Casey's Hidden Treasure [A Short Story]

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Little_Spyro
Senior Member

since 2000-01-09

Posts 659
San Diego, CA, USA

0 posted 2000-07-18 08:45 PM

**A little note before you read this**
I'm not too sure if I'm supposed to be doing this, but a couple of people (including Munda) suggested I put this up...so here it is...hope you like it, and please tell me if I'm breakint the rules by posting this!

____________________________________________________________________________

Casey’s Hidden Treasure
A story by Sam Reinsford

One day, a well-known professor at a famous college was sitting down to go over the work from the class that had just left his room. There were a whole lot of papers to grade, and not much time to do it in. He sipped his cup of coffee, picked up his red pen, and began to grade.
He didn’t notice that one student had wandered into the classroom and was looking around. The boy wasn’t even a student at the college; in fact, he was only in fourth grade. But for some reason he found himself then and there, and tried to make the best of it.
“Can I help you?” the professor asked, watching with amusement as the boy slid into one of the desks and then became only visible from his neck up. He wasn’t exactly tall.
“Yes, I’m looking for my friend, do you know where he is?” the boy asked.
“Well, now,” the professor said, “if I knew who your friend was, or what he looked like, maybe I could tell you.”
“He’s big and green and has nice wings,” the boy blurted excitedly. “He breathes lots of fire and likes eating submarine sandwiches.”
The professor chuckled. “Sounds a lot like your friend is a dragon,” he said, barely able to contain his laughter. This kid was cute, saying stuff like that.
“Yep!” the boy replied. “So have you seen him?”
“No, I’m afraid I haven’t,” said the professor, smiling. “But why don’t you go look over in the building across the street. You’re bound to find him there.”
Incidentally, the building across the street was the place where World Mythology was taught, and directly across was the European Mythology classroom. He’ll find his dragon there, thought the professor with a grin.
When the boy was gone, the professor sat down at his desk and started grading papers again. After a few minutes, he looked out the window briefly—and stared.
He caught a glimpse of the boy and a large figure walking through the place across the street. But he didn’t look in time to see much more than that, as the two shapes rounded the corner and were gone.

The next day, in the middle of class, the professor was busying himself writing the test on the next chapter. He was making this one harder than usual, because he wasn’t in a particularly good mood. Perhaps I need more coffee, he thought.
All of a sudden, there was a loud screech as the side of a car scraped against the sidewalk. This attracted everyone’s attention, and they looked out the window. Indeed, a car was on the sidewalk, both doors open, and a crowd was gathering in the street, but the professor couldn’t figure out why.
Then for an instant, the crowd parted, and he saw the boy on the road, bleeding. Immediately, he rushed out of the room and onto the scene, joining in the collective awe and worry.
The professor bent down to examine the boy, and when he did, the boy mustered the last of his strength to deliver his final message.
“Mister pr-professor, s-sir…he—he’s in y-your hands n-now…”
“Who is? My hands? What are you saying?” The professor had no clue as to what the boy was saying, but it was too late. He was gone.
The crowd began to dissipate, and soon an ambulance arrived to take the boy away. Within moments, the professor was left alone, standing in the street, in shock as to what had just happened.

When he went home, the professor put his briefcase and paperwork in his office and sat down in a chair to think. The car accident still lingered in his mind, and he was unsure as to what to do about it.
What did he mean when he said “He’s in your hands now”? Who?
Maybe his friend, the professor thought with a chuckle. Yes, that’s it. He wants me to go find his dragon and take care of him. Well, since it was in a way his last request… Even though this was no laughing matter, the professor couldn’t help but find it amusing.
“It’s just too bad dragons don’t exist,” he said to himself.

“Don’t be too sure of that,” said a voice from behind the professor.

He screamed. It seemed the only thing to do at the moment.
The professor considered himself a man of science, the careful analysis of life and its events. But this didn’t fit. It just didn’t.
It was a scientific fact that dragons had never existed, and was widely accepted throughout the educational and scientific communities. And that was that. But now, here was the professor, standing in front of the impossible.
“Are you okay?” it asked. “You look rather pale.”
“Maybe there is good reason for that,” said the professor, his voice shaky.
“I’m sorry if I scared you.”
Somehow, that made the professor feel a little better. His fear of this unexpected happening began to ebb away, and eventually he summoned the courage to ask, “What’s your name?”
“I’m Casey,” he said. “Pleased to meet you.”
“Quite,” replied the professor. “Did you know the boy that was…ah…”
Casey bowed his head. “Yes,” he said quietly. The professor waited patiently in silence for further details, and he wasn’t long in waiting.
“He was my best friend for a long time,” Casey began. “He took care of me, sheltered and fed me, and I in turn helped him out. He and his family were poor, and his own mother cast him off to live on his own when he was only six.
“He found his way into an elementary school and basically lived there. Up until today, he worked diligently and was trying to make a better life for himself.”
Casey paused. “Then the accident…” He stifled a sob, and again the professor was unsure about what to do. Following an impulse, he walked over to Casey and planted his hand gently on the dragon’s. “I suppose I should tell you,” the professor said, “what he did yesterday.”
Casey looked at him with eyes wet with tears. “What did he do?”
“He came into my room looking for his friend,” the professor said. “I thought it was funny, when he began to describe his friend, and I sent him over to the European Mythology building to look for him.” He couldn’t help but smile. “I thought he’d find a dragon there.”
Casey smiled, too. “Well, you did the right thing—I was waiting right next to a painting of a medieval castle with a knight and a damsel in the corner.”
The professor looked up at him, and was silent before he said,
“I painted that picture.”

