Millicent Mouse

Millicent Mouse was a very small wizard,

One day she got caught in a harrowing blizzard.

The wind bit her and blew her and sent her off course,

The snow and the ice made a dangerous force.

But Millicent Mouse was not one to be battered,

She waved her small paws and the flurries were scattered.

And though her great spell could not banish the storm,

She kept on her way, magic keeping her warm.

For she could not falter, her reasoning clear,

Her search must be done by the close of the year.

She needed the berries that could grant her great powers,

So she could bring Spring back, bring sunshine and flowers.

If Millicent could not succeed in her quest,

Her village would freeze, and her heart was distressed.

She snuffled back tears, for they’d make her eyes freeze,

And suddenly felt a warm, gentle breeze.

A cave loomed close by, in the wall of the canyon,

And she made straight for it with chilly abandon,

It was warmer in there, with no snow to fend off,

And she shrugged off her cloak with a sneeze and a cough.

But the sight that she saw in the cave made her shiver,

It set her heart racing and her whiskers a-quiver.

A dragon lay snoozing in the dim smoky light,

Its nostrils aglow like lanterns at night.

Before Millicent Mouse could escape from its lair,

It awoke from its nap, fire filling the air.

“Who dares enter my cave?” It demanded, eyes flashing,

And the wizard’s small heart went from pounding to thrashing.

“It is I,” the mouse squeaked, nerves beginning to fray.

“I didn’t mean the intrusion, I’ll just be on my way.”

“Hmmm,” Purred the dragon, “You’re too small for a meal,

So I’ll let you go on, if you make me a deal.”

“By your hat and your cloak I can see you’re a wizard,

So, use your great magic and dispel this great blizzard.”

Millicent breathed a great sigh of elation.

“Gladly, oh dragon, if it means liberation.”

She quickly revealed her original quest,

And then she laid out one simple request.

“Fly me over the mountains, to where I must go,

And you’ll much sooner cease being trapped in the snow.”

The dragon grumbled and growled, his eyes burning gold,

But even he must admit he was sick of the cold.

“Fine,” said the dragon, “There, but not a flap farther.

I should’ve just eaten you, you little bother.”

With a hustle and scrabble, Millicent scrambled aboard,

And once she was safe, the great dragon roared.

He burst from his cavern and swept for the sky,

Clouds of snow whirled as he went rushing by.

Over mountains and valleys, over grasslands and seas,

Flew the two strange companions on a cool, balmy breeze.

For a creature as Milliecent, it’d have taken her years,

And as they traveled onwards, her new friend allayed her fears.

“We’ll be back before anything can happen to home,

And your people will once again be all free to roam,

Through meadows and forests; just not to my cave,”

He warned with a smile though he tried to look grave.

For many long days they flew over strange lands,

Until one day they landed on soft island sands.

The berries where there, Millicent almost cried,

She’d done it, she’d found them! Her heart burst with pride.

But the berries that held the deep magic so famed

Would not be as easy as she thought to be claimed

A great hairy beast burst out from the bush,

And knocked Millicent flat on her back with a push.

Before she could even cast her first spell,

The monster attacked like a demon from hell,

Turning on the dragon it scratched and it bit,

The dragon clawed back and fire he spit.

Millicent stood, magic at her command,

As the beast sent the dragon sprawled on the sand.

“I’m not scared of you!” She yelled, tears in her eyes,

The huge monster lunged as she faced down her demise.

But she suddenly felt her cloak caught by a claw

And then she was flying high o’er that terrible maw.

The dragon was smiling and his voice had a ring

“Time to go, little friend, let’s go bring back Spring.”