The clock began
to chime, and Toby covered his ears so he wouldn’t hear it. He didn’t
want to count the chimes. He didn’t want to know it was bedtime.Bedtime-Story
For the Busy Business-Parent
Whimsical Bedtime Stories for Children of All Ages
Bedtime-Story.com
Toby and Sir Buff
The clock began
to chime, and Toby covered his ears so he wouldn’t hear it. He didn’t
want to count the chimes. He didn’t want to know it was bedtime.
“Toby,” his Mom called to him from the kitchen, “Pick up your toys now, and start getting ready for bed. I’ll be up in a minute.”
“Do I have to, Mom?” Toby asked.
“Yes, you do,” Mom said.
Toby gave a long, long sigh, and slowly began to pick up his
toys. He
carried them to his room more slowly still. Then he dragged his feet to the
bathroom, and brushed his teeth for ten whole minutes.
When his arm had fallen asleep from brushing for so long, he
took his time
finding the perfect pajamas to sleep in. Finally he went over to the table
by his bed, and opened a drawer.
“I hope it still works,” he whispered. He pulled
a flashlight out of the
back of the drawer and turned it on. The light was bright. Good.
Toby hid the flashlight under the big stuffed dragon on his
bed, just as
Mom came into the room.
“Ready for bed?” she asked.
“Ye-es,” Toby said slowly.
“All right, crawl in,” Mom said. She tucked Toby
in, gave him a kiss, and
turned off the light.
As soon as Mom had closed the door, Toby dove for the flashlight
and
clicked it on.
“I don’t like the dark, I don’t like the dark,
I don’t like the dark,” Toby
said to himself over and over. He flashed the light into each corner
nervously.
Suddenly he heard a whimper beside him.
“What’s wrong, Sir Buff?” Toby asked. He looked
at the stuffed dragon with
surprise, for Sir Buff never whimpered.
“I don’t like the dark either,” Sir Buff said.
Toby was so surprised he fell back on his pillow. “You
don’t like the
dark?” he repeated. “Why didn’t you say so before?”
“You didn’t ask,” the dragon said.
“But...but, you’re a dragon,” Toby stammered.
“Dragon’s aren’t afraid of
anything.”
|
“Says who?” |
 |
Toby didn’t know, so he asked, “Why are you afraid of the dark?”
“Because I don’t know what it is.” Sir Buff
said. “Why does it get dark?”
He wobbled closer to Toby and began to play with the flashlight.
Toby thought about the question. “It gets dark because
we turn off the
light,” he said.
Sir Buff took the flashlight from Toby and began chewing on
the end
furthest from the lightbulb.
“Why do things look so different when the light is off?”
he asked between
nibbles.
“Well...because...because...” Toby trailed off, having
to think again. He
couldn’t believe that his favorite stuffed animal was afraid of the dark!
He wanted so much to comfort him. What could he say to Sir Buff’s question?
Toby cleared his throat. “Everything looks different in
the dark
because...we can’t see any colors,” he said. “Since everything
is dark,
everything is one color - black.”
The dragon spit out a little chunk of plastic and handed the
slobbery
flashlight back to Toby. He thought about Toby’s answer, then said,
“Everything is boring without colors.”
“Yes,” Toby said. He yawned and snuggled back on his pillow.
“So why do we hear strange things when it's dark?” the dragon asked.
Now there was a good question. Toby bit his lip and looked
up at the
ceiling, as if it would give him the answer. He listened to the sounds he
could hear, too.
“We hear more sounds because it is boring with no colors to look at. Listening is all there is left to do.”
“Besides go to sleep,” the dragon said. “And who would want to do that?”
“Not me,” Toby said with another yawn. He closed
his eyes and listened. “I
think that weird clanking sound is Mom in the kitchen downstairs,” he said.
“I can hear the clock ticking in the bathroom,” Sir Buff said.
Toby sighed sleepily.
“There are crickets outside,” he whispered.
Sir Buff looked at Toby and lay down beside him.
“I’m not afraid of the dark anymore,” he said.
Toby realized that he wasn’t afraid anymore, either. So
he wrapped his arm
around Sir Buff and went to sleep. He would never mind bedtime again.
Toby and
Sir Buff
by Katlyn Traxler
Copyright 2015 - All Rights Reserved
About
the Author: Katlyn Traxler has loved
to write since she was ten years old. She still has the first story she ever
wrote, tucked away in a file by her desk. Now, many years later, it is tattered
and the pages are yellowing, but it reminds her of where she came from, and
the joy she first had in writing. Today she enjoys writing short stories for
early readers and middle grade children. While she writes, she is kept company
by her two dogs, Kolar and Emma, who sometimes provide both characters and personalities
for her stories. Do send Katlyn Traxler
a note and tell her how much you enjoyed her story. You can even let her know
that you'd like to see more of her short stories. Remember to put the name of
her story in the subject line of your email.
Interim
Illustrations: Courtesy of Bedtime Story
Stories
and Illustrations found on this site are exclusive to Bedtime-Story
Reproduction
of any content without the express
written permission of Bedtime-Story is prohibited.
Story Submission From: "Snow Winter"
