Creepy Creature's Arc

Chapter 2 of 2

The sack sat half full in the dark shaft. Creepy Creature wanted it bursting. So he went back down the hills and grabbed every ankle he could reach. But most folks had nothing to give. He clamped onto a worker's leg, begged with his yellow eyes, and got a boot in return. He grabbed a traveler next. Empty pockets. Another kick. By afternoon his arms ached and his sack had not grown by a single sweet. He was wasting his strength on people who carried no candy. He sat in the dust and thought. He needed a spot where travelers always had candy. Then he saw it down the road. A bright shop stood by the path. Its windows glowed with jars of lollipops and gumdrops. A striped awning hung over the door. People walked out with bags in their hands. Every bag was full of sweets. This was it. If he waited here, he would never grab an empty ankle again. Creepy Creature crept behind a barrel near the door and waited. A customer stepped out holding a candy bag. He lunged and caught the ankle. "Whoa there," said a voice above him. A boy in a brown apron stood in the doorway. Candy poked from his apron pocket. He worked at the shop, helping the peddler sell sweets all day. He knew every bag that left the counter. He did not look angry. He looked amused. "You can't tackle my customers," the boy said. He pried Creepy Creature's tan fingers off the ankle. The customer hurried away. Creepy Creature hissed and showed his teeth. The boy only laughed. "Grabbing legs is a hard way to work," he said. He crouched down to Creepy Creature's rounded ears. "I always know who's carrying candy. I ring them up myself." Creepy Creature's big eyes went wide. This boy knew. Every single traveler, every full bag. No more guessing. No more wasted lunges. "Here's the deal," the boy said. He pulled a gumdrop from his apron and held it out. "You stop scaring folks at my door. You sweep my step each morning. And I'll tell you which travelers leave with the most sweets. You catch them down the road, not here." Creepy Creature snatched the gumdrop and licked it. He thought of the half-empty sack. He thought of all the empty ankles he had grabbed. He nodded fast. The boy grinned and shook one small green hand. "Markelton Sweetwater," he said. "Come back at dawn." Creepy Creature scurried back up to the mineshaft that night. He no longer had to guess. Now he had a spotter. But a deal had a price. Tomorrow he had to sweep the step, and he had never done honest work for a single candy in his life.