Mary Pope Osborne - Magic Tree House 46

by Dogs in the Dead of Night

  Without a word, Brother Michael grabbed Barry by the collar. But the dog broke loose from the monk and ran around the room. He went down on his forelegs. He barked his happy, booming bark, as if daring them to catch him.

  Annie laughed again.

  Brother Michael sighed. “I apologize for the theft of your bread,” he said to Jack. “May I get you some more?”

  “No, no, it’s okay,” said Jack.

  Barry’s barks shook the dining hall.

  “Excuse me, I will take him to the kitchen,” Brother Michael said. He grabbed Barry by the collar again. This time he held on tight and pulled him into the kitchen.

  The dining hall was empty now, except for Jack and Annie. “Listen, we can’t waste any more time,” said Jack, rising from the table. “I’m going back to our room to read about flora and fauna of the Alps.”

  “I’ll go with you,” said Annie.

  As Jack and Annie were leaving, Brother Michael came out of the kitchen alone. “I apologize for Barry,” he said, frowning. “He will be leaving us tomorrow.”

  “Why? Where’s he going?” asked Annie.

  “Down to a house in the valley,” said the monk.

  “But he seems so happy here,” said Annie.

  “Oh, he is very happy here,” said Brother Michael. “Too happy. It will break his heart to leave.”

  “So why does he have to leave?” said Annie.

  “Because he has a very independent spirit, and none of us has the time to give him the extra training he needs,” said Brother Michael.

  “Well, what if I try to train him?” said Annie.

  “What?” Jack looked at her in surprise.

  “No, really. I can do it,” Annie said. She turned back to the monk. “You can give that job to me. I know about training dogs. And I’m really good with animals. Right, Jack?”

  “Yeah, but—” said Jack.

  “Please, let me try,” Annie said to Brother Michael.

  “You are very kind. However—” Brother Michael was interrupted by howling from the kitchen. The monk shook his head. “Listen to him! He will cry night and day if he has to leave us. And Father Laurent shall miss him terribly.…” He paused and looked at Annie. “Perhaps we should give him one more chance, if you really think you can handle him. Shall I put him in your charge today, and we will see what training you can give him?”

  “Yes!” said Annie.

  “Good. Then I will bring him to you,” said Brother Michael, and he headed back to the kitchen.

  “Are you nuts?” Jack whispered to Annie. “You don’t know how to train a crazy dog like that.”

  “Actually, I do,” said Annie. “For your information, I just read a book on training dogs. I even wrote a book report about it.”

  “But you haven’t had any practice,” said Jack. “And even if you had, we don’t have time now. What about saving Penny? Did you forget our mission?”

  “No. I was thinking this would give us an excuse to stay here longer,” said Annie.

  “Yeah … okay,” said Jack. “But stay for what? Brother Michael said there are no flowers around here now. We’d have to stay for a month.”

  “Okay, okay,” said Annie. “Listen, what about the magic potion? We can change into anything we want for an hour.”

  “Yeah. So … ?” said Jack.

  “Well … do you think we could wish to change into something like … like official finders of white and yellow flowers?” asked Annie.

  “No, that’s—” said Jack.

  “Stupid, yeah,” said Annie. “So let’s think.”

  Before they had time to think, Brother Michael came out of the kitchen. He was carrying monks’ robes and had Barry on a leash.

  The huge dog dragged Brother Michael over to Jack and Annie, swinging his tail and barking with excitement.

  “You can work with him in the enclosed yard,” said Brother Michael. He pointed to a door off the dining hall. “And you may want to wear these over your clothes, as it’s quite cold outside.” He handed them the monks’ robes.

  Jack and Annie pulled on the robes and tied the rope belts around their waists. Then they lifted their hoods over their heads.

  “Perfect!” said Annie. “Much warmer!”

  “Good,” said Brother Michael. “He’s all yours!” He handed Barry’s leash to Jack. Jack gripped it with both hands as the big dog tugged on the other end.

  “All of us will be gone from the monastery for the afternoon,” said Brother Michael. “If you take a walk, you must not let Barry off the leash. Whatever you do, do not let him run freely outside. I am certain he would dash off to explore the mountains and get lost in the snow.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll keep him in the yard,” said Annie.

