Dragons of the Watch - Donita K. Paul [112]
Toady’s anxious voice barely reached her. “He’s in there.”
For a moment, the identity of “he” eluded her.
“Oh, you mean Old One.”
Red Curls jerked on Ellie’s arm. “I gotta go.”
“Right,” said Ellie. “We’ll go to the children’s area. I’ve never seen Old One there. After we get settled in, I’ll introduce you to him. He might even read to you. He is a librarian, not a grawlig, you know.”
Bealomondore’s thought interrupted her. “I believe he said he was a guardian.”
A communal gasp turned Ellie’s attention from Bealomondore to the place where they focused all eyes. Old One stood in the doorway to the main library area.
“You will obey all the rules,” he bellowed, and the children cowered.
“You will not shout, yell, or scream. You will maintain a quiet attitude. You will not run, skip, or dance. You will move sedately through the book stacks. You will treat the books with respect. No chewing, throwing, or stepping on. You will sit in chairs and on the floor. No climbing is allowed in the library. No running.”
Cinder spoke up. “You said that one already.”
The glare Old One pinned on the unfortunate boy scared even Ellie.
“No running,” Old One repeated.
Tense faces stared at Old One as he sat beside the desk in the children’s area. He scowled at one in particular, and that child shrunk and wiggled to the back of the group. Bealomondore thought Old One was doing an admirable job of keeping order.
Ellie didn’t. “He’s scaring them. There’s no need to scare them.”
“Then you should explain to the children that they’re not allowed to scare me. Being attacked by that mob in the street took ten years off my life.”
“These are the peaceful children, not the hooligans.”
“I recognize some of these innocent-looking cherubs as wranglers in a few scuffles I’ve seen,” he said.
Ellie looked at Bealomondore. “What are we going to do? We can’t let the children and Old One stare darts at each other.”
Bealomondore thought better of the sarcastic remark that sprang to his mind. The sad thing was that before he could shut it off, Ellie heard it.
“Humph!” She squinted at him sternly.
He thought she looked adorable, and she heard that too. She blushed. He laughed.
“The first order of the first day in your new abode,” said Bealomondore, “is to have noonmeal.”
Ellie turned her hands up and shrugged. “Where do you suppose the food is?”
Bealomondore didn’t sound worried. “The wizard that provides our sustenance seems to know what we’re doing and when. He always puts the correct amount of food where we can find it.”
At the mention of food, the children’s attention had shifted from the grouchy librarian to the tumanhofer. Some of them nodded to his statement, some stood with their mouths hanging open, and some wagged their heads, indicating they didn’t have a clue what he was talking about.
Bealomondore debated revealing his sighting of the wizard at work. The children evidently were unaware that a wizard watched over them. Then he’d need to explain the history of the city. How much could this young audience absorb in one sitting? He decided against getting into anything too complicated.
He took a deep breath and let it out. “So”—he examined the grimy faces suddenly attentive to his every word—“I suggest we have a scavenger hunt. Holler loud if you’re the first one to find the stash of food, and we’ll all come to help cart it back to the children’s area.”
He lifted his hand to count on his fingers the rules he wanted them to follow, but the children dispersed with wild whoops and cheers before he said another word. The dragons of the watch took off from their various perches and joined in the riotous hunt. They flew above the children’s heads, chirring lively tunes and doing aerial acrobatics as if caught up in the children’s exuberance.
Ellie grinned, but Old One growled, muttering under his breath. “No loud voices. No running. No rough-and-tumble play allowed within the library walls.” His eyes widened, and he turned his head abruptly in the direction most of the children