BALOO! BALOOOOOOO! Come here, BALOO! I need to talk to you, hurry up!"
Dorothy yelled out the door of their derelict farmhouse, knowing that her
youngest son was somewhere within hearing distance with his older brother.
They had only been gone for half an hour, and she had told them not to go
far.
"Where are those two? I told them I was going to need them to be around today, they ought to know better. Especially Grady, he knows how much work canning is," she sighed to herself and turned to walk back into the house, only to stop halfway in the door and turn back around quickly.
'Aggh! I'm going to sit out here for a spell, that kitchen is hot enough to cause a heat stroke, and I'm not about to get sick just so that we can have a few more cans of apple butter this winter. Besides, I hate that stuff, I don't know what the boys find so appetizing."
With that, Dorothy walked over to the hanging swing suspended from the dusty porch and sat down. Tucking her jam stained apron up on itself, and pulling the handkerchief she had put on over her hair off and began using it to fan herself in the hot afternoon air. With another sigh, she leaned back, and started swinging ever so slightly, musing over her surroundings. The stiflingly thick, heated air lending itself well to the wanderings of her mind and her memory.
Dorothy was petite in every sense of the word. She was finely boned and not an inch over five feet tall. She viewed the world out of a face full of laughter, with deeply set brown eyes and dark auburn hair. The curly coffee colored ringlets were tied back with a single clip, and covered with an old piece of cloth out of the rag basket. She was young, far to young to have a cub as old as Grady, but too many unpleasant memories lined her mind for her to think like a child. She had been made resilient by verbal abuse from her former husband, and from looking out for her two adventurous cubs.
Dorothy could still remember the hard thud as Grady hit the wall after flying through the air, launched there by his large father on the night she had finally forced Collyn to leave. Just as Dorothy had run to see if Grady had been hurt, Collyn had found Baloo, hiding in a corner crying. Infuriated by the wailing of the child, he turned his liquor-fed anger toward the small cub, and Dorothy heard the sickening crunch as thick hob- nailed boots met small, fragile bone. Dorothy had snapped at that moment. Collyn had finally pushed her over the edge. She was willing to take the abuse to herself, but the minute he hurt her children, he was a dead bear.
"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! If you ever so much as show your face here again, I'll, I'll, I'll beat you to death with a stick! Don't you think I won't! One night after you've finally passed out from all that scotch, I'll come in here and that'll be the end of you! Out! Out!"
Dorothy had been terrified, but she was far too angry to think realize it until later. Collyn had hurt their children, and that was something even timid Dorothy would not allow. The family had never heard from him again. Dorothy was thankful for that small miracle. She assumed he was dead, or had immigrated back to wherever it was he had come from, but truly didn't care. She and her cubs were safe, and although life was hard, they were together, and her boys did not have to live in fear of their father.
The small farm where the family lived was the same one that Dorothy had been brought to after her marriage to Collyn. Both Grady and Baloo had been born there. The land was hard and dry, with little rain and a lot of heat in the summers; but it was possible to scratch a meager living out of the sandy soil. The house was a diminutive two-story structure with clapboard walls, and an incongruous dormer window in the middle of the front upstairs bedroom the boys shared.
"Someone's folly. Isn't that what he used to tell me? I can't remember now. Hmmm." Dorothy murmured to herself as she sat drowsing on the swing.
One of the few features the dusty old house could boast of was a spacious front porch, albeit with peeling paint and a railing unstable in many places. But the basic flooring was sturdy. The porch also had the attraction of being the coolest place in the house in light of the summer heat in Cape Suzette, and Dorothy was pleased to be able to retire to the slightly cooler haven it presented.
To the left of the house, back about a hundred yards, was an old tobacco barn. At one point it had been used for the intended purpose of drying crops, but one owner had converted a few corners to makeshift animal pens, most likely to have contained cattle, maybe a few pigs. The barn had not been used for many years even prior to the Von Bruinwald purchase of the farm, but the sweet smell of bovine could still be detected in the corners where the pens were kept.
That was the barn in which Grady and Baloo kept their plane.
"And to think that they actually believe I wouldn't notice that there is a *plane* in my barn. And not a small plane, a large sea plane at that! Do they honestly believe that I am that blind? I guess they really must believe it, since they haven't said anything, and I've ignored it for all this time. True, I don't go in there often, but it's not like I've never set foot in there before," Dorothy trailed off with a smile, knowing it was Baloo's dream to be a pilot, though she didn't know how he was ever going to accomplish that goal.
The rest of the small farm was surrounded by a few groves of trees, and an old clubhouse had been erected in one large oak. Grady had built it when he was a very small boy with a neighboring lion cub and his father. He had spent hours playing with Robbie Cunningham, and even after the other child moved off, Grady would spend all his time in the small confines of his fort as he called it. The cub spent his time reading and daydreaming, trying to find an escape from his father and the terror that awaited him at home most nights. Baloo had taken possession of the fort after his hip had healed, and his father had left. Grady was usually around to supervise, for which Dorothy was grateful.
"He limps so badly anyway, I worry 'bout him going up there alone. Grady is such a good boy. I just wish he hadn't of had to grow up so fast. He loves Baloo; they are so sweet to watch together. Baloo follows him around like a puppy, and Grady is so good about it. Always letting him tag along behind." Dorothy thought as she absently twirled one lock of hair between her fingers, a habit she had started as a child.
Several minutes into Dorothy's thoughts, she heard the sounds of her two sons running up to the house, one running, and the other half-running, half stumbling along behind him.
Baloo's permanent birthday gift was what she though of it as. On his third birthday, Baloo had come down with polio, and had limped ever since. Baloo never complained, but he also refused to wear a brace. As such, his gait, especially when running was somewhat comical in a pitiful way.
To his mother, that limp, and the calm acceptance of it, was a metaphor for most of the small cub's life. He was very small for his age, and not terribly bright. He was quiet, and tended to talk to himself and had always had several imaginary friends. He was not athletically inclined, except for baseball, where he was a fine pitcher. Nothing was wrong with the boy's hand-eye coordination.
But even with all this against him, Baloo was a happy child, and rarely complained unless it was about chores. And even then, he usually did them after a few standard complaints.
"Happy go lucky, as Dad used to say."
"What Mamma?" Dorothy opened her eyes and saw Grady pick the smaller cub up and set him on the porch as he climbed the steps.
