When Women Were Dragons

Beatrice and Alex apologize to each other without addressing the source of the conflict head-on. They acknowledge that they only have each other and then celebrate their amends by going to the park. As Beatrice plays, Alex sees a flyer posted by the Wyvern Research Collective; it is illustrated with a picture of a dragon. She throws the flyer away and moves on. The events at the school from the day before have been reported as a gas explosion—nothing more. Alex thinks that maybe it’s easier to forget or pretend, as the rest of society does, that dragoning isn’t real.

Dr. Gantz confirms his involvement with the Wyvern Research Collective and his earlier work published in the pamphlet Marla gave to Alex called “Some Basic Science Facts about Dragons: A Physician’s Explanation.” He describes observing the dragoning of female Air Force pilots during World War II, sometimes while their planes were mid-flight. He then describes Edith and Marla, without direct reference to their relationship—and relates the aftermath of Edith’s transformation from Marla’s perspective. Dr. Gantz reports that his research was terminated by the government following these incidents, and the pilots were grounded for an extended period of time.