Why is Gone with the Wind in the movie section? Isn't it supposed to be a novel? Sure, the film is more famous than the book but it doesn't mean that the book should be ignored. Is it a mistake? Anyway, here's another chapter with a lot of talking and nothing really happening except an argument. Writing Mammy was hard, I had to make a list of "Mammyish word with English translations. And I'm sure there are still mistakes. But it was worth it, I guess. Mammy's pretty fun to write.
"Miss Scarlett, whut's wrong wid ya? Jes tell yo' ole Mammy an' stop makin' me wurry 'bout ya." Mammy pleaded.
"There's nothing wrong, Mammy." She sighed for what felt like the hundredth time. "I'm just sad because of Melanie." She wondered if she should go up to her bedroom. She had wanted to steal a bottle of scuppernong wine stealthily (her reserves of brandy were getting rather low) but instead she had run into Mammy.
"Ah knows der's sumpin' up wid ya, why woan't ya tell me, mah chile?" Scarlett ignored her and Mammy continued, "Yo've been lak dis since yah come back hyah to Tara. Whut done happen in 'Lanta dat I doan know of? Is it 'bout Mist' Rhett? Ah is sho' you kain be cryin' all day 'cuz of Miss Melly's death. 'Twuz months before an' yo' still bawlin' all the time an' yo' not gwine' back ter 'Lanta after dis long. Did'ya fight wid Mist' Rhett agin? Ah thinks yo'…"
"Oh, shush Mammy!" Scarlett yelled. Why did Mammy always know everything about everything? Why could she never keep any secret from her?
"Ah woan shush 'cuz Ah's free a free nigger naw. An' Ah doan wanna shush 'til ya done tole me why yo' actin' so. Las' time Ah seen ya cryin' wus when lil' Miss Bonnie done died an' Ah knows you din' cry fo' months 'cuz of her."
Melanie and Bonnie. If only Mammy hadn't mentioned them. Scarlett felt the tears coming again. If Bonnie hadn't died…
"Honey, Ah'm sorry." Mammy said hurriedly. "Ah doan want yah ter cry! Fo'give ole Mammy Miss Scarlett, Ah din' mean none of it. Doan cry mah lamb!"
"Oh Mammy, can' you see?" she sobbed, "Bonnie is dead and Melanie too and Rhett doesn't love me anymore!" She had unconsciously started shouting. "He wants a divorce! I just… why? Why is everyone I love leaving me one by one? Is God punishing me for what I've done? Is he? What should I do to make him stop? Become a nun like Careen?!" Scarlett had shrieked the last sentence as loud as she could. And then she realized she had told Mammy about Rhett. No, she had not only told Mammy, she had yelled it at the top of her lungs. Everyone in the house probably knew now. Suellen would feel even more contempt towards her.
Wade and Ella, she thought with a jerk. What about them? They had heard everything, she was sure of it. She cursed herself inwardly for losing her self-control. What would she do? How could she explain? Those two absolutely loved Rhett!
She would find some way to explain everything later. She had to take care of Mammy first. "Mammy?" She whispered. Scarlett had never seen Mammy looking that shocked before.
"Mist' Rhett wants ter… ter…"
"Yes. And I know I deserve everything, so you don't need to tell me again."
"Ah… Why, Miss Ellen mus' be tuh'nin' in her grabe! An O'Hara gal, divorced! Dat's sham'ful! An' huccome yo' talk 'bout the Lawd in sech an unr'spec'ful way? Eef... eef Ah'd knowed ya wud git so mad wid Mist' Rhett Ah wud have stayed wid ya in 'Lanta! Whut'd'you do to make 'em hate you lak dat?"
"I didn't make him hate me. He just stopped loving me after Bonnie died. And, we're not divorced and we're not going to be. I shan't let him do such a thing to me."
Mammy wasn't listening. "An' why's dat happenin', huh? 'Cuz yo been mean ter him, dat's why! Tellin' him it wuz his fault Bonnie done died! An' now yo' cry 'cuz Mist' Rhett doan love you no more! I kain blame 'em! A divorce… Oh Lawd, whut a duhsgrace!"
Mammy seemed to have forgotten Scarlett's despair and was concentrating completely on the fact that Rhett wanted a divorce.
"Mother?" Said a small voice at the bottom of the stairs. It was Wade.
"Wade, why are you still up? It's nearly ten." Scarlett asked tiredly. She wasn't even surprised.
"I heard about a divorce," he said quietly, slightly worried about being punished for being out of bed and eavesdropping on grown-ups.
"Mother is not going to be divorced, honey. I swear. You should go sleep now. Mammy, could you get him to bed, please?" She knew it was a rather weak attempt at getting rid of Mammy, but she couldn't think of anything else to do. She didn't want to talk about any of it today. Tomorrow. She would think about it tomorrow. Tonight all she wanted was a bit of alcohol.
"Yo' ain' gettin' rid of me lak dat, chile!" Mammy bellowed.
"Mammy, I am NOT divorced. I am not GOING to be divorced. So please, help Wade to bed."
She felt tired and very stupid. Why in the world had she starting yelling to Mammy that Rhett wanted a divorce? She had cracked. After all this time, ruminating dark thoughts by herself, she couldn't stand the pressure anymore. She had to let it out someway and crying or drinking weren't very good options, so she had yelled everything and now the whole house knew just how much of an imbecile she was. Maybe she could still try to talk about it to Mammy. Or anyone else for that matter. She could talk about how desperate she felt every time she thought about Rhett, or Melanie, or Bonnie, or mother and pa, and when she was done she would feel better. But not today. Today she was too wary. The only thing she wanted was to go to bed with a glass of brandy and forget her torments for just one day.
No! She didn't want to sleep; she never wanted to sleep again. She wanted to stay awake. She wanted to stay awake forever. Or at least until the nightmares went away.
"Will? Can we talk?"
"What d'you want to talk about Scarlett?" Scarlett knew it was a rhetorical question.
"I know you already understand everything Will. You know everything about me and Rhett but you just won't let it show."
"No I don't know everything. I ain't ever met this husband of yours, Scarlett." Will refused to look at her. He stared at the piece of straw he was chewing on as though it was a lot more interesting than her.
"So what? We can still talk."
"Listen, Scarlett. I don't know that Rhett Butler person but I know you. And I'm guessing you prob'ly love your husband more than Ashley by now. What I'm certain of though, is that this man's made you sad. He left you didn't he?" Somehow hearing Will talking of Rhett leaving her so casually made her feel… strange. It made it seem a lot more real for some reason. But it also made her more confused.
"You heard me yelling yesterday…" She was starting to blush in shame.
"Not just that. You've been crying all the time and coming from you it just ain't normal. And the look in your eyes, it looks just like your pa when he was thinkin' of your ma. All… empty."
"Are you saying I'm losing my mind?" She asked, faintly angry and more than a little worried. Was she going mad? She couldn't be!
"I dunno 'bout that. But I do know this, Scarlett. It's no use runnin' after him like you're going to, 'cause I know you're gonna pursue your husband and try to get him back. It's in your nature. But I don't think it'll be no use. He won't ever want to even see you anymore after leaving you like he did. Men are like that. So you should just let it go, and try to forget him. That's the only smart thing you can really do now."
And he walked away.