"Oh nothing Baloo. I was calling you boys earlier, did you not hear me? You know better than to run off like that when there's work to be done around here. Once the canning's finished you can play all you want, but we've got to get this done." Dorothy scolded the boys gently, even as she reached over and grabbed the front of Baloo's overalls and pulled him to her.
"Aww, Mamma, we was just playin' for a li'l bit. We were comin' right back, honest, right Grady?"
"You said it Li'l Britches. We needed to go and make sure that Baloo's rabbits were doin' okay. We hadn't been down there since the storm last night, and he was worrin' 'bout 'em." Grady answered solemnly.
Grady was tall, almost six feet even at seventeen, long, lean, and black coated like his father. Although he inherited his father's muzzle, black fur and flint gray eyes, Grady was not the bear his father was, and never would be. Grady was the epitome of an easy-going southern gentleman. He was always ready for a joke, and could charm a lady from a mile away, no matter of age or status in life, with a smile that lit up his face; especially his eyes, making them a dark slate blue. A charming contrast with his dark fur.
"It won't be long before he's outta this place with some pretty little wife. He just doesn't know it yet." Dorothy thought as she watched Grady seat himself in the chair opposite the swing.
"So, whatta ya want with us, Mamma? The bunnies are all safe. Do you want us to put the lids on? When we get done, can we lick the spoon? Are you gonna make any strawberry jam this time?" Baloo asked from his mother's lap, eagerness shining is his face.
"Weeell, you boys didn't show up when I called you, and I really needed some help there in the kitchen, so I don't know. Maybe I'll just have to send you both to bed without dinner. Or, maybe I could send you to spend a week with Aunt Sarah for not mindin' your mother like you ought to." Dorothy said, looking at Grady, and then down at Baloo, working hard to maintain a serious expression.
Baloo's face fell, the prospect of not only missing dinner, but of being sent to his spinster aunt filling the young cub with horror. He sniffled slightly, and trying to keep the misery out of his voice, began begging his mother not to send him away.
"But, But, Momma, Aunt Sarah's, well, she's cranky, and she makes me work real hard, and I get tired, and then she yells at me. An, an, how can you send me away without dinner; I might starve ta death over there. Please Mamma, I'll be good, just don't send me to Aunt Sarah, at least, well, at least not without dinner."
Baloo pleaded, his eyes filling with tears as he pushed his face into his mother's apron.
*Yep, this is Baloo all right. Always thinking about his next meal.*
Dorothy looked up at Grady, saw the smile on his face and knew that he had seen through her teasing, so she set to comforting Baloo instead.
"You silly boy, I'm not going to punish you. I know your little rabbits are important to you, and you did come as soon as you were done after all. I'll never send you to Sarah's unless I have to. Come on, wipe your face and I think I just may have a couple of spoons in here with some strawberry jam on them." Dorothy said as she smiled down at Baloo, removed his blue and red baseball hat, and gave him a playful swat with it to send him on his way.
*That hat, he never goes anywhere without it. It sure was sweet of Grady to get it for him. He loves that boy so much*, Dorothy thought as she followed the boys into the hot confines of the kitchen.
Later that evening, Dorothy had put Baloo to bed, and was listening to Grady read the paper as she sat and finished up the night's darning. Grady was halfway into an article about the latest problems in Eupore, when both bears were startled by a strident ringing from the telephone.
"I wonder who that is?" Dorothy said aloud as she looked up, all at once forgetting about her sewing.
"I reckon I wouldn't know, but I sure do know a way we could find out," Grady replied as he laid down the paper and walked over to the front room.
Dorothy could hear him speaking to someone, but the words were muffled from the thick heat inside the house.
"Wonder who it is?" Dorothy thought as she put down the darned sock, and walked over to where, from her prerogative, Grady was carrying on a one sided conversation.
"Okay, yea, uh, yea."
"well, I understand."
"What would ya like me ta do 'bout it?"
"Oh, not me, huh.
"Baloo!"
"I'm not sure Li'l Britches'd be too keen on that idea, what with his leg and all."
"I still think I'd better ask 'im first. How's 'bout we come over to your place tomorrow afternoon?"
" Yeah, I'm offa work fer a coupla days, so I can bring 'em with me."
"Well, see ya then, bye now."
With that, Grady hung up the phone and continued to stare at it for several minutes. Dorothy, fidgeting with curiosity, finally broke his silence.
"Well, what did they want? And what are you and Baloo gonna be doin' tomorrow? And what does the poor boy's limp have to do with anything?"
Dorothy asked, flustered with an excitement she couldn't explain, but also slightly worried by her son's reactions to his recent conversation.
Grady, who shook his head much like a dog coming out of water, looked at her for a few moments, and then started to laugh.
Dorothy simply stared at him as though his head had just fallen off.
"What is so funny? One minute you seem all worried about something, and now you're falling all over yourself laughing! What is going on, Grady, answer me!"
Dorothy stated defiantly as she looked up at her breathless son, having to work hard to maintain her annoyed expression in the face of his giggling.
"Okay, okay, don't get your garters in a bunch Mamma, I'll tell ya, just hold onta your britches, alright?"
Several minutes and a glass of water later, Grady had finally managed to gain control of himself, and was seated across from his mother at their heavily scarred kitchen table.
"That was Mrs. Carroll, and she was wonderin, if, well, you see, uh, if Baloo could maybe, how was it she put it, escort her daughter to that big county fair this fall. Only thing is, Alice wants to do that big ol' dance contest this year, and the only feller they know around here that's near enough to her age is Li'l Britches. So—"
"You've got to be kidding! One of my boys, Dancing! I never thought I'd see the day. Plus, how is Baloo going to dance, I mean, his limp aside, he doesn't know how, and I don't have time to teach him."
"Yeah, I told the lady that, but she didn't seem too worried 'bout it. Said she was gonna hire some teacher or somethin' and she wants Baloo and Alice to learn together."
Dorothy simply sighed, not seeing a good way to beg out of this new situation and not appear rude. The Carrolls had only been in the area for a few months, and they were far better off than most of the other families in the area, making it best to remain on good terms. Friends were hard to come by when you were a single mother with two cubs and a decrepit farm. Alice's much older brother, Lewis, had been having some success with a career in writing. Dorothy had seen some of the books, and had not understood the attraction.