Next day, the class gathered to find that their professor was not there. Instead, a substitute had taken his place temporarily. Class went on as usual, save for this change.
Meanwhile, at his house, the professor was working away at grading all the papers and taking care of other things. Casey watched him without a word as he took on his tasks.
“You have a lot of things to do,” he observed. “Here you are, grading papers, while it’s a beautiful day outside. I’ll bet the beach is deserted, and just waiting for someone to play in its sands, and run in its waves.”
“I’ve got to finish this,” said the professor. Casey was silent a little longer.
After a while more of this, Casey asked, “Are you almost done?”
“Not hardly,” said the professor with a chuckle. “There’s enough work here for the next couple of days.”
“Why don’t you take a break?” suggested Casey, pulling back the curtains a little to look at the cloudless sky. “It’s still great weather. And somehow I have the feeling the beach is still nice and empty.”
The professor sighed. “I can’t go,” he said, looking down at his papers.
“Then I will,” Casey said, and he walked out the door and took to the sky.
The professor sighed to himself.

Over the next few days, the professor continued to work, and Casey continued to suggest taking breaks. Then, Casey started working too.
“Why are you doing work like I am?” the professor asked. “And what are you working on?”
“I’m just working,” Casey replied. But he looks so…so…happy while he’s doing it, the professor thought.
“Are you enjoying it?” he asked, and Casey replied “Yes.”
“How come?”
“Well, I’m not worrying about it. I’m just taking care of what I have to do, giving it the amount of care it needs, while saving the rest for what really counts.”
“And what really counts?” asked the professor.
“Following your heart,” Casey said, “and feeding your soul. It was the boy that fed and sheltered my body. Now, it’s my turn to feed and shelter your heart.”
And he took off again to go see if the beach was empty, even though he already knew it was.

The professor walked along the sandy beach, looking around for Casey. He found him digging with his hands and feet in the sand.
“What are you looking for?” he asked him.
“Treasure,” the dragon replied. “Maybe you should try it, too.”
“Okay,” said the professor. He bent down and started digging with his hands, while Casey stood back and watched him. He dug for what seemed like hours, and down very deep, but found nothing.
“Oh well, I guess there’s nothing here,” he said, giving up.
“But there is,” Casey corrected. “You just haven’t found it yet.”

The professor was starting to like Casey more and more. He had a good attitude toward things, didn’t eat too much or take up too much space, and was good company when company was what was needed. The professor began to see things his way, and though his workload remained the same, he seemed to finish it faster. And every few days, the professor and Casey would go to the beach and dig for treasure.
On one of those days, when the professor had completed his work in what seemed like no time at all, the two went to the beach and Casey started to dig. He had barely scratched the surface when he stopped and looked over at the professor.
“Here, try digging in this spot,” he said. The professor began to dig, and in moments his hands scraped against something hard. After brushing more sand away, they found two rusty handles. After a few tries and a lot of effort, they had pulled a big wooden chest out of the sand.
“But I don’t get it,” the professor said. “This is the exact same spot I dug in the first day we came here.”
“Yes, and your house is still the same house,” said Casey. “And your car’s still the same car, your clothes are the same clothes…and you’re still the same you. In many ways.”
“Your point is…?”
“Everything may seem the same, but you couldn’t find your treasure earlier. Things have changed, but not very much, and you found your treasure.”
“But what’s in the chest?” asked the professor.
“Open it and see,” the dragon said.
The professor opened the chest with ease, and found two pairs of scissors and a red sheet of construction paper. Casey picked this up and a pair of scissors, and started to cut. Not knowing what else to do, the professor picked up the other pair of scissors and started cutting, too. All of a sudden, Casey put his hand over the professor’s eyes.
“Hey, I can’t see what I’m cutting anymore,” he complained.
“That’s okay. Just keep on cutting.”
So the professor cut and cut, and when his scissors rounded a corner, the rest of the paper fell away. Casey removed his hand and placed it on one side of the paper, the professor’s hand already being on the other.
What they had cut was a big paper heart.
“This is it? This is my treasure?” the professor said, dumbfounded. “A piece of paper?”
“No,” said Casey. “It took a little work, but in the end, you got the finished product: a perfectly good heart in your chest, that knows what to do.”

