In Deep Dark Wood by Marita Conlon-Mckenna

her, and then when the sun came up that stupid dog just took off and left me stranded here. I don’t know what I’m going to do! I’ll never get Mia back from Bella Blackwell. I’ll never find her!’ he sighed hopelessly.
    Birch had come over and was sitting on the arm of her father’s chair. ‘You saw the Shadow Hound, rode on his back! Da, did you hear that?’
    The giant nodded, puffing slowly on his pipe. ‘Times are changing, the Huges and the Longs have been saying it for some time. I’ve heard tell of the great Shadow Hound, of course, but we have never actually seen him.’
    ‘He was outside our house back home in Glenkilty, waiting for me, and somehow I just knew what the creature wanted me to do.’
    ‘So you rode with him!’ gasped Birch, her eyes shining.
    ‘Bella! Who’s this Bella, then?’ asked Birch’s mother, wiping her hands on her apron.
    ‘Mrs Blackwell is an old lady who moved into the house next door to us. My mum said that we should be neighbourly, be nice to her. I used to call her the Bird Woman but Mia said that she was a Dragon Woman, that she kept dragons, baby dragons. I didn’t believe her,’ he blurted out breathlessly. ‘Itold her she was imagining it! Why didn’t I listen to Mia? Why didn’t I do what my granny told me and mind her? She was so scared … none of this would have happened if I’d only–’
    ‘Hold on now, young man, your words are running away with you. Calm down!’ urged the giant’s wife.
    ‘Dragon, did you say?’
    ‘Yes. Mia said she saw them in Bella’s house.’
    The giant drew in his breath, taking a strong puff of his pipe. ‘I haven’t heard tell of dragons for many years, centuries even. They were all killed, destroyed, though there were always rumours that some had survived and gone into hiding – much like ourselves. Dragons, fancy that! Perhaps the old ways have not disappeared altogether, no matter what the Great Mage may have said or done.’
    Rory couldn’t make much sense of this, but before he could ask the woman butted in. ‘Why has this Bella woman stolen your sister?’
    ‘I don’t know,’ said Rory miserably. ‘Mia thought that Bella was just a lonely old woman and tried to be her friend. She wanted Mia to be some sort of an apprentice and learn about dragons!’
    ‘I wish I had a dragon,’ sighed Birch.
    ‘Birch!’ Her mother sounded shocked. ‘Are you wishing yourself spirited away by some nasty witch or sorcerer? Sorcery is behind this, mark my words!’
    The giant got to his feet and went to a heavy bookshelf above the fireplace. Pulling an ancient-looking book from the middle of a row of books, he lifted it down, and, sitting downagain, he began to turn over the heavy parchment pages.
    Rory could read the title on the spine. The Giant Chronicles. He watched as Birch’s father turned over page after page.
    ‘Here it is!’ he said at last, stopping and lowering the book to the floor.
    Rory clambered down off the chair and knelt down on the fireside rug to get a glimpse of what Bran wanted to show him.
    One side of the page was covered with pictures of dragons, flying wings outspread. On the other side of the page, written in red ink were the words: The History of the Dragon Wars.
    The giant stabbed his finger at the picture.
    ‘Look close, boy!’
    Rory studied the drawing. It showed fire flaming from the mouth of an enormous black dragon, and although it was only a picture, he could see the glint of anger in his eyes. Behind him perched a crowd of smaller dragons. But it was only as Rory bent closer that he was able to make out the strange figure standing amongst them. He blinked, unable to believe what he saw there. It was Bella Blackwell, there was no doubt about it. Her face was almost hidden by a swirling black cloak, but he could still recognise her.
    ‘It’s Bella!’
    ‘Aye,’ said the giant, ‘that’s what I thought!’
    Birch almost knocked her father over, trying to get a look, and even the