"Well, I don't see any way around it, we'd best ask Baloo, and if he's willing, I don't know how we can't let him at least try."
"It'd probably be good for him Mamma. Remember how Doc Finis always said for him to be sure and run around, and for us to not baby him, or let him limp anymore than necessary?"
Dorothy nodded, not understanding where Grady was going with that particular line of reasoning.
"Dancin' could be real good for 'im. I mean, he's got the coordination to do it, and it would be real good for his leg, I'd bet. And you never know, he might like it."
Grady started to laugh again at that last thought, the image of his little brother decked out in a suit and tie, dancing with the pretty little blonde haired rabbit.
The Following Afternoon . . .
"But I don't know how ta dance, Grady! I'm gonna look dumb!" Baloo wailed to his brother as they set off down the old dirt road to the Caroll's house in the town proper of Cape Suzette.
"No you won't, it's not hard. Ya just kinda move around real slow, and try not ta step on the girl's feet. They get mad if ya do that." Grady replied with a knowing look of painful experience at his little brother.
Both the boys had gotten dressed up for the occasion, as they were visiting a lady after all. Grady was in a blue coat with a brown tie, and his hair was slicked back in the current fashion.
Baloo had been required by his mother to wear a tie, but he had adamantly refused to wear anything but his old overalls. Dorothy had pleaded, argued, and railed at him for an hour before finally giving in and allowing him to leave the house in his somewhat unusual, but clean and neatly pressed, attire.
Thus set, the boys had set off down the road to Cape Suzette harbor where the Carrolls lived. And where Baloo was fretting over what was going to happen to him once he got there.
"But, but, what if I don't get it, what if I fall on her? What if I trip and fall down on my face? I'm gonna look dumb, Grady, why do I have to go?"
"You don't have to do it if you don't want ta, but you've gotta at least try, just to be polite. If you really hate it, then we can tell 'em that you can't do it, and we can go home. You might like it, you never know till ya try Li'l Britches. Now come on, we don't wanna be late, that'd look bad."
With that, Grady marched off down the road, and Baloo tramped along behind, doing his best to keep up. After several minutes of walking in silence, the pair reached Cape Suzette, and as always, the small dockside town immediately captivated Baloo. The air smelled of salt water and fish, the cobbled streets were busy with cars, yet still many horse and buggy combinations were to be seen, and hawkers vending their wares punctured the general hustle with their cries. There was even an old warehouse and office building combination that was trying to make it as an air courier service, as that new method of shipping was booming in the east. As the boys walked further into town, the new Khan industries tower was coming into view. The last time Baloo had been into town, the tower was still being built, but now it was finished, and he was startled by the sheer magnitude of the building.
Suddenly, Baloo bumped into something soft, only to realize that he had been so busy looking at the tower, he had walked into Grady.
"Lucky for you I was here, otherwise you'da been flatter than a flapjack right now Li'l Britches. That buggy 'bout had your name on it."
"Look at it Grady, it's, it's just so big! I bet planes have to be careful not to bump into it. Wonder what it'd be like to live in a place like that," Baloo responded, having paid no attention to what Grady had said, his eyes still fixed upon the enormous tower.
"Baloo, come in Baloo, we are on our way to your big date, remember?" Grady teased his little brother with a smile.
"Aw Grady, this ain't a date! I don't like girls, girls are always wanta play dolls, and make you dress up in fancy coats and stuff. I'm not ever gonna get married or go on dates, I don't like girls!" Baloo stated fiercely, stomping one foot and glowering murderously at his brother.
"What about Mamma? She's a girl, ain't she? You like her, dontcha?" Grady said with a grin, enjoying the normally laid-back Baloo's sudden outburst.
"Mamma's not a girl, she's a mother, mother's ain't girls, even if she does make me wear a coat sometimes." Baloo trailed off, becoming confused about his previously comfortable conclusions.
"You may change your mind one a these days Li'l Britches, but you're right, most girls ain't nothin' but trouble," Grady replied as he ruffled the smaller cub's hair with one hand, and pulled him onward with the other.
The cubs continued on their way, and far too soon for Baloo's comfort, they came to the home of Alice Carroll, the latest lady in Baloo's life.
"Now you be good Baloo, mind you manners, and try to behave like a gentleman. Don't talk too much, and be sure to be extra nice to Alice since she's the hostess. Do ya understand, this is important Baloo."
At Grady's serious tone, and by the way he dropped down to look him in the eye caused the small cub's stomach to flip over, and his mind to whirl. For the first time, he was a little scared to go into that big house with all those fancy people. He was sure he would embarrass the Von Bruinwald family before the day was out.
*I'm gonna get killed. I'm gonna say somethin' stupid and then they're gonna feed me ta lions, or take me to the King of Buckingham and chop off my head, or maybe lock me in the cellar with big ol' gross rats or somethin'. I'm not gonna make it!*
After he was sufficiently assured that Baloo understood the gravity of the situation, Grady got up off his haunches, straightened his tie, brushed off Baloo's overalls, and knocked on the door.
*'Grady's sure gotta be the bravest bear I know! Facin' all those horrible things an' all like that.*' Baloo thought to himself as he watched Grady greet the elderly rabbit who opened the door, and continue on into the house, seemingly completely unafraid and at ease.
Baloo hung onto the back of Grady's coat, trying to hide behind him, desperately wishing that the earth would do him a kindness and open up and swallow him right then and there. It only got worse when Alice came into the room.
"Hello Mrs. Carroll, thank ya so much for askin' us. I know Baloo can be a little shy sometimes, but in a minute or two he'll warm up to ya."
Suddenly, Baloo felt Grady grab the back of his overalls and physically lift him up and to the side, putting him in plain view of Mrs. Carroll and her daughter Alice. Baloo's knees almost gave out, and he stumbled a bit as Grady put him down.
*Maybe Grady's not such a swell guy after all*, Baloo thought to himself. Sometimes it really wasn't all that wonderful to have a brother who was so much older, not to mention so much larger.
After regaining his footing, and being released from Grady's grip, Baloo looked up, straight into the face of Alice Carroll. Alice was a small white rabbit with one ear that lopped slightly on the left side. She had golden blonde hair, tied back in a huge blue ribbon and set in the long curls of the period style. She had blue eyes, with which she peered at the world through small round glasses, perched delicately on the end of her pink nose. She was dressed in a blue pinafore and a white apron, with small black buckle shoes and white stockings.
