Shadows lengthened across the valley. Pine trees covered the mountains in a way that reminded Frederick of teeth and the sky was empty of clouds. “Why are you tense?” Mary asked.
Frederick studied the sunset then said, “Some places are free from enemies, but this one isn’t. Tonight is the full moon, and I smell them near, they are waiting for darkness.”
“What are we going to do? You aren’t a dragon on full moons.” Mary asked. “Shouldn’t we find a safe place to be?” She waved at the valley. Her crown sparkled in the half-light.
“I might fall if I fly now but they’ll follow us anyway. No, it is safest here. We’ll stay until the sun rises and I’m back to normal.” The mountains and valley lost their tint. Fred sniffed. A stench filled the air. “These smell like spiders.”
“What will we do?”
“We’ll defend ourselves.” Fred twitched. His form shrunk and softened. The strong muscles and scales melted into a jacket and jeans. Fred looked at Mary. “Are you ready?” She shook her head and turned to watch the moon rise.
A wisp touched Fred’s cheek, and he brushed it off. “They’re here.” He saw Mary squint, but knew she wouldn’t see much. Instead, a thread tugged at her sleeve. Fred plucked it off. Fred waited for something more than webs, but felt nothing.
Mary asked, “Why don’t they get on with it?”
He said, “Monsters follow rules. None can touch a person unless he or she is still.” He was pulling off three more threads. They were coming faster now.
“Then we’re safe.”
“No, we aren’t. There are ways to make someone stop moving: poison, hypnotism, freezing.....”
“Then we’re gonners?” She asked. When Fred ripped silk off Mary, his jacket threatened to come off. Spidersilk was strong.
“No, these are spidermonsters. They only wrap people in silk.” These monsters seem familiar. Fred remembereds he killed many spiders and ripped his brother from their silk. His brother always stays with crowds now. Spidermonsters don’t attack crowds.
As a Guardian, Fred morphs into a dragon for most of the month. He’s a human on full moons. That’s perfect for helping people travel around the world, but one day every month is always inconvenient. The ability comes from his father’s side of the family. It only starts at 20 years old and finishes up at 40 years old. He wanted to defend people and use his ability while he had it.
The stars and moon spun. In the dark, Mary and Fred’s fingers became raw. They plucked the silk off each other’s clothes. Mary’s eyes threatened to close, but Fred kept determined. “Keep it up, Mary. This is important!”
The hissing began. Voices whispered.
“We’ve got you.”
“You’re so tired, just sit down. Rest yourself.”
“Resistance is useless.”
“You can’t keep this up all night. Just give up.”
“You’re working too hard.”
“Sleep....Sssleeeep...Ssssssssleeeeeep.”
He remembered his brother being dragged away in a cocoon of silk. He remembered his babbling voice saying nonsense. He was alone. “No! Be quiet!” Fred hissed back at the wall of whispers. The whispers gained volume instead. Mary wavered and sat down. Fred knelt down and said, “Mary? Wake up Mary!”
Mary rubbed her eyes and sobbed. “I should have gone with the group.”
“You know you chose this way, Princess Mary. Either go by were-dragon and have one day of danger out of thirty or spend three months or more with a monster magnet.” Fred said rubbing her arm. “It doesn’t matter now, you’ve got to stay awake. Pull the silk off me, and I’ll pull it off you. Don’t give up now!” Fred pleaded.
She stood up and ripped the silk off Fred’s back. The silk shined in the waning moonlight. Fred rubbed the tears off his face and then stood to help Mary.
The sky transformed to navy blue. Like the water around a rising submarine, the sky lightened. The east yellowed. Mary got glimpses of the spidermonsters. Black, long legs, thin abdomins, and teeth shone dully. Scales formed on Fred’s jacket and hands; then his neck lengthened and wings sprouted. As the moon slowly set, Frederick slipped into the dragon-form. The spiders eyed the sun and scuttled off. Fred let Mary lean against his flank. Fallen silk was deep around them, but Fred sighed. They had survived the night.