  “I am very grateful for your help,” said Brother Michael. “Perhaps this will even assist you with your research about the Alps.”

  “I’ll bet it will,” said Annie. “Well, good-bye. Good luck!”

  Brother Michael smiled. “I fear you are the ones who will need luck today,” he said. “Be good, Barry.” Then the rosy-faced monk hurried off to catch up with the others.

  “Okay! Let’s get started!” said Annie. “Come on, Barry!” She threw open the door to a snowy yard surrounded by a rock wall.

  Barry instantly lurched toward the yard.

  “Arrgh!” cried Jack as the dog nearly yanked his arms off.

  Barry dragged Jack out the door of the dining hall into the yard. The air was cold and damp. The sky was gray, and the mountain peaks were shrouded in mist.

  “Barry, sit!” said Annie.

  But Barry didn’t sit. Instead, he put his nose to the ground and pulled Jack all around the yard. He smelled the snow and the rock walls. Then he raised his head and closed his eyes, sniffing the air.

  What does he smell? Jack wondered. Jack couldn’t smell anything in the cold mountain air.

  Annie ran to Jack and Barry and scratched Barry behind his ear. “Come on, Barry! Let’s get to work!” she said with enthusiasm.

  The big dog opened his eyes and wagged his tail. His whole body seemed to be wagging.

  “Now, Barry, to start with, you have to learn three commands,” Annie said. “Come, sit, and stay.”

  Barry sneezed as if to say, No problem!

  Annie turned to Jack. “When he obeys a command, we give him lots of praise. We should act really positive and upbeat. That’s what my book said.”

  Jack rolled his eyes.

  “Positive,” Annie repeated. “Upbeat. Let’s start with come. I’ll hold him. You walk away and then stop and say, ‘Come, Barry!’ ”

  Jack sighed and handed Annie the leash. She struggled to keep Barry with her as Jack walked about twenty feet away. Jack turned and said, “Come, Barry!” Annie let go of the leash. Barry charged toward Jack. When he reached him, he jumped up and put his paws on Jack’s shoulders. Jack fell backward into the snow.

  “Oww!” said Jack.

  “Good dog!” Annie said, clapping.

  Barry leaned over and slurped his tongue across Jack’s face and ears.

  “Yuck! Stop, stop!” said Jack. He scrambled to his feet before Barry could give him more sloppy kisses.

  Annie ran over and patted Barry as she repeated, “Good dog, good dog.”

  Barry’s eyes were bright and happy. He panted with short quick breaths, as if he were laughing.

  “Good dog?” said Jack. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

  “Yes! He did what you said! You said ‘come,’ and he came!” said Annie. “Come on, Jack. Positive! Upbeat!”

  “Oh, sorry,” said Jack, wiping his ears with his sleeve. “I love your slobber, Barry. It’s my favorite thing.”

  “Okay, say that all over again, but use a happy voice,” said Annie.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” said Jack. “Come on, let’s move along.”

  “Right,” said Annie. “I think he’s got come. Here, take the leash back, and we’ll do sit. Ready, Ba
rry? Sit!”

  Annie pushed down on Barry’s rear end, and Barry sat. “Good dog!” Annie said. “Now pull the leash up, Jack, so he lifts his head.”

  Jack tugged on the leash, pulling Barry’s head up. The Saint Bernard looked into Jack’s eyes. Then he leapt up and licked Jack’s face with his huge pink tongue. Jack yelped and fell backward again into the snow.

  Before Barry could pounce on him, Jack scrambled to his feet, nearly tripping on his robe. “Oh, man!” he said to Barry. “What is wrong with you?”

  “Nothing’s wrong with him, Jack,” said Annie. “He just likes you!”

  “Well, tell him not to like me so much,” said Jack.

  “Come on, Jack. Be positive,” Annie said.

  “No. I’m done with training,” said Jack. “You can do it by yourself. I’m going inside to read about flora and fauna in our research book.”

  “But it’s easier with two of us,” said Annie. “Just one more command? Please?”

  Annie looked hopefully at Jack. Barry looked at Jack, too. His tail had stopped wagging.

  “Oh, okay,” said Jack, sighing. “One more command.”