*She's so pretty! Wow! She's as pretty as Mamma, well, almost. I can't dance with her, I know I'll break her or somethin' like that, sorta like Marie's china doll last summer. I thought she was gonna skin me and Charlie but good! If I break Alice, I know they'll chop off my head!*
Grady and Mrs. Carroll continued their polite conversation, as Alice stared at Baloo, and he, in turn, alternately studied the hardwood floor, and snuck glances at the "pretty girl" as he felt a flush creeping up into his face.
After what Baloo felt to be an eternity, the two older figures began moving deeper into the house, and Baloo hurried to follow along, grabbing at the back of Grady's coat once more.
"Hello! My name's Alice. You're Baloo, right?"
Baloo jumped, looked back, and there was Alice, walking right behind him and talking to him no less!
"H-h-h-hh-hhe-hhello" Baloo stuttered in reply, this time his eyes pinned to hers as if she had the power to control his gaze. In many ways she did.
She giggled at him, "You've gotta funny name, you know that?"
At that remark, Baloo finally let go of Grady's coat and set out to avenge his wounded pride. Puffing up as much as he could, he stared at her defiantly, "What do ya mean I got a funny name? Baloo is a perfectly good name thank-ya. My Daddy gave it ta me when I was born, some uncle or somethin' had my name, and he give'd it ta me."
"Huh? So, did your Daddy give you your name, or some uncle or somethin'? I'm confused."
"Well, uh, I think my Daddy named me, but I ain't sure. Mamma just told me it was 'A Family Name' or somethin' like that." Baloo trailed off, confused, and wondering just why he had such a funny name after all.
"Oh, okay. Have you ever danced before?"
"Uh, sorta. Sometimes Grady puts on records and we jump around and stuff, but I don't think that's what ya'd really call dancin', at least not fer the fair."
"I haven't ever danced, except for once with my Daddy at my Aunt Lucy's wedding. Lucy has a buncha kids now. You walk funny too, you are just a funny bear," Alice added with a giggle.
Once again Baloo was being torn three ways between his interest in Alice's Daddy and her Aunt Lucy, his once again battered pride, and his inexplicable happiness at being able to make this young rabbit giggle.
"I had polo a long time ago. It makes me walk funny. I'm a good pitcher though, even if I can't run too good. What is it like ta dance? Is it fun?"
"Isn't polo a game that you play with ponies? Did ya fall off a pony?"
"No, Mamma just told me that I had polo when I was three, and that made me walk funny. We ain't never had any horses at my house. Do ya have any horses?"
"No, but I have a pussy cat! Her name is Dinah, after we have our lesson, maybe you can come and pet her. It might take a minute to find her though, she likes to play hide and seek in the rose bushes."
At this point in the conversation, Grady and Mrs. Carroll had stopped, and Baloo and Alice were being introduced to Miss Fetterson.
The tall, stately peacock immediately began talking to the two cubs, setting them up in a proper position, placing their hands and telling them about the basic steps they were supposed to follow.
"Now then my dears, we are going to start up with a nice slow box step, just one – two – three – four – and back again. See, now isn't that easy?"
"Baloo, keep your hand on Alice's waist, yes just like that, now scoot up, dear boy, she won' t bite you, I promise."
Miss Feterson firmly placed Baloo's hand back on Alice's small side, and pushed him up closer to her. He had been standing at arm's length, terrified of being that close to a female he wasn't related to. The sight had been a comical one, with Baloo bent over, arms practically over his head trying to touch Alice only with the very tips of his fingers.
*I'm, I'm I'm touching her! I've gotta get outta here! I can't touch her, somethin' bad'll happen, I just know it will!*
The peacock then fluttered over to the gramophone in the corner, and the sound of a standard waltz began to play forth into the living room, having been cleared of furniture for the occasion.
"Alright now my dears, just keep yourselves right like that, and do just as I said with your feet. As I count, be sure to keep up, and step with each number."
"One-and-two-and-three-and-Oh no, Baloo, do be careful dear boy, don't hit the—wall."
Baloo had been so busy looking down at his feet, trying to keep in step and also avoid stepping on Alice that he had not noticed how close he had been getting to the wall.
Alice was highly amused, but trying hard to hide it; her small frame racked by silent laughter, and her mouth drawn up into a huge grin.
Baloo on the other hand, had hit the wall rather hard, and was a bit dazed by his run in with the oak paneling. Determined not to appear foolish in front of everyone, he quickly stood up, albeit rubbing his shoulder morosely, and declared, "Well, come on, lets get goin'! We've gotta lot a work ta do today!"
Much to Grady and Mrs. Carroll's relief, not to mention the enjoyment of Alice and Miss Fetterson.
The rest of the hour-long lesson passed uneventfully, and for Baloo time seemed to fly.
"Well, good-bye Grady, thank-you so much Baloo. You are a very brave young man," Mrs. Carroll called to the departing boys as they left for home.
"See you tomorrow, Baloo?" Alice called as she waved to the gray cub.
"You bet! And I promise I won't hit the wall again or nothin'!" Baloo called back gaily.
Grady continued on down the sidewalk, grinning like the Cheshire cat at his brother's attitude about the fair young Alice.
Running to catch up to him, Baloo immediately began on a torrent of words as he reached Grady's side.
"That was really fun Grady! And Alice is really nice. She is almost as pretty as Mamma. Did you see her pussycat? Its name is Dinah. Do you think maybe she could come and see my bunnies one day? I think she might like that. But I don't think she could bring Dinah, she might eat them up. Do you think we can maybe win a ribbon at the fair? Blue sure is a pretty color. What is polo? Did I ever fall off a pony? Wasn't the floor in there shiny? And it smelled like lemons. Do ya think they put lemons on the floor ta make it shiny?"
"Hold up Li'l Britches. Sounds like you had a good time after all, didn't ya?" Grady replied, looking down at the breathlessly excited cub hobbling next to him.
"And Alice is pretty huh?" he asked with mock solemnity as he peered down at the smaller cub.
"Hey, I didn't say that!"
*Did I?* Baloo wondered.
"No, you didn't, but it was written clear as crystal across your face. Get used to it Li'l Britches, she's got you hooked."
