"Spill my guts on global television?" I suggested.

"Yes!" he said, snapping his fingers and turning back toward the dragon, who blinked. "Do you want me to spill my guts on television? Open dear Pandora's box once again?"

"Well, yes," said the dragon. "Do you realize how confused they all must be? Look at how their world has changed. Is it not their right to know what it all means?"

Harlequin nodded vigorously and moved toward the center of the room, gesturing wildly. "Of course it is!" he said. "But why tell them? Let them figure it out; that's the fun of it all! The clues are there!"

"The clues?" The dragon and I were equally baffled.

"To the mystery of life, Dunklezahn! The world is like a giant tapestry. You start out standing very close to the picture. There's a lot to see, and you could spend your whole life inspecting that one little section. Some find that section isn't enough. They step back to see more of the picture. Eventually, they may find themselves standing so far back that they see the whole tapestry hanging before them. But if you start them standing all the way back, they'll be confused. They won't know where to look first. They'll miss seeing the whole picture." He folded his arms across his chest, a satisfied smirk on his face. I eyed the dragon, who still looked perplexed.

"Are there not some things they should be warned…" he began.

"You mean like the invae?" Harlequin broke in.

"As a beginning, yes," the dragon told him.

Harlequin dismissed the idea with a gesture. "They're of no concern. In fact, they actually support my point! The humans knew nothing of their coming, but have been dealing with them quite nicely, nonetheless. Spilling our guts…" he nodded to me, "…to the humans early on would have denied them the discovery! The joy is in the unfolding. Let them marvel at their world, horrific as it may sometimes be. Let's not reveal the end of the tale before the final page is turned, Dunklezahn. Allow the story to tell itself."