The Basement Dragon

Reece trudged down the dark narrow staircase with a loaded laundry basket on her hip. Blonde bangs hung in her eyes as she glanced up at the light hanging from the ceiling.1

“Broken again. Looks like someone busted it,” she said with a sigh. “That’s the third time this month. Mr. Bradshaw isn’t going to be happy.” She shook her head feeling her blonde locks trail across her neck with the motion.2

Downward she went, picking her steps carefully. When she hit level floor she stumbled, expecting it to farther down. Reece caught herself on the rough concrete wall, taking a strip of skin from her elbow.3

“Damn it!” she hissed.4

Nursing her arm against her side, she fumbled with the basket and the light switch. A sudden stream of light dazed her and she lifted her free hand to shield her eyes against the temporary blindness.5

“Well thank God that still works.” 6

Stark, gray walls greeted her as her eyes adjusted and she scanned the room. On the opposite wall stood the battered avocado green washers and dryers, four total. The floor was of packed dirt, moist in places where water dripped from the leaky pipes that ran the length of the room.7

Boxes were stacked in the corner closest to the door. A ski, stripped of its boot gear, stuck in the air beside them. One side held an old inner tube and a bike without its wheels and chain.8

“Well, no time like the present,” Reece mumbled as she dragged herself to a washing machine. She set the white basket on top of one the dryers and slid out the soap. The light scent of lavender and vanilla reached her nose as she opened the bulky bottle. She closed her eyes and smiled at the lovely scent. She liked the way the soap left subtle hints of smell on her clothing.9

Loading the washer she noticed the faint smell hinting of freshly turned dirt, almost moldy. It smelled like someone had just dug in a recently watered garden with traces of decaying vegetation. She sniffed a shirt or two and was satisfied it wasn’t her clothes. The smell was disturbing and she shivered as though a cold breeze had rushed down the steps to incase her. Reece rubbed her arms to warm them. 10

She went to close the dented lid and feed the quarters into the machine when her injured elbow smacked into the half-filled basket, sending its contents spilling onto the dirty floor.11

“Damn it!” She breathed through gritted teeth as she cradled her elbow against her side and squatted down to refill the overturned basket.12

She groaned as she saw the last article of clothing half hidden behind the dryer wall.13

She squished her right shoulder between the wall and the dryer’s side and grabbed the shorts. As she pulled away she noticed something shining in the light of the bulb. She hadn’t seen it before because the pants and the shadow of the dryer were on top of it.14

Intrigued, she scooted herself as far as she could between the wall and the dryer, again feeling the coolness of the metal against her cheek and the rough texture of the cement wall against her back. She stretched her arms out but, her fingers barely skimmed the edge.15

“Damn it!” Reece got up, frustrated, and dusted her worn jeans off. She had left behind light stands of her hair attached to the rough wall. A throbbing pain started where the fine hairs had been. With hands on her hips, she stood staring at the washer.16

As she stood worrying the problem and chewed on a fingernail, a soft humming started in her head. No words came to her mind only a subtle melody and a slow steady beat. Like the sound of an engine a mile away or a kitten purring on her lap with a contented sighs.17

Excited, she grabbed the dryer and started to drag it out. Slowly she wiggled it back and forth, wiggling it, kicking it in frustration, and little by little it worked its way out. As Reece was fighting with the dryer, the humming grew louder and she pushed herself harder. Sweat dripped as she struggled, straining to pull out the battered machine. Half cocked, the dryer stood out from the corner and Reece sat on the top panting from all the exertion. The cold of the room had given her goose bumps. 18

Reece sat with hands clamped over the metal shelf that held the controls. Half buried and tucked in the corner sat a white egg the size of a border collie. It gleamed with a soft blue glow and a scattering of spots dotted the white surface.19

Peering down, she watched as the egg pulsed and began to rock. It picked up momentum, only to lurch out of the hole and roll to the back of the dryer.20

“Oh my word,” Reece whispered into the darkness.21

Without thinking, she dumped out the rest of the laundry, leaving only a thin layer of clothing on the bottom. She carefully rolled the egg across the floor. The surface was warm, like a comfortable blanket on a chilly evening. When she looked closely she saw that the spots were raised stars, metallic green and blue in color. She loaded the egg carefully and padded it with extra laundry. 22

Remembering the load that was already in the washer, she hurriedly popped in the quarters and listened for the water to start.23

* * *24

The basket sat in the middle of her one-room apartment. Around her an overstuffed floral recliner, she’d found at a second-hand shop, loomed to the left. In front of the room’s only bay window sat a similarly styled and patterned couch, a little worn around the edges and thin on the arms. Dust balls settled in the corner of the bay windowsills. The middle pane cracked and in need of washing. The white walls were bare of pictures or photos. The end table and coffee table were littered with newspapers and magazines but not other adornment.25

“Guess we better keep you warm. But how?” Reece sat cross-legged with her back to the counter of the bar and chewed on her fingernails while she studied her prize. She took her thumb out of her mouth and spat the nail onto the floor. Her thumb went back into her mouth as she thought the problem through. Reece watched as the egg pulsed slowly.26

“If I turn up the thermostat, I could keep the room warm and set the egg near the heater vent.”27

Shaking her head she stood up to pace the length of the room. “No, that will never do. It’ll roast if I keep it up that high. No, no, no.”28

Into the kitchen she went. The egg-yolk yellow walls always made her smile, but today she was too distracted. She bent down and started shoving pots and pans around until finally she found a large Dutch oven. Its dull gray metal gleamed from washing. Holding it up, she tried to judge if it was big enough.29

She eyed the oven. It was the same avocado green as the washers and dryers in the basement. Only three burners functioned and the fan has never worked since she’d moved in.30

Taking the large pan into the living room, she set it before the egg. As she pushed the pan closer the humming grew louder, more frantic.31