With that final statement, Grady picked Baloo up and placed him on his shoulders, the two galloping the rest of the way out of town. Baloo continuing his questions and observations from the full day he had just had. Hoping for many more of the same ilk to come.
"Where are those two? I told them I was going to need them to be around today, they ought to know better. Especially Grady, he knows how much work canning is," she sighed to herself and turned to walk back into the house, only to stop halfway in the door and turn back around quickly.
'Aggh! I'm going to sit out here for a spell, that kitchen is hot enough to cause a heat stroke, and I'm not about to get sick just so that we can have a few more cans of apple butter this winter. Besides, I hate that stuff, I don't know what the boys find so appetizing."
With that, Dorothy walked over to the hanging swing suspended from the dusty porch and sat down. Tucking her jam stained apron up on itself, and pulling the handkerchief she had put on over her hair off and began using it to fan herself in the hot afternoon air. With another sigh, she leaned back, and started swinging ever so slightly, musing over her surroundings. The stiflingly thick, heated air lending itself well to the wanderings of her mind and her memory.
Dorothy was petite in every sense of the word. She was finely boned and not an inch over five feet tall. She viewed the world out of a face full of laughter, with deeply set brown eyes and dark auburn hair. The curly coffee colored ringlets were tied back with a single clip, and covered with an old piece of cloth out of the rag basket. She was young, far to young to have a cub as old as Grady, but too many unpleasant memories lined her mind for her to think like a child. She had been made resilient by verbal abuse from her former husband, and from looking out for her two adventurous cubs.
Dorothy could still remember the hard thud as Grady hit the wall after flying through the air, launched there by his large father on the night she had finally forced Collyn to leave. Just as Dorothy had run to see if Grady had been hurt, Collyn had found Baloo, hiding in a corner crying. Infuriated by the wailing of the child, he turned his liquor-fed anger toward the small cub, and Dorothy heard the sickening crunch as thick hob- nailed boots met small, fragile bone. Dorothy had snapped at that moment. Collyn had finally pushed her over the edge. She was willing to take the abuse to herself, but the minute he hurt her children, he was a dead bear.
"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! If you ever so much as show your face here again, I'll, I'll, I'll beat you to death with a stick! Don't you think I won't! One night after you've finally passed out from all that scotch, I'll come in here and that'll be the end of you! Out! Out!"
Dorothy had been terrified, but she was far too angry to think realize it until later. Collyn had hurt their children, and that was something even timid Dorothy would not allow. The family had never heard from him again. Dorothy was thankful for that small miracle. She assumed he was dead, or had immigrated back to wherever it was he had come from, but truly didn't care. She and her cubs were safe, and although life was hard, they were together, and her boys did not have to live in fear of their father.
The small farm where the family lived was the same one that Dorothy had been brought to after her marriage to Collyn. Both Grady and Baloo had been born there. The land was hard and dry, with little rain and a lot of heat in the summers; but it was possible to scratch a meager living out of the sandy soil. The house was a diminutive two-story structure with clapboard walls, and an incongruous dormer window in the middle of the front upstairs bedroom the boys shared.
"Someone's folly. Isn't that what he used to tell me? I can't remember now. Hmmm." Dorothy murmured to herself as she sat drowsing on the swing.
One of the few features the dusty old house could boast of was a spacious front porch, albeit with peeling paint and a railing unstable in many places. But the basic flooring was sturdy. The porch also had the attraction of being the coolest place in the house in light of the summer heat in Cape Suzette, and Dorothy was pleased to be able to retire to the slightly cooler haven it presented.
To the left of the house, back about a hundred yards, was an old tobacco barn. At one point it had been used for the intended purpose of drying crops, but one owner had converted a few corners to makeshift animal pens, most likely to have contained cattle, maybe a few pigs. The barn had not been used for many years even prior to the Von Bruinwald purchase of the farm, but the sweet smell of bovine could still be detected in the corners where the pens were kept.
That was the barn in which Grady and Baloo kept their plane.
"And to think that they actually believe I wouldn't notice that there is a *plane* in my barn. And not a small plane, a large sea plane at that! Do they honestly believe that I am that blind? I guess they really must believe it, since they haven't said anything, and I've ignored it for all this time. True, I don't go in there often, but it's not like I've never set foot in there before," Dorothy trailed off with a smile, knowing it was Baloo's dream to be a pilot, though she didn't know how he was ever going to accomplish that goal.
The rest of the small farm was surrounded by a few groves of trees, and an old clubhouse had been erected in one large oak. Grady had built it when he was a very small boy with a neighboring lion cub and his father. He had spent hours playing with Robbie Cunningham, and even after the other child moved off, Grady would spend all his time in the small confines of his fort as he called it. The cub spent his time reading and daydreaming, trying to find an escape from his father and the terror that awaited him at home most nights. Baloo had taken possession of the fort after his hip had healed, and his father had left. Grady was usually around to supervise, for which Dorothy was grateful.
"He limps so badly anyway, I worry 'bout him going up there alone. Grady is such a good boy. I just wish he hadn't of had to grow up so fast. He loves Baloo; they are so sweet to watch together. Baloo follows him around like a puppy, and Grady is so good about it. Always letting him tag along behind." Dorothy thought as she absently twirled one lock of hair between her fingers, a habit she had started as a child.
Several minutes into Dorothy's thoughts, she heard the sounds of her two sons running up to the house, one running, and the other half-running, half stumbling along behind him.
Baloo's permanent birthday gift was what she though of it as. On his third birthday, Baloo had come down with polio, and had limped ever since. Baloo never complained, but he also refused to wear a brace. As such, his gait, especially when running was somewhat comical in a pitiful way.
To his mother, that limp, and the calm acceptance of it, was a metaphor for most of the small cub's life. He was very small for his age, and not terribly bright. He was quiet, and tended to talk to himself and had always had several imaginary friends. He was not athletically inclined, except for baseball, where he was a fine pitcher. Nothing was wrong with the boy's hand-eye coordination.
But even with all this against him, Baloo was a happy child, and rarely complained unless it was about chores. And even then, he usually did them after a few standard complaints.
"Happy go lucky, as Dad used to say."
"What Mamma?" Dorothy opened her eyes and saw Grady pick the smaller cub up and set him on the porch as he climbed the steps.
