The tall, nattily-dressed man unlocked the front entrance of the Annex and pulled the heavy steel door inward on faintly squeaking hinges. A blast of cold, humid air struck his face and he breathed it in deeply, the fresh air energizing him as it drove away the last of his morning lethargy. He stepped outside and took in the blue-white landscape that now surrounded the Annex: A crisp, flawless blanket of snow, the first snow of the winter season. Large, fat flakes still drifted slowly down from the pale gray, early morning sky.
The day had not gotten off to a very good start. He and Cassandra had had a rather heated disagreement about Franklin, Jenkins's tea dragon. When Franklin saw the snow falling last night through an Annex window, he had reacted with such excited screeching and leaping about that Jenkins feared the little dragon was going to hurt himself. The Caretaker had decided then and there to take Franklin outside early the next morning, before the neighborhood began to stir, and let the little animal experience snow for probably the first time in his life firsthand. It rarely snowed in Yunnan, and Jenkins was certain that the tea dragon would love to be given the opportunity to see and feel snow up close.
Cassandra had disagreed, strenuously. She reminded him of the last time Franklin had gotten out of the Annex, begged him to at least put a leash of some kind on Franklin so that he wouldn't be tempted to run off again, or be frightened into running away by a stray dog or something. Jenkins stubbornly refused. He disliked leashes on wild animals, he argued. And besides, he had been working with Franklin ever since his last "adventure", and felt quite confident that Franklin would come when called now. His wife had rolled her eyes and accused him of spoiling Franklin, and told him that some day it would all come back to "bite him in the ass", as she rather crudely put it. Jenkins had snorted in response as he scooped Franklin up from the floor and headed for the front entrance.
Now, a large lump underneath his heavy outer coat began to move, and the sound of muffled grunts and whines could be heard clearly in the still air. Jenkins undid the top snap of his coat, and a long green head with large black eyes popped out straightaway. Though Franklin had heard stories from his elders in China about snow, he had never seen it for himself before, and now he gaped in amazement at the ground covered in white. He felt the cold air and shivered slightly, then became utterly fascinated by the vapor cloud produced by his breath that hung in the air around his head. It was never this cold in Yunnan! The curious beast simply couldn't resist exploring this new landscape and the white stuff that now replaced the thick green grass that had been here only a few weeks ago.
Before Jenkins could stop him, Franklin scrambled madly out of his coat and leaped onto the ground. The moment his feet touched the snow, however, the little tea dragon squawked in surprise and leaped straight up into the air. The ground was so cold now! He jumped around several more times as his feet kept coming into contact with the soft, icy substance, screeching in alarm the entire time as he tried to understand what was happening. Jenkins chuckled as he watched the reptile's reaction, then stooped to pick Franklin up.
"Perhaps Cassandra was right, and I shouldn't have brought you out here, my little one," he muttered. "You are cold-blooded, after all. At least I think you are…" He turned to carry Franklin back inside, but the dragon wasn't going to have it. He'd just gotten here, after all! He squirmed out of Jenkins's grasp and leaped back onto the snowy ground.
Franklin—who was actually warm-blooded, as all Eastern dragons are—adjusted quickly, and once he realized that this cold white stuff could be tunneled and burrowed into, there was no stopping him. Just as Jenkins was about to wrap his hands around the long, thin body, Franklin dived into the thick layer of snow and disappeared as he tunneled away like a cartoon rabbit, throwing snow out behind him with his back legs and striking Jenkins squarely in the face with it.
Spluttering, the immortal stood upright and wiped the melting snow out of his eyes. Looking frantically around, he spotted a rapidly lengthening ridge of snow like mole trail traveling away from him at great speed. A few yards away the ridge suddenly stopped, and Franklin's head burst from the snow. He squealed with delight when he spotted Jenkins.
"Franklin! Come back here this instant!" Jenkins shouted and began running toward the impish dragon. The last thing the Caretaker needed now was for Franklin to get away from him and get lost again, thus proving Cassandra right! As soon as he got close, however, Franklin howled happily as he dived beneath the snow's surface again and tunneled effortlessly away in a different direction, only to pop his head above ground again a short distance away. He jumped out of his snow-tunnel and began to roll around in the snowpack, his long tail thrashing as he shrieked with glee.
Again, Jenkins ran over to catch the writhing beast, but as soon as he got too close, Franklin dived back into the snow and burrowed away again. Jenkins called agitatedly, but Franklin ignored him—he was having far too much fun now and he wasn't ready for it to end yet. Regret and mounting panic filled the Caretaker as he tried again and again unsuccessfully to catch Franklin or convince him to come on command. He was just no match for the small, agile creature, and it went on for almost half an hour, the old immortal coming no closer to catching the dragon than he was at the outset.
