His companion, Smudge, was crouched down in the mud and moss, closely examining the tracks. He carefully placed his hand down inside one of the hind prints and slowly spread his pudgy fingers as wide as he could. His fingertips did not touch the edges of the footprint.

Smudge rose, rubbing his hands together in eager anticipation. "Cor, but she's a beauty, she is," he said quietly, staring down the path their quarry had created by her passage through the woods. "Can't be more than an 'our old, either," he added, indicating how long ago the tracks had been made.

"Are they always this big?" Bodkin asked, glancing back down to the fresh imprints. Smudge had tracked dragons before, but this was Bodkin's first hunt and he was highly apprehensive. His eyes were drawn back to the trail of dried blood that seemed to weave its way back and forth between the footprints. Their dragon was carrying a recent kill in her maw--a full-grown cow from John Talbot's pasture--and was seeking a quiet place to enjoy her meal.

"Oh, I've seen some bigger, but not many," Smudge admitted. "This one'll give us a fine prize, me lad, ye just wait."

Still seeking reassurance, Bodkin asked, "And when we get back to town, what we take from her will make us rich and famous, right?"

"Aye, that it will, Body, me boy," Smudge said and smiled up at him, his round face beaming. "Why, people'll rush out to greet us everywhere we go and they'll pay us 'andsomely to share in just a wee bit o' what we bring back with us."

Bodkin nodded, but still had his doubts. Everyone knew that a dragon's horde could be worth a fortune and the prize they sought could easily make them both rich, but many a brave and foolish man had died trying to sneak up on a resting dragon and Bodkin felt that he was neither brave, nor foolish, just perhaps overly gullible to allow Smudge to talk him into this crazy scheme.

"C'mon, Body, get yer gear. We don't want to let 'er get too big a lead on us." Smudge gathered up the pile of empty bags he had dropped earlier and started off down the path. Bodkin hesitated a few moments, still unsure whether the risks were worth the rewards of this adventure. Then, deciding that being rich and popular was better than being poor and unknown, he picked up the shovels and headed quickly after his friend.

# # #

They followed the dragon's trail another twenty minutes before Bodkin heard something that made him stop short. "What is _that?_" he whispered in alarm.

Smudge listened for a moment, then with a smile and a finger to his lips, pushed aside some bushes and moved quietly into the woods. Bodkin followed him as Smudge moved roughly parallel to the dragon's path until they came to the edge of a large clearing. Moving aside a screen of leaves, they caught their first sight of the dragon on the far side of the open area. She lay amid the ruins of her meal, casually crunching and grinding long, bloody bones between her huge, sharp teeth.

Bodkin gulped at the sight of her; she was even more magnificent than he could have imagined. At least thirty feet long--forty if you counted the tail--her ridged back was as tall as a house and her scales winked iridescent green and gold where the sun shone on them.

They continued to watch in awe as she sniffed among the remaining bones, looking for any missed morsel. Finding none, she yawned and got slowly to her feet, the tip of her long tail flicking back and forth.

"This is it, Body, me boy," Smudge whispered, his excitement rising. "Aye, she'll lead us right to it, now."

Despite the danger of the situation, Bodkin found himself sharing his friend's feelings. He was close enough to a real, live dragon to hear her belch, which she suddenly did, startling the two intrepid hunters. Their dragon lumbered slowly across the meadow, then stopped near a large tree and looked carefully around, sniffing the air as if to be sure she was completely alone. Satisfied, she began to dig at the base of the tree.

"'Ere we go," Smudge whispered, nudging Bodkin in the ribs.

After digging a sizable hole, the dragon maneuvered her bulky body around until her haunches were over the hole, then she sat down, her tail curling around her front feet. A few moments later, they heard the sound of air being forced rapidly through a small opening and then several wet splats, like mud being thrown against the side of a house. The dragon's eyes closed and Bodkin could have sworn that her thin lips curved up into a faint smile for just a moment.

Then she stood and with her hind feet kicked dirt back over the hole. With a final wistful look towards the remains of her meal, she turned and moved slowly off into the woods and disappeared. The hunters remained where they were a while longer, just to be sure she wasn't going to return and surprise them, but after a few minutes, even the sound of her passage had vanished.

When Smudge and Bodkin entered the clearing, they hurried over to where the hole had been filled in. Letting go the bags they were carrying, they quickly set to work with their shovels. As the dirt flew and they got closer to their goal, the smell hit them and Bodkin stepped back, covering his mouth and nose with his cap. Seemingly unconcerned with this assault on their senses, Smudge continued to dig until the prize was uncovered. He grabbed for one of the empty bags and only then noticed that Bodkin had moved away from the shallow pit.

"'Ere now, Body, don't tell me yer getting squeamish at this point," he said with a wide grin, holding out the sack to his partner. "Lend a 'and, boy. I can't do this all by meself."

Waving his cap in front of his face, Bodkin asked, "Tell me again just why it is we're befouling ourselves in this fashion for some fifty pounds of dragon dung?"

"Why, for fame and fortune, Body, me lad," Smudge told him. Seeing that this simple explanation was not going to be sufficient to get Bodkin back into the game, Smudge sighed and continued. "As ye must know, lad, dragons are creatures of powerful magic and every man jack in the realm who grows any sort of crop is well aware that the droppings of a female dragon are saturated with magical growth properties. That being said, this muck we be standin' in is by far the best fertilizer to be 'ad at any price.

"Now, there's not many of us who are willing to take the time and the risk to track a dragon until she drops 'er prize, but for those brave few," and his smile broadened, "ah, lad, those few reap the rewards and the gratitude of many."

Bodkin was thoughtful for a moment. "Fame and fortune, eh?"

"Aye, lad. That and more," Smudge replied, holding out the sack once again. Bodkin slowly replaced the cap on his head and moved forward, taking the sack and holding it open. "That's me boy!" Smudge grabbed up a shovel and started filling the sack. Working quickly, they filled as many bags as they could carry with the aromatic prize and then started back, hoping to reach town before dark.

The stench coming from the wet bags, as well as from the two of them was quite overpowering and Bodkin said, "So, then, you're sure people will rush out to meet us when we arrive back with our booty, eh?"

"Oh, aye, that they will," Smudge assured him, then sniffed at the air a bit. "Well, not right up close, o' course, but they'll be for sure 'appy to see us from a distance, ye just wait." Sensing that his friend needed a little more encouragement, he said, "Aye, and aside from paying us well and good for each little cup full o' our prize, they'll long sing the praises of Smudge and Bodkin, the Mighty Dragon 'Unters."

Bodkin smiled at the thought of himself being so famous.

Smudge wiped his nose with a wet sleeve and added, "From a goodly distance, o' course."