  “Yay, thanks!” said Annie.

  Barry barked and wagged his tail.

  “Let’s try the stay command,” said Annie. “We’ll teach Barry to go down on all fours and stay—like all the dogs in the dining hall this morning.”

  “He’ll never be that calm,” said Jack.

  Annie handed him the leash. “Here. Now try to gently pull Barry’s head down while I press between his shoulder blades. See, I memorized all this stuff. Okay, Jack?”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Jack said. He knelt in front of Barry and gently pulled down on the leash.

  Annie pushed Barry’s shoulders with the palms of her hands. Barry didn’t move. “I can’t find his shoulder blades,” said Annie. “Try this, Jack. Pull on his front legs. Pull them out in front of him.”

  Jack grabbed Barry’s forelegs and pulled. Barry jumped up and put his paws on Jack’s shoulders again, knocking him into the snow for the third time. Then the giant dog flopped onto Jack’s chest, pinning him to the ground.

  “Get off!” gasped Jack. “I can’t breathe!” But Barry’s brown eyes just stared happily at Jack. His cold, wet nose sniffed Jack’s face. “Get-off-me-now-please!” commanded Jack.

  Annie laughed. “You really love Jack, don’t you, Barry?” she said.

  Barry answered, YES! with a big sneeze right in Jack’s face. Then he bounded to his feet.

  “Eww, Jack!” said Annie, laughing.

  “Gross!” cried Jack, wiping his face with the rough sleeve of his robe. “Okay, that’s it.” He scrambled to his feet. “I’m done. I’m so done with this. See you guys inside.”

  “Wait, we’ll go with you,” said Annie. “Come on, Barry. We’ll do more training later. But you did a really great job! What a good dog!”

  “Oh, brother,” said Jack.

  Barry sneezed again and gave his body a shake. Annie held the door, and the big dog trotted into the monastery, his head held high.

  Jack and Annie followed Barry inside. In the dining hall, Barry bounded over to one of the large dog bowls and slurped water. He splashed more outside of the bowl than he actually drank. When he finished, he galumphed toward Jack, water and drool flying out of his mouth.

  “Stay away from me!” said Jack, pushing Barry away. “Annie, I’m going to go read now.”

  Jack hurried out of the dining hall and headed down the hallway toward their room. But Annie and Barry dashed ahead of him. The dog’s playful barks echoed through the monastery, making it seem full of life, despite its emptiness.

  As soon as they entered their bedroom, Jack closed the door and grabbed their book. Barry jumped onto Annie’s bed. As Jack started to read about flora and fauna in the Alps, Barry yelped. He leapt up and barked at the door.

  “What now?” said Jack.

  “Someone’s ringing the bell!” said Annie. “The bell at the front door. Hear it?”

  Jack could barely hear the bell clanging over Barry’s barking.

  “We’d better go answer it,” said Annie. “No one else is here. Come on, Barry.”

  “No, wait,” said Jack. “I’ll go with you. Barry should stay here, so he doesn’t jump all over whoever’s there.”

  “Okay, wait here, Barry,” said Annie.

  Jack left the book on his bed, and he and Annie hurried out of the room. Before Barry could follow them, Jack closed the door tightly. The dog howled.

  “Don’t cry! We’ll be back soon!” shouted Annie. Then she and Jack hurried down the torchlit hallway to the front entrance.

  The bell kept clanging.

  Annie opened the heavy wooden door, and she and Jack peered out.

  Two men in military uniforms stood on the steps of the monastery. One had a black mustache, and the other had bushy sideburns. Both wore blue and white coats with red cuffs and red collars. White pants were tucked into their riding boots. Swords hung from their sides.

  Jack was startled. The soldiers looked as if they’d stepped out of a time long ago.

  “Good afternoon. We think one of our officers may be here,” said the soldier with the mustache.

  “Um, I’m afraid your officer isn’t here,” said Annie. “No one’s here but us. All the monks have left to help the French army.”

  “We are an advance party, and our officer got separated from us,” said the second soldier. “Consul Napoléon hoped he had made his way here on his own.”

  “Napoléon?” asked Jack.

  “First Consul Napoléon Bonaparte,” the soldier said.

