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Another little girl, a bandana wrapped around her head like a pirate, squealed in her tiny voice, "We'll see about that! We're gonna knock that fort down and take all your treasure!"
The boy with the missing tooth turned to me with a big smile and said, "Hey, Junie. Wanna join our army and help us beat the bad guys?"
I bit back a laugh and replied, "Well, I don't know if I have what it takes to be a soldier, but I sure can cheer you on!"
The kids all laughed and kept on battling, and I stood there a little while, basking in the warmth of their innocence.
They'd gone and made a whole little world inside the library. Anything was possible, and the only limit was their imagination.
Suddenly, my eye fell on a dark-haired boy standing some rows away and eyeing the tyrant group with sad, dog-like adoration.
I walked over to him and knelt down. "Hey there, what's your name? Are you new here?"
He shot me a furtive look before nodding. "Yep. I'm Billy. I came to get an action book."
I looked him up and down, and my gut instinct kicked in.
"How'd you like something with more adventure and magic? We're doing a reading ofThe Hobbitsoon. Wanna stick around for that?"
He blushed. "Ah... I don't think I can."
"Why not?"
He shuffled his feet and looked down at the floor. "I ... my dad says magic is for little sissy girls, and I need to be a man."
Ah. Of course his dad said that.
I pursed my lips together and thought for a second before replying.
"Well, little Billy, what do you want to read?"
His face was immediately lit by hope. He looked like a sunny day. You know, the kind where trees sway gently in the breeze and leaves rustle softly in the wind. You look overhead and see a brilliant shade of blue, with just a few straggly clouds drifting lazily. It's everything you hope for, especially if it's hurricane season and you don't know what the next moment holds.
"I'd love to read magic books," Billy mumbled, "but I know my dad won't be happy about that."
"Where's your dad right now?"
"He's at work. He said my nanny will come pick me up after one."
"What if we make ourselves a little secret? You stick around forThe Hobbitreadin', and I'll treat you to a good ol' fashioned fairy tale ‘bout a Wishing Chair that can take you anywhere you want to go. Why don't you give it a try and see how it makes you feel? Don't let your dad be the one callin' the shots all the time, now."
The hope that burst across that little face made my heart churn. Man, I was sure his dad loved him, but fathers could be assholes sometimes.
But then again, at least his one stuck around. Mine wasn't even there to see me get born.
"You won't tell on me?"
I made a three-finger salute. "Scout's honor."
After Billy pottered away to join the other kids, I made my way to the history section. I was doing a bit of reading about the Ku Klux Klan, and it caught my interest.
This fascination had begun the very night I finished my tenth re-read ofGone With The Wind.Say what you would, but I'd never get enough of O'Hara and her damned gumption.
I was neck-deep in the Civil War era when I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder. Turning, I smiled. "Hey, Harold. Here for some history?"
"No, I just came to meet you. And I saw you getting that young’un into trouble!"
Harold Montgomery, sixty-something, missing two teeth (one he'd retouched in gold), and as eccentric as a pink-haired lady driving a blue Cadillac.
