.
Nov 8, 1807
Alejandro opened and closed the stall door several times, inspecting the repair. The men had done a good job. He was only half-listening to what Carlos was saying, but when the gist of his proposal finally penetrated he turned around in surprise. "Wait. You're talking about selling Great Idiot? To me?"
"There is no one else standing here," Carlos said impatiently.
Alejandro straightened and dusted off his hands. "He's the best bull you've ever raised, you've said so more than once. And he's worth twice what you're asking."
"If you're implying some kind of deception - "
"I'm sure the bull is fine. I want to know why you suddenly want to sell."
Carlos reddened slightly. "I need the money. I lost rather badly at cards last night, and I do not want to carry the debt."
"You should have thought of that before you played."
"I did not come for a lecture, I came to sell you a bull. If you don't want it, Sebastian or - "
"If I want the bull, I'll pay you a fair price for it, not take advantage because you've gotten yourself into a corner again."
"Do you want the bull?"
"Of course I want the bull!"
"Fine."
Alejandro realized he didn't know what to say. Carlos didn't seem to either. Finally, he said, "I appreciate it."
"Even at a fair price, I'm doing you no favor. Great Stupid is a perfect specimen." He took a deep breath. "If I wanted to do you a favor, I would find a way to keep you away from the table."
"Yes. Well. The folly is always obvious afterwards."
Diego and Felipe came into the barn, then. Thank Saint Mary. Any interruption was a welcome one.
Oblivious to the older men, Diego opened one of the stalls, checked the mare within, then pointed to her and asked in exaggerated signs, "What is it?"
Felipe made the usual sign for mare. Diego nodded and signed, "Good. Go on."
"The horse." A new gesture from the lexicon in the Spanish book on educating the deaf. Diego signed a correction, which Felipe nodded and repeated. Then Diego indicated the horse again, And Felipe's fingers did something so complicated and fast that even though Alejandro knew what he must be signaling he couldn't follow.
"What are the children doing?" Carlos asked curiously.
They appeared to have finished with the mare and Diego was now pointing to the barn dog that had followed them in.
"Apparently, Spanish signs and Indian signs are not the same. Felipe is to be bi-lingual. Or maybe tri-lingual, since he must also read and write and sign in grammatically correct Spanish. Or something like that."
Alejandro couldn't see what Felipe answered, but Diego laughed and signed, "Yes, they are friends. But I meant the animal. Tell me, please."
Carlos laughed. "You're joking. Surely, it's all the same. Anyway, I thought the child was learning to write."
"And now he can spell with his hands: it is called a manual alphabet. Eventually, it will be very useful." Eventually.
Felipe had stepped back. He was scowling, now. "It has four legs," he signed. "It has fur."
Diego was scowling, too. He was irritated enough to speak out loud as he signed. "You are using the wrong pronoun. This animal has four legs. It has fur. It is A Dog. The Dog. The Dogs. Felipe, you know these words! Why are you being difficult?"
Felipe knotted hands unhappily for a moment and then he repeated Diego's corrections. "The dog. A dog." And then the finger flashing that meant he was spelling it out.
Carlos chuckled. "I remember when Diego used to complain he'd rather go riding than do his lessons, and look at him now."
"It's been a very long time since Diego complained about lessons," Alejandro said. Felipe, though, in the last few weeks...he had become noticeably less enthusiastic.
~tbc
