Whumpmas Day Two: Two Turtledoves: Human Shield

Scott stood tall, as upright as possible, arms folded across his chest and fierce determination burning in his bright blue eyes.

'No!'

The man he was squaring up to raised an eyebrow.

'Get out of the way.'

'No!'

There was a sigh.

'Get out of the way, Scott. It's not you I want.'

'I don't care! You can't have him!'

The man pinched his nose and rubbed his eyes.

'Ok, this is getting ridiculous. Scott, get out of the way now or there will be consequences.'

If anything, Scott drew himself up taller, no mean feat for his height, and the determination morphed into a glare.

'I don't care. You can't have him!'

'Scott, please!'

'NO!'

There was the sound of the front door opening and the sounds of others entering the house, and it didn't take long for the room to fill with others.

Now there was an audience.

'Scott? What's going on?'

'He wants me to move so that he can take him, but I won't let him!'

'I'm just trying to make things better!'

'No!'

Lucy sighed. She knew this could be a sticking point with her son, but Jeff had been adamant he could deal with Scott. She'd known all along it wouldn't work but sometimes her husband needed to learn the hard way. It was the reason she had taken John and Virgil and bump to the library.

'Scott, maybe you should give him to your father.'

'No! He's mine!'

'Honey, it's time. You can't protect him anymore.'

'No, Mom! Please! I – I love him.'

She held her arms open and, with a piercing and hate-filled glance at his father, Scott ran to his Mom, keeping the object of Jeff's attention behind his back and his Mom between his Dad. Lucy hugged him, but still Scott didn't let go. She looked at Jeff over Scott's shoulder and smiled softly. She gestured with his eyes and Jeff nodded, taking the hint and took the boys out to the kitchen.

Lucy sat back on her heels and observed her son. She'd seen the defiance when he was facing his father, but now that it was just the two of him all those emotions drained out of him, and she suddenly had a very tearful seven-year-old in her arms.

'Please Mommy, I need him!'

'Scotty, it's time to say goodbye to Chuck. I can't help him anymore.'

'No! No, you can help him, just like you did before. Please!'

Scott held Chuck out to Lucy and she sighed, gently taking him and holding him close to her chest.

Chuck was Scott's first ever teddy. Two shades of blue, it had been everywhere with Scott from the first hour he had been born. Scott's habit of jumping off things and running very fast had caused more injuries to the bear over the years, and now he was a threadbare and scraggly mess.

Scott looked at her with hopeful eyes, but in all honesty Lucy was pretty sure that she couldn't fix Chuck this time.

'Oh honey, I'm sorry.' She sat on the ground and opened her arm, and Scott came and sat in her lap. Lucy passed Chuck to him and her son clung to him as if he was a lifeline. Tears were falling.

'It's time, Scotty, to let go.'

'Mommy?'

'How about we hold a little funeral and send Chuck on to other pastures?'

'Are you sure, Mom?'

'I'm sure, sweetie.'

'Can we give him a Viking funeral?'

'Oh? Who told you about them?'

'John and I were watching a film.'

'Ok. I'm sure that your Dad will be able to get a nice ship and we can set fire to it on the pond at the bottom of the garden. How does that sound?'

'Sounds good, Mom.'

That night the five of them gathered at the bottom of the garden and Jeff set fire to the miniature boat he'd rushed out to buy, and Scott had tenderly laid Chuck on the deck. John and Virgil placed a toy shield and sword beside the bear.

That night Scott crawled into bed to find two new teddies on his bed. They were both his brother's favourites, and they joined him not long after.

Scott slept well that night. And the next morning Jeff took him out alone to choose something else.

No one was surprised when he came home with a model aircraft.