Orchard Lantern | Plum Dragon with Golden Frills in a Quince Orchard

The story of Orchard Lantern

A fictional story inspired by the artwork.

The dragon stands on an old stone wall with its head turned toward the warm lamp. Golden ear frills spread out beside a dark crest, and little wings fold above the shoulders. Scattered pale scales brighten the plum-colored body. Flowering branches curve over the wall and echo the dragon's long tail at the edge of the scene.

In spring, the orchard keeper brings out a lantern when frost is forecast for the night. The small dragon finds its way to the wall just before the light fades. It follows the warm stones from one end of the orchard to the other, stopping where an early branch has begun to flower.

The lantern gives the scene a soft circle of orange light, while the distant orchard stays in blue and violet shadow. Clusters of blossoms frame the creature without covering its face. The large frills and short legs give the dragon a shape that reads even from across the garden.

A garden story might begin when an apprentice finds the lantern lit before anyone has come up from the house. Watching from the path, the apprentice sees the dragon pause at a gate that has been locked since the old orchard was divided.

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