Chapter Text
"You are supposed to sing the get together song.” A child said bouncing on the ABC mat.
Melinda stared at her. “No.”
“What about Old Mcdonald?”
“No.” Melinda held up a book. “We will read The Little Engine that Could and sing the ABC song and then you can play with the toys I put out for fifteen minutes.”
“You didn’t put out the craft section!”
“There will be no glitter glue.” Melinda stared at all the children. “Let us begin.” She held up the book, cursing Simmons for having an emergency and sticking her with the children’s time. She didn’t get along with children. She seemed to scare them, she didn’t know why. But soon she’d be in the back sorting books again. She read the book with zero inflection and heart. She found the story idiotic. A couple of the mothers in the back frowned and a few children inched back on the mat.
But two came closer. She finished reading and they sang the song and she shooed them over to the toys and set her watch for exactly 15 minutes. Melinda looked down and there were those two kids. “May I help you?”
“Are you a robot?” The boy asked. “Where do you plug in? Is it your toe, I bet it is. You take your toe cover off and boom there is a long cord and that is how you charge. Did you pass the Turing test? Uncle Tony told me about that.” He blinked and the little girl punched him.
“She’s not a robot. She’s a spy, undercover, or hiding from the mafia. Oh or our government. She can kill a man with a paperclip.” The little girl looked up and saluted. “Your secret is safe with us ma’am.” The boy quickly added a salute too.
“You are very strange little children.” Melinda tried to stare them down and they held the salute. She sighed. “At ease. And I am not a robot, nor a spy. I am a librarian.”
She didn’t laugh when both children stood at ease in perfect military fashion. “Do you know books that aren’t about kittens or teaching great moral lessons? We know that we can get up the hill, we would push each other, it is fine.”
“Yeah. Tashie keeps being given these princess books by people. Dad says they don’t know what to give girls as strong as Tashie so they do that. Girls don’t have to read princess books right?”
“And Clint doesn’t like football. All father’s co-workers keep giving him a football.” Melinda did not crack a smile at Tashie’s scowl.
Melinda turned and left without another word. She walked through a few of the stacks and gathered a pile. She returned to the reading room and kicked everyone out but paused beside the two who had been brave. “Here.” She gave them the pile of books.
“This says princess on the front.” Tashie looked ready to mutiny.
“Trust me.” Melinda broke a little to wink, she knew the girl would like The Paperbag Princess. “And here a non-football book for you Clint.” She handed over a book. “Also this book is much too old and scary for either of you. It must have fallen into my hands by accident.” She dangled A Bad Beginning from her fingertips and watched as Clint grabbed. “You absolutely shouldn’t have your mother read that to you. It will for sure scare you far too much to sleep.” Melinda realized they were the last two. “Where is your mother?”
“On our mantel. She’s dead.” Clint said, poking at the book. “This is a big kid book.” He said in awe. “You gave us a big kid book.”
“Clint, Dad said we have to be nicer about Mama, it confuses people.” Tashie looked at Melinda and made her eyes swim. “We miss her very much.”
“We were one! We don’t remember her.” Clint pouted. “And Skye won’t read this to us, she thinks we’re too grown up already.”
“Dad will, when he’s home.” Tashie looked at Melinda. “We like you. Will you do story time again?”
“No.”
“But the other girl is too perky. No,” Tashie said calmly. “You’ll do story time for us.”
“Oh yes, that’d be awesome!” Clint agreed. He saw Skye. “We have to go. Bye Scary Library Lady!”
“Melinda.” Melinda said. “Not Scary Library Lady.”
“Bye Scary Melinda.” Both kids shouted.
Melinda went back to her corner to sort books, doubting she’d see the kids again.
******************************
“How’d you get back here?” Melinda asked staring at the two sets of eyes peering over her desk.
“Security is designed for big people, not little ones.” Tashie explained.
“I cried and they went to search for Skye and we sneaked in.” Clint added. “It’s story time.”
“And Simmons has returned.” Melinda moved a pile of books.
“She has a cat sweater.” Tashie glared.
“We told you Scary Melinda, you do our stories now.” Clint explained like she was the 5 year old and not him.
“I’m busy.”
“I saw the schedule you should be doing lunch.”
“You can read that well Tashie?” Melinda raised a brow.
“She’s awesome with words.” Clint boasted. “She can read and speak 3 languages. English, French, and Russian.”
“I’m not so good with Russian.” Tashie said. “And Clint’s super good with math and his hands. He knows up to the 3 times tables.”
“Dad’s been reading us some of the big kid book. It is good.” Clint said. “I like that the kids are smart. Not magic, or chosen ones, or superheroes. Just smart.”
“Well then, did you know there was once a woman called Mulan?” Melinda asked.
“Skye had us watch the movie.” Tashie said.
“Yes, but do you want to know the not Disney version?” Melinda asked.
Both kids looked at her eyes wide and nodded. And Melinda kept sorting while telling them the story.
For a month the kids broke into her office and she told them a story. And then one Saturday they didn’t appear. She didn’t miss them. Melinda stretched from her desk and took a walk around the library. She moved towards the back to the kids section where Simmons was singing songs with very happy children.
She smiled as she saw Tashie and Clint trying to escape the very firm grip of a man in a suit. Each time one managed to get a few inches away the man’s hand snapped out and corralled them gently. He was rather unassuming, like any older father. But he had to be something worth investigating to have such interesting children. Melinda moved a little closer.
“Scary Melinda.” Clint cried and he managed to step away quick enough and run before the man could catch him. Melinda was shocked and almost knocked to her knees when Clint ran full tilt and hugged her. “Hi!”
“Hello Clint, Tashie.” She said as Tashie came over a little slower, dragging her father.
“Hello Melinda. This is our father Phil. Explain to him that you are our story time person.”
“Natasha. You can’t just kidnap and keep people.” Phil sighed.
“Why not? It’s how we got Skye.” Tashie honestly looked confused. “And the children’s librarian is nice.” Tashie made is sound like the greatest insult. “Melinda tells us about pirate queens.”
“And archers. I like the stories about Robin Hood.” Clint said still hugging her. “Tell Daddy you are ours.”
Melinda looked him straight in the eye. “I am theirs.”
Clint and Natasha gasped, they didn’t think she would actually agree. They smiled and bounced. “Daddy, we need to take her for ice cream.” Tashie said. “We owe her for breaking her security code.”
Phil opened his mouth and paused. “No. No I don’t want to know but I’ll be talking with Uncle Tony again.”
“No, this Uncle Nick taught us.” Clint replied. “Oops.”
Phil closed his eyes. “We don’t hack until we are 10, we don’t kidnap and claim librarians as our own property, and we don’t keep library books just because we appreciate them better than another person would.”
Melinda looked at the kids.
“We tried to keep the Bad Beginning.”
“How about you return it and I get you book 2. Which your father absolutely really shouldn’t read you. It is far worse.” Melinda smiled at the glee on their faces.
Phil stared at her and swallowed. He wouldn’t mention to her that the kids had decided they were keeping her as more than their librarian. She really didn’t know they had decided she was their new mom. “Could I buy you coffee in thanks and apology for them?”
“You do not apologize for creativity and ingenuity in your children.” Her voice was hard.
“Yes ma’am. Still coffee?”
Melinda nodded. “It is my break. Let’s all go.” She ignored it when Clint said “Yes phase one is a success.” She’d find out what that meant soon enough.