"Oh nothing Baloo. I was calling you boys earlier, did you not hear me? You know better than to run off like that when there's work to be done around here. Once the canning's finished you can play all you want, but we've got to get this done." Dorothy scolded the boys gently, even as she reached over and grabbed the front of Baloo's overalls and pulled him to her.
"Aww, Mamma, we was just playin' for a li'l bit. We were comin' right back, honest, right Grady?"
"You said it Li'l Britches. We needed to go and make sure that Baloo's rabbits were doin' okay. We hadn't been down there since the storm last night, and he was worrin' 'bout 'em." Grady answered solemnly.
Grady was tall, almost six feet even at seventeen, long, lean, and black coated like his father. Although he inherited his father's muzzle, black fur and flint gray eyes, Grady was not the bear his father was, and never would be. Grady was the epitome of an easy-going southern gentleman. He was always ready for a joke, and could charm a lady from a mile away, no matter of age or status in life, with a smile that lit up his face; especially his eyes, making them a dark slate blue. A charming contrast with his dark fur.
"It won't be long before he's outta this place with some pretty little wife. He just doesn't know it yet." Dorothy thought as she watched Grady seat himself in the chair opposite the swing.
"So, whatta ya want with us, Mamma? The bunnies are all safe. Do you want us to put the lids on? When we get done, can we lick the spoon? Are you gonna make any strawberry jam this time?" Baloo asked from his mother's lap, eagerness shining is his face.
"Weeell, you boys didn't show up when I called you, and I really needed some help there in the kitchen, so I don't know. Maybe I'll just have to send you both to bed without dinner. Or, maybe I could send you to spend a week with Aunt Sarah for not mindin' your mother like you ought to." Dorothy said, looking at Grady, and then down at Baloo, working hard to maintain a serious expression.
Baloo's face fell, the prospect of not only missing dinner, but of being sent to his spinster aunt filling the young cub with horror. He sniffled slightly, and trying to keep the misery out of his voice, began begging his mother not to send him away.
"But, But, Momma, Aunt Sarah's, well, she's cranky, and she makes me work real hard, and I get tired, and then she yells at me. An, an, how can you send me away without dinner; I might starve ta death over there. Please Mamma, I'll be good, just don't send me to Aunt Sarah, at least, well, at least not without dinner."
Baloo pleaded, his eyes filling with tears as he pushed his face into his mother's apron.
*Yep, this is Baloo all right. Always thinking about his next meal.*
Dorothy looked up at Grady, saw the smile on his face and knew that he had seen through her teasing, so she set to comforting Baloo instead.
"You silly boy, I'm not going to punish you. I know your little rabbits are important to you, and you did come as soon as you were done after all. I'll never send you to Sarah's unless I have to. Come on, wipe your face and I think I just may have a couple of spoons in here with some strawberry jam on them." Dorothy said as she smiled down at Baloo, removed his blue and red baseball hat, and gave him a playful swat with it to send him on his way.
*That hat, he never goes anywhere without it. It sure was sweet of Grady to get it for him. He loves that boy so much*, Dorothy thought as she followed the boys into the hot confines of the kitchen.
Later that evening, Dorothy had put Baloo to bed, and was listening to Grady read the paper as she sat and finished up the night's darning. Grady was halfway into an article about the latest problems in Eupore, when both bears were startled by a strident ringing from the telephone.
"I wonder who that is?" Dorothy said aloud as she looked up, all at once forgetting about her sewing.
"I reckon I wouldn't know, but I sure do know a way we could find out," Grady replied as he laid down the paper and walked over to the front room.
Dorothy could hear him speaking to someone, but the words were muffled from the thick heat inside the house.
"Wonder who it is?" Dorothy thought as she put down the darned sock, and walked over to where, from her prerogative, Grady was carrying on a one sided conversation.
"Okay, yea, uh, yea."
"well, I understand."
"What would ya like me ta do 'bout it?"
"Oh, not me, huh.
"Baloo!"
"I'm not sure Li'l Britches'd be too keen on that idea, what with his leg and all."
"I still think I'd better ask 'im first. How's 'bout we come over to your place tomorrow afternoon?"
" Yeah, I'm offa work fer a coupla days, so I can bring 'em with me."
"Well, see ya then, bye now."
With that, Grady hung up the phone and continued to stare at it for several minutes. Dorothy, fidgeting with curiosity, finally broke his silence.
"Well, what did they want? And what are you and Baloo gonna be doin' tomorrow? And what does the poor boy's limp have to do with anything?"
Dorothy asked, flustered with an excitement she couldn't explain, but also slightly worried by her son's reactions to his recent conversation.
Grady, who shook his head much like a dog coming out of water, looked at her for a few moments, and then started to laugh.
Dorothy simply stared at him as though his head had just fallen off.
"What is so funny? One minute you seem all worried about something, and now you're falling all over yourself laughing! What is going on, Grady, answer me!"
Dorothy stated defiantly as she looked up at her breathless son, having to work hard to maintain her annoyed expression in the face of his giggling.
"Okay, okay, don't get your garters in a bunch Mamma, I'll tell ya, just hold onta your britches, alright?"
Several minutes and a glass of water later, Grady had finally managed to gain control of himself, and was seated across from his mother at their heavily scarred kitchen table.
"That was Mrs. Carroll, and she was wonderin, if, well, you see, uh, if Baloo could maybe, how was it she put it, escort her daughter to that big county fair this fall. Only thing is, Alice wants to do that big ol' dance contest this year, and the only feller they know around here that's near enough to her age is Li'l Britches. So—"
"You've got to be kidding! One of my boys, Dancing! I never thought I'd see the day. Plus, how is Baloo going to dance, I mean, his limp aside, he doesn't know how, and I don't have time to teach him."
"Yeah, I told the lady that, but she didn't seem too worried 'bout it. Said she was gonna hire some teacher or somethin' and she wants Baloo and Alice to learn together."
Dorothy simply sighed, not seeing a good way to beg out of this new situation and not appear rude. The Carrolls had only been in the area for a few months, and they were far better off than most of the other families in the area, making it best to remain on good terms. Friends were hard to come by when you were a single mother with two cubs and a decrepit farm. Alice's much older brother, Lewis, had been having some success with a career in writing. Dorothy had seen some of the books, and had not understood the attraction.
"Well, I don't see any way around it, we'd best ask Baloo, and if he's willing, I don't know how we can't let him at least try."
