The Market Thief

Chapter Five

CHAPTER FIVE

“Ahhh! That was great, thanks cook.” I push away from the table and rub my belly.

“You’d like anything that didn’t come out of the garbage, now get going.” She pushes me out the door.

“Hallway, please take me to Hulda so I can get this over with.” I walk down the hallway; at the end is a large room.

Hulda is standing in the doorway with her arms crossed “It took you long enough, did you eat everything in the kitchen? Forget it cook is in heaven to have someone to fatten up. Your first job will be to take all of the books out of the sitting room and put them into the library.”

“That sounds easy enough.” I reply.
“What did you expect?” She looks at me puzzled.

“I thought that.”

“Don’t think just work, I want my room back. It is going to take all day so get going.” Hulda interrupts.

I move past Hulda and walk into the sitting room. “How bad can a room be that Hulda thinks it’s going to take all day?”

I look around. “Good Goddess, I have never seen so many books. This must be the library and not the sitting room.”

I step into the hallway. “Please take me to the sitting room.” I walk down the hallway but end up right were I was. I try again. “To the sitting room, please the sitting room. Great now I’m beginning to sound like that stupid bird.”

“Get to work, Get to work!” squawks Impi.

Maybe the hallway makes the person or in this case the bird that you are talking about appear. I step into the same room again. “Impi is this the sitting room?”

“What a mess, what a mess.” Answers Impi.

“Every book in the library must be in here.” I groan.

“Lots of books, lots of books.” Shrills Impi.

I might as well get started; it seems like I am stuck here until this job is done. I pick up an armful of book and off to the library I go.

I stop inside the library door, my eyes about to pop out of my head. I thought the sitting room was full but this room as rows and rows of books. The shelves go from floor to ceiling and curve around. It reminds me of what a room in a tower would look like; I crank my neck back and look up and up and up. The books never seem to end; there are balconies and ladders all over the place. “Hulda said to just bring the books to the library, she didn’t say to put them away. I stack them off to one side and go back for more.

I drop my Eleventh load, which feels more like my hundredth, and sit down on the nearest stack. I stretch my arms over my head and stretch my back; I don’t think I can carry another load.

“How is the work coming?” says a voice behind me.

I jump up and spin around. Behind me is a tall, very thin man. His skin is darker with a sparkle effect; his hair is jet black and very short showing off his pointed ears. It’s rude to stare but I can’t take my eyes off him.

“How is the work coming?” he repeats.

“What?” I shake my head, “Who are you?”

His laugh is like music. “I am Lord Elysia, I am an Elf.” He bows.

“An Elf?” I ask.

“You do not know what an Elf is?” he ask.

“No sir, I mean yes sir, I mean I know what an Elf is I’ve just never seen one. Not in the part of the city I’m from.” I answer.

“I apologize for being rude,” he bows again. “You are correct in that there are not many Elves in the city.”

“Why not sir?”

“Please do not sir me. By my peoples standards I am still a youngster.”

“No way,” I interrupt, “how old are you? I heard that Elves live forever.”

Lord Elysia laughs his musical laugh. “Not forever, but longer than humans. I am 109 years old, old for a human, but young for an Elf.”

“Why are you here, Lord Elysia?” I shift to get comfortable.

“Please not Lord Elysia either. Please call me Eli, all my friends do.” He holds out his hand.

I give it a hard shake. “Hi! My friends call me Theo.”

“Glad to meet you, Theo.” He bows.

“You didn’t answer my question, what are you doing here?” I repeat.

He sits down next to me and puts his head in his hands. “I have been sent here to study.”

“You don’t sound happy, what are you studying?” I ask.

Eli lets out a big breath. “I played a prank on my oldest cousin and he did not like it. My family was furious and thought it was time for me to learn some responsibility.”

“It must have been some prank to get you banished to Alfred’s house.” I observe.

“It was not the prank that got me sent here. Alfred’s library is the best in the world and he is a very good friend of the Elves.” Eli explains.

I better get back to work or it won’t be the best library in the world.” I stand up, and head for the door. “There is a ton of books left to bring in, I can’t believe Alfred has read so many books.”

Eli shakes his head. “Alfred has not read all those books, he is looking for something specific.”

“Like?”

“Information, I am not sure what but I bet it has something to do with a new spell he is always working on.” Informs Eli.

“New spell?”

“Alfred is the best there is at creating new spells. You know there is an easier way to put these books away.” Eli winks at me.

