Summary: You don’t know what you expected when you arrived at Tam’s cave, but certainly not books stacked floor-to-ceiling, with barely any space to walk. Leading you through the maze of literature, Tam sits you down and helps patch up your injuries. As you chat, you find yourself growing strangely fond of their bubbly spirit…and, despite your differences, you realize the two of you may just have all the ingredients for an unlikely friendship.

PART 1 PART 2

CW: mentions of indentured servitude and physical abuse; injured listener

Usage:

• OK to record & monetize, as long as you give me credit in the video/audio description as the scriptwriter! I would also love to listen to the recording when it’s done–please send me the link on Reddit! Paywalling is okay; however, if you paywall, you must make it possible for me to listen to the finished product.
• Gender-flipping and small tweaks are okay, but no large edits are permitted.
• Feel free to use music or insert sound effects if you’d like. Any sound effects given are suggestions–use at your discretion. *Sound effects in bold, set apart by asterisks\*
• Any dialogue or reactions given by the Listener are purely for the benefit of the VA, to help them feel like they have something to respond to while they’re acting. Listener reactions in italics.
• Please let me know if you have any questions!

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SETTING: Tam’s cave. The ground is covered with stacks and stacks of books, especially along the walls, with narrow pathways between them for walking. Some stacks stretch all the way to the ceiling.

\Optional sound effects—ambient cave sounds, or, if preferred, the crackling of a cozy fireplace\**

Well, here we are, Lucky!

The Listener looks around, wide-eyed. “This is where you live???”

Yup! It’s not much, but it’s home.

“Are you kidding me? It’s HUGE!”

Huh? It’s huge? Oh, right—I guess it would look pretty big compared to most of your human homes. I wish I could see your home sometime, but I doubt I’d even fit through the doorway. Plus, I wouldn’t want to break anything.

“Thanks.”

Here—come on through. Please, don’t mind the mess—I was just in the middle of reorganizing all 53 volumes of my Elemental Codex. Ooh, watch your step! Some of the stacks are getting pretty wobbly. I wouldn’t want any to fall on your head!

“Haven’t you heard of bookshelves, Tam? Seems like some of those might be useful.”

Huh? Haven’t I ever heard of bookshelves? \lightbulb moment** Shelves—oh, you mean those wooden boards that you hang on the wall? Wow, that’s a really good idea!!! That’d be a great way to organize them! And save me floor space! I wonder how I could get one…

You hadn’t thought of it before?

Well, no, I hadn’t really thought about it before. We dragons aren’t known for being a particularly organized species. Usually, we just dump all our hoard stuff in a pile and then curl up on top of it. I tried that, but the corners of the books kept poking me, plus it rumpled the pages.

“Then…where do you sleep?”

Then, where do I sleep, if not on top of a huge pile of literature? Oh—over here!

\Sound effect—footsteps\** Tam shows the Listener a huge, elegant four-poster bed, covered with soft blankets and pillows.

Isn’t it beautiful? It’s just like the big beds that royalty sleep in! I especially like all the different magical creatures carved into the posts. Hmm? Oh yeah, the curtains are velvet. It used to be Nyldru’s—he stole it from some lord somewhere, but then decided it was too big for his hoard, so he gave it to me. \trying to convince himself** He may think I’m a weirdo, but…I don’t really care. So what if I’m a disgrace to the Horned One? What does he know, anyway?

Pause.

Oh—sorry! Here I am, rambling on, and you still need to be patched up. Go ahead and sit down. Make yourself at home. I’ll get the medicine.

\Sound effects—clinking & opening of jars\**

Here we go. Do you want to put it on?

“I mean, I can try, but without a mirror…”

Oh, right—I guess it’d be pretty hard to do it yourself, without a mirror. Um—do you want me to try?

“Knock yourself out.”

Okay. I’ll try to be as gentle as I can, I promise. It might be kind of cold, just so you know.

\Sound effect—spreading of ointment\**

The Listener winces.