"It'd probably be good for him Mamma. Remember how Doc Finis always said for him to be sure and run around, and for us to not baby him, or let him limp anymore than necessary?"
Dorothy nodded, not understanding where Grady was going with that particular line of reasoning.
"Dancin' could be real good for 'im. I mean, he's got the coordination to do it, and it would be real good for his leg, I'd bet. And you never know, he might like it."
Grady started to laugh again at that last thought, the image of his little brother decked out in a suit and tie, dancing with the pretty little blonde haired rabbit.
The Following Afternoon . . .
"But I don't know how ta dance, Grady! I'm gonna look dumb!" Baloo wailed to his brother as they set off down the old dirt road to the Caroll's house in the town proper of Cape Suzette.
"No you won't, it's not hard. Ya just kinda move around real slow, and try not ta step on the girl's feet. They get mad if ya do that." Grady replied with a knowing look of painful experience at his little brother.
Both the boys had gotten dressed up for the occasion, as they were visiting a lady after all. Grady was in a blue coat with a brown tie, and his hair was slicked back in the current fashion.
Baloo had been required by his mother to wear a tie, but he had adamantly refused to wear anything but his old overalls. Dorothy had pleaded, argued, and railed at him for an hour before finally giving in and allowing him to leave the house in his somewhat unusual, but clean and neatly pressed, attire.
Thus set, the boys had set off down the road to Cape Suzette harbor where the Carrolls lived. And where Baloo was fretting over what was going to happen to him once he got there.
"But, but, what if I don't get it, what if I fall on her? What if I trip and fall down on my face? I'm gonna look dumb, Grady, why do I have to go?"
"You don't have to do it if you don't want ta, but you've gotta at least try, just to be polite. If you really hate it, then we can tell 'em that you can't do it, and we can go home. You might like it, you never know till ya try Li'l Britches. Now come on, we don't wanna be late, that'd look bad."
With that, Grady marched off down the road, and Baloo tramped along behind, doing his best to keep up. After several minutes of walking in silence, the pair reached Cape Suzette, and as always, the small dockside town immediately captivated Baloo. The air smelled of salt water and fish, the cobbled streets were busy with cars, yet still many horse and buggy combinations were to be seen, and hawkers vending their wares punctured the general hustle with their cries. There was even an old warehouse and office building combination that was trying to make it as an air courier service, as that new method of shipping was booming in the east. As the boys walked further into town, the new Khan industries tower was coming into view. The last time Baloo had been into town, the tower was still being built, but now it was finished, and he was startled by the sheer magnitude of the building.
Suddenly, Baloo bumped into something soft, only to realize that he had been so busy looking at the tower, he had walked into Grady.
"Lucky for you I was here, otherwise you'da been flatter than a flapjack right now Li'l Britches. That buggy 'bout had your name on it."
"Look at it Grady, it's, it's just so big! I bet planes have to be careful not to bump into it. Wonder what it'd be like to live in a place like that," Baloo responded, having paid no attention to what Grady had said, his eyes still fixed upon the enormous tower.
"Baloo, come in Baloo, we are on our way to your big date, remember?" Grady teased his little brother with a smile.
"Aw Grady, this ain't a date! I don't like girls, girls are always wanta play dolls, and make you dress up in fancy coats and stuff. I'm not ever gonna get married or go on dates, I don't like girls!" Baloo stated fiercely, stomping one foot and glowering murderously at his brother.
"What about Mamma? She's a girl, ain't she? You like her, dontcha?" Grady said with a grin, enjoying the normally laid-back Baloo's sudden outburst.
"Mamma's not a girl, she's a mother, mother's ain't girls, even if she does make me wear a coat sometimes." Baloo trailed off, becoming confused about his previously comfortable conclusions.
"You may change your mind one a these days Li'l Britches, but you're right, most girls ain't nothin' but trouble," Grady replied as he ruffled the smaller cub's hair with one hand, and pulled him onward with the other.
The cubs continued on their way, and far too soon for Baloo's comfort, they came to the home of Alice Carroll, the latest lady in Baloo's life.
"Now you be good Baloo, mind you manners, and try to behave like a gentleman. Don't talk too much, and be sure to be extra nice to Alice since she's the hostess. Do ya understand, this is important Baloo."
At Grady's serious tone, and by the way he dropped down to look him in the eye caused the small cub's stomach to flip over, and his mind to whirl. For the first time, he was a little scared to go into that big house with all those fancy people. He was sure he would embarrass the Von Bruinwald family before the day was out.
*I'm gonna get killed. I'm gonna say somethin' stupid and then they're gonna feed me ta lions, or take me to the King of Buckingham and chop off my head, or maybe lock me in the cellar with big ol' gross rats or somethin'. I'm not gonna make it!*
After he was sufficiently assured that Baloo understood the gravity of the situation, Grady got up off his haunches, straightened his tie, brushed off Baloo's overalls, and knocked on the door.
*'Grady's sure gotta be the bravest bear I know! Facin' all those horrible things an' all like that.*' Baloo thought to himself as he watched Grady greet the elderly rabbit who opened the door, and continue on into the house, seemingly completely unafraid and at ease.
Baloo hung onto the back of Grady's coat, trying to hide behind him, desperately wishing that the earth would do him a kindness and open up and swallow him right then and there. It only got worse when Alice came into the room.
"Hello Mrs. Carroll, thank ya so much for askin' us. I know Baloo can be a little shy sometimes, but in a minute or two he'll warm up to ya."
Suddenly, Baloo felt Grady grab the back of his overalls and physically lift him up and to the side, putting him in plain view of Mrs. Carroll and her daughter Alice. Baloo's knees almost gave out, and he stumbled a bit as Grady put him down.
*Maybe Grady's not such a swell guy after all*, Baloo thought to himself. Sometimes it really wasn't all that wonderful to have a brother who was so much older, not to mention so much larger.
After regaining his footing, and being released from Grady's grip, Baloo looked up, straight into the face of Alice Carroll. Alice was a small white rabbit with one ear that lopped slightly on the left side. She had golden blonde hair, tied back in a huge blue ribbon and set in the long curls of the period style. She had blue eyes, with which she peered at the world through small round glasses, perched delicately on the end of her pink nose. She was dressed in a blue pinafore and a white apron, with small black buckle shoes and white stockings.
