Well Planned Theft (Otherwise Untitled)
#184 of Short Stories
Linda, Jackalope with plans, steals a piece of magic.
~ The customs check was without the crowds that gathered during any sort of rush as the dragon approached, his fine tailored suit a patchwork of dignity and wrinkles from the flight. With a quiet gait of tired he stepped up to the only check officer on duty.
~ The hare, wearing a neatly trimmed and pressed uniform smiled with the insincere smile of customer service as he set a plastic bin up on the counter.
~ "I'll need you to empty your pockets into this, while I take a look through that..", pointing to the dragon's carried bag.
~ The dragon mumbled incoherent half-truths of his plans and destinations and origin while Linda carefully prodded the contents of his bag, the dragon's wallet and baubles scattered across the base of the bin adjacent.
~ With a stubborn glare and no change to the smile, "Oh, and I'll need that spoon, too."
~ This jolted the dragon out of the travel weary near-slumber he'd been dragging himself through, growling softly as he fixed the hare with a glare. With a single step backwards, the dragon pulled a mirror from his empty pocket, glancing down into the customs check officer's reflection to see a jackalope, his face and arms scattered with scars faintly visible under his fur and half of each ear missing. A tarnished silver badge flickered softly on his chest.
~ The dragon rumbled in a tone of words written in the old cursive, "You think you can force anything of me, trickster in the daylight?", keeping beyond arm's reach from Linda.
~ The officer didn't look up from his task of closing the dragon's carry on bag, commenting over the sound of the zipper, "Won't be my pretty jaw you'd be breakin'. It'd be the foundations of this nice life you've built yourself."
~ The dragon's posture softened somewhat, "And what business do you have, stealing a key to a lock you can't reach?", sliding a hand into the vest pocket of his coat.
~ Linda shrugged, "If you get arrested here, or even just the record of an attempt, who'll keep up that your grand-daughter Martha's cough doesn't get more serious?", his hands resting on top of the dragon's bag. He nodded to the side, sliding a hand to point at an empty spot on the table.
~ With the low rumble of a scowl, the dragon dropped the heavy brass spoon onto the empty spot and through the table into the bag Linda had placed below.
~ "You're not the first fool to steal that.", the dragon's tone retaining the loops and serifs.
~ The jackalope's customer service smile slid way to the wry honestly of a grin, "Likely the first to know what I'm taking."
~ "I'll have it back, before you find your grave.", uttered in the finest calligraphy as he refilled his pockets from the contents of the bin.
~ A carefree shrug from the jackalope as he ducked down to snatch up the bag, "Opportunities in my lifetime.", explained Linda as he slipped away from the desk.