The Princess was saddened by her mother's disapproval, but realized that she was unlikely to have much occasion to return to the castle after her tryst with the Dragon Prince.

When the appointed day came, the Princess garbed herself in her finest raiment, wearing a dress whose décolletage was so low and whose hem was so high that the dragon should have little difficulty seeing the most delectable parts of her to bite first. After all, she loved him, and wanted him to be pleased with her. She brushed out her marvelously silken tresses and set a ruby tiara on her head, its color suggestive of the blood she proposed to shed for her beloved. She touched a bit of red rose perfume behind her ears and in the hollow of her cleavage, its odor also suggestive of that color. All in all, she thought, she had done a creditable job for the occasion.

She set out afoot, for though it was a fair walk, her father had informed her that he did not care to risk a fine horse too near the dragon. "After all, those creatures are notorious," he said. "Once they get the taste of blood, they are apt to attack anything in view." She had had to concede the validity of this caution.

In due course, tired and dusty but still bravely beautiful, the Princess reached the escarpment. The Dragon Prince had not yet arrived, for she had allowed sufficient travel time and was a few minutes ahead of schedule. So she paused to repowder her face and wipe the dust from her slippers, so as to be as presentable as was feasible. She wanted her beloved's last sight of her to be a pleasant one.

Something caught her eye in the mirror as she touched up her nose. There was something off to the side, behind the escarpment—something that had made a glint in the morning sunlight. She peered more closely at the reflection in the mirror, for it would be unbecoming to turn her head and stare directly. She saw that it was the shiny helmet of a mercenary soldier.

Curious, for there seemed to be no purpose in a mercenary deployment at this site, she used her mirror to check farther. Soon she was assured: there was an entire troop of mercenaries armed with swords and shields. This deepened the mystery: what could they want here?

Then the dragon appeared in the distant sky, winging his way toward the escarpment. Suddenly it occurred to the Princess that this could be an ambush sent by her father to slay the dragon. It was, she now recalled, the way his cunning mind worked. It was quite possible that the Queen had importuned him to Do Something, and though of course the Princess had no idea what sort of encouragement a woman could offer a man to do her will, she had on occasion seen her father change his mind after a night with the Queen. She had hoped some day to ascertain how such persuasion was accomplished, but that hope seemed academic now. At any rate, it did seem that the Dragon Prince was likely to be in trouble if he landed here.