  Oh, man, thought Jack. Napoléon Bonaparte was a famous military leader of France!

  “When our officer arrives, please tell him to wait for us,” said the man with the mustache. “We will return later.” The two soldiers turned and walked away from the monastery.

  Jack whirled around to Annie. “Did you hear the name of their leader? Napoléon Bonaparte! He lived two hundred years ago! Let’s go look in our book! Maybe it has information about Napoléon crossing the Alps!”

  Jack and Annie hurried down the torchlit hallway to their room. “Oh, wow,” Jack said, pointing at one of the torches. “I should have figured out we weren’t in our time! We don’t use torches and lanterns for lighting anymore.”

  “Well, you’ve had a lot on your mind,” said Annie.

  “Monks seem timeless,” Jack went on. “But as soon as you see a soldier, you can start to figure out the time in history. I can’t wait to read about this in our book. Maybe there will be a clue to help us with our mission.”

  Jack ran the rest of the way to their room. He opened the door and stopped. “Oh, no,” he said. “I … don’t … believe … it.”

  Annie caught up to Jack and peered into the room. “Oh, Barry,” she said.

  Barry was sitting on the floor, wagging his tail. Paper was hanging from his mouth.

  “He ate our Alps book,” said Jack, stunned. “He ate it!”

  All around the room were bits and pieces of paper. Jack started collecting the pieces, but it was hopeless. Most of the book was in Barry’s stomach. “I really don’t believe this,” said Jack.

  “Bad dog, Barry!” yelled Annie.

  Barry stopped wagging his tail. He lowered his head.

  “Bad,” said Annie sternly. “Bad, bad, bad!”

  Barry kept his head low and wiggled his way toward the door. Then he stood up, and with his tail drooping, he slunk out of the room.

  Jack flopped down on his bed and stared at the ceiling. “There’s no hope now,” he said. “We’ll never read about flora and fauna in the Alps or about Napoléon or anything. I feel like we’ll never figure out this mission or save Penny.”

  Annie sat next to him. “I’m sorry,” she said.

  “It’s not your fault,” said Jack.

  “Well, I shouldn’t have offered to train Barry,” said Annie. “We should have studied the book w
hen you wanted to.”

  Jack shook his head. “Whatever,” he said. “I just don’t know what to do next. We can’t go home yet. We can’t give up. We have to save Penny.”

  “I know, I know,” said Annie. “Maybe we should just go outside and walk around. Get some fresh air. Want to?”

  “I guess,” said Jack. He picked up his bag and sighed. “Maybe if we just walk around, we’ll think of something.”

  “Let’s find Barry first,” said Annie.

  “Why?” said Jack. “So he can ‘help’ us some more?”

  “No, I just want to make sure he’s okay,” said Annie. “I feel kind of bad for yelling.”

  Jack and Annie headed out of the room and down the hall.

  “Barry!” Annie called.

  There was no sign of him.

  “I wonder where he went,” Annie said. “Barry!”

  “When he comes, just don’t tell him he’s a good dog,” said Jack.

  They passed the dining hall and looked inside. “Barry?” Annie called. But the room was empty.

  Jack and Annie kept walking, until they got to the parlor. “Barry?” Annie called, peering in. But that room was empty, too.

  Jack felt a cold wind blowing. It grew colder as he and Annie kept walking down the hallway, heading for the front door.

  “Barry!” Annie called.

  The whole monastery felt quiet and empty and cold. Jack and Annie were both shivering by the time they reached the front hall.

  “I wonder where— Oh, no!” said Annie. “Look!” She pointed to the front door. It was open. “We must not have closed the door hard enough and the wind blew it open! Barry must have gotten out!”

  Annie rushed outside. “Barry! Barry!”

  “Oh, man,” said Jack. He hurried out into the cold, too. “Barry! Barry!”

  The only sound they heard was the wind whistling over the pass. The only sight was snow flying through the air.

  “He’s run away!” wailed Annie. “I know it!”

  “Barry!” Jack called.

  “He’ll get lost!” said Annie. “Brother Michael said he should never run loose—he’ll get lost and never find his way home!”

  “He couldn’t have gone far,” said Jack. “Don’t panic. We’ll find him.”