Have a purely fun one! "Tolerate It," is a heavy song, but this drabble isn't.
For those keeping track, this takes place between the first two chapters of TYD, so Mattie is 6 and Al is 7.
Despite his best efforts, Mattie enjoys the evening routine at Arthur Kirkland's house. His new foster father believes in teaching the boys responsibility, so every night he stands watchfully behind them as they wash and dry the day's dishes. He helps with the big things, of course, but mostly he lets them figure out for themselves the best way to get each dish sparkling clean. Alfred—Al—does the scrubbing, and Mattie rinses and dries. He likes to move the towel in careful circles, making sure there's not a drop of water anywhere.
He gazes solemnly out the kitchen window as he polishes an aluminum serving tray and watches gray clouds roll in from the horizon. Ever since Easter there have been storms almost every day. Mattie holds his breath and listens for the distant rumble of thunder.
Tonight, however, the storm begins with a flash and a crack that seems to split the air right above their heads. Al whoops ferociously and almost falls off his stepstool. Arthur catches him, and Mattie waits for him to scold, but instead a smile—mischievous and crooked like Al's—creeps over his face. He grins at Alfred and, much to Mattie's shock, begins to sing.
"Thunderbolt and lightning very, very frightening me," he belts out.
"Galileo!" Al squeaks, dancing precariously on his stool.
"Galileo!"
"Galileo!"
"Galileo!"
And then they both howl, "Galileo Figaro Magnificooooooooooo," to the ceiling as Mattie looks on bewildered.
They don't stop, and Mattie listens, transfixed, to the strange song that tumbles smoothly from Arthur's mouth, from Al's in fits and starts.
The half-dry platter hangs forgotten in one hand. The fingers of the other tap along with the words that Mattie thinks, maybe, he might know one day.
When I was a kid, my dad used to sing this part of "Bohemian Rhapsody" a lot. It was the only part I knew for a very long time, and I still think of it during thunderstorms.