The Dragon's Keeper
Chapter 9 Prove Your Worth

Stepping up to the canyon I could understand why it was called Crystal Canyon. The cliff side sparkled like diamonds. It was beautiful... But it also scared me to death!

How were we supposed to cross this thing? I could barely keep my eyes open without feeling dizzy!

We stood there, staring into the endless chasm. A light breeze brushed my hair across my face. Somewhere deep down, I could hear running water, but it was so deep I could not see it.

That didn't help me from breathing so heavy I started to see stars in the daylight! My knees started to quake, while the rest of my body froze. My pulse raced and my palms started to sweat.

"Jamie, is there any way we can get around this, without having to cross over the rope bridge?" I squeaked out, because my mouth suddenly became very dry.

"Sorry, Tash. You know I hate heights too. But we can't let this stop us. Midnight needs us," he answered.

He is so brave! I know he was as scared of heights as I was! His father pushed him down a hill once for coming home late one night. Since then he can't stand heights. And I didn't blame him in the least!

"Okay," I sigh.

Before I can cross this pit of death, I needed to steady myself. I wrapped my arms around my best friend and breathe him in. He smells like the forest. It was so comfortable I was able to calm my racing heart.

I must have done the same to him because when I pulled away he was smiling at me.

"We can do this! Just like everything else, we will be in this together!" He encouraged me.

Taking a deep breath, I grabbed James' hand as we took our slow first steps onto the unstable bridge.

The wind was swaying the bridge slightly. I gripped the rope with one hand. I wasn't sure I could make another step.

Suddenly Midnight purred in my arms. Somehow that gave me strength and courage to keep my feet moving under me. As long as I did not focus on the deep pit of death I was over, we were going to be fine!

Slowly I took another step. One step at a time we inched our way out onto the old bridge.

"It's okay, Tash! We are both going to make it across, and I will be so proud of you! You are doing great!" Jamie kept encouraging me.

His voice also soothed my frayed nerves.

Slowly, but surely, we made our way to the center of the pieces of wood that somehow thought of itself as an overpass.

I took another deep breath and focus on my best friend. He is the bravest boy I know! I am so lucky to have him in my life. We will be together forever. I just know it!

A sudden gust of wind raced though the chasm below, rocking the bridge roughly.

Jamie tightened his hold on my shoulder and gasped.

We are going to die!

But we are so young! I haven't had the chance to grow up and have all our wonderful adventures together!

My shriek echoed through the canyon, the sound sent shivers down my spine.

Then, the wind stops.

A voice boomed all around us, causing the crystals to shimmer and tinkle with the vibrations.

James tightens his hold on me. It gave me comfort to know I wasn't alone. He would always be with me no matter what.

"You have come far, young ones. You may choose to turn around, and go back to the life you lived before, or you can push forward with your quest, where you will have to face your greatest fears. I can sense your fear of the unknown. But I can also sense your courage and adventuring spirits. Which will you choose?" The deep voice asked.

Jamie gave me a determined look. We have both come so far... There was no way we were giving up now! We had an important job to do.

Also I would never go back to what we were before. We would build our own life. We didn't deserve to be treated like lower life forms. We were better than that! We deserved to be loved!

And to make that possible, we must push forward and finish our task. That way we can have our happily ever after like all the stories talk about.

"We need to go to the Island of Dreams, to save the magic of the world," I responded. "Please, let us pass."

There was a long pause.

"Very well," rumbled the voice. "Go, and conquer your fears."

All of a sudden, the rickety old bridge became solid and sturdy.

I sighed in relief.

I could feel James relax slightly, too. That was a good sign.

"C'mon! Let's go!" shouted Jamie.

Midnight hopped out of my arms and scurried across the rest of the plank, while we chased after him.

As long as I didn't look over the edge, I was fine. And so was James because he was pushing me to go faster.

With our feet planted on solid ground, Jamie turns to me and screams "We made it!" The sound bouncing around the trench below.

I circled my arms around his neck and squealed with glee. We made it together! I could not have done this without my best friend.