That part about who made you the gatekeeper really hits. Kids don't care about the rules we made up for art, they just want to make something and have someone be happy about it. Honestly the fact that you're still thinking about it two weeks later says a lot, most people would've shrugged it off the same day. Maybe the move is to tell her you were wrong and ask her to show you how she made it, that way she knows the dragon was real to her and that counts for something.

So you'd rather he sleep on the street?

Tbh that's like cooking your own dinner, nobody to blame but you and it tastes better.