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Sir Jasper was a knight of impeccable reputation. He had a shiny suit of armor, a sword that was very good at staying sharp, and a list of defeated beasts as long as his arm. His latest quest was to defeat the feared “Beast of Whispering Woods.” The villagers had described it as a fearsome, scaly monster that roared so loud it shook the very ground.

Sir Jasper, being a very brave knight, rode his trusty steed into the woods. He was ready for a fight. He held his shield up, his sword at the ready. He listened for the fearsome roar. He heard… a faint whump-thump-whump-thump.

He followed the sound until he came to a clearing. There, in the center of the clearing, was the fearsome beast. It was a dragon, to be sure, with green scales that glittered in the sun. But it wasn’t roaring. It was just… wagging its tail and staring at a very large tree branch. It was a dragon that looked a little like a very big, very happy dog.

Sir Jasper, confused, lowered his sword. The dragon looked at him and tilted its head. It then picked up the enormous tree branch in its mouth and dropped it at Sir Jasper’s feet, its tail wagging so hard it knocked over a small bush. The whump-thump was the sound of the tail hitting the ground.

“Uh… hello,” Sir Jasper said, hesitantly.

The dragon whined a little and nudged the branch with its snout, as if to say, “Well? Are you going to throw it?”

Sir Jasper looked at the branch, then at the dragon’s hopeful eyes. This was not in his knight training manual. He was supposed to fight, not play fetch. But the dragon’s tail was wagging so hard it was stirring up little clouds of dust.

He sighed, picked up the giant branch, and with a mighty heave, threw it into the forest. The dragon, with a happy bark-like roar, bounded after it. The ground shook with its mighty steps, but it wasn't from anger, it was from pure, unadulterated joy.

The dragon came back with the branch in its mouth, and dropped it at Sir Jasper’s feet again. This went on for some time. Sir Jasper was getting quite tired. His arm was sore from throwing the branch, and his armor was a little dusty.

Finally, the dragon nudged Sir Jasper’s hand with its nose, its warm, scaly breath a little like a puppy’s. Sir Jasper, without thinking, reached out and scratched it behind the ears. The dragon’s eyes closed in pure bliss, and its tail whump-thumped on the ground even harder.

Sir Jasper realized he had a choice. He could fight this big, friendly dragon, or he could tell the village that the fearsome beast had been “defeated” and that he had “tamed” it. He chose the latter. He rode back to the village, and told them that the beast was no longer a danger.

The villagers were thrilled. Sir Jasper, meanwhile, went back to the clearing, and spent the rest of the afternoon playing fetch with his new, scaly friend. He was a knight of impeccable reputation, but now, he was also the best friend of the most playful dragon in the land.