5 Chapter 5

5 The Glitter Dragons flew around the cavern, trying to find an exit. Surely there was a way out. One side of the cavern was darker and had fewer

gemstones. Naomi flew over there. Perhaps there was an exit hidden in the gloom? She squinted up at the roof. Long, thick tree roots dangled down. Were they growing out of a tunnel? She was pretty sure they were! "Willa, Azmina!" Naomi called, her voice echoing around the vast space. "I might have found a way out." Willa and Azmina flew over. "Could we use those roots to climb back up?" "Let's try it," Azmina said. "We've got to get out of here somehow." Together, the friends flew up to the dangling tree roots. As they got closer, they saw the roots were all different colors—violet, emerald, orange, and blue. Naomi reached up to grab hold of an orange one. But to her surprise, it grabbed hold of her! This was no ordinary tree root. It wrapped around Naomi's paw tightly. Her heart thumping, Naomi tugged at the tree root with her other paw.

No matter what she did, the root would not let go. Now that her eyes had gotten used to the gloom, she could see more clearly. "Don't grab them!" she called urgently to her friends. "They aren't tree roots! They're snakes!" "Too late!" Azmina wailed. Naomi turned to see that both Azmina and Willa had been caught by the snakes. Even worse, the snakes were pulling the Dragon Girls up through the gap! Naomi could feel the fear building inside her. She did not like the idea of being taken anywhere by a snake! Then the Tree Queen's second clue jumped into her mind. Look for the ones who are feared but should be revered. Naomi was pretty sure that revere meant "admire." Was it possible the queen had meant that they should admire these snakes? As the snake pulled her up through the gap, Naomi's mind whirred, thinking over the second part of the riddle: They don't have a leg to stand on. That was definitely true of snakes!

But completely harmless? Some snakes were very dangerous. Unless that wasn't what the Tree Queen had said. Maybe she'd said completely armless? Naomi couldn't help chuckling at that. She was now pretty sure that the second clue had just found them! The snake gave one last tug on her front paw and then suddenly let go. Naomi went flying and landed with a bump on a smooth surface. She sat up and looked around. She was inside another cavern, but this one was smaller, and its walls were smooth and pearly white. It's like being inside a giant egg, thought Naomi. She had the feeling she was being watched. And no wonder: In the room were several brightly colored snakes! They slithered over one another and around one another, their scales gleaming as their flexible bodies made moving patterns. "Good afternoon," said Naomi, thinking fast. "Thanks for the lift." The snakes hissed in surprise. "No worriessss!"

Naomi paused. She wasn't really sure what to say to a bunch of snakes. "We have a lot in common. You guys are covered in lovely shiny scales, just like we Dragon Girls are. And snakes are cool! What other animal can smell with its tongue and listen with its bones?" Naomi was really glad that she had paid attention on her recent school trip to the zoo. The snakes began to slither over to her. "Oh, thisss glittery dragon issss sssssooo charming!" they hissed in a delighted way. "Mosssst visitorssss are sssscared of ussss." "Not me!" said Naomi firmly, although she actually was a tiny bit scared. Still, the snakes did seem quite friendly. Just then, another snake appeared at the entrance, and Willa came tumbling into the space, quickly followed by Azmina. Naomi's friends gasped when they saw the snakes. "It's fine!" Naomi reassured them. "I'm pretty sure the snakes are our second clue. And I think

they will help us, if we ask nicely." "Of coursssse we will help you, charming rainbow dragon!" hissed the snakes. "What issss the problem? Do you need ussss to bite ssssomeone for you?" Willa gave a little yelp of alarm. "Oh no, nothing like that," Naomi said hastily. "We are trying to beat the Shadow Sprites."