Then Casey the dragon unfurled his wings and soared away.

One day, a well-known professor at a famous college was sitting down to go over the work from the class that had just left his room. There were a whole lot of papers to grade, but there seemed like plenty of time to do it in. He sipped his cup of coffee, picked up his red pen, and began to grade.
He didn’t notice that someone had wandered into the classroom and was looking around. He wasn’t even a student at the college; in fact, he was only about elementary-school age. But for some reason he found himself then and there, and tried to make the best of it.
“Can I help you?” the professor asked, watching with amusement as the newcomer shuffled around the room.
“Yes,” he said. “Can you help me with this?”
The professor wondered what it was he needed help with. Then, he took out a large sheet of red construction paper and two pairs of scissors.

The professor looked out the window, and saw a large shape round the corner across the street. But it turned around and gave him a quick wink before disappearing again.

Denise

Moderator

Member Seraphic

since 1999-08-22

Posts 22648

1 posted 2000-07-18 09:14 PM

Hi Sam! Your story is delightful and magical! You've got a wonderful imagination and are always a delight to read, whether it be a poem or a short story. As this is not a poem I will move it to the Prose forum and those wishing to comment may do so there!

Denise

SpitFire
Member Elite

since 2000-04-19

Posts 2396

2 posted 2000-07-18 09:43 PM

~Oh I absolutely adore this!!! From the first few lines I was hooked. Cool read. Thanks. Be well LS. *Peace.

Sunshine

Administrator

Member Empyrean

since 1999-06-25

Posts 63354
Listening to every heart

3 posted 2000-07-18 10:04 PM

Hey Little One...this was great! Good message, a couple of things I would change, but nothing in the context...

this is good stuff. Let's see what next you have up your sleeve?

Sunny

~~~Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow.
Helen Keller ~~~

When you want to be loved, look within...KRJ

chibi_dragon
Member

since 2000-07-04

Posts 58

4 posted 2000-07-20 09:30 PM

Another well done job little guy! I think that this story has some kind of moral to it but I still have to figure out what!!

--Chibi

Munda
Member Elite

since 1999-10-08

Posts 3544
The Hague, The Netherlands

5 posted 2000-07-25 10:32 AM

LOL What else can I say than I like this story ? After all I suggested you post it here

Well done Sam ! Lets see some more !

AVANTI
Senior Member

since 2000-02-02

Posts 664
INDIA/MAHARASHTRA/PUNE

6 posted 2000-07-26 12:35 PM

Awesome imagination...
very well written

If all was light...then I would have never learnt the dark...from which such truth evolves
from which evolves the light...
Avanti Rao

Christopher

Moderator

Member Rara Avis

since 1999-08-02

Posts 8296
Purgatorial Incarceration

7 posted 2000-07-26 02:17 AM

I like it as well too! It is stories like this that makes me enjoy prose so much!!!

Christopher

Now with the wisdom of years
I try to reason things out
And the only people I fear
Are those who never have doubt.
-Billy Joel

Poet deVine

Administrator

Member Seraphic

since 1999-05-26

Posts 22612
Hurricane Alley

8 posted 2000-07-26 08:00 PM

Hey! Sam I didn't know you wrote prose too! Nice to read you here!

Erin
Member Elite

since 2000-06-15

Posts 2527
~Chicago~

9 posted 2000-07-27 01:51 AM

i didnt know that you wrote stories too!!! you have a wild imagination...not being in a bad way...i liked this story...well written...

~IF YOU WANT SOMETHING VERY BADLY~SET IT FREE~IF IT COMES BACK TO YOU~ITS YOURS FOREVER~IF IT DOESNT IT WAS NEVER YOURS TO BEGIN WITH~

Little_Spyro
Senior Member

since 2000-01-09

Posts 659
San Diego, CA, USA

10 posted 2000-08-02 03:59 AM

Thanks, everyone!!
This really cheers me up, especially after being in the hospital for a little while...

I'm working on a 2nd story, a follow-up to this one, so just be patient--I'm stilll trying to get all my wits together!

Little Spyro T. Dragon

oh2beme
Member

since 2000-07-24

Posts 215
NV USA

11 posted 2000-08-03 11:40 PM

You are truly exceptional!!!!
That was such a touching story. I can hardly wait for the sequel.

Debbie L. Hoskins

Dusk Treader

Moderator

Senior Member

since 1999-06-18

Posts 1187
St. Paul, MN

12 posted 2000-08-04 03:24 PM

Wow, Sam! I'm sorry I didn't get to this earlier, because this one has a lot of heart! Beautiful, just beautiful, the perfect bed time story, if I don't say so myself. Great writing!

Abrahm Simons

"Keep on dreamin' boy 'cause when you stop dreaming it's time to die" - Blind Melon

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