"Dammit, Franklin!" Jenkins swore breathlessly. He stopped running and bent over, resting his hands on his knees as he gulped in lungfuls of icy air. "I'm too old for this nonsense!" Franklin poked his head out of the snow just a couple of feet away. He stared at the gasping man for a moment, then threw his snout up into the air and hooted. He climbed out of the burrow and began to slide on his belly along the surface of the ground like an otter, his scaly underside perfectly suited for snow "sledding". Jenkins narrowed his eyes, but he didn't move. Franklin continued to yip and hoot raucously, pleased with himself as he continued to slide.
Eventually Franklin lazily slid close to the man, and Jenkins lunged, surprisingly quickly for a man his size and advanced age. The dragon squawked loudly in surprise and dove beneath the surface of the snow, narrowly escaping the large hand that grabbed for his long, serpentine tail. Jenkins lost his balance and fell face-first into the snow.
The immortal pushed himself up and rolled over into a sitting position on the cold ground, spitting ice out of his mouth and scrubbing the snow out of his eyes and hair. From the direction of the Annex's entrance he heard laughter, and looking over his shoulder he saw Cassandra standing outside the door, her mittened hands failing to stifle her giggles. A sour look came to his face as he turned away from her.
"Well, I'm sooo very pleased that you think this is funny," he groused loudly. The Librarian skipped lightly through the snow to her husband's side and then dropped to her knees. She threw her arms around him and kissed his cold cheek.
"Don't get snippy with me!" she chided him lightly. "I warned you about bringing him outside without a leash!" Jenkins heaved a resigned sigh.
"You're right," he conceded, throwing his hands into the air. "You were right, I was wrong; I should've listened to you. I don't know how I'm going to be able to catch that little ragamuffin in this snow, he's like a fish in water!" Cassandra smiled, her eyes full of sympathy, and she patted his broad back.
"Aw, but you've forgotten all about your secret weapon!" she said cheerily and started to dig into her coat pocket.
"And what secret weapon would that be, my dear?" he asked dourly. At that moment Cassandra finally freed a small plastic bag of dog treats. She held them up like a prize, a huge grin on her face, but Jenkins only looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"Watch!" she instructed. The Librarian held the bag out in front of her, and then began to shake it vigorously, causing the plastic to crinkle and the treats inside to rattle loudly in the cold air.
Instantly Franklin's head emerged from the snow several yards off. He turned to find the source of the familiar sound—a sound that meant 'tasty food'—and saw Cassandra with the bag of treats. The dragon scrambled out of his tunnel and plowed through the snow toward her, screaming all the way. The moment he was close enough, he leaped at the young woman, snapping at the treats as he landed on her chest and knocked her backwards into the snow, the Librarian shrieking as the icy slush touched the bare skin of her neck and face. Jenkins immediately grabbed hold of the squirming animal and held him tightly against his chest as he clambered clumsily to his feet. He held out one hand to help Cassandra up, then quickly stuffed the wiggling, screeching dragon back beneath his overcoat as he looked around to make sure no one from the neighborhood had seen them. He sucked in a shocked breath as the cold, wet, scaly body began snuggling up against his warm, dry chest.
Cassandra opened the bag and removed a treat. She called Franklin's name, and as soon as he poked his head out of Jenkins's coat, she gave it to him. The little dragon snatched the treat from her fingers and gobbled it down greedily. After licking Jenkins's face one more time, he then burrowed back into the heavy wool overcoat. The immortal gritted his teeth and winced as the sharp, tiny claws bit through his shirt and into his skin.
"I'm glad I wore an older suit today," he muttered to himself as he and his young wife turned to go back into the Annex. Cassandra looped her arm through his and bounced along next to him, trying to cheer him up by telling him all about the breakfast she had waiting for him inside.
"And as an apology for bickering with you this morning, I made your favorite—waffles!" she announced brightly. Jenkins's sour mood instantly cleared.
"Waffles?" he repeated, trying not to sound too eager. "Belgian waffles?" The Librarian nodded her head.
"Yep! Nice, big, fat, fluffy, warm Belgian waffles!" she said. "With lots and lots of homemade whipped cream and strawberry jam and crushed pecans to put on top!" A beatific smile of anticipation lit up her husband's face. As the pair passed through the entrance and into the Annex, he pulled open the top of his overcoat to speak to the tea dragon snuggled inside.
"Did you hear that, Franklin?" he asked, low voice tinged with excitement. "Waffles!"