When dust bunnies morph into a dust dragon, the Knight of Mama's Kitchen Table must launch into action

SIR JOSH AND THE DUST DRAGON

"Joshua, it's time to clean your room," Mama called from the kitchen.
Joshua didn't answer. Maybe she'd think he was playing outside. He was only minutes away from his favoritist part of his favorite movie about kings and knights and damsels in distress.
"Joshua?"
"I'm not Joshua. I'm Sir Josh, Knight of the Table," Joshua said.
Last week he'd been a cowboy. The week before he'd been a policeman. Mama always played along with his games. He'd clean his room up later, after the movie.
"Well, Sir Josh, it's time to clean up your room."
"But Mama, Knights of the Table don't clean. They're too busy fighting dragons and saving girls and stuff."
"Uh huh," Mama said with a smile. She turned and disappeared down the hall.
A high-pitched scream drowned out the music on the television. He'd never heard anything like it before.
He raced down the hall. "Mama, what's wrong?" Maybe she needed a knight to rescue her.
"I saw a dragon! There under your bed!" Mama pointed past the toys and clothes covering the floor. "Oh, Sir Josh, whatever will we do? We have a dragon in the house!"
Joshua glanced from Mama to his unmade bed. "A dragon? Are you sure?" There had never been a dragon in the house before. Mama didn't even let Kelso the Wonderdog in the house. He lived in his own house in the back yard.
"The dust bunnies must have mutated into a horrible dragon. Whatever will we do?" Mama fussed. "If he's not caught, he might grow so big he'll eat us all up."
Joshua stepped into his room. He had to protect his mother. That's what knights do, protect girls and fight dragons. Bending over, he looked under the bed. He didn't see anything. He took a step closer, shoving three racecars and a ball with his foot. Squinting, he couldn't make out any dragon. Mama must be seeing things.
"Come away, Sir Josh. It's too dangerous. The dragon might leap out and gobble you up." She sounded really frightened.
Leading his mother to the kitchen, he patted her hand. She'd be safe here, at the other end of the house. "Don't worry, Mama. I'll protect you. I'm a Knight of the Table. That's what we do." He threw back his shoulders and lifted his chin.
"Remember, dragons hate clean places. That's why they live in caves and under beds." Mama said. "Be careful, Sir Josh. I'd hate for you to be eaten by the horrible beast."
Since Joshua was going to fight a dragon to protect his mother, he needed a knight uniform. He pulled his old football helmet out of the front hall closet and tugged it on. It squeezed his ears, but it was a great knight's helmet.
Mama handed him the dust mop. It was taller than he was, but would be his sword to battle the dragon. The dustpan would be his shield. He was ready.
Dressed in his knight clothes, Sir Josh marched down the hall to his room. He looked in the closet, under the bed and around the room. He didn't see the dragon.
He picked up the clothes that lay all over the floor. They made a perfect place for a dragon to hide. He tossed them into the clothes hamper, then dragged the wicker basket to the kitchen.
"Have you caught the dragon yet?" Mama asked with a frightened shiver.
Not yet, but I will."
Returning to his room, Sir Josh peeked around the room again, but still didn't spy a dragon. There were a lot of toys scattered across the floor. One by one he picked them up and piled them in the toy box in the bottom of his closet.
Studying his room, he still couldn't find a dragon. The only place left to hide was under the bed. The dragon had to be hiding under the bed.
Picking up his sword, Sir Josh dusted the floor all around the rest of the room. No way would that dragon escape him now. There was no where else to hide.
Dropping to his hands and knees, Sir Josh swept his sword back and forth beneath the bed. He pushed and pulled and swiped the mop all around the floor under his bed. Sticking his head under the bed, he still didn't see any dragon. Not even in the dustpan with the rest of the dirt from the floor.
Carrying his sword and shield, he marched through the house to the kitchen. "I didn't find the dragon, Mama," he said with a sigh. He wanted to battle the dust dragon. He wanted to see what such a monster looked like.
Mama took the dust mop to the back door to shake it. Turning it over, she said, "Sir Josh, you did find the dragon. Look!"
Josh looked at the dust mop and there, caught on the strings were the fluffy gray remains of the horrible dust dragon that scared Mama so. Sir Josh, Knight of the Mama’s Kitchen Table, had met, fought and beaten the horrible dust dragon.