expressionless.

“Perhaps a glass of red tea or COKE!!”

“What about red wine?”

“I don’t drink wine, I drink COKE!” This was so stupid. Attendant Make-up just gaped, I smirked. I knew I won. She pouted about losing to someone with natural beauty (Or to a nerd. I think I’m a nerd because I believe in dragons, but she doesn’t know that {she also doesn’t know that she looks like a clown}). The rest of the ride was quiet and cokeless; I slept most of the ride until old large one behind me started snoring. Attendant Make-up also kept bumping my legs against her cart on purpose.

Eventually we landed in London and I walked out into the airport. I found a limo driver holding a sign with my name on it. Agatha it said in big letters. I walked up and said, “Umm that’s me sir.”

“Really? You don’t look like an Agatha.” I agreed with him. Here I was, with straight dark brown hair, blue eyes, and just hitting 23. And as I said before, I call myself a nerd because of the dragon thing. No one else calls me a nerd.

“I didn’t know I was going to have a limo. Does the boss care about me this much?”

“Oh but I think he also has a thing for you. But shall we be off?” I have to get use to the British accents. I put my humongous suitcase into the trunk and got into the limo. It was so nice inside, better than any other limos I’ve been in. “Where are we going good buddy?”

“To the headquarters miss. You have a new…um…”

“Apprentice?”

“Not quite like that, more like a partner.”

“Does she know absolutely anything about dragons?”

“It’s a he, and no I’m don’t think so.”

“Then don’t take me to see him, just drive to the mountains.”

“But miss…”

“No, if he won’t be able to help me then I find it pointless to meet him now. Take me to the mountains.”

“As you wish miss.” I had to look out the window just to check that he was going the right way. We started going up, higher and higher until the driver said, “The car cannot go any farther. You must walk the rest of the way.”

“Alright. I need the exercise anyway.” I grabbed one of my suitcases and started to walk. It took me forever to get up on steep hill, but then I had to mountain-climb up one side because it was so steep. Eventually, I got to the top of the mountain and looked out to the horizon. “It’s beautiful.” I let escape from my mouth. But now it was time to get down to business. I took out my tracker and other dragon things. I set that all up then I started to look for signs of a dragon. I was coming up short except for a cave that I guessed a bear lived in; it wasn’t big enough for a dragon. I sat behind a rock close to the cave and started to eat a sandwich. I found the forest around where I sat to be quite quiet and lifeless. I didn’t think much of it though. Crack!! “Hello? Anyone out there? Limo dude? Boss? Anyone?” I called out. Now it was deathly quiet. I looked towards the cave and saw nothing. I looked over at my other side and saw nothing. I then looked up at the clear blue sky and except for a couple clouds there was nothing in the sky. No birds or anything. “Something is strange here...” I said quietly. I flipped my cell out and speed dialed the boss. “Hello?” I whispered.

“Hello? Hello? Anyone there? Hello?”

It’s me boss, Agatha.”

“Where have you been?! We have your partner here and he isn’t a very patient fellow.”

“I’m up at Mt.___________”

“What the heck are you doing up there. You belong down in headquarters, meeting your partner.”

“For the last time, I don’t need a partner!!” I heard my voice echo through the forest.

“I’m sending a limo back up. You will get in it and you will meet this partner.”

“But sir-“

*click*

I wonder why he wants me to have a partner so badly. What bad things could possibly happen? Then I remembered the deathly quiet forest, and thought that it was for the best. The boss probably doesn’t want me to get hurt. After all, many have died in this profession. I sighed and packed up my things and headed back down the trail towards the waiting limo. “I see you came up dragon less.” The driver said.

“Yes, but that forest gives me the creeps. There wasn’t any sound at all. No birds, wind, or anything.”

“Well, there was a dragon sighting here.”

“Why didn’t anyone tell me that?” I asked as I got in the limo.

“In fact, your partner was the one who spotted it.

“Really? So he is just my partner because he saw a dragon?”

“He also took a picture. He was sight-seeing and saw something unusual in among the trees. Our experts are seeing if it’s a fake or not.”

“He probably is a college kid who felt like ruining our reputation.”

“You just got out of college didn’t you?”

“Yeah, that was not what I call a bowlful of cherries.” Everyone thought I was a freak because of the dragon thing. The rest of the ride was as silent as the forest. I thought of what the driver said. Then I thought of the boss. He is going to kill me. Soon we were driving into a parking lot surrounding a simple white building. We could really use a renovation. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by my purple-faced boss. He gets mad very easily. “You are such an idiot. Didn’t you know we had a guest?”

“No one really informed me he supposedly has a picture of a dragon.”

“Watch your sarcasm, or you will be moved to the lab.” Ugh, I hated the lab. All you do there is dig through supposed dragon dung. Mmmm, delightful. Besides, most of it ends up to be a bigggg thing of bear poop. Dragons are really picky about where their toilet is, and usually it is high in the mountains. We go any day if we had the money. “It isn’t sarcasm, by the way, no one told me about the picture except for your driver over there. Soooo…where is this ‘picture’?”

“Oh, right over here.” He opened a door where two people had their faces practically touching the picture before them. “Move you two so Aggie can see the picture.” Good, he is calling me by my nickname, which means he has cooled off. Our boss, named Carlo, is a pretty good guy unless you get him mad. Carlo gave me the picture to look at. There was the mountain I was on a little while ago, with the trees and the small opening where the cave was. “So…what am I looking for here?”

“Right…there.” Carlo pointed to what appeared to be a tree, but when looked at closer was found to sparkle in the sun. “Does it look real?”

“There is a possibility. Where did he take it?”

“Why don’t you ask him yourself?” Carlo snapped his fingers and the two people that were looking at the picture left and shortly returned with a man not much younger than me. I wish I could have that kind of service but when you’re the boss, you get treated like the boss. “Aggie, this is Trystan.” Trystan stuck his hand out for me to shake. “It is a pleasure.” He said stupidly. I looked at him. He had green eyes and reddish brown hair. I was guessing he’s Irish. “So, where did you take this picture?” I asked.

“What this one,” He pointed to the picture I was holding, “I was in the valley beside the mountain. I wanted to take pictures of birds, but I got this thing instead. It looked so shiny that I thought it wasn’t real, but I brought it over anyway.”

“Well, he didn’t tamper with the picture, so it’s real, “I said to Carlo, “I’m just not sure if this is real. We’ll have to go back and take more pictures and-“

“You want me to go with you?” Trystan said, sounding astounded.

“Why wouldn’t you? We need to use your camera anyway.”

“No, I am not going back up there. It was so quiet, and I didn’t find a single bird. Besides, why don’t you use your own camera?”

“Look, we need you to join the force temporarily, for research reasons.” Carlo explained.

“You want me to join the kook squad?” Trystan asked, then he started to laugh, and he kept laughing, all the way to the limo.

 

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Have a blue M&M shirt , and one of my classmates saw it and said "Your wearing a skittle."

excerpt from One Liners: a collection of sentences with no real purpose   by Yuile