When she pulled it away the humming slowed and returned to normal. “Hmmm…now isn’t that interesting? You don’t like my idea of keeping you warm in the oven? Well, it doesn’t look like you’ll fit anyways. Ok, new plan.”32

Again she paced. Her index finger automatically went into her mouth. This had been a habit of hers for so many years that she never thought about it anymore. The girls down at the office where she worked all had manicured nails and often they laughed at her. But she just went about her work pulling out requests or filing the endless documents that the big wigs sent down. 33

She made her way into the bedroom. Its cream-colored walls and brown carpet dominated the small room. The twin bed was pushed up under the window, its covers a jumble of blues and whites bunched at the bottom. Clothes covered most of the available floor space. Near the door to the bathroom stood a tall dresser made of cherry. Its dark wood glistened with many layers of polish. It stood spotless. No clothes or dust lay upon it. The dresser was all she had of her mother.34

But she passed it without a glance and went into the bathroom. There sat the egg’s salvation, a claw-footed, white porcelain tub.35

The hum had changed to a sweet, soothing melody. “Oh, I see you like this idea. Ok, then,” she called out the door, “how to keep you above the water?” 36

She walked back to the living room and sat in front of the egg again. “Ok, darling.” She ran her hands over the surface, feeling the raised stars. “What will hold you up?”37

Her hand touched the clothes stuffed around the egg and an idea popped into her head. Quickly, she ran through her cluttered living room and down to the dark and damp basement.38

* * *39

Above the steady noise of the blow-dryer, Reece said, “This is just taking way too long.”40

She turned it off and stomped out of the living room. The egg was cool to the touch. “Now that’s not good.”41

Reece strode over to the thermostat and violently turned it up. She walked over to the basket and started pushing it to the vent near the chair. 42

“There! Now that should do until I finish. It’s a good thing I remembered that old inner tube.” She walked back to the bathroom.43

The steamy water rushed out of the chrome-plated nozzle of the faucet. Great clouds of mist arose from the tub. It was almost too hot to breath but Reece continued to blow up the inner tube using her blow-dryer.44

As the water level rose, so did the air in the tube, and as the tube filled, her mind wandered to the egg. ‘What kind of egg could it be? Maybe it’s a dinosaur egg. I mean, it’s large. I don’t know any living animal that could lay an egg of that size. Well, I just need to keep it warm and then I’ll find out.’45

Reece laid the tube in the white porcelain tub. The tube stretched across the widest portion without sinking into the water.46

“Well, it doesn’t quite fit but at least it will keep you above the water and the steam will keep you warm. And besides it’s the only thing I can think of,” Reece shouted over the running water.47

The hum pulsed. The air grew humid as the steam filled the small bathroom. The mirror over the pedestal sink fogged over. 48

As the tub filled she strode back into the living room and started pulling the basket across the floor. It seemed heavier than it had been when she lugged it up the basement stairs.49

“All right then.” She squatted down and strained against the side. Instantly sweat beaded above her full upper up. At that moment the refrigerator kicked in and she jumped slightly.50

She giggled nervously. “Well, we can’t be jumping at every little sound, now can we?”51

The egg rocked back and forth to its own beat of a melody only it could hear, like it understood and agreed. 52

* * *53

For two days Reece emptied and refilled the clawed-footed tub with steamy water. She woke twice a night to make sure the water remained warm. 54

Monday morning broke clear and crisp as the autumn sun rose. Reece’s eyes fluttered open as the rays danced across her face. Movement on the side of her bed made her turn her head quickly.55

Sitting there, with wings stretched out, was a scaled creature the size of a Great Dane. The wings beat rhythmically as they touched the opposing walls. Reece peered at the wings, and could through the membranes, see the blood flow through the veins. Steely scales covered its large body, giving off a greenish glow. When it turned the scales turned blue.56

Oddly enough she felt no fear. The creature did not seem threatening.57

“Well, fella.” She reached out a hand slowly towards its snout. “You must have been what was in that egg. Wow!” Reece forgot to breath and she stood frozen, as a sense of wonderment struck her when she realized that this creature was a dragon. 58

The air around the scaled creature shimmered and became misty. Reece could feel the heaviness of the air, making it hard to catch her breath. She forced herself to sit with her legs hanging over the edge of her single bed. 59

Gradually the air cleared, but the heaviness lingered. It had settled in Reece’s lungs, making breathing difficult, almost impossible.60

When the air had completely cleared Reece saw that the dragon had turned into a young boy.61

The boy stood beside the bed, eye level with her sitting form. She tried to lift her hand to touch his snow-white hair, but her arms couldn’t move. Panic struck her as she tried different body parts. None responded. Silent tears ran down her freckled cheeks.62

The boy reached out and stroked her blonde hair, as if she were a pet. His skin shimmered and sparkled against the low light of morning. Deep green eyes stared into her clear blue ones, never blinking.63

Slowly, he laid her down and took one of the balled up blankets. Gently, he tucked it around her feet. He took one hand and licked it. On his hands was a stringy liquid that he secured the blanket with. He rolled her over onto her stomach and around to her back again. Over and over he did this, periodically securing it with the same sticky material as before. When he was done, he left her in her blanketed cocoon.64

For days she stayed that way, neither sleeping nor eating. She could hear movement from the other room and could hear the phone, but he stayed away. Still the panic and hopelessness threatened to overcome her. Madness lay just underneath, but was just out of her reach. And then he came back but in dragon form.65

She knew he had learned to breathe fire from the smoldering smoke that curled up from his snout.66

She knew he was breathing a controlled flame on her legs but could not feel it. Reece watched the shadows dance on the wall beside her twin bed. Slowly, he made his way up and the only thing she could think of was…67

“I was going to name you Liquid.”