An Irresponsible Boy

Little Joe Cartwright sat miserably on his bed. He was in trouble, bad trouble, and he knew it. He'd gotten home from school and hadn't been allowed to sit down and have his cookies and milk. He wasn't even allowed to go do his chores. He'd just walked in, got in trouble, was sent to his room to do his homework and wait 'til his father got home. Little Joe was not a happy boy.

But... but... he knew he was in trouble. He even knew WHY he was in trouble. He guessed he'd been disobedient. But still... he didn't FEEL like he'd done wrong. He didn't feel like he SHOULD be in trouble. He was probably gonna get a spanking, but he still didn't think he coulda done anything different. Oh, well. All he could do was wait and see. Even though this homework was finished, he might as well read ahead a little bit. At least it would pass the time until Pa got home.

Marie Cartwright was furious with Joseph. It wasn't so much him or what he'd done that made her angry. After all, he was only 7 years old, and carelessness was to be expected. But she was so disappointed in him! And she knew, just knew, that she was going to get one of her husband Ben's unspoken "I told you so" looks before the day was out. UGH! It was so infuriating. He was so accustomed to being right that when she pushed for something against his better judgment, and he yielded just to have things turn out the way he expected... well, it wasn't that he was "rude" about it, so much as that he was "smug". She just hated it when he could be smug, at her expense.

They'd argued about the darned new fleece jacket that Joseph had wanted for his birthday. He'd seen it in the Mercantile, and admired it from the first day it was on display. When they'd go shopping there, he would pull away just to go to it and run his hands over the suede exterior and the thick warm sheep wool interior. He'd asked from day one if he could have it, but it was expensive and she'd said they'd have to think about it. It was a wonderful heavy winter coat for him, long enough for good warmth but short enough not to interfere with him riding to and from school on his pony.

She'd decided they should get Joe this jacket that he wanted so badly for his birthday, which would be just before the cold weather set in hard. Ben disagreed, citing the expense and the likelihood that Joseph would just lose it or tear it up in rough play. It wasn't that Ben Cartwright was mean or cheap, but he didn't believe in wasting money either. He thought Joe would be just as well served with a sturdy denim jacket with a quilted insulated lining. Joseph was, in his opinion, too young to take care of a fine jacket like the fleece. But Ben had yielded, just to please her, and along with a number of other gifts for Joseph's birthday, there he had found the fine fleece jacket he had wanted so badly. Little Joe had been so happy with it, and put it away dutifully until the weather warranted it.

The serious cold had set in several weeks ago, and Joseph had dutifully worn and cared for his jacket just as she'd hoped. He seemed to be growing lately as well. He'd asked Hop Sing for a second sandwich and more fruit in his lunch pail each day, and seemed quite proud of doing his chores promptly and properly before and after school. She'd been so proud of how her little man was coming along.

And now here they were, on this bitter cold winter day, as she had caught Joseph arriving home from school without it. He had come in and immediately went up to his room to put down his school things, get on his old jacket, and head to the barn to do his afternoon chores quickly before coming in for his snack and homework. Hoss had come in with him, as Marie was busy changing the Twins after they had napped. Michelle and Benjamin, Jr. were almost two years old now and had been running and talking since their first birthdays! that, Marie believed, defined the term "mixed blessing". They were healthy, happy, and advanced in development. It also made them vastly more difficult to cope with than so many other mothers' happy "sleepy" babies who were still crawling and goo-ing.

But in the corner of her eye, she'd seen Joseph heading out wearing his old jacket, and, knowing how bitter cold it was outside, she stopped him.

"Joseph?"

"Oui, Maman?" he replied, often using French for short phrases, as Marie and Ben had raised him in both languages.

"I know you're keeping your good jacket clean, and may not want to use it for chores, but it will brush clean enough today. It's too cold outside, go change into the fleece, please."

Little Joe looked down at the toes of his boots as he said, "I can't, Mama."

Marie was confused, "Can't? What do you mean you can't?"

"I don't have it anymore, Mama. I can use this one."

"What do you mean, you 'don't have it anymore?' Didn't you bring it home from school?"

"Non, Maman."

"Did you forget it there?"

Little Joe shook his head.

"Is it damaged? Where is it now?" Marie's voice took on an angry edge.

"I'm not sure, Maman. I just don't have it anymore," Joseph was trying to figure out how to explain.

But all Marie could see in her mind's eye, was her husband's condescending nod as he affirmed how right he had been not to waste their hard earned money on an extravagant gift for an irresponsible little boy.

"Joseph, go to your room, work on your homework, and wait 'til your father gets home! I am VERY disappointed in you! Your brothers will do your chores, now GO!" she commanded, in her angriest voice.

Little Joe turned around and dashed into his room as tears filled his eyes. He hated making Marie even unhappy, let alone angry. It was very hard for the children to make her angry, but somehow he had managed it. And, considering the Twins, she'd probably been having a pretty tough day as it was. So, reading his way forward in both history and geography, miserably he waited... for his father to get home.

A/N: I enjoy the Bonanza universe, and hope you like some of these short sniglets that bounce past my mental movie screen from time to time. Please feel free to comment and/or review. Thanks for reading, hopefully enjoying! Grace to you, Gentle Reader! - Mort