*She's so pretty! Wow! She's as pretty as Mamma, well, almost. I can't dance with her, I know I'll break her or somethin' like that, sorta like Marie's china doll last summer. I thought she was gonna skin me and Charlie but good! If I break Alice, I know they'll chop off my head!*
Grady and Mrs. Carroll continued their polite conversation, as Alice stared at Baloo, and he, in turn, alternately studied the hardwood floor, and snuck glances at the "pretty girl" as he felt a flush creeping up into his face.
After what Baloo felt to be an eternity, the two older figures began moving deeper into the house, and Baloo hurried to follow along, grabbing at the back of Grady's coat once more.
"Hello! My name's Alice. You're Baloo, right?"
Baloo jumped, looked back, and there was Alice, walking right behind him and talking to him no less!
"H-h-h-hh-hhe-hhello" Baloo stuttered in reply, this time his eyes pinned to hers as if she had the power to control his gaze. In many ways she did.
She giggled at him, "You've gotta funny name, you know that?"
At that remark, Baloo finally let go of Grady's coat and set out to avenge his wounded pride. Puffing up as much as he could, he stared at her defiantly, "What do ya mean I got a funny name? Baloo is a perfectly good name thank-ya. My Daddy gave it ta me when I was born, some uncle or somethin' had my name, and he give'd it ta me."
"Huh? So, did your Daddy give you your name, or some uncle or somethin'? I'm confused."
"Well, uh, I think my Daddy named me, but I ain't sure. Mamma just told me it was 'A Family Name' or somethin' like that." Baloo trailed off, confused, and wondering just why he had such a funny name after all.
"Oh, okay. Have you ever danced before?"
"Uh, sorta. Sometimes Grady puts on records and we jump around and stuff, but I don't think that's what ya'd really call dancin', at least not fer the fair."
"I haven't ever danced, except for once with my Daddy at my Aunt Lucy's wedding. Lucy has a buncha kids now. You walk funny too, you are just a funny bear," Alice added with a giggle.
Once again Baloo was being torn three ways between his interest in Alice's Daddy and her Aunt Lucy, his once again battered pride, and his inexplicable happiness at being able to make this young rabbit giggle.
"I had polo a long time ago. It makes me walk funny. I'm a good pitcher though, even if I can't run too good. What is it like ta dance? Is it fun?"
"Isn't polo a game that you play with ponies? Did ya fall off a pony?"
"No, Mamma just told me that I had polo when I was three, and that made me walk funny. We ain't never had any horses at my house. Do ya have any horses?"
"No, but I have a pussy cat! Her name is Dinah, after we have our lesson, maybe you can come and pet her. It might take a minute to find her though, she likes to play hide and seek in the rose bushes."
At this point in the conversation, Grady and Mrs. Carroll had stopped, and Baloo and Alice were being introduced to Miss Fetterson.
The tall, stately peacock immediately began talking to the two cubs, setting them up in a proper position, placing their hands and telling them about the basic steps they were supposed to follow.
"Now then my dears, we are going to start up with a nice slow box step, just one – two – three – four – and back again. See, now isn't that easy?"
"Baloo, keep your hand on Alice's waist, yes just like that, now scoot up, dear boy, she won' t bite you, I promise."
Miss Feterson firmly placed Baloo's hand back on Alice's small side, and pushed him up closer to her. He had been standing at arm's length, terrified of being that close to a female he wasn't related to. The sight had been a comical one, with Baloo bent over, arms practically over his head trying to touch Alice only with the very tips of his fingers.
*I'm, I'm I'm touching her! I've gotta get outta here! I can't touch her, somethin' bad'll happen, I just know it will!*
The peacock then fluttered over to the gramophone in the corner, and the sound of a standard waltz began to play forth into the living room, having been cleared of furniture for the occasion.
"Alright now my dears, just keep yourselves right like that, and do just as I said with your feet. As I count, be sure to keep up, and step with each number."
"One-and-two-and-three-and-Oh no, Baloo, do be careful dear boy, don't hit the—wall."
Baloo had been so busy looking down at his feet, trying to keep in step and also avoid stepping on Alice that he had not noticed how close he had been getting to the wall.
Alice was highly amused, but trying hard to hide it; her small frame racked by silent laughter, and her mouth drawn up into a huge grin.
Baloo on the other hand, had hit the wall rather hard, and was a bit dazed by his run in with the oak paneling. Determined not to appear foolish in front of everyone, he quickly stood up, albeit rubbing his shoulder morosely, and declared, "Well, come on, lets get goin'! We've gotta lot a work ta do today!"
Much to Grady and Mrs. Carroll's relief, not to mention the enjoyment of Alice and Miss Fetterson.
The rest of the hour-long lesson passed uneventfully, and for Baloo time seemed to fly.
"Well, good-bye Grady, thank-you so much Baloo. You are a very brave young man," Mrs. Carroll called to the departing boys as they left for home.
"See you tomorrow, Baloo?" Alice called as she waved to the gray cub.
"You bet! And I promise I won't hit the wall again or nothin'!" Baloo called back gaily.
Grady continued on down the sidewalk, grinning like the Cheshire cat at his brother's attitude about the fair young Alice.
Running to catch up to him, Baloo immediately began on a torrent of words as he reached Grady's side.
"That was really fun Grady! And Alice is really nice. She is almost as pretty as Mamma. Did you see her pussycat? Its name is Dinah. Do you think maybe she could come and see my bunnies one day? I think she might like that. But I don't think she could bring Dinah, she might eat them up. Do you think we can maybe win a ribbon at the fair? Blue sure is a pretty color. What is polo? Did I ever fall off a pony? Wasn't the floor in there shiny? And it smelled like lemons. Do ya think they put lemons on the floor ta make it shiny?"
"Hold up Li'l Britches. Sounds like you had a good time after all, didn't ya?" Grady replied, looking down at the breathlessly excited cub hobbling next to him.
"And Alice is pretty huh?" he asked with mock solemnity as he peered down at the smaller cub.
"Hey, I didn't say that!"
*Did I?* Baloo wondered.
"No, you didn't, but it was written clear as crystal across your face. Get used to it Li'l Britches, she's got you hooked."
With that final statement, Grady picked Baloo up and placed him on his shoulders, the two galloping the rest of the way out of town. Baloo continuing his questions and observations from the full day he had just had. Hoping for many more of the same ilk to come.