Free Archer's Quest by Linda Sue Park Page A

had guessed; he'd thought maybe they were a modern-day thing.

    "And does a tiger inhabit the garden?" Archie asked eagerly.
    Kevin nodded. "But I don't think—I mean, I'm not sure how—"
What was I thinking—that once we got there, Archie could just hop on a tiger and go for a ride?
    "Do not concern yourself, Young Friend! Lead me to the tiger, and we will see what we will see."
    At last they arrived at the zoo's large parking lot. Kevin stopped walking. He had to tell Archie something that he might not like.
    "Archer, I'm pretty sure they're going to have a rule that you can't take your bow and arrows in there with you," Kevin said. "You can stay outside here, like you did before, and I'll go in and check things out. But if you want to come with me, we'll have to ditch the bow and arrows somewhere."
    Archie crossed his arms and frowned, but Kevin was getting to know him better—
He's not angry at me, he's angry about the rule.
Then he began walking along the edge of the parking lot. Kevin followed him.
    "I will enter," Archie said over his shoulder, "for at
least a short while. It is not often that one has a chance to visit a Garden of Intelligence."

    There was a big garbage can in one corner of the lot. It was empty except for a couple of plastic bags. Archie put the bow and the quiver into the bags. Kevin moved to help him, but Archie stopped him with a glare.
Oops. I forgot. No one else is allowed to touch his bow and arrows.
    Archie put the bags carefully into the garbage can. Then he stepped back and stared critically at the can, as if judging whether it was worthy to hold his precious weapons.
    "We will not linger in the Garden of Intelligence," he declared. "I cannot be long parted from my bow and arrows. Already I feel a sense of unease at being separated from them."
    He turned and marched toward the zoo entrance, Kevin trotting behind him. There was no line at the admissions kiosk. Kevin stepped forward and paid for two tickets. A dollar for students, four dollars for adults. He used a ten-dollar bill, which was all the money he had left, and got five dollars back in change. This was turning into a costly expedition.
    He held his breath as they walked past the ticket taker, but she hardly seemed to look at them.
She probably thinks it's some kind of martial-arts outfit.... I guess she's seen a lot stranger things before.
    The zoo wasn't very large, and Kevin knew exactly where the big cats were. They took the walkway to the right and in less than a minute were standing in front of the tiger enclosure.

    Farthest away from them was the indoor complex. It included the big roofed cages and an exhibit about wild cats. The cats could go from the cages to the outdoor area whenever they wanted.
    Outside the complex was a large open space flanked by two high concrete walls. There were huge flat rocks and big logs for the tiger to climb and lie on. On the left side, the branches of a tall tree in the next enclosure reached out over the wall. On the right, there was a sort of jungle area with a bunch of smaller trees. The ground sloped down to a water-filled moat, which ended in another sheer concrete wall. This wall was topped by chainlink fencing, and from the walkway you could look through the fence and across the moat.
    Kevin didn't see a way to get past all those barriers, if indeed Archie was planning to try something as crazy as riding a tiger.
    There were hardly any visitors at the zoo on such a cold, gray day. And there weren't any school groups, either, same as at the museum. It was just the two of them.
    "There he is," Archie whispered.
    He wasn't pointing, just staring at the little jungle in the
corner. It took a few moments for Kevin to figure out what Archie was seeing. A big tiger lying underneath the trees, his stripes blending in with the trunks and bare branches. Kevin glanced at the brass plaque on a little stand in front of the fence.
RAMAN,
it said. That must be the tiger's