“There is?”

“You are in a wizard’s house you know.” Eli waggles his eyebrows at me.

I scratch my head that phrase has been coming up a lot the last couple of days, but I don’t take it as a warning. “So?”

“Magic, my young friend, all you have to do is say the magic word and these books will put themselves away.”

“I’m so tired of carrying books. You wouldn’t know the magic word would you?” I ask Eli.

“Aciretnua” says Eli.

“Wait a minute,” my brain is working overtime. “If that is all that is needed, why doesn’t Alfred do it himself? Why does he need me?”

“Because Alfred has more important things on his mind and he does not think magic should be used for such mundane jobs.” Eli explains.

I whisper the word a couple of
times. “That’s it, I just say the magic word and all the books put themselves away? That doesn’t seem very hard, I thought magic was complicated.”

“Magic is not complicated, most wizards just like to show off.” Says Eli.

I hesitate, “you’re sure this will work?”

“Positive”

I take a deep breath, “Aciretnua”. I jump at the sound of my voice; it was so loud in the quiet of the library.

Nothing happens, then Eli jumps up, the book
under him wiggles. The books line up in a straight line, and start to march to the bookshelves.

I clap my hands in excitement. “This is great Eli, thanks.”

By now all the books I had brought from the sitting room were lined up waiting their turn. I get to the door and try to go down the hallway but I am knocked over by a line of books coming down the hallway. “Um Eli, why are there books in the hallway?”

“What do you mean, the spell only works in the library.”

“What on earth is going on?” yells Alfred as he flies down the hallway knocking books right and left. He stops inside the library doorway and looks around.

“Nodelcnu” he shouts holding up his hand, all the books stop. “Lord Elysia, what do you think you are doing? This isn’t studying, this looks like a prank, haven’t you learned your lesson yet? Theo, why aren’t you cleaning the sitting room?”

Lord Elysia bows to Alfred. “I meant no harm Wizard Neble. I told Theo the magic word for putting the books away, I was trying to help.”

Alfred looks at Lord Elysia accusingly. “Well, you caused a few problem. I was working on my spell when all my books began marching away. I am not stupid, I know that you did this, don’t try to say that she did it.” Alfred points a long bony finger at me. “She is a girl.”

“Wizard Neble, I did not do or help the magic.” Lord Elysia stands up tall. “I did tell Theo the correct word to use, but she used it not I.”

Alfred walks to the door. “I don’t have time for this. You go back to studying, I’ll take this up with your father later. Theo, you finish putting the books away.”

He points to his workroom and says “Ekim.” Twelve books begin marching back to his room, a wave if his hand and “Asil” the books in the hallway fall right were they are. With a swish of his robe, Alfred stomps back to his workroom and slams the door.

“Big trouble, big trouble,” squawks Impi.

“Get out of here, Impi, before I ask Eli how to turn you into a toad.” I sink to the floor; my debt is never going to get paid if he keeps getting mad at me.

“Get to work, get to work,” Impi mocks as she flies down the hallway.

“Stupid bird! I shout at her. It doesn’t scare her but I feel better. Back to work I go. I restack all the books that fell to the floor. I finish them and head for the sitting room.

I plop down in a big overstuffed chair. “Where are all the books? There was a lot left the last time I was here. No way, I didn’t get all the books left did I?” I look all around, there isn’t a book left in this room. Whew that was a lot of work. I think I’ll find cook and sweet talk a snack out of her.

Cook has just taken some warm cookies out of the oven. “It is so good to have a young one to cook for again. You come by anytime you need a snack.” I thank her as I munch the cookies and head back to the sitting room.

Hulda is there; she is singing and waddling around.
“The books are gone,
The books are gone,
I can see my furniture again,
All the books are gone,
Al the books are gone.
My sitting room is mine again.
All the books are gone
All the books are g-o-n-e, gone.”

I back into a corner and stay out of her way; she twirls over and grabs my hands. We dance around and she keeps singing that song over and over again, to make it worse, Impi joins in.

Hulda runs out of breath and plops down into the closest chair, “Theo, this is great. I can finally see my favorite chair again.”

“I’m glad you’re happy.” I smile.

“Happy, I’m more than happy. I can’t believe I can sit in my chair again, do you know how long I’ve waited?”

“What would you like me to do next?” I ask tiredly.

“My lands child. You have worked hard enough. You go find Lord Elysia and get him out of the stuffy library. Go exploring or something.” She shoos me out of the room.