Sorry—I know it must be pretty sore. I…I can’t even imagine how scary it must have been to go through that. That Guildmaster…whoever they are, they’re an awful person. Sometimes I don’t know why humans write stories about so-called monsters, when they do a pretty good job of hurting other humans all on their own. I’d like to give that Guildmaster a good dose of my poison breath. Anyone who would do something like this to someone…they’re despicable.

Tam finishes spreading the ointment on the Listener’s bruises.

Okay. That should do it for the salve. Now I’ll just bandage it up for you. Let me know if they’re too tight, okay?

\Sound effect—rustling cloth\**

Tam finishes bandaging the Listener.

…Alright. How does that feel?...Good? Oh, good! I’m glad. King’s Peppermint is really good for bruises—it only grows high up on mountains, though, so it’s harder for humans to get.

“Thanks.”

Of course. I just wish I could do more. \softly** Thanks for coming back with me, Lucky. I didn’t know before what I could do to thank you. It’s not much, but at least this way I can do something.

“No, you’re—you’re fine. This is…more than anyone has done for me in a long time. Thanks.”

Huh? It’s…more than anyone has done for you in a long time? Well, I’m really glad I could help.

“What’s your all-time favorite book?”

What’s my all-time favorite book? Aw, man, you’re gonna make me choose? \laughs** Nah, I’m just messing with you, Lucky. I do have an actual favorite. Do you, um—do you promise you won’t laugh?

The Listener promises.

Well—it’s one of your human stories. Have you ever read The Ugly Duckling?

The Listener says they have.

Yeah, that one! The one where the duckling is bullied by the others, because he’s awkward and clumsy and has grayish-brown feathers, while the other ducklings are yellow. But then, once he gets older, he gets beautiful white feathers in place of the gray ones…and it turns out he wasn’t really a duck at all. He was just a cygnet, waiting to finally turn into a swan. \pause, softly** Maybe, if the other ducklings had known that, they wouldn’t have been so cruel to him in the first place.

“It sounds like this story means a lot to you.”

Hmm? Oh, yeah. It…it really means a lot to me. It was one of the first human books I ever added to my hoard—it was in a collection with a bunch of other fairy tales. Do you like fairy tales? What’s your favorite book, Lucky?

Pause for Listener response.

I don’t think I’ve read that one yet. What makes it your favorite?

Pause for Listener response.

Oh, wow. That sounds amazing! I’d love to read it sometime. Oh, wow…I just can’t stop smiling. My face is gonna be sore tomorrow! It’s really nice having you visit, Lucky. Um…I know you probably need to get back eventually, but…I just want you to know, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you’d like. I don’t mind sleeping on the floor—the rug is nice and soft, so I’ll be fine. Or, even if you want to leave and then come back sometime, that’s fine, too.

“That’s really kind of you, Tam. Thanks. You’re a really good friend.”

Sure. It’s the least I can do. Wait—you said I’m a good friend? Am…am I your friend?

The Listener nods.

I—oh—wow. I’m—wow! That’s great! Thanks, Lucky! I’m…I’m really honored!

\Sound effect—pitter-patter noise, like raindrops\**

“Wait—what’s that sound?”

What’s that sound? Oh, sorry—that’s just the scales on my tail. My tail twitches when I get excited, and the scales click together. I can stop if you want.

“No, it’s fine. It almost sounds like raindrops...it’s calming.”

No? It’s calming—it almost sounds like raindrops? Yeah, I guess it does. My hatchmates always found it annoying, but I’m glad you like it.

The Listener yawns.

Oh wow, that was a big yawn. You must be really tired, huh? Yeah, I thought so. Why don’t you get some rest? Don’t worry about me—I’ll just curl up over here. I was halfway through a chapter of The Silent Bard, and Other Myths—I’ll probably be up for awhile anyway. If there’s anything you need, let me know, okay?

“Thanks, Tam.”

You’re welcome. And thank you, Lucky. I’m…really lucky to have you as a friend. No pun intended. Well, then…sleep tight. I’ll be here if you need me.